We are all up by 6:40 AM and out the door by 7:30 AM each morning. Vince does his own thing and is usually out the door AFTER us, so no, I would NOT let them wake him up. Instead, I took out some papers and markers and had them "start" on his card... then they all finished after school:
I had enough time to make appetizers - mozzarella with tomatoes and basil. The mozzarella is from Trader Joe's. The tomatoes are from Leo and Matt's backyard. The basils are courtesy of Mom and Morgan's work. Apparently, she and mom planted her girl scout basil plants in the backyard in a HUGE flower pot along with her camellias. They did not mention to me where the basils were planted...months later I walked out the back door and discovered the most beautiful basil plant that was extremely healthy and ... tasty! :) Thank you mom and Morgan... and the girl scouts who helped Morgan plant the seeds for her when she was absent from the meeting.
Our main course -- clams in a tomato based sauce. Cherry tomatoes from Leo and Matt's backyard. Clams from Costco... on our way home from school. (They were so tasty... at almost $5 a pound... but so worth it as we ate them all! Well, we 4 ate them all. MG wouldn't touch them. Where did we find her anyway?! E slurped every last drop from his bowl. MG and MD also loved the sauce in their noodles.)
As soon as Vince walked in the door, he was presented with his cards (I was too busy setting the table - so no photos). They literally screamed at him the second they saw him pull into the driveway. Screaming at the top of the lungs! Then they all ran to wash their hands and sit at the table. Because it had been a long day and they were hungry! This side of the table:
The other side of the table:
Their big treat tonight... root beer! They discovered this when we were in Hawaii. There were lots of "cheers" all around -- any excuse to raise their glasses and drink during dinner!
.jpg){kind=small}
