My Creative Family....

With all that has been going on lately (all good!!), I haven't really had the chance to tell more about my Atlanta birthday celebration with the sisters and Mom.

Everyone was in charge of a different meal during the long weekend together....including me, the birthday girl! Some had lunches...and some had dinners.

Well, my family is not one to just do things without a lot of fanfare and creativity...so, everyone put their own personal touches on their meal. Thus, every mealtime became quite an "event".

Marsha did a casino night that was deliciously catered. We all received lottery scratch-off cards and visors adorned with playing cards, chips and fake money. Her condo was decorated with all kinds of casino items and the table was set with dice necklaces, and other "gambling items" scattered around...! After dinner we had several rounds of Bingo including prizes for the winners. She also attempted to do a "chocolate fountain"...but, it didn't quite work out right...so, instead we had chocolate "fudge" to "spread" on the chunks of cake, strawberries, etc.....! Such laughter and fun.

Sherri did lunch with an oriental theme the next day. We each received a bright red Chinese take-out carton filled with goodies. The table was beautifully set with bright red and black and had Oriental fans, chopsticks, and fortune cookes strewn about. The meal consisted of yummy sushi! She also gave out cute pj's with t-shirts imprinted with my picture and the words: "It took me 60 years to get this beautiful"! On the back, she had put a picture of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book that I will be a part of this week. Great advertisement! : )

For my dinner, I decided to go with a casual, bar-b-que theme. My sweet Dave had precooked and frozen some of his incredible ribs for us and I made corn pudding, baked beans and brocolli slaw as side dishes. It was all served on a red and white checkered table cloth with brown paper bags holding hand wipes to get rid of all of the delicious, but sticky, homemade bar-b-que sauce that Dave had whipped up for the occasion. Mmmmm. At this point of the weekend I believe that my sisters handed out tie dyed t-shirts to everyone that were imprinted with: "Grammie's Magical Mystery Tour"! We made quite a group all wearing these brightly colored shirts as we enjoyed Dave's ribs down to the bone!

My sister, Karen, did an unbelievable wine tasting another night. The wine was shipped in from a winery in upstate New York and we enjoyed every bit of it. During the wine lesson there were some games played and gifts were given out to the winners. She made and served "small bites" including mini crab cakes, red and black caviar served with chopped eggs, spinach and artichoke spread, cheeses, etc. etc. Fabulous!!!

I have saved the lunch by my mom for last. It was so much fun and so clever...I still laugh about it at times. You see, Mom wasn't known for making the best meals when the four girls were growing up. She was quite busy working and taking care of us...while my dad was running his laundry and dry cleaning place. So, for her lunch she served items that we grew up with. The condo was decorated with dry cleaning hanging all over and the table had hangers all over it. The meal consisted of: fish sticks (a staple in our household back then!), burnt grilled cheese sandwiches, a wedge of iceberg lettuce with homemade Russian dressing (ketchup and mayo) on it, and her "famous" fried spaghetti with ketchup. She handed out menus that also showed "dried out tasteless chicken"...but noted that the item had sold out! Dessert was, of course, cherry jello and chocolate pudding with a can of whipped topping nearby. It was a great walk down memory lane for all of us.

Throughout the weekend, my Dad's presence was sorely missed...after being around the group of us at other occasions he would have been used to all of the "stuff" that we do....OH, he would have loved it all...especially the dry cleaning decorations and the burnt grilled cheese sandwiches!