June 6, 2009

Why You Shouldn’t EVER Give Your Little Ones Hard Candy

After a sweaty but productive morning at karate, we went to the country club across the street from our neighborhood today and joined. As we were heading to the car after joining and talking about going home and changing into our swim suits, Lil C put a hard candy in her mouth that the woman had given her inside.

The next thing I knew, she was choking.

At first she was coughing a bit, but I could tell she was having trouble. Then she stopped coughing and there was no sound, only the startled look on her face that was also now on my face. I grabbed her and gave her the heimlich maneuver and she started making sounds again, managing to get out a little cough here and there. But it was like the candy would get lodged in her throat and then come up a bit, and then get lodged back in there again.

I was starting to really panic, and Mr. BBM ran around the car to help. She stopped making sounds again and Mr. BBM grabbed her and gave her the heimlich again. This time she started making choking and coughing sounds accompanied by some gagging. The only thoughts going through my head during this short ordeal that felt like it was hours, was "What if it doesn't work? What if we can't get this candy out?" I started to think that maybe I should grab my cell phone and call 911, but I knew that no ambulance would be able to get there on time. We either got it out on our own, or she was going to choke and die. I was going to become the poster Mom for not giving your kids hard candy.

I picked her up because she was making sounds and I thought that she had swallowed the candy instead of spitting it back up. The next thing I knew, she burped this horrible burp, gagged and threw up the complimentary potato chips and pretzels and along with it came the bright red hard candy that I thought was going to take my little girl.

With the candy glaring at us from the parking lot, I cleaned Lil C up, and then started shaking. My heart was racing and now that she was ok, I felt like I needed to sit down. Instead, I knelt down and hugged her like I never have before. It was truly one of the scariest moments of my life; and I hope I don't ever have to repeat it.

Lil C and I have decided that there will be no more hard candy for her ever again. After spending the rest of the afternoon watching her play at the pool and not letting her out of my sight, and stopping to hug her constantly, I now know there is no such thing as a harmless piece of hard candy. She's had it a few times in the past few months, but she won't be having it anymore.

And Mommy? Mommy needs a martini. Stat.