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Prepping for party is not easy
Welcome to motherhood
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By the time this column makes it into print, my daughter’s first birthday party already will have gone down in history as a resounding success — I hope. The Saturday soiree (which was yesterday if you’re reading this Sunday) has kept me busy for weeks, sending out invitations, making shopping lists for party food and decorations, tidying up my house, scheduling a landscaper and a carpet steam cleaner, selecting the perfect dress for Reese — even grooming our dog!
We have family coming in from three states, and lots of friends plan to put in appearances. I’ve got the menu planned, and the orderliness of my house is almost passable. Yes, we’re nearly ready, although I’ve driven my husband nuts in the process.
“Who is going to get down on the floor and examine our baseboards?” he asked me incredulously as I furiously rubbed a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser across the panels as if my life depended on it.
“You never know,” I told him.
Truthfully, I should have given our house a good scouring when Reese began crawling and spending more time on the floor — and getting into things. I keep the place fairly neat most of the time, but as far as I’m concerned, no surface can be sanitized enough when it comes to my little girl. Having a large dog doesn’t make things any easier. Abbie, our golden retriever, is forever shedding, tracking dirt into the house on her paws and leaving her filthy, slobber-coated toys on the furniture.
So, if anything, this birthday party has just given me a good excuse to get our house in perfectly presentable shape. I’m not saying it’ll stay that way — we do have to live in it after all, but it’ll be nice to enjoy our gleaming abode just for a day.
 My husband says as long as the food and drinks are tasty and plentiful, no one will care about much else, including scuffed baseboards or a little dog hair on the floor. He’s probably right. And the main purpose of this shindig is for everyone to have a good time while celebrating the completion of my sweet little’s first year in the world. So as long as Reese enjoys herself — and doesn’t make too big of a mess with her “smash cake” —
I’ll consider the party a triumph.

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