I spent some time planning my Christmas part outfit, if you’ll remember. I had plans to get some cute (or at least very sheer) tights, and to experiment with accessories.

Then, last week, my teenage son got sick, and we fell into that bizarre netherworld of doctor appointments and tests and medication schedules and waiting for phone calls.

We did end up going to the party, letting the kiddo rest in the hotel room nearby (it’s nothing terribly serious, it turns out...just an infection that needs close monitoring), but our schedule left me with about 20 minutes to shower and dress, and no time to even run by Target for new tights.

The bracelet I chose snagged on my lace skirt just as I was helping myself in the buffet line and I had to get my husband to extricate it. The tights I grabbed from my drawer were more opaque than I’d hoped. I did my hair in a 3-minute updo.

Oh well. It was still nice to be out and dressed up, and my advance planning paid off enough that I wasn’t out of place. Sometimes, you just have to go with it.