Puke Badge of Courage

Well, it's rare that I publish a post, but I figured it was hilarious enough to share. In Victoria's previous post, she mentioned that Josiah was sick. Here's tbe funny story that led up to the Puke Badge of Courage:

It was the last day of a long trip. We were tired and happy to be going home. After lunch, Josiah was washing his hands after dinner, bent over and said, "My tummy hurts!" It caught my attention because he's never said that. Before taking his nap, he said it three more times.

Josiah woke up from his nap crying so I rushed up to see him. He was coughing a little and then he threw up all over his bed. Normally, I get a little queasy at the sight of puke, but it is amazing how the parent adrenaline kicks in and your whole focus is helping your child. Josiah felt better and we hoped that was that since we had a 2.5 hour car trip ahead of us.

We drove away from our friends about dinner time and stopped at a KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) to get a chicken burger. Victoria and Eliana were in a separate car getting Subway for the adults, so Josiah and I went in to KFC. Josiah was totally excited about his "cheese" burger. (Parent note: I didn't tell him that it was a chicken burger. Is that lying?)

I ordered Josiah's meal when I hear the ominous words: "My tummy hurts!" I look down to see Josiah bending over and in my concern for him, I pick him up and sit him on my hip. I hand the nice lady my money. As she asks, "Is he okay?", Josiah spews all over my shirt, jeans and the counter top. As the other customers took a big step back, the nice KFC lady is in shock. With parent adrenaline pumping, I calmly say, "It's okay. I got you."

The KFC lady hands me lots of napkins and I proceed to make sure Josiah is dry while cleaning the counter top. In a moment of great two-year-old humor, Josiah says, "I spit-up." While suppressing my laugh, I respond affirmatively. I tell the KFC lady we'll come back for the chicken burger, although she probably thought I was crazy at that point.

I went to the car and changed Josiah's clothes. Overall, he was doing fine still repeating the phrase, "I spit-up." every so often. I thought about wearing my vomit-soaked shirt all the way home. As a parent, I had passed this rite of passage and received the Puke Badge of Courage. . . . But then, I quickly changed into another shirt as the smell was beginning to nauseate me.

What can I say except that I love my son and I love being his dad even in the worst of times.