The Big Day!
A very long time ago I posted that Linda and I host Mother's Day at our house. I was slightly incorrect in saying that. We don't host the party. We home-improve, feast-build and serve for our family. That might be different than hosting (or, it might not).
What are the results of this labor? A good time! And what a time we had!
We don't have the biggest house in our family. We certainly aren't always the closest (distance wise), but people love it when they hear "Ed and Linda are having a party!!!". It makes me so proud that our house is a home to anyone who steps inside.
People began to show up as early as 2pm. The latest cake-eating, fresh-from-the-hot-tub aunts and brothers and mothers did not say their final goodnights until 1:30am. Linda's parents where there for the whole 11.5 hours. My mom was there a good 7 hours at least. It was everything we could have possible hoped for. Almost 30 people over a span of 11.5 hours!
We'll be spending the next few month's apologizing to our neighbors! Three pitchers of blue whales, two pitchers of margaritas, two pitchers of pina coladas, and a hot tub stuffed to the gills does not all add up to a silent evening!
Did we over-buy on food? Absolutely -- especially given the cakes, salads, soups, and fruit that others brought. But, I'm Italian. A get-together is a feast, and you just can't be a good host if you don't overwhelm with food! I was stuck on grill duty from 3:30pm-5:30pm! Brats, burgers, chicken, porkchops.. We made Hank Hill proud.
The screened in porch, with its 4 tubes of caulk, 7 pressure-treated 2x4 replacements, new screens, and new paint job was a big hit, and had a steady stream of people in it throughout the day.
And the patio was a hit too, especially for the kids after we lit up the outdoor fireplace.
At some point we all took bets on the horse race, you pay a dollar and you get to pick a random horse number. Linda's mom won the 50-1 shot. Unfortunately, we don't pay on odds in our house!
Our neighborhood friends (you know, the house with the hot and cold running cabo-wabo) were having a cinco-de-mayo party on the same day and several of my college buddies stopped in to say hi to my mom. It was really touching that they would go out of their way to wish her a happy Mother's Day. My mom made her house open to all of my college friends, and we had many, many parties there "back in the day". It made her day to know that some of them still remembered she was there. Thank you very much for all who poked their head in.
The next day I got the following e-mail from my mom, which started:
I just wanted to thank you all for the beautiful Mother's Day gifts...Eddie and Linda, yesterday was lovely..you go to such lengths to entertain people, to make them feel at home...and they certainly do.
Recognition of hard work is nice to have. But, far greater, is knowing that the environment you try so hard to create in your home, for your family, has actually paid off.
Happy Mother's Day to all.
-Ed
What are the results of this labor? A good time! And what a time we had!
We don't have the biggest house in our family. We certainly aren't always the closest (distance wise), but people love it when they hear "Ed and Linda are having a party!!!". It makes me so proud that our house is a home to anyone who steps inside.
People began to show up as early as 2pm. The latest cake-eating, fresh-from-the-hot-tub aunts and brothers and mothers did not say their final goodnights until 1:30am. Linda's parents where there for the whole 11.5 hours. My mom was there a good 7 hours at least. It was everything we could have possible hoped for. Almost 30 people over a span of 11.5 hours!
We'll be spending the next few month's apologizing to our neighbors! Three pitchers of blue whales, two pitchers of margaritas, two pitchers of pina coladas, and a hot tub stuffed to the gills does not all add up to a silent evening!
Did we over-buy on food? Absolutely -- especially given the cakes, salads, soups, and fruit that others brought. But, I'm Italian. A get-together is a feast, and you just can't be a good host if you don't overwhelm with food! I was stuck on grill duty from 3:30pm-5:30pm! Brats, burgers, chicken, porkchops.. We made Hank Hill proud.
The screened in porch, with its 4 tubes of caulk, 7 pressure-treated 2x4 replacements, new screens, and new paint job was a big hit, and had a steady stream of people in it throughout the day.
And the patio was a hit too, especially for the kids after we lit up the outdoor fireplace.
At some point we all took bets on the horse race, you pay a dollar and you get to pick a random horse number. Linda's mom won the 50-1 shot. Unfortunately, we don't pay on odds in our house!
Our neighborhood friends (you know, the house with the hot and cold running cabo-wabo) were having a cinco-de-mayo party on the same day and several of my college buddies stopped in to say hi to my mom. It was really touching that they would go out of their way to wish her a happy Mother's Day. My mom made her house open to all of my college friends, and we had many, many parties there "back in the day". It made her day to know that some of them still remembered she was there. Thank you very much for all who poked their head in.
The next day I got the following e-mail from my mom, which started:
I just wanted to thank you all for the beautiful Mother's Day gifts...Eddie and Linda, yesterday was lovely..you go to such lengths to entertain people, to make them feel at home...and they certainly do.
Recognition of hard work is nice to have. But, far greater, is knowing that the environment you try so hard to create in your home, for your family, has actually paid off.
Happy Mother's Day to all.
-Ed
posted by Ed at 10:57 AM
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