Do It For Owen

So, today is Police day. And I am not nearly as excited as I thought I would be. Because Stacie is not coming.

Stacie is my good friend in Kansas City, who I saw in Chicago, who shares my love of music, shares my sense of humor, and is all around one of the coolest people I know. And as much as I love Sting, Stewart and Andy – tonight was really about Stacie and I seeing Sting, Stewart and Andy.

When I got home from the lacrosse game last night (more on that later), I saw her name on my caller ID and knew something was up. We’d already made plans to meet at DIA the minute her plane landed on Sunday so the fun could begin. No reason to call unless the Chicago curse had spread west.

I listened to her message with my jaw hanging open. Her youngest son Owen had a major choking incident yesterday. So bad that he was blue, passed out, CPR, 911, EMTs, snake down his throat, hospital… the whole deal.

BUT – THANK GOD HE IS OK.

The hospital was keeping him overnight for observation and either way, there was no way Stacie was getting on a plane and leaving her family. No kidding. I can’t even imagine how shaken to the core she feels.

I did have to give CPR to Declan once when he was in the NICU during his preemiehood, but there were nurses swarming as I did it, and they swooped in and took over. Nothing like what Stacie and her husband went through.

Which makes me so glad that my friend Rachel (of the photo mania below, and a different little Owen) recently organized a Pediatric CPR Class for her friends. Bryan and I had taken a class during my pregnancy, but figured it couldn’t hurt to take another one, since it had been a few years. I was amazed at what I had forgotten, and what had changed. The EMT giving the class says that she is required to recertify each year because new techniques come up every single year.

Bryan and I vowed to keep taking a class every once in a while, because even with the training you never know what you will remember in an emergency situation.

Here are a few links from BabyCenter that are good at explaining Infant (under 1 year old) and Child Choking/CPR procedures… but go find a class to take. Yes, practicing on the dummies feels weird, but you never know when it really may be that important.

= INFANT FIRST AID =

= CHILD FIRST AID =

And while I will definitely miss Stacie tonight… Owen is wayyyyyy more important.

P.S. I wanted to make sure I was clear that Stacie’s husband did everything correctly with their son during this emergency. Some of you asked me about that, and I did not mean to imply that he didn’t by posting the first aid links! I just was trying to pass along helpful info! 🙂