We all gathered at the Ellis house with our usual spread of health food selections: Lemon blossoms, fudge brownies, peanut butter cookies, cocktail wieners wrapped in bacon, buffalo chicken dip, spinach dip, cheese pizza, etc. (I think it speaks of our hostesses great love for us that she allows her vegetarian/health food kitchen to be defiled in such a manner every year.)
Almost all my Peeps were there with their dozens upon hundreds of children. But there was a welcome addition since The Witts are now back in town. They used to party with us every year until they were called away to East TN. It was great to have them back to entertain us.
You see, Nikki W. is kinda like our own personal Erma Bombeck. She can teach valuable life lessons all the while making you laugh until Fanta shoots out of your nose.
Some of the wisdom gleaned from last night's conversation included:
When asthmatics turn blue, don't call a prayer meeting right away. Chances are, it's just the brand new sheets.
Pacemakers don't chirp.
Steve Witt has brought many teenagers to the Lord using dog shock collars and exploding tennis balls.
You just can't buy that kind of wisdom folks. To get that, you gotta be friends with Nikki Witt.
Speaking of Nikki, she took part in what turned out to be the entertainment hit of the night. Last week I bought the Wii game "Just Dance" with a gift card I received over Christmas. I took it to the party in hopes of seeing Big Nanny try it out. What I could not have anticipated was how it would completely take over the party.
First, Cole, Big Nanny & Nikki all took a turn shakin' it:
Then Tracey, Big Nanny & Cole worked it out:
After that it was just Big Nanny & Cole for a while in an epic dance showdown for the ages. But once their aged bodies couldn't take it anymore and they became winded they handed the remotes over the children.
And that was the end of that.
Most of the kids took a few turns but once Jesse J. got his hands on the controller all bets were off. He danced for a solid 2 hours and began handily defeating his competition. In case you're not aware, Jesse is 6. And he took great pride in the destruction of every competitor, even our reigning champion Cole (who is semi-professional since, ya know, she danced in the Super Bowl) That defeat must have been humbling for her.
His two dances of choice were "Eye of the Tiger" and "Who Let the Dogs Out". For a solid two hours. This is all we heard. "Whoooo! Whooo! Whooo! Whooo!!!!" It's still ringing in my ears.
I'm thinking of contacting the makers of this game today and asking for a residual of some sort since I know for a fact that at least 5 of the families in attendance last night planned to go out and purchase it today if for no other reason than it will keep their kids occupied for HOURS on end.
While the kids took over the dance floor, most of the adults retired to the dining room. There were simultaneous games of Bananagrams & Rook going on. We're a rowdy bunch.
Some of us just hung out in the kitchen nibbling on snacks and plotting practical jokes for the new year.
When the clock finally struck midnight we did what we always do. We rushed to the living room, counted down the last 10 seconds, kissed our spouses and starting packing up to leave. Cause we're wild like that.
I love this tradition and can't imagine starting my year out any other way. I will say that I preferred the days when all the kids were little and stayed upstairs with an appointed teenage babysitter. Now they're older and come downstairs to eat our food, take over our dance routines and generally bust our groove. Next year, I say they get their own party.
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