Party: Andrew's First Birthday 5-9-15

Digging into some cake. 

Andrew turned 1 in March, but we decided to wait a little while to have his party. I was motivated by a few reasons:

1. We had just recently celebrated his baptism and Chace’s birthday. Even though celebrations are fun, we didn’t want to hit people up with invites 3 times within a 2 month period.
2. We were hoping for better weather because, even though we have a good time no matter what, outdoor parties are super fun and make it easier to invite more people.
3. He’s only a year old, so he has no idea when we have his party.

So, we decided to just have pizza and a cake on his actual birthday in March and do a bigger party in May with family and friends.

A cupcake preview on his actual birthday. 

I knew I wanted to do a Mickey Mouse theme months ago. When Andrew was really small, he always lit up when Chace was watching TV and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse came on. He also has the biggest, sweetest smile-- just like Mickey.

Planning this party was actually pretty easy. I decided early on that I wanted Andrew to have a great first birthday party just like his older brother did, but I also didn’t want to spread myself so thin that I was grouchy all day. As much as I’m invigorated by planning a party, I tend to get really stressed and snappy on the day of because I put so much pressure on myself to execute perfectly. So, snacks, pizza, cake, and fun were my cornerstones.

It was such a relief when we found out the weather was going to be nice the day of the party. Being able to extend the party outdoors creates a lot more space for our guests as well as more activities for kids and adults.

Family and friends having fun. 

Even though I was able to take a laid back approach to the day, I also did take time to map out a general overview of how we would set things up. Ok, it was a little more than a rough outline… Still, I think one of the most important things about having a party is imagining yourself as a guest, and trying to arrange things to provide the most comfort and fun possible. Things like furniture placement, creating space for different ages/interests to feel at ease, and setting aside room for fun activities/entertainment are all items to consider when trying to create a good party atmosphere. Spending a little bit of time on these goes a long  way. I, in no way, shape, or form want to come across as though I’m saying that every child’s birthday party needs to be planned to death. It’s important to remember what, and, most important, who, the day is all about, but making sure guests are comfortable creates an overall better atmosphere, and, consequently, a better memory.

Homemade gift bags made with construction paper. Perfect for holding piñata candy. 

Lucky boy!

The homemade touches included goody bags, garland, food tags, signage, and a scavenger hunt where the kids decided which “mouse-ka-tools” would lead them to the pinata. The only items I store bought were the paper goods, party hats, goody bag fillers, and pinata/candy.

Celebrating this little guy surrounded by the people we love, definitely made for a special day. Sure, Andrew won’t remember a minute of it, but it was a wonderful memory for our family, and he sure did have a great time sitting at the table and stuffing his face with pizza, watermelon, and cake. And the little guy, as Chace calls him, certainly enjoyed all the attention.

And, not that money is everything, but it was also nice to prove to myself, once again, that I can pull off a pretty awesome party on a modest budget. There were about 40 people here, and the entire day cost $252. I know it’s tacky to talk price, but I also know some people read this inexpensive party ideas. I spent $60 on pizza, $108 at Party City, $2 at Dollar Tree, and $82 at Market Basket.

Labeled so the kids don't fight over whose candy is whose. 

I printed a mouse ear pattern offline to trace and cut from black construction paper. We hot glued the ears to some twine. A couple of tips, use something (we used zip ties) to keep the hot glue from sticking to the tabletop and glue the twine as high on the ears as possible to keep it from teetering forward too much. 

Super cute and super cheap. 

My first strand of mouse ear garland was not glued properly so the ears flopped over if not pulled completely taut, so I used it in the living room to dress up the window. 

Party: When Life Hands You Lemons... Girls' Night- May 2015

Each year, one of the things I most look forward to is the annual girls’ overnight trip to the outlets. This year, we weren’t able to go in December, so we decided to have a spring ladies’ night at my Auntie Ava’s house with our original outlet crew, including myself, my aunt, my mom and my besties, Katie and Marissa.

It was our fifth annual gathering, so we wanted to make it special, especially since we were staying in. The “moms” are always so generous to us each time we’ve gone up north, so us younger ladies decided to take the reins and let them relax.

The past few months have been really tough. My uncle, Owen, passed away in December. Not only was he my godfather, but my aunt lost her husband, Marissa lost her father in law, and my mom lost her brother in law. It seemed only fitting that the theme of our night be “When Life Hands You Lemons…”

For each of the night’s courses, we tied in lemon themed menu items. We had an outdoor cocktail hour with chips and dip, cheese and crackers, and shrimp cocktail (garnished with lemon wedges). Marissa made some delicious and adorable lemon jello shots, and we introduced the moms to Cards Against Humanity.

For dinner, we grilled up some steak tips, and Katie made an amazing orzo salad with sliced almonds, cucumber, onion, and feta. We capped off the meal with some ice cold limoncello shots.

The inevitable gab fest and dance party began with more lemon jello shots and was capped off by some delicious lemon meringue pie ice cream from Blake’s.

Since what happens at girls’ night, stays at girls’ night, I won’t say much else about the festivities. Some additional lemon themed touches included a banner made by Marissa and some homemade lemon sugar scrub that I made for party favors.

Nights like this remind me that as much as we have going on in our lives as wives and mothers, it is so important to carve out time to spend with the important women in our lives. And, for me, these ladies are four of the most important. We even capped off the event with a morning after breakfast at Stubby's--a diamond in the rough.

Bookworm: I Just Finished... Last Minute May 2015

I finished this book last week and had to sneak it in as a late May bonus. My reading habits ebb and flow, but I'm definitely on a hot streak...

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

We Were Liars popped up as a recommendation for me in a “Because You Like John Green…” list of suggestions on bn.com. It tells the story of Cadence, the eldest granddaughter in the wealthy, well-known Sinclair family of Massachusetts. Cady’s grandparents have their own private island where their three daughters and their families spend their summers. The novel centers around a tragedy that takes place during summer fifteen that results in Cady suffering from brain contusions and amnesia. As Cady tries to piece together exactly what happened that summer, much more than the reader could ever imagine is revealed. This book was a definite page turner, and I would recommend it for everyone, even though it is technically a YA title.