Awesome Teen!

On Saturday night Dana (17) hosted a March Madness Mystery Dinner for a group of ten. However, this wasn’t a dinner for her friends. It was for the parents of her friends! She began planning a month ago, made invitations that looked like basketballs, planned the meal (Mexican theme), created menus, double checked the RSVPs, planned after dinner games, cooked the food, greeted and seated the guests, and served the four course meal. (Her sister and friends pitched in with some cooking and serving, but it was definitely Dana’s effort that made it all come together.)

I did NOTHING to help. I spent the morning shopping and wrapping a shower gift and spent the afternoon attending the shower and shopping a little more. Dana even took care of Lisa while I was gone!

At 5:30 PM the parents of Dana, Mark, Rachel, Jordan, and Stephanie assembled at our house all decked out in their favorite NCAA apparel. We came together as a rather dissociated band—in various combinations we represented three different churches, three couples who had sat through basketball tournaments together with younger boys, three couples who had been in a homeschool group together, and three men who work together. The only thing that all of us had in common was the friendships of our children. We talked, got to know one another, ate (taco salad, empanadas, corn fritters, layered tortilla casserole, and cheesecake--mmmm), laughed at each other (the ‘mystery’ part of the dinner means you don’t know in what order your courses will arrive or when you’ll get your utensils—Linda’s fourth course was three forks and a knife, you can just imagine the other three), and we even got caught up in Steve’s aeronautical excitement and all stood in our driveway in the cold at 8:30 PM to watch the space station fly overhead.

One mom told Dana that her husband hates new situations, avoids all social situations, and fears interaction in groups. She was stunned that he agreed to come to the dinner, but was in utter amazement that he joined in the fun of the dinner, conversed, and stood up in front of the group when it was his turn playing “25 Words or Less”. Better yet, the next morning he joined his wife and daughter (both relatively new Christians) at church for the first time.

Using her favorite word, my Dana is amAzing!!