Cheese, Glorious Cheese -- Finally!

The other day I was being all mysterious about this "commitment" I had. Like I said then, I get my excitement where I can. But this was truly fun.

I was invited by The National Dairy Council and the 3-A-Day of Dairy to attend an event at Super Suppers in Decatur, Georgia that is designed to help get the word out about the importance of getting at least 3 servings of dairy daily in your diet (hey, alliteration again!).

Now I'm all about dairy, especially cheese. I don't know if this has to do with the fact that my grandfather owned a dairy farm when I was growing up or not, but dairy is definitely in my blood. In fact, Mr. Daddy likes to make fun of how much shredded cheese I buy at the store every week, but the truth of the matter is that the stuff comes in handy. I make a lot of casseroles -- hey, they're easy to put together the night before and the kids usually dig them -- and casseroles usually call for cheese. I make so many casseroles that my kids probably don't realize that all food doesn't come mixed together in one handy dish.

But back to the event. Several of these "create a week's worth of meals" places have opened up nearby but I had yet to try any of them so I was doubly excited when I got the invitation.

Of course I got there early. I always get everywhere early. It's just a thing I do. But look what awaited me:

You know it's going to be a party when there are balloons!

When I got inside there was a whole host of ladies from the National Dairy Council who were so friendly and welcoming. And of course there was food -- with dairy! And wine! And sangria! (it was, truth be told, the MOST delicious sangria I ever had) (Don't worry, there WAS milk to drink later. With the brownies. Don't hate me. They just wanted to get us liquored up first so we would talk about our blogs. AS IF! Like Miss Zoot said, "Free food and people who want to listen to us talk about our blogs! Does it get any better than this?")

They let us wander around and graze while we got to know each other. Guess where Madame Queen ended up? Right by the food. You never have to tell me to get in line for food. I'm always willing to be first in line.

I have to confess that one of the reasons I was so excited to go was because I got to meet two of my favorite bloggers -- Lulu and Sophie. I was sort of nervous. Kind of like going on a blind date with someone you've only met online. But I read their blogs daily and so as soon as I saw them I felt like we were old friends.

Finally they put us to work! Around the room were six stations, each set up for one particular recipe. All the ingredients you would need were right there, all with the correct measuring cup inside. And that was a big deal to me. I'm big on following measurements. I know there are lots of people out there who can just throw things together and have them be delicious, but I am NOT one of those people. If I'm following a recipe and it calls for 3/4 Tbsp., I'm going to put in 3/4 Tbsp. Because that's what it calls for! Whoever came up with the recipe came up with that measurement for a reason. Who am I to go changing it, you know?

And the food looked delicious. I wish I had some photos of it. I cooked the pan seared ravioli last night and it was delicious. Bubba didn't care for it, but he eats (and actually likes) so little these days that frankly I'm surprised he has the energy to get out of bed every morning, much less be the whirling dervish that he usually is.

We made 6 meals, which was absolutely awesome. I immediately started trying to decide if I wanted to give myself sort of a cooking vacation and cook them all in one week or spread them out a little. I've ultimately decided to spread them out. It makes the enjoyment last a leetle longer. But we had so much food that we actually had to use a cart to get it out to my car. See!


They also sent us home with so much stuff! A free 3-A-Day apron, some 3-A-Day drinking glasses, a ton of dairy-friendly recipes (aw yeah!) and a ton of new blogs to read!

And truly, for me, that was the best part. Getting to meet all the other bloggers. Here we all are, doing our "milk toast."

If you want to check out their blogs, they are:

Miss Zoot

A Hole in the Fence

Lulu's Laundry

Gypsy's Musings

The days...by Michelle

The Lovely Mrs. Davis Tells You What to Think

Breaking the Dress Code

and last but certainly not least

Foodmomiac

If you ever get a chance to go to a Super Suppers, or similar establishment, I highly recommend it. Especially if good friends, good food, good sangria and good conversation are on the menu!