Friday Night Firsts...

On Friday evening, I headed out into the thriving metropolis of downtown Gettysburg with friends. We left behind six kids: one seven year old boy, four girls about four years old and the baby. We left them with the men. How many times in the last twelve hours had I asked Rich, "You won't shake my baby, right? No matter how frustrated you are...right?"
Over cocktails, we joked about when the first call would come...and what silly question it would be. But the call never came. It reminded me of many years ago, when Shea was just a baby, some friends and I went out, leaving Rich and Shea at home. I nervously fussed with a cell phone, making sure it was on and working. My friend Gretchen laughed and wisely said, "Sometimes it's even harder when they don't call. It's tough to realize they are getting along just fine without you."
So it was on Friday. They were all just fine without us. While Rich suggested ice cream at 10:00 at night, his friend vetoed the idea, showing some restraint. The kids stayed up much, much, much later than any of the mommies would have approved. I'm sure it wasn't the only thing we wouldn't have approved of if we had been in charge. It was a night of firsts: The first night I went out with friends since moving to Gettysburg, Atlee's first time having friends sleep over, Rich's first time watching six kids at once, Greeley's first time taking a bottle(!!). It was hard when they didn't call, but I'm sure it will get easier with practice.