Need help from fellow Germ-o-phobes

[MarmiteOnToast]

I must confess, being a relaxed and down-to-earth Australian mother, I did think you germophobes were a few sangers short of a barbie (Aussie for 'few sausages short of a BBQ').

HOWEVER, reading all this thread I now appreciate now a few things:

a) I'm incredibly grateful that I have never to go through what some of you have with your kids.

b) There is no one 'best' way to parent, we each have our strengths and our little foibles - but ALL come out of a place of love. Parenting is hard enough and we should support each other - and most importantly, the differences in our parenting. So go germophobe girlfriends!

DW is a place where there are a lot of people, from many different places, with differing hygiene practices - and let's face it we've all invested muchos $$ and money to get there. So thank you all for the reminder - I will be extra vigilant with our hygiene in WDW - for both my family and all of yours. Be well!

 

[asktriplets]

hello from a fellow germ freak!

i, too, hated the idea of changing kids in a public bathroom. when we used the drreaded changing table in the restrooms, we used our changing pad and wiped it down (both sides) with antibact. wipes before putting it back int he diaper bag (it had its own compartment in the bag). once my kids were old enough to stand during a change, we did that with the changing pad.

fwiw...here's MY story about changing diapers in places OTHER than the bathroom at WDW. .. i found a quiet, private spot at MGM (actually right off the sidewalk near some shrubs near the bathroom) and was changing a diaper on our changing pad on the ground and a CM saw and told me that i needed to change diapers in the restroom only. we had a quick conversation about it (very cordial) and it really made me think about my attitude that "the restroom changing table should be for everyone else BUT me"....i know that I am hyper clean about bodily waste (as are my fellow germ-o-phobe posters here ), but WDW can't assume/count on that, and it made me realize that, if nothing else, it LOOKED gross to be changing a diaper in public (even with my ultra giant pack of antibacterial wipes displayed prominently next to me!) .


once we moved out of diapers, the whole newly-potty-trained experience of using public toilets with 3 monkeys crammed into a toilet stall with me was AWFUL for me, but we DID get used to it!!!! it DOES get better!!!! i honestly could not have ever thought that i would be able to say that, but now that we have the whole "do NOT TOUCH ANYTHING, and wait until i wipe the seat and side with t.p. and then cover the seat with t.p. before you sit down" thing down, it is quite do-able. that said, though, i have a feeling i'm going to freak out again once they start using the public bathrooms by themselves

as for hotel bathrooms, i usually wipe the toilet with a diaper wipe (we still carry them and use for hand wipes, and general "cleaning" of fast food tables, cart handles, etc). for the tubs, i usually squirt some shampoo in the bottom of the tub and wipe it down with a washcloth and rinse well. this way, the tub is clean and if there is residue, it isn't too much more harsh than the kids' shampoo that we use.

have fun!

 

[NotUrsula]

That's it exactly; what squicks out the rest of us -- that "everyone else BUT me" part of it. IME, germaphobes using public bathrooms sometimes make rather nasty messes in their zeal to not touch any surfaces, and often fail to clean up those messes on the grounds that the floor, toilet, flush handle, etc. is too dirty to touch in any circumstance. Toddlers seldom have good aim in the best of circumstances, and if you dangle them or force them to hover, all bets are generally off. Honestly, I don't want myself or my child sitting on or standing in what the hoverer's child leaves behind. (And btw, that includes piles of toilet paper strips -- if you use them, flush them. All of them, even the ones that have to be picked up off the floor.) If you as thoroughly clean up AFTER you use the restroom as before you do, I thank you, of course.

Personally I don't change my child in a stroller; it is a porous fabric surface that she will be sitting on without it being washed for quite some time (at least for the duration of the trip.) If she manages to get her hands in the wrong place and smear something on the fabric without our noticing, it is going to breed there, and her hands make it into her mouth on a fairly frequent basis. Fecal bacteria LOVE porous fabrics that get nice and sweaty and damp. I feel much more sanguine about my ability to adequately clean the surface of a corian or non-porous plastic changing table where there is access to running water, even if hundreds of other babies and their sticky-fingered siblings have been there before us. Because it is a restroom, the surfaces are non-porous and built to be easy to clean thoroughly.

Lastly, many people find excrement offensive, even from babies, and don't want to see/smell it outside of the confines of a restroom., even when disposed of in a trash can. (I'm not one of them, really -- I understand that small children can't really control their bodies, and I'm of the school that says that cleaning up ASAP is sometimes better than waiting until you can get to the proper approved space. I also am not offended by naked babies, but some people are.) In some places of public accomodation where food is served, as in WDW, it violates health codes to have people taking care of sanitary functions anywhere but inside a restroom, which is why they want the whole process confined there; health inspectors mandate it.

 

[tjlovespooh]

Just to let you know i lost premmie twins so I think i can understand where people are worrying come from, but i think that is one of the things that makes me look at germs from a more positive side.

Sorry to hear about your loss

 

[sammyteach]

Sorry to hear about your loss

Thank you that was kind it was eight years ago this february but I think about them every day seems like yesterday

 

[leighe]

That's it exactly; what squicks out the rest of us -- that "everyone else BUT me" part of it. IME, germaphobes using public bathrooms sometimes make rather nasty messes in their zeal to not touch any surfaces, and often fail to clean up those messes on the grounds that the floor, toilet, flush handle, etc. is too dirty to touch in any circumstance. Toddlers seldom have good aim in the best of circumstances, and if you dangle them or force them to hover, all bets are generally off. Honestly, I don't want myself or my child sitting on or standing in what the hoverer's child leaves behind. (And btw, that includes piles of toilet paper strips -- if you use them, flush them. All of them, even the ones that have to be picked up off the floor.) If you as thoroughly clean up AFTER you use the restroom as before you do, I thank you, of course.

Personally I don't change my child in a stroller; it is a porous fabric surface that she will be sitting on without it being washed for quite some time (at least for the duration of the trip.) If she manages to get her hands in the wrong place and smear something on the fabric without our noticing, it is going to breed there, and her hands make it into her mouth on a fairly frequent basis. Fecal bacteria LOVE porous fabrics that get nice and sweaty and damp. I feel much more sanguine about my ability to adequately clean the surface of a corian or non-porous plastic changing table where there is access to running water, even if hundreds of other babies and their sticky-fingered siblings have been there before us. Because it is a restroom, the surfaces are non-porous and built to be easy to clean thoroughly.

Lastly, many people find excrement offensive, even from babies, and don't want to see/smell it outside of the confines of a restroom., even when disposed of in a trash can. (I'm not one of them, really -- I understand that small children can't really control their bodies, and I'm of the school that says that cleaning up ASAP is sometimes better than waiting until you can get to the proper approved space. I also am not offended by naked babies, but some people are.) In some places of public accomodation where food is served, as in WDW, it violates health codes to have people taking care of sanitary functions anywhere but inside a restroom, which is why they want the whole process confined there; health inspectors mandate it.

ITA. I am very diligent about hygenie/cleanlieness. I don't know how I would ever manage to enjoy anything or even sleep at night if i was so obsessed with germs! But to each his own!

My dad would probably totally freak most of you out! He's a scientist whose speciality is soil - it's composition, nutrients, etc., and he has said for years that many modern health problems can be linked to food, water, and houses being too clean - i.e. unnaturally, with chemicals - and us not getting enough dirt and certain kinds of bacteria.

 

[1rockinmamato2]

ITA. I am very diligent about hygenie/cleanlieness. I don't know how I would ever manage to enjoy anything or even sleep at night if i was so obsessed with germs! But to each his own!

My dad would probably totally freak most of you out! He's a scientist whose speciality is soil - it's composition, nutrients, etc., and he has said for years that many modern health problems can be linked to food, water, and houses being too clean - i.e. unnaturally, with chemicals - and us not getting enough dirt and certain kinds of bacteria.

But how clean is "too clean" and how dirty is "too dirty?" And what's a "modern" health problem?

I prefer to prevent the spread of disease, either to my family or to others in the community, by frequent hand washing and using basic common sense. I know I can't prevent all illnesses for my children and I don't want to because I know exposure to certain illnesses (but not all) increases immunity.

However, ask any mother who has spent days caring for a seriously ill child who has been exposed to RSV or the flu or suffered a severe gastrointestinal illness and most will tell you that it's best not to rely on the general population for preventing the spread of such illnesses. I happen to be one of those moms that doesn't trust that the person who last used the shopping cart, in which I am about to put my infant in who will undoubtedly chew on the handle, to have washed their hands after using the restroom. Therefore, I use a cart cover.

If that makes me "obsessed", then so be it. But, one thing's for sure - I won't be encouraging my children to eat anymore dirt than they already do any time soon.

 

[karenTX]

I prefer to prevent the spread of disease, either to my family or to others in the community, by frequent hand washing and using basic common sense. I know I can't prevent all illnesses for my children and I don't want to because I know exposure to certain illnesses (but not all) increases immunity.

However, ask any mother who has spent days caring for a seriously ill child who has been exposed to RSV or the flu or suffered a severe gastrointestinal illness and most will tell you that it's best not to rely on the general population for preventing the spread of such illnesses. I happen to be one of those moms that doesn't trust that the person who last used the shopping cart, in which I am about to put my infant in who will undoubtedly chew on the handle, to have washed their hands after using the restroom. Therefore, I use a cart cover.

If that makes me "obsessed", then so be it. But, one thing's for sure - I won't be encouraging my children to eat anymore dirt than they already do any time soon.

You Couldn't have said it better!!! I spent the first year, THE ENTIRE FIRST YEAR, of my DD's life in our house with her. She was only 1 lb at birth so after we got her out of the hospital (at 3 1/2 lbs), RSV season hit. I only left the house to take her to her doctor's appointments. It was a very hard sacrifice that I would do again!! It kept her very healthy, she only has been sick once and she's almost 2!

Now that we go out, I use a Floppy seat on all carts, a high chair cover & table toppers whenever we dine out. This is after I've used AB WetOnes to wipe down first. Do I get wierd looks when I'm out? Yep. Do I care? Nope. I know I'm doing what's best for my DD!

My brother calls it my germ OCD but his son has been sick more times then I can count & had 5 sets of tubes in his ears, all at 5 years old. My brother and his wife are of the "let kids be kids" thinking. I'll take my germ OCD anyday over watching my DD get sick.

 

[boysmom5150]

Now that we go out, I use a Floppy seat on all carts, a high chair cover & table toppers whenever we dine out. This is after I've used AB WetOnes to wipe down first. Do I get wierd looks when I'm out? Yep. Do I care? Nope. I know I'm doing what's best for my DD!

Your DD is so cute.Glad to hear all is well with her. I am the same way, wiping carts,highchairs,tables and so on before I cover them up the the appropriate coverings. I too dont care what others think when they look a tme funny.All I can say is Good for us for doing what WE think and know is best for our children. I dont care about anyones opinion especially when they dont know what others go through.

 

[Tiger926]

But how clean is "too clean" and how dirty is "too dirty?" And what's a "modern" health problem?

I prefer to prevent the spread of disease, either to my family or to others in the community, by frequent hand washing and using basic common sense. I know I can't prevent all illnesses for my children and I don't want to because I know exposure to certain illnesses (but not all) increases immunity.

However, ask any mother who has spent days caring for a seriously ill child who has been exposed to RSV or the flu or suffered a severe gastrointestinal illness and most will tell you that it's best not to rely on the general population for preventing the spread of such illnesses. I happen to be one of those moms that doesn't trust that the person who last used the shopping cart, in which I am about to put my infant in who will undoubtedly chew on the handle, to have washed their hands after using the restroom. Therefore, I use a cart cover.

If that makes me "obsessed", then so be it. But, one thing's for sure - I won't be encouraging my children to eat anymore dirt than they already do any time soon.

Awesome post!! Thanks, Tiger

 

[NotUrsula]

My brother calls it my germ OCD but his son has been sick more times then I can count & had 5 sets of tubes in his ears, all at 5 years old. My brother and his wife are of the "let kids be kids" thinking. I'll take my germ OCD anyday over watching my DD get sick.

While I fully understand the immune system issues of premature children, the odds are that your nephew's illnesses probably have almost nothing to do with your brother's attitudes toward "germs". Most probably his illnesses are just bad luck.

My evidence is just as anecdotal as yours, but I have to tell you that we are very laissez-faire about atmospheric cleanliness, though we do insist on handwashing after toileting and before eating. My DS who has been in f/t outside-the-home care since 6 mos, and is nearly 10, has never had an ear infection, has only gotten an intestinal bug once (at age 7), and at his last immunization appointment beat the practice's record for longest stretch without a visit to his ped: 5 years. (BTW, we frequently travel domestically and internationally, using public transit most of the time, and have since he was less than a year old. We don't carry clean hotel rooms, either.)

I personally have the most fluid-ridden ears on the planet and catch just about every URI that goes around, but DS has never caught any of them from me, even in infancy. The kid's got lungs of steel. I don't think we can take ANY credit for his good health; we just had the good luck to win the healthy kid lottery. Lots of people will have one kid who's always sick and one who never is; most of the time individual immune systems just respond in individual ways. You do what you feel is right, obviously, and I won't try to gainsay you, but I think that you and your brother might want to cut one another some slack -- each of your knows your own child best.

 

[cedmonds]

Wow! This is one heated discussion! I have read all the "opinions" and I think in my humble opinion that we all need to take a deep breath and RELAX. Whatever works for you is what works for you. we are all obsessive to some degree about something, if it isn't germs it is something else. I am a germ a phobe and I know what I do drives some people crazy(my dh included) but he does stuff on our trip that makes me crazy. I thank all of you for some great debate and I really believe no one was judging just discussing. If only our world leaders would engage in such lively debate,all the world, not just wdw would be a magical place.

 

[Beth E. (NJ)]

I feel for all of you who have young children with health issues. Both of my girls were full term and healthy (and still are healthy now at ages 8 and just about 12).

If the cleaning and sanitizing works for you than so be it. I carry Purell with me when I go to WDW. I don't use it as much as I should, but I like to have it with me. I even have some in my car -- I used to work with Seniors and saw some pretty yucky houses. I was quite happy to purell myself when I left some homes.

Side note: no matter which side of the issue you are on please play nice. Fighting/sarcasm/ and especially name calling are not allowed and might result in points being levyed against posters. So far everyone is okay, but some posts were very close to the line.

 

[Gurgi]

Changing pads were too thin & small to keep my kids from touching anything so I used disposable bed pads instead. I used to buy them at Walmart for around $10 but since they weren't on the website I'm including a link that shows what they are even though I never paid that much for them.
http://www.nursinghomeapparel.com/shop/Disposable_Bed_Pads.html

When DS would use a public toilet I just sprayed seats with Clorox mini spray bottles, then covered the seats with tissue and had him stand on the seat & aim down while I held him still.

When the kids HAD to sit I used to spray everything with Clorox spray, wipe the seat with hand tissue & then cover it with a seat cover.

Are you serious???? Wow.

 

[TENIA66]

I avoided reading this whole thread but I just want to pipe in: i changed baby in the stroller, that way no fight for changing table and no exchanging poopy germs. worked for three kids so far......

 

[tjlovespooh]

Wow! This is one heated discussion! I have read all the "opinions" and I think in my humble opinion that we all need to take a deep breath and RELAX. Whatever works for you is what works for you. we are all obsessive to some degree about something, if it isn't germs it is something else. I am a germ a phobe and I know what I do drives some people crazy(my dh included) but he does stuff on our trip that makes me crazy. I thank all of you for some great debate and I really believe no one was judging just discussing. If only our world leaders would engage in such lively debate,all the world, not just wdw would be a magical place.

Well said. I really am amazed at how this thread has molded itself into a debate, why I started this thread in order to recieve information about how other parents handle keeping their kids healthy while vacationing. In no way was it meant to imply that all other "non-germ freak" parents aren't doing right by thier children. I've said it before on other boards and I'll say it again here: I truly believe that every mom does whatever she thinks is the best for their child(ren). Some moms don't ever worry about germs. Does that make them "bad" moms? Of course not. Other moms worry(sometimes obsess) about germs. Does that make them "bad" moms? I hope noone thinks so, I know I don't.
Honestly, I look at my germ-o-phobe as just that a fear, however irrational it may seem. Some people are afraid of spiders, snakes, heights, etc. I happen to be afraid of germs.

Please forgive me... I am a GERM-O-PHOBE ... ... ...

That being said, does anyone have some special "rituals" for dining out with tots? Specific placemats that work best, floppy seats, etc. I have a shopping cart cover and I think it'll be too big to use on a highchair(not to mention bulky, it's quilted). We haven't taken DS out to dinner with us since he was in his infant seat. Any, and all, ideas welcome

 

[MosMom]

When DS would use a public toilet I just sprayed seats with Clorox mini spray bottles, then covered the seats with tissue and had him stand on the seat & aim down while I held him still.

Okay, did he stand on the toilet seat barefoot? Why would you go through all that trouble for him to stand on a toilet seat with his shoes on? Why not just stand him up there with shoes on avoid all the clorox spraying and tissue laying?

Not flaming, just trying to "get" the logic behind it.

 

[drgnfly30]

I must confess, being a relaxed and down-to-earth Australian mother, I did think you germophobes were a few sangers short of a barbie (Aussie for 'few sausages short of a BBQ').

Best line of the week!

 

[Feralpeg]

Whatever works for you with your children is okay by me, but I must mention something I witnessed awhile back. Please do not change your baby on the table in a restaurant. That happened awhile back while I was eating at The Earl of Sandwhich at DTD. It was not something I cared to watch (or smell) while eating. I have a strong stomach, but this was a bit much even for me. I'm not suggesting that anyone here would do this, it is just something I found to be amazing. It always comes to mind now when I sit at one of the tables in the restaurant.

Reading this thread has opened my eyes to a few things. I sympathize with the problems some posters have had with the health of their children. I wonder, if the fear of germs, is the reason I run across so many little ones who need diaper changes. Please remember that I live very close to WDW and spend more time at DTD than most. So many times, I come across children who obviously need to be changed. If I can tell, I always wonder why the parents can't tell. Maybe they can, but are afraid to do anything about it. I hope this doesn't offend anyone. That is not my intent.

 

[MosMom]

but I must mention something I witnessed awhile back. Please do not change your baby on the table in a restaurant. That happened awhile back while I was eating at The Earl of Sandwhich at DTD. It was not something I cared to watch (or smell) while eating.