Peeve #1 Public Sicko

Mom Peeve #1: Bringing your sicko, snotty nosed coughing kids to optional mingling mom/child activities to cough on other children and rub snot all over well children, particularly my well children.

Fact: Kids get sick.
Fact: It sucks when your kids get sick.
Fact: It sucks when someone's EXTREMELY visible sicko kid gives your kid a headlock bear hug and coughs in your kid's face.

I KNOW kids get sick, believe me I KNOW. Mine were recently sick for what felt like an eternity with what felt like a month long pig flu, bird flu, and duck flu all combined. Sometimes you can't help it when your kids get sick. Snot, coughs, and fevers do not stop life. You can't help it when you absolutely have to run to Target for toilette paper, deodorant, and milk and you HAVE to bring along your snotty entourage.

Here's what you CAN help-bringing your snotty, nasty, dirty, coughing sicko kids to playdates. Recently I attended an informal, very optional, gathering of moms, children, and babies. On arriving I was greeted by the rattling cough of a smoker-oh wait, it just sounded like a smoker, it was actually a sick 3 year old girl with a runny nose, and an intense cough. "What the HELL?!" I thought. I steered by 3 year old away from the sick child her own age, and eyed the germ culprit. After a little chit chat, I glanced down to see my whimpering 1.5 year old in a headlock hug. The headlock hug was extra special because it came complete with germs, a dirty child her same age, a green snotty nose, and special love cough right in my once well child's face. I wanted to toss this sweet little sicko child to the side and announce that her mother officially sucked and should get ready to get her ass kicked if my kid got sick after that little display. Instead I gently nudged little Nasty away, and scooped up my baby for detox. What was Sicko Mom's response, "Oh, she just loves babies." "Yeah she must also love WWF based on that headlock, what the hell lady!" is what I really wanted to shout in place of my fake half ass smile. After 2 more attempted hulk hugs by the sickest child I have seen in public in a while, I was ready to bolt. Thankfully, Sicko Mom read my mind-well, not really-and headed out with her peeps.

And so I say this lovingly as one mom to another...seriously, get you shit together moms. Do not unnecessarily expose the entire well population of your town to your child's germs. And if you do need to make that emergency store run in the midst of hacking and snotty children; at least try to disguise them as healthy, give them candy so they won't cough, keep your distance, your eyes down, and bust your ass to get in and out of that Target.