Summer Entertaining

There are few things I love more than summer entertaining. I love entertaining in general. I guess it's the event planner in me. I love it! Everything about it. Planning the menu. Cleaning the house. Lighting the candles. Setting the table. Prepping the appetizers. It gives me great joy. I especially enjoy summer entertaining because we can be outside. Under the stars. In the twinkle of the rope lights. Grilling. There is just something magical about it all. 

Last night we had a few co-workers over for dinner. There was strawberry lemonade, brats, rice pilaf, and corn on the cob. There was great conversations. Laughs while the sun was setting. And strawberry shortcake to end the night on a sweet note.

Notice the mismatched chair and paper plate? Sometimes you just gotta improvise. My OCD self gets a little bothered, but then I just have to let it go because it's not about everything matching or being perfect. It's about the memories. Enjoying time with friends. Enjoying sweet summer time.

My plan is usually to clean the house the day before the event and stock up on my menu items. The day of I make sure the meat is de-thawing, the lemonade is made, and the corn is ready to go on the grill. An hour before the event I do any last minute cleaning touch-ups, set the table, and get out the appetizers. Fifteen minutes before the event we get everything on plates ready to be grilled, and light the candles. It is this unspoken routine Garth and I have when having company and we have it down to a science. We make a good team.

What is your plan when entertaining in the summer? Do you love it as much as I do?