Didn’t you know? 30 is the new 20!

I am happy to report that I just had one of the best birthdays to date! My thoughtful and sneaky hubby planned a day of respite to prepare me for a night of – what else- drinking and socializing! I spent the afternoon at a little day spa in Knightsbridge (that is near Harrod’s- a London landmark as recognizable as the Tower Bridge) called Glow Urban Spa- www.glowurbanspa.com. I had a massage and a pedicure while I watched the rain drizzle outside. The weather was rather unfortunate- but it is London so I expected nothing less.

Then, I came home to shower up to head out to dinner. We had dinner at this little restaurant near our house called Ffionas: http://www.ffionas.com/. It was super cute- had maybe 10-12 tables inside and although the service was, well, odd, the food was- as JP likes to say “phenomenal.” After dinner JP took me down the street and as we walked downstairs into my favourite piano bar the entertainer broke out in “Happy Birthday” and I looked to see all of our GEP friends at a long table with a birthday cake all smiling and waiting. I almost cried I was so touched and excited. We sang the rest of the night away to our favourite piano tunes, I drank some yummy champagne, and we ended the party back at our flat with our friend Josh cooking up some Mac & Cheese while we caught the UNC v. Louisville game of the NCAA tourney. Through the mess we realized the time changed this weekend- we lost an hour in all this and got to bed at technically 4am.

This weekend was bittersweet for me as we had to say good-bye to some friends who are heading back to the US as they wrap up their various secondments and exchange programs. These are people who we had grown close to in our transition and whose advice and help we relied heavily upon during the initial stages of our move (and after the move, we commiserated with them on the ridiculousness of various things over many drinks and dinners). I was lucky in that a few of them came to the birthday gathering on their very last night in London- a testament to how thoughtful and fun they are! I think watching them leave and say their good-bye’s made our whole class of EY friends sad for losing them but also aware that time here goes so fast! We only have a year left- which seems like a decent amount of time until I think back to how fast the last 6 months have gone. It reinforced the fact that we have to take advantage of every opportunity here- whether it is a pub outing, a quick overnight trip out, or a long weekend away with friends.

In closing, I’ve had a chance to reflect on some of the things I’ll really miss about my 20’s… mostly superficial/appearance wise, but you know what- it is the first thing to go, so I must comment on it! Good bye to:
- A fast metabolism that enables me to eat what I please without worrying about extra pounds
- Solid color hair with no errant grey
- Wrinkle free skin that doesn’t betray you and tell the world that you had no sleep the night before!
- Making mistakes and blaming them on being young… along with people forgiving you your stupidity and bad decisions because you are young
- Thinking I know everything- I know NOTHING and have so much to learn.
- Thinking maturity, motherhood, and minivans are so far away…

Thanks to all of you who emailed and sent cards, it meant so much!