LUCK OF THE IRISH LUNCHEON

Today was my Luck of the Irish Luncheon. It was just me, my two sisters and my friend. We had a fun time.

I didn't use actual place cards this time. I thought it would be fun to print out a vintage St. Patrick's Day postcard and then just add every one's initial rather then their whole name.

These could then be saved and later added to a scrapbook or even framed and used for a decoration next year.

The colors were all white and green with only a touch of gold brought in by the "pot of gold" given to us by my captured Lucky Leprechaun.

There he is. Still waiting for me to decide if I will let him go or not.

A few years ago my sister, Maureen, lived in CO and she mailed me a darling package for St. Patrick's Day. In it was a tea pot decorated with shamrocks, an Irish themed tea cup and saucer and this cute book of Irish Blessings.

Since I didn't have a tea this year, I didn't bring out the tea pot or cup and saucer. However, I did put the book of Irish Blessings on the table and before we ate lunch I read a few out loud to everyone.

If you are like me, you will want to know where everything came from. The white table cloth and napkins came from Target. The place mats came from TJ Maxx. The lace chargers came from Debra's Cottage but can also be found on EBay. The dinner plates were from a thrift store and the salad polka dot plates came from TJ Maxx. The flatware came from Ross and the glasses came from World Market.

The shamrocks, used as napkin rings, came from TJ Maxx and they are Dept. 56 so they may also be found on line. The shamrock favors came from the Dollar Store and the shamrock chocolates inside came from See's candy.

The Leprechaun used for the Centerpiece... well, I guess he came from Ireland. But, I have seen some figures like him at TJ Maxx. The little pots of gold came from the Leprechaun when I captured him.

However, if you would like your own pots of gold and can't seem to capture a Leprechaun of your own, you can always find pots at The Dollar Stores and you can get your own "gold" at See's candy.

Everyone wore green to our little party.

We all decided that we didn't want a big lunch since Sandra and I are on Weight Watchers, Patty is trying to eat healthy and Maureen wants to maintain her weight loss.

So we had soup.

I went with Broccoli Cheese Soup as I thought it would be green but as you can see it wasn't real green. It was more like a creamy color. Yes there is a ton of cream, butter and cheese in there but, there is still broccoli.

Hmm, I'm going to have to see if I can some way count this is a vegetable.

I love soup served in bread bowls. Don't you?

Desserts were mini eclairs and mini cream puffs. OK, OK, so not so Weight Watcher friendly but hey, don't I get credit for them being mini ones and not the full size.

Wouldn't you like one? You know you do! They are so yummy.

We had a nice time talking and laughing and just taking a few hours out of the day to relax and enjoy some girl time.

By the end of our lunch I had decided that I really had all the luck I need. I have my health, I have a wonderful family. I'm blessed to have good friends and place to live with more then enough food to eat.

So, I decided to let Mr. O'Malley go. I thanked him for our pots of gold and all the chocolate shamrocks he made for us. Then I said good bye.

Before leaving he hopped up on my shoulder and whispered in my ear a little Irish Blessing.

He said...

You've heard of the Luck O' the Irish

Tis the best in the world , no end,

And my own is the Luck O' the Irish
In havin' you for my friend.

With that he gave me a kiss on my cheek and quickly disappeared.

I wanted to show the lovely Hostess gifts I given. Why I do believe I'm one spoiled girl!

I got four beautiful blue glasses. I think I'll use these for our next luncheon. I have the perfect theme to go with them.

Some green flatware. I'll be using these this summer for sure! A darling little box with a copy of a vintage St. Patrick's Day postcard on it.

A gift card for Target! I'll be getting more stuff for future tablescapes with this!

Plus a vintage hankie with shamrocks.

Wow! Everything is so perfect. I'm just pleased that everyone enjoys these little get togethers as much as I love having them. No one needs to bring me gifts. Though they sure are fun to get!

Do you always bring hostess gifts? What is your favorite hostess gift you ever gave or received?

I'm joining in on the Tablescape Thursday over at Between the Naps on the Porch. If you have not yet been there, please do stop by. You won't be sorry as there are so many wonderful blogs showing great tablescapes.

Also, don't forget that for every post you leave me between now and March 22nd you will get an entry into my giveaway.

A LITTLE ST. PATTY SNEAK PEEK

OK, I know I should still be on Valentine's Day but, I'm always thinking about the next holiday. Well, to be honest, I'm already several holidays ahead but since St. Patrick's Day is the next one, I wanted to give you a peek as to what I'm planning.


Like I did with Valentine's Day and Halloween, I'm going to have a St. Patrick's Day luncheon. So, I've been collecting things for my tablescape.

I had seen some darling shamrock plates at TJ Maxx and I had them in my cart ready to buy but the line was way to long. So, I put them back and said I would go back the next day or stop at another store and get them.

Sadly, they were gone! Not to be found in any TJ Maxx or Home Goods or Marshalls near me.

I had to give up that idea I had and go with a new one. I thought I would go with plates that I could use at other times as well. Why spend money on plates I can only use one day a year?

I found the green and white polka dot salad plates and thought they would be perfect. I got them, not thinking the green was a hard green to match.

After checking out, I noticed, right at the check stand, were some St. Patrick's Day place mats and the green matched. I quickly got back in line and bought them.

Once home I still wasn't sure what kind of plates I could use to go with the funny color green salad plates. I figured I would just find some plain white ones and go with those. I could always pull in more St. Patrick's Day feel with the decorations and shamrock napkins or napkin ring holders.

Then, as luck would have it, I stopped at a thrift store and found these white plates with the green boarder. I didn't have the green salad plates but thought the green looked like it would match up.

When I checked out I was thrilled to find out the "blue" price stickers were on sale for 1/2 off and these plates only cost me 49 cents each! What a deal!

Once home, I remembered I had some white lace chargers and I put them with the plates. They went great!

I know my photos make the greens look like they are not a good match but in person the colors look different and they are great together. With the place mat pulling all the greens into together.

I even found great green glasses to use!

I love these glasses. I found them at the World Market and they were only $2.00 each. They come in blue, pink and clear also. Sure they have a Fleur De Lis on them, which isn't Irish, but who cares! The color is a perfect match and I'm going to use them.

So that's it! That's all you get for now. No more or it will spoil the surprise once it's all put together.

What about you? Are you planning anything for St. Patrick's Day? Do you plan way ahead of time like I do or just use what you have when the day comes?

Wait until I show you what I found for Easter and at such a bargain price too!