His halo is bent and rusty and there's mud on his white robe, but underneath he's still an angel

Ever had one of those moments where you just sit back, zone out and think "I'm doing ok as a parent. He listens so well. We've had our battles, but we're getting through. He's such a well behaved kid." and then you look over just in time you see him clock his best friend in the face? I have.

We tried to be good and awesome friends tonight. We took dinner and dessert to our very pregnant and due-any-day-now friends. Apparently, little David did not get the niceness memo so all we did all evening was yell at him for clobbering their precious little daughter in the face. Nice. Just when I thought we'd gotten a handle on his horrible hitting habit and was feeling pretty good about my ability to discipline him he has to go and pull crap like that. Thanks kid.

Every time we leave home I just pray that he makes us look like good parents while we're gone. I always hold out hope that he can behave and make it through one evening, one dinner or just a few hours without a tantrum or meltdown. But then, when he flips out in the middle of the produce department because I won't let him hold the apples or throws his plate of spaghetti on our friends' brand new carpet, I remember that he's just 21 months old and sometimes that's asking too much of him. And really, I've never seen anyone (especially another parent) gasp in horror at any stunt he's ever pulled as if toddlers never act up or something. Everyone understands right? My kid isn't the only one who does this crap, right? It's only a phase, right?

Ok, good. I feel a teeny bit better. He is a good kid. He is a good kid. He is a good kid....