Friends, Family, Food, and.....Farts? Aunt Joan* was that you?

*Names have been changed to protect stinky bottomed aunts.

Yesterday we had a family gathering with some family that lives out of town. Since they aren't local, we don't get to see them as often. We had some gorgeous weather for an outside summer picnic, complete with a lovely 80 degree warm pool and a boat ride on the river.

But the main attraction? Well, duh, the food!

Why is it that any sort of gathering always revolves around food? And we get pretty excited about it too. We ask what we're having ahead of time so that we can prolong our pleasure in the experience. We find out that one relative is making your favorite salad or another is bringing your favorite dessert and you can literally think about it for days leading up to the actual event.

Once you're actually there, you have to sample all the goodies (And usually more than I really need to eat!) so that you can have an educated opinion when it comes up in conversation. And it will come up in conversation. It starts with a compliment, then a remark about how easy it was to make, followed by requests for the recipe. (Not that we actually will end up making it, just that we are enjoying it so much at that moment we are willing to consider we'd actually attempt the recipe ourselves.)

Aunt Joan: "This cheesecake is amazing!"
Susie: "Oh this old recipe? I got it out of a better homes and gardens magazine years ago. It's super easy to make."
Aunt Joan: "Would you share the recipe?"
Susie: "Absolutely."

After a few years of these family gatherings, you find that certain relatives have dishes that they're known for. If you like these foods, you'll start salivating more and more as the hours leading up to the party creep closer. No? Never happened to you? Hmm, odd. At any rate, if a relative strays from their allotted dish at any point, they can expect some disappointment. I myself have been subjected to this the first time I strayed from bringing my coveted no bake cookies. Because I love to bake, and no bake cookies are not, well baked, I wanted to make something else. Only to hear multiple cries of, "You didn't bring no bakes?" with a crestfallen look on their faces. (Luckily I have quite a few aces up my sleeve in the form of orange drop cookies, brownie torte, and carrot cake that have allowed me some culinary freedom. Although I'm still expected to bring no bakes occasionally.)

So sure, I might be a few pounds heavier today, but I'm also full of family love, laughter, warmth, and priceless memories. And really, you can't ask for more than that. Well, okay, maybe that cheesecake recipe too.