Party Number Two

Seven days into December and I just completed my second Christmas Party of the season. Since it is December 7, Carter’s birthday, I am used to always throwing a party on this day. Since she is not here Lynn and I threw our Chinese Auction today instead.

I think the is my 20th year of giving this party. Lynn joined me probably 16 years ago. We had a stellar turn out this year. Since everyone knows that this party is about bringing a gift that everyone would want the competition was high for the most stolen item. For the record gifts with red bows do well and Kai lotion or a Kai diffuser are the most popular item.

Shelayne had quizzed me about what good strategy would be to have the most stolen gift. I told her the wrapping is key because you want your gift opened early so it would have a chance to be stolen. With each gift opened that was not Shelayne’s she became more and more despondent. Finally someone opened her gift and it was a good one. I stole it, but it was stolen from me.

Thankfully I ended up with the gift I really wanted. A beautiful glass Christmas tree that Kathi Eason brought that was all the colors of my living room. Kathi said she had hoped I would get it.

I served the same lunch I served my needlepoint group on Monday. It was a chicken southwest salad in a jar, with a cilantro lime dressing and a chocolate mousse in a jar.

I could not top last year’s make your own Poké bowls so I had to make this year about the presentation. It was a hit. The homemade tortilla strips helped. They weren’t in the jar, but in a bowl passed around.

I will definitely make another meal in these jars. It makes serving so quick and it’s lots of fun. Everyone, except me, followed instructions and put their plate on top of the jar and then flipped the whole thing over so that the salad would not fly all over the place. Thankfully mine all stayed on my plate even though I didn’t follow my own instructions.

I am especially thankful to the Presbyterian dish washing crew who cleaned all the dishes and put them away.

I will be posting my dressing recipe tomorrow per all the requests I got for it, plus I would like to memorialize how I made it because it was a keeper and I won’t even remember it in two weeks.

Lynn and I did not have time to open all our hostess gifts today so we will continue the fun tomorrow and open all our gifts. It is a way better haul than I ever get on Christmas. Such kind and generous friends we have. I know they all want to be invited back. I did tell them about the person who used to be invited, until the year I got her gift in the exchange, a pedicure kit. That seemed fine, until I went to use it and discovered I was not the first person to use it. Bringing a used gift that is not an antique or something really special got her kicked off the list. Just sayin’.