on being sick ... and being a role model

as many of you know i am not exactly a pleasant sick person ... but i am also not a whiner. i am a firm believer that mom's should have a 'get out of sick free' card (thanks colleen) to be used as often as the case may be! i rarely get sick and to be absolutely truthful, i am sometimes a little annoyed that i don't get to be babied more. case in point: i have been pregnant 4 times - #1 sicker than a dog but after i threw up, i was good ... #2 still sick but had a baby to contend with and therefore couldn't spend the day on the couch ... #3 different sick, tired sick, living-at-my-in-laws sick but again had 2 babies ... #4 not as 'sick' but tired and can't catch a break. and thru it all my handsome husband didn't flinch (except that one time when my leg cramped up in the middle of the night and it woke me out of a sound sleep which in turn woke andy out of a sound sleep - in which he had his CPAP mask on and was sleeping quite happily - causing him to save me from the excruciating pain of a charley-horse). he wouldn't let me give into my carnal mind and fatigued body - he was always there to help me be strong. what i mean to say is that he was callous, pitiless and unsympathetic. ok ... so that's a little harsh, he was only a little insensitive.

all misery aside, i am sick today - the first time this year (don't even worry that i was sick over christmas)... today is tuesday, the day that andy's new calling (church responsibility) with the young men ages 14 and 15 'requires' him to be at the church building from 7-8:30 with the boys. his duty is to be there, a friend, a leader, and a role model. while i fully understand his responsibility (i have held the counter-part calling with the young women of the same age), i also felt that if he left at 6:45 - just after dinner was done and the kids were supposed to be getting ready for bed - i would not be able to handle it on my own. we had the following conversation:

i was sitting/lounging sickly on the couch, he was washing the dishes ...

him: you don't want me to go?

me: if it were me, i'd say the best example would be to stay home with your sick wife and take care of your family.

him: what do you want me to do?

me: you decide ... but i would appreciate it if you would stay.

him: ok.

he stayed home - i took a hot shower and did 25 minutes on the elliptical, hoping for a clearer head.

today is a RED-LETTER DAY! thank you honey, dear, handsome husband and loving daddy.

someday i'll repay the favor ... o that's right i did last year!