It's (not) my party

It was my birthday yesterday. I threw a party. But not for me...one of my best friends, Ms. N., had her 2nd child on Sunday, and I was hosting a "Sip'n'See". I figured new baby trumped my birthday, and besides, it meant that I took the day off and did something fun -- cooked and prepared for a party, then enjoyed myself during! Not only did I get to see my friends on my birthday, I got to avoid the whole singing thing and the focus of attention was on a beautiful baby girl.

So, this is my first post to a blog. I'm a computer scientist and have been wary of establishing an online "presence", but was reminded recently of how much I really like to write. And cook. And my friends keep asking for recipes. Maybe this format will force me to start measuring ingredients? We'll see.

I also really like to entertain, and am currently blessed with friends who do the same...kids have cramped our styles in some ways, but since most of our children have inherited the "party" gene, it just means we have jumpy castles at many of our gatherings. I thought it would be fun to share some of these experiences, menus, themes, etc., for those out there who feel hosting-challenged. I've certainly known lots of those in the past.

Menu for Sip-n-See (if you can't tell I'm half-Greek from this menu, then you've never had Greek food)

• Wine (obviously - otherwise, what would we be sipping?)
• Lactose-free Tiropitas (Ms. N is lactose intolerant)
• Dolmades
• Corn, tomato & zucchini salad
• Minted lamb meatballs with tzaziki
• Fresh bread and goat butter

Game plan

• Made the tiropitas on Sunday evening, then froze them (we really weren't sure when the party was going to occur -- it was kind of up to the baby)
• Made the dolmades on Monday evening (at this point, the date was set, but dolmades will keep for up to a week in the fridge - if people refrain from eating them)
  
• Treated myself to a spa facial on Tuesday morning (hey, it was my birthday)
• Came home and did the salad and the meatballs (the tzaziki I had actually made for a dinner party last Friday, and I'd frozen the leftovers).
• Tidied up with the help of my Mom (who is the original hostess with the mostess)
• Fielded calls from friends, one of whom volunteered to bring a dessert-y thing (brownies) which meant I was able to cross one of my menu items off the list. I love doing that.
• Evaluated the amount of food and the # of people coming, and realized I could cross another menu item off the list (sandwich assembly station). Yay!
  
• Sat down with a glass of wine and my book. Seriously.

Sorry about all the parenthesis. I'll probably have to work on that. I think for recipes, I'll wait to see if anyone asks for one in the comments, and if so, I'll post that in it's own post and then link to it.

Welcome to my blog. May you enjoy it. May I enjoy it. Slainte!