Plain and Simple

I'm putting it all out there today.  My daughters have asked me several times to do a series on entertaining and since I know so many sweet girls just starting out and since I am starting up a hospitality ministry in our church, I think now might be the time.  

I think a lot of people are intimidated by the thought of having people over.  Nobody sees your flaws and the flaws of your home like you do.  Sometimes we are afraid we just don't measure up, our things aren't as nice as other people's, everything is so imperfect.

I am here to tell you, that is no reason not to ask people over.  As bloggers we tend to fancy things up for that Pinterest pin.  I happen to be one of those people who has rarely seen a set of dishes I didn't covet.  I have at least 6 sets to mix and match, and I love to set a nice table.  I like pretty things, and what guests don't realize is that with my skin flinty ways I get those things dirt cheap.

But some of the best times of friendship and fun I have had, have been when the table was piled with paper plates, cups and napkins and the food consisted of  chips, dip and whatever someone wanted to share for the potluck.  The food is not the focus. The people are.

What you see here is my table. My grandmother's table first, and now mine, still scarred from crafts from when the girls were little, (and my own crafts have made a few marks!).  I never cared if it got scratched or marred because their fun and creativity was more important.  I usually throw a yard sale tablecloth over it when folks come over. I have plans to refinish it some day, but I'm ok with it not being picture perfect for now.

When we invite people over for dinner or any other time, I want to focus on getting to know them.  People are more important than dishes, perfect table settings or perfect menus.  I'm not afraid to let people see my scratched table or the holes that my vintage table cloth may have.  We all just enjoy being together and getting to know each other on a deeper level. 

As picnic and party season approaches, I encourage you to open your homes and your hearts to people you love and those you would like to know better. Don't worry about the worn rug, the scratches on the table, don't even worry about what you will serve, make it pot luck if you have to. Just do it.  The friendships that will deepen and the joy you will gain are so worth it.

Summer Entertaining

Well there you go, it's been a couple weeks since I updated and my daughter finally messaged me wanting to know what is going on. Nothing really. Pure laziness and work. Those seem to contradict each other but when you're busy sometimes you lose your mojo for creative pursuits.  It has been a busy time, nothing fun or exciting either, just funerals (Three!) and (extended family) surgeries and the day to day of life.  Sometimes you just need some time to catch up.

One thing I have been doing, is thinking about the upcoming season of entertaining.  We love to entertain in the spring and summer.  The yard and garden are so much bigger than the house and a cookout is fun for everyone.  As much as we love to have people over, we almost have to push ourselves to make the commitment.  Are you like that?  I'm going to tell you a secret, Earl and I are both dyed in the wool introverts. We love people, we love cooking for people a lot! But after a lot of interaction we need time to ourselves to refuel. It's a conundrum for sure, but we really do feel strongly about community, and friendship, and loving people so we try to schedule something on a regular basis that brings friends and people we would like to know better, together.

I wanted to share one of our new favorite recipes. I found it on Pinterest, of course, and it is not only quick and easy, it is easy to throw an extra chicken breast or can of beans in and stretch it for a crowd.  This is a Mediterranean chicken dish that has chicken, cannellini beans, kalamata olives, marinated artichoke hearts, grape tomatoes and basil with fresh mozzarella melted on top. It is fabulous!  Oven to table it takes no more than 1/2 hour and if you wanted to stretch it even more you could put it over pasta. Serve with a salad and you're done.
Here is the link: Mediterranean Chicken.  What is your favorite way to entertain? Indoors or out?

Instant Collection

While at a recent garage sale I stumbled across a thimble collection that was being sold. $1 each. Believe it or not, even with all the sewing I do, all I had was a plain metal thimble. Utilitarian to be sure, but not pretty. Not like these little works of art. I quickly chose all the pretty ones and paid my money. It's an instant collection that I may have to add to. Pretty little things and useful too!

Which one do you like best?

I think my favorite may be the one that says Home Sweet Home, but I love them all.

On another note, in light of my last post and all things summer entertaining I wanted to share a link to a thought provoking post.  Summer is when we entertain the most, we have a tiny home but an expansive yard, so we do  most of our entertaining outside.  I'll admit, I'm guilty of a lot of the things listed in the post. Is everything going to turn out?  I need to paint this, I need to clean that, nothing is ready/clean/perfect, you name it. Excuses why it might be a bad time to have someone over. What I have found over the years though, is that nobody cares if it's messy, imperfect, or a little chilly outside.  What they care about is that I love them enough to want to spend time with them. 

 Do you entertain a lot?  If not, what is holding you back?

Have a great weekend!

Dinner For a Crowd

 

Last Friday night Earl and I made dinner for our church's children's department volunteers.  It's an annual event and we have cooked for it for several years now.  You can see last years dinner here.  If you have been around that long, you may remember that last year not only did I have a broken foot, but the date chosen for the dinner was one of the coldest June days I have ever seen.

It wasn't that cold this year...it was colder.

We woke up to a sunny, chilly morning but with a forecast of 0% chance of rain and highs in the low 70's. I looked forward to perfect weather. Well, it never reached more than about 64 degrees and the wind was blowing approx. 13-18 mph.

This may be the last year we attempt to have dinner outside, which will almost guarantee perfect weather next time.

At any rate, we could not have pulled it off at all without the help of the most awesome group of youth volunteers on the planet.  I was at my wits end when these wonderful kids drove in and took care of all the last minute details for us. 

 I had set up tables in the yard and planned on using brown paper as the table cover.  When I tried to put it on earlier in the day the wind was so strong I gave up. My volunteers got the job done while Earl and I put the finishing touches on the meal.  I had been fortunate enough to find enough brand new blue checked napkins at a garage sale to mix and match for our 25 guests.  The brown paper for the tables came from the dollar store,the geraniums were from the farmers market, wrapped in paper and twine by my daughter Victoria, and I used blue jars with solar light lids to light up the tables. Kind of down home and farm themed to go with the meal. Easy and inexpensive.  Decorating for guests doesn't have to cost a lot.

This dear girl volunteered to play her guitar and provide background music for dinner. It was beautiful :>) 

 

Menu:

 Strawberry and pecan salad with strawberry vinaigrette

 Roasted New York strip

 Honey and Ginger carrots

 Twice Baked Potatoes. 
 

Dessert:

Warm Brownie Sundaes with vanilla bean ice cream, sweetened strawberries, warm chocolate ganache, m&m's and whipped cream.

 

Unfortunately, we were so busy cooking and feeding 30 people that I didn't get any more photos.

Again, the guests came prepared (mostly) for the weather and judging from the laughter and conversation they managed to have a good time in spite of the cold weather.

 

I'll be honest,every year the day before we do this we ask ourselves what we have gotten ourselves into.  It's a lot of hard work for one little kitchen, but every year when we are finished, and fall into bed with a pile of dishes waiting for us in the morning, we know why we do it.

We do it because we love and appreciate the time these people invest in kids. Because we love to feed people and because sometimes just because something is hard doesn't mean it isn't worth every single minute of work to make someone happy :>)