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We stood in line for more than an hour, with Noah alternately hollering in my arms and running away as fast as his little legs could carry him.

Sam wandered, playing with the belt from my jean jacket and trying to make friends with the unsociable kids in front of and behind us.

It was hot, it was cramped and it was hugely unfair that other people came and went within 10 minutes because their last names didn't start with any letter between F and L.

But in the end, Sam was vaccinated against swine flu.

Well, halfway vaccinated. She has to get a second shot in a month. At the same place. Probably with the same divisions of last names, meaning I'll be in line for a long time again because I chose to marry a Gulli.

I've gotta say, though, once we were inside, it all went smoothly. And all the folks who were involved were wonderfully patient and calm -- an amazing feat considering they were all volunteers.

Anyway, we're part of the way to safety. I'm celebrating it as a small victory.

I'll admit that, even in one of my recent posts, I've been a little snarky about swine flu.

I mean, it's a flu. People get the flu all the time. My household even had a collective bout of flu last month.

But the news today that a Littlestown kindergartner died because of complications from swine flu scared the bejesus out of me.

The other three people in my house have the flu. And I think the cat has a urinary-tract infection.

So much for my mental anguish over whether to get the seasonal flu and H1N1 vaccines, huh?

No school for Sam today. She told me seven kids were absent (or, as she spells it, "absit") from her class one day last week.

This morning, she wanted to know why I kept her home. I said, "Because your fever is almost 102 degrees when you don't take medicine."

She said, "So I don't have to go back until FRIday??"

Not sure how she got that out of what I said, but heck, at this point it could be true.

Anybody else dealing with flu already in your house? Any tips for keeping the kids -- and, let's face the truth here, husbands -- comfortable?

Because I'm a member of the media, I'm required to type or speak the words "SWINE FLU" at least twice an hour to ensure the public is sufficiently terrified.

I think they even added that requirement to the Journalists Handbook of Topics You're Required To Overreact About and Overreport On.

But here's what I really want to know: Are you going to get your kids regular flu vaccines and H1N1 vaccines this fall? Have you previously gotten them flu vaccines?

I'm on the fence about this -- which, as you all can guess, is pretty unusual for me.

If there's a shot or nasal mist that will be uncomfortable for Sam and Noah for just a minute but will prevent their being sick for 7 to 10 days, then it seems like common sense to get it.

But I've got this nagging concern about the H1N1 vaccine. It was created awfully quickly, wasn't it? I'm not worried about the actual H1N1 part to it, but I am worried that we'll be running stories in a year that say the vaccine "accidentally" contained some sort of hazardous substance and that all the people who got it are at a higher risk for some worse kind of disease.

I'm not saying I think the H1N1 vaccine will give my kids cancer. I'm just saying I'd rather be overly cautious with this one, especially since swine flu isn't as deadly as experts predicted in the beginning.

And hey, since my last poll turned out so well, I thought we'd try it again!

Somebody sent me a link to this video the other day, and I just had to share.

Here are all the words you need: baby, Beyonce, imitative dance.

Enjoy!

There's also this one. And man, can this baby move!

If you haven't already, read this wonderful story and watch the video about Mason Thibault, an 11-month-old who needs a small-bowel transplant.

It's one of those stories that makes you stop and realize how lucky you are. Mason's story makes what we went through with Noah seem easy to handle by comparison.

Hope you and your children are well.

For obvious reasons, I can't use this blog to comment often on local happenings that involve kids.

The Darisabel Baez murder, for example, is one instance of a case that I would love to be able to, uh, strongly express my opinions about, but I've gotta leave it alone.

Sunday's two child deaths, however, I just can't leave alone.

Please forgive me for being mostly MIA -- I've had one of those weeks to write home about, if only I had time or energy to write.

As a peace offering, here's a link to a great CNN.com section about being a mommy.

I think this sentence from the article "8 Things No One Tells You About Being a Mom" best describes me: "If, like me, you're a Type A control freak (or were in your pre-kids life, until they leeched it out of you), it's a constant internal struggle not to step in and finish the puzzle, Velcro-shut the sneaker yourself, or issue reminders every 10 seconds about what your child should do, say, or remember."

In case you've been busy chasing a toddler or holding a sick baby or just trying to find enough time in your day to get a shower and have missed the news, the toy Aqua Dots was recalled yesterday.

Why? you ask. Because the dots contain a chemical that turns into the date-rape drug GHB if they're ingested. Five kids in the U.S. and Australia have gotten sick; the two kids in the U.S. both went into comas for several days.

So leading manufacturers of cough and cold medicines for babies and toddlers said today that they're yanking all such products from the shelves in advance of an FDA hearing next week on the safety of the drugs.

What are they taking out of our baskets of cranky-baby soothers? Dimetapp, Robitussin, Tylenol cough & cold stuff, etc.

Here's my favorite quote from one of the pediatricians in today's story: “If you can actually pull a
booger out with a suction device, people can feel better."

Right. And this guy has held down a 2-year-old who's already pissed off cuz she can't breathe, squirted saline drops up her nose, then used a bulb syringe to extract chunky, nasty greenness? By himself? With no nurses to help?