This weekend, we brought our Sing Star party to H-town. At home, we had one of these ‘gatherings’ (cause Colin doesn’t do parties!) around once a month and it was always fun. Some frozen pizzas, chicken goujons and vol au vents, a few glasses (of caffeine free diet coke) and a whole night of singing!
We weren’t sure how it’d go down in Houston, because, for the most part, Americans don’t do late nights. Most people are home and in bed by 10.30 at the latest but since the majority of our friends are also expats like ourselves. We figured we’d give it a shot.
Thursday was the blitz pre-guests clean. Friday, Col came home from work at lunch time and worked at home, while I drove up to Target and picked up the things we needed for the shindig. I picked up a little alcohol (just some apple and strawberry smirnoff ice), some ‘soda’ and some snacks. Col bleached the floor (cause my back went as soon as his got better!) and packed away his make shift office in the dining room.
Col also decided, that, in order to put our best foot forward and encourage people to come back for more sing star nights at Casa McMaster, that we’d display our entire sing star collection for our guests to avail of. So we set up 2 TV’s and connected our UK Playstation to one and our US playstation to the other! LOL!
Julie, Sherif and Zane at the court house the day we got married!
Let me take a moment to introduce some of my Houston friends, Julie, Sherif and baby Zane were first to arrive just before 6.30.
I met Julie last summer, shortly after I moved here. My friend Angie took me to an SSA lunch bunch where I met Julie and we got on so well that she took me shopping that afternoon and dropped me home. Since the day I met her she’s been such a pillar of support and a really great friend – I couldn’t have survived last summer without her as she never once objected or complained to coming over and picking me up when I needed to get out of the house.
Julie is currently pregnant with her 2nd baby and Zane is about to have a baby sister to play with, I love her to pieces and definitely think she’s a top notch SSA member cause she made my life a heck of a lot easier when I got off the plane!
Cindy and Tim
Next to arrive were my some of my favourite Southerners, the Ribauls. I met Cindy at another lunch bunch and we instantly clicked! She’s like an Energiser bunny always doing something or going somewhere – she rarely slow’s down or stops. Cindy is always up for a night of dinner and dancing – and we discovered last night that after her initial objections of ‘I’m not singing’, she got in to the swing of it and was soon serenading the night away. Her hubby Tim is one of my fave SLB guys to hang out with – he never fails to make my sides hurt from laughing. He also has a wonderful ‘Coonass’ (Louisianan) accent that I could listen to all day – even if he was just to read the dictionary out loud! LOL! Cindy arrived at my door carrying what Col has described as the most delicious home made (pineapple) cake he’s ever tasted – which went down a storm (and she left us left overs so Col is one very happy man!).
Next to arrive was my work out buddy Lori! I met her through Julie (above) at another lunch (not a lunch bunch this time!) she runs her own Law Firm and when I get my Law Degree she’s going to hire me as her associate 😉 LOL!
As it turned out, Lori was my neighbour and lived across the street from me! We turned in to work out friends as she talked me in to joining the YMCA around the corner and going to Water Aerobics class with her.
Lori and David were another lovely couple nice enough to share our big day with us last October and made it very special for both of us, well, mainly me since Lori took me for a manicure and pedicure the day before 😉 lol!
Col went to get BBQ food at around 7.10pm and by the time he got back Julie and co had left cause Zane was getting fussy, but the pizza had arrived and we’d started to tuck in. The pizza wasn’t the only thing that had arrived as our other guests had too!
Ann and Paul K (cause until last night I couldn’t pronounce their surname! LOL!)
Ann was one of my newcomers to the area, when she arrived and joined the SSA back in January, I asked another Canadian friend of mine Janet to take Ann under her wing and bring her to the Southwest Coffee morning.
We instantly got along, she’s fun, intelligent and Canadian which means she can talk Hockey (of course, cause how can stereotypes ever be wrong?) so although from Calgary (and Paul’s from Vancouver) I, being the big person that I am, over looked that small fact and she has become a really great friend. Paul and Ann are also Sing Star players, which means we love them even more as getting them to sing is easier than anyone else – and, they got pipes too, so the competition is good too! Not only that, but Ann is my go-to Houston Bridesmaid, helping me out with all things wedding related and even took me to buy my wedding dress!
Emily and Luke
Emily and Luke arrived at the same time, sporting some beautiful flowers for me and a bottle of red wine – which I, not being a wine-fan or knowing anything about wine stuck straight in the fridge! Whoops!
Emily was another one of my newcomers, we chatted for a while through email and we’ve seen each other at the odd coffee and lunch bunch but since she lives up in the city and neither of us drove (until recently when she ROCKED the Texas driving test and got her license) we haven’t seen each other nearly as much as I’d have liked – I hadn’t even met her hubby until last night.
Turns out, her hubby is a hoot, we had a great chat and he was even game to give us a song – which was brave since he didn’t know anyone in the room. I’m so glad they made the trip down to the ‘burbs to visit with us (and not just cause she brought me some beautiful flowers!) and they’ll definitely be on the invite list in the future!
These are my beautiful flowers! 🙂
The night was a resounding success, almost everyone took up the microphone and we all had a really great time and quite a lot of alcohol.
Elton John and Kiki Dee giving us a tune – Col’s face cracks me up!!
Know how I know it was a great night?
Cause Americans tend to go home early, the first people to leave left at 11.30pm and the last people didn’t leave until just after 1am! It was a real barn burner!
Col and I cleaned up before bed – and by Col and I, I mean, Col did, while I ate cold bbq food! LOL!
Today we had a lie in, got up and our friend Theresa wanted to go for lunch so lunch it was! We ate in BJ’s and watched the first half of the footy before she dropped us home. Col and I watched the 2nd half (poor USA!), we watched todays Grand Prix qualifying, then ‘Beverely Hills Cop’, ‘Made’ and we’re currently watching ‘Blue Streak’ while Col puts together our SSA Summer chat line!
Tomorrow’s ‘Las’s coupon shopping day’ – the printer managed to screw me out of a whole bunch of coupons today. It really got me cranky cause I was looking forward to some big savings! *grumbles*
Tomorrow is also Grand Prix day and it’s in Valencia. With the two Red Bulls not exactly on great terms with each other, I fully expect big things from my aggressive boys Lewis and Fernando who are starting on the 2nd row.
Local lad Alonso will want to show the home crowd that he’s got what it takes to win on home soil. I love nothing more than watching Hamilton and Alonso trying to make a point.
They are aggressive drivers, they take chances where other drivers wouldn’t and they push their cars harder than anyone and I really, really love watching them drive.
Although, in saying that, in the last race I thought Fernando was going to shine, he disappointed me, so I’m hoping for a good one tomorrow!
4 thoughts on “Wailers International…”
I still think it’s funny that you’re convinced we’re all a ‘go home early’ as a culture sort of place… if I go out for the night, I’m lucky if I’m home and in bed by 2 or 3 AM – just means I don’t go out much on the nights where I have to work the next day! Maybe it’s a Houston/SLB vs IA sort of culture thing, you won’t have a hard time here finding people to stay out or at your house till 1-2 AM, I have a hard time getting them to leave actually lol!!
All-in-all looks like you guys had a good time though!
It might be an IA thing cause I’ve had a few people message me (apparently no one leaves comments on public blogs any more) saying they’ve never thought about it like that before but i’m right cause most people do – family people/working people. It’s a big reason why we have our wedding early this year!
Yeah, as an American, I’m going to need someone to remind me the last time I was in bed at 10:30 😉 I think it depends on the people you have around as to who you can find to party/stay out till the wee hours of the morning.
As a red wine drinker I will actually applaud your chillin’ of the red because I don’t drink warm wine. So People come to my house get chilled wine no matter what, unless we haven’t opened it and it was a gift, then it is on the rack, but otherwise, cold. I even put ice in it if it isn’t pre-chilled.
I would come play sing star if you lived closer. Seeing as how you have friends in IA and Nebraska, I think you need to move here…just saying. Plus I have a States drivers license and am in desperate need of someone to motivate me to go to water aerobics lol
LMFAO I’m convinced you never sleep! NEVER!!!!!!!
hehe one of my guests even joked about putting it in the microwave to warm it up cause it was so cold! LOL! Man if you don’t get down for the wedding, we should meet up in Iowa and drink fruity wine (it’s the only stuff I like!). A rack? Like a wine rack? For wine? really? oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh look at you Miss snooty (I almost wrote snotty 😛 lol!!)
Col’s visa has him tied to SLB so if we move it has to be to an SLB location that has the IT dept. So, I think you should move to TX 😛 I would also kick ur butt to Aqua Aerobics at least 3 times a week!!
I still think it’s funny that you’re convinced we’re all a ‘go home early’ as a culture sort of place… if I go out for the night, I’m lucky if I’m home and in bed by 2 or 3 AM – just means I don’t go out much on the nights where I have to work the next day! Maybe it’s a Houston/SLB vs IA sort of culture thing, you won’t have a hard time here finding people to stay out or at your house till 1-2 AM, I have a hard time getting them to leave actually lol!!
All-in-all looks like you guys had a good time though!
It might be an IA thing cause I’ve had a few people message me (apparently no one leaves comments on public blogs any more) saying they’ve never thought about it like that before but i’m right cause most people do – family people/working people. It’s a big reason why we have our wedding early this year!
Yeah, as an American, I’m going to need someone to remind me the last time I was in bed at 10:30 😉 I think it depends on the people you have around as to who you can find to party/stay out till the wee hours of the morning.
As a red wine drinker I will actually applaud your chillin’ of the red because I don’t drink warm wine. So People come to my house get chilled wine no matter what, unless we haven’t opened it and it was a gift, then it is on the rack, but otherwise, cold. I even put ice in it if it isn’t pre-chilled.
I would come play sing star if you lived closer. Seeing as how you have friends in IA and Nebraska, I think you need to move here…just saying. Plus I have a States drivers license and am in desperate need of someone to motivate me to go to water aerobics lol
LMFAO I’m convinced you never sleep! NEVER!!!!!!!
hehe one of my guests even joked about putting it in the microwave to warm it up cause it was so cold! LOL! Man if you don’t get down for the wedding, we should meet up in Iowa and drink fruity wine (it’s the only stuff I like!). A rack? Like a wine rack? For wine? really? oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh look at you Miss snooty (I almost wrote snotty 😛 lol!!)
Col’s visa has him tied to SLB so if we move it has to be to an SLB location that has the IT dept. So, I think you should move to TX 😛 I would also kick ur butt to Aqua Aerobics at least 3 times a week!!