Tomorrow, Saturday, at 1:00 pm is my daughter Claire's wedding shower. It's going to be at our house, there will be 17 ladies, and I'm doing all the cooking - what's left to do, that is; much of the feast is already prepared and chillin' in my freezer. But there's still a ton of preparation to do starting today, and from this moment on anybody who sets foot into this house is going to be lassoed into the work crew.
Claire will fly in from Chicago this morning and Theresa will arrive from Cincinnati tonight, as will Katie, Claire's friend from Chicago who'll be spending the weekend with us. Tommy's out of town for the weekend and sadly, Maria can't make it in from Los Angeles. But my nephew Randy is coming over tonight to ice cupcakes. Also tonight Theresa will make the guacamole dip (her specialty) and Tom will do the cleaning and I plan to be all tied up (hopefully not in knots!) trying to reproduce a center piece I saw on the cover of a magazine.
A few other various and sundry jobs will be passed around tonight, but by tomorrow morning, when every one will be up and at 'em including my friend Marianne who's coming over early to help and join in the pre-festivity festivites, the place will be in full-tilt-boogie, rockin' and rollin' like a bee-hive on steroids.
So while there will be many worker bees buzzing around before our guests arrive, I'll be the one choreographing the activity and making sure the preparations run smoothly and on target time.
But in truth the key to the success of the whole endeavor will be not myself but the several master lists I've drawn up. My lists are at the heart of the operation. My lists will run the show.
Now I'll be the first to admit that I am by nature an anxious, disorganized person. But give me a list and in a flash the alphabet soup sloshing around inside my brain morphs into a high-functioning, super-efficient IT data processing multi-plex.
I need a list to accomplish those tasks required of me on a daily basis. Without one in front of me each morning I can't get past the kitchen table. I usually make up my list the night before for the next day.
Having a list empowers me, but there's more to it. I love lists. I love setting 'em up then knocking 'em off, item by item. Checking things off a shopping or "to-do" list is supremely satisfying. And calming. For me a list gets things done.
"Got your list?" Tom's always asking me.
Of course a big bash such as this wedding shower requires several lists and they will be constantly evolving entities over a span of weeks: first comes the menu, then numerous shopping lists as I buy and prepare much of the food in advance. The week of the event I start making my preparation lists of who's doing what when, one list for the day or days before the feast, one for the day of.
The "day of" list is most crucial. But I've got it! I've got them all! And here they are in all their glory:
1. Claire’s shower menu
veggie stromboli
veggie egg rolls
pasta in tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil
stuffed mushrooms
mashed potato casserole
green beans almandine
spring salad with pecans, granny smith apples and balsamic viaigrette
guacamole dip & chips
veggies & dip
rosette mini-cupcakes
cream-filled chocolate mini-cupcakes
apple pie & ice cream
berry trifle
2. Friday
Clean - Tom
Bake cupcakes -me
Make cake for trifle - me
Set up - me
Make center piece – me
Ice chocolate cupcakes – Randy, Claire, Theresa
Guacamole dip– Theresa
Cut salad - TBA
Cut veggies - TBA
Make pudding for trifle - TBA
Mix cream cheese & cool whip for trifle - TBA
Put together potato casserole - me
3. Saturday
6:30: defrost everything except mushrooms - me
Put pop on ice - TBA
9:45: Make trifle - me
10:00: Ice rosette cupcakes – me & Marianne
Salad: Marianne
Veggies: Marianne
Heat up pasta sauce - TBA
10:20-11:20: Mushrooms & potatoes: 400 degrees - me
11:00: Pasta - me
11:20-11:40: Egg rolls: 400 degrees, 20 minutes - TBA
12:00: chips, salt, pepper, sweet & sour sauce, mustard - TBA
11:45-12:45: Stromboli - me
12:30: Water, lemonade, ice tea, coffee, tea bags sugar, lemon, milk in small pitcher in refrigerator - TBA
Everyone have a great weekend! 8)
Claire will fly in from Chicago this morning and Theresa will arrive from Cincinnati tonight, as will Katie, Claire's friend from Chicago who'll be spending the weekend with us. Tommy's out of town for the weekend and sadly, Maria can't make it in from Los Angeles. But my nephew Randy is coming over tonight to ice cupcakes. Also tonight Theresa will make the guacamole dip (her specialty) and Tom will do the cleaning and I plan to be all tied up (hopefully not in knots!) trying to reproduce a center piece I saw on the cover of a magazine.
A few other various and sundry jobs will be passed around tonight, but by tomorrow morning, when every one will be up and at 'em including my friend Marianne who's coming over early to help and join in the pre-festivity festivites, the place will be in full-tilt-boogie, rockin' and rollin' like a bee-hive on steroids.
So while there will be many worker bees buzzing around before our guests arrive, I'll be the one choreographing the activity and making sure the preparations run smoothly and on target time.
But in truth the key to the success of the whole endeavor will be not myself but the several master lists I've drawn up. My lists are at the heart of the operation. My lists will run the show.
Now I'll be the first to admit that I am by nature an anxious, disorganized person. But give me a list and in a flash the alphabet soup sloshing around inside my brain morphs into a high-functioning, super-efficient IT data processing multi-plex.
I need a list to accomplish those tasks required of me on a daily basis. Without one in front of me each morning I can't get past the kitchen table. I usually make up my list the night before for the next day.
Having a list empowers me, but there's more to it. I love lists. I love setting 'em up then knocking 'em off, item by item. Checking things off a shopping or "to-do" list is supremely satisfying. And calming. For me a list gets things done.
"Got your list?" Tom's always asking me.
Of course a big bash such as this wedding shower requires several lists and they will be constantly evolving entities over a span of weeks: first comes the menu, then numerous shopping lists as I buy and prepare much of the food in advance. The week of the event I start making my preparation lists of who's doing what when, one list for the day or days before the feast, one for the day of.
The "day of" list is most crucial. But I've got it! I've got them all! And here they are in all their glory:
1. Claire’s shower menu
veggie stromboli
veggie egg rolls
pasta in tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil
stuffed mushrooms
mashed potato casserole
green beans almandine
spring salad with pecans, granny smith apples and balsamic viaigrette
guacamole dip & chips
veggies & dip
rosette mini-cupcakes
cream-filled chocolate mini-cupcakes
apple pie & ice cream
berry trifle
2. Friday
Clean - Tom
Bake cupcakes -me
Make cake for trifle - me
Set up - me
Make center piece – me
Ice chocolate cupcakes – Randy, Claire, Theresa
Guacamole dip– Theresa
Cut salad - TBA
Cut veggies - TBA
Make pudding for trifle - TBA
Mix cream cheese & cool whip for trifle - TBA
Put together potato casserole - me
3. Saturday
6:30: defrost everything except mushrooms - me
Put pop on ice - TBA
9:45: Make trifle - me
10:00: Ice rosette cupcakes – me & Marianne
Salad: Marianne
Veggies: Marianne
Heat up pasta sauce - TBA
10:20-11:20: Mushrooms & potatoes: 400 degrees - me
11:00: Pasta - me
11:20-11:40: Egg rolls: 400 degrees, 20 minutes - TBA
12:00: chips, salt, pepper, sweet & sour sauce, mustard - TBA
11:45-12:45: Stromboli - me
12:30: Water, lemonade, ice tea, coffee, tea bags sugar, lemon, milk in small pitcher in refrigerator - TBA
Everyone have a great weekend! 8)
My practice rosette cupcakes
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