Parties and Such

I had a crazy, awesome, amazing, stressful weekend!

My cousin K was celebrating her 16th birthday and my friend C and I are pretty much event planning gurus. K decided that she wanted to have a Bollywood theme and we have been scrambling for the last few weeks trying to make that happen. For those of you who don't know, Bollywood is India's version of Hollywood. Some of the movies are really corny and cheesy, some of them are very good, and there are a lot in between. What they all share, however, is beautifully bright colors and scenery, and random musical numbers. They're fun to watch.

My aunt, C, and I spent an entire Saturday evening talking about what we would eat, what kind of cake to buy, and how to decorate the place. We wanted it to look like something straight out of Arabian Nights and we wanted the food to be authentic. We decided to order real Indian food from an Indian resteurant called Shalimar. I went on itunes and downloaded the perfect bollywood party playlist, and we ordered a cake that followed the theme. The only thing left to do was to decorate the house the day of...and that's when it started to get stressful.

Have I mentioned that my dear friend C is a genius at decorating? I mean, I'm not bad at it myself, but her talent for it is at a totally different level. So...Saturday dawns, early and I make my way to my aunts house to get started. I wait for a little while when I get a phone call from C's husband....he briefly explains to me that she's having some stomach issues and is still at home, but he will be dropping the decorating supplis off, and that hopefully she will come a little later. I think my heart stopped for about a full 10 seconds...I had to tell myself to breathe. OMG. Curse that stupid Murphy's Law!  

I've never thrown a party without C's help. I've never decorated for one without her. She's my partner in crime....OMG. I think I just sat in the same spot for about 10 minutes without moving with a horrified expression on my face. While all the ideas we had discussed ran through my head, and I tried to figure out where to start first. Her husband showed up with the supplies a little while later, and I pulled myself out of my panic induced stupor and forced myself to get to work. 

As I began decorating and the day wore on, I talked to C and it became obvious that she had caught one of those 24 hour stomach bugs that sweeps in unexpectedly and knocks you flat on your tail. She would not be coming. Jesus help me. 

Gradually, the room began to look more and more like a scene from a Bollywood film. My aunt went to pick up the food, I drafted my sister to pick up the cake and by 4:45, 15 minutes before party time, I was in the bathroom taking a quick shower, and trying to calm down and get my bearings. 

20 minutes later I was pressed, dressed, with hair done, and definitely feeling a little more tranquil and serene than I had in hours. By the time I went downstairs there were already about 10 girls there. We ended up with 15 by the end of the night. 

We had laid long pieces of material all over the living room, along with scarves, and my sister showed them how to drape a Sari around them. They had a blast dressing up like real Indian women. We played several games, explained the different Indian dishes, ate till we were bursting, listened to Indian music, and had cake. All in all, it was a huge success and they had a blast! 

And C, I ain't mad at ya! :)