A FAMILY AFFAIR

On Sunday after mass, we decided to invite my mom and in-laws over for dinner. We spent the afternoon cleaning and prepping as Hannah's clothes needed to be folded, toys were scattered about, and of course, we had to prep for dinner. With a child, spontaneous dinner parties are actually quite involved.

Everyone arrived around five in the afternoon. Cooking dinner is easier when there are three other adults around to watch Hannah. She's learning to crawl and getting quicker by the day. Right now, she's dragging herself along the ground commando-style, but it's surprising how strong her little arms are. It takes her less than a minute to cross the family room.

My husband and I danced around each other in the kitchen, grabbing this and moving that. We washed, chopped, juiced, and grilled. He was the lead cook and I was happy being his sous chef.

Dinner was served an hour later and we were proud to serve up a cream of mushroom soup with grated carrot and minced ginger, baked garlic salmon, roasted chicken breast, and sides of broccoli, corn, and green peas.

After the delicious meal, we decided to take a walk. We headed to the closest park so they could see Hannah's reaction to the swings. They oohed and aahed (much like we did the first time) at her delight when she swung back and forth. The weather was perfect and even though the sun had started to set, the temperature was perfect. We walked further around the neighbourhood, passing by some soccer fields, a few more playgrounds, and finally back to our home.

Our evening wouldn't be complete without coffee and dessert so we served up some mixed berry pie and rich hot chocolate and coffee. Some of us watched tv and others surfed the net. Mostly though, we waited patiently for Yeh Yeh ("grandpa" in Chinese) to set up some of Hannah's toys we had accumulated by hadn't had a chance to assemble. By the end of the night, she had a new walker to play with, a rocking horse, and a car.

We had a fun night and soon my mom and in-laws decided to go home so we could try and keep Hannah's bedtime routine the same. It was a good evening and we hope to do it again another time.