mom's graduation party

A couple weeks ago my mom finished her master's degree in professional counseling. She's worked on this so hard the past few years, and we were excited to get together and celebrate her accomplishments.

It was a small party of just 60 people that started an hour after the graduation ceremony ended, so set-up was, you know, no big deal.

Especially while six months pregnant.

If you're having a large party with no time to set up, you do soup, soup, and more soup.

The open house was in Mom and Dad's back yard which is literally RIGHT behind the campus where Dad teaches and from whence Mom just graduated.

I got as much ready as I could in the morning. Then after the ceremony it was just a quick waddle over the soccer field on the hottest day yet of the year to finish up.

The Indian block print table cloth below was our color inspiration, and I made the banners in the background to match.

And as well as flying in with her husband to super surprise Mom (yay!), my sister, Rebekah, painted this for Mom's office. The verse is Jeremiah 17:7-8 which has become an important verse for Mom and the clients she works with.

I had fun with the dessert table. We had cakepops...

FOUR of Mom's luscious cheesecakes, including Caramel Brownie, Almond Joy, Hawaiian, and Peanut Butter Fudge.

There was also her amazing "First Prize" Carrot Cake.

Besides being a little too hot for this mama-to-be, the day was gorgeous, and it was so fun to hang out with friends and family all evening.

This little girl was a champ. I barely saw her all evening! She just ran around with friends and only came to get me when she needed to use the bathroom. She's officially a "big kid".

I love this photo of the two of us. Also, anyone who's pregnant needs to run to Target and buy this dress right now. It's soooo comfy, doesn't show sweat marks (yay!), and is pretty fun and trendy.

Congratulations, Mom! I wanna be just like you when I grow up.

Party Credits

Party Styling: Kara Hallead
Photography: Faith Scheuerman
Desserts: Carol Scheuerman & Kara Hallead
Linens: Vintage and international
Banner fabric: Joann Fabrics
Mini Chalkboard Signs: Hobby Lobby

mimi's 80th birthday party

We got to celebrate my grandma, Mimi's, 80th birthday this January! Friends and family came out to celebrate her, we had lots of good food, and I discovered the joy of setting up a dessert table without having to actually make the desserts. Why have I been punishing myself this whole time?! Spending weeks cutting out circles or folding tissue paper doesn't bother me in the least, but after just an hour of baking or chocolate dipping I'm shaking my fists at the heavens.

The inspiration for the decor was this gorgeous fuschia dress that Mimi wore as a bridesmaid's dress sometime in the 50s. 

I also used a lot of vintage photos of Mimi; on the cupcakes, the embellished posters, and around the room.

 And a TON of tissue paper flowers. These are very retro to me - like prom decor from the 50s.

Did you know you could order large photo prints from Staples for only $4.99? You have to choose "engineering prints", ignore the many warnings that this is NOT a photo grade option, place your order, and pick them up in store! Files that were originally professional-grade, high-quality prints work the best.

Mom made the amazing desserts; including Almond Joy Cheesecakes and Hawaiian Pineapple cupcakes.

For the cupcake picks (originally seen on Empress Stationery), I used some of the hundreds of photos I've scanned onto our computer over the years. I cropped all of the photos to be about 2.5"x2.5", then I arranged them in rows in a Word document, and printed them on cardstock. Then I used my 2" circle punch to cut them all out, mounted them on pink circle cut-outs, attached toothpicks, and that was it. All for the cost of a pack of pink cardstock. ; )

Love that beehive!

Here's more engineering prints. After picking them up from Staples, I put them in lightweight poster frames and had some fun embellishing each with tissue paper flowers and tassels. 

Mimi and Pappap on a trip in Ocean City, NJ.

The birthday girl!

Mimi with Cheryl, the woman to whose wedding Mimi wore the fuschia dress. 

I found out at the party that it was actually a "rainbow wedding" where all the bridesmaids wore different colors. 

They said that was all the rage then. 

Happy Birthday, Mimi! So glad I could spend it with you! 

Party Credits

Party Styling: Kara Hallead

Photography: Faith Scheuerman

Desserts: Carol Scheuerman

Photo prints: Staples

Vintage Items: Charlotte Sprenkle

Cupcake Stand: Pier 1 Imports