30th Birthday Bash!

Not mine, of course!! I still have some time before I hit the big 3-0. But our friend's 30th was just a few weeks ago and I offered to host a birthday dinner...that was the event I wrote about where I was laying awake in bed at night dreaming of the possibilities. I will start off by saying that it was a success, but there were some pretty stressful moments before we got there!

I wanted this to be perfect. That's my problem. For some reason, (I'm still analyzing what that is) I want all events/parties/etc. that I plan to be PERFECT. I dream of beautiful parties with perfectly themed decor where all in attendance have a grand ole time and everything looks stunning...alas, reality sets in and I am panicking at the last minute to get the floors cleaned and our bed made! It all turned out fine in the end, but it just wouldn't have been a party if I hadn't obsessed over it for weeks. With a total of 13 people coming, this was my biggest dinner party to date! I wanted it to be a sit down meal so my wheels started turnin...

I decided to go with a white, green and brown color scheme. I didn't want it to be to kitschy so I didn't want to take the theme beyond that. Although I did ponder upon a black and white party where all the guests dressed in black and/or white and all of the food was black and/or white. But, I thought that trying to use squid ink to dye pasta was too trying a task and I didn't want to serve popcorn and chocolate. The guest of honor told me he wanted me to make a bundt cake recipe of his mom's so I let that be my food "theme" if you will. Bundt=home cookin'. So I went the Southerish route. We had an iceberg wedge salad (with gorgonzola and crispy proscuitto) smoked chicken and grilled ribeye steaks with parmesan mashed potatoes, homemade mac n cheese, spicy-garlicky green beans and buttery biscuits. I did not make the biscuits (one giddy guest commented on the biscuits being "Grands!!") but I did make the rest. My goodness there were a ridiculous amount of dishes to clean! My hubby made me proud with a heartfelt toast and fun was had by all! Even the babies went right to sleep so their parents could enjoy the party!