Finally I finished the chapter on planning special events. It's been a busy few weeks with low energy from me and I struggled staying awake past 9pm every night. Not much but the basics got done but the sleep was important so I guess I should not feel guilty right?
I have never been comfortable hosting large events. The twins baptism and my wedding were about the two biggest things I planned that I was proud of. These events also had more than just family there. I find family easy to plan for... my family....inlaws are another story.... I get a little nervous.
If you are intersted in reading my other posts about Kathy Peel's book "The Busy Mom's Guide To A Happy Organized Home" then here they are....
Managing your time.
Managing your home and property.
Managing your menus and meals.
Managing relationships with family and friends.
Managing your finances.
Where do I begin? This chapter was stocked full of ideas and honestly if you need help in this or another area Kathy Peel covers then I highly recommend purchasing the book.
Important things to remember when planning a special event whether it's low key or with a hundred people is that you must share the workload and simplify when you can so that in the end you can enjoy your event as well. Some points to remember...
1. Traditions cement a family.
2. Children's brains are like sponges, they remember events so why not help them remember how much fun Mom was at the birthday rather than Mom being a basket case?
3. Welcome fun....not everything needs to be planned out, spontaneous can be fun too {I will admit that the word spontaneous makes my blood pressure rise from stress, I don't do spontaneous}.
Whether your event is a children's birthday party or a huge anniversary party for friends and family. The author cannot stress enough about planning ahead. On the advice from this book I now have a trusty three ring binder in which I keep tabs on many things. At the moment it has Christmas gift ideas for each person I am giving a gift to as well as what we already purchased. It also has birthday party guest lists for my children's upcoming birthdays. One is in December and yesterday I booked what needed to be booked and now I can move onto party favours and invites. With 6 weeks before the party I should be ready no matter how busy my life is.
I am a planner and became one when the twins were arriving. You have to plan ahead when you know you just can't drop everything because you have two newborns and a three year old. This does not however make it so I never forget something or someone!
Moving on....I am not going to go into much detail like I have for other chapters. The author goes into great detail on planning "fancy" events in your home or otherwise and I am really not at the phase of my life nor do I think are many of my readers. Some things she does point out for planning any event are...
1. Use sitters to help you get things done. If you need extra time in the kitchen either the day of or before the event, hire a sitter to help keep your children occupied.
2. Prepare foods ahead of time and freeze.
3. Ready serving pieces, clean fridge, and clear kitchen countertops. {this is something I do for holiday meals, it makes the cleanup that much faster when your counter is clean from clutter in the first place}
4. Use a checklist, keep receipts, phone numbers, and guests lists all in a three ring binder.
Finally we enter the area more fitted to my life at the moment...Children's Birthday Parties. In the past couple of years I let my children have parties outside of our home. I feel bad making people drive out to our house. It was easier when the kids were smaller because usually the parents stayed. I always had coffee on and invited them to stay if they wanted too. But now the children are able to stay without Mom or Dad so I feel bad making them drive the 30 minutes in total. I know...I shouldn't feel that way, afterall they get to drop their child off and have some alone time for the 2-4 hours of the party right? Heck there are days I would drive and hour for that quiet time.
But anyway...
Party favor's...hmm...where do I begin? Kathy Peel really does not have much to say on the subject but she does ask "What would you want your child to come home with?" To help you decide on what to purchase you should consider that question. Myself...I really dislike the dollar store junk and to be honest it is not cheap for the hostess that has to buy it when you invite 10 kids to the party. A friend last year went through this dilemma for her son's party. She ended up handing everyone a hotwheels car at the end of the party...that was enough and totally appropriate. I do think party favours are a must but they do not need to be a huge bag of items.
If anyone has ideas for party favours could you leave a comment. I would love to write a post and put those ideas out there.
Next up...seasonal stress relief. Once again PLAN ahead. Even if it is a quiet holiday with your own little family of four. Kathy Peel suggests you focus on giving rather than getting. Show your children what charity work is. Model the behaviour. Donate your time as well as the kids. I am participating in Operation Christmas Child this year with Samaritan's Purse. I have never sent a box so this year we are going to make this happen. I went online to the website and watched a few short videos with my children. They noticed the difference in our life to the children's life in Haiti right away. They are quite excited to do this and the video's were great for the kids to see.
Back to a stress free seasonal holiday...
1. Set aside one weekend or day just for family to relax together. Do a large puzzle, make hot chocolate, read a book, watch a movie together. For one whole day do no work and relax together.
2. Keep motivational books around. When you get stressed sit down and read positive thoughts to get you through that stress filled moment.
3. Read the Christmas story together, either in the bible or children's book.
4. Have a nativity set that the kids can handle and move the pieces around.
5. Look beyond your child's wish list...many children just want what other's have even though they may not have any true interest in the toy/item. Look for toy's that stimulate rather than "entertain" mindlessly.
6. Consider giving lessons {art, dance, muscial instrument} or concert tickets.
7. Look for ways to emphasize that gift recipients uniqueness.
I hope I touched on topics that interested you. This post has taken me forever to get up, it has been one of those weeks. Daddy is done his tour so it's a couple days off and maybe some Mommy time booked in my office to get a few scrapbooking pages done.
I will be digging into the last chapter "Managing Yourself" and will have a post up very soon.
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