Tapas from around the world

Last night we had two couples over for "dinner." However, our table barely seats four comfortably, so trying to serve six people would be tricky. The solution: TAPAS! Erik made a wonderful selection of various appetizers from around the world. He made wraps filled with asparagus hugged in ham and held together with a delicious spread, a cheese platter with grapes, two different hummus dips with bread, a seafood dip and crackers, pepper jelly and cream cheese (which was actually made by MIL - the mother-in-law) as was the apricot and strawberry tartlet. I cleaned house most of the day so my contribution was store bought almond, lemon poppy seed loaf and chocolates. I think there were some other dishes, but I can't remember right now. The table was abundantly covered. We ate on the screened-in porch then later in the evening as it cooled down we headed back inside to the living room. It was a very enjoyable evening. We were able to get everything cleared last night and loaded in the dishwasher, so this morning I only need to wipe down the coffee table, run the vacuum over the carpets, and wipe down the bathroom counters and fixtures. The house is being shown at 12:00 pm today.

The couples that joined us for the evening are from RET. We discovered that five of us had ties to St. Louis. What a small world! We found that while we each are involved in very different professions (psychiatry, property management, legal) we each had something in common - aside from RET - that helped us to connect. Not to diminish RET's involvement in these connections, for not RET we probably never would have met so many of our great friends. However, it's just nice to know that these kind and caring folks reside right here in the Knoxville area. I will miss them all very much.