This is what friends are for: Calling you a short time into a family gathering with a terrible emergency that requires you and your child to leave right now this very minute so sorry. A car accident. A house fire. A kidney you've just gotta donate. A teakettle left on the stove. A string of Christmas lights inexplicably gone dark. The reason matters not. The escape opportunity does. You can always ask for a callback if things are going okay.

Or arrange a signal for a quicker escape call if they really, really aren't. Sure, families are important. But some things take precedence. Splinter removal. A sale on Ben & Jerry's. Forgetting to set the DVR.