Party fit for a Farm Princess

It’s been a whirlwind of a year with our Lucy Pearl and I still cannot believe we are parents to a one year old. The old cliché “time flies when you’re having fun” is absolutely true when raising kids. Andrew and I have loved every single moment, even the hard ones, because we prayed for these days long before they came. Because Lulu’s year milestone was such a momentous occasion for many reasons, we decided to celebrate in the only way we know possible. With a farm party, of course!

During our fundraising days, we talked about having a farm party where people could visit the animals, enjoy a horse ride, feed chickens and gather fresh eggs. We never got around to throwing the party back then but felt Lucy Pearl’s 1^st birthday was the perfect opportunity to share our farm with everyone and celebrate our farm princess.

My creative spirit loved planning this shindig. From the pink gingham tablecloths to the cow print balloons, I showed off every farm detail my heart desired. It was a party fit for a pink princess! During the planning stages of this big birthday bash, I remember doing lots of research on all the specific items to create my vision, but at the best prices. There were some things I splurged on, some things I borrowed and some things I created myself. In hopes to possibly help another mother out, I’ve included links for your reference.

What started the party planning long before the party was the perfect invitation by palmpaperieDIY. I’m a sucker for stationary, post-its, invites, thank-you cards, anything paper related, I adore. When I stumbled across this precious farm invite on Etsy, I knew this was the one for Lucy Pearl’s 1^st birthday. It was a feminine farm theme which is exactly the look I wanted for our farm girl in the making. And the vendor even sells matching thank you cards which I’m still working on finishing. Don’t judge!

The invites and thank you cards were all printed by Vistaprint . With a handy coupon code, the cost didn’t break the bank and were excellent quality and fast shipping.

The next main focal point for the party planning was the custom birthday banner for our carport area.

Our carport has a really high ceiling which was designed to hold a horse trailer or RV, but when it comes to party decorations, it’s a doozy trying to fill up such a large space and make it feel cozy for a party.

The birthday backdrop was a two-parter. The design from PrettyLittleInvite was customizable in size and wording. I chose a 3’x8’ size and uploaded the finished design to Stickers & Banners for affordable vinyl backdrop printing. I thought it would take a couple weeks for the backdrop to arrive and to my surprise, it showed up on my doorstep 3 days later. Talk about quick service! And I couldn’t find a vendor to beat the $35 price tag.

As for the tablescapes, the tables and chairs were borrowed and were such a lifesaver. Otherwise, I’m assuming I would have rented them or purchased some from Sam’s or Costco. Borrowing is such a beautiful thing y’all. The items came in for the party and out after. No major fete trying to figure out where I was going to store all of this stuff!

The plastic pink gingham tablecloths were a 12 pack from Efavormart and a total winner at $24/pack. I didn’t think I would need that many but at the last minute, used them on our kitchen countertops for the food spread. It brought the sweetest pink farm theme everywhere you looked. There’s something so childlike and little farm girl about pink gingham. The burlap runners were left over from my best friend’s woodland theme baby shower this past year but I originally purchased them from Walmart for maybe $5-8/piece. These are long burlap runners too which were perfect for my long countertops and tables outdoors. The blue Ball jars were one of my favorite blasts from the past. A very close family friend that passed away a few years ago gifted me her entire collection of antique blue Ball jars. I used them as vases for cheap baby’s breath and the farm’s very own turkey feathers. Simple and sweet.

As for the food spread, I wanted it to stay on theme but also feed a good amount of people. For the main attraction, I made the most delicious muffalato sliders and asked my Dad to prepare pulled pork for make-your-own pulled pork sandwiches. Fruit and veggie trays were supplement snacks.

Throwing in Oreos as tractor wheels, homemade Rice Crispy treats as hay bales, Chex Mix as chicken feed, and lemonade as moo juice, the farm theme was right on point in the kitchen. And don’t even get me started on the custom farm cookies! A close family friend made these specifically for Lucy Pearl, blessing us beyond belief. Not only were these adorable cookies great to look at, they tasted even better.

Thanks to the designs by TPCPartyware, all of the food was beautifully labelled for our guests too. It’s all in the details y’all.

What is a party without cake?! This party had TWO, a pink smash cake for the birthday girl and a larger version for the rest of us. Amazing Cakes of Prairieville, LA outdid themselves on these barely naked cakes.

To jazz them up a bit, I simply added fresh flowers from the grocery store and a glitter number. Because I wasn’t sure if Lucy would be super picky, I chose almond cake with butter cream icing for the smash cake and raspberry cream cheese with buttercream for the main cake. The raspberry cream cheese cake went so fast that Andrew and I didn’t even get a chance to try it! We heard nothing but oohs and ahhs about this cake. And Lucy Pearl didn’t seem to have any complaints. That really made this party planning momma happy.

One sweet note about Lucy Pearl’s vintage birthday highchair is the history behind it. It was my father’s highchair as a child.

And the highchair banner was handmade by yours truly. I measured, cut and tied each individual piece of fabric, lace and yarn for the banner. And it now hangs as part of her window treatment in her bedroom. Such sweetness!

It seemed as if the party was a huge success. When people weren’t eating, kids were enjoying horse rides, admiring the barn full of animals and splashing in the farm baby pool (Amazon). The heat of July was in full swing but the large fans and water feature kept us cool for the most part. Our guests were troopers because it was still pretty darn hot!

As guests exited, we blessed them with a half-dozen farm fresh eggs from Cypress Bayou Farm’s very own flock of chickens. It warmed my heart to share the joys of farm life with our friends and family in that way. For the kids to see the chickens that created those eggs was exactly what I love about sharing the farm life with others.

Seeing all of the miracle babies gather at the farm for Lucy Pearl’s birthday celebration meant so much to us. It was hard to keep a dry eye when taking this picture. Our adoption tribe is STRONG y’all. Look at all those cutie pies!

When the party was all over, we gathered in the living room and began opening the mountain of gifts with Lucy Pearl.

I hated to not open gifts with the guests and some may frown upon that but I chose to wait because it would take so long and I didn’t think the kids would last through all of it. Keeping Lucy’s attention was also questionable. Putting the toys together and visiting with family after the big birthday bash was something I’ll never forget though. I thought of my Mom quite often that day and how I wish she was enjoying all the festivities with us on earth. But in my heart, I knew she was with us in spirit. I could feel her presence in the laughter and the love showering our darling Lucy Pearl.

Throwing a big first birthday party may not be kept in Lucy’s memory bank but it will always be held close to my heart. It was a day we celebrated such a big milestone for our baby girl, for our family and for our community of supporters. Over the years, our friends and family have loved us, supported us, and prayed for us in immeasurable ways. Andrew and I sat back that afternoon with happy hearts and grateful souls as we reflected on the full and joyous day.