Dinner Party!

This past Saturday the 13th, the Husband and I hosted another dinner party! This was our third one to date and again, it was a total blast (if I do say so myself). Both of us took off Friday to prep for it, which I highly recommend.  I don't think we did that for the last two dinners, and I don't quite know how we got everything done to be honest. Either way, after two days of cooking and prepping and cleaning, everything finally came together beautifully. 

The theme for this party was French and here's our menu:

• Spinach and Strawberry Salad with Sliced Almonds and Balsamic Vinaigrette
• Boeuf Bourguignon (From Julia Child, natch)
• Whipped Potatoes with Boursin (my own recipe, which basically consisted of eyeballing everything and adding in Garlic and Herb Boursin, heavy whipping cream, kosher salt and pepper until I thought it tasted good)
• Artichoke and Haricots Verts Casserole (Source: Penzey's Spice Store, but I can't seem to find it online)
• Brioche Rolls (Source: Cooking Light magazine)
• Mousse Chocolat (Source: Betty Crocker)

I even designed the invitations myself with some Eiffel Tower images and stamped the outside of the envelope with a silver fleur-de-lis.  Just because I'm fancy like that.

Despite having to throw a few small things together at the last minute and a temporary loss of party momentum when we couldn't find a bottle opener to save our lives, the end result was a beautifully set table using the good wedding china and a table full of old friends enjoying everyone's company.  We told stories that none of us had thought of since college and ate until we were stuffed.  Since our last party a year ago, we have one new baby and two new pregnancies in our group and we're looking forward to seeing all of the kiddos grow up together.  Awww.

What's that?  You want to see pictures?  Well, see, the thing is... yeah, I didn't have time to even consider taking pictures of the feast.  I do wish I had a picture of the table when it was so beautifully set because it was truly a work of art, but alas, it was not meant to be.  And the thing with using the good wedding china is that it ALL has to be hand washed.  Thank goodness we found out the flatware is dishwasher safe.  This is so embarrassing, but it is SIX DAYS post dinner party and I still have stemware and china sitting on the dining room table that hasn't been washed yet.  I'm totally hanging my head in shame here, you have to trust me.  And I have my reasons: the Husband has been gone on business this week, leaving me with solo mommy duty to our nine-month-old, so it's difficult to get a whole lot done in the evenings.  I've managed to wash a few things here and there but it's not yet done.  Obviously, that is my goal for tonight.  Promise.  This is so embarrassing.