As an only child my friends have always been my family. I have a special admiration for the Shalabi family and happily named myself an honorary sister of theirs quite a while back. Well, I gained a new family - a huge one, too! No party had by these ladies is ever for less than a hundred guests so we got to work a few months ago on a theme that would work in an outdoor park setting. 

It was important to Tatiana, the birthday boy's mom, to keep the budget as low as possible. I wanted to explore using a lot of natural elements I found in my local neighborhood, making them into DIY crafts. I started collecting dried palm tree husks, twigs and flowers from my yard. I made a mad dash for downtown and scooped up sheet moss, dried mushrooms, paper butterflies and an assortment of pretty woodland odds and ends. Combining the two with some floral wreaths proved to be a beautiful way to incorporate the theme without going over budget.

I placed an order for ferns and wax flowers to make table centerpieces and small bouquets for the mommies celebrating Mother's Day on Sebastian's birthday. Firewood bundles made a great table accessory as it alternated with rows of simple greens as picnic table runners. This was a casual affair so we didn't create formal seating arrangements. Instead, I opted for two big menus for the "serve yourself" line. To the guests' delight, the menu included steaks, shrimp and chicken with an assortment of homemade salads such as tabouli, fruit, and kale. 

Deciding what to serve on the dessert table was a piece of cake. Keeping it simple and reflective of the book we opted for an assortment of tree stump cakes in different sizes and flavors. Sebastian's aunts brought dainty dulce de leche filled shortbread cookies, rich homemade Brigadeiros and chocolate covered pretzels. These accompanied candy apples and classic yellow cupcakes so that guests had a variety equally as delicious as the food itself.

EXTRAS:

• a hand painted mural for guests to sign their birthday wishes on
• a piñata full of bouncy balls
• face painting
• a do-it-yourself trail mix station
• a book station for guests to receive their very own copy with personalized bookplates 

HOW WE DID IT: 

Florals/Ferns - Anthos Floral Concepts

Cakes - Cake Sisters 

Photography - EDLT Photo 

Invitations/Menu/Signage - Little AVI for Wife Of The Party 

Sugar Cookies - Auntie Apple 

Music - Happen 

Bar Cart Rental - Circa Vintage Rentals 

Face painter - Felipa del Real

Venue - Live Oak Park