A couple of months ago, we celebrated our son’s Bar Mitzvah.  I blogged here about my excitement at planning the event.  Well, the pictures from that lovely weekend in September have arrived and I wanted to share a few memories.  It is amazing when all of the planning and organization come together to make a meaningful, fun, and love-filled event.

The Bar Mitzvah boy – what a poser!

How fast the years fly by.  I cannot believe that my baby is almost as tall as me now.

I love this picture.  Even though it is staged and did not take place during the actual religious service, it conveys the joy and special bond between father, son, and our tradition.

Candles were lit for Shabbat…

Seating charts worked out and looked pretty!

Beautiful flowers graced the dining tables…

We danced our hearts out.

I adore this photo of my son boogying with his 92-year old great-grandmother.  It is a perfectly captured memory.

Dear friends!

Celebrations are meant to bring the important things into focus.  Our son’s Bar Mitzvah weekend reminded us of the many blessings in our lives: family, friendships, community, love, and faith.

I derive great joy from entertaining.  There is nothing like good company, great food, and last, but not least, a beautifully set table. I believe strongly in setting the tone and creating a special atmosphere for the time I want to share with the people I invite into my home or to an event that I plan.  My essentials for (almost) effortless entertaining are:

- A FOOL-PROOF MENU

- AN INTERESTING CENTER PIECE

- MY BEST DISHES, SERVING WARE, GLASSWARE, AND FLATWARE

- CRISP LINENS

- A BIT OF A “WOW FACTOR”

- ALWAYS CLEAN AND ORGANIZED SURROUNDINGS

Here is the look for a little dinner party in the yard I would share with the ones I love.  Tablescape design by me in my backyard. It was photographed for a contest entry for Pizzazerrie.com.  Beautiful photography by Lando Images (thank you, Rachel!). The napkins were sewn by my friend (thank you, A!).   Lovely menu cards that also double as place cards are by talented Emily at Invitations by Emily.

What are your essentials for entertaining?  Is it usually fun or a chore?

I am lucky to find joy in many things.  First, there are my family and friends and my organizing, but I also love events, I love hosting, and I really enjoy entertaining!  Before I jump into event planning of any sort, I seek visual inspiration.  And loads of it!  I stalk my favorite event planning websites, Pinterest, magazines, and more.  Then, I create an inspiration board to get myself fully invested and, most importantly, excited about the many details that have to be planned, arranged, and organized.

As I write this post, I am excitedly planning the details of my son’s Bar Mitzvah.  I want to share some imagery that has been motivating me over the last few months.  Purple and green are the colours!

Images via: save-the-date,  centerpiece, place setting

Images via: both images

Images via: dessert buffet, flower arrangement

Images via: flower girls, Viola dress, candy buffet

Images via: guest book, centerpiece

Event planning can be one enormous chore.   Create positive associations with what you anticipate to be stress inducing.  Inspiration boards have always helped me.

How do you get avoid getting bogged down by the countless tasks involved in planning an event?