Categories
Entertainment

Kicking off Summer with a Bang… or rather a Party

hand holding a slice of watermelon with blue swimming pool water in the background
Photo by Elaine Bernadine Castro on Pexels.com

If you stick these four party planning basics you’ll ensure that your “summer kick off party” a crowd pleaser…

  1. Sipping on Summer
    Rather than having your guests dig through an old beat up cooler; elevate the party experience by setting up a ‘bar’ this can feature pre-made concoctions (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) or those in which some assembly is required by guests. To beat the heat I suggest: “fancy water” (fruit/herb infused), iced tea, lemonades and fizzy drinks.
  2. Summer Snacks
    No one wants to eat a heavy meal in this heat! Base your menu around SNACKS, people get a chance to mingle more while they graze on your delicious offerings all night. This informal approach to the menu is much more relaxed and suitable for the season. Guests appreciate both variety and volume. Be mindful of budget and palate by sticking to what is in season.
  3. Summer Shenanigans
    Make the most of the weather; don’t sit around be ACTIVE! Playing games is good for the soul –it generates lots of laughs and memories. I can’t tell you how many parties I have been to where we just sit around and talk; which is great but nothing beats a game of badminton, croquette, volleyball, ladder golf. Set up a few game stations and to sweeten the pot; buy a few silly prizes to give to the winners!
  4. Serving Up Summer
    Ditch the paper plates and plastic cups and utensils. There are a ton of excellent summer soiree servingware. Little touches like this really up your party game!
Categories
Writing Prompt Wednesdays

July Journal #1

What is your favourite game to play?

I love board games but I don’t get to play very often because my husband is not a fan so I really relish the fact that my friends enjoy them. It’s really hard to pick just one. My all-time favorites are..

  1.  Scattergories
    this was a University dorm staple semicolon we played it all the time. and of course there were some who turned it into a drinking game when it wasn’t.
  2.  Trivial Pursuit
    I’m a nerd let’s face it. this was actually a New Year’s tradition with my family. sometimes we played Monopoly but more often than not it was trivial pursuit.
  3.  Cold Case Files or Unsolved Crimes
    this is a game that I play with my coworkers when times are slow surprisingly think we would have made really good detectives.
     
  4. Life
    I play this with my nieces and nephews all the time and we have several spin-off versions such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Jurassic Park.

What about you?

Prompt from Piccadilly‘s 200 Writing Prompts

Categories
Reflections & Lifestyle

July Goals: Re-Priotize, Recharge & Re-Organize

School’s out for summer! And I am looking forward to the three Rs; re-prioritize, recharge and re-organize. My goals this month are centered on those principles. Even though its summer, I am continuing to set three monthly goals, which I started doing in January.

  1. Work-Life Balance
    I have a lot of work to do this summer to prepare for the upcoming school year; sometimes I literally wake up and sit at my computer working all day and late into the night for days and days on end. That is SO wrong! First of all, it isn’t healthy and second of all, what a crappy way to spend the summer. I have made the goal that I will only work my regular school hours (8:25am-3:04pm) on days in which my husband is not home and whatever I get done over the summer is what I get done and I will have to do it throughout the school year rather than doing it all up front before the year begins. This will be the first year that I haven’t had everything prepared for the upcoming school year, not going to lie, I am a little nervous about that.
  2. One Vacation
    We have a lot happening at home, so between all the school preparation, home renovation and our schedule in general we don’t have any trips planned. We used to spend most of our summer bouncing around the province camping and fishing. We haven’t done that in YEARS; because life just keeps getting in the way. This month I am going to take a trip, even if it is just a few days away with a friend. I am tired of being the only one at work during the first meeting who says “I did nothing this summer… again.”
  3. De-Clutter
    This is a throwback to my March goals. I was unsuccessful so I’m trying it again! Time to simplify my life and get my house in order.

What about you? What goals have you set for yourself this month?