my stay-at-home date with Zack

We've all had a bad cough/croup/fever going on for a couple of weeks. We got it around Christmas and then gave it to my sister and her girls when they came to visit for New Years. What a way to ring in 2010!

The only one who didn't get knocked down with the illness was Simon. *insert Hallelujah chorus here* Poor little Zack suffered the most and he has been a difficult child to handle. Friday afternoon, we were all feeling cooped up in the house. I told the kids if we could zip through a few projects and clean up really well before Daddy came home from work, we could go out to dinner as a family. Ben and Luke ran around the house cleaning up and being helpful. Zack basically made a mess, threw fits and cried a lot.

When Daddy came home the house was spotless, but I didn't think it was fair that Zack got to go out after being such a pill. It also wasn't fair to stay home after the older boys listened so well. We decided it was best if Dad took Ben and Luke out for dinner and Zack, Simon and I stayed home. I hate to separate the family on a Friday night, but sometimes discipline is more important than families being together forever.

When the older boys left, Zack had another breakdown. I tried to explain (for the millionth time) why he couldn't join them and told him he was going to bed early. As I was helping him change into his pajamas, his cute little red-blotchy face looked up and me and said, "Mom! When my brain hurts, I don't feel like being nice!" I tried not to laugh and realized that I was probably being a bit hard on the little guy. He hasn't felt well for weeks and we've been trapped in our house. Why should I expect him to behave perfectly? So instead of putting him straight to bed, I told him that we were going to have a PARTY-- just the two of us. (Simon was around too, but when you're sleeping, you don't count.)

We went downstairs (in pj's) and blasted some good music. I put Zack on my hip and we danced around the house like drunken fools. We colored pictures together, played superhero Memory match, read a few poems by Shel Silverstein, ate macaroni and cheese (and PICKLES!) for dinner and then decided to whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies before the boys came home. I was surprised by our serious conversations because Zack is almost ALWAYS trying to crack a joke.. He told me about his pet-alligator dream that turned into a nightmare and how he thinks he needs to have a nightlight in his room. He also said that his dreams about Batman never turn into nightmares. He nonchalantly told me that Batman usually comes to pick him up in the Bat-mobile and they will go to Walmart and the movies together. I never knew!

Zack's favorite part of the night was taking pictures with the camera. (surprise, surprise.) We played a game where I would take a picture of him making a silly face and then he would take a picture of me trying to copy him. My favorite part were the funny things Zack said, especially because he wasn't trying to be funny.

While coloring, he said, "I drew a Power Ranger with long legs, like a LADY!"

During our dinner conversation, he said, "When I grow up, I want to be a doctor.... so I can be RICH!" I asked him what he would buy with all his money, and without missing a beat, he raised his hands in the air and said, "A plate of PANCAKES!"

By the time the older men got home, we were cuddled up together in Zack's blanket, ready to go to sleep. Ben, Luke and Dad had a great time out together and Aaron and I both agreed that we need to divide the troops more often....