Madeline's Sweet Sixteen

Today is Madeline's Sweet Sixteen.

She Celebrated with her friends over the weekend.

The birthday invitation arrived in a jewelled box.

The party went to Hollywood for some old Hollywood glamour.

We stayed in an Art Deco Old-Hollywood hotel, The Chamberlain. It looked like Kelly Wearstler got her decorating hands on it, very glamorous.

Dar Maghreb restaurant in Hollywood, let the Moroccan festivities begin.


The food is all eaten by hand, no plates, just a towel in your lap and a very thorough group hand-washing, table-side before the meal.

The girls had to be coerced to get up and dance. I got up just to show them that even an old mom, like me, can do it. When Madeline saw me, she said "eww, no, sit down" so I did.

We had a seven course meal with these cookies brought at the end and Happy Birthday was sung.
The cookies were like funnel cakes doused in honey, sesame seeds, and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Interestingly, I've never had a funnel cake in my life, but they look just like them and I am sure they have as many calories.

After dinner I took the girls to an Improv down off Melrose. It was a lot of fun, you know, laughing until you are wiping tears and sound like a choking animal of some sort, because you can't laugh any harder. Funny stuff, and it was family friendly. In fact, they had a rule that if any cast or audience member said anything inappropriate, they would have to wear a brown bag on their head, nobody had to wear the bag.

In the girl's room (I had my own room so I slept well and got a full 8 hours). They created henna tattoos, with spotty results.....that was a pun, all that improv still fresh in my mind.

Madeline slept with a glove on her hand so it smudged and looked like a skin condition in the morning.

Time for cake. This cake was amazing, probably the best cake I have had in my entire life, but didn't touch the red fondant, of course; It was yellow cake with fresh raspberries and three different kinds of frosting, super yummy.

Madeline is now legal to drive (after she takes her test), date (over rated), and get a job (and pay taxes).

Happy Sweet Sixteenth Birthday Madeline