wedded bliss

AnnDinM&PHad to tell a little lie the other day…  but I can explain.  You see, my wonderful mom-in-law and dad-in-law were celebrating 55 years of wedded bliss, so we decided to have a little surprise dinner at our house in their honor.  Not a major event, just a small gathering of family to help them celebrate.  In the end, I think there were almost twenty of us gathered together, and it was an evening full of laughter, love and a lot of wine!

Now everyone has their secret tips for making events, like this, successful…  and I would love to know your secrets!!  Here are just a couple of mine.  #1  Delegate!  Let everyone contribute.  For those who don’t like to cook; no problem.  Assign them a store bought item or wine!  #2  Not everything has to be homemade!  If you are a baker and love to make desserts; Go for it – But then purchase a store bought appetizer!  #3 Prioritize and keep it simple!  This is a big one, and totally varies from person to person!!  Personally, I love the detail stuff – “themes” and table decorations, homemade tags on the dipping oil… But to take the time to dust before the party…?  Ya – Probably not gonna happen.  Like I said; this is an individual thing.  Everyone has a different set of priorities. Maybe dusting is your #1 priority!!   Just make sure that you make time to do the things that are important to you!! 

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We went with an Italian bistro theme…  complete with a little Frank Sinatra (of course!), red & white checked paper placemats (super easy clean up!) and some Chianti wine!  An Italian platter as an appetizer also made it super simple (no cooking!) – cheese, salami, Rosemary almonds, stuffed olives, crostini with goat cheese and bruschetta…  Our main course consisted of home-made lasagna, meatballs, oven roasted Italian green beans, Italian salad and warm, crusty bread with homemade Italian dipping oil.  (Dipping oil recipe was posted on my Facebook page; “Tasty Tuesday” Sept 3 – Click hereFor dessert we served Italian gelato with homemade biscotti, which I served in assorted hand-painted martini glasses (Biscotti recipe coming…  tomorrow!!)  And that, friends, is my final “tip of the day” – fun and super simple… I love using martini glasses for serving dessert!  I especially love that everyone’s glass was different (I did this on purpose – Not a matchy-matchy kinda gal!), but you can certainly use whatever martini glasses you have on hand!!  I have a huge advantage in the fact that I paint and sell cocktail glasses, so my “inventory” is probably a bit more extensive… Ha! 

So there we go.  My suggestions, in a nutshell, for hosting a little gathering of your own.  I realize now that I already gave you my “final tip”, but I just thought of one more… and it’s a BIGGIE, actually!  Chances are good that you will not complete your “things to do before the party” list.  Just sayin.  However, once the party starts… let it go.  Pour a glass of wine and join in the fun.  Whatever didn’t get done isn’t gonna get done… so never mind.  If you are having a good time at your party, so will your friends!!  And at the end of the day, isn’t that all that really matters…?  Bon Appetit!!

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6 thoughts on “wedded bliss

  1. Cathy, your party looked wonderful…have to get that dipping oil recipe. There truly is nothing better than a small, intimate party.

    1. I agree, Mary! At the end of the evening you feel as if you actually had the chance to visit with everyone!!! The dipping oil is a family fav around here – so be sure to go check it out on my Facebook page! It’s one of those that you can easily personalize as far as your favorite herbs, or what you have on hand that day!! Come back and let me know whatcha think!! 🙂

  2. Love the dipping oil! The reason I didn’t see it initially is because I don’t always check facebook. Looks like a great party. It sounds to me like you did a lot of cooking. I’m looking forward to your biscotti recipe. I’m not good at making lasagna so I would have probably bought it from Bravo or Mio’s. As much as I’d love for everything to be homemade I’ve realized it’s better for my stress level if I focus on a few things and buy the rest. Also, I’m a planner so the more organized I am the better.

    1. Well- You are correct in assuming that there was some cooking involved… However; it was all divvied up – so everyone had a part in it! And there is NOTHING wrong with lasagna (or anything else, for that matter!) from Mio or Bravo!! You nailed it on the point that I was trying to make about “stress level”!! Focus, delegate & prioritize… then let go, relax & enjoy! Do what works for YOU! Ya – You are a planner. And you would definitely PLAN to dust your house ahead of time… for sure. xo

  3. Oh my I didn’t realize we would be pictured on the internet! Cathy is THE BEST party planner in the world and really pulled this SURPRISE off in the most unique way.
    EVERYTHING was over board and we loved every minute. We are so lucky to have her in our family and no, you can’t steel her from us!!

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