Let me guess...there's a new moon on the horizon?

Yes, yes there is...April 21st is the next New Moon.  I knew there had to be one soon because I remembered the full moon was a couple of Saturdays back, but mostly because we went through a meltdown tonight and it's the first in quite a while.

I suppose I have been enjoying the "peace" a little too much, not paying attention to possible triggers.  I wasn't paying attention to the fact that there was a New Moon coming soon, and therefore Eli's emotions will be running a little high.  I didn't think ahead that the minor change in his after school pick-up schedule today may have upset the routine just enough to have a backlash later on.  I'm aware he's been having a rough time in class this week, being a little more disruptive than he's been recently, because he's excited for his birthday celebration with a friend  on Friday. (we're having to celebrate a week early since his birthday weekend is filled with our choir production at church)  He even was being problematic enough today that he had to move to the back of the room until he could get it together.  He's giving his magnificent teacher a real run for the money this week.  So, yes....the signs have all been there that we were heading for this.  I just was basking in the glow of how well everything has been going, and I wasn't paying attention.

Sometimes Eli is so literal that he has a hard time shifting gears to a sudden new direction, even if it benefits him.  He'd been given a direction to complete a task when we arrived home before he was allowed to play video games.  He had to spend 10 minutes playing with Sami, because she'd been in her crate several times today while Ben was out of the house, and we had choir practice tonight, so she would have to be crated again.  Ben had told E he needed to spend 10 solid minutes playing with her before he played his game.

Eli was going to take her out and then play with her.  When his brother decided to help him out in order for Eli to be able to play video games sooner, Eli completely lost it.  Ash had taken Sami out and was running around in the yard with her,  Meanwhile, Eli was trying to get the dog to come back in so he could play with her for ten minutes. In Eli's mind, Ash was keeping him from doing what he'd been told to do, and therefore it was going to take even longer for him to get to play his video games.

The frustration reared up and took over.  He threw the dog's collar in his fit of anger and screamed, "This is not fair!"  He burst into tears and would not be consoled.  He ran into our bathroom and locked the door, which has been his safe haven and meltdown habit for some time now.  He runs there to isolate himself and calm down when the emotions overwhelm him.  It's the farthest room in the house from any other place.  

Ash had tried to explain to Eli that he was trying to help him out, but it was too hard for Eli to understand the situation had shifted and that he was being done a favor.  In his mind he had to complete the task he'd been given in order to get to his main priority - playing his video game.  After all, that is his main goal at the end of each school day ... get home and play.  He could not see the favor that was being done for him.  All he could see was that he was being prevented from playing with the dog, and therefore it was keeping him from playing video games.

I left him alone for about 5 minutes to give him a chance to chill, and then I went into the bathroom.  There he sat, on top of the basket of clean towels, arms crossed protectively across his tummy and chest, shoulders tense and curled in, and wearing his "very unhappy" face.  I sat on the toilet lid and had him come to me.  I held him on my lap and explained to him that Ash was helping him out by playing with the dog instead so that Eli could go ahead and play his game. There was no reason to be upset. He listened, and I was impressed he'd already calmed down considerably.  Another kudos to the newest medication!

When he realized that he could go play now, he seemed to relax.  I asked him if he was okay, he said yeah.  I said, "E, you let your anger take over, buddy.  You let your emotions overwhelm you and that hasn't happened in a long time.  Do you realize...you let the anger get the best of you?"  It wasn't a scolding.  I just wanted to point it out to him so he would recognize what happened and hopefully be mindful of his emotions the next few days while we wait out this phase of the lunar cycle.  He nodded.  He knew he'd lost it.  But I told him how impressed I was that he had recovered so quickly!  He'd done a really good job.

Ash was in the house by that time and apologized to Eli, explaining that he wasn't meaning to upset him, he was trying to help him out.  They "made up" and then Eli initiated looking for the collar himself, remembering that he'd thrown in. (Another thing I was impressed with - that he remembered, and that he was mature enough to try to correct his mistake)

We still haven't found the collar.  It must be in, under or behind something because three of us looked for a solid 10 minutes and the collar still hasn't turned up.  It's "somewhere" out in the sunroom.  Maybe next Christmas we'll discover it when we're pulling out Christmas decorations.  Thankfully we had a spare!