A Hopelessly Domestic Morning

Each year, my mom throws the grown-up equivalent of a little girl's tea party. This "Ladies' Brunch," as she has come to call it, is one of the biggest social events of her year. Typically she invites almost 30 people, plans an extensive themed menu, and cooks the entire day the day before. And to make sure everyone has a good time, these "brunches" also include some form of seemingly innocent, sweet booze.

This was the first year I would be home for this annual event, and mom had an idea to spoil me to bits. She decided that in honor of my graduation, and my future as a Spanish teacher, she would make the brunch "Spain" themed and of course, serve sangria. On the invitation, she invited everyone to bring a small kitchen gadget as a token gift for me. I love cooking, and I have all the basic cooking tools I need, but I can't get enough of all the silly, funny gadgets one can buy these days.

Saturday we spent the whole day cooking. Food in Spain isn't that delicious, most menus over there consist of ham and fish, oil, ham and more fish. Veggies and sweet treats are hard to come by. Yet we charged forward, "Americanizing" traditional dishes to make them a bit more palatable. We kept some basics- like the famed tortilla espanola, and improvised others- just using a regular honey-roasted ham instead of the weird, dry leathery ham more typical of the country. And 6 wine bottles later, we had a giant punch bowl filled with a fruity, sweet sangria.

Sunday dawned bright and beautiful. Everyone dressed in lovely spring colors, and I wore my new favorite orange dress. The guests were mostly moms and grandmas, so imagine my surprise when I saw how quickly the sangria bowl drained! These ladies came in and bee-lined for the booze. I cracked up, the guests were all former teachers, church friends, and neighbors. They were also party animals. I guess the "jungle juice" appeal lasts far after college. We had to make another bowl!

Later, as we were cleaning up the mess and putting everything away, I caught a glimpse of my pile of presents. People must have gotten mixed up- we asked for a token little gadget, but the gifts were on par for a wedding shower! It was absolutely insane. Tea sets, wine glasses, cookbook collections, bags and bags of goodies never ended. However, I did have one favorite gift...

Believe it or not, that's an apron. It's the sexiest, most domestic, 50s-era desperate housewife item that I own. When I cook in it, for boys of course, I will absolutely be in heels and red lipstick. Photos compliments of my fab art school sister!

Peace and Love!