Sweetheart Dinner
Sometime
last year a group of our friends decided to start a dinner club – a time to
entertain each other in our homes – in a relaxing and casual way… our rules are
simple: we meet every other month; the host couple provides everything; and we
keep it simple.
This
was our month to host and since Valentine’s Day is coming up we decided to go
with a sweetheart theme [and let’s be honest, I had an assignment for this blog
- ha.] I’d already changed the mantle up a bit to reflect the holiday [Fritz,
the antelope, belongs to my brother and visited us for the Christmas holidays
but he hasn’t quite made it back home yet, so I had to put him to work once
again – ha.] I picked up the mirrored ‘LOVE’ sign at Hobby Lobby a couple of years
ago when it was 80% off – it has a teeny tiny chip on one letter, can you see
it?
We
did most of the arranging through a group text so I didn’t have an invite… but
if I had, it would probably look something like this. This little ‘reminder’ was
created on my phone with my new RhonnaDesigns app [Less than $2 U.S.] And, yes,
we had dinner after church on Sunday – and spent the afternoon just visiting
together – It was just what worked out
best for us this month.
Y’all
know I enjoy putting together a pretty table and since our table only seats six
comfortably we had to figure out a way to add some length – and I’m so happy to
say that our drop leaf table that we’ve used as a buffet is the perfect width!
My sweetie added some wood to the bottom to bring it up to the correct height. I
love using things we already have! Plus,
using it freed up that area for more comfortable seating.
I
picked up the table cloth at Target after Christmas for 75% off – since it was
red, gold, and white I knew I could use it
for more than Christmas… and we used a folding table from World Market [bought
during The World’s Longest Yard Sale] on the side to hold extra tea and
dessert… [See it tucked in the corner in the back -]
I
set up a little area with some hummus and pita chips… on a pedestal [cake
stand] on a pedestal [cheese plate with dome] with some Valentine Art to
welcome the gang –
On
the table, I used gold chargers [that I had in the attic,] silver dandelion
china [thrift store purchase – that I LOVE,] and little heart plates for salad
plates [50c each at a deep discount store…]
I used paper napkins and regular flatware and glasses…
For
the ‘centerpiece’ I used some of my milk glass collection with candles that
have a silver and gold mercury glass feel to them…all stuff I had already. I
added the larger candles from the Valentine’s box in the attic…
Our menu was pretty easy – We had: Berried Treasure Salad [mixed baby greens + mandarin oranges + pineapple chunks + dried cranberries, + sugared walnuts = yum,] chicken cordon bleu [from Sam’s – just pop it in the oven!], bleu cheese fries [sprinkle bleu cheese and mozzarella over fries and broil until melted,] and roasted broccoli [drizzle frozen broccoli with olive oil and roast until crunchy -]… I used milk glass pie plates and mixing bowls to serve in…
For
dessert I made little cherry tarts [with a heart shaped pie press] and served
them with vanilla bean ice cream and chocolate sauce – NOTE: the sauce I bought
did not create the thin ribbons I’d anticipated across the plates - But it was
delicious, so no one complained. Ha.
And
you know me – I had to add a little activity into our time together – This
would work well as an ice breaker – or, if you created two, it might be a fun
game to pit each part of the couple against the other and compare their answers
– We chose to fill it out as couples and take a photo holding it… This is easy
to create; just get a frame with glass and cover the backing with scrapbook
papers and embellishments – Add the questionnaire [printed on the computer] and
insert in the glass – Use a dry erase marker to write on the glass. It wipes
off easily between couples…
We
had a wonderful time visiting, as we always do when we get together. It’s more
about the friendships than the meal or the decorations, but I do enjoy
gathering things together to decorate a bit. I’m afraid we let our busy lives
[or even our very comfortable, stay at home with the tv and computer lives] get
in the way of making time for
friendships. We pulled together the Dinner Club as a way to intentionally get together. I hope this inspires you to call [or text]
some friends and celebrate a little something in your lives! Whether it’s a
cozy movie night, a picnic in the park, a potluck with friends and family, or a
simple after-church dinner, I encourage you to take the time to be with those
you love.
Thank you so much Judy for all your wonderful hospitality posts. I wish I lived nearer!
Using the comments below, do let us know what tips you have picked from Judy during this last year. You can find her other posts here: Spring, Summer and Autumn.
