Tuesday 9 June 2009

Tripping The Light Fantastic

We went to a thirtieth birthday party on Saturday night, the thirtieth birthday party of my best friend's little sister. There is nothing, nothing more ageing or depressing than for people who you only ever saw as much younger than you hitting milestones that you're still in denial about. We were excited to be asked, of course. For a start it meant that we were still young enough to paaarrrtttaayy!-they do say that nowadays don't they? If not I fear I may have made a small gaffe jumping onto a table and yelling it through a bread stick in an attempt to get this paaarrttaayy started. But I was being young, hip, crikey we had an overnight babysitter and could deny all childcare responsibilities for at least fourteen hours. We could join the group of carefree kids tripping the light fantastic who could still claim to have some sort of a grip on the word twenty.
Deciding to deny any relationship with the big three-oh I attempted such cliches as ooh, you can't be thirty, I still think of you as eleven and I still feel sixteen ha ha ha ha ha, although I stopped short of I used to change your nappies before I shot myself (or the birthday girl shot herself at the horror). I could be twenty, or there abouts, just watch me jiiiive.
There was a difference though, it was much more civilised than I remember things. Husband and I left our social life behind at the grand old age of twenty seven, right at the height of every one's partying. Finally every one's salaries were looking up, as was their holiday allowance and consequently pulling potential. And what did we do? Have a baby. Well done. Everybody else flitted to Morocco and hugged orangutans in a forest somewhere (apparently Borneo but I saw the slide shows and it looked suspiciously like Whipsnade Zoo). We swapped Going Out clothes for jeans, trainers and Teflon coated tops, everyone else swapped Work Clothes for flip flops and a backpack. We have, in a nutshell, been absent from any kind of swinging (in the music sense, not in the car keys in the middle of the room sense) social life while we changed nappies, burped babies and negotiated school runs.
But, now we were back! The children finally old enough for an over night babysitter that hadn't had to be bribed with a holiday package and bonuses, here we were, ready to don our dancing shoes and, to be honest, get sloshed again. Whoo hooo!
Though we had you see, failed to get one teeny tiny point: while we were absent everyone else had grown up too. Rather than be greeted by shots of flaming zambucaas and vodka girls sticking alcohol down you mouth and a nipple in your ear, we all had a quiet drink and chats in a bar. We then went to a very civilised Indian Restaurant (rather than a curry house, the only one open at three am, the reason being that only incredibly drunk people would eat the food and not complain to Health and Safety the next morning). It was delightful, we felt neither old nor young, no pretending to be in our twenties and surreptitious glances saw the same creep of age on everyone as on us. Husband even spent a happy half hour chatting to every man there while chancing a quick photo on his phone of the back of their heads. He's had them printed out today and now we have a gallery of every bald spot in the place. Husband compares tolerably well and is strutting about the house like a twenty nine year old. A twenty nine year old that wears pyjamas and slippers. But twenty nine nonetheless.

14 comments:

Dorset Dispatches said...

Going out, more civilised but still such fun especially with an overnight babysitter. Glad you enjoyed it.

ps - pyjamas and slippers are acceptable clothing any time after 7.30pm.

and1moremeans5 said...

Sounded like a good night! and i agree after 7:30pm i'm in my pjs too and i'm 23 lol! x

san said...

I'm so glad you had a good night. When you've got little ones going out is a big deal. We try to go out once a month, even if it's to Pizza Express or our local pub. Big thanks to Grandma who babysits.
I'm trying to decide what to do for my 40th next year. Yes 40th. OMG!!!

Natasha Reddy said...

Never mind, MH! I'm 40 today! Woke up with backache, and remembered - first consciousness - I'd left a pile of sodden washing without hanging it up, "probably stinks of damp by now...Oh, am I 40 today?!"

So, what am I doing? sitting by the PC with the rain outside. In my only decent dress (no jeans for this 1% of the year...)and.. all alone. Well, I phoned a friend and begged her to come for a cup of tea. Such is life. No caribbean islands, no mojitos, not even dancing with bread sticks stuck in the corner of my mouth like you!!!

So, never mind. It comes to us all....if you're not Madonna, that is.
PS hubby apparently had got a plot to whisk me away to a farm in the lake district, which got 'cancelled' when he saw the weather forecast. Should I be relieved?!
www.frustratedstay-at-homemum.blogspot.com

Expat mum said...

I don't think I could bring myself to go to a 30th party, unless it was an enforced family one.
And remember, the upside of having kids very young (these days) is that you will be empty nesters while still young enough to really enjoy yourself. Unlike m'good self, who will be around 60 when the little one finally leaves college. Straight into the nursing home I think!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you have some catching up to do MH. I'll be expecting details of some wild nights out in the future, with accompanying photographic evidence!

Nota Bene said...

What! No opportunity for Dad Dancing?
Shame on them...

Rebel Mother said...

So there is light at the end of the tunnel?

I'm still in the tunnel..... Been here for years - I have a Rip Van Winkle beard to prove it!

How lovely to get out, so pleased you had fun. Love RMxx

PS Love the bit of Hubby taking photos - laughed very loud!

ADDY said...

I still feel 29, unfortunately my body and passport tell me differently!! I need to go clubbing with a club a la Flintstones!!!

maddie said...

Growing older isn't so bad - just never grow up!

Maternal Tales said...

Hee hee. I think I would pay to see you jiiiiive baby. Glad you managed a night out even if it was a bit tamer than you had hoped for!! Hey, but now you know the overnight babysitetr is an option, maybe you could do it all over again...

Eliza said...

Glad you had a good time :-)

scaryazeri said...

Hey there,
Nice blog, funny and entertaining! Went out for some girlie drinks last night and was chatting to a local mom- Fiona, who told me to check your blog out, as I was telling them about my new addiction ( blogging)
so nice to meet you, Jenny. will keep an eye on you from now on!

Lawyer Mom said...

Your husband surely has a full head of hair, and you a lovely face with no wrinkles. Sweet girl, you are still of such tender age.

And your "not in the car keys in the middle of the room sense" was tea-spitting.

* your captcha word is teeth-splitting: pailisth