A Way to Warm Up the Season

Those who know me know that I'm not too keen on cold weather. I like outdoor living. I like not being cold. I even like being in New Orleans in the summer. I wish I loved cold weather as much as Eryn! I'm trying. <--I say this every year around this time.

Here is me, unimpressed with the cold weather in Prague
(Seriously, though, Prague is awesome.)

One thing I do love about the mid to late fall and winter, however, is the abundance of festivities. Not only do we have Thanksgiving and the holidays in December, but for our family it also means Husband's birthday and our wedding anniversary! Once January is here, we have several family birthdays and then of course Valentine's Day in February (rrrrromantic). 

I will admit that I get pretty excited about the holidays in November and December and their various decorations, feasts, and lights, etc., but when New Year's is over I tend to start feeling kind of bleak and have to fight off depression until I see buds on the trees and green foliage again. This is something I've always struggled with, so it's nothing new. That doesn't mean it doesn't really, really suck. 

I had a spur of the moment idea today, which I shared with Husband and he agreed to with glee. My proposal: a series of feasts for our family and friends throughout the late fall and winter. He is the major chef in our house, but I've been doing a little more cooking lately and we have had a lot of fun preparing food together. It isn't unusual for us to have friends over to eat with our family. Sometimes it's a weekly thing (what is the saying - "friends are family you get to choose"?).

This will be different. More festive. Something that makes me happy in December, for example, are the holiday lights, shiny and glittery decorations, happy music. Basically I am a total sap for the holidays. Likewise, I want our feasts to be a little more fancy than usual. Pretty table settings? Sure. Napkin rings? Why not. Place cards? Maybe. Hell, I may even do actual invitations (don't hold me to that). Just something fun and cheery to spread a little happiness to the ones we care about and at the same time keep my own mood up during the coldest time of the year.

Sound fun? I have quite a few ideas and I will keep you all posted. I might even show you a few little crafts or things we are preparing for our parties! I've made a special Pinterest board just for that reason: All Tomorrow's (Dinner) Parties. I'll be adding stuff all throughout the following months, so follow along and even try it yourself if you'd like! I would love to hear your ideas for your dinner parties as well. Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you are up to!