Last year Andrew and I decided that we wanted to host our families so we planned a fall dinner for everyone. We had such a fun time hosting everyone that we decided to do it again this year. (You can read about last year’s dinner here).I started planning back in August. I know that may seem excessive but I wanted to make sure that I would have plenty of time to test any new recipes. I always love the idea of having a variety of several smaller servings. Last year we did a variety of soups with cider floats to follow. Having a variety was an easy way to please everyone so this year I wanted something similar without repeating the meal all over again.

We decided to go with a trio of savory handpies (chicken pot pie, shepherd’s pie and butternut squash and gruyere). Nothing too fancy and nothing too extravagant but a great way to please everyone.I knew hosting both of our families would be a lot of work so as far as decor I decided to keep it simple and understated. I decorated the table with the small pumpkins we found when we picked up our front porch decor.The only thing I really spent time on finding were some simple and festive napkin rings. I loved these berry ones and thought they would add a bit more color to the tablescape. Everything else I kept simple and stuck with what we already had like our white napkins and everyday placemats.This year definitely involved much more prep than last year but it was so wonderful to have everyone together and to be able to host our families as they so often host us. I know this is a tradition we will look forward to each fall for the next few years.

Are you hosting any dinner parties this fall? What are some of your dinner party favorites?

Invitations | Menus | Napkins | Placemats | Napkin Rings