The Sleepover

After returning to Austin following our summer sojourn, Lily was, shall I say, a mite eager to play with some of her friends. I rack my brain, thinking which of her friends might actually be home on a weekday, and come up with the little girl down the street - Priyanka. Scroll through phone book, dial Priyanka's mom Deepa, and yea for all, Priyanka is available to play. I walk Lily down the street, and leave her happily esconced in Priyanka's backyard. Two hours and a trip to the pool with Lily and Priyanka later, the two princesses have colluded and have somehow managed to convince both Deepa and I that they are ready for a sleepover. The event planning for the sleepover is less complicated than the wedding planning, but only slightly. But finally all the details are in place. Fast forward four hours, and Lily and I begin the second walk of the day to Priyanka's house. Lily is happily attired in her pajamas and carrying a backpack carrying the essentials - panties, toothbrush, teddy bear. Or maybe it was the stuffed sea lion, I don't remember. I haul the sleeping bag. Arrive at Priyanka's - last minute reminder to Lily to behave, hugs, kissses, and I depart without a fuss. Maybe this will work out after all. Peter and I start making bets on how long this sleepover will last. I say 11:15 p.m. He takes the under. Peter wins. At 9:43 p.m., I am summoned back to Priyanka's house. Lily tripped over her puzzle, got an invisible boo-boo on her knee, and despite the medical administrations of Deepa (an M.D. by the way, not just a mere mortal mom), she decides she wants to come home. Pack up sleeping bag and backpack, walk Lily back home with Priyanka wailing in the background at Lily's departure. Deepa agree to try the sleepover again sometime - as in sometime after the girls turn 6. The milestone still awaits.