What happiness a sick child can bring . . .

Ok, so I am home yet again with a sick child. I have time on my hands to be productive, however, I feel the need to share the last two days with you instead . . .

I was home yesterday with 2 sick children. So, not only was I stalked by a 4 year old with a smokers cough and green sludge oozing out his nose, but I was also able to watch all the Presidential hoopla on TV with my 8 year old. So, it wasn’t all bad. And I must say that I was moved. I am truly excited about President Obama, and I can’t wait to see what he brings to the table. Just having a strong, black man leading our country is so inspiring.

Last night I was inspired by Barak Obama and the inauguration so I broke out the good china and made a "presidential dinner." I know it's cheesy, but with kids, you do what works. So, I made meatloaf in cupcake molds and I even attempted to do some pathetic eagle looking emblem on top with ketchup. It looked like a dead bird, but hey, I tried. The boys named them Barak balls. They totally didn't get the true humor there, but they were feeling patriotic also. I made "white house" mashed potatoes, and yes, we even shaped them to look like a white house. And, we had Barak-oli as a vegetable. Aren't I good? And, we had pudding in fancy wine glasses for dessert. So chic.

So, we sipped our water out of wine glasses and ate on fine china, and My 5 year old proudly declares that our presidential dinner is the same as what they are having at the white house. Somehow I can't imagine meatloaf being served last night, even with the fancy emblem and all, but hey, the kid has a fabulous imagination. And they all cleared their plates which was wonderful. So, I totally played it up.

Well, while I spent four hours handwashing my beautiful dishes that I insisted on using, I had time to ponder the meaning of life. Suddenly, last night after my wonderful patriotic dinner, I felt the need to declare myself mother-of-the-year. Clearly my clever dinner was worthy of such a nod, right? Or perhaps it was the 2 glasses of wine I drank while making dinner. Who knows? But, I suddenly felt like I was an some incredible miracle woman. I mean, I write checks and pay bills. I own a home. I buy groceries and make food. I have 3 CHILDREN! Really, how did this all come about. I really felt like there should have been applause in the background. I mean, wow, I can do what my mother did and I’m still just a kid, right?

I guess my point is, or my question rather, does anyone else feel this way? Like “how in the world did they let me do all this?” (They being some invisible parental advisory board in heaven or something.) I guess, even though I’m 36 – or am I still 35?- when do you feel like a grown-up? I still feel like a bit of a kid I guess, and I really had this wonderful sense of amazement last night at all that life has brought. I have CHINA!!!! Seriously, who would have thunk it????????

Do I need prescription meds or is this normal? I attempted to ask my husband if he ever has these feelings. But, he declared that he is simply too busy to think. (eye twitch – eye twitch).

And this is the same husband who conveniently slept through the 14 trips I made to tend to a hacking 4 year old and a whiny dog with $200 worth of “harmless” fatty tumors. I made so many trips to Dereks room with medicine, puke buckets, tissues, vapor rub, and gingerale, that I finally gave up and laid on the floor at the end of his bed. When at 3:58 am, when I was finally preparing a child-sized portion of Nyquil (hey – I was desperate!) – my loving husband comes out of our wonderfully cozy bed and declares in his sweetest voice . . .”honey, I’m wide-awake, I’ll take over from here. You go get some sleep” (eye-twitch, eye-twitch). I admit my eyes scanned for the butcher block of knives next to the stove, but I was honestly too tired to do the whole stabbing thing. (The irony here is that we get up at 5 am. So this “sleep” he referred to was more of a nap.)

Anywhoo, as I laid in my wonderfully cozy bed and tried to sleep, I was awakened by a groggy 4 year old that walked past the snoring man on the couch to crawl into bed with me. (He really took over, eh???) The stalker, as I lovingly refer to him, put his face 1” from mine on my pillow, and proceeded to pass out within seconds while blowing his germs right into my nasal passage. Good times, good times.

So, as I get up and go about getting things ready for the day . . . making coffee, packing lunch, getting homework and papers ready to go . . . I mention to the wonderful hubby that I really need to get into work, and maybe he could stay home with Derek. You would have thought I asked him to scale the empire state building naked by the initial look he gave me. But, I think he saw my eyes scan the knife block, because he waited a few seconds before replying “why don’t we send him in to school and if he doesn’t do well, I’ll take a half a day and come home with him at 11:30.” Eye twitch- eye twitch, damn my eye. OK, I’ll send a sick kid to school to infect everyone just so that he gets it again in two weeks. But, the true irony is that derek’s class runs from 8 to 11-45. So, my hubby would be sparing him from 15 minutes of school.

Needless to say, I am home today. I do love my husband, and I don’t mean to make him out to be a bad guy, because he isn’t. But, this is a true story, and I stand by my words.

I guess I am just really tired, and I needed to vent. The 14 minutes of sleep I had last night just don’t cut it.

I am off to have another mocha vodka valium latte.

Pray for me.