Circle Supper

Okay, we are having 16 people to dinner tonight. Sixteen people and 5 Cardigans...stay tuned I'll report on the mayhem...oh I really mean fun later!

Update: First let me say that all of our guests were dog lovers. Thank goodness! It made the general chaos much easier on the nerves.

From the start we made some calculated decisions, like while receiving guests we would only have the girls out and rambunctious boys would stay in the bedroom until everyone was settled. Of course, starter foods were set out on the kitchen table rather than on low lying things like coffee tables. I also deliberately choose finger foods that I thought the Cardis wouldn't like. (Turns out I was wrong about that...Ella liked mild peppers, marinated mushrooms and artichoke hearts!)

So as the guests arrived the girls were reasonably good. No one ran out the door, or jumped on our guests but we did have requisite barking. (Apparently even the girls are of the school that Corgis should be seen and heard!)

Once everyone settled, wine poured, I let 'da boys out. Ruff Ruff made a run for the living room with his food alert on full power and landed right smack dab in the middle of the Mike's plate! Well the only saving grace was Mike was quick, he is a vet, and he laughed and exclaimed now this is the way life should be lived. (Thanks Mike!) So with Ruff Ruff being, well Ruff Ruff, Ella decided that is was perfectly acceptable to jump up in the window seat and cruise the guests. Not sure what all she came up with but she was smiling all evening. Rainbow puppy won the reward for best dog, but I think it had more to do with her being overwhelmed.

Once we moved on to dinner, the Corgis knew the best seat in the house was under the table, but it turns out that all the food everyone brought to share was much too good to share with Cardis. A very disappointed crew made their way to the kitchen for clean up. Apparently, Kathy wasn't feeling the need to hand out left overs because Ella came back to the table. Only this time she landed in my lap! Again it was Mike who exclaimed, "now that is a content dog." But what she really was cruising for unfettered access to the remaining plates. Foiled she sulked off.

Once the food was cleared and only table talk remained my little darlings decided talk was boring so they put on a "Frap Show." One dinner guest asked if they ever really settled down. My reply, "only when I put them on the bed."

So at the end of the night, we called it a success. It turns out Cardis and large dinner parties are compatible.