The Party

Maddie has an incredibly strong gag reflex. It's pretty simple. She coughs- she vomits. Or comes really close.

Friday night, I didn't give her any cough medicine. She woke up covered in vomit. Saturday night, I gave her the medicine too close to bedtime and it didn't get a chance to work before she threw up all over herself.

It's a science, really. Medicine is given 1 1/2 hours before bedtime. She is not allowed to eat after 5. She can only drink water or a little apple juice at dinner- definitely no milk when she has a cough. It's not pretty.

But, we know it's not a stomach virus. And as long as she doesn't have a fever or any other symptoms, life goes on as usual.

Yesterday, I went to Maddie's Christmas party at her school. I was standing next to the bookcase, just watching the craziness. In the middle of the party, my sweet angel walked up to her teacher and asked her a question. I couldn't hear what she asked, but I heard her teacher tell her to go ask her mommy.

Then I got the look. The "how could you?" look. The "what kind of mom are you?" look.

What could she have asked? I even brought extra stuff for everyone to eat- not just the gallon of milk I signed up for.

"Mommy- since I throwed up 2 times, can I go see the nurse?" She seemed to shout it at me.

Crap. Did anyone else hear that? Please don't let this be like the Fifth Disease.

"No. You are NOT sick. You threw up because you were coughing. Do NOT tell anyone else that you threw up. They won't understand."

I went up to the teacher, explained the gag reflex issue and went on with the party. But I made sure to stand beside Maddie every time she started talking to a parent, to stop her if she decided to get a little too chatty.

After all, when we are talking about vomiting and embarrassment, prevention is everything.