Real men like Pixie Stix.

Peter had strep throat last week.  And you know what they do when you get strep throat, right?  They prescribe Amoxicillin.

"Can he swallow pills?" the doctor asked as she was pulling out her prescription pad.

"Well, he can swallow Zyrtec and Singular," I replied, "but they're pretty small."

"Better write it for the liquid," she said with authority.  "Amoxicillin tablets are pretty big."

After picking up the medicine from the pharmacy, I shook the bottle according to the instructions, removed the lid and the moment the stench of rubbery bubble gum hit my nose, I knew I was in trouble.

Peter was going to have to swallow this foul-smelling pink elixir twice a day for ten days.  I quickly calculated that I was going to have to hear all of the moaning and whining associated with getting this medicine down 20 times before it was gone.  20 times.

And my boy can whine and moan and  fake cry and foot stomp and arm-fold-over-the-chest with the best of them.  He's a pro in that department.

So for three days, I had to beg and plead and cajole and offer chasers of Coke Zero and Sprite, anything just to get him to swallow the antibiotic.

Dan even stepped in a couple of times and did the "be a man son and just take your medicine" routine. When he intervened, Peter would shorten the baby routine but there was still a lot of yelling and tears whenever it was time to administer a dose of the pink stuff.

And then came Halloween.

And instead of Sprite and Coke Zero chasers, we used minature Twix chasers and Starburst chasers. 

And right before he left for Boy Scouts last night, dressed in his little uniform complete with hat and neckerchief, he stood proudly in front of his Dad and exclaimed, "Look Dad!  I can take it like a man!"

And he opened his mouth, turned the little dosing cup filled with the pink liquid up to his lips, threw his head back and in one giant gulp took his medicine like a man.  

"Aren't you proud of me Daddy?"  he asked with a big grin and a puffed out chest.

And so what if he chased it with a couple of Pixie Stix  Real men like Pixie Stix.  Don't they?