What a Weekend

My dining room all dressed up!

The Pre-Prom Evening in Paris dinner was AMAZING!!!!  I was so proud of my boys and their friends.  They are such good kids.

My girlfriend, husband and I had such a good time planning and delivering on this dinner.  I wanted them to feel like they had gone out to dinner and not like they missed something because they went to someone's house for dinner.  I especially didn't want to embarrass my boys or let #3's girlfriend down since it was her idea.  I think we did just fine.

We served a "french" meal with french cheese and canapes as an appetizer, salad, steak and french fries and french style green beans almandine, french bread, and petit fors for dessert.  We didn't serve the salad as the last course since I thought it would freak them out too much.  We had sparkling grape juice (red and white) and I served water like you would in a restaurant (from my mother-in-law's Waterford water pitcher).  I also downloaded Parisian Bistro music on my phone and played that all evening.  Plus I had a Rat Pack mix playing in my office in the event anyone wanted to dance.

I broke out all the china and silverware.  Dinner plate, bread plate, appetizer plate, salad bowl, dessert plate, 2 forks, three spoons, two knives, wine glasses, champagne flutes, water glasses and we plated in the kitchen and served them.  I even reviewed the menu like a waiter would.  It was so FUN!  And I was so proud that my boys could, graciously and sweetly, show those who didn't know which fork, knife or bread plate to use.  (I've only been training them since they were little about that stuff. We used to have "formal" dinners about once a month so they could learn.)

One of the kids said that my mom must have been great to have made me such a good mom.  I just smiled sweetly and said thank you.  Fact is - I didn't even go to my prom and my mother would never have made time to do any of that stuff unless she was sure we were going to all stand up and applaud for her when it was over.  PLUS I never would have brought anyone home to my low income home and my drunk father, crazy sister and self-absorbed mother.  In addition, we couldn't have afforded all the stuff that went along with this dinner and I would have had to pay for it from my cashier's salary from K-Mart from which I was already helping to support said family AND save for a wedding.  No...this never would have happened to me.

I've been making up this mom stuff as I go along since the day my step-daughter came home to live with us. 

Thank God my husband grew up in an Ozzie and Harriet house so he could guide me.  He not only went to his prom, he took someone no one else had asked because they were friends and he knew she wouldn't have gone otherwise (this from the boy who was voted best looking in his senior class and could have gone with anyone).  My children are so blessed to have him for their father.

After everyone left for the dance, my local BFF and I went out and got tatted up!  She'd been wanting this tat for awhile and was going to get it on her wrist.  We had also been wanting to get tattoos together.  So I said I wanted the same thing on my ankle.  She decided she wanted her's on her ankle too and viola!  Next thing we knew we were $80 poorer and inked!  (My best friend at home reads my blog and I can see her rolling her eyes at this and shaking her head.  Love you L!)

The boys were home by 2 (their curfew) and the hubs and I fell into bed.  Of course about an hour later #2 son woke us because one of his friends was at an after prom party and things were getting out of hand and she wanted to go home.  So my husband got up and they went and got her and delivered her home safe and sound.

Why did she call #2 son do you ask?

Wait for the irony....

Her parents had been drinking too much and couldn't come to get her.

Yep...three years ago that would have been me.  I'd like to think that I would have been sober since they were out till 2 but the reality is that I would have started drinking while doing dinner and would have thought I was so chic doing it!  By 2 I would have been shit faced. (Of course the hubs would have been sober but that's not the point.  Would I have stayed sober if the hubs weren't around?  I shudder to think of that...)

So that was God's way of saying, "You did good tonight kid but don't forget where you came from."

Yes sir Lord...and thank you.