Pokeno Night With My Favorite Neighborhood Ladies

06 Nov Pokeno Night With My Favorite Neighborhood Ladies

We have lived in our current home nearly two years.  Hard to believe…it has been a llloooonnnnggggg process getting it to where it is now.  Lots of late nights, lots of planning, never ending projects, and some surprises along the way (like the upstairs bathroom coming through the downstairs living room ceiling, eek!). Which consequently meant some extra shifts for my husband.  Thanks sweetheart!  Though we still have quite a ways to go, we love love love it here, and feel we are creating a special and joyful place for our kids to grow up in.

The house is perfect for us in a lot of ways, but one of the things I love the most about our home is the neighborhood – our neighbors.

This house is the third my husband and I have owned.  We enjoyed the first two, but I am sad to say we didn’t really know our neighbors.  Of course, we were cordial, and said hello, but I cannot say I knew the name of everyone on my street.

Where we live now is totally different.  My neighbors know my name.  They know my kids.  We watch out for each other.

It’s wonderful.

When I had baby #4, the women on my street and surrounding streets threw me a surprise baby shower.  I was so humbled, it makes me teary to think of it.  Sometimes I feel like I have stepped back in time, watching the neighbors cross the street on Saturday mornings to say hello to each other.

Have you ever played Pokeno?  It is basically like Bingo with playing cards.  Simple, easy, fun.  Once a month the women of my street and surrounding streets play Pokeno and have dinner together.  We take turns hosting and cooking.  All you have to do is bring $5 for the money pot at the end, plus a gift that costs $10 or less.

For the month of October, it was my turn to host.  My first time ever.  Really the only requirements of the hostess are to provide candy for eating during the rounds, and a dessert that is served before the blackout round that determines the winner of the money pot.

I chose the candy with care, and displayed it in my pretty vintage silver serving pieces.

The original idea was to wrap gifts in grocery bags, but some people choose to make them pretty.  You get to choose a gift if you win a round, but the gift can be stolen twice.  After that, the gift is frozen.

I would have taken a picture of the food, but it was so yummy, it was all eaten before I could snap any good ones!

Here is the “Pokeno Queen” cup that contains the money pot every month.  And yes, the Spelling Bee Champion in me notices “Pokeno” is spelled incorrectly.  Not sure why, but this cup has been used every month for years now.  It’s cute, and that’s what matters, right?

We always have a great time together, as seen by the silliness below.  This lovely neighbor of mine was showing off the Halloween decor she just won.

I am so thankful for these ladies, my home, and my neighborhood!  Having a community like this is so unique, it seems.  I am so happy my children will grow up this way.  Starting an event like this once a month for your street is just a few knocks on neighbor’s doors away.

Have you had any neighborhood gatherings lately?