family party

Tonight I had a family party, and though it was supposed to start at 6:30, it was after 7:00 and only a handful of people had shown up. Mom and Tiffy were helping with the fruit tray, I was putting chips in bowls, dips out, and trying to finish up the salad. Kari had brought stuff to make margaritas and in the midst of all the craziness couldn't find the blender or an ice chest for the bag of ice. The TV was already blaring with a football game, and kids were pesting. I'd already had a long day, hadn’t even gotten a chance to take a shower, hadn’t gotten to exercise, and was pretty peeved that practically everyone was late. So without a word, I walked out front for a moment of peace.

I looked down the road, and no one was even coming yet. I’d worked my butt off all day, and it obviously didn’t mean anything to anyone, and I wished I hadn’t even attempted to have the stupid party. Then while I was indulging in my own pity party, my phone rang. It was Josh, and he wanted me to call Patti to see why she hadn’t called him back to tell him whether or not she was bringing RockBand. So having nothing better to do (ha!) and time to spare (lol!) I called Patti, only to find out that they were going to be even later because they had all HAD to take showers. Whoa….the hostess, ME, couldn’t make the time to take a shower, but the guests obviously had that indulgence. I hung up and headed back inside, promising myself that this was the last party I was ever throwing. And who cared if I ever saw any of them again?

Hm, it seems that I would...

Finally, a couple of them showed up, and my icy heart started to melt as I gathered them in my arms for hugs. Within about a half an hour, the house was full of people I loved. Ranging from two to seventy-eight years-old, every single person that I could see was one of the most important people in my life! These were MY PEOPLE!

The next few hours were filled with kids doing gymnastics in the middle of the room (what good is it to do perfect splits and cartwheels if no one is around to see how great you do them?) Little boys flew cardboard airplanes above our heads, and put jumping rubber spiders on our backs. People talked over each other, and around each other, and you had to keep moving just to get to visit with everyone. Food was gobbled down, and drinks were plenty. (Too plenty for some of them!) Conversations flowed from room to room, and outside, where the lake glistened, and the moon lit up the night. And it was good!

Favorite highlights were that Missy, our beautiful niece, new darker hair which made her blue eyes look absolutely gorgeous, had come all the way from Hawaii! And our newest family addition, Jaiden, who looks so much like his daddy did at that age, passed out hugs and kisses like they were Halloween candy. As for the others, I got to hear stories about boo-boos, grade school bullies, college classes, jobs, vacations, jet-lag, internet romances, and new houses! We took plenty of photos, taking turns getting in and out of them so everyone’s camera was used. (Yes, it would seem that we each had to have our OWN group photo!) I wonder who is missing in the best one? That‘s something we’ll likely only find out if we scour each other’s Face Book and My Space pages. (There is no question that we will all do that which will lead to a trading frenzy!) Yeah, all in all, it was one of the best evenings I’ve had in a long time!

So it appears that I lied. Not only will I have another party, but I will have another, and another regardless of the fact that I know without a doubt that practically everyone will still be late, and I'll be the only one who won't have time to shower!