The second day they didn’t realize we had left the room until 5 minutes before we came back, which was 10 minutes after we had left.  It was 5 minutes of terror and it took the mystery out of the word ’school’.  Yesterday we left them for 30 minutes and Eliot recovered about half way through but Lucas never did.  When we came back he was lying limp and sobbing in the arms of one of the women, face swollen and red from 30 minutes of crying, exhausted.  So, I spent much of yesterday talking about school and mommies leaving and coming back.  I set up a little show about some dolls going to school with their mommy and how the mommy left and the dolls played with some toys, and then the mommy came back!  There was lots of emphasis on mommy coming back yesterday.  We also watched an Elmo movie about school several times and this morning again as I was getting ready.  They were good this morning, I tried to keep it all light and joyful and talk about Elmo’s mommy coming back.  When we got to school, I got them playing in the pretend kitchen feeding the plastic baby various plastic foods (Eliot made her a cheese hat) and then I said goodbye, mommy will be back.  Eliot didn’t agree but he stopped crying right after I left the room and Lucas stopped after about 10 minutes.  When I came back, I peeked in the door first and saw them playing quietly and contentedly on their own, they were happy.  There is progress.

Bertram suddenly flew to Abu Dhabi last night to meet some clients for a competition he is going to do in the next few weeks.  It was quick, he called me and said, “Um, weird news, I have to go to Abu Dhabi (and embarrassingly, I thought, Where is that?) tonight at 9.”  He’ll be back Friday morning to spend a big boy birthday weekend with us.

The boys turn 2 tomorrow!!  wow!  I can’t say “it flew by,” and” I can’t believe they’re already 2″ but my little babies are growing up… and honestly, that is fine.  they are magic and I have been with them every minute of it and I haven’t missed a thing.  I’ve been more Mom than I knew was in me to be and they are more fun now than was imaginable last year.  I love my time with them and I have lots of it.