NYE

Oh what a night.  Where to start?

As I was cleaning the house in preparation yesterday, I realised it was completely futile, scrubbing floors for people to walk on in dirty feet and cleaning a loo for people to piss and vomit all over - pointless!  However, I'm obviously turning into my mother and can't let people walk into a dirty house.

Fraser was the first to arrive.  He'd legged it and let his dear wife wait for the babysitter - good skills.  Everyone was extraordinarily generous in their gifts last night but when Frase turned up with two bottles of champagne AND a bottle of red wine AND some chocolate brownie bits AND some vintage cheddar, I suggested that he might have gone slightly over the top.  He immediately agreed and told me he'd tried to keep the cheddar but had been outvoted by his better half.

I have a serious love/hate relationship with our dear friend Ralph.  It gave me great pleasure therefore to rip a shred or two off him for daring to place his champagne flute on the polished wood when there were a hundred coasters at his disposal.  I went to town and bollocked him unnecessarily loudly and completely until he told me that actually it wasn't his glass at all.  Oops.  I apologised begrudgingly, it doesn't come easily, and then nearly decked him later when he said it was his glass after all!

Stu and I had 'discussed' earlier in the day that maybe everyone would be better behaved if the spirit cabinet stayed locked.  The boys obviously decided that this was not the correct order of play and farcically broke into the spirits' cabinet every time I wasn't looking.  They retrieved a bottle of Calvados but it was like a game of Grandmother's Footsteps and every time I looked their way they tried to style it out by dancing.  It was not a pretty sight.

We had a fabulous surprise visit from Tina and Al, all the way from Hastings.  Thankfully Ralph was having a piss at the time and so let them in.  Otherwise I think they could've been at the door all night!

We were complimented on the good behaviour of our unseen children by everybody all evening.  Poor kids.  I got my husband's permission to go and wake Zak up for midnight as I thought he would love to get up in the night; (we all know better than to wake Seb). When I went up to Zak's bedroom and asked him if he would like to come down and say 'Happy New Year' to Mummy's friends, he rolled over and said he would rather stay asleep thank you very much.  Fair.

This morning they pretty much fended for themselves as a parent didn't arise until 10am, ish.  Luckily they are slightly more self-sufficient these days.  I still feel the teeniest bit guilty about our last New Year's Eve party three years ago when we came down in the morning to find our three year old Zak foraging stale left over rolls from the kitchen table. MOTY.

As I arrived for our annual family/best friends lunch today, I suddenly remembered that I had texted the host at 3am the night before to let him know that all was well and I had prepared the required puddings.  I hoped he might have forgotten but apparently it was quite fresh in his memory as he had gone to bed at 10pm with his ill wife and then been woken by me.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I couldn't have asked for a more fabulous group of people to see the New Year in with. Good job you lovely bunch. xxxx