Party Prep

#8 Party Prep, originally uploaded by Dyna Moe.

Have you seen these awesome illustrations by Dyna Moe on Flickr? Every week she posts a work of art themed around the most recent Mad Men episode. They are amazing and many are available as wallpapers for your iPhone.

This particular illustration of Betty Draper busting up a wobbly chair while preparing for a dinner party cracked me up.  I've been meaning to write about some of the things I do before/during/after parties to make them easier, but that whole episode reminded me how I tend to get a little crazy before parties, hushing my family and cleaning like an insane person.  (But I do it out of LOVE!)  (For PARTIES!) (and party themed BOOZE!)

I started this post about a week ago, but now I can safely say that my biggest piece of party advice is to make sure you don't have a seriously painful Vicodin-requiring dental surgery five days before you plan to have a full house.  Not good planning on my part!  But I'm fine now and unless I'm forgetting something, everything is back on schedule and we're ready to go for tomorrow night.

So anyway, here are some things I do to make having parties actually FUN for me after the people get here and I have a cocktail, or four.

TIMELINE: I try to decorate everything I can the week before a party.  I generally clean TWO days before a party and cook the day BEFORE a party.  Then I clean AGAIN on the day of the party, saving the bathroom for last so no one has the chance to pee on the floor before everyone arrives.  Yesterday I started by taking out all of my bowls/platter/decorations and temporarily arranging them where I think they'll go, just to get an idea of how much space I have and to make sure I'm not scrambling for a platter ten minutes before my guests arrive. 

Speaking of, I plan to set myself a timer for when it's time to stop working and get myself ready for the party.  I can't tell you how many times I've answered the door for my guests dripping wet and still sweaty from the shower.  A worst case scenario for me is that all the food is ready, the house is beautiful and I'm wearing two-day old greasy hair and pajamas.  Since this is a Halloween party, I'll need extra time to spiff up and apply the crazy fake eyelashes I bought!

FOOD:  Last year we had a big Christmas party and I made the mistake of not having it be a pot luck dinner.  I made all the food.  And as much as I love cooking, it was too much work and I ended up not finishing everything before my guests arrived.  (My cousin helped me cook the meatballs during the party).  (Incidentally I would've LOVED to have made a lasagna for that party, but it's my go-to dinner and literally EVERYONE I invited had been to our house for my lasagna within the two months leading up to that party.  This year I'm saving the lasagna for the Christmas party!)

Not to mention the fact that a lot of my friends are REALLY good cooks and by asking them to bring side dishes, I get to enjoy new things I didn't have to prepare myself.  Having a potluck is like sharing the wealth and as much as I love for it to be all about me (duh!), it's really nice to spread the effort around a little.  For this party I'm making homemade mac 'n cheese, hot dogs (for the kids), appetizers (sausage stuffed mushrooms and tomatoes caprese) and a few desserts.  The rest will be up to my guests!

ENTERTAINMENT:  I always try to have something for the kids to do besides just run around and get into trouble.  In the summer, we'll usually get a jump house, but in the winter... it's harder.  This time we've hired a babysitter to keep the kids busy upstairs.  She's one of the counselors we met when Alex attended summer camp at the local community center.  She's full of energy and GREAT with the kids and having her here will mean that the grown ups might actually get to finish a conversation or two.  It's a win-win for everyone. (Of course the only "entertainment" the parents need is the liquid kind.)

Dave and I have a bunch of fun spooky stuff planned for Saturday, but I don't want to ruin it for my guests (every single one of which reads this here page), so I'll definitely be doing a follow up post with photos.  I LOOOOVE Halloween!

Comments

[Jimmie]

How exciting! I can't wait to hear all about your party...I'm the same way when it comes to entertaining...I LIVE for it, and I'm an obsessive pre-planner, cooker, and decorator.

Unfortunately, even without kids, I, too, have to save the last-minute cleaning for truly last-minute. We have cats, one of which is a long-haired Himalayan, and his hair gets EVERYWHERE...I really don't want my guests to see white cat hair in their appetizers, or get up from my couch with their black pants covered in cat fur.

[Tana Davis]

WOHOO!! Can't wait!!!

[Kendall's Mom]

Details, details...you ARE the hostest-with-the-mostest. How very spooky and very "Martha" of you to get REAL LIVE MICE just for the party. You think of EVERYTHING!!

[allie]

You are a trooper for doing it so soon after the tooth incident.
How's this for poor party timetable planning: Halloween party next friday. Monday they are tearing apart my kitchen/ floor/ drain/ entry way because our kitchen drain pipes are broken under the slab floor. They tell me they will be done by Friday.
Eagerly looking forward to your post party post so I can start the decorations (in the garage) and put them up as the plumbers are leaving friday. You can bet we are doing pot luck / and paper. We may end up eating in the garage.

[jamie]

hey gf! First, I tried 2post u good thoughts the other day, but my phone froze. Second, how I SO WISH I was going 2 ur party!!! U are SUCH a great hostess, and ur are awesome!!! It goes without saying to have a couple drinks 4 me! ;)

[Megan]

I've been a fan of Dyna Moe's for so long, and also a fan of yours, so it's very exciting to see both things come together here!!

[Julie]

I'm so impressed. Definitely not a hostess myself, which makes me admire you all the more.

[Kate]

I wish we could have been there! Sounds like such a blast! I was distantly hoping we'd be able to stop by, but we were zonked after the funeral and Em's recital. Can't wait to see you tmro!

Kate :)