All Partied Out!!

PHEW!! The last week and a bit has been super hectic at the Meares' Madhouse! There was a parental visit, frantic party preparations, a fabulous party and then the clean up!! All in all, I think it will take me a week or so to catch up on some sleep and let my poor weary feet recover ... hmmm ... maybe there's something to all the comments about me being 'old' now that I've turned 40?!?! :0)

I mentioned in my last post that my dancing buddy Lynda and I were sharing a Medieval themed party to celebrate us both turning 40 within a fortnight of each other and this last Saturday was PARTY DAY! I won't tell you about the week leading up to it, cos you'd be here for ages reading the list of errands, tasks and preparations that went on!! Lets just say it was BUSY!!! So, after lunch on Saturday, the co-birthday girl, her beloved and my Beloved Geek Boy ... and GB's brother Benny ...headed to the hired hall to dress it for a medieval bash. The hall belongs to one of the oldest churches in Toowoomba and already had fabulous arches, columns etc to add atmosphere, but we hung some bright coloured bunting to add some olde worlde fair flare, some heraldic shields made by my clever GB, some rich-coloured table cloths, a few cast iron candelabras and we had ...

This photo doesn't really do the hall justice and it looked way cooler at night when all the candles were lit ... but my camera got put away very early in the night so I could assume my hostess-with-the-mostest duties! :0) I'm REALLY hoping some of my friends got some great photos that they can send me for my keepsake album. (Perhaps even some arty shots of candles ... Linda! Tee! Hee! Hee!) My honorary sister, Tiffany enjoys playing in the kitchen and put her childcare experience (she's a nanny) to good use to make a suitable birthday cake ...

We couldn't have a medieval birthday party without a medieval castle cake, right?!! :0) Didn't Tiff do a great job on this!! I would NOT have had the patience she did!! (And I have to point out that there is a little bear enjoying the castle's garden and butterflied flitting around  - these are the 'nicknames' for me and Lynda in our little trio!) So ... we had decorations, a cake ... costumes were needed to add to the medieval madness! :0)

Here is my Beloved GB in his Merlin the Sorcerer disguise and me in my Morgan La Fay get up ... minus the crystal ball! :0) GB has been growing the medieval-look goatee for a few months to make his look suitably wise and mysterious. I have to report that it disappeared the day after the party cos I was tired of scratchy smoochies and he kept feeling like he'd walked through spider web! Tee! Hee! Hee! And here is my family (minus my brother Paul and his wife Ella who were unable to travel from Alice Springs to party with us)...

Yes ... my Dad came dressed as the town executioner, complete with hood and VERY large fake axe! Tee! Hee! Hee! My clever clogs Mum made all of our costumes for the party, as well as organising the catering for the night. She worked SOOOOOOOOOOO hard in the lead up to the party and on the night ... THANKS MUM!!! What would I do without her!!! And here are the pretty maids all in a row ...

Didn't Mum do a FABULOUS job on our dresses!! Mind you ... after an evening of struggling to keep my sleeves out of the dip ... and the drinks ... and getting tangled when changing gears in the car (I was SOOO pleased I didn't get pulled over on the way!!) I don't think I was meant to live in medieval times! :0) And another trio of pretty maids ...

The trio formed when we met through belly dancing classes that has outlived the dance classes ... Dancing Buddy Deb ... Yours Truly ... and co-birthday girl and Dancing Buddy Lynda. We don't scrub up too badly at all, do we! :0)

We had a wonderful evening of catching up with friends and dancing the night away to ABBA and other 70's/80's music and despite everyone being told NO PRESENTS ... I was thoroughly spoiled, but will share photos later in the week. I think the highlight of the evening for me, was to have so many of the special people in my life gathered together to help me celebrate my birthday and it made me feel hugely blessed to have so many wonderful people to call my family and friends. A big thanks to all who travelled for the evening ... including my bestest-buddy-since-year-four Lynette, my blogging buddy the Lovely Lilly Linda and her beloved Tim and a friend from uni days, Tony, who travelled from Maryborough to dress up as a monk and help me celebrate. I'd also like to say a big THANK YOU to all of you, my blogging buddies, who stopped by to wish me a happy birthday - I felt truly spoiled to be receiving birthday well-wishes from all over the world! :0)

So ... that's a quick little wrap up of my 40th birthday party. I promise to share photos of some of the GORGEOUS gifties I received later in the week and maybe some more party photos if I can track some down. I hope you all had a great weekend, too. Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!
CHEERS!
KRIS