More on Adam’s toes

I've attached some pics of his toes. 

 
Please have a look at them and tell me what you think. See, they grow um, how can I put this… wide.  They are very wide at the top. Like a V. So even if I keep them short, they are still growing into the flesh on the sides. And can you see how his nails seem to bend and curve up on the top?  The nails even have creases, or folds, on the top.

 

 

Will the cutting the V thing still work? And where do I cut it?  In the white bit on top?

 

As you can see his toes are ok now, there is no inflammation or swelling, and hasn’t been for a while.  I just want to make sure I do the right thing for him.

 

Apologies for all the toe talk, but it is better than butt talk.

 

Speaking of which, I had guests around this evening to watch the Portugal – England game (what a game!!!  Even though the Poms can be annoying when it comes to football (a little too full of themselves), I am really sad they went out.)  While the guys watched the football, drank beers and generally did bugger all, the wife of the couple and I bathed the kids and chatted while my kids ran around naked after the bath.  My friend reads my blog and knows the pooing-in-the-cupboard story. 

 

I was just busy explaining how and where it happened when I noticed that Adam had squatted next to Marko’s side of the bed and made a pee.  Quite embarrassing, but she also has a young child my kids’ age so she knows that pee is an occupational hazard in the mothering job. However, even more embarrassing was her noticing that Adam had not only peed but also left a little ‘gift’ for Marko next to his bed. Like one of those chocolates they leave on your pillow in fancy hotels, except, well, it wasn’t a chocolate.

 

What is it with my kids and the shitting in my room!!!  Do you think it is the effect of the warm water, or the lovely free feeling of being diaper-less?  It is getting completely unfunny and I am going to have to ban all naked time if this continues. V childish of them.

 

Anyway, back to the toes.  What do you think? (BTW, Adam does not get those big hammer-head toes from my side of the family! Just saying.)

Comments

[oliviacw]

My littler toenails (though not my big toe) look a lot like that. Just keep them trimmed short - neither he nor I will ever be foot models, but it's not really a big deal.

[Nicole]

Just popping in my 2 cents - all three of my girls had funky toe nails from say birth to 2 - 4 yrs old. In fact at times, my little ones toes looked much worse than Adam's. I just trim within the white part and let them be. As they get older their nails get stronger and then the problem corrected itself for us. I hope the same will be true for you.

[Judy]

Tyler has much of the same toe issues as Adam. I'm not that worried about it - they seem to be correcting themselves.

As for the poo/pee issues, we gave up on naked romp time. The bath was too much like a little signal for Tyler's body to go into discard mode!

[Tammy]

If I didnt' know any better, I would think those were pictures of my son's toes. I wondered if all kiddie toes were that way, or just his.

I normally just trim the whites and let the rest be. However, at times the toenail looks almost as if it's "wadding up" b/c there's no room for it to grow horizontally. And often times, it will cause his socks to snag on the outer edges. When that happens, I trim off the "hooks" on the ends and let it be until it grows out again.

So Adam's tootsies should be fine as well...just may require a little snipping on the outsides from time to time.

xoxo

[cathy]

Yes, the white part at the top is where the v-cut goes. I really would try it -- let the nails grow out a ways (a few weeks will do in most kids) and then cut the little tiny wedge in the middle.

If it doesn't work, nothing lost. If you buff the edges down a little there's very little (if any) chance they'll tear the nail since I'm talking about a teeny teeny wedge cut -- like a quarter of a milimeter and since the toe "edges" outside the v will grow together from the bottom up and since kids' toenails tend to grow so quickly.

I used to do my kids nails while they slept. Easier on all of us.

Cath

[e]

They look rather like my children's toes, who've all inherited funny upturned nails (scissor-toes; you wouldn't believe how many socks we get through as a household...) from their dear papa. Mine grew out of the nail merging with the toe thing when they were about three or four, when the nails started to be harder.

Guted about England being out, but at least I can support France now with a clear conscience.

[Anne]

I'm so glad other people worry about the care and maintenance of their children's feet. I don't have the nail problem (yet...)but I'm concerned about cuticles. Are you supposed to push them back? Leave them alone? Why don't pediatricians bring these things up so you don't have to, while all the while thinking you're crazy?

[Beth]

My son's toes looked just like that until he turned 4. I never really did anything about it.

[MsShad]

Just keep them trimmed. They look like that because their nails aren't hard yet, and they get banged up by crawling and running into things.

[Laura(southernxyl)]

If Adam was a kitten, instead of a little boy, you could just put his litter box on the floor next to Marko's side of the bed and that would be that. I don't know why toilet-training toddlers has to be such a big deal, when little cats know exactly what to do. I've often wondered why that is.

[WendyP]

My nephew has the same exasperating toenails, and just finished a round of antibiotics due to an ingrown and infected toenail. His doctor had never seen one on a 2 1/2 year old. His daddy's are equally annoying.

By the way, those cute little chubby toes just made me ache!

[Elizabeth]

My assvice on the pee/poop thing: get a little potty like the Baby Bjorn Little Potty, or better yet, get one for each room. Tell Adam and Kate that when they need to make a pee or poop they can do it in the potty. It probably won't work all of the time or even most of the time but it MIGHT work some of the time, they might think it was fun, and hey! you've got a leg up on potty learning!
Re toes, my daughter has a funky left toe that curls all around. Adam's toes look normal to me! I don't know from toes, but got a giggle at your posts since my dd's funny toe was the first thing my mom noticed when she was born, and she still worries about it! (I didn't even see it until my mom pointed it out, and since it hasn't seemed to hinder dd at all, I'm not worried.)

[Cricket]

My son's nails look like that and he's almost 9. For over a year, he has refused me cutting his nails, so I let it be his bastion of autonomy. He hasn't had any problems with ingrowing, though. I wonder if they're too soft to do such.

[andrea]

My son's toes look like that too!

[jodie]

No assvice on the toes...except to say they look like little kiddie toes to me!

On the pooping, the bath ALWAYS triggered my daughter to poo. Sometimes it would end up in the bath (EEEEWWWWWW) but it was like clockwork, either during the bath or just after. So all I can suggest is a nappy on straight after the bath, and take it off again once he has "performed". Do you think they are marking their territory in your room...? I hear rubbing their noses in it works wonders ;)

[SarLiveSound]

Maybe the ingrown toenails are secretly what makes Adam so intense.

[Jen3 @ Amazing Triplets]

All 3 of our triplets have toes that look just like Adam's toes. Infact, if I didn't know better - I'd be concerned that some freak snuck in to our house and was snapping off pictures of my babies' feet ... that they then stuck up on the internet.

I've only done diaper-free time once ... all 3 poop'd, made a huge mess - and I swore I'd never do it again.

[Cristy]

I'd ask a podiatrist what he thought of the v first. I forget did he already suggest that?
Ava's toes are almost just like that! I keep them cut short then try to file the sides.

[L.]

I can`t offer any toe advice, but my daughter used to pee and poop in the kitchen whenever she was angry with me. I would scold her for something, and she would take off her pants and her diaper and SPLAT! I called it her "vengeful elimination." But it seems more as if Adam is leaving a little gift...

[3littlepigs]

All three of my kids toes were like that. My 3 1/2 year olds toes have finally started to look normal. I think that it just takes a little time for the toe nails to harden and find their correct place.

[Jen]

T, I am a beauty therapist so I deal with toes all the time. The important thing is not to trim the nails too short, the white part should just reach the end of the toe, the nail is there to protect sensitive nerve endings. also try not to trim into the sides, this often causes ingrowns. You also need to keep the skin soft with cream and push back cuticles gently after bath, this is also a good way to loosen that clingy flesh on the sides. Good Luck!

[Lisame]

There are nothing wrong with that child's toes!

[christa]

I'm not a doctor, but my husband likes to think that he is (he has ph.D., but nothing related to actual medicine). My husband has suffered from many ingrown toenail issues as an adult. He suggests two things...actually keeping the toenails longer and while the toenail is growing out, push on the skin at the sides of the nail to keep it away from the growing nail. Just his two cents.

[tanyetta]

The toes are PERFECT. PERFECT!

[John]

I've no idea why i'm posting on this since it's from July 06, but well, i see nothing wrong with those toes, i think all babies toes are like that up untill they're around 3 1/2 - 4, nothing to worry about :)