Sick Day

          A few weeks ago, I was sick.  I was so sick that I got into bed after work Tuesday and didn’t get out again until Thursday evening.  Luckily, I had cooked a big meal on Sunday, and had gone to BJ’s, so there was enough food in the house for the kids to eat.  While I was laying in bed, I was thinking to myself, “Thank God these kids can take care of themselves.  I don’t know what I would do if they were toddlers or preschoolers.”  Then it hit me, I know what I would have done!  I had been there before. 
            I remembered when I gave birth to my daughter.  The hospital sent me home after three days.  I was hoping that they would keep me longer because I knew that once I got home, there would be no rest, especially since I had a seventeen month old active toddler waiting for me.  Well, I got home and after a few hours, I was exhausted.  My then husband was laying on the bed moaning and groaning because he has a cold (my daughter is a November baby).  So I’m taking care of the kids … alone!  Now, I want you to picture this, I’m carrying a newborn baby in my arms, a toddler is following me around wanting attention, and their father, is laying on the bed allegedly with a cold (he claims he had a fever, I don’t think so).  At some point, this man has the nerve to say to me, “I thought you were tired?”  You can only imagine what thoughts went through my mind!   Since this a family blog, I won’t repeat them.  Instead, I just said, “I am, I just don’t have the luxury of laying in bed.  Someone has to take care of these kids!”  He just laughed and told me that I was a strong woman.  Can you imagine that?
             I also remember one day I came home from work with a blinding migraine.  Somehow, I managed to drive from Queens to Brooklyn to pick these two up from preschool.  With a migraine, I managed to drive them home, feed them dinner, and give them a bath.  I remember my head hurting so badly that all I could do was lay down.  When their father came home, he found me laying on the bed with a child on either side of me rubbing my head.
            Now, I’m not telling you this to put their father down, or to make myself sound like the super parent.  Truth be told, all parents have their moments when we have to forget about ourselves and care for the kids because we really have no other choice.  Parents don’t get a sick day.  However, this time, it was different.  This time, the kids were able to heat up their own food, bathe themselves, take themselves to school, and bring me diner and tea in bed!  They actually came in and checked in on me to make sure I was fine.  They even told me that I needed to stay home from work.   What a welcomed change!  It was nice to be taken cared of for once.
            So, if you still have young kids, just know this, one day they will be teenagers and you will be able to take a sick day.  Until then, Consider Yourself Warned! 
                Parents, what have you done when you felt too sick to take care of the kids?