My Birthday, The Renn Faire, and Strawberry Picking {oh my} + {a free download}

{doing}

Soooo…. It’s  been longer since my last post than I thought, but that’s probably largely because the second half of April and first part of May  are always a busy time for us.  In April we have our anniversary (5 years this year).  To celebrate we decided we wanted to go to Bass Pro Shop and eat at the restaurant there, so my parents took us and then bought us some new float tubes to take down the river, so were excited about them and hoping to get the opportunity to take a trip down the river soon.  Then a little over a week later is my birthday (I turned 30 this year!), and I had a “Royal Garden Party/Fairytale” themed party. {here’s some pictures of the set up…. There were a few things I wanted to do that didn’t get done – such as a pin the horn on the unicorn game – but overall I loved it.}

tables set up in our backyard

the tablescape.... those plates {the big ones and the tiny ones} are actually paper plates.... the gold ones I found on Amazon and the little ones were in the wedding aisle at Michaels.  The utensils are clear plastic from Party City

drinks table.... what I apparently didn't get a picture of was the little path that leads behind this tree over to where the tables where set up... if you look closely you can just see part of it in the far left of this picture.... it has solar globe lights lining the path for night time

the food table (didn't have all the food on it yet though) this was also in the side yard next to the opening of the "path

the cake and my balloon and floral swag {that I am quite proud of if I may say so}... I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with balloons.... I love them when they are used in a unique way or oversized balloons, that sort of thing, but not a fan of balloons when they are cheesy... I liked that this made them look a bit more sophisticated and "fancy"

and with the candles lit.... there weren't quite 30 candles, it was 27 I think.... but that's what the candelabras held so we just went with it haha. ....

and forgot until after dark that I wanted to get a few pictures of the invitations with the set-up, but it still worked out okay.... the invitations were actually rolled up as scrolls for delivery to the guests

Then of course there’s Mother’s day in early May, Dance recitals (although now that I’m only going to see them and not be in them myself/have dance students in them, that takes up a lot less time).  We also went to the Virginia Renaissance Faire with friends of ours.  Now I have to say, while it was a fun day, I was used to a big one that we used to have in this area that had an actual town with real buildings and such, so the one we have now will never compare.  But definitely still fun.  We got there right as they opened in the morning too, which ended up working out well because it was unseasonably hot that day, but the morning was overcast so while it was still SUPER humid it wasn’t really that bad without the heat and sun (and even though some of the forecasts were calling for rain all day it only drizzled slightly once or twice, not enough to even get wet).  By the time the sun came out in the afternoon and we started really getting miserable with the temperature we had seen and done pretty much everything we really wanted to anyway.  (also it wasn’t as crowded in the morning  which was really nice too). 

And last but not least, it is Strawberry Season! So of course we went strawberry picking (a couple weeks ago actually, we're on the downslope for strawberry season around here now, but I’m hoping to maybe go one more time to get some more, but we’ll see….).  In case you haven’t noticed fruit picking is kind of one of our “things”.  We always do strawberries, blackberries, raspberries and blueberries, every year at Miller Farms Market.  We’ve also gone apple picking in the fall at Carter Mountain Orchards, and we wanted to go peach picking there last summer, but the one day we were going to be able to go there had been a streak of unseasonably cool weather and they didn’t have the orchard open because there wasn’t enough ripe fruit…. So we’re hoping to be able to do that this year.  I also found a farm that does dig-your-own peanuts in the fall so that’s on the the list for this year as well.  Then of course there’s pumpkins and a Christmas tree….. but back to strawberries……..

me, posing proudly with my busket of berries in the patch

my busket and the one my husband picked on the hood of my car before we drove across the street to pay for them

I also had a fun Strawberry related idea, that unfortunately I came up with too late with for this year (also there wouldn’t have been a time for it this year with some other stuff that we have/had going on), but I’m already planning it for next year…… a Strawberry potluck picnic.  A lot of our friends also go strawberry picking annually (or at least get fresh strawberries from the farm), and strawberry season just kind of signals that summer is almost here, so I thought it would be fun to have a party where everyone brings their favorite thing to make with strawberries to share with everyone.  Just picture it lots of yummy strawberry goodies and our side yard decorated with doily garlands and flowers in mason jars, and of course lots of strawberry stuff and red and a little pink…. So so cute… and it’s definitely happening next year ;).

In fact, I’m so excited about this idea that I’ve already designed invitations, and, in case you want to “steal” the idea for this year or next you can get a jump start by downloading this PDF version of the invitations {feel free to print and use for your own personal or non-profit use}.  They are sized for size A7 envelopes, which are easily found at craft and office supply stores… And if you do have a strawberry potluck picnic I’d love to see some pictures from your party! Post them in the comments section.

And if you’re looking for some ideas of what to make with your yummy strawberries (for a party or just for yourself and your family) check back tomorrow for recipes for a couple of my favorite things to make with my pickings. :)