Kids play and that means bruises. Little ones, big ones and the occasional goose egg that resembles another shoulder growing out of the forehead. Icepacks are a reliable treatment especially for the whoppers since they keep the swelling under control. But when Junior’s wailing in the moment, creating an icepack out of ice cubes and a plastic baggy and tie is a cumbersome and nerve-wracking effort. It’s better if you have something available quickly.
We learned early on that the best alternative was to use a readily available bag of frozen food. Why?
- A screaming child requires immediate attention and the steps involved in creating the ice pack can lead to spilled cubes and angst as the child wails. Grab the bag and run.
- A frozen food bag is typically larger than the baggy with ice and will cover a larger area.
- If the bag is filled with a larger number of smaller items – peas or blueberries – it will more readily mold to the form being covered and distribute that cold more evenly.
- I found that it created more opportunity for distracting conversation; gee, does that feel like a blueberry bruise or more of a green bean bruise? When they were a little older, the kids would even label the bruise as fruit or veggie and I took to keeping a bag of each sealed in separate freezer bags, lying flat in the freezer.
- The plastic bag is sealed and does a better job of not leaking than a baggy. That said, we keep ours in ziploc freezer bags since a blueberry leak will lead to stains.
Like many things, it’s something that I stumbled upon in the cold of the moment.