Roaring in the the 20's

 It's officially 2020! I had wanted so much to do a "Roaring 20's" party for this New Year, but the more I thought about it I realized that it would put pressure on the girls to buy special dresses for the occasion. With the holidays, a new baby coming, and a house being built, I didn't want anyone to feel like they needed to spend any extra money. However, I found this crazy gorgeous dress at Goodwill 9 months ago and I was not going to let the opportunity pass to dress a little bit flapper!

 Ever since I can remember, the tradition has been to have a fondue dinner  and then play games till midnight. And that is what we still do, despite having grown from just moma, pop, and I. Now we have three oil pots down the table and two cheese pots! It's a bit of work, but so fun. And very special since it only comes once a year! We do chicken, fresh crappie, and shrimp. Also, broccoli, cauliflower, and mushrooms with all kinds of condiments. You can see by the picture there was some serious eating going on. At one point my mother-in-law said, "Boy, it's quiet in here!" We all laughed because that is NOT normally the case. But all our mouths were full :). Then we took pictures in front of a backdrop and got hungry again. So we had chocolate fondue with strawberries, fresh pineapple, Mandarin oranges, pretzels, cherries, and marshmallows. Talk about stuffed!

 Here is my middle son, Seth, and his wife, Emiley.

 My oldest, Devin, and his wife, Savannah.

My youngest, Will, and his wife Belle. He's patting the baby!

 Hubby, Duane, and his moma, Mary.

 My three beautiful daughters!!

And this is Belle and Vincent William Doss. If you were squinting trying to see him, he'll be in her tummy till May ;)

And here is my whole clan, my beloved ones, my world. Moma and Pop didn't want an individual picture, but they are in this one. Everyone is sort of smiling and has their eyes open- a New Year's miracle!

 I made this backdrop against the bookcases with the thought of it looking like one of the vintage photos of the people sitting on the moon. But I couldn't figure out how to put the moon that low without nails, and pop would have had a heartattack to see the gorgeous bookcases with nails in them! I got the moon cut out about 11:30 the night before, and took it outside to the driveway to spray it. That night we were having a violent wind storm and it kept trying to rip it from my hands. Then, the can of spray glitter that I paid almost $8 for ran out of glitter before I had even done half of it. I went inside and got my spray glue and a tube of real glitter. My hands were numb by then, and when I grabbed the tube to pour a little into my palm to sprinkle it, I dumped the entire vial on the ground instead. So then I was pinching up fingerfuls out of the gravel and flinging it- dirt and all- at the silly thing. Most of it simple blew back on me. So I gave up on a beautiful, gleaming moon and brought it down to the house. When I finished the backdrop, I stood back and looked. It was a terrible rendition of a vintage moon photo. But it was a spot-on job of replicating a tacky 80's Prom backdrop. Hey, you take what you can get!

I don't ever get in pictures because I am the one taking them, or I am running in and out of the kitchen. So Duane and I took these pictures earlier. And that way we were also in comfy clothes for the rest of the night!

I may have been the only one dressed for the 20's, but I loved the photos, and our night together. We played games until we were snorting and hysterical (okay, maybe that was just me), and then we gathered with our glasses of sparkling white grape juice to watch the ball drop and to cheer in a New Year.

I hope, Dear Reader, that whether or not you stayed up till midnight, you enjoyed your Eve, and you are excited for all the shining possibilities of the New Year. Wishing you a blessed 2020. Just imagine all the wonderful things that are bound to happen!