In general, receiving a phone call from school is not good. Getting a phone call from the school nurse always causes me dread. I have learned to recognize the phone number from her direct line (yes, she has called that often. But with three kids in school . . . ). My first question to her is always, “What’s wrong?”
Today it was Ainsley’s turn. She threw up in class. To be honest, my first thought was . . . Poor Mrs. Sellars! Not very motherly. But I knew that Ainsley was in good hands and I know what it is like to have a child throw up in your classroom. Gross. I don’t mind dealing with my own child’s vomit, but someone else’s kid is not nearly so endearing.
So I immediately grabbed some clothes and headed up to school to pick up Miss A. She threw up on everything including her Girl Scout uniform. So we changed clothes in the bathroom and I headed home. I spent the next part of the hour dealing with the ramifications of a sick kid. 1. Getting sick kid set up on the couch watching cartoons with her bucket close at hand. 2. It was my turn to run the meeting for Scouts. So I had to call my beloved co-leader and get her to do it for me. 3. I was suppose to get a set of keys from someone today and had to rearrange it so Chris could get them. 4. Contact the school and ask them to tell Ben that Ainsley wouldn’t be on the bus. If he got on the bus without her, he would freak. (I’ve trained them to be watch dogs for each other). 5. Find a way for Madie to get picked up from choir practice after school and then fax a note to school. 6. Cancel the babysitter for tonight, since I will be home with Ainsley. 7. Call Chris and let him know that we have a kid down.
After all of that was accomplished there was this general feeling of ease because I was getting to stay home and not be anywhere for the rest of the day. There is a positive side to this sick kid thing. Except that there is a sick child.
By the way, Ainsley is fine. She never ran a fever and she was rather happy today. Of course, she did take a two hour nap this afternoon. That helped. Ainsley is home again tomorrow (I will not be one of those parents who sends their child to school sick. But then again, I have the luxury of my schedule to keep a kid home for 24 hours fever and/or vomit free). So Ainsley gets a free pass. She is hanging with Mom while Mom works. It will be a good day for her.
The Puddles 
It could be worse. I’ve been contacted by 2 different teachers for 2 different children within the last week’s time regarding misbehavior in class. One is talking during work time and the other is suddenly coming down with headaches or tummy aches at 1 pm every day. We are concluding from each case that the kids are bored. Bored with school-and it’s only February! Isaac is allowed to bring a book to school to read after he is done with his work and the teacher offered to give him some harder worksheets, but I don’t know what I’ll do with Anna. I’ve given her a lecture about not faking illnesses to get out of working, but I don’t know what else to do. UGH.