Our recent party

This was our first non-mandatory party. One where it was totally optional for guests to come. No birthdays. No national holidays. Just a Let's-celebrate kind of party. Come-share-your-Saturday-with-us kind of party.

I tried not to cook. That almost worked. The local Trader Joe's supplied the taquitos. My mom brought some fun 7-layer bean dip (can anyone actually name all seven layers?) and the taco salad. My sister-in-law brought her famous pico de gallo. Because the forecast called for a dreary day, I did end up tossing together a corn and bean soup. There was a light sangria and punch for the kids. And for dessert, I assembled (technically, not cooking) 5 ice cream pies with ganache. After the party, we had outrageous amounts of leftovers. That is, except for the pies.

Here is evidence of the happy people. What are they doing? Eating. Drinking. Chatting. Oh, and building some raised garden beds.

Update: for pics of these garden beds in action, click here.