scenes from a fun (and very late) evening

Graham is still sleeping, because he was up later than he's ever been in his life last night. Leave it to a good, Italian family to get me to keep my kid up late. Not even my own family has been successful in convincing me to do this. I've always been strict about his bedtime. Right, Mom?


We got invited to our landlord's daughter's graduation party last night. She graduated with a "law degree."



The party started at 9pm, so we were there right on time. We definitely should have known better, because nobody else showed up until 10pm.



I considered getting a babysitter, but decided our landlords would probably kick us out of our house if we didn't take Graham to their party. They love Graham. They shower him with kisses.

 

Just as we were getting ready to leave at midnight, la Madre, Theresa, said, "No, no! Aspetta per la torta!" Which means, "No. Wait for the cake."



So we waited. And then we had to wait for every single person in attendance to "faccio uno foto" with the graduate. Including us. The tired Americans.

 

And, suddenly, we were leaving at one in the morning...

I hope Graham remembers this night forever, because Italians know the true meaning of celebration and how to enjoy it to the fullest.

A lesson all kids should learn and hold onto for as long as possible.