I'd had a realy cr*p day last Sat.
The kids had been bickering and fighting since about 7 a.m. We'd had numerous chats about 'good behaviour' already throughout the day.
DH & I took the boys to football training and he went with the older one to one pitch to watch and 'coach' from the side, and I was left with DS2 (5).
Anyway, DS2 was whingeing from the outset - and kept coming off the pitch to tell me his hands were cold, socks falling down, someone had pushed him, this wasn't fair, that wasn't fair....
I was standing talking to the Mum of one of his (new last term) school friends, and I was getting annoyed and embarrassed that her son was just happily getting on with things while mine was constantly demanding attention, so I kept just sending him back, after a quick cuddle/ check etc telling him not to be so soft etc etc.
Anyway after about 20 minutes of this, and while I was chatting, he suddenly came off the pitch shouting at me angrily, "you're not watching me, you're just talking all the time, stop talking, watch me mummy" and he was actually sort of hitting me to get attention
So I took him a few yards away, crouched down to his level, and said 'stop shouting, I can talk to my friends'. But he kept going on at me, so I put my hand over his mouth (to physically stop him shouting) and said 'Shut Up, will you? I've had enough of this now, OK'
I wouoldn't normally tell my children to 'shut up' - we don't like it, and will say 'be quiet' instead, but I don't know what got into me - I was just soooo angry and frustrated by his behaviour.
I didn't hit him or anything.
But I was shocked and embarrassed, and when I went back to chat to his friend's Mum she gave me a bit of a strange look.
I muttered something about having had a really bad day with them, how they'd been winding me up etc, how he'd really pressed the wrong buttons etc.
And THEN she started dispensing parenting advice, making suggestions about how I could have handled it differently etc.
And it wasn't in an entirely helpful way either!
Anyway, I thought that was the end of it, but I saw her at school today, and was asking her if she wanted me to take her son to a party, and she visibly backed off and made some obviously made-up excuse.
She's one of the really well-networked Mums at the school, so I expect they've all heard the story now!
How on earth am I going to convince them that this was a one-off, and I'm not normally so angry?