Too Much Terror For One Day

First, let me say that everyone & everything in my world is okay. And my heart rate has slowed down, and now I'm just exhausted & thankful* for a near miss.

.

And it's going to be several years before we walk to Tim Horton's again.

.

The girls were both getting a little rambunctious, and I knew that they needed some fresh air. It's been cool this week, and so we haven't been out much. (The deadline knitting doesn't effect it much - I only knit when El's asleep, & that's always our quiet time. Puzzles, play-dough, maybe a movie.) There wasn't enough time for a full-on play at the park, so I decided that we'd just walk over to Tim Horton's for one timbit, then by the mailbox, then home. It was all good until we were crossing the street to come home.

.

Amoryn, as you may or may not know, is a very headstrong & dramatic child who tends to throw herself into things. Literally, sometimes.

.

Part of the deal while crossing the street is that if there is a button, she gets to push it. She did that, and then she wanted to stand on the other side of the pole. I said "No, please come stand me & Eleni."

.

And she freaked out. Part of her freakout is her pitching herself backwards in the full-on throes of woe. So I made a diving catch - as two lanes of traffic on Country Hills Blvd are going past at full speed - grabbed her hood, which half unsnapped, then grabbed her collar. Then I grabbed the stroller, which had rolled forward about a foot. Then I hyperventilated, refused to let go of her, and tried to explain to her what had almost happened. While she screamed at the top of her lungs. I adjusted my scruff hold slightly to make sure she couldn't escape, tried to quit imagining what had almost happened, and kept breathing.

.

Once the light changed, I pushed/dragged the kids back into the safety of the cul-de-sac, where Amoryn stopped wailing in indignation and cried "You're really hurting me". I checked, and actually had a fair mitt-ful of hair. I apologized, then explained how very much she had just scared mommy.

.

Even though we ran overtime on Eleni's nap, we had a slide on our way to the mail box. I still can't believe how close to truly awful the day was.

.

I'm going to eat supper now, then kiss my girls goodnight, and keep knitting.

.

.

.

*Not thankful enough to be glad about the misses today with potty-training. The last three days, I was glad that we don't have carpet, and that she's making progress, and today, after the third mistake, I'm just sad & tired. That's all I'm sayin'.