Cyberchase: Heart Attack

chapter 7

Matt thought for a minute, and replied " watch cartoons until i fall asleep, or until dinner". " ok, daddy. Are all looney tunes safe incase you fall asleep?" Asked Junior. " yup, just don't do anything crazy that the cartoons are doing" replied Matt.

After another 20 minutes, Matt started to yawn. " ok, if i'm not awake for dinner, let your mom know" said Matt. " ok, daddy" agreed Junior.
In the middle of a porky pig cartoon, Junior started to hear his father snoring.

Inez came out to alert her family that dinner was ready. " mommy, daddy is sleeping. He told me to tell you if it happened before dinner" said Junior.
" thank you for telling me" smiled Inez. " you're welcome" said Junior.

Inez checked to see if she could wake Matt up easily. " hmm, the doctor said he could be woken up for food. On the other hand, he needs to rest and take it easy for awhile" she thought to herself. She decided to attempt to wake Matt up.

After 10 minutes, Inez gave up and decided to give Matt his dinner later.
" eh, he could use the rest, besides now he can't complain about his food infront of the kids" she thought out loud.

" is daddy eating with us?" Asked Junior. " no, he'll eat when he wakes up. He's gonna have a hard few days, but he'll be his old self as he gets his strength back" replied Inez. " ok mommy" replied Junior. " now, eat all your vegetables and your porkchop" smiled Inez. " but i don't like spinach" frowned Junior.

" think about how strong Popeye is. If you want to be strong like Popeye, eat your spinach" suggested Inez. " daddy is pretty strong, and he doesn't eat spinach" argued Junior. " if he had eaten his spinach, then maybe his heart wouldn't have stopped" replied Inez. Junior decided not to argue anymore, and ate the spinach.
Ernest and Leroy had finished their dinner, and were ready to play.

After awhile, it was bedtime for the kids. Ernest was wide awake, playing with some blocks, and being helped by Junior. Leroy was sound asleep on the couch. Inez smiled, as she picked the sleeping infant up. " i'm going to tuck in Leroy, and when i come back down, maybe Ernest will be asleep" whispered Inez. " ok, mommy" smiled Junior.

By the time Inez had made it up the stairs, Leroy had started slobbering. " he's like Matt, but minus the snoring. Allthough, Matt doesn't slobber all the time" Inez thought to herself.
" you're getting a little heavy" smiled Inez, as she shifted to get a better grip on Leroy. Soon, Inez had the infant in his crib. She wasn't surprised he didn't even wake up a little.

A few minutes later, Inez came down to grab Ernest. " you ready for bed?" Asked Inez. Ernest shook his head. " well, it's bedtime, whether you like it or not" smiled Inez, as she picked up Ernest. By the time she made it up the stairs, it was obvious that Ernest wasn't going to go down easy.
" want me to read a book?" Asked Inez. Ernest liked that idea, and picked one out. After reading it twice, Inez decided to change tactics. The next tactic was the lullaby. Luckily, Inez could sing, and she was happy Matt wasn't joining in, because he couldn't sing a note.
Inez held Ernest and tried " you are my sunshine"

"You are my sunshine
My only sunshine
You make me happy When skies are grey
You'll never know, dear
How much I love you
Please don't take
my sunshine away."

After the song, Ernest was having a hard time staying awake. " it's ok, i'm right here" smiled Inez. Ernest burried himself in his mother's arms, and was soon fast asleep. Inez put Ernest next to his brother, and put a blanket on top of them. She stood there for a second, then left the room.

As she came back into the living room, Matt snorted awake. " is dinner ready?" He asked. " ready, and eaten, but don't worry, i saved you a plate" replied Inez. " what time is it?" Asked Matt. " 7:30, i would've got you up sooner, but i couldn't get you up" replied Inez. " guess i was sleeping pretty heavy" smiled Matt. " even heavier than usual. Here's a picture" smiled Inez. " yup, i'm definitely not awake" agreed Matt.
" ok Junior, you have a half hour before bedtime" warned Inez.

" ok mommy, wanna play with my blocks?" Asked Junior. " after i get your daddy his dinner" smiled Inez.
After a minute, Inez returned with a porkchop, and a few pieces of spinach. " where's the fat?" Asked Matt. " i cut that off, and threw it out. Try to remember, you have to stay away from fats" replied Inez. " i know, a 2nd heart attack will probably kill me, but can i have just a little bit of fat?" Asked Matt. " i'm not willing to risk it, so the answer is no" replied Inez. Matt admitted defeat, and started on his dinner.

" ok, let's play blocks, Junior" smiled Inez. " ok, mommy. I'm building a tower" said Junior. " hey, let's see who can make the tallest tower, and daddy can judge" suggested Inez.
Everybody was on board with the idea. Quickly, Inez and Junior raced to make the biggest tower. Soon they were out of blocks. " who's is higher, daddy?" Asked Junior. " it's pretty close, but i think your mother's is just a little higher. Don't be sad, you can't win all the time" smiled Matt. " ok, daddy. Can we watch cartoons?" Asked Junior. " i think we have time for one episode" replied Matt. Junior climbed on his dad's lap, while Inez took the empty plate to the sink. The choice was " winnie the pooh".  After the cartoon, Junior started yawning.
" i think somebody is ready for bed" smiled Inez. Junior climbed down from Matt's lap, and yawned again.
" come on, let's get you ready for bed" smiled Inez.

"Ok, mommy" agreed Junior. It took a bit to get Junior ready. " i think you're starting to grow out of your footy pajamas" frowned Inez. " i wonder if Laura is out growing hers to" said Junior. " probably, now hold still so i can zip this up" said Inez. After a little effort, Inez pulled the zipper up. " ok, who's ready for a story?" Smiled Inez.  " can we read about farm animals?" Asked Junior. " sure, here's one about a happy cow" replied Inez. Junior snuggled up to hear the story. " mommy, when will i be able to read?" He asked. " in the fall, you start big kid school. You'll learn there" replied Inez. " but i won't know anybody" frowned Junior. " not at first, but an outgoing and sweet kid like you, will make friends fast" smiled Inez.
"really?" Asked Junior. 
"really" replied Inez. This made Junior feel better. " have you decided what 4 kids to invite on saturday?" Asked Inez. " sure, Laura, Lenny, Carl and Barney" replied Junior. " no other girls?" Asked Inez. " girls are icky" replied Junior. " but Laura is a girl" smiled Inez. " no, she's my best friend" said Junior. " well, it's time to go to sleep now" smiled Inez. " ok, mommy. See you in the morning" yawned Junior.  Inez turned out the light and closed the door.

A few minutes later, Inez joined Matt downstairs. " how are you feeling?" Asked Inez. " fine, i had a fat free, and healthy dinner. I also took a decent nap before dinner" replied Matt.  " good, the doctor suggested keeping track of stuff and how long you do it.
So far,  you went shopping after being released, and that took a half hour. Then we came home, then you watched cartoons all day, until 4:30. At 4:30 you fell asleep, then woke up around 7:30, then had porkchops without fat, spinach and milk " said Inez. " yeah, that's pretty accurate" agreed Matt. " we can watch TV the kids aren't supposed to" suggested Inez. " sounds good, i don't like shock  humor, so let's try King of the Hill" said Matt. " good idea" smiled Inez.

4 episodes later:

" well, i'm ready for bed" said Inez. Matt didn't really reply. Inez noticed he was starting to nod off. " ok, let's get you standing up" suggested Inez.
Matt stood up, then Inez helped him up the stairs. " i still have my clothes on" mumbled Matt. " just take off your pants, and watch tonight" suggested Inez. Matt did what was suggested, and climbed into bed. " what now?" Asked Matt. " we both go to sleep" replied Inez.

Matt was snoring, almost immediately. Inez looked at Matt, and shook her head, as she smiled.  It had been a long few days, and Inez felt better that Matt was home, and things would be fine. For a little extra security, Inez cuddled up next to Matt that night, and she fell asleep like that.