A cold and windy party

I would like to say "Today dawned clear and still" but I would be lying. The weather man was actually right this time. It was a cold (around 20°C) and windy day, with the occasional shower to keep us on our toes.

Our catering-helpers arrived at 11am for a 2pm start. I have to say, they were the best thing ever! Lorraine and her sister Linda did the majority of the food preparation - cutting up veges for the platter, frying the spring rolls, cooking the chicken sticks, cutting up the fruit... My mother steamed the Chinese yum cha dishes which we always get (for those in Sydney I highly recommend Lai Shing - they supply the restaurants and their Siu Mai, Har Gao and all the rest are absolutely delicious) and my brother and sister-in-law helped serve as well. We had a number of last minute cancellations but we still ended up with over 60 people - quite a manageable number, especially considering the weather!

We dressed Elora in the most spectacularly cute outfit which Grandma had bought - a little pink sun-dress with matching green cardigan. I don't think she'll ever get to wear it again since it's a "newborn" size. I added some pink tights and a beanie/beret to keep her warm. So cute! It's fun having a girl to dress up :)

We made some speeches - the usual thanking people for coming, and explaining Elora's full name. Her middle name is "Jane", after her great-great-grandmother (Dan's mother's grandmother), and her Chinese name is "Wen Mei" . "Wen" is the generation name for the girls and means gentle and wise. "Mei" is my mother's Chinese name and means beautiful - a very girly name. As one of my friends put it, if it was a dress it'd be pink and frilly, probably with flowers embroidered on it with lace applique.

Next, Elora's godfather, Dave (who, incidentally, was also the MC at our wedding) got up and expressed his delight and honour at being asked to help us look after her. Having been an only child, he relished the opportunity to be a part of Elora's life. Her other godparents, Jaime and Shannon are currently living in Vancouver, but our friend Anna (Atticus' godmother) read something they wrote instead. Since they couldn't be here, she decided to "channel" their spirits by pinning a large photo of them to her chest. It was so neat and funny! Thanks all you guys for such wonderful speeches and helping to make the day a memorable one.