Twinkle: A Free Exchange of Love and Germs

So, for the third time in my tenure as a mother, Twinklette has caught something unpleasant and passed it directly to me. It obviously can't be avoided, as babies are unfamiliar with quarantine procedures and think nothing of drooling, sneezing, or barfing on others. Most of the time, the willing recipients of these germs are their moms, who notice the same symptoms a few days later.

So I've got a nasty little summer head cold, which I actually seem to be getting over. Mr. Twinkle insisted that I take some Benadryl Allergy Sinus last night, even though he knows I only believe in the effectiveness of controlled narcotics. To my surprise, the Benadryl actually seemed to work. I woke up with my symptoms alleviated, but still exhausted from the meds, so Mr. Twinkle very graciously called his mom to come get Twinklette this morning. And I kind of wish he hadn't because I'm not that tired, but it's sweet that he wants me to get better, so I thanked him and acted appreciative. And it is sort of nice to have a break.

So when my MIL came to the door this morning, Twinklette ran to the door to greet her and MIL picked her up and said, "Say bye to Mommy." I leaned in to kiss Twinklette and MIL turned her head so that I could kiss the back of it. I took her little face in my hands and turned it around to give her two firm kisses on the cheek. I mean, Twinklette is the one who made me sick! She has immunity! And who is my MIL to determine what is and isn't safe between Twinklette and me? I've been the one wiping her nose for a week; I'm the one who knows about the schedule for her medicine. It's infuriating.

The worst was last winter, around Superbowl time when I had a horrible cold (much worse than now), caught from one Miss Twinklette. We were going to watch the Superbowl at a friend's house (even though I was in terrible shape), and MIL was watching Twinklette. When I went to say goodbye to my daughter, MIL exclaimed, "Don't kiss her!!!!!" I said, "She made me sick--I think she's immune," and kissed her repeatedly. That display by my MIL was much more blatant than the one today, but the sentiment was the same.

It's to be expected, and it's indicative of a larger issue: MIL thinks she has to protect the babies of the world from their inexperienced and irresponsible (or just plain selfish) mothers. No one is more concerned than I am about preserving the health and happiness of Twinklette, and the fact that MIL doesn't believe that is just so typical.