Yep, I said goodbye to 29 this past November and Hello to 30! I am now a true believer that age is just a number. The thought of turning 30 had all my emotions swirling because for some reason you always think about what could have been instead of what will be the older you get. I’ve learned to trust your timing, everyone’s is different. A fun fact about this milestone birthday is that I actually got engaged two nights before this! Some of my friends I told before the party, but a lot of them didn’t know when they showed up. All family knew! He truly asked at the perfect time, because my birthday turned into quite the celebration! I also loved having those two days to take it all in and enjoy the moment with him before “announcing” it.

For the celebration, I wanted to create an intimate gathering and keep it simple. As most people know, when they say DIY (do it yourself) it doesn’t usually mean easier! Everyone who was a part of creating this evening really worked hard! The fact that my family and friends all came together and made it so special with their hard work was even more meaningful to me. The weather was perfect. It was “cold “ for us Floridians at 60 degrees!

The set up included a chili bar with all the favorite toppings and three different types of chili (all homemade).  Most of our décor came from Old Time Pottery. The large pillows for floor seating , outdoor rug that we stationed everything under outside, table runners and misc items like cups and bowls etc were all very affordable. My mom worked hard finding everything, which I am super grateful for! If you don’t have a lot of time, or just need some help putting this look together; I have linked below a local company that can help!

Photo backdrops are THE TREND and it seems like you can’t have a party without one! We ended up creating our own. I wanted a pallet wall with the numbers 1989 at the top (the year I was born). We used 3 pallets for the width and 2 for the height, which was 6 total. We stacked them on top of each other and drilled them together! Just remember to assemble the pallets where you want them. It would be very hard to move this after it is assembled! Honestly, this was such a good size for our party and it truly was the perfect addition to all the pictures.

For our signature drink, we had hot apple cider on the stove so everyone could serve themselves. We put cinnamon sticks in the pot and it doubled for making my parents house smell like fall while everyone entered. We decided to go for a non-alcoholic signature drink which I will most likely be doing more often. All ages were able to enjoy it with adults having the option of “spicing it up”.

See below for all the fun details

This is the pallet photo backdrop we made. The numbers were made out of foam and spray painted glitter gold. They were made from my Dad’s Company. My mom hung all these amazing pictures of my friends, family and I from the last 30 years of my life , which had everyone filled with happy tears. Christmas lights were strung around the perimeter and all the greenery you see was from the backyard! That was done last and it was the perfect touch! The pallets can be painted and decorated so easily for any event!

The local florist, Floral Symphony made the perfect arrangements for the evening. The colors were vibrant and so me. The dusty purple roses were stunning for fall! The pampas grass added that bohemian, whimsical touch as well. We did a couple bigger arrangements and then some small vases with a coupe stems in each down the table as well. They were beautiful.

The cake was simple with my two favorite colors, purple and green. There was a small rush on the cake order so my friends found these super affordable, cute fake flowers and decorated themselves! I loved it, and their creativity!

As you can tell above, the set up was perfect and when the sun set, we all sat down and relaxed. All the candles were lit and our plastic champagne flutes somewhat empty = ] We used pallets here as well! We put a couple table runners down the middle which really made it pop! I love the outdoors and if I can, I would go barefoot and sit on the ground any chance I get. It was so fun being able to do that with the most amazing set up!

I asked everyone attending to bring a colorful and cheerful blanket instead of a gift to donate to Hope Hospice for the Holiday Season. The reason for this, was that my uncle passed six months before my 30^th birthday and we are very thankful for the care that they gave him for his last days. A lot of times people might not have loved ones with them during their stay, so it’s the little things that can brighten their mood. This is my mom and I donating the Blankets to Hope Hospice that everyone brought to the party.

Getting Engaged was the icing on the cake for me. I am so thankful for my family, fiance and friends who really went all out to create the dream of an evening for my 30^th birthday year. My parents’ backyard was seriously transformed and it was just perfect.

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