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Mini Party Plan: How to Plan a Last-Minute Valentine’s Day Party
So, it's -- um, February 6. And Valentine's Day is just days away. So close in fact, that when I shopped this weekend, I saw more Easter than Valentine's decor! But I still want to pull off a little Valentine's celebration for my family. So that means I need a to...
Tutorial: How to decorate party forks
One of the things I enjoy most about party planning is creating little details that support my theme. An easy way to do just that is do decorate party forks. For our Horseback Riding Party, I simply decorated our forks with buttons. This is one of those little touches...
Tutorial: How to make a cowgirl boot centerpiece
Hands up if you love fresh flowers. (Me, me, my hand is raised.) Hands up if you need your child's birthday party to be pretty, but way easier. (Me again! Two hands up!) When it comes to children's parties, I completely believe in pre-making centerpieces with faux...
Tutorial: How to decorate rustic birthday party letters
We throw joint birthday parties for our twin girls, so since they have to share a party, I always try to find a way to make the party personal for each of them. For their 12th birthday Horseback Riding Party, I decorated rustic birthday party letters for each of them....
My Parties: How to Throw a Horseback Riding Party
My girls' 12th birthday was in February, but we swiped an idea from a friend whose daughter also has a February birthday. We just moved their birthday to summer. That gave us the chance to pick from outdoor activities. That might only work for tweens or teens -- kids...
Freebie Friday: 47 New Year’s Eve Free Printables
I hope our New Year's Week has been helpful and maybe inspirational for you. I'd love to know if you try any of the ideas you've found here for your family's New Year's Eve party. Today, I'm capping everything off with a round-up of my favorite New Year's Eve free...
Tutorial: How to Make a New Year’s Eve Party Horn Garland
Sometimes I'm not sure where my ideas come from, and this New Year's Eve party horn garland is one of those ideas. But, I'm happy to say it couldn't be easier, and so I made it my one craft for my New Year's Eve movie night party. The best part is that if you already...
My Parties: How to Plan a Family New Year’s Eve Party Movie Night
We are definitely a quiet New Year's Eve at home kind of family. But at the same time, we want New Year's Eve to be more special than just a night where we stay up late. So this year, I started planning ahead so we could have a New Year's Eve movie night party that's...
33 New Year’s Eve Party Appetizer Ideas
In our New Year's Eve Party Planning Challenge, we touched on serving appetizers and desserts at your party. But I really wanted to return to the topic of New Year's Eve party appetizers, and go into that in a little more depth. How much do you need to serve? How do...
Mini Party Plan: How to Plan a New Year’s Eve Party
I hope you've been having fun with the party planning challenges we've been working on this year. I know I've enjoyed putting them together for you! So if you're in the mood to celebrate New Year's Eve, but you have NO time ... can't imagine why... I've created a...
Tutorial: How to Make a Balloon Garland
I shared this post over at Design Dazzle a couple weeks back, but I also wanted to make sure you didn't miss it. Balloon garlands are so much fun to make and add such impact to you party. I've used them a few times now, and I'm always shocked how quick and easy they...
Tutorial: How to Make a Felt Ball Garland
Do you love felt ball garlands as much as I do? (Please say yes!) I think they are perfect for party layering -- which I am declaring a thing. I usually just buy my felt ball garlands, because they are pretty darn inexpensive on Etsy. But, I also wanted to try making...
My Parties: How to Host a Visit to Santa After-Party
The annual visit to Santa is so anticipated, yet so quick. You get the kids dressed up, they are all excited, THEY MEET SANTA, and then it's over. I say: take your kids to meet Santa with their little buddies, and then have them back to your house for a pint-sized...
Guest Party: How to Style a Let It Snow Party
Today I'm busy prepping a Christmas party that I can't wait to share with you. In the meantime, I'm thrilled to feature this Let It Snow Party by Christina Christian, creative director of NOV by Christina design firm in Cincinnati, Ohio. Details to look out...
12 steps to declutter your home and keep it tidy
Sometimes, I feel like making my house presentable is half the battle in hosting a party at home. If think about it even more, there are a few phases of "presentability": Clutter-free. Clean. Magazine-worthy. Most of the time, I'm stuck on #1: clutter-free, so let's...
Easy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipe + 3 TIps to Make them come out Just right
We roast pumpkin seeds every year, and every year I try a different roasting method and seasoning. But this year, I think I've stumbled on the easiest way to roast pumpkin seeds. It just doesn't have to be as hard as Pinterest might lead you to believe (wink). And,...
Halloween Party Hacks: Candy Bar Serving Trays + Easy Cupcake Toppers
For the kids, Halloween is about dressing up, running around with friends, and candy. My Halloween needs are simpler: it’s pretty much all about the candy. Shopping for Halloween candy gave me one last Halloween party idea to share with you: turning candy bars...
Tutorial: How to Make Halloween Party Soda Bottles
Parties are one of the few times I let my kids have soda because I'm a mean mom. Sort of. Mainly, Baby B is still awful about brushing her teeth, so why coat them more with soda? Anyway, I love using colored sodas or milk in my parties just because of the color they...
How to Make a Halloween Oreo Icebox Cake
One of my favorite cakes to make for my family is Martha Stewart’s Icebox Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake. Sometimes I follow the recipe exactly, and other times, I change out the cookies, or turn the cake into trifles. For this year's Halloween Party, I used...
Tutorial: How to Make a Halloween Candy Centerpiece
When I was little, all the kids carried the orange plastic pumpkin pails at Halloween. (This is the point where Baby B would wave her forearms like a T-Rex, and ask, “Mommy, did the dinosaurs look like this?” She's a charmer.) I thought it would be fun to turn a...
Tutorial: How to Make a Halloween Party Backdrop
The backdrop I made for my Pumpkin Decorating Halloween Party is super easy to make and really takes no crafting skill at all —so it's right up my alley! I actually looked for a jack-o-lantern printable that I could have printed extra large, couldn't find one, and...
My Parties: How to Host a Pumpkin Decorating Halloween Party
Whenever I start planning a party — like my Pumpkin Decorating Halloween Party — it helps to have a piece of inspiration. That becomes my jumping off point. It's also one reason I like you to brainstorm ideas early in your planning process. And why I like you to...
Party Planning Challenge: How to Prep the Week of Your Halloween Party – Part 6
Welcome to part six of our Halloween Party Planning Challenge! Today,we're talking about the final push to get ready for your Halloween party. And later this week, I'll share my party with you plus all the tutorials! Here are are the first parts of our series, in case...
Party Planning Challenge: Halloween Party Activities – Part 5
Welcome to part five of our Halloween Party Planning Challenge! Today, we're focused on party activities. I've got 51 awesome Halloween party activity ideas for you! Here are are the first parts of our series, in case you've missed anything: Party Planning Challenge -...
Party Planning Challenge: Halloween Party Place Settings – Part 4
Welcome to part four of our Halloween Party Planning Challenge! We've had a little bit of a delay as I was down with the flu - ugh. It hit our whole house, one after the other. Get those flu shots early, friends! If you're just joining, here are the first parts of our...
Party Planning Challenge: Halloween Party Favors & Desserts – Part 3
Welcome to part three of my Party Planning Challenge! We're all planning our Halloween parties together, a little bit every day. If you've missed the first two parts, find them here: Halloween Party Planning Challenge - part one Halloween Party Planning Challenge -...
Party Planning Challenge: Halloween Party – Part 2
Welcome to part two of our Halloween Party Planning Challenge! If you missed part one, find it here. In part one, we established: The date and time of your party That you're hosting at home What your party budget will be Who is on your guest list, including how many...
Party Planning Challenge: Halloween Party
We've entered the time of year when life just seems to accelerate. School starts, then it's only days til Halloween (or so it seems), then Thanksgiving and Christmas. In the meantime, we're trying to pack in softball games, trips to apple country, pumpkin picking, and...
Freebie Friday: 15 Back to School Party Printables
Back to school for us is August 1, so I'm staring to think now about simple back to school party ideas. We're having the girls' much-delayed 12th birthday party at the end of July, so anything we do for back to school will be family only and very simple this year....
Freebie Friday: 25 4th of July Free Party Printables
As the final part of our 4th of July Party Planning Challenge, I've collected 25 of my favorite 4th of July free party printables. Printables are such an easy way to tie together the look of your party — from your invitations to your art to your dining and dessert...
Easy Movie Night Party Favor + Free thank You Tag Template
Years ago, my daughters went to a birthday party and came home with the cutest party favor. I thought I’d re-create it for you here with a couple extra ideas thrown in. The favor was a popcorn box filled with movie theater-size candy. And yes, both my girls were smart...
Quick & Easy 4th of July Saltine Cracker Toffee Recipe (With Sprinkles!)
I'm not sure how Christmas Crack got it's name, but I could for sure eat it all year long. So why not? Here's how to make 4th of July Saltine Cracker Toffee. All you need to do is switch to white chocolate chips and add patriotic sprinkles. Amazon link in this...
How to Make 4th of July Star Wands
If you saw my Stars & Stripes 4th of July tablescape, you got a peek at my 4th of July star wands craft. My girls had fun decorating these at the dining table, and I think they'd be fun for making with your kids. Can't you see them waving these wands at your...
My Parties: How to Style a Stars & Stripes 4th of July Party
Today I’m sharing some 4th of July family party inspiration with you. This is how we set our table for Memorial Day this year, but everything we did would work just as well on the 4th of July. Since this was just for our small family, I kept things pretty simple and...
How to Make Patriotic Layered Jell-O
If you're looking for a no-bake dessert in the heat of the summer, give layered Jell-O a try. It takes several hours to assemble, but most of that time is just waiting for the Jell-O to set up in the fridge. You can even make your Jell-O "fancy" by pouring it on an...
My Parties: How to Style a Disco Birthday Party Your Teens will Love!
Do your kids ever have trouble choosing a birthday party theme? This year, as my twin daughters’ 17th birthday approached, they could NOT agree on a theme. They finally hit on the idea of a disco birthday party, which was an idea I’d never would have come up with for...
How to Make Easter Bunny Cupcakes
I am all about an easy, DIY party dessert. These Easter bunny cupcakes are totally easy, and very much a DIY. It's great to have a few DIYs up your sleeve to help minimize your party costs. If you've splurged on a cake or decorated sugar cookies, your party budget...
My Parties: How to Style a Bunnies & Bows Easter Tablescape
My best rule for party styling is: use what you have. That's just what I did for this bunnies and bows Easter tablescape: I leaned into what I already own and only bought a few new items. Here's hoping this Easter tablescape will inspire you to create your own lovely...
How to create an Easter centerpiece from grocery store flowers
One of my party goals has been to improve my flower arranging skills. I put together this Easter centerpiece from grocery store flowers and I’m walking you through this easy DIY. Flowers can be so expensive and while I love them, it’s hard to spend so much money on...
Party Plan Club: Introducing the 2022 Party Plan Themes!
The 2022 Party Plan Club launched in January, and I'm excited to finally introduce the 2022 Party Plans here on the blog! The club is all about making it faster and easier for you to get from party theme to fully planned party! If you don’t know what I’m talking...
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