Ohhh, I'm sooooo sick?

Poor Bailey. 

Last Friday she went to the school office about 9:30 AM, complaining that her tummy hurt.

Her mom left work, came to school and picked her up. When they got home, Bailey was magically fine. For the rest of the day she was just fine. No fever or other symptoms. She was marked absent in the app we use with a message that they were monitoring her, but that she had no symptoms that would exclude her from school or my program.

She was back on Monday. But Steffie, seeing how her sister got to stay home, watch TV and hang out with Mom, got 'sick' at school too.

Same result. As a precautionary measure, she was picked up and taken home. And was back on Tuesday

So Wednesday, Steffie decided she'd try the same thing again. 

The school notified her parents and Dad told them he was not able to pick up immediately, that if she did not have a fever or any other excludable symptoms, please send her to my program after school and he would get there as soon as he could.

Steffie was fine, she ate a snack with the rest of the kids and was all bouncy and cheerful. You know, normal.

Her dad showed up about 3:15, not even an hour into program time. Both girls were surprised. They ran to him, and Steffie said, "Daddy! Daddy!! Can we go to the park??!!"

He said, "No we can't go to the park. You're SICK, remember?"

She said, "Oh I was sick, but I feel just fine now!" 

Dad did not look happy.
He left work two hours early to come get the kids.

This is not Bailey. Or Steffie.

So the next day, Bailey went to the school office to say her tummy hurt again. The attendance secretary asked Bailey, "Do you want me to call your mom or dad?"

She said no.

"Well, you don't have a fever. You're not throwing up. What would you like me to do for you?"

And Bailey said darkly, "Nothing. There's nothing you can do for me."

I know it's not funny to her, and I'd never laugh at her, but it is sort of humorous. Both girls have been lectured about lying to say they're ill, parents need to be at work. I overheard Dad telling Bailey on Friday that, "If you ever are really sick, I still want you to call me. I will take care of you. But calling me when you're not sick and pretending that you are will get you in trouble every time."

There are kids who complain their stomach hurts when they're anxious. They don't have the vocabulary to explain their anxiety, they just know something is bothering them and those are the words they use to describe it. Fairly common.

But this wasn't that.
 
"There's nothing you can do for me."