Sequins

You know those great nights, with your best mate, when you meet up, catch up, slap on some make-up and sequins and hit the town? (Any male readers with a previously undisclosed love of make-up and sequins, feel free to come out in the comments below).

Well, that’s the kind of night my daughter had tonight.

Today, she was 15. We bought her what she really wanted - all £8.99 plus postage and packing of it - an Animagic Sleepy Time pony, that cries, whinnies, slurps and snores, a bit like me after too much gin. We organised the night she really, really wanted: a trip to the curry hut, a film on the home cinema, and a sleepover with her friend Bethany.

The usual Prader-Willi Syndrome provisos applied: her Indian was appropriately low-fat, her poppadoms and chutneys strictly rationed, her Hello Kitty birthday cake slice swapped with a portion of Nanna’s legendary non-sugar fruit cake.

The film she chose, Marley & Me, had her and Bethany transfixed, although both displayed somewhat autistic hearts of stone as they remained stoically unmoved by the dead dog ending.  “I’m not crying,” my girl announced. “I’m not either,” nodded Bethany, in agreement. “I’m very grown-up, though,” my daughter felt the need to add. “Me too,” came the echo.

They’re upstairs now, both decked out in Hello Kitty pyjamas - my girl’s ones (a birthday present) slightly too long in the leg, Bethany’s a faded, favourite, old pair, way too short for her now she’s grown about six inches in six months. 

They’ve done a reasonable job with the deep cleanse wipes and left themselves with only faintly mascara-smeared panda eyes. They’ve taken the pink braids out of my daughter’s hair, grabbed their cuddly toys, and hit the sack, the boxing glove of sleep knocking them out before the referee had chance to ask for a clean fight.

Apparently we're watching the One Direction Live Concert DVD and Mamma Mia in the morning, so help me God.

Sleep tight, girls.

Video is Kathryn Williams - Heart Shaped Stone,  from her beautiful new album, Crown Electric.  I wanted to use the song Sequins, from the same LP, but I can't find a video. You're just going to have to buy the album, if you want to listen to it. Which you really should...