Monday, March 3, 2008

What To Do, What To Do

One of my least favorite parenting decisions: Is my child too sick to go to school?

The Senator was complaining of an upset stomach this morning. Since I grew up in a household where nothing short of a compound fracture or projectile vomiting gave you a Stay Home pass, I tend to view just about all health complaints with a big dose of skepticism. I attacked from all angles:
Are you feverish?

Do you feel like you're going to throw up?

Is there something at school you might be avoiding?

Does it hurt worse than the time you ran into the metal bar on the playground with your face?
Since the answers to all of the above were answered, grudgingly, in the negative...I decided he could chew up a couple of Tums and catch the bus. "Buck up, Senator. If you start to feel worse, the school nurse has my cell phone number."

Now I'm suffering, wondering if I made the right choice. I have been hovering around the phone, waiting for the Call of Shame from the nurse's office. The afternoon bus just can't get here soon enough.

3 comments:

inklenaomi said...

At our house we have the opposite problem. The medicated still feverish child was begging to go to AWANA and the barfing feverish child cried that she couldn't go to church. Apparently we don't get out much.

Naomi

purpletulip said...

Oh, I am so glad I am not alone in this dilemna! I wrote about my sick days this week and sending my son to school only to discover he is the 1st grade equivalent of typhoid mary with strept throat!

Anonymous said...

Your entries are hilarious- I am adding you to my blog roll.

I hope you can find time to blog more!

I am a mom of many so understand time constraints (and the recurrent need to determine the actual health status of children who would like stay home)