My husband and I were invited over to an old friends house this weekend for dinner.  It was a perfect night out.  It was a relaxing, yet elegant atmosphere.  There is no better way to catch up with friends than around a dinner table where you are close and relaxed.  This is the ideal setting for great talks and fun.  We have large parties at our house all of the time, but rarely entertain just one or two couples.  For a few years my husband and I ate out in restaurants a few times a week.  Many times, we had friends with us.  The unfortunate thing about going to a restaurant, however, is that you have no control over noise levels and atmosphere.  There is nothing that will kill a conversation faster than having to ask, “What?” every few seconds.  Our dinner this weekend was completely opposite of those annoying restaurant situations.  It was a great way to rekindle our friendship with the Trotters.  They created an ambiance with dim lighting and candles.  There was no overpowering music.  They pulled out their china to serve us.  We ate a simple salad, a zucchini and squash mixture, steak, and sweet potatoes.  It was cooked in about 25 minutes using waterless and greaseless cookware and clean up was a breeze.  Thank God for dishwashers! The whole evening made us feel great, and went further than words could in reminding us that we are special to them.  It was a perfect evening!  I hope we can do the same for them very soon.  You don’t have to go out to a gourmet restaurant to have a great time.  In fact, the simplicity of the evening reminded me how easy it is to dine and entertain at home.  No matter what the size of the group, the next time we catch up with friends or entertain business associates or clients, we will be at our house!