Parent Educator is feeling better now

I'd like to begin this blog entry by saying that I feel fine now, thanks for asking. Also that it's pretty incredible how hard a four year old can hit.

I was dropping him off at school, and he was feeling sad that I was leaving. I'm pretty sure that he wasn't actually aiming.

Anyway, it happened, and I wasn't wearing the appropriate safety gear. I said ouch. Pretty loudly. Maybe I said something a bit more colorful, it's a bit of a blur.

So there I was, standing in the doorway, breathless and angry. I slammed my keys down on the ground, and turned and stormed (well, limped) outside. I could hear the teacher, who is a saint, saying lots of nonviolent things to my son, beginning to make an empathy book, talking about feelings and needs, etc. while I sat on the pavement and thought angry things about my rotten kid (who, although not a saint, is a really great kid).

After a couple of minutes and lots of self-empathy later, I was still sore, but I was feeling regulated and ready to go inside. I picked up my son and talked to him about his feelings, and set the limit: "these are daddy's favorite testicles, it's not ok to hit them." Or something like that.

We were able to repair the rupture (our connection, not any of my body parts) and a nonviolent time was had by all. Also, it was a hot day and the ice pack felt nice.