I had such a good time, so why do I feel guilty?

Today I joined a group of four other ladies for an early matinee followed by lunch. We saw "The Other Boleyn Girl," (Great movie, but boy, am I glad I didn't live during that time! My neck hurts just thinking about it!) and then had lunch at Ruby Tuesday (Gotta love that white chicken chili!). I so rarely get together with a group of people to do anything like that, therefore today was a real treat. Even though I met two of the ladies for the first time, the fact that all of us are military spouses gives us a common bond. It was a lot of fun and I hope we have the opportunity to get together again soon.

Before pulling out of the parking lot I checked phone messages at home. There was a message from my oldest son, and as I listened, my heart sank. It seems he had a "Class Cabaret" performance at school today, something he'd mentioned, but hadn't brought up in a few days. To my knowledge parents weren't invited, so I'm assuming this was just something the band members in my son's class were putting on for the entire class. Anyway... long story made short... he'd forgotten his trumpet and sheet music and wanted to know if I could bring it to him.

Forgetting the trumpet isn't an uncommon occurrence, and I've taken it to school more than once when this has happened. No big deal. But today I wasn't at home when my son called, and he didn't call my cell phone, so I had no idea he needed me. I quickly called the school, knowing it was probably too late to come to the rescue, but the lady in the office knew nothing of this performance and couldn't locate the band teacher to inquire. I was also 20-30 minutes away from the school and it was 2:15 or so when I called, so there was nothing to do but just drive home.

Now I'm at home waiting for the kids to get off the bus and I feel terrible! I know I deserved to enjoy a day out with friends and I've done nothing wrong, so why do I feel guilty? As unrealistic as it may sound, I just feel like I've let my son down and wasn't there when he needed me. It's like "mommy guilt run amuck." I hate this feeling!