My First Cold

I baby with a cold has to be one of the most pathetic things. Dean got his first real cold a week or so ago. It wasn't too bad. No fever, just a booger nose and coughing. He started waking up a few times during the night due to a stuffy nose, but it never really damped his spirits...just mine. I slept very lightly that week, always on the alert for wheezing and bad coughing. Other than being a little extra clingy and wanting only to nap in my arms, he seemed fairly normal. He let me take his temperature daily (which can't be fun at all), squirt saline solution up his nose, stick a booger sucker up his nose, and rub ointment all over his extrachapped face. Good sport. I can't imagine what it is like for a parent to have a truely sick child. My cousin's newborn was hospitalized recently for pneumonia, and my friend's 5 month old was hospitalized for another type of virus. Scarey stuff. I am so thankful for the health of this little guy.

Josh and I are not the type of people that are overly germ conscious. In fact, we are almost on the other end of the spectrum. We are more in the "dirt makes you stronger" category. We are both avid hikers and have enjoyed long weeks of eating with dirty hands, wearing the same clothes for days on end, and sleeping in small tents with dirty dogs. We fully plan to encourage Dean to do the same. Some people keep their dogs at a distance from their babies, worrying about what they could introduce to their children. Not us. We love to lay Dean on the dogs, and what him play with Cooper's slobbery jowls. We try to keep the face licking to a minimum, but if they are having fun we let him go to town and clean up where we can. Dean is on the verge of crawling and I know that as soon as he is mobile he will have his mouth on everything. Now, I don't want him picking up dog doo in the yard, but a mouthful of dirt isn't going to kill him. I refuse to be an overprotective mom. Plus, people are dirtier than dogs!