Birthday Party Event

It was our birthdays!

Hey again everyone! 

We recently had a grand time planning our birthday party. I say OUR because 3 of us have birthdays within 4 days of each other! Jenna planned and executed a fun party for us held at a neighborhood clubhouse. It was a small event with roughly 20 attendants, including our family and friends.

All of the guests showed up with a lot of spirit and enthusiasm. Jenna chose 3 different themes for the party to highlight personalities to show how versatile her vision can be.  There was a Black-Tie themed table, a Modern Traditional themed table, and a Tea Party styled table. Guests were given invitations based on the table they were assigned and the dress code for that table. Boy, our family and friends did not disappoint!

Every table was complete with name cards using a font specific to the theme and coordinating napkins. The whole look was tied together using a common color. In this event, the color was gold. We used gold dinnerware and gold beverage flutes, which were the same on every table. Balloons were used to highlight each different table. The Modern Traditional table and the Tea Party table were set side by side and Jenna made the balloons flow seamlessly from one theme to the other. The Black-Tie theme had it's own black, white, and gold balloon arc with a black backdrop.

The Black-Tie themed table was a round table decorated in black, white, and gold. White roses and hydrangeas were used as a beautiful centerpiece with tall white tapered candle lit for a romantic and formal elegance.

The Modern Traditional themed table was rectangular shaped and adorned with eucalyptus using sage, gold, and white. White floating candles in clear vases completed the look.

The Tea Party themed table was sweet and simple using pink, white, a gold. The flowers were reminiscent of a beautiful spring garden, while our pink dinner plates, pitcher, and accessories brought the whole look together.

Dinner

Now, let's talk about food! You know, this was a birthday party to celebrate with our family and friends. Our dinner menu was pulled pork with Hawaiian rolls, cole slaw, and a mashed potato bar complete with all of the fixings! I slow roasted the 18 lb pork shoulder, bone in, for 8.5 hours after it marinated with a perfect rub for 24 hours. The 10 lbs of mashed potatoes were prepared ahead of time and mashed to perfection the morning of the party.

Appetizers & Drinks

Jenna also created a beautiful table with display a fantastic array of appetizers, desserts and beverages. The table was bar height with a black tablecloth and backdrop, lit up with curtain lights to accentuate the table. We provided non-alcoholic beverages on the table. Jenna chose water with freshly sliced cucumbers and lemonade. To keep the lemonade option interesting, Jenna chose some favorite flavorings to add, raspberry, mango, blueberry, and strawberry. The label cards were handmade with Jenna's Cricut.

Our guests had grazing options of spinach dip with bread. Fresh fruit and marshmallows with warm melted chocolate for dipping tempted their tastebuds, as well as some homemade cakesicles. Some were chocolate and some were vanilla. Jenna made the cakesicles with chocolate, white and sage green frosting to perfectly match the theme of Modern Traditional, which was "her table".

Dessert!

Now let's talk about the birthday cakes. For those of you who do not know, Tyler is quite good in the kitchen when it comes to baking! He made three cakes, one for each of us. You will notice the cakes were thoughtfully decided upon.

The first cake he made was his version of Death by Chocolate. This is one of his specialties. I will not give away any of his secrets, but the chocolate is almost black in color. Paired with a glass of ice-cold milk, this cake is a favorite of our chocolate loving family and friends!

The two other cakes Tyler made were his first attempt at both. He tried his hand at an almond cake. It had a delicious, slight taste of almond, not too much. He topped the white colored cake with slivered almonds, and we supplied maraschino cherries to compliment the almond flavor. Lastly, the third cake was a pound cake baked in Bundt pan. It was baked to the perfect golden-brown color. This cake was a little sweet and a little savory. In lieu of frosting, this cake was topped with a golden bourbon salted carmel sauce and candied bacon. Decedent is the word to describe this masterpiece.

Our guests indulged in the options of black, white, and golden cakes we offered! See what we did there?

He is so great at baking, perhaps it will be an adventure in retirement. Would you choose non-traditional cakes for your event?

Getting ready for the party

This party was planned and executed by Jenna in about 10 days. As her mom, of course I helped her. This was also her 21st birthday. So, she got a little pampering the morning of the party. Jacey is her older sister and has her cosmetology license. She agreed to be Jenna's personal HMUA for the party. For those who do not know, HMUA is an acronym for Hair Make-Up Artist. She does a fantastic job!!!! I highly recommend her.

To save time, Jenna put together some flower arrangements while Jacey was styling her hair.

Entertainment

An event isn't an event without some kind of entertainment. We made room in the venue for a dancefloor and played music. The 3 of us have different music taste, so Jenna's playlist was 80s, 90s, and now. The younger kids danced around while the adults gathered in conversation.

Jenna also set up a selfie booth, complete with a pink chair, a gold backdrop, and a Happy Birthday banner! It was so fun.

Picture Perfect

Dressing up was part of the fun! We couldn't let anyone go home without taking a nice photo!

The Prep before the Fun

Let me tell you, it was great to be able to have access to the venue before the event. The event was held on Sunday afternoon. Jenna and I were able to go in on Friday and Saturday nights to start the transformation process. Jacey, Joslyn, and Hayden help with a lot of the prep work. From setting up the tables and moving those around to get the best fit, blowing up balloons, and hanging curtains, having the extra time took a lot of stress off of us!

Thank you!

I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who joined us and who helped us out with this event. It was fun, stressful at times, and we learned a lot.

Many of the photos taken at this event were provided by our guests taken with their cell phones.