Entertaining...and Christmas parties

Don't you love this picture? It reminds me of our old home in Queens, New York. The door, and the stairway look just like ours in our old family childhood home. Mom and Dad entertained a lot in that home. Dad was a pastor of a big church there in Queens for 33 years. Mom was the perfect pastor's wife, entertaining and hosting missionaries, evangelists, and our yearly Deacon Christmas Party. It was all so festive. Mom would be cooking for days. The day of the party was always a Friday night, and it was always the Friday after Christmas, so she had the time off of work to prepare. Mom would set the table for 22!!!! We had 10 deacons at our old church, and of course their wives would come too.

When the guests came, my sister and I would be ready for our "chore", which was "coat girls". Dad would give us the coats and we would run them up and down the stairs dumping the coats on our parents bed!!! What a chore! I remember Sister Antonio's (yes, back then we called everyone brother and sister) coat, she always had her "fur coat", and Lois and I would always make fun of it.

I don't remember the menu, but I know it always included soup, the main meal, and many desserts. Mom wouldn't expect any help from any of the deacon wives, and she would cater the whole party all by herself. It was always a buffet, and the line to the buffet was from the dining room, through the kitchen, into the nook where our kitchen table was. My sister and I would always sit on the kitchen floor watching all the guest fill their china plates, yes china plates, never paper! We would wait until our guests were done, and then we would run over to the table filled with food, and make ourselves a plate. Sometimes even after the first round there wasn't any food left, and mom always made a lot of food.......those deacons loved to eat! One year mom made one of my favorite desserts, "Ricotti Rice Pie", and I couldn't wait to have a piece. After everyone was done taking a piece, there wasn't even one piece left for me, so I ate the crumbs!

They played games fter the dinner. The laughter of everyone playing the games was so enjoyable! What happy times. Then everyone would leave around 11pm, how late that was back then. Mom and Dad would do all the cleanup.....I remember Daddy vacuuming, and mom cleaning up all the dishes and putting whatever food there was away. I don't know how mom did all that preparing and entertaining back then. But she did it, and she always entertained with a smile on her face. I do miss those days. I entertained here too....these days I feel so overwhelmed with it. I do wish I had the spirit mom had back then, to just do it joyfully unto the Lord. I'm having a big Christmas party here in a couple of weeks, I will remember this post and prepare and cook joyfully......I think it will be easy, since we're shipping the kids off to my moms house, and it will be easier for me. Happy entertaining.