Hate to say it, but it’s true! My first college reunion has taken place, and where better for it to be than Dayton, Ohio! For one weekend and one weekend only, the friend group got together from far and wide to celebrate and be together.

When the idea was first thrown around, everyone agreed going back to campus for one more weekend would be a blast. Our younger friends are seniors and what better way to celebrate their graduation than to visit! Now, since I live so close to campus already, I prepped my apartment to have (almost) all of my college roommates back! Here’s my hosting prep and execution for our fun filled weekend.

Preparation

It all started with the menu! A great host not only has a clean and welcoming space, but food to back it up! With everyone arriving Friday and a busy week for myself, I went grocery shopping on Monday. I knew I needed food for dinner and breakfast the next morning, as well as snacks for the late night.

The menu: Sweet potato nachos with ground beef or shrimp for dinner. Bacon and pancakes for breakfast.

I had been inspired to make the sweet potato nachos because they are filling, protein and good carbs rich, and SO YUMMY! They were also super easy to make the day of and served 5 people with some left over! I decided to dress the sweet potatoes with black beans and cheese, and have home made guac and salsa on the side.

I made the entire meal in 30 minutes, from peeling potatoes to serving, but you can easily cut the potatoes before hand, and just bake them for 15-20 minutes at 450 when you are ready. Once they were out of the oven, I placed the beans and cheese on top, threw them back in for 5 more minutes, then served it with the shrimp or ground beef on the side.

For breakfast after a night out in our college town called for filling yet delicious. Therefore, protein pancakes and bacon it was! This was more time consuming in the morning, but something I was happy to do for my people 🙂 I made the bacon in the oven and pancakes on the stove top, also leaving me with extra to have in my freezer!

The Table

I absolutely adore my big, round table and have so much fun dressing it up whenever I host guests! For this gathering, I pulled out the brown paper and markers—one of my favorite go-to touches.

I was racking my brain for a few days what I wanted to say. Sayings about reunions and friends and memories all came to mind, but they didn’t feel like my roommates and I. When scrolling through Pinterest, a print with this saying came up, and I knew it was perfect!

Then, of course, after I had written the middle statement, the Mama Mia quote came to mind, so I added that at the bottom with everyone’s name and date at the top.

I always leave the markers in a jar to encourage people to draw and write on the table as well. I feel like it’s a really fun way to make memories and document it! Of course during dinner we made a predictions checklist for the weekend, and checked off almost all of them…

The Weekend

The night before, I barely slept. I was so excited to see everyone and pick up my roommates and friends from the airport! The school day was spent counting down the hours and checking my phone probably a little too much.

I first got one of my friend from campus after she visited her sibling, then drove home to find another friend already there! I prepped the food and then welcomed the last 2 people to arrive. From there, we all grabbed a chair and sat around the table for a few hours catching up and reminiscing.

Dinner and drinks were served, and then we started to get ready for our night out! We again spent hours around the table playing games and FaceTiming family, then went to meet our other friends!

The next morning was a slow start, and was perfect for pancakes and bacon! We ate and debriefed the night before. Then, we sat in the living room all crowded together screen playing on my TV and laughing at many things that happened years and hours before.

We then got dressed, turned on the speaker, and got ourselves prepped for another long day. This may have been my favorite part. We were slow moving, but enjoyed each other’s company; extremely nostalgic now that I live alone and also don’t do 2 day benders anymore.

We spent time on my balcony, then went back to campus to see our friends and younger siblings. We went back to the old houses we would always go to, then finished at the senior bar.

Sunday came and was spent packing up, getting breakfast, and then saying goodbye! It’s really crazy how fast the weekend went, but something I am so grateful to have hosted and been a part of. These girls and this place hold a very special spot in my heart and always will. My girls, if your reading this, I cant wait for our summer plans 😉