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Entertaining is one of my favorite things. I love to get together with friends and family and eat a meal or just hang out. Now that the weather is cooling off and festive decorations are popping up, it makes me want to fill the calendar with dinner parties and playdates. While having scheduled get togethers is fun, sometimes it’s the quick, last night get togethers that are the best. For some, last minute can equal stressful. Here are 5 tips to easy entertaining, so have fun and relax.
#1 Fresh Flowers
This is one of my favorite things. It changes the entire feeling of a room. Try adding this to your weekly grocery budget. For less than $10 you can have a beautiful floral arrangement the brighten the room. Tip for saving a few dollars: find a single vase that you really like and buy just the flowers each week. Flower bundles are much more cost effective than pre-made arrangements.
#2 Use Real Dishes
As a house with a toddler, we have put our nice dishes away and use mainly plastic plates and bowls these days. Paper plates may seem like a simple clean up solution, but using the real dishes when entertaining will make it feel like a lot of planning went into your visit.
#3 Have A Plan
Have a simple plan in place that you use when you are entertaining. Make it simple so that it can be used for those last minute guests as well. I like to have a small list of foods that are perfect for almost everyone and, of course, reminders to do things like change out the hand towel in the powder room.
#4 Store Bought Food for the Win!
Toddlers and husbands love finger foods, so do guests! I like to pick up a meat/cheese/cracker tray at the store each week. We snack on it for lunches and when last minute guests are coming over, it’s perfect for easy entertaining! Don’t have a fancy cheese board? No worries, your cutting board will work perfectly. Make dessert easy, too, by picking up delicious already made treats, one of my favorites are mini pies. Mr Kipling pies are available for a limited time at select Texas Walmarts. Good thing they freeze great, I’ll be stocking up. The Mississippi Mud is the favorite for everyone in our house, but they make a variety of tasty fruit options too that are made with real fruit.
#5 Relax!
Your guests will be able to tell if you are a nervous about having them over. Relax and enjoy the company. Dishes can be done after everyone leaves. Really it’s about time together and not the little things.
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