Whenever I plan a party, I always begin with the theme. I try to choose something that typifies the birthday person. It may be a hobby they are currently interested in, it may come from the main present that they are receiving that year. Whatever I come up with, the season we are in usually plays a big role. Through the years, we've had a tropical theme in the middle of February, complete with flower Leigh's and conga music (we were going on a cruise), a tailgate party at a BMX track, Fear Factor party with a treasure hunt and bobbing for "leeches", and a camp-out in the dining room, along with smores in the fireplace while the air conditioning was on! I've found that letting everyone know what the theme is gets everyone involved, whether its coming up with decorations, to dressing the part! (Sidenote: For scrapbooking purposes, the photos usually turn out better because everyone is dressed in similar colors!)
When we decided that I would host my Dad's 70th birthday party for my family, I came up with a "State Fair" theme. It's "Fair" season, and we grew up going to the MN State Fair every year! My Dad traveled the "carni" circuit in college and sold footlong hot dogs, my siblings and I each did a summer or more at the Fair selling burritos, pizza and footlongs. This was a theme we could all get into!
My family all chips in when it comes to meal prep, so I had to assign everyone a part. My first thought was...everything on a stick! Just for fun, we skewered everything. The kids loved it, and we hardly used the plastic silverware!
Whole wheat pumpkin waffles on a stick with fresh picked raspberries, pecans, whipped cream, and homemade strawberry jam and home-harvested maple syrup. The syrup and jam were served in some fun squirt bottles that I found at Litten paper. They seemed a little more Fair-like.
We also skewered the bacon, sausage, donut holes and fruit.
For a little more theme, we added snowcones and orange julius' smoothies, along with some deviled eggs (because mom said she'd make them and thought they were appropriate:)
To decorate the house, the kids jumped in to create all the places that we visit when we are at the Fair. The buffet line was swagged with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place ribbons:
We put the animal barns and the creative buildings in the dining room bay window:
The living room coffee table held Machinery hill and my dad's hangout, Tool Warehouse Inc. The tractors came in handy keeping little hands busy!
Note to self: Don't pack kids' toys too far away...they come in handy for party decor.
We usually do buffet at my house, but I like a festive table, so we do set it. Instead of a table cloth, we used contractor's paper and scattered markers around. As you could see from some of the photos, my kids like to label the food. Instead of using plates, I found some fun, colorful baskets at Litten and lined them with parchment paper. Vintage red and white check metal trays come in handy for the buffet line.
Our centerpieces were simple Ball jars with superballs and foil fireworks, to represent how we always had to stay for the fireworks! If I did it again, I would add some water and green cuttings from my yard to mingle in with the foil and balls. I also draped our bench with another quilt and scattered some pinwheels from an old quilt I'd cut up.
It's a tradition that whenever we have a summer birthday party at our house, we have a water balloon toss. Family parties are such a memory maker.
Hopefully this post inspires your party planning! For a bonus, I'm including the yummy orange "j" smoothie recipe. The frothy, creamy, fruity drink is always a hit!
Orange J smoothies
6 oz. frozen orange juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
15 ice cubes
Combine together in a blender and serve.
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