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Holiday Party Planning

11/14/2017

Tis the Season for Holiday party planning! I know many of us love to entertain, but the thought of it can be a bit stressful! So, I wanted to gather some tips together to help you enjoy your party as much as your guests!

4-3 Weeks Out:

Get your guest list together and send invites out. If you want your guest out of your house by a certain time, then set an end time, if not, then don’t!
If you are planning a potluck, designate dishes to guests.

About 3 Weeks Out:

Plan your menu.
Try to estimate how many people you will host, and purchase your nonperishable items. You can still tweak needed items once you get a more accurate count. Use this guide on Pinterest to help you figure out how much food you will need for each guest.
Plan out what food items will be served in what dish. If you need extra serving pieces, ask a friend to borrow theirs…or if you entertain often, maybe now is a good time to “gift yourself” and purchase more.
Plan your theme/décor.

Two Weeks Out

If you are hosting a potluck, set your RSVP date for now. That way, you will know what dishes will still need to be made for those who can't make it, and you can finalize your menu/shopping list.
Purchase your remaining nonperishable items.
Prepare dishes that can be frozen.

One Week Out:

Finalize your guest list.
Decide if you will need extra ice/coolers. Locate your coolers and/or borrow some from a friend. Remember to clean them out….coolers can get quite yucky!

3 Days Out:

Clean your serving ware and glass ware.
Purchase liquor, beer and wine.

2 Days Out:

Finalize your menu/shopping list and purchase any needed items, including your fresh items.
Start cleaning! Save your bathroom for the day of the party.
Start decorating.

1 Day Out:

Start chilling sparkling and white wine.
Start preparing fresh dishes/thaw any frozen dishes.
Set up your bar area.
Finish decorating! Set up your dining table if you are having a sit down dinner, if not, set up a few “gathering areas” where people can mingle, set their drinks down and use their hands to eat that delicious food!

Day Of…Here we go!!!!

Designate a place where you will store people's coats, get extra hangers ready!
Buy ice, get coolers situated.
Set up the serving area. I like to set out my serving ware and put a sticky note as to what food items will be going into that dish. That way even hubby can help!
Finish cleaning! Prep your powder room and make extra tissues/toilet paper and air freshener ACCESSIBLE!!! Consider using disposable guest towels so that you don’t have to worry about switching the guest towel out. Light a scented candle about 1 hour before party, along with any other scented candles you may be using throughout your home.
Light any non-scented candles 30 minutes before go time.
Remember to take time to enjoy yourself!

Day AFTER Party

If you plan on having an annual Holiday party, do take some time the day after to take notes. Maybe you ran out of something, and you want to ensure that doesn’t happen again next year! Also, you may want to change up your menu from year to year, so keeping a track of yearly menus will be helpful next year when planning that party.

I want to wish everyone planning parties this Holiday Season a successful event! I'd love to hear some of your tips in the comment section!

Cheers!
Ali

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Your Perfect Fridge Setup

11/1/2017

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So, I promised to write about the perfect fridge set up, and since I just purchased a new refrigerator, I’m really motivated to write this blog;) The first step would be to remove everything from your fridge, paying attention to expiration dates! Chuck anything that’s expired, and remember to keep a list of the things you threw out so that you can replace them on your next shopping trip.
After giving your fridge a proper cleaning, use liners to help contain spills. These ones from Kitchen Millennium can be found on Amazon and are awesome!!! They come in a bunch of fun colors/designs, and they are even washable for when spills do occur.

Next, give some thought around what the best spots are in the fridge for certain items. Snacks should be convenient for the kids, meats should be on lower shelves and milk should be kept cold. Here are some guidelines you may want to keep in mind:

The door is the best place for foods that have a long shelf life; think condiments, canned drinks, butter…unfortunately this is NOT the best place for milk!
Bottom shelves are best used for raw meats, preferably in a lipped tray to contain any leaking (liners will help with any leaks!). This is also a perfect place for a Lazy Susan to keep the condiments that tend to get lost in the back of the fridge contained and accessible. You could even label one "expires soon" so that you know to use those items up!
Do pay attention to your crisper drawer’s designations and use the correct one for veggies vs. fruits. It does help to keep these foods fresher, longer. Also, take the extra few minutes to wash them BEFORE putting them in the fridge. That way they are RTE (ready to eat!) and it will help to keep your fridge clean! Here’s my favorite DIY veggie/fruit cleaner recipes from Fabulessly Frugal.
Middle shelves are great to keep ready to eat foods, snacks for the kids and leftovers. Keeping these items separated in bins that are labeled will help to keep your fridge neat and tidy and everyone in your family will be able to clearly see where things belong! This collection from The Container Store gets my vote!

Finally the top shelf! THIS is where your milk belongs, towards the back to keep it nice and cold. Also a great place to keep wine, eggs and celery (in a cup with water and a plastic bag over it…trust me, try it!).

With the Holidays fast approaching, I'm confident you'll be glad that you took a few hours now to get your fridge organized! Please feel free to share this blog and leave your comments!

Your answer for organizing,
Ali

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Holiday Party Planning

Your Perfect Fridge Setup

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