Sleeping Children = Happy Mom

Tuesdays are kind of a rough day at our house. It is the only day of the week I work at City of Hope at a Nurse Practitioner. I enjoy working one day a week because it keeps up my skills, gives me some contact with the outside world, and gives me a break from the day to day work of staying home.
Working isn't what makes it rough, it is the rush of coming home trying to get everyone feed, Eric to Young Men's by 7:00, and then putting Gretta to bed by myself when I am tried. I don't know how mom's who work full time do it everyday.
My mother- in-law graciously watches both kids while I go to work. Gretta loves "Grandma Tuesday". Now not only does she get to spend some time with Grandma, but she goes to preschool from 9-11:45am and then stays for "lunch bunch" until 2:30pm. At lunch bunch they eat lunch, watch a movie, and then go outside for some more playground time. Last week when I picked her up at 11:45 on Thursday she begged to go to "lunch bunch". She really enjoys preschool.
Yesterday I got done with work a little early, and when I picked her up her T-shirt was really dirty which for a two year old is a sign of a fun day at preschool. I tried to keep her awake on the ride home, but was unsuccessful. She fell asleep at 5:00pm. Usually she falls asleep on the way home, but it is around 6:00pm.
Oh well. A sleeping child = a happy mom.
It was such a nice Tuesday night. I wasn't rushed making dinner, Eric and I had some nice quite time together before he had to leave for Young Men's, I got to spend some one on one time with Eliza, and do some of my own things.
At 9:45pm I was thinking I should go to bed. Then I heard something in our house. I thought someone broke in at first. Then I realized it was Gretta. Oh no! Awake at 9:45pm. So much for my quite night!
I let her watch the new ABC DVD Nana sent so I could finish up some things I had started on the computer. Then feed her two hot dogs, a banana and some milk. She was hungry! Eric came home from basketball and couldn't believe she was awake.
The good news is that after a bath and her regular bedtime routine she actually fell asleep pretty easily and slept through the night.
I guess I learned my lesson. I need to feed her dinner and wait at least until 6pm to let her fall asleep to guarantee sleeping though the night.