Heartbreaker

Never before have I felt as bad as a mother as this morning. Today was Eli's Mother's Morning Out, which he attends once a week. Normally this kid is very happy to be there; he doesn't even notice me leaving because he is so quickly crawling towards the many toys. Unfortunately today was quite the opposite. We arrived in the baby room and I placed Eli at my feet while I unloaded his bag and talked briefly with the caregivers. Not only did Eli not take off towards the other kids as he usually does, but he started to cry like I had just dropped him off in the middle of the mall and walked away. The caregivers (who he is very familiar with) picked him up and started to console him but he was NOT going to give up without a fight. He reached for me and cried like I've not heard him cry before. The workers hurried me out of the room assuring me he'd be fine, but I hung in the hallway (out of sight) for five minutes, just to be sure. He calmed down after a few minutes, but I could hear that he was still a little upset. Talk about a shot to the heart! I felt horrible! It helped that I was Eli-free for a few hours - I had some major cleaning, packing, and wrapping to do - but it wasn't like I had no choice but to drop him off. I realistically could have kept him with me. The agony....I've said it before and I'll say it again: My heart goes out to mothers who have to drop off their children every day when they go to work. This is NOT an experience that I'd like to go through on a weekly, or even monthly basis.

I felt at least as bad when I picked him up and they told me he cried off and on the whole time. He didn't play; he just sat in their laps. The main caregiver assured me she wasn't telling me because he was a problem, but rather because he has never done this before and he always plays non-stop. I assume it's the teething, but it doesn't make me feel any better.