So my house isnt quite as small as once I thought. After five days playing host to lots of company, I feel like I am finally in my element and ready to start planning more parties at home. I've never felt like much of a success in that arena before but things went really well so maybe I'll reconsider. I've already made plans w/ two couples to come have dinner in December...yay me!
Wednesday night, my good friend Barbie came and stayed w/ me since hubby was spending the night away (enjoying that show I already mentioned on a previous entry and making me very jealous). We had a nice quiet night of Project Runway, the game of LIFE, and Miller Chill. It was really fun staying up until 2am again, talking. Thanks, cinnamongirl!
Thursday, I did a quick cleaning job and prepared for my next set of company. Craig and Sarah (with their little beauty, Violet) had originally planned to stay in a hotel but since we're so far from the nearest one, I made room for them in Victor's room and they were able to stay here..and I'm so glad they did! Sarah is one of my favorite people, so easy to talk to. We made a quick trip to Wal Mart for some games and last minute items so when Toby and the kids came later that evening, we had JUST ENOUGH food for everyone (but no surplus).
It must be noted that I love to cook for my family but I've always shied away from cooking for guests. This time though, I made myself do it and I just loved every minute of it. Thursday night I made Chicken Parmesan, baked potatoes (brush some sesame oil on the skins prior to baking...so yummy), salad, and garlic bread. Friday morning I got up and made semi-homemade Cinnamon Latte rolls (courtesy Sandra Lee of the Food Network) and for lunch I prepared another Paula Deen recipe, Taco Soup. It was all very successful, I think. Josh and Mo came for dinner that evening (and brought food with them) so we provided a few extra store-bought side dishes and I made a double layer pumpkin pie, which is quick and easy. Thanks again for the ham, Mo, it was AWESOME! I wanted to gnaw on the bone like a dog...ha.
All six of the kids were surprisingly good, especially since they were kind of confined to the house due to the cold, wet weather. We put them to bed at a decent hour still, and were able to enjoy grownup talk and cards until relatively late. Very nice.
Saturday morning, Craig and Sarah said their goodbyes and I was able to make it to the bookstudy...late, of course. Afterwards, Toby and I took all our kids to McDonalds to eat lunch and then we went to the (gasp) Outlet Mall in Lebanon. My van fit everybody just BARELY and the kids were all very well behaved. We even took them to Wal Mart to buy some necessaries and got away with only minimal 'kid' purchases. This was the first time my brother and I have ever been anywhere w/ just us and the kids. It was so great to spend time together like that. When I come to Memphis, I usually end up spending the little time I have w/ my parents at their respective homes so we don't really get the chance to do that. I'm hoping he can make it up here more often now.
Saturday night was the now-famous hayride that Barbie's parents put on every November. It comes complete w/ bonfire, chili, marshmallows, homemade wine, and lots of nice people. The actual hayride was even more of a hoot than usual because Barbie and I sat side by side singing Janis Joplin at the top of our lungs, heedless to the annoyed glances of our fellow passengers...except for Chad who sang along...good for you, man! We rock! My Nathan was so happy to be on the hayride he sat in stunned silence. It was so sweet. We liked it so much, John took us all on a second hayride later (an oh-so-memorable one, wasnt it Barbie?)...hee hee. And I finally tried elderberry wine (but w/out the arsenic)!
Sunday morning, we made it late to the meeting (really really late) and enjoyed good conversation w/ friends at the local Mexican restaurant before heading home so Toby could pack up youngn's and clothes. He left by late afternoon along w/ our other houseguest Michael (who is a regular in this establishment) and we were finally on our own again, as a family. It was so wierd.
But I can't wait to do it all again.
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18 comments:
So sweet Ashley! It was so good of you to entertain us on such short notice and we had a really great time! Craig and I were commenting to each other after our visit that we are just so comfortable around you guys. I just loved seeing our little girl running around with the big kids, and other than the Darth Vader mask freaking her out, she was having a great time! We really mean it, you guys are welcome to come down south any time you want!
I'd love to come there as well. Maybe we can work it out for the spring? We'll see.
It's cool to entertain when you can fit everyone. Our little tiny apartment can barely contain a houseguest on the couch.
Really, really late to the meetings? Awesome, it's just not us!
No Horton Heat for you either, huh?
yeah, Sunday was a new record for us. Made it for the LAST HALF of the Watchtower Study! LOL! My brother's thought was that we went to the trouble of getting ourselves and the kids dressed so we might as well show up, right?
No, I didnt get to see the Good Reverend. But Jonathan got some film footage...amazing stuff!
wait wait wait...Double layer pumpkin pie?!?!? mmm..that sounds so delightful! I bet it was good. Sounds like you had some serious fun!!!
Thanks muffin, it IS delightful. Here's the recipe:
Mix 4 oz cream cheese (softened) w/ 1 T. milk and 1 T. sugar in a large bowl w/ a wire whisk until smoothe. Gently fold in 1 1/2 c. cool whip (the french vanilla variety works even better here, I've discovered). Spread that onto the bottom of a store-bought graham cracker or shortbread crust. Then pour 1 c. cold milk into a bowl. Add one 16 oz can of pumpkin, 2 pkgs jello vanilla instant pudding mix, 1 t. cinnamon, 1/2 t. ground ginger, and 1/4 t. ground cloves until well combined. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate four hours or until set and garnish w/ more cool whip before serving. GREAT w/ coffee.
Yes, yes, yes. The entire weekend was loads of fun. Next time we should hand out lil' flashlights and songbooks so that all of our fellow hayriders may join. I don't know what it is about a hayride, but it just give's you a hankering to sing.
Sounds like so much fun!
Sounds like a big fat hoot and half to me. Perhaps two hoots! I LOVE hayrides. And yes indeed, singing on them is soooooo absolutely necessary. We used to throw hayrides way back in the day out in Millington. Member em?? I was an obnoxious little pest back then. :) And we -always- sang. Janis sounds more fun than kingdom songs...no offense. Ha.
That pie will be mine not at all soon enough.
Aaron- When would yall ever need to have a houseguest on the couch?? Har har har har!!!!!
I'm so glad you all had so much fun. :)
Oh! Hayrides! Love them.
That was a cool entry. I'm terribly jealous.
It was also very very fall. If that makes sense. It sounded like one big fall celebration.
And Toby's kids crack me up. Seriously.
:)
Is it bad that I've NEVER been on a hayride in my life??? That sounds bad to me because it sounds like I've been missing a bunch of fun!!! GRR! I wanna go on one. tear. Oh and thanks so much for the recipe!! I was gunna ask you for it but never did lol. But I wrote it down so I will try to make it like this weekend or something!
-Posa
One hayride we went on a couple of years ago was during a particularly warm November and instead of 'baled' hay, John provided lots of cuddy loose hay in a wagon. Unfortunately, the warm weather and hay drew the ladybugs by the thousands and all of us were sitting in the hay covered in ladybugs which freaked alot of the girls out. I didnt mind that much but ladybugs do have a very pungeant odor that goes along with them...yikes!
Still, it's a fond memory.
Ladybugs have an odor??? I didn't know that!
Yes, it's a mighty strange and very 'outdoorsy' smell....like an intense scent of dirt and decaying plants.
I first discovered it two years ago when we rounded a curve in a road and the smell hit me in the face like a ton of bricks! My friend Rachael said, 'That's the ladybugs in that barn...millions of them' Since then, I can recognize the odor very easily.
Tina insists that Cherry Coke tastes the way ladybugs smell. She can't stand the stuff. But yea, that's one di'stink't smell they put off. You ever have one squirt on you before? That's super nasty. But it's their little defense mechanism. It's supposed to turn birds and what not off from eating them. There was a family here that had their house get infested with ladybugs. And they don't harm anybody and actually eat other bad bugs but they were literally crawling like mad by the hundreds all about their window seals and what not so they had to get the house sprayed. :(
I like to see ladybugs in the spring and stuff. For some reason there is always about 10 in our truck! It's so weird but I really like them..never noticed they had an odor.
eh em. Correction. Ladybugs, as remembered from youth, do not smell. The little stinky creatures that have infested us in the past ten years are actually Japanese Beetles.
ok, the official word from ladybuglady.com: Q. What is the yellow stuff coming from the ladybug?
"Ladybugs can excrete some of their blood as a defense.... It is yellow and smells bad. There is that "color" defense again and it does smell quite unpleasant."
Don't ask me why I felt the need. :)
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