What I Learned This Week

I am going to ignore all the work stuff because it is bleugh and is still driving me insane as of this very minute….after a very restless night involving waking up 4 times, 4 dog feet with very sharp newly cut claws in my back and a snoring Hubby I gave up at 3.30am – not the best way to start the day.

Anyhoo, this week Beautiful B turned 18. I know, go on say it; I don’t look a day over 38.  Turns out there is a lot to learn when your baby turns 18…..

1.            Amazingly enough, that day (and for weeks before probably) you will be in a state of shock that 18 WHOLE years have gone by so quickly!

2.            Despite what you may have told yourself when you were a mere youngster with a babe in your arms, you will not feel old and tired when they get to 18 – trust me!  In fact you may only feel about 20 and that is a teeny bit freaky.

3.            Hope against all things possible that your child’s birthday does not fall the day after or on a bank holiday because it is a total pain in the behind to organise helium filled balloons and collection of a birthday cake that day – and yes, we had a joint bank holiday and I burnt more calories running around that day than I care to think about.

4.            When you order the birthday cake instead of spending time telling the baker how fantastic her figurines are, while at the same time thinking you may need her services for your own figurines in 4 months time, remember to write down what time you arrange to pick the birthday cake up on said bank holiday.

5.            It is not fun stressing out at midday that the bakers is shut when you go to pick up the birthday cake only to discover, after rushign to another shop to buy a rubbish substitute cake and hastily arranging for a family friend to decorate it in some way, that you had, in fact, arranged to pick up the birthday cake at 4pm.

6.            When you cover Beautiful B’s eyes to walk her down the stairs hardly able to contain your own state of excitement to present her with the novelty cake you designed to the nth degree you might realise that she knows you well enough to have ignored all your denials that you were not buying her a birthday cake.

7.            If you get a cake that is “too beautiful” she will refuse to take it out with her to share with her friends. Just like she refused to believe you when you told her she would regret going out on the eve of her birthday so she could drink at midnight rather than enjoy her birthday and then party.

8.            You won’t be as scared as you once thought you might be to let your not so little one out on the town for the first time….though that might have something to do with knowing that her boyfriend would look after her all night.

9.            You are able to go back to sleep after waking up at 2.30 a.m. by repeatedly telling yourself that you aren’t expecting them in until 4.30 a.m. anyway.  You may even find yourself smiling a little when they wake you on returning home and you notice dawn breaking.

10.         You may take some delight in watching her open her cards and presents and cards less than 5 hours later when she was more than somewhat under the weather.  Furthermore, there is more delight in having to open the windows in the car for her after noticing she is going more than a little green.   

11.         When your baby goes away for the first time on a holiday without you and messages you 30 minutes later that she misses you; you may respond by telling her to forget about you, enjoy herself and not to miss you at all – except for the message you expect to receive to let you know she arrived safely.  She will then forget to message you until she has been there nearly 3 hours!

12.         And finally, you may wonder what on earth your mother thought she was doing letting you get engaged and live with your fiancé at the same age as your child is now because there is no way on this green earth you would let her move out from under your roof for at least another 5 years……

Now, what did YOU learn this week?
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1. Any time this week, publish your What I Learned This Week post on your blog.
2. Within that post, please mention the What I Learned This Week carnival and link back to this post and the What I Learned This Week post at http://www.frominmatestoplaydates.com/.

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3. Then link up with Mr. Linky on the From Inmates to Playdates blog.
4. Visit the other participants and see what they learned this week. Then leave a comment because comments are fun!