When my son was a toddler, he bumped his head and wouldn't let me apply ice to ease the pain. My husband came up with a creative and colorful remedy.
He took an inexpensive bag of colorful new sponges and cut each one in half, creating strips just the right size for toddler hands (You can also make fun shapes using metal cookie cutters).
He then soaked the sponge strips in water and placed each of them in individual zip-lock bags. Finally, he placed the bags in the freezer.
Within an hour, our son was able to choose one of the colorful frozen sponge bags to place on his head.
So the next time an accident occurs, and it will with toddlers at play, let your child choose a colorful frozen sponge bag to place on the bump. As the sponges defrost they become more pliable against a sore spot and are safer than a large blue block of ice that could become the object of another slip and fall.
It worked for us. It eased my son's bump and my worried nerves!
Mary Billiter is a weekly columnist with The Pinedale Round-Up. Her column appears in the The Round-Up. You can contact her at mbilliter@silverstar.com.