Write down this number! It will save your child's life!

This is the "911" number to every poison center in the US. It is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. How do I know this? Because last night my little Ben, and his endless curiosity, helped himself to a mouthful of poison.

Before anyone freaks out, don't worry! HE'S OKAY!!! Seriously. He's fine. I was slightly exaggerating when I said that he drank poison. In fact, this story really does not even need repeating; I do not need mass hysteria (read: certain family members) on the other end of the phone line.

Here is what happened. I was downstairs in the kitchen getting things prepared for dinner. The boys were upstairs playing, as they have done a million times, and all of a sudden I hear Ben screaming. I run upstairs to find him in the bathroom with Daddio's electric razor cleaning system:

in his hands, with the cleaning solution all over the floor, down the front of his shirt, and IN HIS MOUTH! I freaked out and didn't know what to do. (At this point, I was unaware of the poison center hotline number). I tried rinsing out Ben's mouth, calmed him down, and frantically called Daddio in tears, who then came immediately home from work. Anyway, long story short. Ben is fine. I don't think that he even really swallowed any of the cleaning stuff (which turns out to be 40% alcohol and 60% water). As soon as it hit his mouth and started burning, I think he instinctively spit it out again.

We are usually pretty careful when it comes to household cleaners and "poisons" and keeping them away from little hands. I keep all medication safely out of reach and usually keep the door closed in the downstairs bathroom, (where Ben is known to frequently explore). We haven't really worried about the upstairs bathroom because there are no cleaning supplies up there, and all medication is out of reach. However, what neither Daddio nor myself considered was his razor's cleaning system. (Truth be told, I didn't even realize that he kept it somewhere that the boys could reach; I rarely use that bathroom. But I'm not about to point fingers at anyone here).

If you look at the cleaning system, it doesn't really appear to be something that one would need to worry about. The cartridge itself looks as though it's pretty secure in there, (it's the blue plastic line thing at the bottom), and unable to be opened by little fingers. However, it turns out that if you tip the device over, all of the liquid pours out (seems like a pretty poor system to me). What Ben must have down was pulled it down from the shelf and either tipped it over on top of himself, or tried to drink from it like a cup. Either way, all of the liquid came pouring out.

Now, I want to make this perfectly clear, in no way, shape, or form, do I hold the product or the company to blame for this. Yes, it seems stupid that this device is not spill-proof, but this was entirely our fault for storing it somewhere Ben can reach.

(Source)

I guarantee you that we will be reevaluating the potential hazards in our house, no matter how innocent and safe they may appear. (I suggest you do the same). Bathroom doors will stay closed, razors will be kept entirely out of reach, and this cleaning system will find a permanent home on the tippy-top shelf, behind padlocked doors, with an alarm system.





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