Peeving the Pets

I have, like, three major pet peeves in life. Okay, maybe four. Or five. I don't know. Things bug me. A lot of things. A sampling:

1) Kids who misbehave in public
B) Parents who let their kids misbehave in public
7) People who try to tell other people how to parent their children
F) When more than one pet peeve occurs at once, compounding the effect until you just need to gnaw off your own arm and throw it at someone.

Guess what happened to me tonight? (I bet you'll never guess. That's me with the subtlety.)

So, we went to this "event," right? It's big, loud, smelly, kind of overwhelming. We went to the same place yesterday, and the girls had a great time. Today, the Bear didn't get her nap out, and she was being very whiny all afternoon. Like, seriously whiny. And I told her that if I did take her to this event (not a guarantee, with her behavior), that we would only stay there until she started to whine, cry, or throw a fit, and then we'd have to leave. I always try to set rules before we go, so she knows what I'm expecting of her. Then, I set out the consequences for not following the rules. And I follow through with them. Even if it means I have to leave the pool or the park or a restaurant in the middle of a meal. I'm a stickler. I can't handle when my kids misbehave in public. Can't take it. Gives me an anxiety attack, makes me feel crazy.

So, naturally, twenty minutes into the "event," the crying begins. Followed by whining, flailing, defiance, and an attempt to get lost in a crowd of strangers. So, we left. Those are the rules. End of story.

Well, we went to say goodbye to my MIL before leaving, and she about had a heart attack when I told her that we were leaving, that I was following through on my plan, that the girls couldn't stay. We had a small... chat, shall we say about the issue.

So, yeah. Multiple pet peeves. All piled up in a big steaming heap. Urgh. For the record, the Bear was asleep before we hit the driveway, and she was in bed for the night by 7:15. I moved her from the car to the couch to the bed and she never woke up. Kid was seriously wiped. My MIL? Still kind of pissed that she tries to subvert my parenting. She actually said, "But you *always* follow through" in a whine. I was livid, but I maintained my calm, cool, collected front, which is not necessarily my strong suit. I was kind of proud of myself. But seriously. What is *wrong* with people?