A Presidential Kiss

Last night was my fifth annual trip to the White House Christmas Party and I had such a great time! I took my friend Katie with me and we had a blast. I tried explaining to her that it was basically my office Christmas party that just so happened to take place at the White House and part of the festivities is getting your picture with the President. Last year as you'll recall, I took my parents which was awesome because people feel obligated to say all kinds of nice things about you, true or untrue. I have to admit there was not nearly as much of that going on this year but it was still fun! And Katie was quite the trooper having to endure meeting all my co-workers! :)

The decorations were of course beautiful as ever. The theme this year was red, white, and blue. Katie wore a red dress and I wore a blue dress. I was hoping FLOTUS would be in white to round out the trio but she was in green instead. I guess green works for Christmas! Haha! The trees were incredibly beautiful and the food was wonderful, especially the cheese grits and the beef tenderloin. Oh and the bread pudding!! I love that stuff as you'll recall.

I don't want to sound jaded at all and I realize that what I say is going to be jaded just as soon as my fingers stop typing it but every year the party is pretty much the same. So I have to look for "the moment" that stands out. This year's moment came at the photo-op with POTUS and FLOTUS. I think I may have explained the way things work last year but here it is again. When you walk in to the WH, they give you a card for when to get your picture taken. But if you are some of the first people there, you don't have to wait in line. I believe it's always a good idea to get the picture out of the way. That way there is less pressure when you're eating not to spill anything on you. So we headed straight to the bathroom first to fix our hair (after standing in the rain for 20 minutes waiting to get in!) and then straight to the line for the pictures. You line up in the Map Room (which has, you guessed it, a lot of maps and it's where they planned WW2 back in the day!) and they take your purses and make sure you're not too drunk to meet POTUS. We passed that test with flying colors. Then you get paired with a military escort who introduces/announces you to POTUS/FLOTUS. I was in line behind a couple of friends of mine and told them to tell POTUS it was my birthday after they got their picture taken. I didn't think they'd do it but they did so when it was our turn to have the picture taken, POTUS said Happy Birthday and GAVE ME A HUGE KISS ON THE CHEEK! He said, "There's a birthday kiss from the President." I said, "Thank you, I've never gotten one of those before." FLOTUS then told me Happy Birthday and then the picture was taken. I have to admit, I felt a little special at that moment. They stand there for night after night of Christmas parties and it's amazing how they make each person's 45 seconds completely special. I don't know if my birthday kiss was captured by the WH photographer but I'm just hoping that our picture of the four of us turned out okay. I'll definitely post it when I get it (which this year will likely be after the 1st of the year!)

The rest of the evening was spent seeing my co-workers and colleagues from other networks. And I have to say, I enjoy these parties more and more each year. Not for the WH or POTUS but just because I enjoy being with my friends from work outside of work. Or kind of outside of work since technically we were in the building where we work! Next year's Christmas party promises to be different in at least the hosts. I'm already worried because the Obamas are sooo much taller than the Bushes and I'm worried about the picture already!

Today, the day after the official WH party is the unofficial WH Basement party where it's potluck and thrown by those of us who are WH basement dwellers! I think we should be allowed to have leftovers from the previous night's party but today's food will be just as good!! I was in charge of bringing desserts and since it is my birthday, I picked out something I knew I would like!! I'm trying to take too much of the attention away from the whole 'Holiday' theme but it's supposed to be all about me today, right?? Or am I a little too old for that sentiment? :)