Oh no! It’s loads more days have gone past and I haven’t done any blogging really…
Friday… work was so hectic last week. We had Sarah and family to stay on Friday night and I hadn’t seen her since I was 5 months pregnant with Ella. She’s my best mate but we’re both so hectic with kids and life and no money that it’s always so hard to arrange anything.
We had a great time on Friday night – chatted, drank and chatted more. She looked great and I miss her loads.
Saturday we all had a day out, went out for lunch and did some shopping. The boys took the kids back to ours (Sarah and Steve have two girls too) and Sarah and I went dress shopping. I have posted the picture of hers obviously – I would love to post the pictures of some that I tried on but BN reads this blog so I can’t!
We had an excellent time shopping in the end – our first experience wasn’t so great. I really should have listened to Kirsty and Bam when they told me that Pronuptia was the City of the Dead. They have to be the most unwelcoming miserable women I have ever had the misfortune to meet. I was so excited about trying on dresses with Sarah. I was hoping for a giggle and some silliness – some froo froo silly frocks and hopefully a few that looked like ‘the one’…
Pronuptial women made me feel like I wasn’t good enough for their shop and that really I shouldn’t be looking at *their* dresses. She stood 2ft away from Sarah and I while we got a chance to look at.. ooh about 4 dresses. We kept giving each other sideways glances and as we selected our 3rd dress, Crankety McEvil whisked them away, hung them in a changing room, ushered me in there, ordered me to undress to my underwear and swept the curtain shut as she walked away in one fluid movement. A very practiced routine.
I felt like my face didn’t fit. I am not thin. I am not a beautiful goddess of weddingy gorgeousness. I am me. And *me* clearly wasn’t good enough.
Sarah is such a good friend. Are you OK she whispered from behind the curtain. I pulled the curtain back and asked the ice queen .. ‘exactly what is the process here? You haven’t explained anything to me’.
Strip to your underwear and I’ll be in to fit you into each dress. She said in a harsh German accent. Ok well maybe not German accent but you get the picture.
Strip to your underwear. STRIP!! I suddenly had the mental image of a 1950s matron ordering a rectal examination from a terrified patient!!
STRIP!!!! Strip just didn’t conjure up the exciting giggly day I had imagined.
I pulled the curtain back and stood in the changing room. Are you OK? whispered Sarah. I just didn’t want to be in there. I felt so disappointed. I didn’t know of any other wedding shops in Lincoln. I didn’t want to be in here and it seemed like my fantasticly girly afternoon with Sarah wasn’t going to happen.
Come on – let’s go, she said. It’s horrible in here and we deserve to have a good time. She said it loudly and the woman turned round at the other end of the shop.
We’re leaving I said. We don’t want to be in here and we’re going to go and try somewhere else.

She looked… well to be honest… annoyingly… she looked relieved. I was clearly right. My face just hadn’t fit. She hadn’t wanted to help me. I just wasn’t Pronuptia client material obviously.
Well. BUM to them
We walked out, Sarah suggested phoning 118, we found two more shops listed and one was right round the corner. We went in and instantly the whole atmosphere was so different. The girl was lovely. Really made it special. We chose Sarah’s chocolate brown dress first and then we got led over to the other side and were left alone in the bridal area for a good 15 minutes. We giggled, and cooed and ahhhd over dresses and had such a great time.
Thank you to Image for a really lovely time..
So… Sunday we lazed… went shopping… walked about… bought a couple of inconsequential things… lazed some more. BN thinks that Ella said kiss before giving him a kiss on the face. Rowan’s birthday is coming up and we keep pointing things out to her. I think the other day she said she wanted something a bit bizarre.. like oh I don’t know… a gravy boat or something. It wasn’t a gravy boat but I just can’t remember.
She’s getting bunk beds (more our choice really as the room is really small and next month, Ella is going in it. The cot bed needs to be turned back into a cot for Ella and Rowan is moving into the lower bunk.
She is thrilled with that idea though which is a relief. Would be kind of a bummer if she was dead set against bunks. It would be kind of torturous, mean presents for people to make them unhappy for their special day
She is very taken with what she’ll do when she’s older at the moment. We’ve had plenty of variations. I think the latest have been working in a bank (to do mortgages) (later revised to being a bank manager at BN’s suggestion), bin man (but only if she could have lots and lots of pink bins and an apron!! She’s very specific) and a professional footballer.
She’s very diverse
