Stress Free Holiday Hosting Ideas That Will Make You Look Like a Pro
Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. Kids have finally settled back into school. Birds fly south for the winter, nature turns orange, red, yellow, and brown, leaves fall, and my favorite holidays are quickly approaching. So much to do. So much to plan for, but we only have a few weeks till Thanksgiving and two hops and a jump later we are knocking on Christmas door.
Thanksgiving and Christmas are like winters version of a family reunion. Family and friends come from near and far. Family members share food, drinks, and stories. They play games and create lifelong memories that last forever. While the kids carelessly bounce their hearts away when you rent a bounce house near me for them.
I'm sure most of us share the sentiment that the holidays are our favorite times of the year, but that does not take away from the stress it causes. Ive made a list of things you can do to reduce the holiday stress and make you look like a professional.
Carefully Plan and Write Out Your dinner Menu and Activities
If I could use an analogy; studying, eating, and sleeping properly are important steps to taking a test. This is all done before the day of the test. Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners are similar in that the preparation helps make the day of so much easier.
· Write down a list of dishes you would like to have and the ingredients it takes to make them. You can slowly add them to your regular shopping lists to keep the sticker shock of an extra grocery bill away so close to the holidays.
· Deciding on games and activities to play, which TV is best set up to watch the Cowboys play, and when to open gifts if it’s a Christmas party. Renting bounce houses near me in advance to make sure you get the perfect one that fits the age, intrests, and activities of your young family menbers.
· Counting the number of guest and making sure you have enough food, drinks, plates, silverware, glasses, and table setting.
These are all important things that are good to know in advance of your party. They diagnose potential issues early so it’s easier to resolve. It also puts your mind into a mode that is constantly thinking and reiterating your plans in case you forget or overlook something. It also allows you to slowly but methodically prepare in advance instead of rushing at the last minute.
Prepare Some Food in Advance
From the outside, my kitchen looks like an unorganized catastrophe. My wife and I are like mad scientist focused on our tasks and dishes with presentation, pride, and love in mind. What used to be chaotic is now a smooth operation where we all work together to create a great dinner. Sharing the oven, stove, and mixing bowls and cleaning while cooking and, of course tasking Alexa with playing our favorite music.
To simplify things, we decided to prepare some meals in advance. Additionally, we chose to cook outside in our outdoor space as well as using the kitchen. This was done to free us space and time so we are not as stressed out on a day that is ment for us to be thankful and appreciative of all the many blessing we have.
Most dressings, casseroles, and desserts can be made in advance and frozen or placed in the refrigerator until dinner day. Use your outdoor cooking equipment for meat and veggies to save oven space for other dishes.
While this sounds small in comparison to the overall picture, it’s a huge mental step in the overall process. Getting it knocked out early frees your mind of one additional task on Thanksgiving Day.
Presentation is important. Focus on setting the table. Check for water stains on the glasses. Ensure everything is evenly spaced. Save the multitasking for cooking.
Make It A Pot Luck
Your guests are just as excited and eager as you for Thanksgiving. Asking your guests to bring a dish is a great way to save time, energy, and money. Your guest are generally happy and honored to bring that one dish they have been perfecting all year.
Give them some of the spotlight while giving yourself a bit of a break. Always take etiquette into consideration in these cases. If there are any rules or restrictions please let the guests know when you ask them to contribute. For instance, if you know someone has peanut allergies, make sure you both ask them to bring something and also let them know that one of the guest is allergic to peanuts.
It's always helpful to ask guest to bring certain items or ask them to let you know whithin a week what they are bringing so you can update everyone else. Having 5 different green bean casserole dishes and no macaroni and cheese is something you want to avoid.
Rent activities and items you do not have enough of
Dinner at your home may only happen once or twice a year. It’s not financially beneficial for you to store servings and seating for 25 or 40 people only to pull them out once or twice per year.
Today, it is so easy to rent special event items we only need randomly. Most party or event rentals are delivered to our door clean and ready to use. Afterwards, we can place them back at the door to be picked up and cleaned by the event rental company.
Utilizing a service like this can be financially beneficial, convenient, and time saving. Besides, having new or different place settings every year freshens up the look each Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Kids are an important part of the holidays as well. They soon will be taking over the reins and inviting everyone to their home. But for now, keep them out of the kitchen and away from the grown people's conversations with a moonbounce rental from Fun Times Party Rental. Its sure to provide hours of fun.
Tables and chairs are also something we can easily forget to account for. Make sure you have seating for everyone. But if you do not, renting tables and chairs is alway practically prices and logistically easy. If you are searving dinner outside and need a canopy to rent, Fun Times Party Reant can help with that as well.
Family dinners should be a time to appreciate and enjoy the company of your friends and family. Go into this process knowing everything will not go as planned. Have some backup ideas ready just in case and regardless, go with the flow and know the most important part of the dinner is being around friends and family. Everything else is secondary.
