people handling babies

[ez]

Why do people feel it necessary to touch little babies on the hand.? Don't they realize that those hands are in the babies mouth all the time, so if they haven't just washed, they shouldn't be touching the baby. My dear friend was just over, she knows how I am so she says, I just changed my shirt, and I'm washing my hands. She proceeds to play with my 11 week old for like 20 minutes. Then she turns to me and says"You know, I have the worst eye infection" AAAAUUUUGGGG!!!!This makes me nuts...I shewed her out and gave DS a bath pronto. Ok am I nuts or does stuff like this bug anyone else?

 

[DCLuvinit]

I don't have children yet, but I'm sure that stuff like that will bother me when I do.

 

[CEDmom]

Why would she tell you that after making a point of washing etc . Of course the real question is why she would come over and play with your baby with an infection that can be easy transmitted. I'm not a nut about germs but I never liked just anyone touching DD when she was a baby and of course not now either.

 

[Beth76]

The eye infection would bother me. I'm not too particular when it comes to people holding/touching my baby, as long as I know them of course. I have found that a lot of my friends will tell their children not to touch his hands or his face. Although, my neighbor was just walking by when we were outside and she was looking at Quinn and then just sort of took him from me. She didn't ask if she could hold him. I thought it was sort of odd since we don't know each other very well, but like I said, I'm pretty mellow about that sort of thing.

 

[BlueBayou]

For me life is so different with number two than number one. With our 4-year-old… we washed her hands to an extreme. If the binky ever dropped on the floor – even in our own home… face up – we washed it before putting it in her mouth. With number two… as long as it didn’t have fur or fall into a dirty spot… she got it back.

I would never have let a stranger hold my oldest. Recently, when flying alone with the two of them a woman helped me at security by holding my youngest while I reassembled my stuff. Once I got on the plane… I basically shoved my youngest daughter into the arms of the woman in the row behind me. I had to get both car seats in by myself. I have a feeling she was not a kid type person.

That said… if your friend has a contagious eye infections… she was not being a friend when she exposed your child.


Sher

 

[winniedapooh]

Yep bothers me. What about friends/family that will show up at your home with a little one that has had a stomach virus in the last 24 hours? Ugh, that one makes me totally nuts! There is nothing that freaks me out more and makes me more angry than this. If my child has had a cold I will call first to let friends/family aware and let them choose. If they have had a stomach virus we stay home-no way no how do I want to expose someone knowingly to this!

 

[Talking Hands]

Was very different aboput each of my girls. First one I was a bit paranoid. She was preemie. Finally had a sitter when my neighbor who had been her ICU nurse offered to babysit when she was about 3 mo. Younger one I was a lot more mellow and didn't worry so much about germs.
That said I would be furious if a friend exposed my child to an infection knowingly. Eye infections are so easily transmitted. What was she thinking.

 

[maci]

Yes! This makes me crazy too!!
I always make a point to wash my hands, and or only touch the baby on the feet.

It just kills me that some people have no common courtesy about this!

Another thing that drives me nuts, when people bring kids with fevers out and about to infect everyone else!

 

[decker96]

Originally posted by Beth76
The eye infection would bother me. I'm not too particular when it comes to people holding/touching my baby, as long as I know them of course. I have found that a lot of my friends will tell their children not to touch his hands or his face. Although, my neighbor was just walking by when we were outside and she was looking at Quinn and then just sort of took him from me. She didn't ask if she could hold him. I thought it was sort of odd since we don't know each other very well, but like I said, I'm pretty mellow about that sort of thing.

I feel the same way you do although the eye infection would bug me too. We went to Steamboat over Christmas last year and my youngest (of 3) was 3 months. We had gone to the ski rental shop to rent everyone's skis and DH asked me if I could go into the store part and get him a turtleneck because he had forgotten his. I took the baby with me and while I was standing in line, this woman (grandmother age) in front of me was looking at her, asking how old she was, etc. Then the woman reached her arms and looked at me, so I let her hold DD. It really didn't bother me too much since I was right there. DD was totally smiling at her and you could tell the woman was just loving the whole thing. When she gave her back to me she said she had a granddaughter just a bit older that she didn't get to see that often and thanked me for letting her get her "baby fix".
I agree with another poster who said she was more relaxed with her second than her first. I was totally like that too and now with #3, there's really not a whole lot that I worry about with her, except for safety issues.

 

[froglady]

A little OT, but I just got an e-mail from my daughter who is spending a semester in India. She wrote about being on a crowded bus, and being handed an infant to hold because she was seated. This is a common occurence, and no one thought twice about it.

 

[liznboys]

I'd rather people I don't know didn't reach out and touch my babies, but I've just gotten used to it I guess. (I have 3 boys, the youngest is 7 months.) But in your case with the eye thing, YUCK! I'm sure she didn't touch her eye while holding your baby, but still... If I had an eye thing, I'd keep away from everyone! But especially a little baby!!

 

[Princess Dot]

YES YES! It totally bugs me when people touch babies hands. But get this, in my very large Italian family, everyone feels the need to not only touch babies hands but KISS them too!

I must have used thousands of hand wipes during those early weeks with my first child after every relative under the sun came to visit us! And KISS and TOUCH her hands endlessly! Now, none of them were sick and were all very clean people, but I was so freaked out and kept trying to wipe her hands off before she shoved them in her mouth, all without everyone noticing what I was doing!

Just as a side note, she is 10 now, and never came down with any dreadful illnesses as a result of all the "love" she received from our family! I have since calmed down a great deal about "germs" (but I still carry hand wipes!)

 

[Nancy]

yep that bugs me too. I have never touched a babies hands (or anything else for that matter) without first washing or using hand sanitizer. I have to admit to getting very lax with my kids as each one came along. With #1 you are convinced that every little thing will do them harm...by #3 I figured I hadn't killed the first 2 so I wasn't as nutty about things. With #1 i freaked when she picked up a dog toy and put it in her mouth. If #3 had done that I would have just taken the toys away and not gotten all worked up over it.

 

[eeyore kelly]

Uggh! I drove myself crazy with this issue. My first one I was protective of, because he was my first. My second seem to get everything under the sun, so I was just as protective of her as I was with DS. My sister just had a baby less than 2 months ago, and I make it a point of washing my hands. My DD had a virial throat infect when my sis was here from Alabama. We kept her 10 ft from the baby at all times, and she wasn't allowed to hold her until she was fever free for 2 days. My rules not Sis's. I wish more people thought before they touched babies.

 

[meljw1960]

I agree that by the time you get to the third one everything is different. But Please try not to be tooo germ concious. I was never that worried with any of my boys (I have three) my second boy was a preemie and even with him, I didn't sheild him too much. I didn't want anyone to come over with sick kids, but as far as handling, I was pretty calm about that. Now my Brother and sister in law were always (and still are) totally germ fanatics. When my brother would come in the door he wasn't allowed to pick up his own kid until he washed his hands. If my kids had so much as a sneeze, they wouldn't be anywhere near them. BUT... my boys have been basically healthy . My oldest is 18 (this Sat.) and has had nothing more than your basic viruses and colds. No strept, no pneumonia, bronchitis, etc. my "premie" is now 15 and he's the healthiest of all of them and my youngest is almost 12 and same thing. the older two did get the chickenpox when my oldest caught it in kindergarten. But my nieces are always sick. they both had to have their tonsels out. They have pnemonia and ear infections, bronchitis, strept. you name it, they've had it. Cracks me up, because they were never exposed to ANYTHING, so now that they are older, they pick up everything. So you can go too far with that too. Good luck