"you need to drink more water"

Tim spent his time from 1am to 3 am last night at the E.R. with Collin. We have had beautiful weather here the last few days and the kids have been running around outside non-stop. Collin has especially been a wild man, running here and there and everywhere, with his pal Aaron. He started to complain of severe stomach pain yesterday evening and he laid on the floor crying inconsolably writhing in pain off and on from 8pm until 1am...


Tim's answer to this? "You need to drink more water." For those who know Tim well, know that this is his answer to everyone for everything. Have a headache? - "more water" Feeling tired? - "more water" Upset stomach? - "more water" Fever? Chills? - "more water" Overweight? - "more water" pregnancy aches and pains? - "more water"


So of course this led Tim to blame me for not pumping Collin full of "more water" yesterday. "Kris, you've gotta make sure he drinks "more water" he says to me at 10pm. At this point Collin was screaming on our family room floor saying "I'm dying mommy, I'm dying" I resisted Tim's "more water" theory. An intense argument ensued...

By 1am I had had enough. Collin was laying on a mattress on the floor at the foot of our bed. He was STILL crying...."Tim? I'm getting concerned. You think maybe he's not just bloated or constipated? What if he's got appendicitis?" Tim responds "Appendicitis? Why in the hell would he have that? He just needs to drink more water. Here give him this. "(he hands me a glass of water) I go downstairs and look up symptoms of dehydration vs. appendicitis. I WIN! Tim is mad but decides to err on the side of caution. We call the E.R. tell the nurse the symptoms to which she says "Well, if he were my son, I'd bring him in." So, of course Tim glares at me with bloodshot eyes and says "Fine, get his shoes on him. But I'm telling you that the doctors are gonna laugh at me bringing him in to the E.R. when all he needs is to 'drink more water' "

Tim and Collin returned home at 3:15am. I sat up in bed and asked "So? What's the verdict?"
Tim says "He's got gas Kris. Gas." He tucks Collin back under the covers in the bed at the foot of our bed. "But how did they know that? what did they do?" I ask. "They took x-rays Kris. You know if you go to the E.R. they'll always need to take some x-rays!" He gets into bed, pulls the covers up and says his final words for the night "I have to get up for work in 2 and a half hours. All he needed was to drink more water"

At 5:30 am this morning Collin started his telltale sign that he's been running himself ragged and "not drinking enough water". He woke with a barking cough. Collin NEVER has a normal cough. Anytime he's worn out or under the weather he ALWAYS gets a cough that sounds like "whooping cough" or "the croup". After 4 years of this Tim and I have learned that it's not. It's just Collin. It's just Collin who needs to be "drinking more water". I hate it when Tim's right!