Expressions of pain

Maïa's knees are all mangled up. She has fallen four times, on the pavement, in the past week or so. We've run out of Princess Band-Aids, we've run out of Dora Band-Aids, and we're even out of Sponge Bob Band-Aids.

The first evening after the worst injury occurred, Maïa was very... um... whiny. There's no other word for it. I understand that scabs on the knee are painful and uncomfortable, but Maïa was really milking it. She sat in the livingroom, on the floor, complaining that she couldn't get onto the armchair because her knee hurt too much. I picked her up and placed her on the chair; then I returned to the kitchen to help Derek with dinner.

Soon, we heard a plaintive moaning, almost a meowing! "Ow. Owee. OWEE!!" It was Maïa, once again, complaining. It went on and on and on. At one point, I really did think there was an injured kitten outside the livingroom window! I asked Maïa, who had crawled back down to the floor, if I could get her anything. She told me she would like some paper and her markers. Finally!, I thought, maybe this will get her mind off the pain.

And sure enough, it did. The moaning stopped. Derek and I continued to prepare supper in peace.

A few moments later, our sad little injured Maïa scooted her bum into the kitchen (remember: walking was too painful!), and with her best puppy eyes, looked up at us and pointed to her creation: