Starting the New Year off right

New Year's Eve

We started the evening off with dinner with my family. Since we don't do Christmas, my dad always makes a nice meal for New Years Eve - maybe that's where I get it from. Prime rib, twice baked potatoes, a salad - yum!

Then it was off to Claire's for quality time with our friends.


Believe it or not, this is before the drinking started.


The girls


The guys.

There was an organized gift exchange that was more fun than any of us bargained for. Jon was very pleased with our original gift we received. I was less pleased with the gift we ended up with.


New Years Day
I began my entertaining for the year- kinda. Claire offered up her home, and I offered up breakfast!

The menu (courtesy of Cooking Light):
Mediterranean Strata

Coffee Cake

Almond Apricot Muffins

Fruit Salad

Bloody Marys
Cheese Grits

(The last two aren't pictured because, well, pitchers of drinks aren't especially photo worthy and the cheese grits went fast. Really fast. So fast, that when C went back for seconds he was disappointed to find there were none left. Others, who were swifter than C managed seconds, and even thirds. Pays to be fleet of foot)