maddy's 17

So I have a 17-year-old, almost-graduate, daughter.  Crazy.  It's hard to believe that someone who looks as young as I do has a daughter who is so old (hahahahahahaha!!)

Early on, in mid November or so, Maddy was pretty excited because this was the first year in her entire life that we didn't have some kind of Christmas party or gathering on her birthday.  Finally she could have a "real" birthday! The only problem was, as she discovered a few weeks later, that her friends still had gatherings.

She also still got saddled with the joint Christmas and birthday gift - although there can't really be too much to complain about since the gift was a lap top.  But we did spend the extra big dollars and threw in a cardigan so she had something to open on her birthday!

She was even relatively pleased since now she won't have to borrow mine all the time (so in a way you might also guess that the gift was somewhat selfish as well…..  if you did guess that, you may not be entirely wrong!)

Mia made her a card, and Lucy gave her a gift card (one that she had just received for Christmas, none-the-less) and some earrings (she likes re-gifting….).  Cade gave his love.  Or something.

A little trouble with the iPhone box it was all in….

 

The rest of the morning was spent Wii-ing and such.

Thankfully, one of Maddy's friends, who also just so happens to be her cousin, was able to take off in the afternoon.  So the three of us - yes, me and two trendy, hipster teenagers, headed out to the big city. I'm so cool, rad, swell,  hella killer.  Totes.

Moving on…

The girls wanted to go shopping.  That's nice, you say to yourself.  But think about this.  Shopping.  At a mall.  On the day after Christmas….. Boxing day.  And this for a woman who hates malls at the best of times.  And this was not the best of times.  I must really love my daughter.  She's hella killer too.

After a long time being near the mall, we finally got into the parking lot.  Then we only had to fight our way through thousands of shoppers to get to the stores we wanted.

We dined at Moxies and had a mostly delightful meal.  Good service, fabulous company but mediocre food.  I think I just ordered the wrong thing (I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt).  But Maddy did get a half-dessert (what's with only half?) and no obnoxious song to go with it.

After dinner we went to see the movie Into the Woods.

I felt duped.

Maddy felt blindsided.

Alex didn't feel anything.  I think she was paralyzed from movie-induced coma or something of that nature.

Perhaps if we had known that it was a musical....  Perhaps if we had been prepared…. although then we wouldn't have seen that movie because they never would have wanted to go.

The upside is that if we would have seen a movie that hadn't resulted in various stages and levels of bewilderment we wouldn't have so many outstanding memories and fantastic stories.  And those, after  all, are what make a birthday really happy.