Thursday, January 22, 2009

You Whittled What???

DS has been involved with Cub Scouts since first grade. He is now in 5th grade and preparing to soon transfer from Cub Scouts into Boy Scouts. He absolutely loves scouts. It has taught him many skills. Some skills are very useful. Some skills make a mom cringe. One of those skills is whittling. Yes, my DS learned how to whittle and became skilled enough (although that may be a subjective assessment!) to earn the "whittling chip" award and granted the privilege of carrying his pocket knife to scouting events.He has been reminded many times to be very careful with his knife, and for the most part has been cautious. There have been a few minor nicks along the way, but for the most part he has whittled safely. Until tonight. This evening after supper he had gone up to his room (and was supposed to be getting ready for his scout den meeting) and was whittling a stick. Well, he whittled more than that stick. He whittled his finger! His right index finger to be exact. And since he's right-handed, I'm not sure exactly how he managed to do that since that's the hand that holds the knife. He claims to not know exactly how he did it either...... So off to the local Urgent Care we went because it was a deep cut, right on the tip of his finger and into the nail. Luckily they have this nice product called Indermil, kind of like super glue for skin, that they can use in some situations instead of stitches. That is what they used on DS tonight to his relief (he does not deal well with anything medical so he was greatly relieved to not have to get stitches!). So now we get to keep his finger dry for the next 48 hours and not let it be scrubbed or soaked for the next week.....fun to figure that out when it's a finger on a hand that needs to be washed multiple times a day......guess he'll get to use some baby wipes to clean his hands for a few days. And there will definitely be no whittling for a long time while we review the safety precautions he needs to take so that he only whittles wood and not flesh.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Let's see now---DS whittling in his ROOM? Knowing him so well, was he even close to a waste basket? I can just see some new designs on the bed and dresser in his room. Then there is the thought that some day when the closet is finally in order you will find a new design carved into the woodwork. :) :)
Grandmas are good at thinking ahead!

Anonymous said...

OH MY!!!! I'm glad to know the rest of the story. :) JMO