GERMS AND BUGS - AND WE THOUGHT OUR KIDS DIDN'T SHARE

Well we have reached that point again.  What point you may ask?  The point where Miss Crazy is at the age when life is all about lending, borrowing and sharing stuff with friends at school.  Now, I know we all tell our kids not to share drinks, brushes and other 'personal' things because of the possibilities of bugs and germs, but there are also the harmless things like Miss Crazy letting a friend wear her precious Hello Kitty ring until the last bell, or her friend lending her a bracelet until that same last bell - harmless stuff.

Now if you have a child that is perfect and does everything mom or dad says, I commend you for being a super parent.  But in my experience, THEY DO NOT LISTEN, especially about the 'personal' stuff. The senior came home with strep in third grade.  I asked her if she shared food or drink with anyone and she said no. I asked her again and she said no. Come to find out she and her best friend had swapped gum because they each didn't like the taste of the gum they had. SMDH.

I can't remember which kid it was, but one of them came home with lice. I asked them if they had shared a brush or hat with someone and they said no.  I asked again and they said no. Turns out they had swapped jackets with a friend and wore the hood.  (Although I am pretty sure this case of the nasty bug started elsewhere - here in Wyoming in the younger grades Jackets, hats and scarves are an absolute necessity and they are all kept in close proximity so those little suckers just jump on over to everyone) My point is, the little devils don't listen (kids and lice), they are sneaky little buggers that know every which way to get around the rules. ;)

Here are some of the excuses I've heard for blatantly not following the rules. But mom my hair was a mess and tangled.  I didn't want to look like a dork so I used  'so and so's' brush.  Or how about But mom, my head was cold and she had an extra hat in her locker. And then there is But mom I was so thirsty and my drink was gone so she shared hers. And of course being the smart ass I am my responses are - haven't you ever heard of using your fingers as a brush, well maybe next time you shouldn't lose your hat and haven't you ever heard of a water fountain.

But in the end, I have just kind of learned to go with the flow.  If something serious comes out, disease or bug wise, I will strictly enforce and punish for breaking the 'rules' but until then we just have to go with the flow. I can't be with my child 24/7 and I will never know everything they do when I'm not there.  But I now expect the occasional strep throat or lice outbreak or cold or stomach bug because it really is a part of life (x7 for our family :/) Remember, severe sore throat, a sore throat that doesn't go away quickly, or sore throat with a fever should always be looked at by a doctor!

Eventually the kids will develop their own sense of what is okay to share/borrow and that will be brought on by my constant nagging when they were younger. Although I know for girls, that special group of best friends doesn't seem to apply to the no share personal stuff rule because you know, they are immune. It doesn't matter if they are hacking up a lung, they are a best friend so it doesn't count. And the same applies to boyfriends (And if you are lucky you end up with a kid who thinks everything is gross and you don't have to go through any of this. Right?) Perhaps we should rejoice in the fact that our kids are actually sharing??? Or not. ;)

Until Next Time...As long as kids are allowed to roam free in public, whether at school, the mall, sports practices, dance lessons etc. they are going to come across some unsavory things and we as parents just kind of have to deal with it as it comes and keep reinforcing what is safe/safer/safest.  Most of them will get it eventually. Aside from reinforcing, just keep a box of lice treatment in the cabinet and the doctor's phone number in your phone and you are doing what needs to be done.