Who Loves You, Pretty Baby

Surprises

 I had made the decision that the stupidest choice one could possibly make was deciding it would be a marvelous idea to throw a surprise baby shower for your two very pregnant and very special friends.

 With the house remodel Roger and I had undertaken for the past year entirely complete, it made sense to host the shower here. How Mary and I got 54 people to agree to come to Surrey was still something we hadn't yet deduced. I feel confident some of the women that would be in attendance were certain that by making an appearance, a glimpse of Roger would be inevitable.

 The heels of my gorgeous, multi-colored, snakeskin embossed Jimmy Choo's clicked from the creamy, ivory and chocolate marble in the kitchen to the cherry hardwood floors in the dining room. I took a moment to take it all in: Roger had chosen the wallpaper, gorgeous deep burgundy with an embellished print throughout. The chair rail met our perfectly transitioned walls from wallpaper to light taupe paint.

 I had chosen the cream colored sheers that were pulled back from the windows with burgundy cord. Roger and I had selected the area rug well over a year ago when we had been in Italy. The entire room had been designed around that damn rug. The ceiling had been redone and the chandelier over the massive dining room table had been dusted. It looked magnificent. I had ordered a white Fiji mum centerpiece and pulled out the porcelain china for this little bash. It was gorgeous and such a perfect surprise. The best part about playing hostess was not only being able to show such a beautifully manicured home to the guests but also the fact that I could step back and appreciate all the love and work Roger and I had put into this.

 Mary hadn't yet arrived. She was picking up white linen tablecloths, linen napkins, the remainder of the flowers, and champagne. Hey now, just because the expectant mothers couldn't drink didn't mean the rest of us couldn't turn this shower into an all out afternoon party.

 I didn't have time to admire this any longer, time to get back into the kitchen to my personal bottle of champagne, my cigarettes and the food, which I was so meticulously working on arranging.

 Hold on...in case you were wondering, the answer is no. I sure as hell didn't make all the food for this thing nor did I get on the glitter train arranging all those flowers and romantic decor over the house. Two thousand pounds can't buy happiness, but it will get you all the purple lavender, white peonies, pink-looking flowers, food and all the champagne you could handle. I knew elegance, and this was it.

 When Veronica was pregnant with Robert, her parents hadn't given her a shower. They had been so shocked over the fact that she had gotten pregnant before she and John married that it was lost by the wayside. I suppose I felt guilty for having not given her one either. However, it was all bygones, she was now nearly eight months along and Chrissie was due in three weeks.

 My kitchen had become baby shower ground zero. The island bar in the kitchen was arranged with a fruit bowl, cheese plate with crackers, a tiered server with smoked salmon, cream cheese and capers, shrimp cocktail, and some kind of tartlet Mary had selected. I wiped my hands on my apron and picked up my cigarette; drizzling balsamic over the mozzarella caprese which had been sitting out upon the counter as well.

 I leaned up against the granite counter and looked around at all these plates of food set out: petite eclairs, cocktail sausages, a vegetable platter, ham and cheese mini croissants, meatballs, and a salad bowl of mesclun greens dressed in oil and vinegar. Bread was in the oven and the magnificent five tier cake was in the star of all this.

 It had been Mary's suggestion to put the cake in the breakfast nook and instruct guests to place their gifts on the table opposite the cake. We already had a few gifts from guests who couldn't attend, and of course, our own. The sight was spectacular and it was official…the stork bomb had exploded. Mary and I had pulled this off well. We would do all the last minute details when she arrived.