We married in June of 1978 and starting that year we began what would become an Annual Christmas Birthday Gumbo Party. We both love Christmas and having December birthdays made it even more festive (Steve’s is the 18th and mine is the 27th). The first party was a great success and grew exponentially through the years. We had a lot of Texas friends living in other states, mainly California, who would come home at Christmas time to visit their families. Everybody knows a lot of time with family can become trying or just plain boring. Where did these people go to get some relief? Why, Steve and DeeDee’s of course for some cheer and gumbo!

We had the party every Christmas in Houston until we moved to Los Angeles in 1986 where the tradition continued throughout our 25 years there. We did take a break for a few years when it just got too big for our tiny Burbank bungalow and when we realized there were people there wandering through our house that we didn’t even know! Seems that some of our friends invited other friends who invited other friends and so on. We had to nip that in the bud.

We started it back again with a small group. Actually it was a guy hang. Steve would invite his musician buddies over, I would make the gumbo and we would sit around a cozy fire and sing Christmas Carols with Skip Van Winkl playing our old out-of-tune upright piano. Gradually we started adding a few more people and before long it was back to a big crowd by the time we left LA to go home to Houston in 2011.

Our first Christmas in Texas was spent moving into our newly built home on three beautiful acres outside Houston. We couldn’t get it together to have the party yet, but come 2013 we were back in full swing with 85 guests. We made, literally gallons of gumbo — 15 to be exact and hardly had any left. We also added live music. Steve equipped his studio with all necessities and the musicians could just pick up an instrument and play together with whomever. It had to be one of the best gatherings ever!

In 2014, we celebrated again and it too was grand. The weather was chilly and we added outdoor fire pits and 2 patio heaters. This was also the first year I introduced my “Dessert Bar”. I had always made sweets for Christmas but I took it a step further, baking 12 different items and displaying them on serving platters and tiers with a “legend poster” showing a photo of each item with their description. People want to know what they are eating!

We are preparing for this year’s celebration with more experience than we have ever had with a party this size. Tables and chairs are ordered, Heaters are ready for warmth and I’m planning my baking for the dessert bar. Fifteen gallons of gumbo need to be made however I’ve got that down to a science. It helps that both myself and my husband are half-Cajun (his Mom, Gracie and my Dad, Frenchy).

We absolutely adore giving ourselves and others this party. It is a gift to us and to our friends and family.

Let the festivities begin!