Wildacres Open House Party - 2009

On Sunday, December 6th, we hosted a wonderful gathering of friends at the Annual Wildacres Open House. I believe this was my 31st Christmas party. It's a 'tradition' begun back in the Danbury-days as a Friday before Christmas bash for co-workers, Women's Club pals and bowling league members. Over the years the food has gotten better and wine more refined but the gathering remains crowded, festive and friendly - as a good party should be.

Life has been busy for us both lately but we managed to get all of the outside and inside decorations done the weekend after Thanksgiving. (Thank you my dear Mike for the magic you worked with the tree and the lights!!) As the party day approached I was still a tad behind in my pre-party schedule of duties so luckily Hobson and Christine were available to come to my rescue with party-prep, serving and clean-up assistance. I couldn’t have done it without their expertise. As you can see, the dining room table was beautifully set with an array of tasty treats. The artful arrangements are courtesy of HL and Chris.

It was great to spend time and laugh with my Danbury friends, many of whom I haven't seen since last years party. As is the custom, new acquaintances are added each year and 2009 was no exception. It was great to socialize with my friends and co-cooks from Loaves & Fishes: Nancy, Ellen, Suzanne and Angie, my Master Gardener class-mate Sheree, my co-Planning commission member Bob Rush and his lovely bride Andrea and our neighbor Walter (who kindly dressed as an elf for the occasion!) My life-long friend Chris Osborne – the world renowned artist – also stopped in and it was great to catch-up with her.

The Nancy and Bob's (that's Macklin's and Jerolmon's) arrived and brought their deelicious cookies and brownies - both a tradition we all look forward to! My BFF Bernadette brought some Cowboy Cookies she had made from Laura Bush's recipe. They disappeared in about 2 minutes. Not only was I surprised to learn that Bernadette and Laura were pals but even more surprised that Laura was such a good baker - who knew!

Tricia had just had a hip replaced and couldn’t join us but Peter, Ally and the girls came. Chloe was fascinated by the 'reindeer' head decorated with lights. (doesn't everyone have a couple of these at home?) It's a busy time of year for us all and we missed seeing a few friends who had other commitments or were under the weather but we know that we'll see them all again soon. December 4, 2010 is just around the corner ...