"I ate a key"

Rafe at 3 yrs old

 

 

 

When Rafe was about 3 years old he swallowed a key.  It was one of those suitcase keys, although I didn't know that at the time.  I remember him coming to me and telling me he "ate a key."  He kept pointing to his tummy and telling me it was "in there", but he couldn't adequately tell me what key or how big it was.  I ended up taking him to the doctors office, who ordered an x-ray.  They took a picture and sure enough...he ate a key.  They told me I should check his poop for the next week (are you kidding me?) and if I didn't find it I should come back and have another x-ray taken.  I didn't search very hard...so the next week we had another x-ray (much cleaner and not as gross!) to verify that he had passed the key.  Hey I didn't want it back anyway!

Now, lets fast-forward 6 years.  Tonight Rafe asked me if I remembered when this happened, which of course I do.  Tonight he tells me the reason he swallowed it was because he had it in his hand when he was going into the bathroom.  The door was closed.  He needed both hands to open it.  He had no pocket.  Putting it into his mouth seemed like a good idea.  

I guess in his 3 year old mind he thought he could retrieve it just like they do in the cartoons.  Swallow it, then later when you need it reach in, cough gently and....voilà!  You have your key back.

My kids make me smile and I am grateful for them and their sense of humor.