Another Married Couple’s Valentine Party is in the bag… and it was pretty fun! We had a few cancellations so we ended up with only 14 couples this year. Our food was wonderful….as it always is. We were in the banquet room of Hunan’s Chinese restaurant here in town and I thought I’d share a little bit about our evening since that’s what my time was consumed by… for the last few days really!! :o)
Here are a few pictures of the room after I had decorated. I decided to forego the table cloths this year and just decorate on their beautiful slick tables.
My pictures aren’t the greatest as I was scurrying around, but maybe you can see we were having fun visiting with each other.
Usually in the favor bags I make a few different kinds of cookie treats, but this year, I just decorated strawberry and chocolate Sugar wafer cookies and added candy to their bags. Just between you and me, I need to work on my drizzling! :o) I don’t think I had it thin enough…
The chefs at this restaurant are really wonderful and I was hoping someone would order a dish where they make the carved swans and birds out of celery and carrots, but no one ordered anything that fancy. The couple who sat across from my hubby and I ordered Salmon and it was a pretty plate so I snapped a picture of it.
There was a computer glitch in the kitchen and some of the couples had to wait a little bit longer than normal for their food. The restaurant was so nice to give us all a free dessert because of it.
One of my friends had offered to make those Molten Lava cakes I made the other night, so we had 2 desserts if you wanted!
After we ate, it was time for the games! YAY! My favorite part. I looked on Pinterest and a few sites and got some ideas and then tweaked them to my liking a bit. I wanted the games to be about how much teamwork it takes to have a great marriage; how each person has something to contribute and how it usually goes much better if you can work as a team player. This year I decided to play a few quick games where couples would compete against each other. I had worked all week getting things together and everything needed for each game in a zip lock bag. I would call 2 couples up to the front at 2 tables and then I’d pull the name of one of the games out of a hat. I’d grab the ziplock bag with the game contents inside and read them the directions for that game. Some were sitting games and some were standing games.
Here are the games I came up with in a nutshell with the directions. You might want to give some of them a try sometime. We laughed a lot watching the couples do the different things. A few of the games got some added directions. Instead of just building the red solo cups tower, the other spouse had to gently blow it down and build it up again… just a little tweak I came up with to make it more fun.
This is how I had my things packaged up…
Each game only took a short amount of time, but it was getting late so I decided to pass on the few games we didn’t play. I was actually going to call the “lucky losers” up and let them play again.
I was so caught up in the games, that I forgot to take pictures of most of them. But I do have a few pictures.
Here are the two couples doing the “Love Chain.” The team on the left won… She was a teacher and now is a principal.. I think she knows a thing or two about construction paper chains.
Another 2 couples had to put together an identical puzzle and glue it to the card stock. The couple who won took their puzzle but here’s part of the one that didn’t win…
We played the red solo mini cups “Tower of Love” and the two couples who competed against each other were neighbors. One of the spouses had to stack the cups 5 on the bottom, then 4 on top of that, then 3, then 2, then one on the very top. Then the other spouse had to gently blow it down and build it again. I don’t know how, because the one couple blew 2 of the tiny cups off the table and I retrieved them, and it still ended in an absolute tie at the finish. It was so much fun to watch them.
I’m sorry I didn’t get a picture of them… I was so enthralled in how fast it went.
Another game was the “Kleenex Fling” and each couple had a box of 85 Kleenexes in front of them on the table. They had to put one hand behind their back and when I said go, they had to start pulling, or flinging, the Kleenexes out of the box as fast as they could. They weren’t allowed to touch the box. The Kleenexes were flying… then about halfway through the box, the other spouse had to take over and empty the box. When they were done, we had a mound of Kleenexes. It’s another game that was over so quickly I missed getting pictures of it.
The one game I did some pictures of was the one I called “Hubby’s and Hats.” I had the 2 couples come up front and sit down at the table. I told them the men were going to make their wife a beautiful hat using all sorts of things I had collected from my sewing room: ribbons, lace, roses, flowers, leaves, doilies, bows, etc. They were given a bottle of glue and a paper plate that I had punched holes in on the sides and a ribbon was run through to tie under their wife’s chin.
Well, first of all, one of my Elmer’s glue bottles decided to not work… it did when I tested it last night. So that couple had to just have a pile of glue out on a paper plate and he could dip his things in it. I gave them 4 minutes to decorate their plates and then I had them close their eyes and we silently voted on the hats to see who was the winner. It was hilarious to watch as the men were just placing everything imaginable on the hats. I’ll show you a few pictures of them in action.
It turned out to be more messy than I imagined… I didn’t want to use a hot glue gun since they were working so fast.
Here’s David putting his hat on his sweet wife, Angel…
… and here is Jason showing off his talents for his lovely wife Chi-Chi.
Chi-Chi’s hat won the vote, but because David had to put up with the glue not cooperating, I gave him a prize too.
We never made it to the “My Heart Sucks” where they were going to have to dump out 15 conversation hearts and use a straw to suck them up and put them back in the box. They could work together has husband and wife to see who could do it the quickest.
We also didn’t make it to the Heart Word Game. I had written HEART down the left side of a piece of paper and written it backwards down the right side of the paper.,, TRAEH… The game was going to see who could come up with the longest words starting and ending with those letters at the start and finish. They were going to get 1 point for each letter in between. The couple who could think of the longest words would win.
You can look at my little slips of paper and see the games if you like.
So that was our night. Our pastor closed with a devotion about working together as couples and being team players. It was very good!
So now I’m free to sew until December when I’ll be putting together another Christmas party! :o) I’ve been the hostess for the couple’s Valentine party for 25 years… since 1994! Yikes… that’s a lot of games played!
Well, I’m going to get back to my sewing AND my cabinet painting. I’m starting!!!!
Thanks everyone, see you tomorrow,
I’m sorry I didn’t get to your comments. I’ll read them now!
Blessings, Jeanne
It looks like a really fun party, Jeanne! I love the idea of drizziling wafer cookies, kind of gussying them up a bit! Did you use icing, or melted chocolate, or ??? And it looked like you dipped the ends first, and then drizzled?
More fun-sounding games, too–you always come up with such a variety of things! I was also impressed with how organized you were, each game in its own bag, etc. Your decorations were lovely–and your dinner looks delicious!
In case you are wondering, yes, we did get out today (hooray!!) but it was a real challenge just getting off our street. I did a bit of slippy-sliding, but once we were on the main streets, all went well. We went out for lunch and ran several errands. Getting home was an even bigger challenge! Our driveway (which goes uphill) is never easy in the snow, but now our snow was getting melted and slushy and Slippery!! I think it took me 5 tries to get up in our driveway!! I knew I had to do it, as my husband wouldn’t be able to push the car that little extra bit, like he used to be able to do. However, by backing into the flat driveway across the street, I was able to get enough momentum to finally get up there!
Later tonight, I looked out to find one of our neighbors getting the worst of the slush out of our driveway, so tomorrow’s outing (I have a massage) should be much easier! I did open the window and thank him–it was so nice of him to do that shoveling for us! What a blessing, to not have to worry about that.
Hi Charlotte,
I’m glad to hear that you were able to get out and that your neighbor helped with the getting in AND out again for you! That was very nice of him. We all are clapping for him!
I used melted chocolate for drizzling the cookies. They were dipped in the chocolate first and then I sprinkled them before the chocolate set. I then let them dry on the parchment paper and later came back with my left over chocolate and pink drizzle to decorate them a little more. I should have used a pastry bag, but I thought I could use a zip lock bag with a snippet of the corner cut. It was a bit too flimsy so I learned… but just kept going.
Thanks Charlotte,
Blessings, Jeanne
Thanks Jeanne! I’ll keep that in mind for the future!
What a wonderful evening you had, Jeanne! The room looked so beautiful, I couldn’t believe how nicely it was decorated even before you did anything. Most places give you a plain, unadorned room, with plain table and folding chairs, so you really do have to do something to make it more festive. I noticed the Chinese wallpaper border, the beautiful screen, and even the chairs were something special! I love the gleaming tables, so glad you left them just the way they were!
That plate of salmon looked so yummy, and what was that pretty white flower made of that was sitting on the plate? What a great idea to buy sugar wafers and then decorate them? The look so pretty all lined up together! That was funny to hear that you have to work on your drizzling! Now, Jeanne Marie, just when are you going to find the time for that?? 🙂 You did just fine!
The games, what a variety, and they looked like so much fun! I bet everyone was laughing all evening playing those! Chi Chi’s hat looked almost like a real hat, and did deserve the first prize! Did the winners get a prize? At least Chi Chi has a new hat to wear to church!!
I guess you are happy to have that under your belt, but I know you love doing that and it certainly does make the time fly faster! Now you get to get back to your “normal” life!!
HI Linda,
I know what you mean about the room being so nice. It’s their banquet room and it can hold up to about 50 people. They are always so nice to me… of course, I’ve planned and hosted many parties there. I’ve been doing them since 1994… 25 years…a Valentine and a Christmas party…That’s 50 or so parties! Yikes!
The owner lets us pick anything at all off the menu we want… so if you are broke and can only do an egg roll and some tea, they will let you… I’ve even had some people come in and just have water… it’s a very nice place and the food is outstanding!
Thanks for the compliments on my cookies and yes, I guess that drizzling will have to wait… too many other important things to get done.
Yes, all the winners of their games got a prize… assorted candies in boxes. A few got prizes “just because!”
Yes, back to my normal life… although, it should have started today, but today was anything but normal… but I’ll get there. I’m hoping to get in my sewing room at least for a little while tonight.
Thanks Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m not sure what that white flower was made out of…Rebecca used to work for them and I asked her and she said maybe a parsnip or some kind of Asian veggie. She wasn’t sure.
What a wonderful night and memories you created for everyone!
You have so many creative ideas and produce such special times for all!
I think you would be a terrific wedding planner as well??
Happy Valentine’s Day to all!❤️❤️❤️
HI Shara,
Thanks for the vote of confidence on being a wedding planner, but I think I’ll pass. Too MUCH pressure for me. If a game flops, no big deal…if you mess up someone’s wedding day….YIKES!
Happy Valentine’s Day to you too. I just realized I never wished that in today’s post…
Thanks, Shara,
Blessings, Jeanne
That was a great party! It made me think of the wonderful ASian restaurant we used to have they made the lovely flowers out of veggies…and their food was SO good! Awesome games!
Shara is right…With kids the ages of yours you will be a wedding planner before you know it. (Sorry to make your heart skip a beat.)
It is a great idea to have the party a day ahead…better for the restaurant too.
Give yourself time to relax today..you deserve it!
❤️❤️Happy Valentines Day Everyone❤️❤️
Hi Kathie,
The restaurant was open this evening (Valentine’s Day), but they told me the service might be a little slower because the crowd would be bigger out front with more food being prepared…so I opted for the day before Valentine’s Day. Smart move I think. Also the hubby’s can have the “real” day for their sweethearts.
I cooked dinner for me and my hubby… we had Chicken Masala… it was an Indian dish but I really didn’t know that until we started smelling all the spices… cumin, coriander, paprika… and then I made fried rice using riced cauliflower… It was pretty good and he loved it….so I was happy!
Happy Valentine’s Day to you Kathie,
Blessings, Jeanne
Just one of Jeanne’s other resume listings. Party Planner. 🙂 Looks like a fun evening.
And I saw that mention of cabinet painting! Yay. Looking forward to that and perhaps seeing your sisters spring decorating. Yours too, when you have a free second. 🙂
HI Joy,
Party Planner my foot… I’m going to keep it a secret… it was a fun evening. Fortunately we have a pretty fun group of couples… no party poopers in our midst! I’m glad for that!
Yes, cabinet painting… I spoke to Kevin last night and he asked me how the painting was coming… I told him it WAS coming… hopefully this next week. I told him I was scheduling it in! So now I HAVE to do it.
Spring decorating? Not quite yet… tomorrow’s high is supposed to be 28 with a chance of wintery mix. Rats… I wanted sunshine!
Thanks Joy,
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, the party looks like it was big fun! I love the hats. That’s my level of crafting, glue and paper plates (laugh).
I took Afternoon Tea today with some friends. No dolls went along. We take tea monthly. Our next date is on St. Patrick’s Day.
Hi Dorothy,
I’m glad you liked the hats. I need to send those 2 couples my pictures of them making the hats. David and Angel are our newlyweds…They haven’t been married a year yet. This was their first Valentine’s Party since being married.
I hope you had a wonderful time at your tea. I bet you did! Remember to wear green when you go in March! ;o) I’m sure you will!
Thanks Dorothy,
Blessings, Jeanne
Sounds like a wonderful time. The table decorations were lovely and I’m sure your treat bags were a hit. The hat decorating game is my favorite. That one had a personal touch, really sweet. I’m sure the wives will keep those. I also loved the white flower on your plate. Do you happen to know what it was carved out of? Potato? White radish?
There used to be a wonderful Japanese restaurant named the Kabuki in Cincinnati when I was a girl. You entered and walked across a bridge that had koi and goldfish underneath. The food was cooked right in front of you and the chef would do all kinds of tricks with the knives and seasonings. Really entertaining to watch.
HI Laura, (not Lora)
We did have a wonderful time and that hat game was probably the one that most everyone watched with the greatest intensity. It was as if some of them wanted to get in there and help Jason and David and tell them to put this here and this there… It was fun to watch and see how they approached this project.
That plate with the salmon was actually Chi-Chi’s plate… across from me. I don’t know what was that they carved the rose out of… I don’t think it was a potato, but it could have been some kind of Asian radish…
We have a place like that here in town with a hibachi grill where the cook cooks in front of you. It’s called Fujiyama. It’s very expensive and we’ve never been there, but I hear it’s fun. I LOVE Chinese food! :o)
Thanks Laura,
Blessings, Jeanne
I nearly went out and bought some of those cookies, yours looked so good. It looks like another wonderful party and like people were having a good time. The rose on the salmon plate — is it made from a turnip — is a nice example of what that restaurant can do. I hope you had a good recovery day and I’m looking forward to hearing how you spent Valentine’s Day.
Hi Marilyn,
We did have a really nice party last night and this morning was spent putting things away… this afternoon was spent grocery shopping with my hubby….then he sprung a leak so we spent the evening taking care of that…not to romantic but we were together.
I’ll have to take that picture in and ask San what they use to make their flowers and stuff out if. It would be fun if I could go in the kitchen and see them do it!!!
In meeting with Sarah in the morning to go over some things about my blog…
It’s supposed to cold and then snow starts in the afternoon and lasts until about midnight. Oh boy, here we go again…
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings ,Jeanne
I’m betting either turnip or daikon radish for the white flower!