Hit me with your best shot!

It's no secret that vaccines are almost always a topic of hot debate. I'm too tire to debate with you. I work in Health Care, of course I side in favor of vaccines. My husband and I will never see eye to eye on HIS need to get a flu shot but luckily he doesn't care that I want the children to have one. My husband also has some kind of super power immune system and he rarely, I mean RARELY gets sick. I hate him for that! Well, I guess I love him for that. Lol. I wish that I rarely got sick. I however am one of the accident, flu, stomach bug, whatever illness prone. I get my flu shot. Every year. Some years I swear it makes me sick, some years I can't even tell I got it. This year I am just bugged by a sore arm. Nothing else.
So regardless of where you stand on the vaccine debate I am assuming that you like any parent would do ANYTHING for your child/children. Right? I often think of things like flu shots and other vaccines like I do the chicken pox. Have you heard of chicken pox parties? Probably not so much these days as when I was a child but I am always absolutely in AWE of people that participate in these. WHY? Why on earth would you purposely expose your child to an illness. Make your kid sick on purpose? Really. Hu. Whatever, different strokes for different folks but for me I will do absolutely anything to protect my kids from getting sick or hurt. If I can give my child a vaccine to help lessen their chances of getting things like the chicken pox, the flu, Hep B, Measles.....etc. etc. then by golly I'm doing it! The less they get sick or hurt the better. These are my babies! So, of course, when it comes to flu shot time I am first in line baby. Give me that shot. IF I get sick I don't wanna be sick long, no mom has that kind of time, and I surely don't wanna get my kids sick.
I often wonder if we don't think of the flu as a dangerous illness anymore but it just like many of the other diseases that are still alive in this day and age are still at times fatal. Did you know that there are somewhere between 40 and 150 children that die each year due to complications cause by the "common" flu. My heart breaks for those families and I pray that I am NEVER one of them. Never.
I know it's heart breaking to hear your baby cry and to watch them get poked. Just like us they probably get sore and hurt. So sad. Sometimes it even used to make me cry. You just have to remember that those tears are an example of your love. My daughter told me today I was mean and I didn't like her. LOL. I told her, "I love you more than you will ever understand and frankly, if you are mad at me cause I won't let you do something which makes me "so mean" then I am doing things right. The meaner you think I am just know that that's the more I love you!" Teenagers, ugh.
The flu is so much more dangerous for your babies than the common cold would be. I think that while we live in such an advanced medical society we sometimes forget how nasty some of the diseases and illnesses like the flu can be. While some of the side effects from the shot, such as,  fever, aches, soreness, redness or swelling where the shot was given can be sad and a little scary as a parent, just think of all that love you are giving. Protect your little one. Save yourself the medical bills and stress and heartache. Get a flu shot, get flu shots for your kids, and as long as your baby is over 6 months of age, get your baby a flu shot!