Episode #201: Hosting a Party (Deep Dive)

This week, we are deep diving into parties. Everything from planning to what actually makes a great party.

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Show Notes:

Tips for planning a party:

Start with a theme

Plan all the food and drinks

Decorate one area

Set up different stations so people aren’t hanging out in one place all night

Check out How to Make a Fancy Balloon Arch

Best places to get party supplies:

Thrift stores

Source from friends

Etsy

DIY

What are the essential elements of a good party?

Amazing food

A cute playlist that goes with your theme

A chill activity

Nice lighting

Light a candle in the bathrooms

Make sure there are trashcans in all the bathrooms

Things people could do at a party:

Puzzle table

Board game table

Jewelry making

Cookie decorating station

S’mores Station

Make your own drink station

Miss an Episode? Get Caught Up!

• Episode #200: Let’s Celebrate 200 Episodes!
• Episode #199: Home Updates
• Episode #198: Jurassic Park – Comfort Rewatch

Episode 201 Transcript:

Emma: You’re listening to the beautiful mess podcast, your cozy comfort listen, and this week we are deep diving into all things, parties, everything from planning to what actually makes a great party. And we’re going to share some embarrassing stories from parties that we’ve been through because that’s fun.

Elsie: I have a good one. Okay, so before we jump in, you wanted to share a little bit about Emma’s night out, Emma’s free day. 

Emma: Yes, this was my, we were like, okay, what are we gonna do for the personal opener in this episode? And I was like, well, here’s what I did recently and it’s more just like making fun of myself slightly But also I do think I’m cool for this. So Basically, Trey was out of town, his friends were having a bachelor party, a friend of ours getting married, so he was at a bachelor party, and Oscar was staying the night at my mom’s. That’s just like, what was happening, and he loves his grandma’s house, both of them so much. So, anyway, I think since he was born, I don’t think there’s really been a night where I was home alone in Springfield Without my son or without my husband like I’ve gone on a vacation without my son, but I don’t actually have that many nights like that. So anyway all week Trey was like, what are you gonna do? You’re gonna go out with someone, you know, he just wants me to have a good time. He’s like have a good time, make sure you enjoy yourself. Take care of yourself, he’s just trying to encourage me to like do my thing And I’m like, what should I do? I have my time. What do I want to do? What does Emma feel like doing? And here’s what I did. I went to two different thrift stores, back-to-back thrifting. So this is like two and a half hours of thrifting. And I got all sorts of Halloween things for Oscar. This is like a candy corn dish that I was really excited about. A couple of tops for me, mostly clothes, I guess. And yeah, it was just really fun. I love thrifting and I do thrift now and again, but I never take Oscar. He’s better about putting things in his mouth, but it’s just not, I don’t feel it’s a good atmosphere for him at his age. So I’ve just never taken him thrifting and I feel like it would make it less fun for me because it’s like a for fun me thing. So I went to two different thrifts. Yeah. But I mostly bought it for him, so I don’t know. And then I went to Home Goods and bought myself a Halloween candle. I think I also got dish brushes, I just needed some. Anyway, I also got some Halloween pasta, like shaped like pumpkins. 

Elsie: I always get the most random stuff there.

Emma: Yeah, it’s always random. I’m usually like, Oh, I’ll get a candle and then I end up with something random. I wanted to buy Halloween decor, but I just didn’t see anything that I was like super like, Oh, this is the one. So I was like, I’ll save it. And then after Home Goods, I went to TJ Maxx. So different Home Goods essentially. And yes, I did all that and then I got some Andy’s frozen custard. And then when I got home, I had a fourth of my edible and I had a great night and that’s all I did. Yeah. And the next day, Cherry was like, what’d you do? Who’d you go out with? And I was like, oh, I went shopping. I went here and here and here, and then I had an edible and I don’t even remember what I watched. Something probably Bob’s Burgers. And I was like, it was a great night and it’s just like a funny little, it really shows what an introvert I am, which I do love hanging out with people too. I do have a lot of social interaction in my life, but it was just like a funny little introvert night for me. And it was fun and I loved it. 

Elsie: That’s so cute. 

Emma: I immediately came home and tried on all my thrift stuff and then washed it. Anyway. 

Elsie: Sounds perfect. 

Emma: Yep. So all you introverts out there, I’m with you. Still hanging in there. Still thrifting alone without a baby. Living life. 

Elsie: I love that. That’s so cute. So Catherine emailed us and suggested this topic. The topic for this episode is Hosting a Party Deep Dive. I’m just gonna talk about like all the parties we’ve ever hosted. I think this is so fun because we love to throw a party. It’s definitely, like, one of my happiest things. I’m preparing a Halloween party right now, and I can just spend so much time on it. It’s so much fun. Tips for planning a party. So I think number one, the most important thing, is you have to start with a theme. If you don’t have a theme, you don’t have anything. 

Emma: So when you say theme, it’s like how we’re decorating, or it’s like what we’re going to be doing at the party, like elaborate a little bit. Tell me a theme you have in mind, I guess. An example. 

Elsie: So here’s an example. The other day I was getting my hair done, and the hairdresser said they were having a party that night. It was just someone’s birthday party, and the theme was Dad, Dad theme and it was like they were gonna wear dad clothes and make Dad snacks and Dad drinks and it was like funny. It’s like a night that could have been just a regular birthday party with no theme was suddenly a dad-themed night with a dad-themed party. So I kind of think it always just makes any party better. And if you’re having a Halloween or a Christmas party, then we can talk about the sub-theme because obviously, the main theme is like Halloween, but a sub-theme, we gotta get more micro about the theme, right? 

Emma: What are we doing? Vampires? Murder mystery? What’s happening? Yeah. 

Elsie: Exactly. Yeah, and I don’t think it has to be, like, super expensive. I think you just have to… lower your standards lower than Pinterest and I personally don’t really care about photographing my parties. So I hardly ever do that. 

Emma: Every once in a while if I make like a really epic dessert board or cheese board, I might snap a photo of that. But I honestly don’t even share it. It’s just like a moment of like. I made something and I want to take a picture of it, you know, whatever. 

Elsie: I just love sitting down and thinking of all of the food you can make. Like, you know, a bunch of things you can make ahead, the drinks you can make, make a punch. You know, all kinds of things like that. It’s so much fun. 

Emma: Yes. And I was just going to throw out, as far as like tips for planning a party, some like different kinds of party ideas. So these are all parties that I’ve done before or one of them, it’s like we’re planning with friends. So a couple of things like next Saturday, this Saturday as a recording, I’m having a kid’s baking party is what I’m calling it. But essentially three girls, two of my nieces and another little girl, and we’re making like a kind of plain cookie dough, like think chocolate chip cookies, but without the chocolate chips. And then they’re going to get to pick all different kinds of toppings and chips and dehydrated fruit and sprinkles and like customize the cookies into their creation. So we’re going to do that. And then also, kind of spoiling it for you. I’m sorry, Elsie. I also bought each of the girl’s cookbooks. So like Goldie got a princess tea party cookbook. Nova has a science cookbook, a science cookbook for kids. And the other little girl got her one that’s like kind of more classic because she’s like pretty good at baking. And she also likes cheese boards that are fancy. She’s kind of skilled. So I was a little nervous to buy her something. So anyways, I got that and like little kids knives and we’ll use those to cut up the like dried fruit and stuff. So anyway, this is a party that’s more of a mom thing, a fun time with kids. It’s not necessarily a party for me to chill and relax, but it’s a different type of party. And I think it’s fun to like make childhood magic. And that’s basically what I’m trying to do have a little childhood magic moment with my nieces and this other little gal. Cause I just think that’s special and fun. So anyway, there’s that. Something I do with my friends a lot is we call it the clothing exchange. And essentially what we do is we clean out our closets and then we bring anything that’s decent. And we exchange it, and a lot of stuff ends up going to a thrift store afterward, but I’ve gotten a lot of good stuff from the Clothing Exchange, too, so it’s really fun, and it costs nothing, and it encourages you to clean out your closet, which is nice, so I usually do this, like, twice a year, and we just have, like, snacks, like a cheese board and wine, and we chat, and it’s really fun, and it’s just a time that I and my friends hang out, and it’s fun. I’ve also done it around the holidays, I love to do cookie decorating parties. So you make the sugar cookies ahead of time. You might think this is for kids. It is not. It is for adults. Me and my adult friends doing this. We make the sugar cookies ahead of time and the royal icing’s already in the colors and then people can decorate. And then you hang out and chat while the icing sets and then you’re able to take them home afterwards. Bonus points if it’s Halloween and you do pumpkin carving as well. Another thing I love to do with my friends from time to time is we call it soup night. And we make like, you know, two to five soups and everybody has like a coffee mug of each of the different soups or whichever ones you want, You don’t have to have them all, but I usually have at least three soups. And then we watch a movie, usually a Nancy Meyers or something fun like that. And if you do one of these bonus points, if people wear their pajamas. And then one other party that we have wanted to do, but we didn’t get around to it this year, but next year, for sure. We always have a lot of fun doing a New Year’s Eve party this past year we hosted it at my house, but usually, it’s at my friend’s house and we’ll be back. She had a newborn this year, so we’ll be back at her house. But essentially what I like about it is I love dancing, but there’s not really anywhere in my town to go dancing where I feel like I’m the right age and I’m not going to get grabbed in a weird way, like, but I do love dancing. So whenever we have house parties with adult friends, that’s like such a fun thing to me because some people love karaoke. Personally, it’s my nightmare to sing in front of people. But I will dance like an idiot in front of anyone because I love dancing and it’s really fun. So the New Year’s Eve party always turns into a dance party and we were talking about doing some kind of, We made it halfway through the year party which essentially is New Year’s Eve but halfway through the year so we have another excuse to have a dance party. And for those parties, I do just heavy snacks, and then people bring their own. It’s like, bring your own booze, bring your own wine, whatever you want. And then I’ll always, towards the end of the night, if I’m hosting, I’ll make like pizza rolls or something that’s kind of like drunk people food for later in the evening. So everybody can have another snack after midnight, after, you know, New Year’s Eve. There are so many more ideas. I just wanted to throw out some random ideas in case you’re like, oh, I don’t know. Sometimes I think parties can become kind of stiff and boring. So like having a theme like a dad’s night, everything’s like dad themed, it’s funny. Or being like, oh, we’re gonna do a clothing exchange. So like we’re doing something, but also really we’re just hanging out too and chatting and having a glass of wine or whatever. Takes the pressure off in a way for parties. So as a socially awkward person, I can feel anxious about them. So it’s kind of nice to like have something to do. You know what I mean? 

Elsie: I think that’s a really good point. Okay. I have a couple of tips. So as far as like what I do when I’m throwing a party is plan all the food, my favorite part. Plan all the drinks, and then I usually do decor for one room or one area, so you don’t need to decorate. I think like the whole entire house is just like dream big, but like, you know, for me especially if it’s like a kid’s party, I think one area, maybe like the dining room table or maybe the front porch, you know, can be like really decked out so you can get like a cute picture and they can feel like it was special, but you actually can get it done. I do like my own balloon arches. I’ll link to that in this show’s notes. We have some tutorials about balloon arches that are really helpful. They’re actually really easy to make. We just recently did it for a baby shower, and our mom helped. We made three in one day and one morning and it’s not hard. So anyone can do it. And then my other suggestion is to plan multiple spots to hang out. So like, for example, if you have like an outdoor fire pit or if you want to put a puzzle out in the living room or just like give more than one station, usually people congregate towards the dining room and the kitchen. And try to give, like, a couple more places just so that basically people have, like, places to go, you know, like, so you’re not just, like, in one room the whole night talking, you can, like, try this, try that, go here. It’s a big adventure. 

Emma: Yeah, it’s such a big adventure, Look at this, huge house. Yeah, and with the, like, puzzle or other little things like that, I think it’s nice to, like, kind of have basically, suggestions of things people can do. So it’s not like you’re trying to force the charade thing to happen, which if you play charades, is awesome. I think that’s fun. But it’s like sometimes if, you know, I get to a party and everyone’s like, we’re doing this game and I’m like, Oh, I don’t know the rules. And I kind of just wanted to chill for a minute, kind of stresses me out a little. Also, like I’ve said, I’m kind of an awkward person, so I just, I’m ending that. So I kind of like more of a like, there’s suggestions of things you can do. We have a cornhole set up in the backyard. We have this puzzle table over here. So if you’re just like meeting people and maybe warming up a little socially because you haven’t talked to anyone all week because you work alone and hang out with a toddler mostly then you can kind of get into these activities and probably chat with people who are doing them too and it just kind of makes it like a little bit of an icebreaker in a way. Or if you need a little break, like you just had a long conversation with a good friend and you’re like, Oh, I’m going to mingle some more and it’s like, okay, I’ll walk over to the puzzle table or over to these yard games or whatever’s out and you know. 

Elsie: That’s perfect. I love it. So, what are your favorite places to get party supplies, or do you like to keep a stash? Tell us all your secrets about that. 

Emma: Yeah. So, if it’s like a holiday thing, I feel like I already have a stash because I just love decorating my house for Halloween and Christmas. So, I feel like a lot of Christmas stuff kind of blends into New Year’s. Some of it doesn’t, but a lot of it kind of does because it’s just sparkly and wintry, so I feel like that kind of works. Other than that though, I do love to get random supplies at thrifts, and then I’m also a big balloon person because I feel like balloons can kind take up a lot of space, but also they’re fairly easy to clean up, and at least in my world, my son loves to play with them for weeks afterward. So they kind of like double as a toy for that month while they’re still around. Like we had New Year’s Eve balloons up for like, I swear like two months this year after New Year’s Eve and Oscar loved them. They were fun to play with. So it’s great. So that’s a lot of what I do. And then one other thing that I will recommend is don’t be afraid to source from friends. So if you need more tablecloths or even like more wine glasses and you’re like stressed, you’re like, I need to buy 20 wine glasses. It’s like, well if you don’t have anywhere to store that afterward, and you’re going to use them like once a year, maybe tell people to bring them. I know that might sound kind of weird, but it’s really not a big deal. If someone tells me to bring something, like, can you bring an extra blanket? We’re doing a picnic thing in the backyard. Like, yeah, that’s no big deal. I can totally bring something. So don’t be afraid to source things that you need like that from friends. 

Elsie: Yeah, that’s a good point. Okay, so my favorite places to get supplies are definitely Etsy. Number one, they have a ton of downloads. If you, like when we did our daughter’s Dolly Parton birthday party, we got like cupcake picks that had Dolly Parton from Etsy, like things like that I think are really special and it’s good to like, you know, print out a few things like it’s easy, it’s simple, it’s fun. And other than that, I honestly just love DIYing parties. I personally think that parties should be fun if it’s not fun for you to throw, don’t do it then. I could go 50/50 on weddings because I get it that weddings are like, it’s worth it to you, but at the moment it’s like pure hell. But like, I don’t think a party should ever be a big source of stress. So I think that making it like really doable for yourself, whatever you have to do to do that. So for me, I kind of just like making decoration slowly, and then usually I’ll spend like one day making it really cute in like my main area. And then I kind of just like, don’t worry about it after that. So I think a lot of people don’t throw parties because they put too high of a bar for how perfect it has to be or how expensive or whatever. And it doesn’t necessarily need to be. 

Emma: Yeah. And I think too, I’ve kind of noticed that some people feel, I think a little anxious about letting people see their houses, especially if it’s like not quote-unquote done or if there’s areas of the horn. It’s never done, areas of the home where they’re like I’m about to paint but I haven’t gotten to yet or whatever, and me personally if I have a friend over and they haven’t seen my house in a while or if they haven’t been over at all I love to give a tour and be like look at this basement that’s not done at all Check it out. It’s fun. People like to see anything of yours like your friends will love seeing whatever you want to show them. So don’t feel anxious that your house has to be perfect I actually love seeing people’s houses when it’s like, you know, in progress and they’re telling me their plans and they’re excited about it. It’s actually really fun to see someone be excited about it. I also don’t mind when people are like, oh, don’t worry about that room, that’s our playroom, and you see all the like magnet tiles or whatever’s in there and it’s like, I have a room just like that in my house too. So it’s like, not going to bother me. So don’t let anything like that, you know, take you away from hosting a party if you really want to host. Nobody cares about your mess, nobody cares about whatever isn’t done or if you think your house is too small or too big or whatever, If these people are actually your friends, they’re going to love to come over and hang out with you, so don’t worry about that.

Elsie: I agree for sure. What are the essential elements of a good party? So I think food, amazing food, a playlist, a cute playlist that goes with your theme. And then a chill activity of some kind. I agree with Emma, I think this is my strong opinion, you don’t have to agree. I think that drinking and mandatory board games do not mix. And I just think they shouldn’t be mixed. I think mandatory board games are for family chill time. And like Christmas Eve with your parents and like things like that. But I think that like when I’ve been in a party with drinking and there’s like a mandatory game I’m like always mad because I always just want to like to stand around and talk. 

Emma: Or dance I like dancing. Yeah, I think mainly if you get the vibe that you’re coercing people into playing cards with you, maybe don’t, you know, maybe just, you know, let’s set that down. Like if people don’t enthusiastically want to do it. I promise they’re just being nice and they don’t want to do it. So it’s maybe just like, don’t worry about it. But there are times I think a game can be nice. Like if I’m at a party where I really don’t know very many people all that well, it can be a really nice way to kind of interact when it’s like, I’m trying to meet everyone, but I also have already forgotten everyone’s name because I just met all of you, you know what I mean? Like I actually think there can be times where it is a really good fit I also if I know ahead of time like this is a murder mystery party and you’re gonna get a character as soon as you get here that’s also like, you know what you’re in for before you even get there. So that’s like a good fit, too.

Elsie: That’s an adorable party. 

Emma: If you’re like we’re doing backyard yard game tournament, and that’s what this party is I’d be like, oh, yeah, that sounds fun. Great. I’ll bring my beer. Great, whatever. So those are good.

Elsie: I just think like we should make a murder mystery party, that’s so cool.

Emma: Yeah, it sounds like a lot of work, but I just want to decorate and make the food, to be honest. 

Elsie: Okay, someday we’ll do it. Yeah. Okay, so some examples of chill activities, I think like, something like S’mores, decorating cookies, even like a bar where you have to make your own drinks. At Laura’s party, she always puts out the recipes and then left out the ingredients, which is so smart because it saves the host time it is fun for people to do and it’s easy. It’s like, you know, it’s fun. So yeah, I think little activities like that are really nice to have.

Emma: I agree. And then a couple of other small things, I wouldn’t say are like a have to, but they’re nice is I think if you can have fun lighting, especially if it’s a party in the evening, I think that’s really fun. Like colorful lights or it doesn’t have to be anything that’s going to bother someone. I don’t like being at concerts when it’s very strobie, it makes my heart beat like fast. But I do like, if I walk into someone’s house in the evening and it’s like a little bit red or they have a room that’s like kind of blue, I always love that. I’m like, Oh, I’m in this cool, they have a vibe going on in here. So I think that’s really fun. So I like things like that, disco balls, glittery, anything like that, I think is really fun. And another very small thing, but just a FYI, it’s nice to light a scented candle in bathrooms and also make sure you have a little trash can in every bathroom for your guests. Oh my gosh. These are just essentials that could be easy to forget. You know, if there’s a bathroom you never use because it’s your house and like, it might be the bathroom that just never gets used. Just check in on that before you have people over, you know? 

Elsie: Yeah, that’s a good idea. Okay, so Catherine wanted to hear more about your puzzle table that you leave out for people and other things that you do at a party to help people have a good time. 

Emma: Yeah, so we’ve kind of talked about that, like if you’re obligating people to play a board game, maybe not the best thing, but if you’re leaving one out and people seem to congregate, excellent. Now you’ve done a great service to your guests. So I think a puzzle table is a great thing for that. Puzzles are really good because, unlike games, you can kind of dip in and out. You could just play for 10 minutes and then if your friend’s like, Hey, let’s go mix another drink or whatever. Let’s go dance, you can go do that. In a game, you kind of sometimes feel like you need to finish your hand or finish that round. So a puzzle is a really nice, you know, thing, I think. Another thing that I like about mixed companies, but especially parties that are mostly women, is jewelry making. I know that sounds so middle school, but I feel like Taylor Swift has brought it back to everyone. But I just personally love making jewelry. So like having some kind of little craft that’s kind of set out, that’s like you’re inviting people to use your stash of whatever. And, you know, if all your friends love scrapbooking, you could have stuff out for scrapbooking. Like, whatever. I just think it’s like a nice, like, you don’t have to come and make anything, but if you want to make something, here’s my stash of stuff and feel free to sit down and make something. And again, I feel like it just allows people, if they’re having a little moment where they need to like get into their social mode, like they’ve just arrived at the party, they might want that. Or if you’re like, I need a little break. I’ve been here a couple of hours and I just need a little break. Then it’s like, I like to just do something with my hands. It just helps me feel a little more grounded in life. So I think just having some things around like that for people is really nice.

Elsie: Nice. Yeah, I love that. Okay. I had a couple of down-key decorating stations. We talked about I think that could be for any Holiday or any party theme it just kind of all the time any time you do like cupcake decorating something a little different too, but I think that. Oh, a gingerbread, gingerbread decorating. That would be fun. I think having a fire pit with everything for s’mores is such a good idea, especially for a longer party that goes into the night. It’s just like another thing to do, that it’s fun and different. I think having an easy craft, if you like Emma said with the bracelet, something like that where it’s like something that you can do if you want to and you don’t have to if you don’t. It’s just kind of there because there’s always one person who gets really into it. Yeah. I’ve noticed that. I usually do these at kids’ parties and there’s always one kid who’s like making like 50 bracelets and then other kids who are like, oh, I didn’t really feel like doing it, you know, or whatever. And you’re like, yeah, okay, that’s cool. Yeah, and then the drink station I think is so fun to like plan a few things that people can make on their own. And it does take so much effort and time off of you as the host if you don’t mix any cocktails for any guests. Because that is a lot of work, if you have a bigger party and you try to make a cocktail for everyone, it’s borderline impossible. And I’m like a big give-the-house tour person. So I physically can’t do all of that. 

Emma: Yeah, you’re like, no one’s gonna get a drink for 20 minutes because I gotta go show you my Halloween closet, you know. Yeah, and that’s another area where you can ask people to bring stuff, like if you know you’re going to do these three different cocktails or whatever, then you could have different people bring a bottle of Amaretto or whatever it is, like the ingredients. So then you as the host don’t necessarily have to buy everything, but also you know, whenever I’m going to a party and they’re like, bring your own beer, BYOB, I usually just bring a bottle of wine because I don’t want to bring like three bottles and like mix something because then I need to take them home later. I’m not going to use it all, you know? So I feel like that’s a good time to be like, hey, you’re in charge of bringing this ingredient. Triple sec, you’re the triple sec girl. Don’t forget. You know? And it’s a nice way to kind of break up the expense and also kind of get people involved. 

Elsie: Yeah, I love that. Fun, fun, fun. Okay. Do you have any embarrassing stories from a party that you were at or where you hosted? 

Emma: I have three very short, just like embarrassing things I’ve done before at parties. So one time I went to a cookie decorating party. And I did not read the invite because I am a dweeb and I brought these fully decorated, fancy, like they had centers of jelly, like type cookies and everyone else had plain cookies and was getting ready to decorate. And I showed up with this giant, and I was just like, oh, I didn’t read the instruction. Nobody cared, but it was just a moment of like, Oh, can somebody give me some plain cookies? I totally brought up the wrong thing. So I did that, and then there was another time I was kind of an early person. I like to show up on time, and sometimes that means a couple of minutes early because I know people feel nervous that no one’s going to show up to their party. So I like to be on time. So anyway, one time though, I showed up a little too early and they were still eating dinner as a family, like with their kids. I think I just have the time right. And it was very awkward because they, of course, were like, Oh, just come on in. I was like, no, but then it was like, do I go sit in my car? I was just kind of, I was just embarrassed. So that was an oopsie doodle on being early. And then one other time I showed up to a party. It was a friend of mine who knew that I was not really on Facebook. I just have never really used Facebook all that much. I use Instagram. I use Goodreads, and I have a blog. That’s all I can do. I’m trying to keep up with my emails like everybody else. I don’t know. So I’m not really on Facebook. So anyway, she had texted me about the party because she mostly posted on Facebook and I showed up and I think I had like snacks with me, like cheese stuff or I don’t know, and I knocked on her door and there’s no one else there and I just had this feeling and she opens the door and she was like, Oh my gosh, I had to cancel it. One of my kids is sick. I posted on Facebook, but I completely forgot to text you, which is not her fault. I should be able to use social media. So then I was just like, Oh, okay. And I just like, you know, walked away with my cheese or whatever, just very, very cool move. 

Elsie: Oh my gosh, that’s so sad. 

Emma: It’s also like, I know I’ve made someone else feel awkward. Like when I showed up early with the family and this time it’s like, I made someone else feel like, oh, should we invite her in? Cause she seems like a lost puppy here. I’m like, I’m sorry, I’m just an awkward person. Anyway, do you have any embarrassing stories from parties? 

Elsie: Yes, I have a good one. So, a few years back, I hosted a party and There’s no other way to say this besides I was like really having cramps and that time of the month and it was like, you know, but I was still like I have a good attitude. I’m gonna be a good host I’m gonna take this might all I’m gonna be fine. Take lots of medicine and I decided like I’m not gonna drink tonight because it’s just sometimes you don’t mix those two things together, and it was actually a really fun party because I was the host, and people for whatever reason, you know, sometimes it happens, got very drunk and it was like, you know, kind of when you get to like experience what everyone else is like, but you’re not like that, it’s like kind of an illuminating experience.

Emma: That is all of pregnancy. Yes. 

Elsie: So I had that kind of night, and then towards the end of the night we were like hanging out in the kitchen, and I was like, okay, just a sec, and then I ran upstairs, and then I came back downstairs. And we’re going to say this was an unnamed person, because I don’t think this person wants to be called out for this particular thing, and you’ll find out why. So, an unnamed man, who’s not my husband, but he is someone in this world, you know. So he looked at my pants and said, “Why did you change your pants?” and I was like, oh my god, and then I was like, I think he kind of knows, but whatever. 

Emma: It’s one of those things you say it out loud and then you’re like, oh. 

Elsie: Yeah. Sometimes when people are making it weird, I like to just like say nothing and like see how bad it can get, you know, like you don’t have to fix it for them. So anyway, then he said, are you on your weiriod? And he said weird because I think he, it was actually like a drunk misspeak. 

Emma: He was trying to say weird period.

Elsie: He was trying to say period or like are you weird because you’re on your period? I don’t know. Are you on your period? But he said that actually what came out was are you on your weiriod? So now, I and my husband always say, are you on your weriod? Are you on your weriod? And it became an iconic phrase for us.

Emma: That’s always good when an awkward moment becomes an inside joke. That’s the dream of every awkward moment, to become an inside joke. 

Elsie: I know. When someone asks you if you’re on your period, then you just feel like, yes. Then it’s like, cool. 

Emma: Yes, and it’s weird to be on my weriod. 

Elsie: Cool. Good job. 

Emma: Yeah, there’s nowhere to go after that, really.

Elsie: There’s nowhere else to go. 

Emma: Yes, should I talk about it for 10 minutes? Alright, great. 

Elsie: Okay, now we’re gonna go to everyone’s favorite segment, a joke from Nova. Alright, we’re back with Nova. Nova, what do you have prepared for us this week? 

Nova: I have a meditation. What kind of meditation? A spooky meditation, since it’s getting close to Halloween.

Elsie: Perfect. All right, what do we do? 

Nova: So close your eyes and pretend you’re trick or treating on Halloween and then pretend you come to a spooky house. Like a spooky castle. Then you walk in and you find nobody, but you find a friendly, very cute ghost, who will be your tour guide. You go through and see a pumpkin. He says, Hello, and how are you doing? Then, you go through and see a witch. She makes some food for you because you know how witches make potions. 

Elsie: Should we eat the food? 

Nova: Yes, because she made it good. You ate it, and it was so delicious. Then, you go and see some bats. They say, how is the food? And you say, it’s good. Then, one of them swoops you up, and then you fly into the air in the moonlight. 

Elsie: Amazing! 

Nova: And then, come back to your house. And when you go, you remember, you put another pumpkin just like it, you put a bat up that represents the bat, you put a moon up that represents the moon, you put it where it looks like a castle, and you put a decoration of a witch by a pot. Looks like it’s like a spooky castle right there so you’ll always remember that and maybe if you go trick or treating again in that lane. You can visit them again. 

Elsie: Thanks, Nova. Thank you so much for listening. We’ll be back next week with our comfort rewatch episode. We’re getting into our Halloween movies era now. So the next couple will be Halloween movies. This next week, we are rewatching one of the greatest Halloween movies of all time, Hocus Pocus.