Another How Am I Doing Friday has come and gone without me writing.
That was a good thing.
Not that I don't love writing to you.
I actually had a really good,mindlessly productive day.
The day started out the same way as most days do lately,dreading to move and get out of bed.
And like most days, that first hour or so was enough to make me question just how much I might be able to actually accomplish for the day.
We had the entire family coming for Shabbat dinner and I had no idea what I was serving.
We have the no carb people and the no meat people and the no cold foods people and the only carb people and the ones who think anything green must be moldy.
It's always a challenge which becomes even more so as you add more mouths.
Once I cleared my overnight inbox, I felt enough relief to set about getting dinner stuff.
First a trip to the butcher.
Then a stop at the market.
After a quick stop to exchange something at Kohls, I came home and started dinner preparations.
I spent an hour cutting up produce that needed to get into either the oven or crock pot.
Then an hour while the veggies that required roasting were in the oven.
I could have used that hour to write , instead I chose to straighten up after myself and clean the kitchen, putting away as much as I could.
It really makes a difference when I work neatly.
Once the veggies were done, it was off to walk Sara's dogs, a trip to the chiropractor , yet one more trip to the market and green grocer and then home to finish preparing for dinner.
With Max's help I set up tables to accommodate not only all of our guests ,but all of the dishes that I would be serving (this is always a challenge!).
There were a total of 16 side dishes, the main protein and an appetizer of soup as well as fresh veggies to go with the humus at each end of the table.
The colors of the dishes on the table were amazing.
I think every color palette imaginable was represented.
Before I knew it, it was 5:45 which is the beginning of go time.
Anything that need heating up gets turned on. Plating of cold dishes gets done next.
Dinner was called for 6:30, so I had a couple minutes to sit and regroup before setting everything out.
At around 6:15 , I began putting the food out.
First the room temperature dishes , then the cold dishes.
I held off on the hot.
Everyone was mostly on time and after a few minutes of hellos hugs and other greetings we sat down at the table.
Candles were lit.
Then Kiddush ( Google it!).
Then Motzi....(yep Google again) .
And then a champagne toast to the newly engaged couple, the home from college folks and the birthday boy.
As everyone had soup I put out the hot dishes , leaving absolutely no room for anything else on the table.
By 8 o'clock our guests were all gone.
By nine, the dishes were done, tables and chairs put away and the house was pretty much back to normal.
For a day that started out without a plan or even a clue as to what I wanted to accomplish or how I was going to get it done, it turned out to be an amazingly productive and some how relaxing one.
All in all an absolutely great way to end the week .
Shabbat Shalom!
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