Belated birthday lunch

My last post was about the student art show, but that was just the beginning of that day. From there we went to have my belated birthday lunch at The Woodlands Conference Center and Resort. I was going to link to their website but it doesn't list where we ate, which was called the something-or-other grill. It was actually very nice! Located on the second floor, overlooking the golf course, the view was panoramic; the service very good; and the food yummy. The fare is soup, sandwiches, and salads, with a full bar. Of course I had to start with a spicy Bloody Mary, no salt. Mmmmmmm!

We get together for these birthday celebrations for fun, to exchange gifts, and to enjoy good food -- not necessarily in that order. So here's a picture of my meal. It was some kind of spinach salad with feta and shrimp and scallops, and it was quite delicious.

But maybe not quite as delicious as the fried avocado, which was ordered by all the other ladies. Isn't it gorgeous? Two avocado halves, stuffed with chicken salad and deep fried in batter, then presented on a bed of greens with a couple of dollops of some wonderful fattening sauce. I just hate ordering the same thing as everyone else, and I also thought I'd make a wiser choice, calorie-wise. Of course by the time everyone gave me a "bite" of theirs I had consumed way more calories than anyone else! Sigh.

Here are Charlene and Dru about to plunge into their avocados.

The unique thing about these birthday parties is we all give the birthday girl a gift, but we also give everyone else a gift. I'm not sure how this got out of hand. It started as just a party favor kind of thing for everyone, like some Halloween candy at an October celebration, but now the "extra" gifts run the gamut from gag to glitz to downright wonderful. I guess the gifts presented proudly below by Glenda and Gloria fall into the "gag" category...

... while at the opposite end of the spectrum I am modeling a gift we all received -- a set of handcrafted earrings and necklace by woodturner extraordinaire Butch, with assistance provided by Gloria who I just bet put these together with the findings. What a nice group of creative and generous people!
When selecting a restaurant good food is a must, but we also need a lot of extra space for gifts, and the kind of atmosphere that will allow for a little raucous behavior! This place fit the bill. The only thing wrong with this last picture is Dru's not in it, but I guess that's what she gets for taking the best picture! Thanks to the yayas for all the gifts and for being so much fun!