YaYa Dinner Group

A couple of years ago I started a dinner group just for very close friends, there are eleven of us. We had all been friends for twenty years or more and our husbands are also friends. I believe that in this day and time that is extremely unusual. We often do get together for lunch and are in other organizations together so we see each other often. This idea of mine to start a dinner group came together after I had read an article in a magazine of a group in Birmingham, AL and they had been doing this since their college days. I loved this idea because often when you are having lunch you chat briefly, have lunch and then we are off to our next appointment, not really having those quality conversations. Our group meets once a month, the first Thursday of each month. So I started what we call the YaYa dinner group. We on occasion include our husbands who by the way get together for dinner at a restaurant on the evenings we are having our dinner group if they are not included.

Last night we had our dinner party, it was at the home of one of the other girls but I co-hosted with her. I think everyone enjoyed themselves because I didn't get home until midnight. Yes we had a great time.

Our theme of course, was a Valentines theme and I wanted to share some of my photos. This is the arrangement that I did for the table.

 

 

I also did small mercury glass containers using the same flowers as in the arrangement to sit at each place setting for each guest to take home with them. A reminder of a wonderful evening with friends.

 

 

 

 

 

The place card holders were old French silver ones that I had used for my daughters bridesmaids luncheon which we had at our home several years ago. The cards had an antique look about them with little birds at the top. It tied in with everything else as I will show you. My daughter did the names for the cards. We don't usually do place card holders but I thought it was a fun addition and mixed up everyone who don't normally sit together.

 

 

 

 

Our hostess has a very large dining room that accommodated everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

At each place setting a different bird plate a part of a collection of antique bird salad plates belonging to our hostess. They were stunning. The red clear glass chargers were mine and the dinner plate was her wedding fine china.

 

 

YaYa Dinner Menu

 

Spinach Salad with feta, strawberries and bacon

topped with a Balsamic Vinaigrette

 

Ina Garten's Chicken with Mushrooms from her new book, Foolproof

 

Haricot Vert

 

Dessert

 

Come Home to Mama Chocolate Cake

 

Coffee

 

Followed by Chocolate Martini's

 

 

I had prepared the Chicken dish and the Chocolate Cake, everyone loved both as well as our entire menu.

 



 

 

It was a fun and enjoyable evening, we adjourned to the family room as we drank our chocolate martini's and we played a game, how many songs can you think of that have LOVE in the title. Our group range in age from 70 to 59 so as you can imagine some of us could think of some that go wayyyyyyyy back. Our hostess had two lovely prizes for the winners and we did in fact have a tie. The prizes, some bling jewelry. It was a lot of laughs and as we read the songs we had listed we had to sing them or at least give it a try.

 

 

 

 



A wonderful evening with good friends, delicious food and lots of conversation and laughter. Making memorable moments.

I am linking this post to Rose Chintz Cottage for her HOME party and Savy Southern Style for Wow us Wednesday. Click HERE to view other participants of this lovely blogging party.