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Boo Boos:

It is every parent's instinct to protect their children. That's what we are here for, after all. The very next thing parents want to do is to always make their child feel better. When they feel pain, we feel pain, it's just a part of parenting. Another part of parenting is having to watch our children get hurt constantly. When they are newborns, they will scratch their own face, when they are holding toys, they hit themselves with one, when they are crawling, they will bump into things, and it only gets worse when they start walking.

Children, even small ones, get hurt constantly. When it happens, a parent's instinct is to pick up the child, cuddle them, sort of whine to them "Oh, no, are you okay? You poor thing."

We want them to feel better. We want them to know they are loved, we want to make it all better. But with all this love and attention we will give them, we have to somehow teach them to be tough, because, as little as they are, they will begin walking and then running and then riding bikes and the boo-boos only get worse from here. So, how do we help our little ones feel better while also helping them be tough enough to not cry every time they get even the slightest scrape or bump? Well, there are a few secrets to doing this that, while they don't always work, can mostly make the boo-boos more bearable.

• Watch your reaction

Ever notice how a baby will hit themselves with a toy and then look at you with a terrified questioning look on their face before they start crying? The baby is gauging the parent's reaction. Then, when the mom (or dad) shows a horrified expression and runs over to get the baby, he knows it was a bad thing that happened and he begins to scream. No one ever tells a soon-to-be-parent that one of the biggest parts of their job will be being able to act really well, but it is. You will have to watch your child get hurt and never let them see how bad you feel for them. When they look to you to see what you think about the rattler hitting them in the head, you have to look as happy as possible, keep a happy upbeat tone to your voice, and try not to let them see how much you hate them being hurt. Many times, the child will forget about the rattler hitting them, and begin playing again like it never happened. If they watch your happy reaction and still cry, though, it is definitely time to pick them up and coddle them.

• Bad Chair!

When your child is hurt, they watch your reaction before they decide to cry or not (most of the time). If your child is really hurt and doesn't do this, or watches you but decides that no matter how happy you appear, that chair really hurt their head and they are going to cry anyway, there is still a way to make them feel better. The object that hurt your baby must be hurt, as well. You hit the chair and say "Bad, bad chair!" This can make all the difference in how much your child cries.

• Band-aids

Band-aids can work wonders for boo-boos, especially when they are brightly decorated or are sporting your baby's favorite cartoon character. They cover up the boo-boo and provide some distraction acting as a sort of sticker. They can work very well, but there are a few drawbacks to doing this:

It can be a hard habit to break—if every little boo-boo (including those ones you can't see) gets covered by a band-aid, you may end up with a toddler that has twelve band-aids strategically placed all over their bodies.

Your child may end up with more and more boo-boos that you can't see—this one is a common drawback for the band-aid method, and I must warn you that invisible boo-boos appear most often when the band-aids are the child's favorite kind.

They hurt when taken off—this is a big one. They make the boo-boo feel better for the time being, but when it's time to take them off, it can be a nightmare. The best way to deal with this is to use baby oil to slide them off. It won't be nearly as painful for the child.

Certain parts of the body were not meant to wear band-aids—such as the top of the head. Baby oil just doesn't always quite do it when a band-aid is stuck in hair. (Side note: if you do decide to use this method for making boo-boos better, and you are faced with a need for a band-aid on the head or face, you may want to make up a rule that the band-aid for those boo-boos goes on the pinky finger.)

You may run out—obviously if you use band-aids on a regular basis, you will try to always have some on hand, but what if you accidentally run out, or are in public and forgot to bring any with you? Well, you need a back-up plan for boo-boos, that's all.

• Kisses

One of the best, and most easy, methods of making a baby or child's boo-boo feel all better is to kiss it. Kissing the boo-boo is a very common requirement of moms and dads alike, and it is an excellent method. For those boo-boos that can still be seen, and therefore hurt, it might be best to combine this method with the band-aid covering for best effect.

 

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