"Home and Family" Party

There's something really wonderful about someone who marches to the beat of their own drummer and invites others to join in on the fun. That pretty much sums up Abby and her birthday party philosophy and I have to say that it's been pretty successful. Standard ratios of invites to attendees don't apply and her unique parties generally have a great turnout. Her friends are game for whatever the birthday girl wants to do and this year was no different!

Abby loves to watch Hallmark movies and she especially likes the Hallmark Channel's morning show, "Home & Family." So, for her birthday this year I planned the party to mirror the show format, complete with all of her favorite segments: crafts, pet adoption, health & beauty, gardening, fashion and baking. Here's how we pulled it off.

CRAFT SEGMENT

Upon arrival, her guests decorated gift bags as the "Home and Family" played in the background. It was the perfect sneak peek of what to expect for the next couple of hours. 

PET ADOPTION SEGMENT

Adopting a furry - or not so furry - friend is a big decision. To make it easier, Abby wrote "profiles" to help each Beanie Boo find their perfect forever home. We easily cleared this shelter.

 HEALTH & BEAUTY SEGMENT

For the health and beauty, the girls created sugar scrubs from granulated sugar, coconut oil, vanilla bean and vanilla extract. Then they jarred the scrubs and embellished them with fabric and ribbon.

 Pretty fabric rounds and coordinating ribbons made the scrubs positively gift-able.

GARDENING SEGMENT

Using succulent cuttings from Grandma's garden, a variety of stones and glass marbles, moss and cactus mix potting soil, the girls made these beautiful terrariums.

 FASHION SEGMENT

Keeping the fashion segment fun, the girls had a timed toilet paper fashion challenge. Using only rolls of toilet paper, they raced to complete their dresses before the time ran out.

 BAKING

Using store bought puff pastry sheets as a starting point, these cheese straws were impressive but easy to make and serve.

The party flew by so quickly. I can't wait to see what Abby comes up with next year!