i warned you guys i might be a little m.i.a. around here for the next week and a half. i spent monday and tuesday working away on my presentation for next week. ahh. i get heart palpitations and sweaty palms just thinking about it.
on thing that took my mind off the upcoming presentation was spending easter with my and brad’s families last weekend! getting two easter dinners was especially exciting!
saturday afternoon started off the celebrations with an early dinner at brad’s parents’ house. brad’s sister was home from minnesota and two sets of brad’s aunts & uncles came home along with his two cousins and his grandma.
michele had a fun and festive table set up as always!
we started off with a big spinach salad and some fruit salad.
and then i filled my plate with tons of green beans, some pork, some vegetable casserole, and mashed potatoes, but forgot to take a picture of it. boo.
i didn’t forget to take a picture of dessert though…
ice cream torte made with mint chip ice cream and mint oreos plus homemade hot fudge. yum. (lovely plating especially for the blog by brad’s sister sarah!)
fast forward through a night of going out with friends and staying out until bar close, i needed a bloody mary immediately upon arriving at my mom’s house on sunday.
thank goodness she makes the best ones ever. (you can’t see them, but she has some of her homemade pickled mushrooms in there – so delicious!).
i munched on snacks throughout the afternoon while i talked to people – taco dip, veggies, deviled eggs…
and then it was time for dinner.
when my mom’s family gets together, there is really no chance for a sit-down meal. it’s potluck style and you sit where you find a seat! i’m estimating that there were at least 25 adults and 9 kids there.
don’t worry – we had plenty of food to go around!
everyone brought something. there was ham, rolls, hot and cold potato salad, broccoli & cauliflower salad, chicken wings, beans, pasta salad, tons of veggies and fruit, and i’m sure i’m missing things.
i filled my plate!
and i ate almost all of it. 
my grandma made apple pie and my mom made an awesome looking trifle, but i was stuffed after the regular meal so i didn’t get any of the dessert. bummer.
i definitely ate more than i normally do at dinner, but i think i did a pretty good job of eating lots of vegetables – i made sure i snacked mostly on them – while still getting to eat all of my favorite easter dishes too.
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i’ve got a couple good posts coming at you soon – i just need to find time to write them! ahh.
i’m practicing my seminar for my lab tomorrow, so i’m trying to really get it into good shape and practice a couple times today. hopefully i won’t have to work on it at all tonight.
also, sorry if you’ve commented in the last couple of days…i’ve been really bad about responding lately. it is high on my list of things to do and hopefully i’ll get to it soon!
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do you do big family meals for holidays?
what’s your favorite “holiday” dish?
i really like little ham sandwiches on rolls with butter. not healthy, but i only eat them at family holiday gatherings! love them.
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