We have had quite a few new families move into our ward and many sisters have been in Primary, Young Women's, etc. that haven't met everyone. . . so, we decided to have Garden Party social for our monthly
Relief Society meeting to meet everyone and find out more about those we know
(or thought we knew).
Yes, I am aware that is a run on sentence:)
As everyone arrived, we had them take a skewer with a table number that told them which table to sit at and a worksheet to fill out about themselves (for our newsletter). Each plate had Sister Marjorie Pay Hinckley's quote, "The trick is to enjoy life, don't wish away your days waiting for better ones ahead" under it that they could take home. That was our theme for the night. . . being happy with where we are at now in life. It is not always a easy thing to do. My husband and I have been in school / residency since we got married almost 10 years ago and it is very easy to think/dream about when we will be done but I know these moments are to be cherished!
After all the ladies had their food, we started with the conversation cards on each table. Some tables picked one or two and everyone answered the same questions and the other tables just went around the table picking one each. There are 6 cards that say something along the lines, "If you have ever broken a bone, move to the next table." We were hoping this would give the sisters a better chance to talk to everyone.
You can download ALL of these papers for your next garden party by clicking on the images of the prints below. They can also be used for some conversation starter cards for FHE. The kit includes:
FOOD TENT LABELS: 3 pages with 4 labels per page, 1 page I left blank
TABLE NUMBER CIRCLES: To determine which table to sit at. Easy to cut out with 2" circle or 2" scallop punch. There are 6 circles per table and go up to Table 6
TABLE TOPPERS: 4" circle toppers to label each table, enough for 6 tables
CONVERSATION STARTERS: 4 pages with 12 conversation starters on each. Easy to cut out with 2" circle or 2" scallop punch. I made 5 copies of each to put on each table (We only had five tables not six)
ENJOY LIFE QUOTE: Round quote to put under each plate for the sisters to take home
It was soooooo nice to sit and chat with all the amazing, funny, sweet, and loving sisters in our ward! I could have stayed for a few more hours talking, laughing and eating. But, I think our lovely babysitters needed a break:)
Thank you to the presidency and other sisters who helped decorate, cut everything out and brought food. Also, a HUGE thank you to the babysitters who stayed extra late to watch my kids so I could clean up!
And thank you to Amy over at
Sprik Space for providing the background pieces, seriously if you haven't downloaded them yet, you must!
********************UPDATE
For those of you who asked, here is a blank 5x7 invitation that you can just click on and save to your computer. You can fill it in Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Word, any other computer program or the good old fashioned way. . . by hand.
THE GARDEN PARTY PACK IS ALSO NOW AVAILABLE IN BLACK AND WHITE! Just click on the pictures below, save to your computer and print.
Blank Conversation Circles
Blank Food Tent Labels
Conversation Circles
Small Table Numbers
Large Table Number Centerpieces
