You know I love an occasion to plan a celebration, especially when it’s a personal milestone event. Happily, I got to serve up a soirée last summer in honor of Christian and Jamie’s high school graduation. It felt so exciting to not only have the freedom to plan an event where we could invite friends and family from near and far, but not have to worry about masks, social distancing, or how to serve Covid friendly dishes with separate utensils and stations, etc. Thank God! After a year and a half of online school here in California, these kids were ready to rock, so we decided to roll out the red and white carpet in honor of their chosen schools, Indiana University and Miami University in Ohio.
We decided a sit-down dinner (compared to Allison’s Claws for Celebration graduation event) wasn’t Christian and Jamie’s jam, so we decided on a little more laid-back format that worked better for their personalities. These two are pretty casual yet highly social kiddos and wanted the freedom to move around in a more relaxed, open house format that allowed for grazing on the fantastic food from an excellent local caterer, Andro’s Rostilj (I mean, it was BEYOND delicious and beautiful! GO to his site and check out the menus). The yard was recently completed, so it was the perfect time to gather and celebrate these two grads before heading to the midwest to begin their next exciting chapters.
“Red and white was the theme of the night…” so I took it and ran. The weather was predictably baking hot, so red parasols allowed those not hiding in the shade to freely move around without blistering their skin or sweating up a storm. College logo napkins, stickers, and cocktail plates also stayed on theme. There were toasts and treats, even a step and repeat. The day was filled with love, excitement, laughter, and anticipation of what was next to come. The party went well into the night and ended with excited teenagers line dancing, lingering, and loving these last days of their high school years spent together.
Sources:
Step and Repeat- Local balloon/party genius, Parties and Petals @partiesandpetals on Insta
Food- Andro’s Rostilj
Decor- napkins, plates, banners, all college decor from Amazon
Cookies- Ana’s Bakery @anasbakeryalmadenvally on Insta
Flowers- Bloomster’s
Farm table/chair rentals- Stuart’s Party Rentals
