The Caledonia River Belles are a group of 14 Red Hat ladies. All but one of us are quilters and we're trying to convert the rebel. We arranged our group so that everyone is responsible for planning a monthly outing which gives us a 14 month rotation. Fourteen is a great number for the group - small enough to make reservations somewhere but large enough to make our presence known, which we LIKE to do!
Back in the fall we were planning our next six months and Sue decided she wanted a fondue. She's never had fondue. I guess she missed the 70's.
Better living through chemicals??? Good friend that she is, she volunteered me to host it, using the flimsy excuse that I have a large dining room.
The event worked out very well. I spent about 5 hours cleaning my house. Even dusting! It's usually clean enough for me but somehow it's not clean enough for company. Twelve of us partook. Coincidentally that is all the settings I have of china and silver - which reminds me, I must count the silver. Bad economy and all.
The menu consisted of Sirloin Steaks cubed for cooking in the hot oil, dressed with a selection of sauces. The girls brought hors-d'oeuvres, baked potatoes and the fixin's, rice salad, quinoa salad, lettuce salad, double dipped strawberries, lemon cake, cherry layer cake, coffee, tea, much grog. I had three fondue pots - four ladies to a pot.
The haze in the room could be light overexposure from outdoors. It could also be smoke from the fondue pots. The house smells like a Steak House today - when you walk in you get hungry.
After lunch we watched
This Is It with Michael Jackson. We didn't have sparkly white gloves but we DID have blue painter's gloves.
The girls got bored with Michael after a couple of hours and started playing with their cell phones. Phoning each other because they couldn't remember their number and needed to see it on another phone. Programming each other's numbers. Changing ring tones. Adding ring tones for text messages. Learning how to text message. Phoning each other and pretending to be a Chinese call centre. Too much wine, ya think???
The luncheon wound up around 5:30. Monica is still looking for the rest of the strawberries. I sure hope they aren't here - they will start to really smell about mid-March. Sadie was POOPED by the time they all left. She just loves it when she has this much company.
The event worked out very well. I spent about 5 hours cleaning my house. Even dusting! It's usually clean enough for me but somehow it's not clean enough for company. Twelve of us partook. Coincidentally that is all the settings I have of china and silver - which reminds me, I must count the silver. Bad economy and all. 
Sunday was not only Valentines Day, it was also my family Christmas dinner. My brother & his wife rarely go more than a month between vacations. December & January was their trip to Australia and New Zealand. There they met up with their Singapore daughter, who also rarely goes more than a month between vacations. DH and I stayed home and pouted.
I have them well trained to seek out quilt shops. Some day (?) I plan to make a quilt with all the international fabrics I've been gifted.
Their daughter sent paints/fabric paint/dye. These have traveled from India to Singapore to Australia (or New Zealand?) and then here to Canada. When she gets home from her vacation THIS week (see I wasn't kidding) I will find out the exact nature of the powders. The bag will become our new Library Book bag. I love Bollywood movies. I understand them much better if I can turn on the closed captioning and read the dialogue. Even when I cannot understand a darned word I STILL love the colours, costumes, and singing & dancing. Hmm, no, it doesn't take much to amuse me.
