"I was able to enjoy the party without any stress"

A mum, that's me, asks her son how he would like to celebrate his 40th birthday. He replies that he'd like it to be a family affair, perhaps a hot lunch as he wants his young nieces and nephew to be there."Easy, I thought!Only 13 people to feed." Then his fiancée whispers, "We can't have 13. It's unlucky. Why not ask a few of his friends and their children as a surprise? It becomes 25 guests in as many hours.

His sister, with the largest house, offers to host the party but I can't expect her to cook-she has three children under 5 years. So what does a mum do? "Try "Cook" in the next village," suggests my neighbour. I did.

The friendly staff suggested lasagne,both meat and vegetarian and my granddaughters had lots of fun choosing the desserts for their uncle's party. All I had to do was to buy the garlic bread and "cook" a green salad.

Easy! Delicious! Much nicer than my own lasagne and pleased young and old alike. A very successful 40th birthday celebration. I was able to enjoy the party without any stress.

Thank you Edward and Dale.