A Precious Life Saved

The weekend was so much fun, horrible, scary, miraculous, and wonderful all rolled into one. Let me explain.

We went to Arizona to my sister-in-law's house for the 4th of July weekend. They have an amazing backyard with a pool, in-ground trampoline, basketball court, skateboard ramp, horseshoe pits, and putting green. It's a kid and adult's dream vacation. The cousins had so much fun playing together. It was hot, yes 107 degrees hot, but as long as you were in the pool or kept dipping in every so often, it wasn't bad.

Christy and Chris had all kinds of friends over for a 4th of July barbeque yesterday. Everyone was having so much fun. We did a horseshoe tournament for the adults and the kids played like crazy in the pool and on everything else. It was so much fun.

Then the next thing we know, a 14-old boy is coming out of the pool holding his little 3-year old sister in his arms, who's blue in the face and he's yelling to his mom that she was at the bottom of the pool. The mom starts yelling for the dad as she carries her daughter, who began throwing up water.

One friend at the party was an EMT and another was a nurse, so they jumped in to help. Christy called 911. The little girl was breathing, so they didn't need to do CPR. They kept her on her side and after awhile she was crying so the dad picked her up and held her. As he walked to the front of the house, the girl threw up so much water, again. She took in a LOT of water.

The paramedics arrived and they took her to the hospital. As they took her away, she was crying, which was such a sweet sound to everyone's ears. They kept her overnight and were worried about the amount of water in her lungs. The next 24 hours would be crucial to know how she would do. I know I prayed a lot that night for her and I know many other's were also praying for her.

Her mom called the next day with good news. The scan showed no more fluid in her lungs and she was acting like she was back to normal. They took her home today and stopped by Christy and Chris' house with her. She walked in with her swimsuit and asked Christy if she could go swimming! Thank you Lord for the awesome miracle of saving her life.

So, here's how it unfolded and please be careful not to jump to judgement of anyone because if you've ever had a kid around a pool who has no fear of water, you know how easy it can happen.

The mom was taking her turn in the horseshoe tournament and the dad was watching the girl. The girl had her floaties on and wasn't in the pool at the time. The dad literally went to get some water balloons for his other kid for less than a minute. This is the part that is a "Thank you God" moment. The oldest brother's eyes were hurting him, so he put his goggles on and dove in the pool. That's how he saw her in the bottom of the pool! Had he not put his goggles on he wouldn't of seen her because his eyes would have been closed. Mind you, he was the only one in the pool at the time either. There were other adults in the pool and kids. It just goes to show you how quickly and QUIETLY it can happen.

At some point the little girl took her floaties off and decided she was going swimming. So scary! They think she struggled for quite awhile, which is why she took in so much water so quickly. They believe she was under for about a minute. The paramedics told Christy they prepared for the worst when they got the call of a girl at the bottom of the pool. I guess if the kid is still floating that means they haven't taken in as much water and it hasn't been as long. If they've already sunk, well you know what I'm getting at. I'm not telling you this to criticize anyone, it's to make you aware of how incredibly easy and fast it can happen. And with so many people all around her! We are so thankful she is ok, better than ok, back to normal! What a miracle.

Many people including myself have learned so much from this experience. If you're at a pool party or any party with water, designate someone to be the lifeguard. Christy and Chris are building a lifeguard tower at their house with her name on it, and will either hire a lifeguard for their next party or designate someone to watch the pool. Also, be aware of other's kids. We're all human and are able to make mistakes. Keep your eye on the little ones in the water. Most importantly, get your kid's swim safe! One of the friend's at the party is a swim coach and is now going to be teaching her swimming lessons twice a week in Christy and Chris' pool. Our boys took swimming lessons from Conni Pomeroy for the past two years and thanks to her, they are swim safe. Not to the point where you can leave them in a pool, but where they know how to get to the side or float on the their back for a breath. She was very strict and tough on them, but worth it. She will not let your kid learn to depend on anyone but themselves to save them in the water. Lastly, hug your kids tonight. I was pretty shook up by the event, as was a lot of people. It's impossible as a parent not to think of how awful that was for the parents to go through and imagine yourself in their shoes. All I wanted to do that night was be with my boys. I watched them play dress-up with their cousins and act silly. I just wanted to hear the voices, their laughs and see their smiles. Life is so precious and I'm so thankful that little girl is still with us today.