Catering to the masses

Baby Girl's first birthday party is this weekend, and in between sobs I'm trying to get all the food ready in advance--but not so in advance that it's past its prime, of course. (This is, in case you have forgotten, in addition to my full time job and my full time momminess. I'm certainly not complaining, however, as my craziness is of my own creation. I am learning to embrace the different parts of my life and accept that they must--and do--harmonize.)

Tonight, after the little princess was in bed, I made a bbq sauce from scratch, prepped potatoes for potato salad, boiled said potatoes, made a killer spice rub, prepped pork for pulled pork, shucked corn, and what else? Oh yeah, and made dinner. :o) Darling Husband helped. I'm particularly thankful he carved the rotisserie chicken, as I really don't like hacking flesh from bone.

The best part of this endeavor is I don't have to worry about cleaning my house like a perfectionist at the same time as I cook all this food (much more than I'll need, I'm sure. Hope people like left-overs!) My wonderful parents are having the party at their house with their big, comfortable yard. My tiny, cramped, perfectly respectable city-type yard just wouldn't be as appropriate. All we have to do is show up with food and a baby.

Dinner tonight is mashed purple potatoes, which turn a lovely lavender, and rotisserie chicken over salad. So you see? Not a martyr after all. I do find that if I wash and tear all the lettuce first, then put in a large ziptop bag lined with a couple of paper towels, I can get the salad to last all week. I'm all about a quick salad! It's more work at first, but saves time and money later.

As a side note, when I was pregnant I went through a phase where I would crave salads. I distinctly remember getting out of bed and making a salad at 12:30 at night. I've been thinking of these times a lot, particularly in the what-was-I-doing-last-year-at-this-time sort of way. It's a very bitter sweet pass time, and I'm trying to curb it.

I have a "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" daily calender on my desk, and one of the days really stuck with me. It said, approximately, that dwelling too much on the past or worrying about the future takes away resources you need to deal with the present. You have enough to deal with and get through without handicapping yourself at the start. I liked that. I often try to remember that when I get bogged down in the what-if's and the could-have-beens and the if-only's and such. I can't change yesterday; I can't control tomorrow. I only have impact and influence on today.

And so concludes my moment of zen. Tomorrow is the evening of cakes, for I fear I've committed myself to three cakes for the event. Shhhh, don't tell my mom. She already worries I take on too much...