Sprout
Sous Chef
I had a scare with DD yesterday morning. I got her some cereal, something similar in size and shape to cheerios. I thought she'd like the cereal I was eating, Quaker Oatmeal Squares, but I thought "they're a bit hard to chew, so rather than feeding her a whole bowl, I'll just tossed a few in with her cereal." I'm not sure what I was thinking. Well, I wasn't. I guess that's the point. I gave her hers and turned my back long enough to pour myself a bowl of cereal. Just as I finished she made a strange noise. I turned around and her face was bright red. I rushed over to her, she seemed to be getting some air out since she was making some noise, so I started hitting her on the back. Then she stopped making noise and started gagging. Her lips started turning purple. I started to pick her up, prepared to start the heimlich (thank goodness I took that infant/child cpr class, or I'd have had no idea how to do it on her), when she coughed violently and a whole oatmeal square popped out. She started to cry and I knew she was ok. I calmed her down, fished out the squares from her cereal, and she seemed to have no trouble finishing the cereal, and then some cheese and cereal to boot. After breakfast I called my mom and when I told her, it really sunk in and it was my turn to cry.
I've always been a little less cautious in my parenting than some, but this was stupid and reckless, even for me. I confess, I usually think of her ability to chew something when I'm deciding whether or not to/how small to cut something up more than choking hazards. I do cut up large grapes, and for things like carrots, celery, and cucumber, I cut them into sticks that are too small around to choke on. We don't really eat hot dogs, but if we did, I'd cut them in half lengthwise. We don't give her hard candies. Other than that (the basic list of choking hazards that any pediatrician's office has), I really only cut up anything I consider a finger food if I think she'll have trouble chewing them otherwise. She eats apples and bananas whole (though I watch her closely as she gets close to the core of the apple), orange segments, pieces of chicken... I realize that any of these things could pose a choking hazard of she took too big of a bite, but where do you draw the line?
What did/do you do with your kids/grandkids? Do you cut everything into pieces so small they can't possibly be a choking hazard? For those who do, when and how do your children learn to eat like adults? I realize that there are a lot of different views on this, and there's really no right or wrong answer. I've seen parents at the restaurant give toddlers whole chicken tenders, while other parents cut up their 4-year-old's grilled cheese sandwich. I'm just wondering what some of the other parents here do, and why they choose to do it.
I've always been a little less cautious in my parenting than some, but this was stupid and reckless, even for me. I confess, I usually think of her ability to chew something when I'm deciding whether or not to/how small to cut something up more than choking hazards. I do cut up large grapes, and for things like carrots, celery, and cucumber, I cut them into sticks that are too small around to choke on. We don't really eat hot dogs, but if we did, I'd cut them in half lengthwise. We don't give her hard candies. Other than that (the basic list of choking hazards that any pediatrician's office has), I really only cut up anything I consider a finger food if I think she'll have trouble chewing them otherwise. She eats apples and bananas whole (though I watch her closely as she gets close to the core of the apple), orange segments, pieces of chicken... I realize that any of these things could pose a choking hazard of she took too big of a bite, but where do you draw the line?
What did/do you do with your kids/grandkids? Do you cut everything into pieces so small they can't possibly be a choking hazard? For those who do, when and how do your children learn to eat like adults? I realize that there are a lot of different views on this, and there's really no right or wrong answer. I've seen parents at the restaurant give toddlers whole chicken tenders, while other parents cut up their 4-year-old's grilled cheese sandwich. I'm just wondering what some of the other parents here do, and why they choose to do it.