Last night, my preschooler was up almost all night, vomiting - which reminded me how thankful I am I'm well prepared for those late night kid illnesses. What about you? If your child became suddenly ill, would you have to scramble to the store for supplies? Would you quickly be able to call his pediatrician or after-hours nurse? If you're not that well organized, here are some tips for becoming so: * Type up a list of important numbers and tape it to the fridge, the inside of the medicine cabinet, or near the phone. Then, at a glance, you'll have the number for any of your children's physicians. Don't rely on a programed phone; programs can fail. And I guarantee you will, at some point or other, misplace your phone book. (And while you're at it, add the poison control center number to your typed list: 1-800-222-1222)

* Keep a basket or box of kid-only sickness supplies. I keep two plastic bins in my medicine cabinet just for kid-related illnesses. They contain several thermometors, petroleum jelly, infant and children's Tylenol, children's Motrin, children's saline solution, bulb syringes, and whatever else I think might make my kids feel better during illness. By keeping all these supplies in a defined space, I never have to scramble around, looking for what I need. Click here for more ideas about what to keep in the medicine cabinet. * Have on hand Pedialite drinks, Pedialite popcycles, Gatoraide, or whatever drinks your child will consume after become dehydrated. * Have a good night light. My husband installed dimmer switches in both our children's rooms and I love them. They are ideal for checking on sick kiddos, or soothing a child who's had a bad dream. By keeping the lights low, the kids stay calmer and more relaxed, but I can still see. If you can't have a dimmer switch, invest in a larger night light - preferably one that can be switched brighter or dimmer, according to your needs. * Have a comfortable chair. This is something we actually don't have in my daughter's room, but I sure could have used last night! A comfy chair enables you to sit in your child's room and keep and eye on her, while still resting or snoozing now and then. In short, it makes nursing a little one back to health a bit easier for Mom or Dad.