The Party, The Decision, and The Aftermath: Jacob's Revenge

On Friday afternoon/evening I attended my school's family-friendly staff party. All was going well until around 6:00. This is when Jacob normally goes to bed. He seemed fine though and Hannah was definitely enjoying herself (huge yard, swings, other kids, etc.). More importantly, the food wasn't ready, and I came to eat! So, despite past experiences suggesting that it's never a good idea to push Jacob too far past his bedtime, I decided to stay "just a bit longer".

Very soon, Jacob was yawning and was no longer content anywhere other than my arms. I began to question my decision. But the food was almost ready. I tried to fake him out by pretending we were getting ready to leave. I put him in his car seat and loaded the rest of our gear into the trunk. Then I sat down to eat my hamburger. So far so good.

I had about 3 bites left when Jacob started crying. Okay, it was time to go. Now all I had to do was collect Hannah and we'd we on our way. Home, baths, bed. Hannah, however, had other ideas. So in an embarrassing display of "look at my wonderful parenting abilities", I chased her around the yard. When I finally caught her, I had to carry her kicking and screaming past all the people politely pretending not to notice what could have passed for an abduction-in-process.

Fast forward to the middle of the night. Also known as "The Aftermath". Just to remind me that he doesn't like being late for bedtime, regardless of how soon somebody's hamburger will be ready, Jacob proceeded to wake up at least every hour and a half. The kind of wake-up that requires attention. Even nursing him back to sleep had no effect on the length of time between wake-ups. (I know, he's a bit old to be nursed back to sleep - please see "The Opposite of Weaning" post.)

Needless to say, in the future, there will be no hemming and hawing about whether or not to leave any event, no matter how exciting, if there's a chance it will interfere with Jacob's bedtime. Better yet, in the future, Jacob will actually be weaned and will no longer accompany me to events that conflict with his evidently inflexible schedule!