Nottingham Opens, Opening Presents and Celebrating my 23rd Birthday!

The Nottingham Open Tennis Championships unfortunately get rained off but I celebrated my birthday over 3 days! I went bowling, had a meal with my favourite girl friends and family came down on the day.

Click here to watch the vlog or see below. 

I am actually totally in shock! I didn't know Bridget could play the piano and I was actually so impressed. She played some gorgeous songs and even though I didn't record the best parts, she was so cute and I loved being in the moment. 

L and I have been on a couple of super cute and fun dates recently. We went to outdoor mini golf a week or so ago and had so much fun. He is so ridiculously competitive and unfortunately, after loosing the first couple of holes he didn't manage to quite scrape in back to win in the end. To be honest, I do secretly love his competitiveness but nevertheless I find it so funny.

I started my birthday celebrations off a little early this year as we went to Nottingham Opens a few days earlier than last year. Unfortunately, for the third day in the row, there was no play outside despite the reasonable conditions in the beginning and so after a few hours waiting inside for the televisions to start working, we ended up leaving half way through the day.

We managed to enjoy the entertainment with a 1940s style band, plus as it was ladies day, we saw the fashion show but other than that, we saw a grand total of 2 tennis players warm up for all of 3 minutes. It was great!

On Friday, I had a committee meeting for archery straight after a full day of lectures which was interesting and productive but also long and half of the agenda, I didn't think I could contribute too which is always a shame.

When I got home, I went bowling with L. I'd wanted to go all day but he hadn't seemed committed to coming so I ended up quickly eating as he arrived and we just went to play a couple of games instead. He said he hadn't played in a while but after 2 strikes in a row, I wasn't convinced. It went far too quick so we had a game of pool afterwards. I've quickly come to terms with the fact that Luke is great at pretty much everything he does so I wasn't surprised when he potted and won in minutes. Aggressively competitive and a jack of all trades.

I think I've decided to make it a tradition to go to TGIs with the girls for a meal each year. It's been twice in a row and I love it everytime. I was so pleased that some friends from university to came and it's so nice to chat with the away from the academic side of the relationship. Plus, the fact that some people travelled for an hour and a half to be there is so honouring. I love them! I have a great group of people.

Plus, I'm not entirely sure how but every year TGIs seems to have the exact colour of my outfit entwined in the balloon crown they provide. I love it!

Having said that, after a lovely 3-course meal, I was super excited to head to bars, especially The Secret Garden for drinks and jenga. Unfortunately, unlike the message they preach about girls before guys, the same doesn't apply in return which is not only frustrating but upsetting and I was super angry coming back alone. I think it's defintely clear who's priorities matter the most, and simply put, I wouldn't make a decision like that.

Waking up, I tried to forget about all the drama from the previous night. I didn't wake up in the happiest mood but I didn't want it to ruin the day so I tried to put it behind me for present opening, despite feeling like I was walking on eggshells. 

The presents were perfect! I loved them all and I'm in awe that they're all amazing. They'll be a haul going up later this week so stay tuned to see what I got! 

Just before 1pm, my mum, grandma and sister arrived. We quickly opened some more cards and presents with a cup of coffee before heading into town for food at Zizzi. It was a little bit of a disaster getting to the restaurant but we finally all made it, only 20 minutes late but thankfully the phone calls worked and there was a quiet table waiting on the top floor for us.

Another 3 course meal concluded with the best dessert I've ever had. The Salted Caramel Brownie is my favourite of all time and pretty much the main reason I go to Zizzi's!

I'm still somewhat in shock that they all came down for just a few days. It was nice to have them over and to see them all, although they didn't stay anywhere near as long as I wanted them to. Of course, grandma and mum had to get back for the dogs, chickens, cats, horses and anything else.

Finally, before they left, they sang happy birthday to be and I - attempted - to blow out all the candles, although, as usual, I failed miserably.

The night finished in the most special way. L came over and we watched a super cute film "A Dog's Way Home" which was sweet and romantic and just what I wanted to end the night with: a nice film and cuddling with my favourite person.