Judging Pickle Trays.

On New Year's Eve, Caton came over around 6:00 to help me set up for the party. She had the fantastic idea of making a champagne punch (another huge hit) and so brought over the ingredients to prepare the beverage. As I was bustling around trying to figure out what I needed to do (pregnancy brain....need I say more...) Caton began to prepare the punch. Suddenly I hear Caton screaming and look over to find the punch bubbling out over the top of the serving container.

Caton: Oh no! I shouldn't have stirred that ice cream! It's overflowing, what do I do?? (All this is shouted as Caton tries to somehow shield the container with her body)
Me: (rushing over to the container) Put it in the sink! (Then the whole think ended pretty uneventfully as the bubbling stopped just as I approached the punch.)
Caton: I don't know why I react so horribly in stressful situations. I promise, I really came over here to help, not make a mess.

Then Judy arrived just as Caton was starting to make a pickle tray.
Caton: Is there a certain way I should set this up. I was thinking.....(at this point I mostly block out everything that Caton is saying because I honestly don't feel like micromanaging the pickle tray setup)
Me: Yeah. Whatever you want is great!
Caton: (Get's diligently to work on the pickle tray. In her mind she has decided that the two types of pickles circled around the tray with the olives in the center will look beautiful. It probably will, but the tray isn't really that large. As she finishes the dill pickles around the perimeter and starts to lay the sweet pickles on top of the dill yet further in, Judy cannot contain herself any longer and interjects.)
Judy: Do you really think people are going to be able to tell the difference between those pickles.
Me: (trying to be really defensive because I had made such a stand about not caring) Yeah, the sweet ones are a totally different color than the dill.
Judy: But if you didn't watch them come out of the jar would you know that?
Me: Well I was going to suggest a column of sweet on one side, olives in the middle and dill on the other side, but I made such a point of not caring I didn't really want to interject and I'm sure this will be fine.
Caton: There! Ok, not exactly what I had envisioned, but pretty good.
Turns out......it was fine. All the pickles were gone regardless of their arrangement.

And so Judy and Caton started discussing a potential location where Judy might take a job after she graduates from vet school in the spring. Judy is trying to explain where exactly in New York this location is when Aubrey, as if on cue, runs into the kitchen with her laminated map of New York State and drops it on the floor at their feet.

So.....getting ready.....almost as fun as the actual party.