I told a friend of mine today that being a parent can suck. It's not kosher to say that, but it's true. There isn't one parent who hasn't gone through at least one moment where they just wanted to rip their own hair out. Kids are wonderful, and yes we love them, but sometimes they do bring out the worst in us.

My little darling son of mine. So precious, adorable, smart, a ham.. and yet I picked him up from school Tuesday, only to be told that he was mad about not getting his turn with a toy- that he threw chairs, kicked the wall, and told one of the teachers that he hated her and that she was not allowed "in his circle". (Sounds like a cell phone commercial, to be honest with you). We had a talk about it, and I did my best to explain that we just don't say mean and hurtful things to people when we're mad. Yesterday and today were better days.. until after school, that is.

Sometimes he has playtime with a couple boys from his school, in one of the play areas. They all have fun for about a half hour, and he gets to put into practice the social skills that he so desperately needs to polish up on. But when it's time to go, of course he doesn't want to.. it causes outbursts, defiance, and much stress for me. Today was one such day. I even thought my kid went stark raving mad for a minute. I had to force him into my lap to put his shoes and sweater on. In the meantime, he was pointing at me and laughing. Which was.. disturbing, confusing.. I didn't know what the hell to think of it, actually. Fast-forwarding, there was a huge meltdown, and he basically had to be dragged out of his school. I was fuming, and it took me quite some time to calm myself down. He was put in his room when we got home, and he did actually calm down almost immediately, which was a surprise.

When stuff like this happens- especially in front of other people- you can't help but be embarrassed. But I think I was so angry that I didn't feel the embarrassment as much. I just wanted to get us out of there. I did wonder what the other moms were thinking, and I was shaking my head at the fact that this wasn't the first time we've left the school like that. It's not pleasant, to say the least. What was nice was that later, I received an email from one of the moms, asking if my day got better. I must say that it wasn't at all expected, but I think it made me feel like I wasn't as bad of a parent as I may have looked (or felt) at the time. Of course I realize that I'm not the only person to have been in that situation, but to have somebody say it to you- assure you, and make you feel better about it- is another thing altogether. One of the highlights of my day. Thank goodness, because I really needed one.