75 MIL

So I went from Fridays baby shower to Saturdays "surprise" celebration of MIL's 75th birthday. Having declared she wanted no fuss, bother or the likes, the large ( massive) extended family ignored this completely and decided to hold a "surprise" party in her house yesterday. I use inverted commas around "surprise" as they could not keep a secret if their lives depended on it. They are alien to the subtle look, raised eyebrow or whisper opting for very loud conversations, numerous phone calls, exagerrated hand gestures and constant changes of plan. I was charged with bringing Lemon Chicken, a recipe I will blog at some stage as it feeds alot of people very well.We were asked to arrive at 4.30 so we got there at 4.45 to find we were first....by a mile !Gradually the seven dwarfs and their husbands and offspring arrived as did one brother in law (aka Loud) and family. The other brother in law present ,single white male , who asked for the party to take place at that time to suit his soccer schedule did not arrive until a not so subtle phone call removed him from a local hostelry just in time to cut the cake at 7.00.Now I hope I don't sound as if I did not enjoy myself, it's just their event management leaves a control freak like me in a bit of a sweat. They are very good at not making a fuss and having a great time. It was pouring rain so all the grandchildren ( about 20 of the 26) and all the adults were split between the kitchen and sitting room. The kids loved their chicken dipper and chip picnic on a rug in the sitting room while the adults tucked into kebabs, chicken wings,spare ribs,lasagne, Lemon Chicken, salad and crispy bread....lovely. The men ( revered in the family) took their seats in the kitchen due to it's proximity to both food and chilled Budweiser and as the evening wore on got more hilarious. Traditional Irish family at it's best. We had a great day and although MIL detests cameras, she conceded and allowed a photo of her cutting the cake to be taken, much to the delight of everyone who had cameras and phones at the ready. She didn't protest at all and although she would never tell you, loved every minute.
Now these guys tell it as it is. They are the no holds barred type of family and only deal in complete truth, which is very disconcerting when you first meet them, but they are warm, funny, happy and welcoming to all. One of the dwarfs asked MIL if she thought she had lost weight. "No, it's just that your twin got fatter" replied MIL.