Today was not a day for diets and being healthy.  It was Lara’s family and special friends lunch.  A day to spend celebrating our beautiful and extraordinary daughter’s first 21 years, with those who have known her all her life.

First things first, we needed cake.  Thank you to Ketta at Flossie Pops Cakery for making and then delivering this beautiful cake.  If you live locally and need a cake for a special ocassion, click on the link above and have a look at Flossie Pops’ site.  Ketta will make whatever you want.  I wanted a chocolate fudge cake as that is Lara’s favourite, covered in pink to celebrate her girliness and with some models of a few of her favourite things: Tiffany, high heels, Elnett and mascara.  We were all delighted with the result.  Thank you Ketta.

You can never have too much cake so I also bought a ‘Whisky Bomb’ from Konditoor & Cook’.  It doesn’t taste of whisky to me but I love it.  It is a marbled chocolate and vanilla moist sponge covered in marzipan.  One of my favourites.

So there’s the important bit done, the cakes 🙂

Chilling the champagne was easy.  There were definite advantages to the snow!

The children found plenty more advantages and had a fantastic time outside.

Leaving space and peace and quiet for the rest of inside, to sit and eat and drink and chat. 

Luncheon was served and eaten wherever people found a comfortable spot.

I didn’t get to the table in time to take photos of the food before people started eating.  On the menu today was:

Potato salad, made with white and purple potatoes and spring onions,

Ottolenghi’s aubergine, mango and noodle salad,

tomatoes and mozarella,

salmon (which was lovely, thank you Cranbrook Fishmongers for being so helpful and providing such delicious fresh salmon)

pasta and roasted vegetables salad (peppers, courgette and red onion)

and one of Lara’s favourites, Greek Salad, made with tomatoes, cucumber, olives, red onion and Feta.  Plus we served sausages and rolls for the children, and for adults who like such things.

Happy birthday gorgeous!

I am so happy that the children of my school friends were able to join us.

Lara took a snowball in the face during the mass snowball fight which took place and I somehow didn’t even know it was on!

There was then a complete scrum, when I announced pudding time 🙂

We had berries and meringue (thank you Abi), a chocolate roulade with berries and praline (thank you Gail), Chocoltae nutty Crunchie squares, Whisky Bomb, chocolate and a selection of lovely cheeses.

It was so heart warming to wander round my house, seeing so many dear and special people, enjoying each others company, and the food we had prepared.  I just never new where to go next, which conversations to join or who needed something else.

Katie, how do you sit like that?

As if we hadn’t eaten enough, it was cake time!

Birthday cake with candles and sparklers and by now, a very rousing rendition of happy birthday followed by plenty of cheers.

And then presents.

Come on Trevor, stop chatting, we need a brew.  Trevor is always chai wallah at family gatherings and he does make a cracking cuppa.  Thank you Trevor.

Despite the snow and the distances people had to travel, everyone who was able to come to Lara’s family and special friends lunch made it.  We are so grateful to you.  For those who were absent, Ian, BJ, Jeremy, Godfather Dan and Anne, we wish you had been here too.

Thank you to all of you who came and braved the snow and ice to get here.  We are so thankful you did.  And a special thank you to Michelle, for collecting Granny and Papa.  It wouldn’t have been the same without them.

Happy Birthday Gorgeous Girl.