Midnight Rambler

I have been very parenty today. Very mothery. And when I say today, I mean all day, starting at midnight when L started moaning Owwwwww! in her room. Taking care of a sick kid in the middle of the night feels like something a mother would do. Most of the time, I'm just getting us through the day with food in our bellies and weather appropriate clothing. I teach table manners, make sure homework and piano practice are done, try to get her to clean her own room and hang up her own backpack. But when they feel like puking in the middle of the night, that's when the real mothering chops come out. That's when we rise to the occasion. Literally.

Here's the other thing, though: no matter how empathetic you actually feel toward your kid when they're sick, you still want to strangle them for waking you up. In L's case, I wish she would just yell Mommy! instead of moaning and groaning so she gets me in there but can deny that that was what she was trying to do. Owwwww! Oh, sorry I woke you. Do you think that could be from me stomping in there and hissing, What is it!? Also, I know this kid. She generally does not fake it (not like I did EVERY DAY) and I can tell when she is trying to fake it so she can watch more TV. She definitely does not fake it in the middle of the night. If she has a fever or pukes, my good mommy behavior is called up a little sooner, but when there is no physical evidence of illness, I get annoyed. Much like my own mother, who, when I told her I was afraid something was really wrong with me last year and I was really scared said, Oh, relax, don't be so dramatic. She didn't say that while she was sitting in the ICU with me, though, did she?

Anyway, while I'm sitting there with L in the middle of the night because that's all I can think of to do for her besides give her some tylenol, I get this huge wave of nausea, unlike anything I've ever felt, and all I can think is, Shit. We're getting the stomach flu, and it will be nothing but barf and diarrhea all weekend long, and then Rob will get it and he'll be a big baby. Luckily, that has not happened, although L did puke in my bed about an hour later. We were prepared, we had The Bowl, and she fell into a deep sleep right after. I am now a fan of having kids puke in the dark.

I sent Rob to sleep in L's bed, and she and I were up periodically throughout the night. I took her to the doctor this morning and she has an ear infection. Here's a question: how can a child be perfectly fine when she goes to bed, after a good dinner and a rousing game of Yahtzee, and wake up a few hours later with an ear infection? Little warning might be nice. She is currently asleep in my bed after assuring me that she wasn't tired and that it would be too hard for her to close her eyes. Ok, dude, whatever you say.

To top off the extra mothery feelings I am experiencing today, I made a batch of chocolate chip cookies. Want one?