Ho enjoy yourself! Have fun! If you don't have anything to say, just smile.
That's what I do at family get-togethers.
Just don't think that you have to be perfect, because no one is perfect and it will just cause you to get nervous. Be yourself and have a great time!
I personally don't really like get-togethers either, but I still survive and you will too.
So the lady has chickens, too? Take that as an advantage to start a good conversation! Tell her about BYC, ask her if she's ever heard of it..etc. Here are some good conversation starters for you, since she has chickens:
~"Have you ever hatched eggs in an incubator or with a broody hen? Were they from your chickens or from a hatchery?"
~"Where did you get your chickens?"
~"Have you ever heard of BackYardChickens.com?"
~"BackYardChickens is a great site! It's really easy to register and it's free. I go on their all the time; the community is great, too. I get lots of information about chickens there."
~"Is _________(her husband) interested in chickens, too?"
Well! I did survive! To those of you who said I would have fun, you were right.
Jennspeeps- Thanks for the game tips. I felt a little more in the know! Of course when we got there the first thing the hostess said was "We kind of made up our own rules!" Still though your info helped and once we got started it really was fun!
DH already told them we would gladly come back! I still have my crowd phobia but at least they are not complete strangers any more.
There was another wife there that said she went through the same anxiety that I did about going. In fact this is the first time she attended, her DH always went alone. So we had our phobia in common and that gave us something to talk about!
Drink a shot of rum or whisky or a glass of wine something like that about 1/2 hr before you leave(brush teeth after, so you don't smell like alcohol when you arrive). Make your hubby drive you there - that way you can split the driving. You had your drink to relax before the party so he drives going there; he can drink during the party which gives you time to recover and you can drive home. That way, it is a win win situation!!