Skinny Jeans & Yoga Pants: Balancing Me and "Mom": Girls Night Out: Do’s and Don’ts for Creating a Stellar Time.

I love my husband. I love my children. However, sometimes, mommy needs a night away. What does that mean? Girls night out! Yes, the time honored tradition where the ladies get together and do crazy, nutty things which we would frown upon in the light of day. Last Friday night me and five of my friends had fun. Lots of fun. Girls night out fun. Yowzer! Yes, I am intentionally not sharing any details. They are for us girls to know and you all not to find out.

Now, I understand that sometimes, girls nights out can result in a hot mess and ending of friendships. So how did we have so much fun last Friday night? By following the do’s and don’t of girls night out! Here are some time honored traditions which you should incorporate into your event to help make it a smashing success, like ours was.

DO pre-plan when you can. Let’s be honest. Sometimes girls need to plan and prep for a big night out. I usually have to get it on the calendar, arrange it with work, figure out the husband and kids, put on self tanner, whatever! Sure, I have jumped on the chance for a random fiesta, and yes, sometimes the unplanned events rock the most. However, as I get older (not that I am old), my life requires more of a schedule that can be read on the whiteboard in the kitchen by the hubby.
DO find a sober cab. Duh. Common sense. No one’s life is worth a couple of drinks. Don’t have one? Take a cab. Or better yet, volunteer! It can be fun to be the sober cab. You can control all the compromising photos and memories for later torture and blackmail, if needed (Hmmm…..maybe I need to read less Evil Joy……) and you are guaranteed NOT to have a hangover as the sober cab. My girls and I often rotate whose turn it is.
DO discuss wardrobe. Going out with my crew is often accompanied by a flurry of texts and Facebook messages to determine wardrobe. We never want to be the girl who is underdressed in the group. Plus, we occasionally will have some similar items in our closets which require determining who has “dibs” on wearing them.
DON’T let your friend go out being “that girl.” Seriously. You know you have seen “that girl.” She is the poor girl out who does not realize what a hot mess she is. Maybe her clothes are ill-fitting (i.e. freakishly tight or inappropriate), or her makeup looks like the Crayola box exploded on her face. Going out as “that girl” is my worst nightmare.
DON’T be “that girl’s friend.” I always feel bad for “that girl.” You know why? Because she is ALWAYS accompanied by someone hot and put together who did not tell “that girl” how she was really looking. “That girl’s friend” seems to love all the attention on her and keeps “that girl” down so she has no competition. Come on. What happened to girl power? Take care of your friends. Help a sister out!
DO take time to pamper yourself, if possible. One thing I love about GNO? Getting ready. This is my chance to revert back to my youth, when we spent hours getting ready. Yes, looks are not everything but I want to look cute when I go out, not like a thirty (something) married mother of two! If I can, I always try to get my makeup done professionally. A stop a the Nordstrom MAC counter? Quick visit with Teneille Johnston Makeup Artistry? False eyelashes? Yes, please! I also love to find time to paint my toes, even if no one sees them. I also shave my legs, even if no one sees them. Plus I always feel good when I get the chance to slap on some self-tanner (Xen Tan, baby!). Pasty night out? No thanks!
DON’T just slop yourself together. You won’t feel cute. You will spend the whole night comparing yourself to your friends or anyone else around you, wishing you had taken even 10 minutes to put on a couple coats of mascara, some lip gloss, a cute top, great fitting jeans, and a killer shoes (if you don’t have those items on hand, we need to talk).
DO be a wingman for your single friends. So, most of my friends are married but I have a few single girls who I love to go out with. Yes, I live vicariously through them. They attract mass quantities of guys to flirt with and it is fun. Beauty of being the married wing(wo)man? You don’t care if you are stuck talking to the friends you aren’t interested in, you have a hot guy waiting for you at home in bed!
DON’T make it all about you. You are out as a group, keep it about the group. When it becomes all about one person, the rest of your crew gets annoyed. So leave your drama and ego at home. Have fun with your girlfriends!
DO watch out for each other. In all things, dinking, random guys, whatever. Help your friends make good choices at all times.
DO get approval before posting pictures or tweeting. You might look like a goddess in that photo but your friend might wish you had cropped out her muffin top. Make sure everyone is feeling good about pictures or tweets. Again, it is not just about you. If you think it is, you are wrong.
DON’T post/tweet things that make you look good but make your friend(s) look like morons/alcohols/felons. That is just not cool. While some people do not mind photos of them dancing on tables or looking sloppy all over the internet, others might be willing to dismember you for posting them. The battle cry of our nights out can often be heard, “DO NOT TWEET THAT.”
DO remember the following: what happens on girls night out, stays on girls night out. Really? Do you need an explanation on this one?