First Outing & Swine Flu Fears
On Saturday, at the encouragement of Beth and Nate, Lucia, Andrew, and I had our first official outing. Let me clarify: we have left the house before, on walks around our neighborhood. And I have been in two public places since she was born, Safeway and Trader Joe’s, when my parents were here. And we’ve had two appointments with the pediatrician. Otherwise, however, I’ve left the public-place errands to Andrew while Lucia and I have stayed snug and swine-flu-safe at home.
When the Clarks came to visit this weekend, however, it was a beautiful, sunny day, and we all went to lunch at a local burger place we like. We’d been there together before, and, besides having great food, it’s a good place for kids—and there’s a large outdoor area where we could sit far apart from the swine-flu masses. We got an outdoor table in a corner, and Lucia did splendidly for almost the entire meal, napping and then sitting peacefully in her stroller. Only at the end of the meal did she begin crying—it was feeding time—and I had my first experience trying to a) nurse her in public (not an easy feat; I have some practicing to do) and b) nurse her in the car. We all returned home happy and, I believe, swine-flu free.
I’m ordinarily not so fearful of the flu—but I’ve never had a baby before, a baby who is too young to get a seasonal flu or H1N1 vaccine. Andrew and I have both gotten the seasonal flu vaccine, but I have no idea what would happen if either Andrew or I got sick with swine flu. Would we have to stay in a hotel? Quarantine ourselves apart from the baby? Since I am the food source, I think it’s more important for me to stay swine-flu-free, which is why Andrew has been doing the grocery shopping and other errands. This will, hopefully, change tomorrow, when—fingers crossed—we’ll both get the H1N1 vaccine. Andrew has a business trip Tuesday so it’s more imperative that he gets it, and we think his doctor got it all lined up (the vaccine is scarce around here, and the usual clinics are completely out). While I miss going out in public, I’m perfectly willing to just stay home for now, spending my days washing my hands and slathering on the hand sanitizer.
When the Clarks came to visit this weekend, however, it was a beautiful, sunny day, and we all went to lunch at a local burger place we like. We’d been there together before, and, besides having great food, it’s a good place for kids—and there’s a large outdoor area where we could sit far apart from the swine-flu masses. We got an outdoor table in a corner, and Lucia did splendidly for almost the entire meal, napping and then sitting peacefully in her stroller. Only at the end of the meal did she begin crying—it was feeding time—and I had my first experience trying to a) nurse her in public (not an easy feat; I have some practicing to do) and b) nurse her in the car. We all returned home happy and, I believe, swine-flu free.
I’m ordinarily not so fearful of the flu—but I’ve never had a baby before, a baby who is too young to get a seasonal flu or H1N1 vaccine. Andrew and I have both gotten the seasonal flu vaccine, but I have no idea what would happen if either Andrew or I got sick with swine flu. Would we have to stay in a hotel? Quarantine ourselves apart from the baby? Since I am the food source, I think it’s more important for me to stay swine-flu-free, which is why Andrew has been doing the grocery shopping and other errands. This will, hopefully, change tomorrow, when—fingers crossed—we’ll both get the H1N1 vaccine. Andrew has a business trip Tuesday so it’s more imperative that he gets it, and we think his doctor got it all lined up (the vaccine is scarce around here, and the usual clinics are completely out). While I miss going out in public, I’m perfectly willing to just stay home for now, spending my days washing my hands and slathering on the hand sanitizer.
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