Turning Thirty One

On Saturday, I turned thirty one. I still haven't quite got my head around the numbers, but my age isn't bothering me like it did when I turned thirty and freaked out so badly, I got trapped under a toxic fog of depression for a couple of months. After making it through a full year as a thirty year old and discovering there really wasn't anything to worry about- even without all those things society says we're supposed to have by thirty- like a husband, babies, a house, and a respectable career- being thirty-one doesn't worry me in the slightest. It's just another year of my life to live, grow, and make as many memories as I can before the counter resets in a year's time. I've decided that it doesn't matter that I don't have the picture perfect life we're made to believe we should have, and its absence shouldn't stop me from appreciating the life I have now, so I'm happy to live the life I've got and see where it takes me. There are plenty of years ahead of me for life to happen naturally, and I'm certainly not dead yet. Turning thirty-one is no big deal, and the next year can be as exciting or unremarkable as I want it to be. We'll see where it takes me!

For now, here are some photos and snippets from my birthday, including a mini haul of the birthday presents I was given by my family.

Colourful presents and cards from the family.

My  parents gave me this colourful, floral print pair of Rocket Dogs. They're so pretty. I don't often wear trainers these days, but I know they'll come in handy for running around after the dog.

This beautiful set of Mavala nail polishes was also from my parents. The five shades are all gorgeous, and so wearable. I first tried Mavala nail polishes last year, and I've come to really like them because they glide on like a dream, and usually remain chip-free for several days. They're a little pricier than many, but they're totally worth their price tag.

My  Mum also gave me this flamingo cross stitch kit. It's so cute and colourful! It's different to anything I've made before, so it'll be fun to try something different for a change. Plus it has flamingos on it, and you guys know how much I love all things flamingo.

My  older sister gave me this adorable Cath Kidston cottage sewing basket, which I knew I was getting because I was with her when she bought it. I've wanted a Cath Kidston sewing basket house for years and had been coveting this one for months, but at £58 I couldn't justify the purchase. It's a lot of money for a sewing basket. I was planning to buy it after it was reduced to £34 a couple of weeks ago, but the sister kindly got it for me instead. It's beautiful, and I finally have a proper place to store my cross stitch supplies, instead of haphazardly squeezing everything in to a couple of tiny cheap wicker baskets. It'll make a cute prop for blog photos, too.

She also gave me this beautiful copy of The BFG, which was one of our favourites books growing up. I have to admit, the illustrations inside and on the cover are so beautiful.

My  little sister gave me a Sega Mega Drive games console, which is loaded with classic nineties computer games like Sonic The Hedgehog, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, and Columns, along with two separate games we played to death when we were little- Aladdin and The Lion King! Oh, sweet Jesus, this is amazing! I didn't even know this console existed! (FYI, she said she got it from Argos). If I had, I would've bought it in a heart beat; I loved the Sega Mega Drive growing up!

When I was nine, my sisters and I were given a Mega Drive for Christmas (1994), which was the best present ever because until then we only had an ancient Commodore computer which we played on an old black and white TV. It took about an hour and a half for the games to load so you had to clear your day if you wanted to play with it. In comparison, the Mega Drive was the coolest thing ever, and it kept us amused for years. We used to fight over whose turn it was to play on it all the time. We were all addicted to The Lion King, but I also had a soft spot for Aladdin, Golden Axe, Sonic, and Maui Mallard. It was awesome! With so many old favourites to play again, I have a feeling I'll be addicted to this console in no time! If I disappear from the blog for a few months, you'll know why!

Some of my birthday cards. The banana card is brilliant, and oh so true!

I decided to spend my birthday at my local zoo, The Cotswold Wildlife Park, so Marie and I headed out around half eleven, and she treated me to a ticket. It's one of my favourite places and only a few miles from home, so it makes for a fun, easy day out, and I don't even waste any spoons getting there. Yay! The weather was grey and drizzled at times, but we had fun wandering around just the same, chatting, eating ice cream, and looking at all kinds of weird and wonderful animals and plants 'til mid afternoon. We got caught in the rain towards the end and got soaked trying to find the car (it took us about ten minutes to find it!), but we really enjoyed our visit, and it was a great way to start off my birthday. I'll be blogging about my visit properly really soon, once I've got through all of the photos I took.

After The Wildlife Park, I was in agony and exhausted, so I soon changed in to my PJs, and went for a lie down. I took a couple of selfies before I crashed. This is 31 year old me in my PJs, with hair damp and frizzy from the rain, and hair dye stains along my scalp and hair line as I'd dyed it the night before. My fringe has grown past my chin, and I'm in dire need of a hair cut. Most of my make up had come off in the rain, revealing a face covered in a gazillion freckles that have grown in size, multiplied and darkened from spending so much time in the garden with the puppy over the last few months. My eyebrows are unkempt and in desperate need of some TLC, awfully shaped thanks to over-plucking them when I was twelve, and had no idea what I was doing. (Why did I do that?! Why?) They've never filled back in. Thirty-one year old me has dark circles and a few blemishes, but no wrinkles just yet. I'm told I don't look thirty-one, and I definitely don't feel it. I don't feel old, and I don't feel like a proper grown-up yet. I have no current plans to change who I am or 'act my age'; and judging by my birthday and the presents I was given, I've started to grow back down instead. I'm okay with that! Me, old? Pah!

A couple of hours later, my Mum put together a 'party tea' or a buffet, if you prefer, so I crawled back downstairs and ate junk while watching Mrs Doubtfire with my Mum and little sis. I felt about five! If you can't eat junk unapologetically on your birthday, when can you, eh?

We  finished with the most delicious gooey chocolate birthday cake from M&S, which was so large I had a slice on Saturday, Sunday and Monday! Bad for my body, but oh so delicious.

After I'd had my fill and the movie had ended, I couldn't bare the pain any longer, so I crawled back upstairs and in to bed. I vaguely remember watching Avatar and trying to blog, but I was so shattered I napped on and off and fell asleep pretty early.

My birthday was hardly rock 'n' roll and I couldn't celebrate with a few drinks (thanks to medication) or a night on the tiles, but I had a good day just the same. If Saturday was anything to go by, thirty-one won't be so bad after all.