They May Say

I am a stickler for the schedule. I always have been and I always will be. I am so tired of everybody telling me to "relax" and that it is no big deal to let my kids stay up late. So today I tried the "laid back" approach and it was miserable. We went to my cousin Patti's annual wine tasting party in San Anselmo. It is a lovely event with lots of wine and an amazing spread of food. What could be better? We woke the kids up from their naps and headed out the door by 2:45. We had plenty of time to mingle and chat, sort of. Well, when you have three kids, there isn't much chatting for more than few minutes. The kids were having fun with the help of my cousin's 5-year-old daughter (Sofia's entertainment) and a little dog (Luca's entertainment). We were taking turns holding Silvio and sipping wine. I started to get a bit anxious around 6:00 since we weren't done with the wine tasting and dinner was yet to be served. I knew we had a 45 minute drive to get home, so I began to watch the clock. At around 6:30, I told Brian that I felt like we should just leave because we had to get the kids home for bed. Our kids eat around 5:45-6, head to bath around 6:15 or so, and then head to their room for books and bedtime. We walk out of their room around 7:15 and hope that we don't go in too many times. Our kids are early risers, no matter what time they go to bed, so I am neurotic about getting them to bed on time. Otherwise, I have incredibly cranky children the next day and that is no fun for anyone. Anyway, Brian really wanted to eat and I don't blame him since the smell of the sugo (pasta sauce) and the grilled steak permeated the air. The table was slowly being filled with grilled vegetables, antipasto, plates of prosciutto and salami, heirloom tomatoes, insalata di farro (my contribution), olives, grilled chicken, sausage and beef. Need I say more? I reluctantly agreed to stay and we waited until all of the dinner was served. That was around 7:15 and I told Brian that we were to eat and run. Of course, Luca shoveled down some food and took off, so I was left to do the same. I never sit down to eat. I don't get much pleasure out of eating these dyas, since I am not able to actually sit down and enjoy the food on my plate. Brian told me today, "well, that is your choice." But I explained later in the car, that if we were both to sit down and eat, then the kids would be left to run rampant. Luca was exhausted and was becoming a bit clumsy, so I knew I had to watch him like a hawk on the wide stairs that surrounded the deck. I barely finished my plate and I was urging Brian to do the same so we could jam out of there. I don't know why I thought that Sofia would forget about the "sprinkle cake" that was in the other room. She is a sugar queen and never lets anyone forget there is a cookie, cake, cupcake, or even a crumb in the near vicinity. So we had to let them each have a small piece of cake before we left so as to avoid complete meltdowns for the entire length of our drive home. Thank God we had a trial run of our new DVD players in the car (for our upcoming trip to Lake Tahoe). The kids were thrilled to know that Wallace and Grommit was awaiting them in the car. Needless to say, they were motionless the whole ride home, but Silvio was another story. He was exhausted and hungry and was near a breakdown all the way home. Mothers cannot stand the sound of their little baby crying. So I was a complete mess. I explained to Brian that I do not like doing this and want to make sure we honor their schedule because "this is not fun for me." I explained how stressful it is to be in that situation. When our kids are older, I think we will be able to relax a bit and let the kids stay up late. But the kids were starting to lose it and all so that I could shovel down some amazing food and not taste a darn thing. They may say that I should just "relax" but I am going to stick with my scheduled self. Besides, I like putting them to sleep on time so that I can truly relax. Now, I am finally sipping a glass of wine and I am actaully enjoying it.