CPRMom

I think it is natural human curiosity to want to see our natural world when it is altered by weather. I base this assumption on the number of weather documentaries and large crowds of people who flock to the beach during storms. However majestic those large crashing waves look, we all need to remember that storm charged surf can be very, very dangerous. When a storm or hurricane passes off short it creates storm surge. This is an increased tide caused by the pressure of the winds around the storm. The National Weather Service has a really good webpage that illustrates this. Waves are very powerful and heavy. According to the National Weather Service water weighs approximately 1,700 pounds per cubic yard. This is strong enough to damage buildings, and can more than certainly knock you off your feet into the surf. You can be pulled away from shore or pushed back on to it. Despite the draw of going to look at the rough surf - please refrain from doing so. During storm surge it i...

In some parts of the U.S. kids are back to school already. My older children return to school in just a few weeks. The stores are busy with all their back to school sales and we're all getting ready for the first day of school. When you're getting your kids ready to return to school there may be some additional school supplies you'll need to shop for - updated prescriptions. If your child has a prescribed medication that you provide to the school nurse this is a good time to review if your prescription is current and won't expire during the school year. If you provide epi-pens, asthma inhalers, nebulizers or other medications, read the packaging for expiration dates. If it will expire before the end of the school year take the extra time BEFORE school starts to refill the prescription. Three months from now when everyone is busy with school, sports and other extra curricular activities you may not remember to replace the expired epi-pen that you gave to the school ...

Okay, the title is a bit of a play on those credit card commercials: ".. so what's in your wallet?..." the character on the screen asks. My question is "So what's in your first aid kit?". What is the one thing in your kit that you use the most? For me that would be adhesive bandages, aka 'bandaids'. Like most households with kids, we have a lot of skinned knees, toes, elbows, shins, hmmmm... almost any part of the human body! So I stock up on all different sizes of adhesive bandages to keep with my kids cuts and scrapes. A long time ago B.C. (before children) my most used first aid supply was probably the insect repellent I kept in my kit. So what do you use the most of out of your first aid kit?

I frequently am asked what an AED is. An AED is abbreviation for an Automated External Defibrillator. An AED is used in conjunction with CPR to try to restart the heart during Cardiac Arrest. Using an AED is very simple. Different models and manufacturers of AED's can look different but they all operate the same way. AED's have voice prompts that will guide you through how to use it, in addition there are step by step directions inside the front cover. The are actually very few steps to operate an AED, but to make it even easier I've broken it down into several steps: Step 1 Turn the AED on. On models with a hard cover the button to open the cover is the on/off switch. On models with a soft cover there will be a green on/off button. Step 2 Take out the package with the AED pads. Open the package and place the pads on the person following the pictures on the back of each pad. Each pad will have a picture of where it should be placed. Please note that the pad must ...

I'd love to say with no hesitation that CPR saves lives every single time. But the reality is that it doesn't. For some people when it is their time to pass away, it is just that. It is their time - and we have to accept that. This is not meant to be a morbid post, but rather a reflection upon how short life can be. Tonight I attended a wake for a former co-worker who is not that much older than I am. He leaves behind a beautiful family and a community that he was heavily involved with. As I drove home I started to think about how short life can be and sometimes how much time we waste on things that perhaps are not as important in the bigger picture. I have had a very stressful week full of car problems, extra bills (thanks to my car) and some hurt feelings at home. But tonight I realized that all those things that I stressed and obsessed about all week really shouldn't define or direct how I live my life from day to day. Many others have said that we define and set...

I’ve mentioned in a previous post that I work part time as an emergency dispatcher. I had a call recently from 2 children ages 8 and 10. Fortunately they were not in any danger but our response to them was difficult because they could not tell us their home address and were calling from a cell phone that was only enabled for 911 so we had no actual return number to locate an address from. This was challenged by a bad cell phone connection and their vague description of where they were. As your children become old enough to play outside without a parent in attendance make sure that they know their street address and home phone number. This information is important if there is an emergency so that we can find them and locate their parents.

Lately I’ve been neglecting my blog, my social networking and my business. This is hard because I enjoy all of these things. But I’ve been working and reading a bit more lately. One of the books I’ve been reading has a great quote that sums it all up, Life gets in the way. I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed by the myriad responsibilities that have come my way lately. I know I volunteer way too much and I also am not good at saying NO when asked to help out. This is also a slow period for my business so I have been working more at my part time job. So when I have a free moment (hah!) there is so much that needs to be done that I can’t figure out which to do first so most of it does not get done. And I know that this is not unique to me and that this probably happens to a lot of us. A good friend at work recently lent me two books. Both are inspiration and thought provoking. I’m taking my time to slowly read and reflect on them. I need to reprioritize my life, add more fun fam...