Welcome back to The Friday Blog, if you are new here thank you for popping by, I hope you enjoy this week’s post.

The benefits to a night in

Being a mum in my 30’s, I personally feel like a night in is the equivalent to a night out in your 20’s. It’s something I really look forward to, but doesn’t require nearly as much time and effort as a night out!

Here are all the benefits I’ve found from a night in…

• No budgeting necessary, nights in don’t require you to spend any money if you don’t want to, no need to worry about waking up the next day to the realisation that you splashed the cash in front of all your friend’s and now have no money to live on for the rest of the month.
• You don’t need to spend hours searching online or in stores looking for the perfect outfit…Night’s in can be attended in what ever clothing items you want…or don’t want to wear!
• Takes far less time and preparation. The hours you would spend getting ready, hair, makeup, nails and outfit is not an issue with a night In, the point is not to impress,  In fact, the best night’s in are the ones where you look like you’ve given up on your appearance all together!! Completely makeup free, hair scraped back, nails bitten off from the stress of trying to organise the kids, for back to school after 6months off! (Stressful, but it’s ok because the end result is definitely worth it) and wearing the comfiest miss match outfit you can find!
• No beer fear! You don’t have to worry about waking up the next day crapping yourself thinking “Did I say or do something that I am going to live to regret?” Avoiding looking at your phone in case the evidence is there in the form of an awkward text from a now ex friend letting you know of your behaviour, or pictures on your phone or social media that make you die a little inside every time you look at them.
• No hangover. This for me has to be the biggest benefit of a night in especially when you have children.  You go out with the intention of letting your matted mum hair down, no f**Ks given because you’re a mum and you deserve this!!  Going out with the absolute intention of drinking all the shots!! (Which only ends up being 1 because you’ve already had 4 gin and tonics an if you have another shot your going to throw up or fall down… or both!) Your only intentions are of Leaving all your mum responsibilities behind you and just having the best night ever!! 

Then you get your 6am wakeup call in the form of a small child screaming at you for breakfast and the regret set’s in, along with the pounding head and trying to make breakfast without throwing up and s***ting yourself at the same time.

Believe it or not even after all of that, it still took a good couple of years for me to finally realise that nights in were definitely the way forward when you’re a mum in your 30’s.  I’ve got to be honest I don’t miss them at all, in fact I enjoy the gloat when other mums are hanging out of their a***s and I’m at home feeling as fresh as a sleep deprived mum of 2 can feel.

My idea of a perfect night in

Now that I have finally realised night’s on the town are no longer for me, I have been able to put together a lovely little night in routine that not only helps me to unwind after a busy day or week it also allows me reset and gives me that moments peace and quiet we all need from time to time.

So here it is…

1. Make the house feel cosy. I love nothing more than to feel cosy, I close all the blinds and curtains, light some candles and get out all the comfy, cosiest blankets I can find.

• Have a bath. This is definitely the best thing to do if you want to feel relaxed and cosy.  Again, I light some candles, run a nice hot bath and in it I always put a bath bomb (Love a Lush bath bomb), bubbles, bath oil or bath salts (I always use Epsom’s Lavender bath salts, they are my fav).

• Put on some music. I absolutely love music, it really helps to adjust my mood, so choose the music that bests suites the mood your trying to set.

• Skin care and facemasks. It wouldn’t be the perfect night in for me without doing these two things. I love nothing more than the feeling of taking off my makeup at the end of a busy day and treating my skin to some much-needed skin care and a cheeky little facemask.

• Put on your comfiest pj’s or lounge wear. Since Covid I think most of us have found an all new love and appreciation for lounge wear, it’s basically been the fashion staple for the whole of 2020, and quite honestly, it’s something I intend to continue… forever, I love it!!

• Make a beverage of your choice and prepare some snacks. The drink of my choice would be a nice hot cup of tea, but it can be anything you like. Snacks are also a definite requirement for a night in. They can be anything from a healthy selection of fruit and nuts to chocolate and biscuits for dunking in your tea, anything that takes your fancy is perfect.

Last but by no means least

• Do something that makes you feel calm and cosy. This is once again down to preference, for me it would have to be sitting down wrapped up in my cosiest blanket and watching one of my fav films (The Holiday is always my go to, when I want to feel cosy), But you can to do anything, read a book, complete a puzzle, knitting, writing, drawing, painting the options are endless. As long as it makes you happy that’s all that matters.

And there you have it, that was my idea of a perfect night in, I hope you enjoyed it and if you haven’t already got one of your own, I hope that it helps you to achieve that calming, cosy night in that we all need every now again.

Q. What do you do to unwind and relax?

Q. What’s your go to snack(s) for a night in?

Q. Cosy night in? Or Boozy night out?