One of my first posts on our old blog ‘Indulge In’ was about me and my daughter Naomi taking a road trip to Luton to go flat hunting for her for while she was at university. That was almost two years ago.
Last Friday we made the same road trip…this time she was graduating!
The day started off with some well deserved cards and pressies including an all singing, all dancing puppy (Celebrate good times….come on!!)
After a few renditions of the increasingly annoying song (the dancing was cute though), we made the two and a half hour journey South in sweltering heat, battling with the car’s air con so we weren’t two sticky sweaty blobs on arrival. It didn’t work…we were still two very sticky sweaty blobs. And did I mention the frizzy hair?
Posh frocks and high heels on, frizzy hair still frizzy (mine not Naomi’s), we joined the masses of other students and their guests at St Marys Church, Luton for the afternoon’s proceedings. Naomi added her cap and gown and was suddenly transformed into a mature, excited ‘grown up’.
She looked stunning… I was so proud. I don’t think her beaming smile stopped all afternoon.
We obviously had to take a gazzilion and one photos first – being a student, it’s not often I get to see her in all her finery (which had taken countless shopping trips to find – only to be bought online at the last minute!!).
If I’m being honest, to put it bluntly the ceremony was as boring as hell. Sat in a sweat box of a church, albeit a very pretty one, while listening (or not listening as the case may be) to someone drone on about how good the university is (which in my daughters experience was complete and utter b******s – but that’s another story). Anyway I sat waiting patiently for my ‘Proud Mummy Moment’ when she was presented with her degree while ignoring the lump in my throat and the tear in my eye just long enough to snap away and capture her very own ‘Proud’ moment. The hard work, long hours and expense had been worth it….the tassel was worth the hassle!! I did resist the urge to ‘whoop whoop’ and shout out for risk of sounding like some common Yorkshire fish wife but did actually think about it.
The rest of the ceremony went quite quickly helped slightly by the presence of a celebrity, Kevin Whately (better known as Robert “Robbie” Lewis of Inspector Morse and Lewis…although he will always be Neville from Auf Wiedersehen to me) who was receiving an honorary degree from the university.
As the new graduates paraded out of the church to Take That’s ‘Greatest Day’, there wasn’t one relative that wasn’t eager to go and congratulate/hug/kiss/embarrass their son/daughter. Cue more photos…
A well deserved bubbly…cheers!!!
And a canapé or two…
The dress Naomi eventually chose….By Jessica Wright for Lipsy purchased from Next online £70.00. The shoes are black wedges by Kurt Geiger (Miss KG), were £75.00 but now available in the sale at £39.00
I wore a black jersey midi dress with scalloped neckline from ASOS (last season) which I topped off with a jacket (see earlier photo) purchased from TK Maxx. Frizzy hair courtesy of a two and a half hour sweaty drive!!
After a long and tiring but ‘oh so worth it’ day, we headed back to the car, said our final goodbyes to Luton and started our long journey back up the M1.
As Naomi has accepted a place at Manchester University to start in September, we’ll be doing it all again this time next year….
From a tired but proud mum..Liz x
