I am SO looking forward to Autumn. Not just for the cooler weather, but the heat is seriously starting to get to me already. Autumn is just such a better season than Summer. I know there are people who would argue this, but those people probably don’t live in Phoenix. Oh, and hey! We are three months from our annual Pumpkin Party, just in case you’ve been keeping track too. That’s enough to get me pumped for Fall. In my past PP planning posts, I talked about the process I use, including looking at prior year’s pictures, reviewing our notes, and sharing our party planning worksheet. Now that we are getting closer to the big day, I have everything settled for the menu, decorations and kids activities so it’s all about prep work at this point. At the three month mark, I like to know what we’ll be eating, playing and doing.
Every year, my husband’s parents bring their very popular chili in an extremely large crock pot. So this year, I’m kind of excited about this idea I’ll be modifying from Pinterest:
Other family members will bring side dishes to share too. So I focus on appetizers, drinks, desserts and snacks. This year, I’m planning to try this pumpkin crisp for the dessert table.
I have a few surprises up my sleeve for this year’s party food, and I’m excited to share them with you as we get closer to the big day. In the meantime, here’s what I’m going to be working on for table decorations:
I just got the supplies for this project over the weekend, so I’ll be sharing my version with you soon. Last year we stocked up on orange paper lanterns from Luna Bazaar, so I’m thinking about adding to the collection this year, or adding paper flowers instead. I’ve been thoroughly inspired by flowers like these:
And I’m definitely doing something with Shephard’s Hooks, because I think they are darling and I just picked up a handful at Hobby Lobby on their summer clearance. Aren’t these cute?
We always have a lot of activities to keep the kids busy, and this year we’ll be renting a bounce house for the first time. I’m so super excited about this, because it will mean a lot less hands-on time from me.
I’ll still have other activities, though. Including this game I found on Pinterest.
I like games that are a challenge for the kiddos, mostly because they are a hoot to watch that way. We always bob for apples, and we’ve done the donut hanging from a string game, and the gourd bowling game. All hysterical.
So, food? Check. Decorations? Yep. And kids activities? Decided. Now it’s just prep and buy time. Since we know the menu, we can buy food when it goes on sale and freeze it if need be. This doesn’t work for produce, but you get the idea. And knowing what decorations and activity supplies we need helps us save on supplies too. Since we usually have over 50 guests, saving money along the way is key to making this whole thing possible. Stay tuned for party planning tips, tricks and fun diy projects in the weeks to come! And check out my Pumpkin Party Pinterest page (say that five times fast!) for lots more ideas.
