Entertaining

Looking for name change advice or some tips for newlywed life? The MissNowMrs experts have created state-specific name change articles and checklists for you. We’ve chronicled our recommendations for how to travel while changing your name AND how to handle voting during the transition.

We’ve also compiled our best guidance for how to handle difficult sister in laws, holidays as newlyweds, the ever-annoying baby questions, and much more. Why? Because, while we are name change experts, we’re also newlywed wives, moms, and sisters.

We hope our name change advice articles help smooth your transition to your new name, and a whole new phase of life. Congratulations and best wishes from the entire MissNowMrs team!

3 Unique Party Ideas to Get Rid of the January Blahs

Save your January with our 3 unique party ideas! The glamour, glitz and excitement of New Years have worn off, and now it’s just dreary mid-January. Much like the post-wedding blues, many newlyweds also experience a post-holiday slump. The solution? Planning a fun but low key party with friends! My favorite parties have a theme that gets guests excited and keeps me from worrying about party entertainment. Below are a few ideas (admittedly 2 were “borrowed” from my friend and amazing hostess Jill):

Favorite Things: Just like Oprah…only with a $5 to $10 limit. Figure out how many friends are attending and then have each guest bring one less than that number of their favorite things. You’ll have tons of fun unwrapping, explaining and using everyone’s favorite things. The party I attended resulting in cool nail polish, a miracle hangover cure, holiday socks, satin pillow cases and much more!

Spa/Slumber Party: Send out an evite to have all your girlfriends come over for a little pampering and a chic flick. Mud masks, nail painting, pizza and the latest girly movie will make this an event everyone can look forward too. Party favor idea: attach mini rhinestones to disposable toe separators…cute!

Swap Party: Plan a get together where you and your friends bring accessories to swap. It’s easiest to trade one size fit all items like scarves, jewelry and clutches. If you’re all similar sized, you can open it up to belts, jeans, etc. Everyone will leave with something “new to them” and a little more room in their closets!

Whatever kind of party you choose to plan, just having something to plan and knowing that you’ll be seeing a group of your friends will give you a much needed boost this January.
Please let me know your favorite of our 3 unique party ideas in a comment!

Thanksgiving As Newlyweds: Tips For Success

Ready for your first Thanksgiving as newlyweds? Millions of men and women before you have successfully hosted Thanksgiving, so why should you and your spouse be any different? The Thanksgiving meal is feared nearly as much as it is enjoyed each year.

After all, the many side dishes that come together with the giant bird require a lot of organization and planning if they are to be prepared and served correctly. That certainly doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t give it a try with hubby, but it does mean that you will want to create a game plan before you begin.

Deciding Who to Invite – One of the most difficult moments in every new marriage comes with deciding what should happen at the holidays. Whose family should be visited and when? How will the time be divided and who will be dined with? Having a dinner in your own home can help to avoid some of those uncomfortable moments, but you will still need to formulate a guest list that will likely be based on the amount of space you have for entertaining, the existing plans of loved ones, and the distance between you and them.

Work together to draw up the best possible list as far in advance as you can, so you can give friends and family members ample time to re-arrange schedules. Have a fussy family or a few “difficult family members”? Consider a seating chart…so draw upon who sat by whom at your wedding and got along and arrange your table accordingly.

Planning a Menu – The great part about Thanksgiving is that most of the meal is dependent on tradition. Unfortunately, while is the common denominator, many families will vary substantially in the rest of their menus. But, with some work, you can make a meal that pulls a little something special from each family’s traditions and makes everyone feel comfortable, welcome, and ultimately, full. Also, think about asking each family invited to bring a favorite side or dessert. This potluck concept lowers your workload and allows family members to feel included in the meal.

Shopping and Cooking – There is good reason that the Thanksgiving meal is consumed only once per year. It often requires a huge number of ingredients, a lot of space for preparation, and a great deal of time to make it happen. Fortunately, there are two of you and that means that tasks can be divided among you to make the whole event much more manageable. Enjoy the shopping time together, getting excited about the impending meal and work together to divvy up the cooking.

When it comes time to create, turn on some music that you both enjoy. Sing along, laugh together, and enjoy the special memories that are being made on your very first Thanksgiving. While one boils and mashes potatoes, another can be basting the turkey and chopping veggies for other dishes. With two sets of hands, what might be a very chaotic experience can be very enjoyable.

Here’s to you and your first Thanksgiving as newlyweds! Stay tuned to our newlywed blog for Thanksgiving pie recipes and ideas.

Fabulous Fall Entertaining

With the crisp cool air it’s time get ready for Fall entertaining. Celebrating with seasonal foods/cocktails and friends is a great way to make sure you take a moment to enjoy the world and weather around you. Whether you’re new to marriage and new to cooking for a group or if you’re an old pro at both…we’ve got some great ideas for you!

Set the Tone – Pick up some festive plates or get creative with one of these fall displays for your home (we especially love the acorns in the glass column). Lighting a fall scented candle can also immediately put guests in a festive mood.

Create a Seasonal Cocktail (or 2) – Signature cocktails easily elevate an event from a gathering to a party! Consider a this simple yet amazing vanilla pumpkin pie martini for the ladies and some autumn flavored ale for the gentlemen attending. Here’s a top 10 list of pumpkin beers to point you in the right direction!

Surprise Appetizers – Who doesn’t love an out of the ordinary appetizer?! Soup shooters are one of the easiest unconventional appetizers. We suggest this seasonal roasted carrot soup served in fun colored coffee or demitasse cups. The soup is warming, has a festive fall flavor and is even orange.

Pot Luck – It might sound old fashioned, but having each guest or couple bringing a component of the meal has tremendous upside (especially if they’re good cooks). You as the hostess get to focus on details like decorating or a fabulous cocktail instead of being overwhelmed…and your guests get to bring something that shows off their talents. It’s a good idea to create a theme so the recipes gel into a meal.

Pears – Pears are in season and make an outstanding end to any meal. Consider serving simple poached pears with vanilla ice cream or a pear tart with caramelized pistachios.
Whatever you decide to make, taking time to enjoy Fall with friend and family will end well.

Do you have a favorite Fall entertaining idea you’d like to share with our readers? We’d love for you to leave a comment.

St. Patty’s Day Party – Get Your Green On!

Are you ready to get your green on? St. Patrick’s Day: The one day out of the year that everyone truly ‘goes green’ is just about here! Have you planned out your day’s festivities yet? We have come up with a few ideas for you to enjoy a full day, packed with green beer, some hearty Irish food, and of course a cute outfit!

If you haven’t checked out what’s going on in your neighborhood, now’s the time! There are so many St. Patty’s day activities that go on across the country, parades, festivals, 5K’s (if you’re feeling energetic), concerts, etc… Call your friends to see what everyone is looking to do, and if you live in the city, you may want to create your plan-of-action because it is most likely going to be packed at all of your local bars/restaurants.

If you’re planning to have some friends over to start the day off with you, visit your local craft or party store and pick up some fun decorations and some necklaces and hats for your guests! Onto the most important item of the day, finding a cute outfit!

If you’re looking to keep it casual, check out these cute St. Patty’s Day tee’s, or if you and your spouse have plans to go all out Irish, this is a super cute costume that you can find at Target!

Many bars and restaurants open up as early as 5:00am (from what I’m aware of!), so if you plan on starting early with the best of them, you will want to be sure to begin your day with a hearty Irish breakfast!

Next, if you have not received one of these from your wedding registry, you must invest in this amazing, lifesaving cooking device- a crock-pot! Your next menu item is the famous Irish stew, and if you can have it brewing all day in your crock-pot, it will be ready to dive into at the end of the day! If you’re not into stew, try another Irish fav, potato and leek soup.

Check out these recipes, make your list, and head to the grocery store the day before (and be sure to grab the green food coloring too)! Wait- let’s not forget about the most important part or your menu, desert of course! Check out this Irish Baileys Marble Cheesecake!

I personally do not have Irish genes, but since I married an Irish man, there are certain traditions that my spouse and I have started together to celebrate St. Patty’s day each year, and it’s a day that we really enjoy and look forward to!

Do you and your spouse have any traditions for St. Patty’s day? Please share how you plan to get your green on! Happy St. Patty’s day to you, and Cheers or Sláinte (to your health)!

4 Easy Steps to a Memorable Super Bowl Party

It’s time for the ultimate manly event of the year…the Super Bowl and a Super Bowl party! Almost nothing will make your man happier than having his buddies over for the big game, enjoying a few beers and some great food. You may be thinking, “I’m not much of a football fan;” however, what you ARE is a great hostess! No? Well, just follow these few steps and you will be on your way to hosting an amazing game day party.

1. Prepare the guest list: You have to know how many people are coming in order to be sure you have enough food and drinks to go around. After all, there’s no good time to run out to the store during the game (not even during the commercials or half-time)!

2. Decide on the menu or Potluck: You can ask guests to bring one dish or drink (such as chili, nachos, chips and salsa or a bottle of wine or liquor) as the best Super Bowl parties have a casual feel to them. It’s a good idea to serve foods that don’t require much of your time so you can enjoy hanging out and cheering on your team with your guests during the game. We recommend anything that can cook in a Crock Pot (i.e. meatballs, fondue, chili, etc.). You can find easy Super Bowl Recipes for some of the most popular party foods through Celebrations.com.

3. Put up decorations: You can use streamers (team colors of course), football themed napkins and party plates. Feeling fancy? Check out Plates and Napkins Blog for these Super Bowl Cupcake Rings.

4. Decide on Drinks: Some people prefer to stick with beer to quench their thirst during the big game, while others are up for trying something new. Try an Old Fashioned Wisconsin if you’re a Green Bay Packers fan or The Black and Gold if you’re a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. Not a fan of either? No problem, check out 32 NFL Team Inspired Cocktails* and choose your favorite! Just because your team didn’t make it to the Super Bowl doesn’t mean you can’t have a drink in their honor!

Do you have any Super Bowl party traditions, recipes, or ideas you’d like to share with our readers? We’d love to hear them, so leave a comment below to start the conversation!

*Drink recipes provided by StilettoSportsMagazine.com.