This year for Young Women in Excellence we chose an Alice in Wonderland theme. (And incase you are wondering, the writer was not doing drugs while he wrote the story!) There are actually multiple talks by President Monson that reference Alice In Wonderland. It was fun to study and find how much it correlated with the gospel!
Our preparations started well in advance of the evening, and our Young Women were big helpers! The Beehives put together the balloon flowers, the Mia Maids decorated the tissue paper flowers, and the Laurels were in charge of gathering and painting old doors. We passed around a sing-up in Relief Society asking for items like clocks, rabbits, tea pots, isles, etc. to borrow for the evening. We had a lot of random items, and along with the bright colors, I think that's what really turned the gym into Wonderland! The sign at the entrance asked everyone to "Wander in Wonderland" until 7:15 before finding their seat.
Two or three girls and one leader were in charge of decorating a value table. Each table had a printout with the value name, a picture/quote from the story that coordinated with the value, and a clock. During the program, each girl presented a Personal Progress project she had been working on. The projects were displayed at the value tables for everyone to see.
The Young Women's president welcomed everyone, our Secretary introduced the theme of the evening, and everyone was invited to enjoy some hors d'oeuvers with little "Eat Me!" signs in them! :) The menu included fruit and vegetable trays, tortilla pinwheels, chicken salad sandwiches, cream puffs, mini cheesecakes, and a fruit slush/Sprite drink.
In between seconds, everyone was able to get their picture take at the photo booth! We made a print out to give to each girl.
