Yesterday.

Yesterday.

Yesterday I became a brunette. Again.

I escaped the land of BOY for the morning. It was wonderful.

I drove home to two happy boys ... awaiting my arrival on the front porch. All was well.

And then. Came the meltdown. Oh, lets just go ahead and call it was it was. A tantrum of epic proportions. From the "easy going" one. Body spread across the tile floor. Arms stretched outwards, until they could go no further. Sobbing. Muttering. Snot. The works, people. He left no stone unturned. I looked at my mom. I looked at Eli. I was speechless.

Yesterday. Eli never fully recovered. He was one wrong glance away from disaster. He was vulnerable. He was living on the edge.

Yesterday. We were thrilled when Miss Robin got home from work. Miss Robin lives next door. Miss Robin has a way with kids. Actually, she believes toddlers are from the devil ... (and after the tantrum I witnessed ... I believe she might be onto something) ... but Eli and Miss Robin have bonded.

Yesterday. They spoke each others language. While Eli sat on a trashcan.
And played with Miss Robin's keys. And discovered Miss Robin's flashlight.
Yesterday. After some time on the trashcan, Eli came back to us.
We saw the inklings of a smile.
Because of Miss Robin ... I managed to stay at home last night. Earlier in the day, I was quite confident I would be committing myself to some sort of institution.
And don't worry about all the trashcan germs. Germs are a little price to pay for a happy, QUIET child.