From All Posters, created by Louise Max
It’s been a while since Monkey Man and Gorilla Girl were sick enough not to go to school, but when it comes, illness seems to linger like the stickiness of remembered carnival cotton candy. Like cotton candy, though, and despite the fevered sniffling, the sick days themselves are filled with the sweetness that reminds one of childhood.
Staying home during the week is odd, and comes with some unusual moments, some annoying, and others annoyingly adorable.
In no particular order, here’s what happened on our sick day.
1. Roughly 3000 times, Monkey Man or Gorilla Girl announced, “Mommy, I need a tissue.” Three thousand times–each.
2. Monkey Man and Gorilla Girl sat on my lap for hours on end. I tried to grade papers, and each time I had a full stack, they would both demand a spot on my lap.
Monkey Man, “Mommy, snuggle me.”
Gorilla Girl, “I need more room.”
Monkey Man, “Hey, that’s my head, you’re hurting my head.”
Gorilla Girl,”His head is too big!”
3. Monkey Man, under the blankets during a self-imposed nap, “Mommy, what is this?” grabbing my wedding band.
Me: “That’s my wedding ring.”
MM: “When did you get it?”
Me: “When Daddy and I got married.”
MM: “And then you went to Vietnam to get us, right? After the wedding? And Vietnam was a long way — across the ocean. And it was a loooong airplane ride.”
4. Can we watch Caillou again? (and again, and again)
5. “Mommy, I need more chocolate milk.” Repeat.
This is what life might be like if I was a stay at home mom, though I suppose Monkey Man and Gorilla Girl would be more active and there would be much less snuggling on the futon while watching endless PBS programming.
Necessity is the Mother of Invention 