Last night as I got home from work, Sharon & the girls were in the backyard pool. I headed inside to do my usual ritual (various clothes and accessories from work in their respective places, and a change into comfortable clothes). I had just headed upstairs to our bedroom, when Sharon called my name out - in an odd and sort of desperate tone. I rushed downstairst o see Sharon in the entryway, and in tears, holding a slightly dazed and off-pallored Rose.
Apparently, there had been an incident in the pool where Rose seemed to be choking on something (Sharon assumed it was water), but then quickly turned a violent shade of blue and went limp in her arms.
Sharon freaked but had presence of mind to flip her over in position to vomit, which is what happend. Affer that point, it was just a matter of a few minutes of recovery time, but Sharon was understandably shaken, and in tears.
Dear God, but with respect to the often-used "every parent's nightmare," that - friends - is it. There were a number of occasions with Lucy, as she was transitioning into solid foods (as Rose is beginning to), where there were momentary instances of choking. All manner of terrors pass before your eyes at that moment, as you fly into action to fish the offending bit of food out of their mouth, or take alternative actions. In all cases, whether by your helping hand or without, the issue was resolved in seconds. But J.C.. that does send a daddy to reeling and reflecting for a short bit.
And that was just during mealtime. Lucy was generally a very stationary baby; and when she did start to move, she was a parent's dream in terms of avoiding trouble. She never had an issue with sticking things into her mouth or exploring things better left alone. Rose is the complete opposite. Crawing a full four months before her older sister did, she is a little Indiana Jane, seeking adventure and treasure all the time and at every turn. It's a whole new level of accountability we have for keeping dangers off our floor and away from her reach; particularly in light of our traditionally lazy housekeeping style.
Not much more to say about all that. Just ruminating this afternoon, as a momentary flashback and chill passed across my spine.
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6 comments:
I am very glad to read that all ended well. It is the most terrifying thing for a parent. Thankfully you and Sharon were calm and able to do the right thing. I constantly worry about the kids and hope that they are safe at all times.
Hug them tight everyday!
Man - I felt your chill. Totally understand. And totally thank god.
Yupper.
Continued safety to you guys' kids, as well.
Your guys', you guyse's, kids of you guys? Whatever.
Wow. I HATE that feeling.
You remember Elsa's fits of holding her breath... Well, while we were in Sioux Falls she scared us again. We were in the basement of Krista's sister's house, and Krista and I paused to watch something on TV, about to put Elsa to bed. It would have been two minutes tops, but that was cut short. Elsa was behind us, and had been playing with some toys, sitting at a plastic picnic table, and Krista glanced back, and from the look on her face i knew something wasn't right. Elsa was laying face down on the floor in an odd position. I got to her first, and picked her up and shouted her name and she started crying right away. Beth, Krista's sister, ran to get a Doctor who lives next door. He checked her out and she seemed fine. As best as we can guess she was tired and lay down. But she NEVER does that.
J.H.Christ. Sharon just took Rose in to the doctor and explained the situation. In the conversation, the Sharon had mentioned that Rose, when extremely upset and crying, can turn a little blue; especially her lips. The doctor: "Kids like that can pass out sometimes."
Great.
Yikes.
At least if they pass out, the autonomic systems take over. You can't hold your breath and kill yourself. If you could hold your breath until you passed out your body would start breathing again.
Not much solace I suspect.
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