Yes, now that L has discovered grabbing stuff, she flings her arms about whenever possible. Most of the time, Powergirl and I can steer clear of these tiny weapons. Sometimes, however, a surprise left hook catches us by surprise.

Last weekend, in a hotel outside Los Angeles, the kid nearly gouged out my right eye. She seemed pretty tired at the time, and I was leaning in to give her a smooch on her little chin. Out of nowhere, the baby swung her meaty left arm across her body, opened her tiny hand (an attempt to grab my…eyelashes?) and popped me right in the eyeball.

Miraculously, I managed to sustain the hit without dropping an F-bomb. For the next hour, though, I swear I thought I was going to be blind (I survived).

Tonight, just before “Glee,” L had another target: Powergirl. She got her momma so good, it actually seemed like there was some bleeding in momma’s eye. For a second or two, Powergirl and I discussed a trip to the emergency room.

Then, gradually (and thankfully) my wife’s eyesight returned.

These two near-disasters have us contemplating our approach to parenting. Perhaps we should dress her with socks on her hands? Perhaps we should invest in sports goggles to wear around the baby when she’s particularly crazy? Perhaps we should take out a special life insurance policy against parricide?

Of course I’m being facetious here. Sadly, I suppose, the risk having your eyes gouged out is an occupational hazard of parenting an excitable infant. I just hope I’m able to see how cute she is when she’s finally old enough to know better.