In today’s society, we no longer offer hospitality. Instead, we call it entertaining and there are huge expectations that go with it. How about 2 simple entertaining ideas that truly allow for hospitality without all the stress of planning something fancy and serving it?
Hospitality verses Entertaining:
Entertaining makes one think of a fancy meal with at least 5 courses. A spotless house, and a kitchen that shows no signs of having prepared those 5 courses are also expected. It’s the stress of getting everything together and in front of the guests. It’s the being so stressed and busy that you never actually get to talk with your guests. And it’s the sigh of relief after everyone is gone.
Hospitality is much simpler. It’s the front door thrown wide in welcome, it’s the inviting smiles of friends as they great you and pull you inside with a hug. It can be a simple meal, or maybe not even a meal but just a few snacks. It’s the laughing together and spending time with your friends.
2 Simple Entertaining Ideas
Idea number one: A quiet evening with with a few close friends where you serve a meal and then enjoy talking together and catching up.
This is truly the time to pull out your nice dishes. I understand that it takes time to wash china when you could just toss things away, but getting out the “pretty stuff” is just one way to tell your guests that they are important. In addition, many times when the meal is over, your women guests are willing helpers with the dishes, and it can give the guys time to talk “guy stuff”.
This is a time to pull out place-mats, cloth napkins, and even place-cards if you like. Your menu can be simple but filling. I’ve placed dishes for soup and salad, a desert, and then coffee or tea afterwards.
Menu idea for a gathering of close friends:
- Soup: Taco Soup or Cheddar Chowder
- Salad: A basic Garden Salad or a Spinach Salad
- Simple Desert: Sopapilla Cheesecake and Ice Cream
- Coffee and hot water for Tea
I used my fine china (garage sale find), and regular flatware for the table settings. The place-card and holder came from Mary and Martha. The place-mat and cloth napkin are from Mary and Martha as well. Both of these are reusable up to 6 washings. They are very nice, slightly more expensive than paper and much cheaper than actual cloth. The place-mat says Grateful Hearts Gather Here, and the napkin says Thankful for His Grace.
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Simple entertaining idea number two: Game night. These are best for Sunday evenings when there isn’t church or something else going on. Winter time is the best for this because one cannot be outside much and Sundays can seem long when it gets dark by 6:30.
For your basic game night you will need: salty snacks, sweets and drinks; and again coffee and teas are perfect. I popped corn here, and put out chocolate and gummy bears, along with hot chocolate, teas and coffee. If you wish to serve some actual food, consider buying and baking freezer pizzas or just order in pizza for complete simplicity.
The theme you want here is fun. You don’t put out fancy dishes because you are going to be playing games; paper works great in this case and is easy to move around when the cards are flying.
I used some fun stuff from Mary and Martha here as well. The boxes that I put the candies and teas in, say Goodness and Love. While the boxes that I put the popcorn in say “He fills my heart with good things”. They are just a small part of the new paper-ware products found at Mary and Martha. Both styles of boxes are very sturdy and are a fun way to add color and scripture to your gatherings.
What I hope you will take away from this post: Hospitality and entertaining can go hand in hand. You can offer warm hospitality and keep things elegant (or casual) at the same time, leaving you free to enjoy being with your guests.
Disclaimer: I was sent the items from Mary and Martha in exchange for a fair and honest review of them. Since I find ordinary reviews boring, I instead chose to show you the fun and useful ways in which I will use them.
Now, who wants a giveaway? You? Of course you do!!! Well, today we are giving away a bag of free trade coffee (Burundi Mountain Blend Medium Roast) and a lovely coffee scoop that says “My cup overflows” One lucky winner with a prize value of $42!
I like the aprons and the sugar and creamer set that is on a tray. thx
Yay! Gotta love games night! Can’t wait til my kids are old enough to join in too… 😉
Thanks for sharing at #Pintorials
I know! Our only child is still taking up residence in my belly 😉 But it’s sometimes hard to play games with just 2 people. Last weekend we actually called up Jason’s grandparents and went over there to play games for a couple hours 🙂
I like the Queen Anne Lace Dessert set!
This is a really great post! Thank you!
I like the cookbook holder.
It’s a shame – I come from a generation that just doesn’t play card games like everyone else use to. I love that you include this as an entertaining idea!
Games are such a fun way to spend time with friends and family!
Love the little individual popcorn bags, really cute. I rarely break out formal dining wear. Wait, I don’t even think I own formal dining wear. haha! We are just super casual around here. We love game nights though, those are always fun.
Haha… dining ware that is… clearly i’m thinking about clothes 😉
That’s a funny one!
the glass lanterns
The Grace & Gratitude Apron is ADORABLE!!!!
I love the jute placemats!
your china pattern is GORGEOUS!
Thanks! I really like it and could not believe how cheap it was at that garage sale.
FYI, Your china pattern is called the “Grafenwoehr Rose”. My mother bought this entire set (amoung others) when we lived in Germany. My father was stationed with the US Army at Grafenwoehr for several years and we made several trips to the China Factories in Nurnberg Germany to find pieces to complete this set for my mother.
Yes 🙂 A dear older sister in our church called me up a few months before our wedding and told me she had 3 different sets of china that she was getting rid of and wondered if I would like to look at them. While I had picked out a set that I loved, it was really expensive so I agreed to go take a look.
I loved the blue but there was only enough for a 12 place setting. I told her I would think about it and let her know in a week.
I looked up the china online and it was going to be quite pricey to buy more so I wasn’t sure what to do. In the meantime I had shown my gran a photo of the plates to see if she liked them.
Two days after showing grandma that photo, she calls me up all excited like. She was at a garage sale and she thought she saw a set of china for sale that I should come look at. So I went, and would you know, a full set of china identical to the one the sister in our church was going to give me.
It must have been a God thing. $50 later and I had a beautiful set that will serve 20 people.
I still love that print to this day and God knew we didn’t have the $800 needed for the china I originally chose.
I am loving the Sugar and Creamer set on Tray! Gorgeous!
i like the cream and sugar set on tray
These are great ideas! I totally agree that entertaining these days has high expectations.
I’m more of a hospitality kind of girl than I am an entertaining type. I grew up in an environment where the door was always open, coffee could be made at the drop of a hat, and the only true entertainment you offered was conversation.
I love that as well! Sadly, most people do not feel comfortable “just dropping in” anymore. If we want our friends to visit us we have to make an effort to invite them. And honestly, conversation, especially with some people truly is entertainment all on its own!
I love all these ideas!!!
I like the Blessings Carafe. Our family loves card games and board games too – no gathering is complete without them. I have such lovely memories of my husband’s grandparents teaching me to play five handed pinochle. I’m awfully glad Grandma was OK with letting the dishes sit for a bit so she could play with the grandkids…..
Your entertainment setups are so cute!! I love them!
I love the grateful tile and chalkboard for the kitchen and the notecards, very pretty !
The Premium Birdie Note Cards are so pretty!
I like the Honduran Gold Medium Roast – Ground coffee.
I like the celebrate plate! A fun way to make someone feel special http://www.mymaryandmartha.com/shop/productdetail.aspx?prod=83727
The Celebrate Plate is a favorite of many and it is HUGE and AWESOME! Make sure you check out the dimensions!
I LOVE that breakfast tray! These are nice things.
I would really like the 1000 Gifts Gratitude Journal.
Sandra Beeman! Very good pick!
I love the Chalkboard Tray. I have always wanted one for my kitchen (a chalkboard) and that is a really cute way of doing it.
Blessed By the Grace of God Wall Decor – I love Crosses & Christian wall decor so this is a definite favorite!
Kristi, if you ever go to my website and would like a better deal, fee free to contact me! The Blessed by Grace wall decor graces our home and I LOVE it!
I REALLY like the item : Blessed By the Grace of God Wall Decor. It’s beautiful and I can see it hanging in my living room. I feel it fits my family situation perfectly. My husband and I started out homeless, living in a shelter with a newborn baby. Almost 8 years later we have a house with a great landlord, a dependent vehicle so no more walking, access to internet so I can work (AAA work at home). We are truly blessed.
That’s amazing! Our God truly can do anything!
The “Blessed By The Grace of God” sign is just beautiful
I like the Birthday Book Journal.
I adore the Blessings Carafe!
I also like the ABC magnets – thank you.
I love the Be Grateful Sign Tiles. What a cute idea!
I like the Celebrate Plate.
I like their Angels unaware tray
I also like the handblown glass lantern….beautiful.
I like the Angels unaware tray
A couple other things I like are the blessing carafe and the birdie jute tote. And love the giveaway items as we are huge coffee drinkers so this is perfect. Thanks for the chance to win
http://www.mymaryandmartha.com/shop/productdetail.aspx?prod=17841 this is just beautiful I collect stuff like this not have to go check my check book balance
I could really use the Kitchen Caddy for when we have friends over.
I love the simple beauty here. To just share a ‘something’ with others that’s not about putting on a show.
I should be in bed but I’m having a date with insomnia. Loving discovering your blog… just one more post… 😉
This is good stuff – It also seems that another difference is that hospitality is about others… while entertaining is about upholding MY image. 🙂 By the way, I love your china… and I have some of it also. Thank you for the post. 🙂