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Showing posts with label parties. Show all posts
Showing posts with label parties. Show all posts
Over the weekend we celebrated my sister and brother in law's 15th wedding anniversary! I threw them a party at a local brewery and did a Nashville theme. They love going to Nashville, and my BIL is a musician. This idea came to me months ago, and it was really cool to see it come to life! 

We kept it simple and just invited friends to come, hang out, and have a beer. I made a Spotify playlist, and my mom made a slideshow of cute photos of the guests of honor. (Pro tip: make sure there is a picture of all the attendees in the slideshow! People love to see themselves.) 

We had the food catered, and we had a super fun photo booth! My big splurge was hiring an artist to put together a balloon arch and backdrop. It blew me away and was truly the centerpiece of the party!

It was pretty easy to make some centerpieces! I got some discoball vases and some planters from Walmart that look like cowboy hats. Some heart shaped glasses and bandana printed napkins were just some cute extra details. 







When I got an Instagram ad for these pants back in January, I knew I had to buy them for the party. They are actually really great jeans, and I may just buy some in regular denim!

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-Kristen

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Nashville Inspired 15th Anniversary Party

Sunday, August 23, 2026

Words cannot express how much fun this was! To celebrate my parent's and sister's wedding anniversaries (they are a week apart) we did a family dinner that included delicious steak and yummy cake. Our family loves to do board games or play cards on nights like this- but I really wanted to do something both special and different for this occasion.

I secretly purchased everything we needed to do a 'Paint Your Partner' experience, and snuck it into my sister's house. Then while while the kitchen was getting cleaned up after dinner, I set everything up!

Basically, everyone had exactly 1 hour to paint their spouse. (My nephews painted each other.) The results were both surprising and hysterical!! You have to watch the video for the full effect.

I loved that this was a fun family activity, and we all agreed it was one of our favorite experiences to date. Even more than that, I was shocked when my dad and brother in law mentioned that they hadn't painted since High School. Totally unacceptable, right?! Everyone needs to get creative and channel that side of your brain every once in awhile. 

It wasn't a very expensive thing to put together either. I picked up a pack of paints, easels, and canvases from Walmart in our normal grocery pick up. 










What You Need to Host Your Own Family Paint Night:


-Kristen

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Paint Your Partner

Tuesday, August 20, 2024

Recently, I helped throw a graduation party for a sweet high school senior that we adore. He has a single dad, and poor ole dad said he felt clueless when it came time to this special celebration. Several of us jumped in to help, and I volunteered to help with decor! We went with a fun Spiderman inspired theme, since that was our graduate's favorite. Decorating is my favorite part of throwing a party anyway, so this was my pleasure. 

I've been wanting to do a DIY photo booth set up ever since I helped throw my cousin's 15th anniversary party last year. We ended up hiring someone for that party and it was worth every penny because all the guests LOVED it. Hiring someone wasn't in the budget for this party, so I decided to go for it and try it myself. 
After a ton of research, I landed on using an iPad and the app Lumabooth. Full transparency, I didn't have an iPad until a week before this party. I wanted to use my Samsung tablet, but the android photobooth apps are just not as good, and I just kept going back to Lumabooth. An iPad was something I was planning on buying in the near future, so I went ahead and pulled the trigger once I was positive that's what I wanted to use. 

Lumabooth is very user friendly, both on the set up side of things, and the actual party guest side of things. You can full customize what photo options you want to offer .For example: filters, videos, gifs, photo strip layouts...etc. 

I set up the option for photos and a gif. The guest hits the photo icon, takes a few shots and then can text or email it to themselves. It also saves all the pictures locally, so I have every picture taken all night. Perfect for the guest of honor, because they can have all the pictures when the party is over.





 A backdrop was my next big decision. I ended up purchasing a set from Hobby Lobby. It's an easy to set up frame, and then you can string up a curtain or piece of fabric along the top. They had one backdrop cloth for sale that fit perfectly, and I liked silver for the party theme anyway. I might grab another piece of fabric for future events, but I think the silver will match most things. The only negative about this size of a back drop is that your iPad will be quite close to keep it in frame. Works for groups of 3-4, but any bigger and we had to move it back and expose the wall behind the back drop. I might use an entire wall as a backdrop in the future for large groups. 

Having props was a huge hit. The kids loved it especially! I purchased various props from the dollar store and I grabbed several from Hobby Lobby as well. 








We purchased this ring light that has a tablet holder. The light itself is awesome! The tripod was not the most stable, but it did a perfectly fine job. People are touching the tablet a lot, and I think I would prefer something more sturdy just for my own peace of mind. I also purchased a protective case for the iPad that I felt was necessary and did not interfere with the fit on the tablet holder. You might also want a screen protector

The App makes it very easy for your guest, but I stayed near by to help. I also wanted to be the one to adjust the tripod if we needed to raise or lower the height. I underestimated how much the little brothers would want their picture taken. 😂 

I had so much fun with the Spiderman theme. When I searched for party ideas on Pinterest, all that came up was little kid birthday party ideas. I wanted something worthy of a High School senior! We went with black table cloths, these really amazing red foil Spiderman runners, and a bucket of candy as a centerpiece. Then I mainly brought in the theme with the colors in the balloons, and a couple of up lights I borrowed from a friend. I also did a poor drawing of Spiderman on my chalkboard I faithfully bring to just about every party ever. 

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-Kristen

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DIY Photobooth Using An iPad & Lumabooth

Friday, May 31, 2024

My sister and brother in law just finished building their dream house, and I was happy to throw them a little Open House style housewarming. It was a lot of fun, so I only managed to take a few pictures during the party. Mainly, I wanted to share my new sangria recipe! It's fantastic! We served it for the first time at the housewarming, and got so many compliments on it. Plus it looks so beautiful and festive. 






Here's the recipe for 3.5 Gallons (the size of my drink dispenser):

2 Cups Apricot Brandy
1 Cup Peach Schnapps
4 bottles of dry White Wine (such as pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc)
6 Oranges, sliced
6 Limes, sliced
6 Peaches, sliced
5 cups Strawberries, sliced
2 liters of Ginger Ale
First mix the alcohol, then top with ginger ale and fruit. 

Gosh, this sangria was so good. Because our grocery store did not have peaches or any strawberries, I ended up using frozen fruit-and that was turned out so nice! I think the cold fruit really made this drink refreshing. 

As the dispenser emptied, we tasted the orange slices that had been soaking in the sangria and they were delicious. Someone asked for a ladle so they could scoop out the fruit! 

Let's Chat! Leave a comment below if you would totally take a glass of this sangria! 

The Best White Sangria Recipe

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

My Parent's 30th Anniversary
Last month my parents celebrated 30 years! We knew we wanted to throw a party for them, but my parent's didn't want us to make a huge deal either. My dad and I are so similar and he was adamant he didn't want any speeches or to feel like the center of attention. We ended up throwing a really casual party at a local brewery, and it could not have turned out better!

This party also kept with tradition of unique parties, because for their 25th we did a dinner cruise!

We reserved a section of the beer garden, so it was essentially like having a back yard party. They have AstroTurf and string lights hanging overhead...it was a really cool place to do it. Our reservation also came with a tour of the brewery, a set of corn hole and all the tables and chairs we needed. Plus having it catered meant that all we had to do was show up!

My parents loved it and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves! I am SO grateful it didn't rain. The forecast showed rain all week and then the day before it said it would be clear. We had planned to rent a tent, which was so expensive and it would have really ruined the vibe. Anyway, it was great. It would have been perfect if it was 10 degrees cooler, but hey when your parents got married in August in Florida-it's inevitably going to be hot. 

Unfortunately, my little brother just started a new teaching job in Brooklyn and couldn't make it down to be with us for the party. He was definitely missed, especially because this was the first thing he hasn't been able to be there for.  

I brought my camera, and took exactly one picture. (The first one below) Fortunately, lots of other people took pictures for me! I was just having such a good time! It was partly relief that everything was going so well and it was also so nice to catch up with so many friends! 






Me and my nephews in their matching outfits! Lennox got naked pretty quickly at the party, haha.
My Sister and Brother in Law's Anniversary
A week before my parent's anniversary is my sisters! Amy and Bryan celebrated 7 years this year. When we were growing up, we always made a huge deal about my parent's anniversary. Since they would almost always take a trip, my grandma would come a stay with us. We would make a cake and decorate the house before my parent's came home. I distinctly remember making one cake that was white with rainbow sprinkles, purple icing and peppermint patties stuck to the sides. It was obviously gross, but it was so exciting to have this surprise for my parents. 

This year, I wanted to sort of pass on the tradition to my nephews. My sister and brother in law spent the day together and I watched the boys. Not an easy feat! Lennox is still so little, and he can't sit up yet. And you can't really hold him on your hip because he will fall backwards. Plus he is like 18 pounds! Carter also started pre-k, so I had to pick him up from school for the first time. #Auntielife. 

After I picked Carter up from school we ran up to the store and he picked out a couple of gifts for his mom. I believe he picked a candle, a notepad, and a cup. I had already bought 2 t-shirts for his dad, and he picked which one he wanted to give him.

Then we decorated a cake, and we made a card. Carter was so excited, and I really enjoyed passing on this little tradition. He got a little hyper after I let him have some of that icing though...

I have to say, the cake turned out so delicious. That was my first time making a two layer cake. We all agreed that the dinosaur sprinkles really added something! 





Leave a comment below with your favorite anniversary traditions! Do you and your family make a big deal out of them?

2 Anniversaries

Friday, September 14, 2018

In a world where marriages last 72 days, when a couple makes it to 50 years it really is something to celebrate! My grandparents celebrated their 50th anniversary last week, and this weekend we had a party in their honor. My family rented a historic house in Cairo, Ga for the party and it was so charming! 

I was very surprised how easy everything came together and how simple it was for us to organize. It helps a lot when you hire a caterer and bartender to handle the food and drinks. The facility also set up all the furniture to our request. So really all we needed to do was decorate a little! And it's such a lovely place, it didn't really need much in the way of decor. 

Somehow I ended up with the decorating...which is actually not all the surprising at all because I love doing it. I had a few friends collect wine bottles for me for a few months, and I spray painted them in various shades of gold. We ordered pink and white carnations (a very affordable flower! Peonies were my first choice, but ended up being $3 a stem!!) Other than the flowers, I bought a "We Still Do" banner on etsy for the fireplace behind the cake. 









The party was a success! There was a great turn out, so it's obvious a lot of people love my grandparents as much as I do! It was also really crazy to see people I haven't seen since I was a kid. It's always funny when people ask how old you are, and realize you are probably now too old for it not to be rude to ask that question! 

There were a lot of tears when my uncle gave a sweet speech, and then even more when my cousin-in-law sang "Remember When". I'm not usually in favor of talent show stuff at parties, but he is seriously SO good. Everyone needed tissues after that. Blake and I ended up sitting at the bar, where it was a bit quieter and we got to catch up with some friends, and he got to meet some I.T. people he really hit it off with. 

There was a lot of lead up to this party, so it's going to be strange to not have anything big on the calendar for awhile. And I have to figure out what to do with 45 gold wine bottles! 

My Grandparent's 50th Anniversary Party

Monday, January 9, 2017


Hello!

Hi friends! I'm Kristen, and this is the Life and Style of a mid 30's Floridian living the Best Life Ever, with her husband and two pugs. Runner | Avid Reader | Small Shop Owner