Do you have trouble getting where you need to be on time? Do you always feel lucky or even shocked if you arrive somewhere before the event has actually started?
The trick to arriving on time is to overestimate how long it will take to get where you need to be.
If you are going to a place you have never been before:
- Pad your estimated travel time by 20 minutes. I know that sounds like a lot, but this gives you time to get stuck in traffic and get a little bit lost! You may be great at directions or have a GPS system, but when you are going to a new place, you never know exactly what will slow you down.
If you are going to a place you have been before, but you wouldn't mind being early, or you definitely don't want to be late:
- Pad by 15 minutes. You aren't likely to get lost, but if traffic is thick or if your kids somehow slow your exit (let's just blame the kids, right?), you will still have time to get there with a minute or two to spare.
If you are going to a place you have been before, but you don't want to be early:
- Pad by 10 minutes. In this case, you are merely trying to allow time for traffic or unexpected delays as you walk from your house to the car. (Or, as often happens to me, time for forgetting your wallet or your cell phone and having to turn the car around and run back into the house!)
With this padding, you shouldn't be late, and you might just be early! (I know, it's unthinkable, right?) But don't look at that as a problem! If you are early and don't want to go inside yet, make the most of your extra time:
- Clean out your glove box, wipe out cup holders, dust dashboard (with handi-wipes that you keep in the car just for such a festive occasion!)
- Read a book
- Put on mascara or lipstick, 'cause let's face it - who had time to do that before they left?
- Clean out your purse
- Zip off a thank you note
- Write up a grocery list
- Make a phone call to a friend or to schedule that doctor's appointment you have been putting off
- Or, dare I say it?....Just relax for 5 minutes!!!
Posts
So I received this question after this post went out yesterday:
ReplyDeleteNora, Do you have any tips for not going stark raving mad in the last 20 minutes before a dinner party when all the last minute things have to be done at once... And you really can't do them ahead of time because they will either get cold, melt, get soggy, burn down, etc.
Joy
After a brief phone consultation, I learned that the specific issues were:
1. She wants to have an ice bucket, but doesn't want to fill it too early because the ice will start melting before guests have arrived.
Nora's Suggestion: Fill the ice bucket early, then put the entire bucket back in the freezer until your guests arrive.
2. The sodas from the outside fridge need to be brought into the house, but won't stay cold if they are brought in early. She doesn't want to use a cooler for the soda cans, and many of her guests prefer to drink out of the can rather than pouring the warm sodas over ice. Carrying the soda cans in by the arm-load takes multiple trips and then requires set-up time in the kitchen.
Nora's Solution: In the outside refrigerator, store your soda cans in an open-topped, square, pretty basket that you would be willing to use to serve the drinks (it should hold about 12 cans). A few minutes before the party begins, you can grab the entire basket out of the outdoor fridge (or send that guest who always arrives early and asks to help!) and bring in all the sodas at once. Let guests retrieve their cold sodas from this pretty basket.
3. She has several dishes that she wants to make at the last minute so that they are still warm when guests arrive.
Nora's Solution: Make them a little earlier. For bread, get a bread warmer (see www.Target.com - Bread Warmer Set) to keep bread warm for quite a long time after it is removed from the oven. For other dishes, after they come out of the oven, place the warm dish on a thick towel, and scrunch up the towel around the base of the dish, covering as much as possible. Place a sheet of aluminum foil on top, then pile dish towels on top of the foil. This will keep the food warm for a very long time - you'll be amazed! As other dishes come out of the oven, do the same thing. When your guests are about to arrive, merely remove the towels and put them back in their drawers. All your food will still be warm and your guests will be amazed that you were able to coordinate all of your warm foods to be ready at the exact same time! :-)
Hope this helps! Have a great party tonight!
Nora.