Retreat, retreat, retreat!

This year’s Fall Retreat, for all the secretaries in our school district, will be this week. I am on the committee that puts on this yearly event and they have selected me to be the Master of Ceremonies. I have written and practiced my opening and closing remarks, plus a few jokes. That part is ready!

I am also in charge of decorations. Each of the 15 tables has a center piece that is part of the door prizes. Coming up with the ideas for these decorations was very easy for me because I got a lot of ideas from my Blogger Friends.

This year the decorations will be various types of pitchers with cuts flowers from my garden. Our budget is very limited, so I shopped Goodwill and other thrift stores for the past eight months. I bought 15 pitchers, each costing under $2.00. And with the flowers from my garden, it should be very inexpensive this year. Putting all these bouquets together will be a last minutes job. Last year, I used a variety of teapots with my flowers and it was such a huge success (I shopped thrift stores for the teapots). I’m hoping the pitchers this year, will be as sucessful. Some where on the table is a “mark” that tells who gets to take home each center piece.

I bought a few more pitchers since this picture

As the days go by, preparing and anticipating for this Retreat, I still am waiting for our next grand baby! If I get THE call from my daughter, the committee will have to go to “Plan B".

~~~~~~Y~~~~~~

~Tidbits~

When serving perishable foods at outdoor parties, use a inflatable kiddies pool. Fill it full of ice. Place the bowels of potato salad, chicken salad, or even drinks, in the ice. You can place flowers around the ice or add a center piece for display. Remember to pre-chill the items before serving and try not to let foods stay out for more then an hour. You can make smaller servings and replenish them each hour for longer parties.