I'm sick... have a 7 month old... do we cancel our trip to Chicago?

[ARAG]

Travelling with DH and DD to Chicago to visit the inlaws for a week. I just got a major head cold/fever. I feel horrible! DD is fine, so far, and I'm hoping and praying that she doesn't catch it (but don't babies always catch their mums' colds)?

We're meant to travel on Saturday morning. I have a vague feeling that I'll be a bad parent for not cancelling the trip. I'm having visions of our return flight with a screaming infant who is sick and miserable.

What to do... what to do....

(We have travel insurance, so as far as the cost goes, I think we're okay. Don't know when the next opportunity that we'd get to go to Chicago would be tho...)

Just did rock/paper/scissors... 'Cancel' won. Hmm.

How long have you had it? Particularly if you are breastfeeding your DD may not get it and if you have had it for a few days I would have thought she would have come down with it by now.

You might well feel better by Saturday and if she doesn't have it you will feel bad for cancelling.

Can you leave it another 24 hours?

not sure re kids catching colds but I'm not sure its inevitable (same way it is the other way round)...can you dose up on nightnurse/daynurse to see if helps you. also I would have thought she'd be showing signs of catcing it now as thikn cold etc have pretty quick infection rate.
plus can you not take calpol to dose her with just in case..seems rough to cancel this trip if it isnt so easy to rearrange

Would your insurance really reimburse you for not travelling for a cold? Make sure you check this.

I thought that babies had a kind of immunity to Mums colds, in the same way that husbands and wives rarely get the same illness... no idea if this is true, just remember being told it!

A Dr told me once that babies rarely catch things off the parents but parents usually catch them off the babies!

It sounds to me like you dont really want to go and this is a kind of reason to cancel without feeling bad.
If I'm way off mark and you do actually want to go, then I'm sure you'll be heaps better by Saturday and you will be absolutely fine by day 1 or 2 of your holiday!!

Are you sure this is just about not wanting to see your in-laws?

What does your DH say? Mine would be livid about me cancellling just because I had a cold, no matter how bad it was!

erm...it's a cold, you are not dying or anything serious...I think it is ridiculous to think about cancelling a trip to chicago because of a common cold....dose your self up and be sure you have medication for your dd , just in case...

Go! Imagine how foolish you will feel when it comes to SUnday and you feel finE! DH can look after DD on the journey while you sleep.

You will need a GP to certify you unfit to fly you know? I can't see that happening to be honest.

TBH I really do want to go... but I don't want to go sick. You'd have to agree that being with the in-laws for a week does take some strength. It's a bit difficult parenting in a fishbowl with all eyes on you. And I'm feeling so poorly at the moment. Sigh... But yes, I do love my inlaws, and DD is at such a delicious age right now. I so want to share her with them!

My own mother said, "I hope going isn't a big mistake." That got me thinking... I wasn't sure what the 'right' thing to do was.

Glad to hear from MNers that going doesn't make me a bad parent!

Niecie, I'm on my second day with the cold. I am breastfeeding DD, so I am hoping that she has super-immunity.

A bad cold is crappy but I bet if she hasn't got a cold by tomorrow your DD will have escaped it. TBH she is as likely to pick up something on the flight, with all that recycled air and you'll never know if it was your cold or somebody elses!

I do know how you feel a bit - we were supposed to be going to the in-laws which is a 270m drive and I had a hideous cold. A day in bed with my mum keeping an eye on the DC and only giving DS2 to me to bf did the trick and we went a bit later.

Any chance of changing the flight to Sunday and just going for 6 days. It would just about be worth it.