The Party!

Enjoying life to the fullest is a great way to regenerate the soul, the mind and the body. One of things I enjoy most in life is having parties. When my children were small we had lots and lots of parties with most of them held on short notice. Now these were not your ordinary parties. It wasn’t anyone’s birthday and sometimes it wasn’t even a special day. They were parties to just to have a party. These weren’t fancy but they were filled with crafts, food and fun. Now I know some of you are saying, “Not a party. There is too much planning and preparing!” But really give this some thought. Is all that fancy stuff really necessary or is it just fluff and stuff? Would you have just as fun a time if things were simpler? Parties come down to everyone having a good time, not the amount of time and money spent on the food or preparing.

 Last October I hosted a Halloween party for my family and extended family. The idea was to have lots of fun and silliness for both children and adults. Everyone had so much fun that it was decided that it must happen again. My guests chose the date and I chose the theme, which to be honest had already been chosen because my good friend and I were having so much fun just in the planning. So June 3^rd was the chosen day for “The Best of All Holidays Party”. I know it sounds silly doesn’t it? But I want you to think back to your favorite part of each holiday. At Thanksgiving isn’t it turkey and pumpkin pie. Don’t you have fond memories of trick or treating and Easter egg hunts? How about those great Valentine cookies I make every year. What we did was take the best memories from every holiday and combine them into one giant celebration.

The children decorated bags one side for Halloween and one side for Easter as their first craft. Then they made picture frames out of popsicle sticks for the party photograph. We made homemade root beer (see recipe below) and the children watched as the dry ice bubbled and smoked carbonating the liquid. There was food and lots of it. Every family attending brought their favorite holiday food. I bake a turkey the day before so that we could have leftover turkey sandwiches. There were homemade rolls, Valentine sugar cookies for decorating, baked beans, yams, those cute little Spritz cookies in assorted holiday shapes and colors, deviled eggs and three types of salad.

After the crafts and eating were done it was on to the games and prizes. The one rule for the party games is the adults have to play the same games as the children. The first game was Eat the Donut. Do you know this game? This is where you tie a string through a donut, suspend it at mouth height and you have to eat the donut with your hands behind your back. The children got to use the little donuts but the adults had to eat the large ones. I’m sure you can already picture the scene when it was the adults turn. Next game up was Drop the Clothes Pin. When the last person had finished dropping their clothespins into the can and the prizes awarded it was on to trick or treating. Yes trick or treating!I had asked a few neighbors if they would be willing to let my band of children knock on their door and scream that popular phrase “Trick or Treat”.  So off the children and chaperons went from house to house with the last house being mine. Now while they were gleefully out of the backyard the remaining adults were hiding the Easter eggs. Shortly there was a knock at the door, “Trick or Treat!” and in filed all the children. They each picked an egg of a different color to hunt for and out the door they ran. Soon the eggs had all been found and it was time for dessert. Everyone frosted and decorated heart shaped sugar cookies with assorted sprinkles and toppings from several holidays or enjoyed those wonder Spritz cookies.

We still had a few more things to fit in so next up was the piñata. Now the piñata was a surprise as one of the guests called the morning of the party to say they hoped Cinco de Mayo hadn’t been taken because they were bringing one. The children all took turns with lots of swings and misses but finally the candy and money spilled out onto the lawn. Quickly they collected their prizes and it was on to the last and final game “Pass the Package”. The game is cross between musical chairs and hot potato but with a wrapped package.  Since the adults and children both play there were two packages. We sit in two circles and pass the package from person to person until the music stops. Once the music stops you get to unwrap one layer of paper off the package and perform the task written on the paper. Sometimes the note asks you to do something physical, sometimes the note will ask you to do something silly, sometimes you get to pick a prize and if you are the last person to have the package you win the big prize. This is repeated until the packages have been unwrapped and the grand prize given. By the end everyone is laughing.


The party was coming to a close and my good friend and I are both tired but smiling. What a fun day it had been!  As I was packing up food to send home with everyone the following question came up. “Is this going to be an annual event?” I think all of you know my answer, “Of course” I said. I may be tired but the day had been full of wonderful times that regenerated my body, mind and soul. When have you taken the time lately to have fun and enjoy life to the fullest? Remember each day brings new possibilities and new ways to find enjoyment. Are you actively looking to live your life to the fullest or just skating through it? Make living every day to the fullest one of your positively healthy choices every day!

PS. And that party next year, Hawaii here we come. Grass skirts and coconut bras for all!

Homemade Root Beer

5 lbs of Sugar

5 gallons of water
5 lbs Dry Ice
2 oz Root Beer Extract

Mix sugar and water together until dissolved. Add root beer extract and mix. Add dry ice. Root beer is ready serve when most of the bubbling has stopped.

Tip: I usually make a simple syrup using all the sugar and a few gallons of the water earlier in the day so that it can cool. Then when it is time to make the root beer I add the additional water. Unless I have a really large group I make half a recipe.