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Archive for the ‘entertain’ Category

Groundhog’s Day Entertaining

Posted in entertain, tagged on February 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Today is Groundhog’s Day and a great excuse to gather friends for a fun meal.

You might want to start the festivities by highlighting the reason for celebrating the forecasting talents of furry Punxsutawney Phil.

The legend of the groundhog’s forecasting powers is said to  date back to the early days of Christianity in Europe when clear skies on the holiday Candlemas Day, celebrated Feb. 2, meant winter would continue for many weeks. The tradition was carried to Germany, with the German twist being that if the sun made an appearance on Candlemas, a hedgehog would cast its shadow, predicting six more weeks of bad weather. Many of Pennsylvania’s earliest settlers were German, and they continued the tradition after noticing a large population of groundhogs, which resemble the European hedgehog.

So gather your friends for an relaxed evening together. Serve a meal with sausage as the main course  and finish  with these adorable cupcakes.

Use any flavor cupcake, unfrosted. Remove a piece of cake the width of an Almond Joy candy from the center of a baked cupcake. Set the candy upright in the hole, then spread a layer of white frosting on the cupcake. For the groundhog’s eyes, trim the ends from a white jelly bean, stick them in place with frosting, then dot them with black decorators’ gel. Add a tiny triangle cut from a watermelon slice candy for a nose, brown M&M’s Minis for ears and cheeks, and a tiny rectangular piece of white jelly bean for teeth. Sprinkle chocolate cookie crumbs around the partially emerged groundhog, and he’s ready to greet his fans.

Happy Entertaining!

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Do I Know Your Name?

Posted in entertain, Entertaining Ideas, tagged , , on January 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The other day I was having the most fascinating conversation with a 5-year-old.  After sharing cooking tips, we moved right into fashion.

Me: “I really like your shirt.”

Her: “My friend gave it to me.”

Me: “It is fun having a friend like that, isn’t it?”

Her: “Yes! And she knows my name!”

She was most excited not about the clothes that her little friend shares, but about the fact that her friend knows her name. That really got me thinking about the people I know and if I truly know their name.

I know their names in the literal sense, but what do I know about the person attached to that name? When a certain name comes to mind, does it conjure up just a face in my mind of that person, or is there a  treasure trove of data that comes along with that name? Even better, does that name stir up any emotion?

If I make an honest assessment, there are many names I am familiar with in that I recognize them and know what person they belong to, but I don’t truly know them. I don’t know them in the sense of what is important to them, what makes them smile, what makes them cry, what drives them to get out of bed each day, what stirs their creativity and sparks their passion?

When you peel away all the layers of social dictates, political correctness, ingrained behaviors and quirks, most of us find at the core a being who wants to be known by others for who they are and the unique gifts they bring to the table.

Think about your friends, family and acquaintances. When you gather with them, who brings you the most joy? The ones you don’t know very well or those you truly know?  I’ve said it before, and will most likely say it again, but relationships are everything.

As you set about entertaining this year, make your guest list a challenge of sorts by mixing together those you know with those you have yet to know. You’ll find in getting to know them, you’ll be richly blessed.

Happy Entertaining!

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Enjoy an Indoor Picnic

Posted in entertain, Entertaining Ideas, tagged , , on January 19, 2010| 1 Comment »

If you aren’t in a place where the weather is warm, sunny and lovely, dreary skies don’t have to keep you from entertaining.

One way to chase away the winter blues is to put together an indoor picnic. This is awesome for a couple, great fun for kids and you can turn it into a really cool party for friends.

Think about all the elements that make a picnic fun – and then bring it indoors!

Start with your typical picnic food. Maybe it is barbecued burgers and hot dogs, grilled steaks or fried chicken. Whatever is your barbecue specialty – bring it on!

Use a bright cheery cloth to cover your table or buffet area. Add in some fun wicker baskets to hold serving bowls, use bright flowers for accents and make sure the lighting is strong.

If you have an indoor fireplace, spread some blankets or quilts in front of it as a welcome seating area for guests. If your fireplace is open, you can even plan to roast a few marshmallows to amp up the fun factor.

Have youngsters play some fun indoor-friendly games like “Who’s got the Button” or “Mother May I.”

If the party is all adults, have everyone share their best or worst picnic experience. This is sure to bring many laughs and smiles.

Most of all, remember to have fun!

Happy Entertaining

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Host a Winter Themed Party

Posted in entertain, Entertaining at Home, Party Theme, tagged , , , , on January 12, 2010| 1 Comment »

Now that the holidays are over, the Christmas bills have started arriving and the weather is dreary, everyone could use a fun pick-me-up.

Why not host a fun party? Provide the time and place for your loved ones to forgot about the January blues and have a couple hours of unbelieveable fun. You can pull together a great winter-themed party without breaking the bank and it will be just the thing to bring out smiles and warm some hearts!

Here are a few ideas:

* Snowman Party – The fun can snowball in a hurry with a creative theme. Use a simple menu like Snowman’s Soup (Potato Soup), Snowman Rolls (shape biscuits or rolls into a snowman shape). Cut your favorite white cheese with a small snowman cookie cutter, and place on top of  nice green salad for Snowman  Salad. Finish the meal with a snowman shaped dessert, easily made by stacking varying sizes of cupcakes, covering in white frosting and finishing with coconut or by dipping Nutter Butter Cookies in melted white chocolate and adding a face and a hat with frosting. Use snowman decorations left over from the holidays to highlight the theme. You can even make an easy centerpiece out of white styrofoam balls (available at craft stores) placed in a pretty glass bowl.

* Snowflake Party – Get the kids in on the decorating for this party. Have them cut as many snowflake as they can and hang them all around your serving and gathering area. Chiffon, organza or even tulle can be a great and affordable way to carry out the theme, especially when you combine white and icy blue. Layer white lights under the chiffon for a warm glow. For this party you could make snowflake soup (tomato soup with a sour cream snowflake floating in each bowl – fill a sandwich bag, clip a corner and pipe it on!) and snowflake sandwiches (grilled cheese sandwiches made by alternating a dark bread like rye with a lighter bread like sourdough or white. Cut out snowflakes from each then put the cut out of one bread into the cut out area of the other.)  Serve Candy Cane punch (1 liter cranberry or strawberry juice, 2 liters of lemon-lime soda, 2 quarts peppermint ice cream. Just before serving, put chilled  juice in punch bowl, scoop in ice cream, top with chilled soda. Garnish the bowl with mini candy canes) with snowflake sugar cookies for dessert.

* Skating or sledding party – use mufflers and mittens for your decorations. Use mitten shaped invitations to spread the word. Serve hot cider and hot chocolate (if you are serving hot chocolate make sure you have fun add ins read like marshmallows, crushed peppermint, mini chocolate chips and long peppermint sticks to stir with), snack mixes, and something simple like  mac and cheese with warm bread and salad. Make ice skate brownies for dessert. Cut a small skate shape our of cardboard for a template then cut out brownies, flipping the template over for half so the skates or heading different directions. Frost with white icing, make laces from red icing and the skate heel from a touch of chocolate frosting. Add a mini candy cane on the bottom for the skate blade.

* Winter Animals  – this theme works well and is most fun for younger children. Using the theme of animals that make you think of winter, it can be a really fun meal for little ones. Penguins can be made from hand-boiled eggs with olive heads and arms (use a whole black olive for the head and the tip of a mini carrot for his beak. Cut an olive into quarters lengthwise for arms and use tips of mini carrots for the feet. Toothpicks will anchor on the head and limbs. Be sure someone removes the toothpicks for younger ones before eating!). How about polar bear sandwiches? Just cut bread slices in the shape of a polar bear. You could do peanut butter, grilled cheese, meat, whatever you want. Serve milk as “artic punch” and have popcorn balls for reindeer cookies for dessert.

* Escape to Paradise – for the adults who are tired of gray skies and freezing temperatures, tell everyone to come dressed in their tropical best. Turn up the heater, play the luau music and put out a feast featuring “warm, sunny” foods and drinks like tropical fruit salad, pulled pork sandwiches, chicken and veggie skewers, crab pasta salad, orange-avocado salad atop mixed greens and tropical sunrise drinks (orange juice and ice with a dash of pomegranate juice). Make sure everyone has a lei to wear. A parting gift to each guest could be a votive that smells “tropical” like pineapple or coconut, as a a fun reminder of the evening. Tie it in a circle of tulle with a bright ribbon and it makes a lovely little gift!

However you decide to entertain this month, have fun, smile and enjoy the time spent with the people who are most dear to you!

Happy Entertaining!

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