another party

2009 is the year of the surprise! ...and apparently the year of the "color" themed parties. i recently shared with you my mom's 50th "sparkling & pink" surprise birthday party that i threw with my sister. well, little did my sister know, i was planning a surprise party for her all along with my brother-in-law!

this party was all about 30 and all about ORANGE- my sister's favorite color. it was a family affair, which made it fun! we all pulled together and did different things to make it special for my sister.

the lounge... originally created for the adults, but obviously enjoyed by the sweet (30 some) children at the party!

there was even a custom-made orange plexi coffee table!

the birthday girl finally enjoying an adult (aka margarita) moment in her lounge.

we not only hung tons of chinese lanterns with brown and orange ribbons, but we also hung blown up pictures of my sister from childhood until now. everyone enjoyed the trip down memory lane... graduation pictures, jr high volleyball pictures, riding horses as a little girl with her now sisters and mother-in-law and pictures as recent as our trip to hawaii this summer.






we definitely didn't go short in the food department. :)

it was a fun party... and the best part, my sister was SHOCKED out of her mind! she literally jumped straight in the air, out of her flip-flops... in the end, the anxiety, butterflies, and lies were all worth it for that very moment! happy birthday sister! i love you!!

**edited to add: in my excitement to do this post, i forgot to mention the fun activities at the party, in addition to the purpose of the big screen you saw in some of the pictures! first, my brother-in-law created the most adorable, amazing, and wonderful "happy 30th birthday" video for my sister with my 2 little nieces and nephew. the video was definitely the highlight of the evening... and if i had a copy of it, i would definitely post it here for you to see. later in the evening, once the sun went down, the big screen became the movie theater where we showed karate kid... my sisters favorite movie! the kids loved it... and so did the adults! they pulled the couches over from the lounge and cozied down for the night.

we also started a huge bonfire once the sun went down with all the yummy stuff to make s'mores! another one of my sisters favorite things :) ...the party also included night swimming with two lifeguards on duty (though i'm not sure if anyone besides the kids did any night swimming) ;)