8/8/10

Back 2 School Dinner

So, this is our 4th year to have a Back 2 School dinner the weekend before they go back.

You can see last years here.

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This year I admit that I didn't have a lot of ideas going into it!

I knew we were going to do it Friday evening at 6:00...that's about it!

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Thursday evening after we had dinner and the dishes were done I decided it was probably about time to start thinking about what I was going to do for the table.

I really like using the table runner you see.  It's not really school related, but I just like the primary colors.

I used that fabric on my bulletin board in my dorm room at OSU...remember it Melissa?  Then when I started planning my first Back 2 School party I pulled it out.  The first year I just ironed it and called it good.  The second year I cut it to this runner size and ironed the raw edges under.  The third year I did a childish stitch in white around the edges. I just LOVE IT!

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I started off my decorating first with the tablecloth and runner and then went to the closet to see what i had in there.  We have a TON of crayons and they were just calling to me to be on the table.
Only problem was...what to do with them on the table...Open cabinet doors and Ta-Da...sundae dishes!

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Back to the closet...stand and look...look some more...look up...look down...look right...look left...NOTHING!

Then I see the scrapbook paper and think, "Oh it would be cute to use paper as a place mat and then the guests could color a picture before or after the meal."

Now the problem is that my scrapbook paper is all patterned {at least what was in the closet :)} but I quickly remember I have some small sheets of poster board that came from Dollar General!  SCORE!

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Now, my next great idea for the table came the next day, but I am going to share it with you now.

About a year ago I bought some Crayola brand sticky ribbon...to use on a scrapbook page I am sure! Anyways, I remembered having it and just knew it would make the place mats just a tad more special.

So Cambree helped me cut the ribbon and attach a different color to each piece of the poster board...in ROYGBV {red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet...the order of the color wheel} order.  Then my color coordinating brain went into over-drive and I knew that matching ribbons on the ball jars would be PERFECT!!



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See? Aren't they just too cute?!!!

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And all those glue sticks? They are ALL on the combined school supply list! This was one of the things I had in mind prior to Thursday evening. I thought of this when I was labeling them all!

Okay, back to the mantle.  Again NO IDEAS here.  So I just start pulling the kids new school supplies out of their backpacks and arranging them on the mantle.

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I needed a few fillers so I grabbed our paint brushes from the drawer and the million and one extra pencils we just happen to have around here!

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I also grabbed some Twistables and a cute composition book that are in the gift closet.

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Later I went back and grabbed a picture of Preston from each of his past 3 "First Day of School" photo shoots! What fun this is going to be throughout the years! Just think of ALL the photos we will have by the time Westynn graduates from High School....there won't be room for all those school supplies!

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Clothespins make CUTE picture holders AND they are cheap!

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After I had all the supplies and pictures up there it seemed like something was missing, so I randomly tossed their backpacks up there and OMG...The PERFECT mantle for our Back 2 School PAAARRR-TTTAAAYYY!

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Oh and don't forget that Back 2 School banner...saved from last year!

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I always let the kids choose the menu and this year they chose TACOS! What can I say? We love us some Mexican food around here!

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And you just can't have a Back 2 School dinner without an authentic Lunch Room Tray! How fun!

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Happy Back 2 School P & C! Momma loves you and I know you are going to have a wonderful year as a First Grader and Pre-schooler! Aim for the stars!

2 comments:

ragtime4361 said...

I only have 2 remarks: #1. So cute, & looks like so much fun!
#2: What kind of closet storage space do you have in your house?! I can't imagine how many cubbyholes of storage you must have to keep so many things so well organized!
Good job!

Melanie said...

I tried to leave a comment last night, but my computer is having issues!! Just wanted to say how cute your decorations were! Hope everyone had a great first day at school!!