My sweet little baby has been eating solid foods for over a month now and she’s getting tired of the pureed mush I’m spooning into her. She wants steak and a baked potato, not rice cereal and squashed…well, squash. When we eat dinner, she gazes longingly at the real food we’re eating and she grabs at her sisters’ plates whenever they’re within reach. The problem is, poor baby’s got no teeth yet (she’s seven months old; her sisters didn’t spout their pearly whites until the eight month mark) so she’s not quite ready for finger foods yet. She can handle Baby MumMum crackers and sometimes I’ll give her a cold carrot stick to gum since she can’t chew pieces of it off yet.
The other day I tried giving her a different kind of baby biscuit, one a little more substantial than the MumMums (which are basically flattened puffs of ricey air) and while she was initially thrilled, it didn’t take long for her to bite off more than she could chew and she started gagging on big hunk of biscuit. I FREAKED. I ripped her out of the high chair, tipped her forward, praying gravity would play in our favour, helped fish out the slobbery shard of cookie and she was fine, but my heart kept racing long after her recovery.
See, if she had really been choking, I wouldn’t have known what to do. The time it would have taken for an ambulance to arrive would have been dangerously long and that is scary.
I took a first aid course about ten years ago, but don’t remember a lick of it. I don’t know how to do CPR on anyone, let alone an infant or young child. That’s kind of a big deal, considering I prize my children’s lives over anything in this whole crazy world. We’ve spent countless dollars on clothes, activities, toys, presents, and gear for our kids, but I never really gave much thought to taking an infant CPR class. It feels like it would be an inconvenience. How ridiculous is that?!
I think that when one chooses take a prenatal class, there should be a section taught on infant CPR and first aid. It’s kind of a big deal, your kid’s life and all.
Do you know CPR? Have you ever been in a situation where you had to use it on your child?
I had first aid training at work and they did touch on children, but I’ve had several moms ask me about this lately, wanting to take a class. I’m hoping I can get one in for them, possibly through public health.
I had a similar chocking experience with my daughter. She was happily enjoying some fishy crackers and then all of a sudden I realized that she wasn’t breathing. I completely froze and had no idea what to do. Luckily I was with a group of other mothers, including Jen the founder of UrbanMoms. I count my lucky stars that Jen knew exactly what to do. She grabbed by daughters from my arms, tipped her upside down and started hitting her on her back. All of a sudden the cracker dislodged and flew across the floor. It was a harrowing experience, not one that I will ever forget.
Amanda, you’re so right I spent countless hours in prenatal classes when I would have been far better off taking a first aid course.
I have my child first and and CPR, but I work with small children for a living. I’m not sure if I would have gotten it otherwise. Having the training has definitely made me more confident and relaxed when the kids do get their bonks and ouches. I’ve only had to deal with infant choking once, and that was with my daughter before I had taken any first aid. A relative had sent us the American Pediatric Associations guide to early child development and care, and it included a “crisis” section that I read constantly during the last month of my pregnancy. (I’m that neurotic.) It wasn’t a certification course, but the page on assisting a choking infant may have saved her life. And, yeah. It was terrifying.
Glad Brinley’s okay – that’s scary! I took CPR because work made me. I was 23 weeks pregnant with Claire so I certainly wasn’t thinking about the teenagers I would spend 10 weeks teaching but rather the 2 little people I would be caring for.
The mesh bags Marla mentioned work great (but suck to clean). Claire’s on her way there in no time!
i have taken CPR. but it would definitely be good for a refresher! thanks for the reminder 🙂 and what a great idea for a CPR party! i am gonna look into that one!
ps-the “munchkin” brand makes a soother looking thing with a mesh bag. you can put anything in there (ie: frozen berries, cucumber, apples, etc) and let the babes suck out the good juices, without worrying they will choke on the pulp 🙂
so glad Brinley is ok 🙂
Did you know you can host a CPR “party” by St.john’s ambulance? You can get a number of families together and a rep will come to your home and you can all get certified. And you split the cost. Look into it! Then you and your hubby and your friends can all have your minds put at ease! Anyways, it’s so important to know what to do in those instances. I think. So glad Brinley was Ok. Can be heart stopping.
I think of this often too. I’d like to know CPR for adults and children. Some of those tips you learn in first aid can be truly live saving. Worth knowing and worth the inconvenience … but I haven’t done it either!
Yes. I know it. Only because of work and because we couldn’t take the girls home from the NICU with-out taking it.
Good food for thought. Thanks.