Germs!

I am a total germ-a-phobe!  I don’t like germs!  Indoor playgrounds give me the heeby-jeebies!  Water fountains stress me out!  Toys at Doctors offices are totally off-limits.  I am NOT afraid of dirt?  No!  I’m fine with dirt.  I think kids need to play in the dirt.  I just don’t like germs…kooties…from other peoples’ bodies!

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I am “that mom” that puts a shopping cart cover over every shopping cart and high chair.  I sanitize tables with anti-bac wipes or use table toppers.  I carry “magic soap” and make my kids use rub it all over their hands…if, and only if, a sink isn’t available, because I believe soap and water are the best option.

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Well, God has this really funny sense of humor.  If there’s something you’re grossed out by, He’ll give you a child that enjoys it.  As much as I like to be free from germs, Lilly Katherine looks for ways to get as many kooties on herself as possible.  She loves to be dirty, she loves to touch things, and she especially loves to LICK things!

She always has to have something in her mouth…a thumb, a pen, a piece of paper, her hair, her shoe…something!

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This weekend I’ve been thinking of several germ-y stories, so I decided I would document some nasty germ stories so I would remember them as my little maniac grows up and continues to love all things dirty.  I also think you might get a kick out of them.  I’ll post one or two a day…I think that’s all I can handle.  It’s probably all YOU can handle.

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This is my plan:  When Lilly Katherine is a teenager and the boys start knocking on our door, I’ll let them read these stories.  This should eliminate any desire they have to kiss my daughter!  (insert evil laugh)

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The germ-pondering began after a simple conversation with my father last week.  LK went with my parents on a quick 24 hour trip.  My mom had a meeting out-of-town, so they took LK with them.  I called Wednesday morning to see how she was doing and the conversation went like this:

Me: “Hey, how’s Lilly Katherine?”

Dad: “She’s great!  We’ve had a great morning so far.  We’ve already been to the hotel pool and the hot tub.  The pool was too cold, so we just hung out in the hot tub.”

(First of all, I’m not a fan of public hot tubs.  I think this goes back to something I saw in our apartment hot tub in college-gross!)

Me: “So what’s she doing now?”

Dad: “Oh, she’s splashing around in the tub.”

Me: “She’s SITTING in the HOTEL BATHTUB?”

(When we go out of town, I make my kids stand and take showers with me.  I can’t handle their little bottoms on that bathtub floor.)

Dad: “Yes, she’s taking a bath.  She’s fine, Kate.”  (then…my dad to Lilly Katherine) “Oh, Lilly Katherine, don’t do that.  Get that away from your mouth!”

Me: “What?  What is she putting in her mouth?”

Dad: “Well, she just drank a little bath water out of a cup that she found in the depths of the swimming pool.”

Me: “WHAT?!?!  Are you kidding me?  Please get it away from her and get her out of that tub!”

(G-R-O-S-S!  A cup found in the pool…you allowed her to pick up…and take back to the room…and now she DRINKING HOTEL BATH WATER OUT OF IT?)

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I guess I can’t be too critical of my father.  Last summer at the splash park Lilly Katherine picked up an empty chocolate milk carton, and I (of course) told her to put it down.  She asked if she could play with it and fill it up with water since I forgot to bring a bucket.  I tried to relax and not be such a germ-a-phobe and I reluctantly said, “Yes, but DO NOT DRINK OUT OF IT!”  About 5 minutes later she was chugging down a big gulp of splash ground water from her chocolate milk container.  GROSS!!!

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I know, I’m a little high strung about germs.  Funny thing is that people always say, “You know Lilly Katherine will probably be the healthiest of the three.”  So far, she is!  Preston and AnnaLeigh get sick much more often than my little germ-lover! :)  I don’t care, I still chose anti-bac over kooties!

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