Since I have learned this, I felt that it is most important to share this information. Somehow it got left out of the "What Mom's Need to Know" handbook. So here it is:
#1: vinegar- did you know that this wonderful pantry staple is the only real cure for wasp/ hornet stings? When our family went to Waterton for the September long weekend and several of the kids got stung (mine 8 times in one event) one MOM got out the vinegar and after I applied it to the wounds with a q-tip, the crying and hysteria instantly and magically disappeared. Who knew? Well not me, but now I do. It also just so happens that I had just picked up my kindergartner from school this week and pulled up at the local post office to get my mail. I hear a small child screaming in terror. It just so happened to be my little nephew and he had just been stung in his ear by a wasp. He was not a happy boy. I rushed back to my van and came back with some nearly empty vinegar packets (they were still in my van from the long weekend but somebody dumped them over.) There was just enough vinegar left to apply to his ear and in seconds he stopped crying. Amazing. Now I have never actually tried this on myself, but if a little kid will stop crying that quickly, it has to work. One thing though, if you apply too much , the skin can get rashy and sensitive to the stuff and it then all itchy. (oops sorry Devin)
#2: So last Friday, I was getting ready to go to Calgary with my sister-in-law for Time Out For Women (yeah) and child number 3 & 4 were outside playing. They came into the house with the old bean and pea plants for the garden that we didn't harvest. They were having fun picking the seeds from the pods so in my motherly ways I said- great! kids playing. carry on packing! Several hours later, child # 5 is fussy and ready for her nap. OK, take a few minutes, get her to sleep and keep on working. As I pick her up and lay her in my arms and head off to the bedroom I notice the runny nose. Gross! Gotta get that cleaned up before it ends up on my shirt!!!!! So I grab a tissue and am just about to wipe her up and notice that nope it's not a runny nose but a pea stuck up her right nostril! No Way. Two hours to go before the ride comes, still have to pack and have some chores left to do. So Mom (that's me) thinks I'll just get the tweezers and pick it out myself right. Dumb idea. What if it gets pushed up farther? Besides she won't let me anywhere near her nose anyway. Would you if your nostril just doubled in size? So I pack child # 3, 4 & 5, take 3 & 4 to my mother in law who already had # 2 and told #1 to stay out of trouble at home! Off I got to the medical clinic and announce that # 5 has a pea up her nose, it's starting to swell and she can't breathe that great. She sounded like she had a real bad cold you know the stuffy nose kind. Oh ya, her nose must have know that something was wrong, because it kept running but that just made the dried pea start to swell even more. (Should have tried black pepper before I left, maybe she would have sneezed it out!) So I sitting at the clinic waiting for hours (Oops 45 minutes) and then we are called to a room. Finally a nurse comes and asks for info. She tells me that she wants me to help get the pea from the offending nostril. Sure I'll help keep my baby calm while you suction it out I'm thinking. But hurry up I still have to pack!!!!! "No she tells me, lay her on the table, I (the nurse) will plug the open nostril and you breathe into her mouth, like CPR (sort of). If it doesn't work, we'll try something else". Once we started, Child #5 starts to wail. Great, open mouth breathe! Unfortunately it didn't work so we tried again. All the time I'm wiping baby slobber from my own mouth. Nothing. So on the third time, I gave my greatest blow yet and the little thing popped right to the edge of the nostril. Yeah. Now just plug the top of the nostril so it can't go back up and gently press down and it should come it out. Wallah, out it popped right into her open wailing mouth!!!!!!!!! Instantly she starts gagging as it goes down into her throat blocking her airway there! Both the nurse and I fly into action, swing her off her back and onto her front and smack her on her back to force the pea now from her throat. [It would have been a great gymnastics tumbling routine.] From CPR to Heimlich in seconds! She finally got it out and relief was given by all. We waited for a few more minutes for the doctor to check out child # 5 and then we were off. To mom's to pick up #2,3 & 4 and check on #1. Crisis Over. So----------------- here is the need to know part: If your child puts something up their nose, try this trick to get it out yourself. Plug the open nostril and blow into the mouth, hard. It may save you tons of time. But make sure that someone is there to help you when it pops out and goes down their throat!!!!!!!!!
If anyone else has some of the information that was left out of the Mom's Need to Know Handbook. Pass it along............ I Need to Know!
