Backward Night Party

Good Monday morning!

It's back to the old schedule starting today, guys! January Party/Event time! I can't believe this is the last week of January. It's gone by really, really quickly to me.

Let's get a few announcements out of the way first:

Readership Count - It is 27 hits a day, folks! That is much, much better than last week. Let's try for 30 this week, shall we?

The Picture Gallery has a couple of pictures from our anniversary weekend. We stayed at Embassy Suites in Homewood. We've stayed there six or seven times in our 21 years of celebrations, but it has never been as busy as it was Saturday. We couldn't figure out what was going on until we asked one of the employees... Eagles Concert! And then all the attendees of that concert came down and ate all of our bacon at breakfast yesterday! But we're not bitter... oh, no. Not us!

We also had a nice dinner at McCormicks and Schmick's Saturday night. We had never eaten there before, and it was delicious. We were both in the mood for seafood, so that was our pick. I highly recommend this restaurant!

We shopped, talked, rested and planned the next 21 years of our lives together. We'll see how that turns out, won't we? It was nice to get away from everything, but it's always nice to come home, too.

The other pictures are about the upcoming Senior Prom. Austin, of course, planned on asking Melia. However, he said he couldn't just ask her. You have to do something special nowadays. Scavenger hunts, rose petal trails, etc., etc. So he asked everyone he knew (girl-wise) and got tons of ideas, but decided on something he thought was "funny." I thought it was "funny," too, but I've got that weird sense of humor thing going for me.

He bought a carton of milk and covered it in light blue paper. On the paper, he wrote, "Got Prom?" Get it? Got Prom? Got Milk? Do you get it? He kind of decorated the rest of the carton with prom stickers and put the milk back in the refrigerator. Just in case Melia didn't see the humor, he also bought her a beautiful long-stem red rose. My job was to leave everything in his truck in the parking lot of the school 15 minutes before the bell rang. Not 30 minutes before because the milk would sour, and not 10 minutes before because then I would be stuck in the parking lot because of the buses, and I had to pick up Roxie. I had to be there 15 minutes before the bell rang. And I was. I put the milk carton, the rose and the digital camera in his front seat. He took Melia's picture reading the milk carton, so I think he did an excellent job. (By the way, she said yes!) Prom is in April, so those pictures will be forthcoming!

The Showcase Pic is a picture of a guy and his bird. We met him at Amelia Island this past summer. He was just walking down the beach with this beautiful, giant parrot on his shoulder. We thought it was fake, but when he was standing next to us, it was evident it was a real parrot (almost the size of the pigeon that fell on my head). We talked to him (the young man) for a few minutes, and then he and his pet parrot got in his little red pick-up truck and drove off. It was just a very neat thing to see as we were leaving, and since Amelia Island is known for pirate history, it was very fitting to see a modern day "pirate" walking around with a parrot on his shoulder. (I think the parrot's name was "Dan" or "Bill" or something very "unparrot-like." A little disappointing.)

Also, don't forget about Chit Chat and Chocolate this Tuesday night. Remember, if you want a copy of the handout, e-mail me and I'll be glad to send you a set.

Today's little Party/Event is just for your family, and is very simple. You could even do it tonight!

Backward Night Party

Plan a "Backward Night" where you do everything backwards. When the family arrives home for the evening, greet them with a kiss and wish them a "good night's sleep." Invite them to gather in the living room for a short bedtime story. Afterward, everyone brushes their teeth, takes a bath, and gets into their PJs. With teddy bears in hand, everyone heads to the dinner table for a yummy dessert? Don't forget to warn them: "If you don't eat your dessert, there will be no dinner!" Dessert is followed by a nourishing dinner, and... Well, you get the idea. You'll have an evening your children won't soon forget.

This party idea was taken from 101 Ideas for Making Family Memories by Ruthann Winans and Linda Lee. Short and simple, but fun and memorable. The best kind of party.

Since this is a short little post, I'll give you a little bonus for the dinner you'll be having at your Backward Night Party. As you have dinner together, use one or more of these conversation starters as you sit around the table:

1. What do you love most about each person in our family?
2. What is your favorite joke?
3. Describe the perfect day.
4. What was your favorite part of the day today?
5. What was the hardest part of the day today?
6. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
7. If you could have any actor/actress play you in the movie of your life, who would it be? (I would pick Jennifer Aniston to play me because the resemblance is uncanny!)
8. If you could have any superhero characteristic, what would it be? (Fly, turn invisible, etc.) If you have boys, they really get into this one!
9. Which person in the Bible would you most like to meet?

Tomorrow I have another easy recipe for you to try. Sweet and easy (and man-pleasing)!

Have a great Monday, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.