Water stories (longish)

[Guest guest]

>my husband thinks a full glass of water is about 5 sips, but he

drinks a lot of coffee and that seems to do the trick so tea ought to

work. They can take it everyday without any problems. Barb

<my dad, too thinks the water it takes to float his pills down three

times a day is enough water. I " m sure that adds to the problem. I

lamented to him the other day that I am so very concerned that he

still wasn't doing what the doctor had suggested. (We had results from

a blood test and she said his red blood cells were misshaped and there

was no way he was getting enough fluids. She suggested gator ade as a

supplement because it would give other things as sometimes too

much water can flush minerals, etc.) I had gotten him some Gator Ade

(of course) and most of it got poured, sat and poured out. I saw an

unemptied glass of water sitting on the counter that I had poured for

him and a half full glass of GA. I chastised him about not

drinking enough water and he insisted he did. I finally said, " Dog

gone it Dad you do not! Stop trying to B...S... me! " He laughed. I

said do you realize how hard it is to try to feel right about trying

to make a parent be obedient to a child?! I then told him the

story of when my daughter Jerren (30) was little I took her to the

doctor and he prescribed ear drops for her. She was two. I said,

" your'e kidding, right? You think I am going to get her to let me put

ear drops in her ears. " We had been walking down the hall and he

stopped dead in his tracks. He turned side ways and looked me

directly in my eyes. He said, Mrs. H .. let's get one thing straight

right now! " You are the parent. She is the child. You WILL put

drops in her ears! " I said, " I understand " It was the best parenting

lesson I ever got. It sustained me for my parenting years. It was a

formula that worked. Everytime I came to a disobedient moment and a

difficult child I reminded myself. I am the parent. " Well, dad, I

said, that story doesn't work here. You are the parent and I frankly

don't know how to get you to drink the amount of fluids you should be

drinking. I only know, it's not enough. " Later that evening I

was surprised to see him taking a glass of water to bed with him. It

was still setting there this morning, but this evening he actually

drank two complete whole glasses of water with no fanfare at all. In

fact, the second time he filled his glass, I drank with him and said,

you know this isn't half bad. Good job, dad! " He said yep, it tastes

pretty good when you get used to it...and grinned. It's a start.

Kathie/Chicago