Phew! I just sat down for a bit of a breather before I get back at it, and I just couldn't help but share what's been going on around the farm for the past three days.
Today marks the third day in a row that I am having a feast/party at my house, so yep, I have been a little bit beyond busy!
For Wednesday night, which was game night, we mixed things up a bit and had a finger food fete of snacktastical proportions. There were grape jelly/BBQ sauce slathered meatballs, banana cake with almond frosting, Muddy Buddies, beef taco dip, root beer floats, veggie trays, and marshmallow popcorn bars infused with M&M's. One batch even had chunks of spicy Doritos in them! It was a feastival and trash-talking gathering of fun times!
Then, the following day was Thanksgiving, and in these parts we do Fun Family Feast. Since my son's birthday falls right around or on Thanksgiving depending on the year, for many years I would wear myself ragged trying to do a traditional Thanksgiving day feast and his birthday party. A few years ago I vetoed that schedule and instituted the FFF. We all pick our favorite dishes and eat them while playing games and watching movies.
The menu this year was pretty eclectic. There was chicken chow mein, fried chicken wings, redneck egg rolls (mashed potatoes, hamburger gravy, and cheese wrapped in an egg roll and deep fried), cheesy bread, and my contribution, chicken parmesan sliders. Some years we buy food and reheat it if we are really tired, but this year we made it a family fun time and cooked it all from scratch.
To top off a fine bit of celebratory food eating, we tied our chore sled to a tow strap behind our old Toyota pickup and did our Thanksgiving evening chores in style: My husband towed us like a mad man around the farm! I only got launched once on a particularly spectacular corner drift, but no worries, I wore LOTS of layers so the only noise I made was laughter as I cartwheeled across the driveway.
And today, well, today is my son's birthday party. His birthday isn't until Tuesday, but with it being Thanksgiving break from school, we decided to have the party today. Right now he and a few of his buddies are out playing a game on my kitchen table that is a combo of Risk, Axis & Allies, and Diplomacy that one of his pals made. They are also planning on a few hour airsoft war, a bonfire, and a ton of console gaming.
And eating, because yes, once again I am in the midst of making a TON of food.
Already this morning I have prepped several pounds of taco meat, as I asked the half of the basketball team that was here last week what they wanted at the party.
"Tacos and Pizza," was the reply I got.
"Pieces of cake." was my response in return.
Aside from the taco meat, I also baked and frosted red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and am currently resting for a few minutes while my pizza dough rises. The boys also have tons of pop, candy, and chips because you know, it's a teenage boy's birthday party.
So yep, things are pretty festive around here! I also managed to squeeze in an awesome activity Wednesday thanks to our early snowfall, a thing which I will post about soon.
But for now, I'm up to my armpits in celebratory prep. I mean, I am quite literally dusted in powdered sugar and flour as I type this, and after I get the pizza baked and the taco fixins all laid out for the heathens, I think I might....stop...
But while at rest I can guarantee you there will be a smile on my face, because celebrating holidays, birthdays, and good friendships is just the best thing ever!