Innocent enough, yes? Just enjoying another quiet day at the playground? Just resting after several rounds on the swings and slides? Just going to watch the big kids run around while i sit here and casually suck on my fingers, lost in thought? NO! If you look closely (click on the photo to enlarge it), Elliott is slyly trying to shove a wood chip in his mouth. The last trip we took to the playground was full of these little episodes. The first time, Elliott laughed as I fished out a large chunk of tree from his mouth. Later, I caught him chewing on something again. He wasn't so quick to give it up though. Iwona had to hold him so I could pry it out of his jaws. And then the third and final time as we were leaving, I noticed him chewing happily away on something. I honestly would have let him keep chewing on whatever cud was forming in his mouth except he kept gagging every time he tried to swallow. This time required strapping him in the stroller, Iwona holding down both his arms, and me jamming fingers from both hands in his mouth to pull it out, all the while his head is thrashing about like some crazed animal tearing apart a carcass. Two hands are now required whenever investigating the contents of Elliott's mouth. A finger from one hand is kept sandwiched between his jaws in a location where there are no teeth yet in order to help keep his mouth propped open so that the other hands fingers can extract whatever needs removal without being bitten in half.
So how'd you do?