Now that I'm 34

 

 

I was born the night before Halloween, and whilst I don't have expensive tastes I've always liked to mark birthdays and use them as an opportunity to take stock. In my younger years I'd have needed to 'do something,' to feel like I'd really celebrated but thankfully one of the many gifts of ageing is the letting go of 'should.' Nowadays I'm much more likely to look around me and feel grateful than I am to be found counting the Facebook birthday posts, (sad but true at one point). 

At thirty four I'm in that in-between place, not exactly young anymore but not too old either (if I'm lucky and get to live into my 80s that is). Honestly, its a lovely place to be. Of course I look to my face sometimes and see a new line that worries me for a millisecond, or I might think about the novel I still haven't published, but mostly I am content to be who I am and where I am in my life. My late teens and twenties were a myriad of surf trips, yoga, parties, travel, heartache and missteps. I wouldn't trade those experiences for the world but I don't miss the wilderness of those years either. 

The photo above, is what I took on Saturday, feeling really rough and waiting for a Doctor to call about my littlest one. I'm grateful for motherhood for a myriad of reasons, but one of the best aspects of having my girls, is how they've honed my ability to adapt when plans change. We were supposed to have a family weekend away to the seaside, my favourite place on earth. That quickly changed when we looked at the astronomical Airbnb prices for one night in West Wittering and then my toddler got ill. We then decided we'd do a National Trust visit somewhere in the Cotswolds for the day and a meal out. The weekend was instead spent ringing 111, speaking to consultant clinicians and then a subsequent trip to our local community hospital, for our littlest one (3 months old). Thankfully her illness is nothing more than a common bug, but said bug afflicted both me and her Dad, so much so on the Saturday afternoon I had to stay in bed as I was so dizzy, I couldn't lift my head and felt sick. 

Therefore on Sunday, my actual birthday, I really didn't think I'd be able to do much so expectations were substantially lowered! Still fairly fragile, I was so immensely grateful to wake up and be able to lift my head again and all my lovebugs were well enough to tolerate a short trip out. 

We decided to head across the county, to Marlow in Buckinghamshire, as we'd booked a table at Megan's Mediterranean restaurant for my birthday meal. 

Armed with liquid eye liner, Isle of Paradise fake tan and my trusty fedora I was able to make myself look human enough for a birthday picture! I'm wearing my favourite All about Audrey dress (I think it's already been featured twice on the blog) and of course my second hand hat which my eldest daughter has taken to wearing (she's two, but it looks so much cooler on her)! I love this dress but I think my next All about Audrey purchase will need to be midi length as every maxi dress of theirs I've had to sew, I think because I keep stepping on the hem and ripping it, (that or my toddler's strength when pulling on my dresses is unprecedented)! 

Anyone who knows me, or talks to me for more than five minutes will know that I am low key obsessed with Mediterranean food. Spanning countries Greece, Italy, Spain, France and Morocco amongst others, the diet is both healthy and delicious. I'd previously visited Megan's for a works do and loved it, so was happy to suggest it again when the hubby asked about my birthday preferences. 

How beautiful is the boho decor at the Marlow branch?! I was taking mental notes as there were a few design features I wouldn't mind replicating in my house. My hubby and I have wildly different design tastes, but if hubby can see a vision or an idea in the flesh he can sometimes be persuaded to accept my bohemian tendencies! Sometimes I envy the households where they share similar design tastes, but I remind myself I wouldn't want a house decorated to my exact standards if it meant I didn't have Mr Sunshine, so there you go! 

For drinks as I was feeling delicate and am also breastfeeding (so no alcohol), I decided to 'go wild' and have an Earl Grey Tea. It was loose leaf tea and utterly delicious. 

For our main, hubby and I shared a Turkish brunch platter, the tomato coloured dish is shakshouka which was delicious and the creamy looking dish was a type of cheese. I thought the spicy hummus was insanely good and even though it didn't look at first glance like it would fill us up (me and Mr Sunshine can EAT), we really enjoyed this.  

Having a toddler and a newborn in tow meant we couldn't stay as long as perhaps we'd have liked but we had a great time so it was back home for nap time and a siesta! 

You may be thinking dear reader, that this is not the most riveting or high octane of birthdays (or post for that matter), but given the state of the world at the moment, from collapsing bridges in India, to the war still going on in Ukraine, I don't take too lightly the absolute privilege I have, of eating a meal with my healthy, loving husband and my two healthy, funny, happy girls.  

So, 33 thank you for having me, it's been a blast and 34, I'm ready for you! 

Love Soph x