dinner party

The Daily Cup – My Day Without U

| The Cupboard Deli

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Ha! This is not what you think. While it is a good thing to tell a loved one you had a long day filled with thoughts of reuniting for dinner, this Daily Cup is about sharing your day, with a twist. We invite you to play a dinner-time game. By the way, it’s even more fun if you make it a slightly festive or different dinner. It could be pizza night, or if you have children perhaps you can let them pick sandwiches, or play this game while sharing a creamee after dinner. Here’s how to play: You’re going to talk about your day, but first randomly select one letter of the alphabet that cannot be in any of the words you use to describe an event that took place today. As an alternative, you can draw from a pouch filled with Scrabble letters. Each person takes a turn and a different letter is chosen for each one. If you want to get creative and substitute funny words to avoid the chosen letter, go for it. This requires some thinking. For school-age children it offers great spelling practice while being totally relaxed, even silly. As they get better at this, they can actually develop more confidence in their use of language in general, and a new appreciation for it. Have fun!

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The Daily Cup – Pizzazz For Dinner

| The Cupboard Deli

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Once in a while, we have family over for dinner for an occasion we feel worthy of our finest dishes and behavior. When gathering with friends, the atmosphere is usually more casual and when eating with immediate family, with a spouse or partner, or by ourselves, it is yet more relaxed, outside of those times when there is cause for celebration. This week, dress up the table out of the blue. This does not have to be anything extravagant. You can get colorful party napkins, make easy appetizers (sliced wrap sandwiches for example), add a cherry to beverages, adorn the table with a variety of salads in colorful bowls… in a word, make it noticeably festive for no reason at all. Let’s just say that you are celebrating your hard work and perseverance and all the ways in which you make a darn decent life for yourself just by virtue of your daily choices. Last but not least, place a bouquet of flowers on the table. Ho! There is one more thing: be sure to make a toast.

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The Daily Cup – You Like That Too?!

| The Cupboard Deli

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Are there activities you’d like to do with friends but never get around to it? Or you just assume they might not be interested, so you never ask? Plan a picnic or dinner with your best buddies and give them an assignment before they show up. Ask them to each list two activities they’d like to share with others on two separate slips of paper. You do the same. When you gather at dinner or the picnic, place all slips in a bowl and each draw one. It does not matter if you draw your own. Take turns reading off the activities on each slip. Vote on 1 or 2 slips to set aside for discussion. Let the planning begin! You may find that half the group ends up sharing an interest in one activity while others feel inspired by another. That’s OK. You could always just start a conversation without the paper slips game, but having a process actually promotes creative thinking. Savor the moment.

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