Moms don't get to be sick...

This is one of those unwritten rules they don't tell you about when you are pregnant with your first child. They just figure that you'll find it out soon enough.

And you do. You find it out, big time.

Just because moms don't get to BE sick doesn't mean moms don't get to FEEL sick. Oh, no. You go right on ahead and feel like you just got hit with a MAC truck, Mommy...but there are still dishes to be washed and laundry to be folded and dinner to be cooked.

I used to feel comforted when my hubby would say, "It's OK, sweetie...don't worry about the house, just go upstairs and rest until you feel better." Uh huh. What that really means is "you rest and when you feel better, everything will still be right here...where you left it...and perhaps even a whole lot worse than you left it." Nothing can force me out of bed quicker than the thought that the longer I lay there, the more work I will have waiting for me once I get up.

And I love the little pep talks we moms get when we're sick. From the toddlers we hear wonderfully tender remarks like, "Mommy, are you in there?" while poking Mommy's eyes open. "I need a peanut butter sammitch." From the husbands we receive the loving advice, "You'll feel better if you get up and vacuum something." Tears build in our eyes as our teenagers come home from school and empathetically inquire: "What's up with you? Can you drive me over to Jessica's?" Ah, family. Nobody cares about you like they do.

So moms don't get to be sick. And you learn to live with it. Just like all the other "mom" things you learn to live with. Like afterbirth pains, longer boobs, and finding crayons in the wash. Like having "company" when going to the bathroom, Radio Disney on your car stereo, and spending 15 minutes getting your kids bundled up so they can go outside for 45 seconds and then come in soaked and needing hot chocolate.

It's what moms learn to live with, but fortunately the benefits far outweigh the inconvenience.