No hands leads to a bruised head

Today, I was playing on the floor with the girls when all of a sudden I noticed Lucy standing there in front of me. Now she has been standing for a little over a month- but its always been with the assistance of a lovely chair, coffee table, or mammal. When I looked today- it was no hands on deck! On any sort of deck!

Hooray Lucy!

About 20 minutes later she was up again... and then came crashing down- face first.
And momma's first bloodied child experience began.

Now granted this abrasion was quite small, being maybe and quarter inch (if that) long and less than an eighth inch deep, but Dr. Mom and also Freaked-out Mom acted quickly with comfort, cold press, and a call to the doc. I wasn't exactly sure how deep it was and it seemed to start bleeding again after I changed the band aid... so the doc said "don't take a chance, go to the ER".

So while folks have called Baltimore many things: Charm City, Birdland, and the least flattering Murdermore (check it out in the Urban Dictionary).. it is also the city of hospitals. So our doc recommended we NOT go to urgent care if it had to do with potential stitches and go to an ER, so I mentioned we were close to Mercy (which is where I delivered) and of course the very well (and worldwide)-known Hopkins. We were going to do Hopkins until I recalled a conversation I had with someone (and web research/ reviews confirmed) that Hopkins, while a great hospital overall and especially for serious ailments, may not be the best place to stop in to the emergency room, much less with a baby. Not only are they known for being the closest ER to many a Wire worthy scenes, but they are known for handling some pretty intense trauma from all over the state. Needless to say, bringing in a little cut to the head was probably going to take many many hours that we did not want to spend in a waiting room.

Lucy while waiting in the ER
Note- upper right of her head (her upper left)

So we went to the University of MD medical center that had a pediatric ER. Dave dropped Lucy and I off. There was no one in the waiting room (at all). And we were still there for 2 hours:)
After it was all said and done, I was a little embarrassed sitting in there with such a little wound on my child (which ended up not needing stitches but a little patch that holds it together); but on the other hand- we weren't taking any chances!

On the bright side, we read numerous card board books, played Boggle (our travel Boggle shakes like a cool rattle; naturally she's super smart :) but I will not risk losing to an 11 month old!), and towards the end I was even reading my Maya Angelou book "Letters to My  Daughter" out loud in the exam room.

So now, both the girls have had their trip to the ER... let's hope I don't post anything in this category again for a long long time:)