hangover

we were invited, with jack & rebecca, and another couple, to Perch to taste-test potential new entrees for deirdre. they are trying to settle on a broader dinner menu and want feedback on how things tasted. So we all took off work early a couple friday's ago and, with the kids (theres a new kids menu as well), arrived in a very good mood. and the good mood just never stopped. it got bigger and bigger and took over the table. the kids were angels, the food was excellent (a sparerib stew, bbq'd shrimp over grits, a grilled chicken skewer. the kids had cocktail weiners wrapped in biscuits with dipping sauces), and, there were martinis and a couple bottles of syrah. all gratis! and none of us had really been 'out' in so very long. so we were just ecstatic. and jack and i had the great idea that it didn't have to end with dinner. so we took the kids back to their house (a few blocks from perch), and got the girls ready for their first sleepover. there was an electric excitement in the air as they all cuddled up in Sophia's bed (hennie) and Sabine's crib (mette) and went back downstairs to toast our youthful brilliance. Jack recently had his 40th birthday and still has several? cases of wine they're drinking. In his excitement he filled the table with all our options and we sat down, put the iPod on shuffle and started babbling. there was port. there was bourbon.

anyway, hege and i finally pulled away at about 3am and got the kids snuggled down in the stroller for the the 20 block walk home. they handled it well, but the next day for us was almost indescribable. Rebecca called a couple of days later to say she thew up 8 times and would never NEVER do it again. Hege simply couldn't or wouldn't move all day. she went out in the backyard about noon and lay down and went to sleep and thats about all that happened. she was out there for hours, and the girls and i tinkered around with little outside projects. I was in much better shape, but did notice a tendency to sort of wake up in the middle of a task, the power drill running at nothing in mid-air.

we mocked the god of parenthood and suffered his wrath.

hennie and i snuck some photos of 'sick mamma':