Do you know why bloggers wear aprons when they are hosting a party? Why to have a pocket for their camera, of course! So convenient, always at your side, or front as the pocket may be…
So we ended up having 14 over for a meal, conversation, Ticket to Ride, and more. The doc and his wife couldn’t make it because someone’s baby decided to be born on the 4th of July.
Of course there was enough food for 24. That’s the curse of growing up in a large family, you tend to make way more and buy way more than you really need :0)
Some of the “Usual Suspects”. We always love it when little Finn gets to come and he brings his parents along. Oops, I didn’t get pictures of his parents but I did get some of his Auntie Jamie.
Finn loves our son Josh. He’s helping Josh make some strategic moves in the game Ticket to Ride. Ticket to Ride is a cross country train adventure.
We learned this great trick from Finn’s grandmother, Jody. This is the quick way to baby proof your cabinets. This is a hair thingee, pony tail thingee, you know what I mean. You just twist it around the knobs.
We ended our meal with some Russian Royal Tea of Czar Nicholas II.
It was a wonderful day and a lovely celebration of our freedom in the USA. Blessings on y’all.
Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 
Hi Ellen,
I wasn’t as prepared as you were with the camera. 😦 I am still getting used to this blogging business. I made my fruit salad with a patriotic twist, but my batteries were simply DEAD! So, I didn’t take a picture… 😦
What a spread you had! Is that cheesecake you had for dessert? I LOVE cheesecakes! 🙂
Also, I noticed that big roaster pan you have… I have one just like that that I had gotten from Williams-Sonoma. Was wondering if we actually have the same pan! 😉
Sounds like you had a great time. We did too – we spent the night with church friends and their kids.
Now, I am off to bed after a day of excitement. 😉
Blessings for the rest of your weekend.
Ellen:
My goodness…what a great time you had. Hmmm…will have to remember that….wearing an apron for a camera. Grin. Well, that cake looked wonderful. Don’t tell me you made THAT!!!! I would say that would be a posting for sure!
you have a great chronicle of photos on here for your family Ellen.
Looks like you had a great day!
Looks like you all had a fun day together.
Our picnic was fun, too!
Finn is darling. Love his name. (Does he have an Irish surname?)
Your celebration looks wonderful!
LOL. I love you camera’s hiding place. I’ll have to remember that as I’m always scrambling for the camera when the family comes over for dinner.
Your dinner looked scrumptious. And I love how your family gets together for all these celebrations.
Hey, great looking patriotic cheesecake there. Now my mouth is watering.
I’d love the instructions on that Ticket to Ride game. It’s a new one to me.
Hi Ellen B.,
Just think of the left overs you’ll have. It looks like you had a feast and a great time with family and friends.
I hope today is relaxing for you.
🙂 Cori
Hi Ellen, I am so enjoying you posts!!! Your July 4th meal looked like out of the pages of Bon Appetite magazine!!!…so delicious looking!!!…You should so join us next weekend for “Pink Saturday”! It really is a lot of fun!…was a great idea that Beverly had!…and thank you for visiting my blog & leaving a nice comment!…You enjoy your day!…Heidi xo
Your buffet selection looks soooooo delicious. I like what you or someone did to decorate the cheesecake – very creative.
What a great post…wonderful pictures of food, family and fun times! Ticket to Ride is a fun game…I’ve played the European edition.
I love your hint…wear an apron to keep your camera handy when hosting an event. How often am I running around looking for my camera?
So will we be seeing any of these recipes in the MGCC cookbook?
hello .. . the cheesecake. . .it looks absolutely professional .. so wonderful. All your food always looks so good. I so enjoyed this post. . thanks for the hair thingy trick .. I’ll be needing it soon.
So THAT’S why I didn’t get any photos of our 4th of July party here. I forgot to put my apron on.
BTW, now that I’m back from the UK my walking numbers are way way down and I seem to have misplaced my walking buddy. Miss you!
The strawberry/blueberry cheesecake looks—delectable!
All that food looks yummy! I’m going to have to try the ponytail holder thingie!!!
Oh YUM! Looks like you all had a great time! Welcome home!
Your meal looks much prettier than mine! It sure looks like everyone enjoyed a wonderful family day together!
Looks like a great time, Ellen! But “Ticket to Ride?” That’s a new one to me. One that sounds intriguing. Is it played with regular cards or do you need a special deck?
Loved your blog posts and getting all caught up again. You amaze me! At both homes, north and south, you have a multitude of family to entertain and share time with. That is so awesome! You are most blessed!
And your tea book/clear teapot — reminds me that I think you would really love a visit to Maryhill Museum. The collection of Queen Mary of Romania is housed there. She was the granddaughter of Queen Victoria (one side of the family) and of Tsar Alexander II on the other. Beautiful gowns, furniture, art, and history — and not all that far away.
Enjoy a happy (and busy) week!
LaTeaDah