New Years Eve - How times have changed!

New Years Eve is fast approaching – love it or hate it, the day will soon be upon us. Pre-kids I would have spent weeks preparing for the big event – deliberating my outfit, choosing which pub we were going to be able to stumble home from most easily, and planning what time to arrive at the venue in order to secure the best spot where we would stay firmly rooted for the duration.

We’d welcome in the new Year in our gladrags, occasionally wearing a random afro and pair of glasses borrowed from a stranger, before raising a glass to hopes and dreams and having a boogie. We’d walk home in the dark and crawl into bed around 2/3am before enjoying a lazy New Years day lie in and watching Dinner Date in bed till approximately 2pm. (True story).

Now as a mother of two, my New Year’s Eve prep is somewhat different… and goes something like this.

Remember on Wednesday, or is it Thursday, (who knows what day it is in the middle of Christmas and New Year!?!), that it is New Years Eve at the weekend, and that for the sake of tradition, you should probably do something to celebrate.
Plan an child-friendly early evening celebration. There are no babysitters in town brave enough (or mad enough) to tackle both a 4 year old a baby boob monster, so a curry at 5pm will have to do. The reality of this is that one daughter will only eat a plate full of poppadoms and the other a bowl heaped full of plain rice, but it’s their last meal of 2017, so sod it.
Tell yourself this is your last naughty meal before the diet starts next year, and as such that it is completely acceptable to eat an entire naan bread to yourself, despite the fact your butt is currently trying to escape though a hole in your jeans (again true story) after you consumed your entire body weight in Quality Street and Chocolate Orange over Christmas.
Return home just after 8pm with two slightly delirious, over tired and MSG fuelled children and wonder if it is too early to go to bed yourself.
Give yourself a firm talking to and convince yourself that it is ESSENTIAL to stay up until midnight to watch Big Ben’s only chimes of the Year, and listen to Jules Holland sat on a piano.
Try and remember the full lyrics to Auld Lang Syne and fail.
After using matchsticks to prop open your eyes you finally manage to stay awake till 12.02am, when you then curse every other human being alive for having even so much as a sparkler in their garden whilst your kids are trying to sleep.
Revel in #mumwin glory when despite twenty solid minutes of fireworks directly outside your children’s bedroom windows, they miraculously both stay asleep.
Utter a unenthusiastic Happy New Year to your other half and give them a little attempt at affection and slight pat on the back before getting on your pjs on and heading off to bed
Tread on creaky floorboard on the landing….. both kids awake. DAMMIT.