Disappointed

I am supposed to be attending a work conference in Seattle next week. Garth & Chloe were going to come out with me and we were going to make a mini-vacation out of it. We were going to see my friend Cecile & her family. Then, we were going to head up to Vancouver Island to visit with Garth's cousin, Gy. I was to be the first time that they met Chloe.

We had been looking forward to this for some time, now. I think that Garth, especially wanted to go. I think he feels sort of trapped in the house since Chloe was born and I had to go back to work.

For a period of time, we weren't sure that we were going to be able to go into Canada. We were waiting for Chloe's passport & Garth's Green Card to show up in the mail. It was uncertain whether these would show up in time. But, miraculously they did. Garth's cousin made plans to come out from Red Deer to meet us and Garth made reservations on the ferry.

Unfortunately, none of this is going to happen because we're not going to be able to go to Seattle after all. Chloe got sick last week. She had RSV, which is a respiratory virus. On Friday, she was admitted to the hospital for observation. Luckily, she was released the next day and has made a great recovery. But, she is still weak from being sick.

Chloe was also supposed to get her first set of shots last week. But, because she was sick, they weren't able to do that. We took her to the doctor yesterday and they said that they could give her the shots on Friday. But, it takes one month for her to build up full immunity. So, she would still be susceptible to catching things like meningitis. Also, because she is still recovering from the RSV, she might have a harder time with the shots. It would be better if we waited a couple of weeks.

All this makes me unwilling to take her to Seattle. Planes are huge breeding grounds for germs, with the close quarters & recycled air. And January is notoriously cold & flu season (she couldn't be admitted to the hospital, where she was born, because all the beds were already taken up with sick kids). At first, I was only concerned with her comfort level on the plane - would she have a problem flying, since she is still a little congested. Now, since her immune system is already compromised, I am worried that she might relapse, catch the flu, or meningitis.

On top of this, hotel rooms are some of the dirtiest places around. Of course, we would bring blankets & sheets to set her on. But I feel like we would have to wash our hands every single time before picking her up, since we could have picked up some unknown germ by touching the nightstand, remote control, bedspread, etc.

Maybe, I'm being neurotic, but I'm just not willing to take these chances. If it wasn't cold & flu season, if she wasn't already sick, or if she had gotten her shots on time, we'd go. But, it just doesn't seem worth the risks.

So, we are really disappointed. Perhaps, we'll be able to schedule a trip out there sometime this summer.