Hi guys! I hope you had a wonderful holiday and that Santa was very good to you! 😉 We started the day with a son stirring at 6:30 a.m. and quickly went downstairs to see that Santa had come!  James is really into Star Wars right now, so his big gifts from Santa were a 3-foot tall Darth Vader and a giant Darth Maul light saber.  He was very impressed that Santa left a thank you note for the milk and cookies.  This really is such a fun age!
My family came over and my brother brought his toy (a deep fryer) so we made hot chicken wings as appetizers and had Cajun fried turkey with dinner. Â The grandparents brought James a giant arcade-style basketball hoop game that was assembled in the driveway. Â I tried to take a bunch of photos throughout the day, but it was hard to get too many while I was cooking and chatting and drinking.
I did snap a few pictures of the table set-up process that I did the day before. Â I like to semi- set the table complete with serving platters and serveware so I’m not scrambling at the last minute. Â I do this with the appetizer area and dessert table too. Â This year, I set the table to coordinate with the aqua and mint dining room decor.
The table setting wasn’t anything elaborate, just a burlap runner, aqua placemats and napkins, with silver chargers and china plates. Â Two mercury glass candle holders with teal candles and an inexpensive centerpiece finished it off. Â On the menu was beef tenderloin, cajun fried turkey, scalloped potatoes with bacon, jalepeno creamed corn, sauteed green beans with toasted almonds, cranberry sauce, and Hawaiian rolls.
I used small sticky notes to indicate where everything would go and also for who would sit where.
I found this basket of live greenery at Wal-Mart for $10 and added some ornaments. Â I hear you can go to hardware stores and collect their tree clippings for free though- next year!
My son is out of school for two weeks, so we’ll be relaxing and playing and cleaning and organizing in preparation for the new year soon. Â I’m really looking forward to 2014 and excited for the fresh start January always brings! Â See you soon!
Meet Megan
Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!
Looks like everyone had a wonderful day! I can see where you get that gorgeous head of hair from. LOL I too use sticky notes when planning a buffet. Merry Christmas Megan!!
The sticky notes make everything so much easier! Merry Christmas Lauren!
Megan, I just want to say that James is cuter than cute! Enjoy the rest of your Christmas week.
We should have done this with our table… It got a little hectic as the dishes were ready to be placed on the table! Merry Christmas!
I love your gold silverware! Where is it from! I need it!
I think I found it on Overstock or Amazon. It wasn't very expensive either:)
Where did you get your gold flatware from?
Your menu sounds delicious and I love your table setting! Everything sounds like it was wonderful! 🙂