How awesome was Puggy Prom?... SO AWESOME!

Did you miss Puggy Prom this year? Are you kicking yourself because you did? There, there...with any luck, we'll do it again next year!

We turned MetroBark into a "Puggin' on the Ritz" fantasy. Balloons, mirrored stars, top hats & canes decorated the main ballroom. Lisa & I created a fairy tale entrance with white lights, burgundy chiffon, white carnations & curly ribbons. I wanted it to be a gateway to a fantasy land...to let people know this was no ordinary dog party. Mission...accomplished!!! It looked amazing...pictures to come!

The food room had a "Lady & the Tramp" theme, complete with "clothes drying on lines between buildings" and "Belle Notte" playing softly in the background. Dan's mom spent several nights just cutting out pieces of "clothing" from construction paper to make the clothes lines, we found just the right table clothes, and Dan created a loop of the song that lasted over 2 hours! We had a small army of PugSocial's best & brightest decorating non-stop on Friday & Saturday to achieve everything I had envisioned. A huge thank you to my friends who worked really hard to get everything done.

Prom night goes by SOOOOO fast. It goes from 5:30 to 9:30 in the blink of an eye! Once again, I barely had a chance to talk to anyone, and I fell behind schedule (how does this happen?!?) but I think it went really well. $2, 630.50 in funds raised for OPR is nothing to sneeze at. People spent over $800.00 trying to win the stuff in the Chinese Auction. We had so many items donated at the last minute that the CA volunteers just kept bundling things together! The estimated total value of everything donated was well over $2,000. I really loved watching all the couples in the Owner/Pug Dance Contest; it was probably my favorite part of the night! I can't wait till we have all the video footage.

But this year made me realize that Puggy Prom has grown too big for me to handle all by myself. With over 140 people there, 20 of whom were vendors & volunteers who probably could have used more help, I spread myself too thin. I'm not ashamed, I'm proud that after only the second year of doing this, it's become such a huge deal. I'm really excited that I was able to solicit for prom committee members for next year...and it happened. A small group of "PugSocial's finest" have agreed to help me out next year! There's room for plenty more, but this is a good start. I can just see this event 4-5 years down the road. With careful cultivation, marketing & enthusiasm this can become as big as Chicago's Pug Crawl!

Look for pictures & video from the event up on PugSocial.com soon. That's my next project, as soon as the thank you letters are done!

Food! Glorious Food!

I sneaked a peek at the Puggy Prom "bible" and boy oh boy I hit the jackpot!

I present to you - the Puggy Prom 2008 menu!


Appetizers:

• Shrimp cocktail
• Assorted cheeses, crackers, olives and seasonal fruit

Salad:

• Spinach/romaine/bib/ iceburg medley
• Assorted toppings & dressings

Entree:
Pasta Bar

• Angel hair
• Penne
• Ricotta Stuffed Shells

topped with your choice of sauce:

• roasted tomato & basil marinara
• alfredo
• sundried tomato & marinated veggies a' olio

and protein:

• Parmesan breaded chicken
• Roasted Meatballs
• Cold shrimp
• Marinated veggies w/ toasted nuts

Garlic bread will also be served.


Dessert will againg be a glorious presentation of items to be dipped into a chocolate! You know Mother has two chocolate foutains now, what do you think she should put in the other one, caramel, peanut butter, white chocolate?

Prom Contests!!!

Darlings,

I bring you more exciting news from Puggy Prom '08 headquarters! Mummy has been dreaming and scheming up some new contests to keep us entertained (not that we'll be bored between the food, the raffles, my daddy at the "turntables", and of course all our dear friends to visit and sniff and follow!).

So what is this contest, you ask? Well it's none other than a "Mommy & Me" dance and a "Daddy & Me" dance contest!!! Isn't it simply to wooooo for?!? Ellie-nor and Mummy can have each other, I want to tango with my daddy! My puggie friends, who will you choose to fill your dance card? Will you perfect your cheek to cheek slow waltz with your Mommy, a fandango with Daddy, or even a foxtrot with your best Grandma? Of course now we need to find some esteemed judges. Is Bruno or Miss Inaba available? Dancing with the Pugs is WAAAAAY more interesting than some old E-list star.

Does anyone know where we can rent an applause-o-meter?

L'Amore,
Mallory Jane

Le Pet-tique! How I adore thee.....

Darlings,

Mal Jane here. I have been privy to the most delighting of newses. The ever dashing Mr. Lawrence Carter of Pet-tique has agreed to be an integral part of this year's promenade.

I overheard Mummy saying "trunk show - Pet-tique - March 30th - prom dresses!" Whee! Also, I happen to know for a fact that Pet-tique will have a mini boutique set up at the prom, for last minute accoutrement and the such-like. I personally might enjoy a new perfume for the occasion...MUMMY!

We all know that Sunday afternoon parties at Pet-tique are the best, there are always yummy snacks and beverages, not to mention the fact that Lawrence & Kevin both make it a point to carry me about like a princess. Dear Lawrence often thinks enough of me to place a charming little bed in the front window for me to model. I couldn't be happier if I was modeling diamonds for Tiffany's. This event will be even more special, because there will be a catalog with all this year's hottest prom fashions for the fellas AND the ladies. There should be a few samples to try on, and then you can order your favorite with plenty of time before prom.

And of course, if you aren't on the dance floor or hanging out on Bed #1 with moi, I certainly imagine you'll be in "mini" Pet-tique getting just the right bauble for your puggies. I can hardly contain my excitement.

L'Amore!
Mallory Jane

Theme Confirmed!

Dearest Readers,

Just wanted to drop in to confirm the rumors; Mother has set this year’s theme as “Putting Puggin’ on the Ritz”. The colors (based on the swatches strewn about the office) are burgundy, gold & black. She’s been babbling on about “Most our pugs have fawn or black coat, pugs in stripes or quilted warm coats with chests that fit… Puggin on the Ritz”. My darlings, I suspect she’ll be employing Nilda in another “Santa Baby” fiasco sooner than you can say, “Who wants a goody?!?!” This should be interesting to say the least.

I’ll be surfing her internet history for further tidbits the second I hear her car pull out of the driveway, rest assured.

L’Amore,
Mallory Jane

Prom Scoop - by Mallory Jane

Je suis enchante!

Mallory Jane here. Fashionable pug that I am, I’ve decided to start a gossip column. They say, “Write what you know”, so I’m going to dish on the latest & greatest on the social event of the season, Puggy Prom 2008. Mother thinks I’m snoozing away on the futon while she wheels & deals, but really, I’m just storing it away for all you fabulous pug people who want to stay in the know.

So here are the details I’ve uncovered thus far:
She’s got the date set, Saturday, April 26th, 2008. Mark your calendars. You may have heard that prom was originally scheduled for the previous Saturday, but that conflicted with the first night of Passover, so we decided to change it.
I’m supposing that the same evening hours will apply as last year, which was 6:30PM until 9:00PM. That fabulous facility, Metrobark, will be the site again this year, and really, I’m delighted! They had the most delectably comfortable mattresses set up along the wall where I could lounge & snooze as I pleased after working the crowd. I’ll probably hold court on the mattress closest to the doors, so all you A-listers better get there early to join moi.

Stay tuned darlings, I've got more where this came from! Ta-ta!

L’amore,
Mallory Jane