Aunt Jody&#39;s Birthday

Hi everyone! Thank you all so much for your comments on my pillow post! Several of those are actually slipcovers, so they can be removed and changed, which is always a good thing.

I wanted to share some highlights from my Aunt Jody's birthday last Friday.

I had been planning a luncheon for the ladies from my church who live in my community, and I was thrilled when the date fell on my aunt's birthday. Since she was the postmaster in this community for many years, she knows everyone, and everyone knows how caring and thoughtful she is.

I decided to use my J & G Meakin "Romantic England" transferware with a Mikasa "Italian Countryside" service plate. I used sterling flatware from 1893, "Louvre" by Wallace and Sons, and Durand Cristal D'Arque "Longchamps" crystal iced tea glasses. The luncheon napkins are vintage and passed down through the family.

I filled the box with green hydrangeas and pink Rose of Sharon blooms from my mother's garden, as well as white hydrangeas.

I plated everything before my guests arrived to make it easy.

My mother's homemade chicken salad was incredible on a croissant. The salad is one I remember my grandmother making, and thought these ladies would enjoy. It includes a layer of crispy lettuce, pineapple chunks, a dollop of Duke's mayonnaise, and grated cheddar cheese on top. Is that southern or what? Honestly, it is just wonderful and actually, my grandmother always used a pineapple ring instead of chunks. I made little cucumber sandwich bites to finish out the plates.

We also had Mango/peach/lemonade iced tea, which is my version of a recipe that Yvonne at Stone Gable posted a couple years ago. It's a sugar free tea and we drink it by the gallon here. I wish I had gotten a photo because it was the prettiest pink color.