Many people give up on entertaining because it’s just too stressful and sometimes things go bad. I always tell myself that through my efforts, flaws and mistakes (there’s always something), I will enjoy the fruits of my hard work.
Mistakes are covered up when we sit down the with the ones we love.
My daughter and I cooked our strawberry pie recipe together in individual ramekins (recipe on page 49 in my new book), and no one knew that we dropped 2 of them as they came out of the oven. We scooped up the crust and pressed it back into 2 dishes, then proceeded with our recipe.
At that point I told Abby, don’t worry – no one will ever know.
On this day I taught my daughter that you carry on when things go wrong. You don’t freak out and you come up with a Plan B. If we had tossed out these 2 servings, we would have been short 2 for our dinner party.
How do you deal with entertaining mistakes and flaws?
(We flagged these 2 dishes with toothpicks, eating them ourselves.)
Looking for the other blogs hosting 31 Days Series?
Chatting at the Sky, Nesting Place, Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, My First Kitchen, Life With My 3 Boybarians, Remodeling This Life, The Inspired Room
Hi, I'm Sandy. Five years ago I stocked up on beautiful glasses from the Dollar Store. As I started writing about dinner parties, I realized that this “icon” portrays a great message. 
Oh I have a calendar that talks about plan B perfectly. And it’s pretty much how I feel.
You can check it out here. http://homesteadersheart.blogspot.com/2010/09/plan-b.html
You’ll love it. It goes perfectly with this post.
HUGS!
Kim @ Homesteader’s Heart´s last [type] ..Friday Funnies! Kim has a DUH moment!
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HAHA I was going to ask who ate the “mistakes”…. thanks for letting us know it doesn’t HAVE to be perfect.
Kim´s last [type] ..Sunday Morning
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Hello,
I’m really enjoying your blog (found you about a mnth ago and have been reading archived posts.) I’m especially excited about this 31 days series, and am hoping you will touch on how to entertain for a crowd. I feel somewhat confident having one couple over for dinner, but both my husband and I feel flustered with more people. How do you find time to talk with each guest to make them feel special? I always feel that I’m being rude to someone at any given moment.
Maybe my plan B should just be to entertain on a very small scale.
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I never know what to do when I make a cooking mistake. I love that you just put them right back together, I think I would have thrown them away. Loving these posts!
http://ashleyanderic.blogspot.com
Ashley Hasty´s last [type] ..Saturdays Farmers Market Flowers
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I’m new to your blog – found it through the 31 Day link – and I’m loving it. Today’s post is great – stuff happens… My husband loves to entertain, and I usually get a bit uptight making sure everything is perfect. I’ve found that my stress rubs off on everyone at the party, so I’ve been making a real effort to just let go and it’s amazing that we all end up having a much better time!
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I read the dishes post today and this one.
I think I have the same basic white set from William Sonoma as you have. Or I think so – mine is a basic pantry white.
I think I worry less about dishes and silverware and that as I do cooking – I worry about making something gross and not having a plan B. Your chapter on perfectionism is a tough pill for me to swallow. Guilty as charged.
I do feel like I work too much to have time to prepare for something like a dinner party. I (as you know!) am currently in the process of cutting my work hours from 70 to 30 – and I can’t imagine what all those hours will mean for my family. But if I get brave and have a dinner party with all those new found hours – you’ll be the first to know.
I’m verrrrry much paying attention to your posts. Even the parts that are hard to hear.
xo
darcy @ m3b´s last [type] ..Shooting fast vs Shooting Slow Day 3
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What a treasure you are leaving for your daughter!
That Crazy Mommy´s last [type] ..Old Salem Fun
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One year when I was growing up someone was carrying a layered salad to the table, almost dropped it, but managed to keep the salad in with the container’s top against the wall. Someone helped scrape it back in, and we all enjoyed “Off the Wall Salad” for Thanksgiving dinner!
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Dealing with setbacks? Push-push-push! “Pushing isn’t always easy, that’s why they invented mothers”
(from “Richard St. John’s 8 secrets of success”)
Slava´s last [type] ..Mountain Treks in Northern Thailand
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I have learned that there’s no point in stressing. I just laugh about it and go with the flow.
Kirstin´s last [type] ..A week of Fun- A week of Emotion
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You handled that so well!!!
Debbie Smith´s last [type] ..Love your Decor with Willow Houses E store and Outlet!!
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We live in a small city, about 1/2 mile from Shaws and Wal-Mart… so our plan B is to run to the store.
Saves stress, and makes it feel less scary that something might go wrong!
Spring´s last [type] ..The Good Life
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Sometimes too….the “less than perfect” makes the memory. One memorable dinner party we were hurrying to put together the new deck set of chairs and tables…mission not quite accomplished became a party activity and all the women enjoyed decorating and arranging my new deck furniture. It was fun, memorable, and got the job done!! Sometimes the unplanned can be a lesson in enjoying the stuff you wouldn’t expect…like maybe a secret from the kitchen!! Good for you…as they say: Keep calm and carry on! ~Chris Ann
LoveFeast Table´s last [type] ..31 Days to SavorInspiration Boards
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I made a caramel apple cheesecake this past weekend – a new recipe to try out on some very willing guinea pigs (aka friends from church) at dinner Sunday night. My cheesecake looked like the Grand Canyon when it cooled. At first I was thinking dessert was ruined – how could I serve a craggy cheesecake? I am known for scrumptious desserts and this didn’t look scrumptious by any description. Then I remembered the half can of apple pie filling left over from the recipe. Aha! Right before serving, I topped the cheesecake with apple pie filling and sprinkled on some Heath bits over that. My Grand Canyon Cheesecake turned into a Martha Stewart-esque cheesecake and no one knew about my almost-disaster in the kitchen. Everyone loved it and I sat quietly and nibbled my dessert happily.
Lois H.´s last [type] ..The Bachelor again
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I’ve done similar on more than one occasion, and yes I always eat the one that hit the floor;)
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When I first started entertaining I would have freaked out over such an incident, but after planning numerous weddings and events, my mind was trained to think of a “plan b” for everything.
Holly L´s last [type] ..2 Days Left – Enter E-mealz Giveaway
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We had guests coming over and my plan was to have bread pudding for dessert. I mixed the eggs and milk and vanilla and as I pulled out my Ziplok bag of bread cubes, I realized they were all molded. We had custard for dessert and everyone raved about it. I resisted the temptation to confess–until now!
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