Every summer we have a boat party.  We spend two hours on the water them head back to the house for dinner.  This summer I decided to let our guests build their own tacos.

To make sure that I got to enjoy the party and not get stuck in the kitchen all night I did all of the prep and cooking ahead of time.  I cooked the Carnitas  and Smokey Roasted Chicken the night before.  On the day of the party I sent my husband to the grill to cook the carne asada while I reheated the pork and chicken in the microwave.  I then wrapped the meats in tin foil and place them in the oven at 170 degrees.

I made the spanish rice the two days before and then rewarmed it in the oven.

I spent the day before the party chopping the lettuce, onions, and cilantro. I decided to buy the salsa this time, but if I hadn’t I would have made that a few days ahead of time as well.

For the table I went with some fun and festive flowers in jars. I love saving jars. Pickle jars are really quiet pretty.  The same goes for pesto and caper jars. I just soak them to get the labels off and am ready to go.