It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Since the kids came along, winter time has meant stomach flu, asthma, colds and any other kind of funky virus they seem to pick up. I promise that we really do have good hygeine, but somehow we still manage to run a pretty full hospital ward in the family room several times during the season.

Megan was sick on Sunday, throwing up and feeling miserable. She missed school on Monday.

This morning Trevor woke up and ran straight for the bathroom. Blllllaauuggghhhhh. A sound I know all to well. Yep, it's his turn. A free ticket out of school for the day.

So I take Matthew to school, who is saying his tummy hurts, but I'm thinking he is trying to pull one over on me since he knew his brother was staying home sick. His coughing on cue was right up there with some of his other performances that once I gave in, I realized he wasn't really sick when an hour later he'd be jumping on the couch or wanting to play outside. No way. I wasn't going to be fooled this time. I told him that he could go to the nurse if he wasn't feeling well. I thought for sure once he got into class and seeing his friends he'd forget that he wasn't 'feeling well.'

I wasn't even back to the house yet when the cell phone rang. It was Matthew's school nurse, and he was sitting in her office with vomit on his backpack. OK, now I slink back to school feeling like the worst parent ever. Yep, indeed he was sick. He's since proven me wrong at least 100 times as he wretches into the puke basin next to his little bed made on the floor.

Poor boys. I'm not kidding that sometimes I'll be cleaning out one basin and the other is throwing up in his. Thanks to Mike and his multiple hospital stays for his kidney boulder from hell earlier this year, I have several of those sponge bath basins that all of your necessities for staying several days are in. The funky all in one bottle of body wash/shampoo and conditioner. The awful toothpaste and the flimsy toothbrush that dicinigrates after two uses. It's not as fancy as the maid cart at the W or something, but seeing as how insurance is paying for them, you know they cost about $200. Might as well bring the basins home.

There are benefits to having the kids home. When they are sick they want nothing more than to hang out on my lap. Which makes all of the puke and bad smells worth it. Plus how often do you get to sit down and know you can't do anything because you are already doing you job? It's one of the good benefits of being a mom.