High School Prom

I am getting older. It's just a reality. I actually called 911 the other day because a bunch of kids were riding down the middle of our busy street in an off-road vehicle with no helmets and holding on to the back. What really bothered me is that the school was just letting out and the speed limit was only 20 mph. They were going well over that and there were lots of kids & parents around, so I called the cops. Yikes. I never would have done that 5 years ago!

I also find myself weighing whether or not I would like to attend an event simply based on the start time. Anything after 8pm is out, for sure. 7:30 is questionable and 7:00pm is prime, if it ends before 9. I just need my rest, people. And, I really do enjoy being at home. Playing a game or watching a movie and eating some pizza sounds like the best deal on a Friday night to me. (Although I will say I love spending time with friends & family--that's more appealing than going "out" late--like to the movies.)

However, this past Friday night, I really extended myself and did something "old". We attended Joel's school's Prom. Not to attend for real, but to attend as chaperones. What a mature thing to do.

Joel & I got all dressed up--that was really fun. However, finding a maternity "prom" dress is not so easy. Thankfully, my friend Julie is awesome and let me borrow this great dress. My friend Krista & I went for pedicures yesterday morning and my friend, Briony came over and did my hair & make up which was a great treat. I'm not a real fancy type of gal. We left early and went for a great dinner at Macaroni Grill. There were lots of kids there dressed up for their own proms--tis the season.

Joel and I had fun reminiscing about our own prom exper- iences-- from 10+ years ago-- YIKES, we're old! We enjoyed the food and each other's company and then in typical high school fashion, promptly realized we had no idea what time the dance actually started!

Here's what I learned while attending the dance (which was really close to home--a short trip home at the end of the evening, which is nice for us old people). Nothing about high school has changed. OK, so they text message now and actually know what the internet is (it was still being invented when I started high school). But, all of the drama and hype is still exactly the same. Who cam with who, who got a limo & who did not, who came stag, who wore the same dresses and whose hair looked the best, who left with a different date than they came with and who spent the entire time in the bathroom upset that their date is lame...it's all the same. I'm sorry to disappoint you, high schoolers, but none of that is new.

I will say that I was surprised by the level of care the administrators took to look over kids as they entered to see if they had been drinking or doing drugs. That was probably going on when I was in high school, but I wasn't aware of it.

Times have changed in some ways, but mostly for me. I've gotten older since high school, that's for sure. I actually had a great date that I could legally go home with at the end of the evening--and a great looking one at that. :) And although we didn't, we could have legally enjoyed a glass of wine with dinner (obviously, I wouldn't have anyway, but the idea is we could have). I also own the car that we drove (thanks mom & dad) and I wasn't worried that my date would see me without my make up on at the end of the night.

I used to enjoy staying out late and spending time with large groups of people. Getting all dressed up and going out used to be appealing. But, I'll leave that for those young whipper-snappers. As for me and my old body, I was at home, in bed, before the dance was even over.