Snow Day

Ross was sent home from school yesterday with a stomach thing which kept him miserable for five hours or so, after which he was fine. Having homework arrive with Lars brought on a bit of a setback, however, and Ross was allowed to convalesce last night since we knew he would not be able to go to school today (they have a 24-hours post puke rule).

WELL. Imagine our surprise when the 1" of snow they predicted was 6" when we got up! Clearly, a snowday was upon us and the boys instantly got to work watching a movie in their pajamas before breakfast. After breakfast, Chris suited up to go out and shovel. As the boys moved toward their jackets, I reminded Ross that he had homework and said he had to do it before he could go out to play. "But, Mama! I'm SICK," he whined. As soon as it was out, he realized that would get him bedrest and moved to take it back. "No, no - I mean I need a BREAK."

A break from what, I wondered? Watching movies? Eating breakfast? "Homework. Finish your homework and then you may go out to play." Huge dramatics ensued. The general theme of the play was that Ross would NEVER get to go outside because his homework would NEVER be done, a self-fulfilling prophecy when one is pitching a fit or otherwise not doing his homework.

Leaving him to sob despondently in the dining room, I retreated to the den. Moments later, I heard a nasty sort of crash that might have been a chair being kicked into my prize table! Grrrrrr.... With effort, I walked calmly into the dining room and found Ross, still sobbing, in the same chair he'd been in when I left. The chair nearest to him was pulled out from the table in the same position it had been in as well, very curious. Still, I took hold of Ross' upper arm and lead him silently to time out. "You can get out when you're ready to do your homework and, when you're done with that, you may go outside to play," I said.

Ross hitched an extra breath and sobbed, "Bbbut my nnnnnooooooooossse hurts!"

"Your nose? How did you hurt your nose?"

"I was stamping my foot and I hit my nose on the chaaaaair," he wailed. I couldn't help it - I laughed. The mental pictures for 'injured nose while stamping foot' were just too much! I felt a flash of guilt for laughing at my kid but it was cut short as I realized I knew what had made the mystery noise.

"Well, I guess you know why you shouldn't have been doing that," I choked out between giggles. Then? I left him in time out on the stairs, telling him again that he could get out whenever he was ready to do his homework and that he could go outside as soon as his homework was done. Three hours, two tantrumish outbursts, unquantifiable whining, and ten word wall word sentences later, Ross made it out to frolic in the snow.

An hour or so later when the neighborhood gang appeared on the front porch, I took stock of the red noses and general sogginess and herded them all inside for cocoa and a movie while we tossed all the wet things into the dryer. I gasped when I looked at Ross, "What happened to your nose?!?"

"I hit it on the chair?" Chair....chair...the CHAIR! Captain Obvious must be snowed in today.