Sometimes the best way to make something happen is not to try.

Two weeks ago I tried to recreate the family dinner with four of my closest and dearest friends. 

Last night I hosted a gluten free dinner party with friends I didn’t know nearly as well, but we had us a family dinner:

One guest ran around the house without pants

One guest fell asleep

One guest arrived three hours late

One guest was too drunk to arrive at all

 And by the end of the night, two guests had drunk too much wine

Intentions: 

One place setting was added Friday evening when a dear friend arrived home from Brazil with a year worth of stories.  

One late arrival was planned after Contending Grammy Nominee (aka CGN) booked a party outside the city.

Outfits for both of my kids were selected and ironed. 

A perfect timeline was organized.

Reality:

The dear friend forgot that he is in his thirties, and after a day of heavy drinking and college football, was unable to walk straight let alone attend a dinner party. 

I was wiping down counters minutes before my guests arrived, and not dressing my youngest in the selected outfit. My guests were greeted by a toddler running around the house in a diaper, t shirt, and Vans.  

With Very Tired Doctor (aka VTD)  in tow, a gracious guest, Food Intolerance (aka FI), arrived with a lovely bottle of wine that we immediately enjoyed during cocktail hour with some Moroccan Bean Dip and veggies.  Dinner progressed wonderfully.  The food was gluten free and delicious; all epipens remained untouched. 

Just as we finished dessert, CGN called; she was in route.  After a quick hello, the droopy eyed VTD made his way to the couch for some football and snoring.   

It took some convincing, but CGN did finally opt to eat her plate at the table rather than over the sink.  Three guests returned to the dining room while others snuck second helpings of dessert and napped. 

Around 1:40 AM and halfway through another bottle of Chardonnay the horrid announcements were made:

“We need to leave.”

With dirty dishes lining the counters and the oven light still burning I retired to bed.

It was perfect and imperfect.  It was family dinner. 

The Party in Numbers:

• Parties Completed: 3
  
• Weeks Before Deadline: 49
  
• Justified Purchases: 12 ramekins, 6 dessert plates, 6 teaspoons, 12 white wine glasses, theme appropriate salt and pepper shakers. 
  
• Bottles of wine consumed: 2 ish