Over the course of an evening and a morning Ann managed to bake enough cookies and lemon bars to fill four of those large Zip-Lock containers. Now, I am not opposed to cookies or sweets, but I really don’t consume them much, (give me savory!), so I was a little concerned about the quantity of confections stacked on my counter. She said not to worry because “the boys”, (her boyfriend and his two teenaged brothers), were coming over tomorrow.
I had already been to the grocery store once after I offered to have “the boys” over for dinner, (they consume an amazing amount of food), and then again the next day because although Ann had already sent me out late the previous night to purchase an overpriced box of butter from 7-11, (and that was after using the three sticks of butter I had on hand), she still needed more. Plus she wanted molasses because, according to her, all Liam wanted was ginger snaps. On the way out she mentioned that she had almost used up all the sugar and vanilla as well. While at the store I picked up my annual string of lights (on clearance) and a new stocking, (also on clearance), but managed to avoid getting any other decorations as I know prices will continue to go down in the following days…yes, I’ll be back! And while I had made a stocking for Ann’s boyfriend, since his brothers were also going to be there I needed to stock up on a few more things so no one was left out.
As I was cooking dinner I felt that familiar nagging in the back of my head that there would not be enough food. I told myself that I always end up overcooking and to relax. To give myself a little more confidence I asked Ann if I should make another dish; she said what I had cooking would be fine. However as I set things out I called her over and asked again if I should make something else. She eyed things and sighed, “yeah.”
So, while “the boys” and kids filled up their first plate I seasoned and grilled some chicken breasts which were ready just in time for the second course. All-in-all they consumed a 5lb roasted chicken, three large chicken breasts, (which some made into sandwiches), a box of pasta shells which I mixed in a sauce made with bacon and a little under a pound (!) of cheese, and about four stalks of sautéed broccoli. After dinner there was nothing left but a drumstick and a small chunk of chicken breast.
Then it was time to eat cookies and empty the stockings, the latter being filled with candy and chocolates, and munch while playing a friendly yet fiercely competitive 5-way battle of Super Smash Bros. Later I joined into a few rounds of Call of Duty with those still upstairs while music and sounds of ping-pong could be heard from others who had migrated to the basement. (There were also some shenanigans played between the “first floor” and “basement” folks with each telling “Alexa” to turn off various things e.g. “Alexa turn off the basement lights.”) It reminds me of back in the day when you could send various control characters through a terminal to mess with the screen of others. The technology has changed, but using the tools to play pranks has not.
Later after surveying the whirlwind of the evening there were candy wrappers, a Zip-Lock of cookies emptied and others much less full, as well as ice cream sandwich wrappers tossed about, (the kids must have raided the freezer). What an enjoyable chaos. Christmas break is here in force!