Tongue-Tied

'Tis the season for frozen noses, tingly toes, and tongues stuck to frozen poles. Yes, my three-year-old had to test that tongue-pole idea on a perfect single-digit day. Fortunately, my eyes were on her and I yelled and so it was just a quick meeting of tongue and pole outside the elementary school. Fortunately, she was not stuck there so I didn't have to go to the cafeteria for boiling water. And it was too cold for outdoor recess so no kids witnessed this phenomenon.

No, we just walked home (luckily close by) with a shocked little kid wondering why her tongue was bleeding. I searched the old toddler books under "tongue" and found nothing and resorted to the Internet for the cold compress cure. I also checked in with my sister, who's a nurse, and learned that my niece (also a second child) had tried the pole trick as a youngster. I've also since learned that my mother-in-law stuck her tongue on a bridge rail as a child thanks to coaxing from an older sister.

So, watch your young kids on the playground (lots of good metal there) and ask friends and family for their tongue tales. You may be surprised to find how many kids have been stuck to a cold pole.