Email from my sister in law (1 Viewer)

[Mr. Ected]

When traveling to WI to see wife's family for Xmas one year, she got sick on second day of the drive (puking in the car on a h-way is soooo much fun - for both driver and passenger!!). We were 99.99% sure it was due to bad food at the restaurant where we had dinner the night before. She is bitter to this day that she was unable to hold a pair of newborn nieces (both her brothers wives had kids within a week) because she was potentially carrying something. I could, because I wasn't sick. And one brother had lost a newborn child previously. It is only an issue if you (the relative) are sick.

Your SIL needs help!

Isn't there some case to having the kid around people so their immune system builds up strength?

 

[Officer Pete Malloy]

we all MUST get the flu shot, DTAP, Measles, Polio, you name it, even if we've already gotten them because they "wear off" (also that this be done several weeks ahead of time so the vaccines are at full strength by the time the baby is born)

That's actually true. You are supposed to get boosters for some vaccines every 10 years or so.

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults/rec-vac/



I probably would typically be siding with the scoffers, except that there was just a funeral for a guy I know's 4 month old baby boy that died from flu complications very suddenly. They didn't even know he was sick. Put him down for a nap and the kid never woke up. Infants haven't developed their immune system yet and don't have vaccines to prevent them from getting really nasty stuff. For older kids and adults, that stuff wouldn't be fatal, but for an infant it often is.

Right, I had meant to bold "polio".

 

[thecatch]

We just had a kid and asked whether our early visitors had a TDAP at some point in their adult lives on the recommendation of our doctor. A couple of people had to take a 10 minute trip to Rite Aid or whatever and get one before visiting but they didn't complain. I would have perfectly understood people not wanting to do that though as well.

Asking for everyone's full medical histories seems overboard, however. Agree with those who said they probably just don't want visitors.

 

[cstu]

we all MUST get the flu shot, DTAP, Measles, Polio, you name it, even if we've already gotten them because they "wear off" (also that this be done several weeks ahead of time so the vaccines are at full strength by the time the baby is born)

That's actually true. You are supposed to get boosters for some vaccines every 10 years or so.

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults/rec-vac/



I probably would typically be siding with the scoffers, except that there was just a funeral for a guy I know's 4 month old baby boy that died from flu complications very suddenly. They didn't even know he was sick. Put him down for a nap and the kid never woke up. Infants haven't developed their immune system yet and don't have vaccines to prevent them from getting really nasty stuff. For older kids and adults, that stuff wouldn't be fatal, but for an infant it often is.

In that case the best plan of action is for me never to see your kid until it has an immune system. I'll make that sacrifice.

 

[cstu]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Actually aren't the new age hippie morons the ones that are overly scared of vaccinations and believe the mercury in them will cause autism?

Those are the old new age hippie morons.

 

[VA703]

Seinfeld - Some Ugly Baby, Huh? - YouTube

 

[StrikeS2k]

we all MUST get the flu shot, DTAP, Measles, Polio, you name it, even if we've already gotten them because they "wear off" (also that this be done several weeks ahead of time so the vaccines are at full strength by the time the baby is born)

That's actually true. You are supposed to get boosters for some vaccines every 10 years or so.http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/adults/rec-vac/

I probably would typically be siding with the scoffers, except that there was just a funeral for a guy I know's 4 month old baby boy that died from flu complications very suddenly. They didn't even know he was sick. Put him down for a nap and the kid never woke up. Infants haven't developed their immune system yet and don't have vaccines to prevent them from getting really nasty stuff. For older kids and adults, that stuff wouldn't be fatal, but for an infant it often is.

And yet somehow our species has managed to survive for thousands of years without doing these things.....

Sure, but the infant mortality rate is a fraction of what it was up until about 90 years ago. The human race marched on, but a whole lot of babies did, in fact, die.

No doubt we're cleaner than we were 100 years ago, which has helped. I'd posit that the drop in infant mortality rate has a lot more to do with our daily cleanliness habits than everyone getting vaccinated before they go visit a newborn.

 

[Tom Servo]

when I was a baby, parents would just throw their newborns out in the backyard and we would all crawl around eating dirt. and we were thankful to have it.

AND WE LIKED IT!!!!!

 

[irish eyes]

I feel sorry for that poor bas@@@@ husband of hers, I would shoot myself living with someone that bat sh@@ crazy.

 

[Jobber]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Pretty sure the opposite is true. The hippie morons are the non-vaccinators.

That said, she is indeed off her rocker. The one and only solution here is for SIL to stay at home with the baby and avoid the group gathering. If she's that paranoid of germs and such.

 

[Guest]

Sounds like she's overwhelmed and wants to cancel Xmas. Can't blame a first time parent with a new born.

Just an interesting way to do it.

Pretty good point here. Who would want to host Christmas a few days after having a baby?

 

[[icon]]

"Thanks for the excuse. I didn't want to travel all that way to look at your baby, anyways. Enclosed you'll find a $50 babiesRus giftcard. Congrats, crazy person"

 

[rodg12]

Show up in a hazmat suit.

My link.

Please, please, please, please for the love of the FFA show up in this...

 

[Todem]

Tell her your taking a cruise....off the African coast as well. You would not want to take a chance with the noro virus or ebola.

Cover all the bases.

 

[Brony]

"Thanks for the excuse. I didn't want to travel all that way to look at your baby, anyways. Enclosed you'll find a $50 babiesRus giftcard. Congrats, crazy person"

I wouldn't do a gift card. I'd start with something like this.

 

[Zow]

Yeah good luck dude. Sounds like you have a sane wife, so congrats on that.

My SIL isn't quite this crazy, but she's pretty over the top unreasonable when it comes to having people who have been sick in the past couple of months or who have coughed once in the past week and therefore might be sick. So, oftentimes this really throws a wrench into the situation. Benefit with my situation though is that, unlike a normal situation where if a family member is going to miss a kid event (i.e. birthday, first soccer game, Easter baskets, whatever) they get the guilt trip, there's no questions asked if that family member is sick so that double blowback isn't there.

It's not ever going to be fun though. There was a particular point, and the only time my wife and I have ever really yelled at each other, where I had flown to my hometown, drank way too many yeasty beers with buddies one night (and drunkenly drank the sediment) and was hungover and sick to my stomach for a couple of days. I was flew back home to my wife (then fiancé) who was set to go on a family trip with niece and nephews like three days later. SIL, hearing that I had thrown up and felt sick for a couple of days, thinks I might have the flew. Creates the ultimatum that my wife couldn't go on the trip if she saw me at any point during those three days. Even turned it into a "you don't love your niece and nephew" claim when my wife wasn't sure what to do. It was ####### bull####. And there was no good solution to the problem because overprotective mothers aren't going to be rational.

 

[doowain]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Actually aren't the new age hippie morons the ones that are overly scared of vaccinations and believe the mercury in them will cause autism?

Good point. Post fixed.

 

[fantasycurse42]

Haha, wait a year or two until her kid goes to daycare or a two's program... My son is basically sick everyday.

She'll be at the pediatrician with her kid in a Hazmat suit daily.

 

[acarey50]

I get asking people not to come over if they have a cold or something, but this seems over the top. So, how does one break it to a pregnant woman "sorry, we don't want to see your kid because you're ####ing insane."

What does her being pregnant have to do with her being insane.... she's a woman, insanity is a given

 

[IC FBGCav]

Sometimes you just have to cut people out of your life. Even family.

 

[Fennis]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Actually aren't the new age hippie morons the ones that are overly scared of vaccinations and believe the mercury in them will cause autism?

Those are the old new age hippie morons.

I thought they were new old age new hippie morons.

 

[Kanil]

You guys are thinking about this all wrong. Now's the time to both comply with her wishes and make her feel stupid. Go in with a full on Ebola prevention suit. Suit, mask, gloves (duct taped to the suit to stay air tight). If she says anything just tell her you didn't want to get her kid's germs.

 

[sartre]

Yeah she's going overboard. But if you are close at all, and want to see the baby, go ahead and get the flu shot (you should anyway) and comply with her requests. They are minor inconveniences.

 

[Foosball God]

So do you think they will demand proof that you got your shots or will they just take your word for it?

 

[culdeus]

Are you related to my sister's husband? Because my sister is pulling the same #### right now and she's due any day.

 

[El Floppo]

Yeah she's going overboard. But if you are close at all, and want to see the baby, go ahead and get the flu shot (you should anyway) and comply with her requests. They are minor inconveniences.

and how is she going to know you got them or not?

she wants to think she's controlling her kid's health... let her keep thinking that. doesn't mean you actually need to get the flu shot- just need to convince her you have.

 

[RUSF18]

I would also lie about getting all your updated vaccines but would really get a kick out of enjoying this supposed "demonstration" of how to properly wash your hands and mouth.

"I'm sorry, I don't follow...can you show me that again?"

"Wait, you rub in the soap? I was just going to try to balance the bar of soap on my knuckles and figured that would do the trick."

"What, we don't care about all those germs sitting on our chest? Can you show me how I clean that?"

etc.

 

[Ditkaless Wonders]

when I was a baby, parents would just throw their newborns out in the backyard and we would all crawl around eating dirt. and we were thankful to have it.

Dirt, nice, what we wouldn't have given to be put outside onto dirt. My parents raised us in a leaky houseboat in the Love Canal. When they wanted privacy they would put us kids out, off the back of the houseboat, in a leaky canoe made of newspapers. Well I can tell you that would only keep you afloat for around 5 seconds.

 

[Sinn Fein]

Tell her to #### off, we need to maintain an appropriate level of infant mortality. Whatever does not kill him, will only make him stronger.

 

[meatwad1]

Just tell her the truth. She is being unreasonable. I know it might be hard to believe, but nobody outside of Grandma and Grandpa really cares too much about another baby unless there is something exceptional about it (in either a good or bad sense). Tell her no hard feelings on your end, you will see the kid when she allows.

 

[FreeBaGeL]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Then why no flu shot?

I was wondering the same.

 

[proninja]

Seems unlikely. Pregnant women are usually so even keeled emotionally and rational.

 

[Ditkaless Wonders]

I would offer her the opportunity to thoroughly bathe me, including phisoderming my ###### and genitals. One can never be too careful.

 

[Onions]

Bubble-wrap makes the perfect Christmas gift.

 

[Otis]

Suggest she take the stupid shot.

 

[Onions]

It's not ever going to be fun though. There was a particular point, and the only time my wife and I have ever really yelled at each other, where I had flown to my hometown, drank way too many yeasty beers with buddies one night (and drunkenly drank the sediment) and was hungover and sick to my stomach for a couple of days. I was flew back home to my wife (then fiancé) who was set to go on a family trip with niece and nephews like three days later. SIL, hearing that I had thrown up and felt sick for a couple of days, thinks I might have the flew. Creates the ultimatum that my wife couldn't go on the trip if she saw me at any point during those three days. Even turned it into a "you don't love your niece and nephew" claim when my wife wasn't sure what to do. It was ####### bull####. And there was no good solution to the problem because overprotective mothers aren't going to be rational.

Bird flew?

 

[PatsWillWin]

Their first kid huh?

That was my first thought, too. By the time the third one comes along she'll be letting them play around in the litter box.

My wife and I had our first kid about 2 years ago, and we never did anything like this. we trusted people to stay away if they were sick. All we did was schedule when people could come to visit, and that was because we're 400+ miles away from everyone and didn't want to swamped with guests as we adjusted to life with a child.

"Leave him alone, he's building an immune system." My thoughts on most of the things my firstborn picked up and put into his mouth. Unless it's alive, sharp, a choking hazard, or burning hot, have at it.

 

[PatsWillWin]

I would never meet this baby. I don't even do some of that stuff for my own kids.

 

[doowain]

Your SIL is a new age hippie moron.

My wife slathers herself in the hand sanitizer stuff. Gets yearly flu shots. Gets sick all the time.

I wash my hands regularly, don't use any hand sanitizer, and routinely eat good ol' American soil. No flu shots for me ever. I get sick maybe once very 5-7 years.

Point is...bacteria builds a strong immune system. Your SIL is setting her kid up to be a breeding ground for sickness.

My son will be born in April (our 1st). No way I'm allowing this type of crap.

Then why no flu shot?

I was wondering the same.

Because I clearly don't need it

 

[McGarnicle]

Where might one purchase a raccoon of protection? That sounds pretty badass.

 

[ghostguy123]

Explain to here she is ruining her childs immune system by not exposing the child to normal everyday pathogens.

And then call her a crazy #####.

Had this problem with my friends wife. She tried to go all bubble boy.

i was actually successful explaining to her that its ok for her baby to be sick and build its immune system. Even got her to admit she was going way overboard and having panic attacks over nothing

 

[Sabertooth]

First off, no, not that type of email. Sorry to disappoint. Anywho....

My sister in law (wife's youngest sister) and her husband are expecting their first child right around Xmas (due 20th I believe). All the relatives will be in town (tradition as it's the most central location) but will be staying elsewhere.

Sister in law sends out an email saying that as her child is going to be born around that time, that we all MUST get the flu shot, DTAP, Measles, Polio, you name it, even if we've already gotten them because they "wear off" (also that this be done several weeks ahead of time so the vaccines are at full strength by the time the baby is born) so that we don't infect the precious newborn. She also says that everyone who comes over to see the baby will be given explicit instructions on how to wash their hands, face, mouth, etc. and make sure that they are germ free. All in the name of creating a "cocoon of protection" around the baby.

I read the email, my reaction is "Eh. I don't need to see the baby." and tell my wife this expecting it to result in a fight. Surprisingly my wife agrees and doesn't want to go through all the trouble. Apparently another sister also feels the same way.

I get asking people not to come over if they have a cold or something, but this seems over the top. So, how does one break it to a pregnant woman "sorry, we don't want to see your kid because you're ####ing insane."

Yeah, women get that baby brain thing where they go loopy for a while. I think you handled it perfectly. Glad you married a reasonable woman.

 

[Sabertooth]

Where might one purchase a raccoon of protection? That sounds pretty badass.

http://s3.amazonaws.com/wootsaleimages/Midnight_Rider3h0Detail.png

 

[thecatch]

Explain to here she is ruining her childs immune system by not exposing the child to normal everyday pathogens.

And then call her a crazy #####.

Had this problem with my friends wife. She tried to go all bubble boy.

i was actually successful explaining to her that its ok for her baby to be sick and build its immune system. Even got her to admit she was going way overboard and having panic attacks over nothing

during the first few weeks it's a pretty big deal if the kid gets sick at all.

 

[Das Boot]

Tell her you won't come over until the baby gets a flu shot too.

 

[proninja]

Explain to here she is ruining her childs immune system by not exposing the child to normal everyday pathogens.

And then call her a crazy #####.

Had this problem with my friends wife. She tried to go all bubble boy.

i was actually successful explaining to her that its ok for her baby to be sick and build its immune system. Even got her to admit she was going way overboard and having panic attacks over nothing

during the first few weeks it's a pretty big deal if the kid gets sick at all.

Especially pertussis.

 

[Johnny Rock]

If she's breastfeeding that should provide plenty of protection for the baby. Tell her you'd rather take a pull on that too rather than the whole shots thing. If she wants to throw a light blanket over your head while doing so that's her call.

 

[Henry Ford]

"Sorry but I don't think _____ and I will come to see your baby. And not because of your rather silly 'raccoon of protection' requirements but because you're kid is probably going to be really ugly."

Raccoon of protection: http://ct.weirdnutdaily.com/ol/wn/sw/i40/2/5/14/wnd_0e1c89e9302b2d2eaa6ac0568dc4d4fd.jpg

 

[one time]

I honestly don't see the problem requesting anyone around a newborn to have the flu shot or Tdap. Those are current CDC recommendations. New born babies have limited immune systems and "minor" illnesses can kill them. Are you sure you're not making up the measles, polio, etc part of the story to embellish?

I'd want to see the actual e-mail before deciding to mock SIL.

 

[bentley]

I honestly don't see the problem requesting anyone around a newborn to have the flu shot or Tdap. Those are current CDC recommendations. New born babies have limited immune systems and "minor" illnesses can kill them. Are you sure you're not making up the measles, polio, etc part of the story to embellish?

I'd want to see the actual e-mail before deciding to mock SIL.

I'm assuming that "wear off" and "cocoon of protection" are direct quotes from the email (since they were in quote in the OP). That's grounds for mocking. If not, then we should mock OP for not knowing how to use punctuation properly.