Jekyll and Hyde

I was prepared to post something smug and precious about Jake today. About how he's basically potty trained and how he has given up his bedtime bottle (yes, at nearly 3 he still wanted a bottle of chocky milk each night before - what of it?). How he talks so much and so clearly now. And how he'll interrupt playing several times a day to simply say "Mommy, I love you."

And then this morning he had a 65-minute wobbler that renewed my concern that we are heading for years of therapy.

Despite being kicked and slapped and generally having to wrangle a child that resembled a rabid wolverine, I did not lose my cool. I managed to get him into the backseat of the minivan and just as I got one arm in his car seat, one shoe came off. I got the shoe back on and he unbuckled the seat belt. I really didn't know what I was going to do once we got to school. Would it be bad to leave sleeping Abby in her car seat so I could carry Jake in? Would it be worse to lock screaming Jake in the car while I took Abby in?

But he had calmed down considerably by the time we reached the school. Abby was sleeping and although one of her bottles had spilled in the car on the way, things weren't too bad. I carried Jake into his new classroom, Miss Felicia distracted him with Play-Doh and I went on to work, wishing the morning could've gone better but knowing that I will still get a "Mommy, I love you" tonight.