But they're supposed to THRIVE on neglect

I arrived at daycare earlier in the week to see Ryan toddling around the outside play yard. He was scrambling to keep up with one of the big boys and every few minutes SPLAT! he'd fall on his butt or on his knees. Not that it stopped him. He just got up and kept waddling around.
Did I mention the yard is on a hill, and he BARELY knows how to walk? My kid is a genius. So far ahead of his age!
The only downside to his newfound sense of adventure (besides the mud on the pants- but it's ok. really. he's a little boy. I'm fine with it!) is that when I arrive to pick him up, he no longer runs towards me with open arms. In fact, he screams when I finally make him leave all of his friends and all of the mud behind. I spend all day at school thinking how nice it will be to spend my evening with a child who doesn't talk back to me or call me names- or at least someone whose language is incoherent so I wouldn't know even if he was insulting me- and now instead of looking forward to it, I almost dread the moment I have to go pick him up because I know it will be a battle to get him out the door. It's very sad. I thought they didn't hate their parents until they were teenagers?? Huh???!!
Honestly though, people keep telling me it's normal (although it's not one of those things that seasoned parents offer BEFORE you have the baby) and I'm sure it's just a sign that he loves his friends at daycare. Once the novelty of walking upright wears off, I'll no longer be That Chick Who Sucks the Fun Out of Everything.
In other news, I have a renewed passion for gardening- that is, I'm desperately trying to ressucitate the garden I have managed to basically kill in the past two years. I really hope the former owners don't ever drive past the house because they'd be horrified. Those hydrangas that were lovingly planted and aesthetically, perfectly spaced? The dog pees on them and now they're dead. The beautiful flowerbed at the bottom of the driveway? The town snow plow destroys it every winter and now it's overrun with leaves and grass. What about the assortment of rosebushes? ROSES!! aren't roses supposed to do best when you leave them alone, a skill I have clearly mastered? I've become convinced that I should just let nature take its course in the garden until I come into a fortune and can afford a landscaper.
Countdown to the end of the year: two more days of grading and cleaning up my classroom. I PROMISE I will be more diligent about posting then. We have lots of fun times ahead of us this summer!