Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Ouch! My Ears!

I am sure half the town just heard a deafening scream from a very excited almost 7 year old. As for Kelton and I...well..I think we have suffered serious hearing loss. :)

I just told Kaylen that she can indeed get her ears pierced and oh my goodness is she excited! She now knows what she wants to ask for in regards to birthday gifts: ear rings. And a place to keep them all, of course. (That's more from me than her... but whatever.)

I'm a bit nervous. I have a recommendation of a good place to take her too. And I plan to do a bit more mommy-research before just plopping her down in a chair. I'm sure I don't need to find anyone with liability insurance for ear piercing but....maybe I do. :)

It's kind of funny that I never gave two thoughts about anything when, at 17, I decided to defy my parents and get my ears pierced (I was forbidden until I was 18.). I just went to the mall with some friends, slapped down the money and slid into the chair. With two "bangs" it was done. I added a third a few years later but again, I didn't give a single thought to where I went.

As a parent, I find I second guess my decisions when it comes to the health and safety of my children. I try to keep in mind that life is just a series of calculated risks. All I can do is assess the situation and make the best decision I can at the time with the information I have. Is it safe to let Kelton walk around the block alone to get in his newly required physical activity for school? It is safe to let the two of them ride their bikes around the block together but without me? Is it safe to let them out of my sight for two minutes? Is it safe to let Kaylen stand, waiting for the bus, alone in front of the house for five minutes while I wrangle Kelton into getting his stuff together to go out? Is it safe to take my daughter to the mall to get her ears pierced? I'm constantly questioning the safety of situations for them and this is no different.

But alas....I know millions of people have piercings and 99.5% of those people suffered no serious consequences. And yet...those millions are not my child. My flesh and blood. My responsibility.

So onward we go. My baby girl will be getting her ears pierced.

(And I suddenly understand why my parents said I couldn't until I was an adult. I'm sorry I defied you, Mom and Dad. But in my (lame) defense, I was only 6 months from being 18 years old.)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

When I got my ears pierced, I was afraid after the first one I would chicken out and not want the pain of the second, so I found a place that had two girls working and they both shot on the count of three. So I got both ears pierced at exactly the same moment. I was very satisfied with the results.Just a thought for a girl who is hyper-sensitive. Love to all.
Lynn York