sixth sense, mommywise

Sometimes I will have a feeling like a jolt of panic which makes me go check on whichever child I am concerned about, usually the baby (almost 9mo.) right now. Sometimes there is some cause for alarm (she has woken up and is crying), and sometimes it is a false alarm and I am relieved. But the times I get that feeling and there is something wrong I am sure glad for my over-zealous fight or flight response.
 For instance, about 20 minutes ago I was in the garage loading the laundry with a bunch of new clothes that the kids got for Christmas and I was taking the tags off so it was taking longer than the usual dump in dirty clothes and close the lid. I knew that baby Jillian was with her big sister and probably sitting on her lap in the living room just a few feet away so I wasn't concerned, but then all of a sudden I needed to see her and stopped mid load and opened the door to see baby sitting on Juniper's lap as predicted but with a funny look on her face, and I was just in time to see her spew a pretty good sized spit up which is not exactly normal for her at this age. I picked her up immediately and did a finger sweep as I quickly realized she was halfway choking on something. On the second or third gagging finger swipe I pulled out an entire live oak leaf (hard, shiny with pokey points on the edges but small enough to get to the back of her throat). Crisis averted! She was unaffected and was laughing and babbling within seconds, and the kids were not too worried either, but it made me realize that for one I can't leave her where there may be stray leaves, and two I should always listen to that inside voice that says, "something is not right"... because even if it is wrong 9 times, if you listen the 10th time and it is correct then you have used your intuition to save you a great deal of pain and possible suffering!
I have also been using a gentler tactic with both Juniper and Jonah and trying to use my intuition to sense what they need to feel better when they are melting down. I am reading Raising your Spirited Child right now and I am learning about temperment and how it affects behavior. Also I am redefining the labels that we give our children especially when we are annoyed and conveying them in a positive light (dramatic instead of loud, curious instead of nosy, exuberant instead of wild) and it helps me and other adults be more appreciative of their beauty and zest and have more patience for them because it is part of their unique nature.