I'm a simple kind of person. Foo-foo, finery and foppery don't impress me much. I'm all about function, about understated, about humble honest truth. An attitude that has rubbed off on both of my daughters. Sure, we can decorate for a special occasion, but we don't have to cover every single surface in swag, nor do we have to empty our bank accounts to do it.
Birthday parties at my house have always been fun, intimate--as in not the entire classroom from school (except the kindergarten class that numbered exactly six, including my child)--and at my house. Graduation parties at my house have been huge (usually 100+ on the guest list by the time all sides of the family plus friends are invited), fun, and at my house. So why should DD1's bridal shower be any different? Especially since the maid of honor--traditionally the person who organizes the shower--is DD2. Of course DD1's bridal shower will be at my house!
Now, DD2 has never been to a bridal shower, unless you count the one she went to when she was three years old, and the flower girl in a friend of the family's wedding.. DD1 has only been to two. So they both have looked to me for "what do you do at/for a bridal shower" guidance. And, together we've come up with what (we think) will be an awesome, fun, frugal, simple yet elegant bridal shower. At my house.
Did I say it's going to be at my house? So of course we need to have a plan for what part(s) of the house will be needed for this gala. Since Honorary Sons mother had all ready stated her intentions to throw DD1 a shower for that side of the family (and family friends) up north where a major portion of that half of the guest list reside, the shower at my house only has a guest list of about two dozen people, myself, DD2 and DD1 included. Guesstimating that 1/3 of the invitees will be unable to attend (the rule of thumb when planning a party is that 1/3 of your guests will be indisposed or otherwise unavailable) we should be able to comfortably seat everyone in my living room. Other rooms needed will be the front hall (for guests who come in the front door), the mudroom (for guests who are more familiar with our home and know that front doors are rarely used on farms), the dining room (where we will stage the food) and the downstairs bathroom. Easy enough to have those areas spick-and-span.
Parking is probably our biggest concern. We have tons of room, since the driveway is 400+ foot long, and there are six spaces near the garage that are used regularly (when we built this house, we made accommodations to park one vehicle for each DH & I, as well as each of our offspring). However, since the shower will be held in March (since DD2 is the hostess, and she is 500 miles away at college, this shower is scheduled to coincide with her Spring Break), and March here is either muddy or snowy, we're a little concerned with having enough hard, dry ground to park on. There are two 4-wheel drive trucks as well as a tractor than can be used to pull cars out of mud or snowdrifts if we have to, but we'd rather not have to. I mean, bridal showers and mud bogs should not be simultaneous events. LOL.
We have a location (hopefully with firm, solid parking). We have a date. We have a general idea of refreshments.
DD1, DD2 and I agreed that if we had the shower from 1-4 on a Sunday afternoon, that eliminated the need to serve a meal (guests eat lunch before arriving, and dinner after leaving), and would let us get away with more simple fare. Finger foods, small portions that could be served on small plates. Small plates are not only cheaper to buy than large plates, they are easy to hold in your hand or on your lap. This makes it possible to not need tables (and all the space tables take up). Finger foods also generally do not need to be kept warm, which cuts down on time needed to prepare food the day of the shower. We can make everything the day before and either keep it refrigerated, or on the counter at room temperature, depending on the dish.
This is our tentative menu so far
- mint squares (very rich chocolate brownies with a creamy mint filling and chocolate ganache-like top layer)
- lemon bars
- veggie tray
- fruit tray
- cheese ball
- crackers
- ham and cream cheese roll ups
- lemonade, water and possibly sangria
- mini cupcakes (because ages ago I bought a mini muffin pan, and DD1 likes the idea of mini cupcakes rather than one larger cake or even normal sized cupcakes)
- linzer cookies (DD2 has been dying to make these)
We have a list of activities. We have ideas for decorations the majority of which will be given to DD1 as decorations for her future home. We have a plan for favors/prizes for the guests. Details on all of these will be coming in a future post.
We are going to have a great time. It won't be fancy, won't cost an arm and a leg, but it will be a memorable time all the same. A shower shouldn't be about how extravagant the whole thing is. It should be about showering the bride with love, friendship and encouragement as she heads toward a huge change in her life.
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