CSA Founder, Emily’s Story
Parents– the SECOND DISTRACTION is the one that you won’t expect.
It’s 6:30pm. A normal weekday evening. I just fed my 14-month-old twins’ dinner and waited for Dad to come from work. It’s now bath time and I put my 14-month- old twins in the bathtub like I do every day. Unfortunately, this was the last time I would see them together. My plan — After starting the bath time routine, go turn over the pork chops real fast in the kitchen and go back to my twins in the bathtub.
This was my plan! But this is not what happened…
My reality — Once I got the kitchen and turned over the pork chops, my plans changed. See, I was only going to do one simple task and return back to the bathroom, but something critical happened. I got hit with the SECOND DISTRACTION that I did NOT expect. On the way back to the bathroom, my other children needed my attention. It was very innocent, but it was this second distraction that took me longer to get back to my babies in the bathtub. After the second distraction, I casually made my way back to the bathroom not thinking anything was wrong. I left for a total of FIVE minutes! In that amount of time, my
baby, Mallory, slipped under the shallow water and drowned.
I thought I could leave for a quick second, but unfortunately, another distraction appeared unplanned and unexpected. It’s not the first distraction that my take your baby’s life, but we are humans and we are constantly distracted by cell phones, simple errands, family, the doorbell, television, or visitors. Take it from me… don’t leave the bathroom or pool regardless of how innocent or simple it may be. The second distraction is the one that you won’t expect. I hope my story brings drowning prevention awareness to parents everywhere. In honor of National Bath Safety Month, I encourage you to share my story and spread awareness on drowning prevention.
Mallory’s Bright Light Continues on at CSA through Mallory’s Mission
Ways to Prevent an Accident in the Bath
- Make sure you have everything you need so you don’t need to leave the room during bath time.
- If you need something, ask someone to grab it for you or take your child with you.
- Make sure to set bath time ground rules ahead of time.
- There is no replacement for supervision. Be attentive and proactive to avoid risk.
Preparation is Key
Happy New Year!
Our Toys For Tots drive was a success! Thank you for joining us in helping spread Christmas cheer to kids in the Brazoria county!
Open Swim Event!
January 19th at 5 PM – 7:30 PM
It’s a free event and open to all CSA families! Bring a friend and if they sign up, you get 50% off of next month’stuition!