Celebrate Life!

We’re celebrators around our house. Not in the everybody-wins-at-everything way, but in that we believe life is worth celebrating, especially with the ones we love. When we lived in Colorado it was the first time that we ever entertained much at our house, and to be totally honest I was a complete wreck the first few times. I fell for the lie that everything needs to be perfect to entertain, that a clean house would be the only way people would want to come back. I thought the food had to be beautifully arranged, hot and ready the very moment friends walked through the door. All that pressure made the celebration not as much fun, you know? Slowly but surely I started to realize that hospitality and entertaining don’t have to be like that. I saw that people kept coming over even when our dogs were obnoxious or the food wasn’t ready when they got there. We were still loved and we could all still celebrate life if I couldn’t remember the last time I dusted, or if our yard had weeds, or if we hadn’t power-washed the front porch. People kept coming because we loved them and they loved us and we all wanted to celebrate life’s special moments together. Births, marriages, job promotions, big games, Olympic ceremonies, poker night, whatever – it all became fair game, and we loved having a place we could use to bring loved ones together. As life has happened and grown and developed, I’ve found more than ever that the celebration is even sweeter when dishes are a distant thought. I remember in the beginning I was washing something like 3 loads of dishes, both in the dishwasher and by hand, whenever we would have friends over. And now I’m looking to keep it as simple as possible. We love grilling out (much easier in the milder winters of Arkansas), making no-bake desserts, and utilizing paper plates and plastic cups to make clean-up that much easier. It keeps the gathering going longer, and it means that we get to be part of the whole thing! Dixie Ultra Moments® Tableware helps me take care of the details so I can enjoy the moment in the now instead of worrying about the loads of cleaning to do afterwards. I love that the plates are 8-sided with deep rims and durable construction, which means they fit any manner of dinner fare really well. The cute designs are great for pairing with any occasion, and help our little family and all of our friends and family to celebrate with style and strength.

So when it comes to food and decor what do we do? I am a H-U-G-E fan of clearance flowers (or fresh-picked flowers from your garden) in Mason jars and tea lights for decor. It’s inexpensive and simple, and lets you celebrate without worrying about creating huge bouquets. And food is super simple – we love a DIY taco or chili bar with all the fixings, homemade grilled pizza, or grilled chicken and vegetables. Desserts like this DIY cheesecake parfait bar are sooooooo good and couldn’t be easier; although I never kicked a store-bought brownie and ice cream out of bed either. Make what you love and what will show your loved ones you care! And most of all – don’t forget to celebrate! That’s what we’re all there for after all 🙂   Check out Dixie Ultra Moments® Tableware on their website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest pages for fabulous entertaining ideas and ways to really make the most of your celebrations!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Dixie Ultra Moments® and BlogHer. As always, all opinions are my own.