Flu Bug
*** WARNING **** This is a gross post. Do not read while eating.
My daughter is a drama queen. I'm not talking about your typical childhood drama. Her drama is Tony Award worthy, and we are treated to performances on almost a daily basis.
The last few days, she has been doing the "I'm feeling sick" show. The day before school started, I was sick with a stomach bug. I was dizzy, nauseous, and puking. Not fun. However, Vika was a real champ, bringing me crackers and tea, and helping me in any way I needed. It actually warmed the cockles of my heart, to see her being so attentive.
The next day, she started feeling sick and said she felt like she was going to puke. Thinking she caught my bug, I comforted her and put her to bed early so she could rest. The next day, she was fine until it was once again bedtime. As I tucked her in, she began complaining that her stomach hurt and she thought she might throw up. Due to her vigorous activities and fine health throughout the day, I began to think that maybe my darling daughter might be faking it. When Vika asked if she could watch TV until she felt better, I pretty much realized it was an act, but played along to teach her a lesson. I turned out her light and told her to get plenty of rest so her body could heal. Then Jeff and I hatched a plan - in order to stop Vika from pretending that she was sick, we decided to treat her as if she really were sick with the flu - crackers and tea for breakfast (while the rest of us ate blueberry pancakes), and confined to her bed all day. It worked too – around lunchtime, she finally admitted that she was pretending to be sick so that she could get the same attention I did. She smiled sheepishly and asked if she could please get out of bed and play with Eamon now. I thanked her for telling the truth, but told her she should still probably take it easy today, just in case she really was sick.
Vika then napped for almost 2 hours - something she never does. When she woke up, she looked a bit pale, but said she felt fine. I gave her a banana to nibble on and a small glass of water.
Suddenly, to my surprise and horror, I heard the words, "Mama, I'm puking...." My head swung around to see Vika, standing in our dining room over a pile of vomit. My response: "ACK! Why aren't you doing that in the toilet?!" (I realize that I probably could have been a bit more nurturing at this point, but I was caught off guard) I ran to Vika and tried to lead her towards the toilet. We were doing OK, until she planted her feet right over the threshold to the bathroom, and let loose another bilious mass of banana slime. I finally picked her up and held her over the toilet, but the girl would not kneel down. She kept her knees locked, and refused to get any closer to the toilet than necessary. As a result, she wound up projectile vomiting all over our bathroom wall. What a mess. In the end, I resorted to a "karate chop" to the back of her knees, thereby forcing her to squat in front of the toilet. We really need to teach that girl some puking etiquette.
The moral of the story: When you child says he/she feels like they might puke, ALWAYS believe them. And for God’s sake, DON’T give them a banana. It really doesn’t clean up well.
My daughter is a drama queen. I'm not talking about your typical childhood drama. Her drama is Tony Award worthy, and we are treated to performances on almost a daily basis.
The last few days, she has been doing the "I'm feeling sick" show. The day before school started, I was sick with a stomach bug. I was dizzy, nauseous, and puking. Not fun. However, Vika was a real champ, bringing me crackers and tea, and helping me in any way I needed. It actually warmed the cockles of my heart, to see her being so attentive.
The next day, she started feeling sick and said she felt like she was going to puke. Thinking she caught my bug, I comforted her and put her to bed early so she could rest. The next day, she was fine until it was once again bedtime. As I tucked her in, she began complaining that her stomach hurt and she thought she might throw up. Due to her vigorous activities and fine health throughout the day, I began to think that maybe my darling daughter might be faking it. When Vika asked if she could watch TV until she felt better, I pretty much realized it was an act, but played along to teach her a lesson. I turned out her light and told her to get plenty of rest so her body could heal. Then Jeff and I hatched a plan - in order to stop Vika from pretending that she was sick, we decided to treat her as if she really were sick with the flu - crackers and tea for breakfast (while the rest of us ate blueberry pancakes), and confined to her bed all day. It worked too – around lunchtime, she finally admitted that she was pretending to be sick so that she could get the same attention I did. She smiled sheepishly and asked if she could please get out of bed and play with Eamon now. I thanked her for telling the truth, but told her she should still probably take it easy today, just in case she really was sick.
Vika then napped for almost 2 hours - something she never does. When she woke up, she looked a bit pale, but said she felt fine. I gave her a banana to nibble on and a small glass of water.
Suddenly, to my surprise and horror, I heard the words, "Mama, I'm puking...." My head swung around to see Vika, standing in our dining room over a pile of vomit. My response: "ACK! Why aren't you doing that in the toilet?!" (I realize that I probably could have been a bit more nurturing at this point, but I was caught off guard) I ran to Vika and tried to lead her towards the toilet. We were doing OK, until she planted her feet right over the threshold to the bathroom, and let loose another bilious mass of banana slime. I finally picked her up and held her over the toilet, but the girl would not kneel down. She kept her knees locked, and refused to get any closer to the toilet than necessary. As a result, she wound up projectile vomiting all over our bathroom wall. What a mess. In the end, I resorted to a "karate chop" to the back of her knees, thereby forcing her to squat in front of the toilet. We really need to teach that girl some puking etiquette.
The moral of the story: When you child says he/she feels like they might puke, ALWAYS believe them. And for God’s sake, DON’T give them a banana. It really doesn’t clean up well.
LOL. Yes, I remember as though it was only last month. Oh wait -- it WAS only last month that my son decided to annoint me and my entire bedroom with the contents of his stomach in the middle of the night.
Ah...good times.
OH, Oh, Oh my!!
That reminds my of the night that Sydney "let loose" 7 times in a span of an hour and a half. While Liz was out for a Mom's night out!
Oh the fun!!
Parenthood IS THE BEST!!
:)
I hope everyone is feeling better now!!
I developed a pretty good death grip on the clothing while racing to the bathroom when my kids were little. Except for the one time Joe threw up on our new carpet - right after drinking grape kook aid - it was a buttercup yellow carpet - now with a lovely purple circle right in the middle of the floor. End of grape kool aid for our family.
Eew. Poor Vika. I hope she's feeling better. And I don't envy you that clean up.
Slugger was at soccer practice a week ago and complained of a stomach ache. I thought it was just because he didn't understand the drill the coach was taking them through, so I sent him back out there after a few encouraging words. I mentioned to one of the other parents that I either know my kid really well or I'm the world's worst mom. It went in my favor that night -- but I would have felt terrible if he was actually sick!
thanks for the mental image of banana slime.
Oh no!! Yuck! Well, it happens to the best of us. The worst was when Kevin puked all over himself and Mike in a fully packed car in Moscow heading for our hotel and we had another hour to go in the car.
glad to hear you have a good class. enjoy it.
Thanks for the grossness warning. I was checking my bloglines earlier while I was cooking dinner, so I (wisely) saved your post for later!
I've learned by experience never to call a kid's bluff on needing to puke, pee, or poop!
I too have a drama queen and it is soooo hard to tell the difference! I guess this time the puking made it kind of painfully obvious though, didn't it? ;)
I suppose one could say that's what she gets for faking it the first time around - but it's hard to mean to a kid who just puked up her guts. Kinda funny about the toilet, I like the karate chop move.
Is it wrong that the thought of you karate chopping Vika in the back of the knees totally made me bust out laughing?
I hope you all are feeling better, and it doesn't spread to the boys.
Oh ewwwww! It took my kids FOREVER to learn to even go to the bathroom! And even once they got that mastered, they would still just puke in the hallway on the way there...have I mentioned that the stomach flu is my least favorite of sicknesses?
Hope the girl is feeling better soon!
I am so sorry. I bet you were already frustrated about her playing sick and then she was sick which is a whole new frustration. And I have been there with the throw up clean up- it sucks.
Pineapple always wants to take care of every hurt that I have and then she exagerates hers for the same care- which is all day long of small hurts. So instead of letting her take care of me I always get up right away if I get hurt and say, "I'm fine!" We are working on it.
Oooohh poor Vika, poor you too!!! Now that plan backfired didn't it?! lol
Hope she is better soon :)