Well, Steve has doggone gone and done it.
He’s turned sixty years old!
As you will see from the photos in the post, the theme of his party was vintage cars, with a couple of airplanes thrown in. We had about 60 people in attendance, including the guys from Dare Challenge.
Friday night, Sarah and I and Ashley and her husband, Tom, spent three hours at the Youth House setting up and decorating.
There is no way on earth I could have put this party together without Ashley. I tend to get easily overwhelmed with party planning and Ashley capably talked me down from the ledge each time that happened. She helped organize menu lists, and to do lists, and lists about what had to be purchased, and what had to be designed and printed. She also cooked several dishes, ran errands, bought stuff, and came up with creative ideas for decorating.
This picture of Tom was taken during the party. During our set up time, he moved tables, pounded nails, lugged stuff around, and helped us work out a variety of challenges. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to her Tom and Ashley for their gifts of talent and time that were so instrumental in making the party happen.
Here are some photos and descriptions.
The sticky notes were put out the night before to help us remember what foods went where. Very helpful, if you are planning a larger meal or party.
I found the car pictures online and then made a design with them using colored squares and black background.
I even printed off a photo of Steve’s car and put it in the lineup.
I designed these name badges which I thought were fun.
Stoplight brownies.
Sarah helped me lay this out.
The sign was added by Steve; he wanted everyone to know just how old that airplane was!
Please note the jar that has the “Joy Pills” label. Steve loves jelly beans so someone from the church bought a bunch and put them in the Joy Jar.
The centerpieces were mason jars with tools in them. The smaller additions to the centerpieces were cans of soup with printed labels taped on. I downloaded the labels for $5 and then was able to print however many I needed.
We thought it would be fun to showcase all of the albums we have done over the years. You can tell Steve and I are REALLY ancient because we actually recorded an LP. Can you believe it?
Sarah did a dozen errands for me, put together the DVD of people sharing memories, and also compiled a playlist for the party composed of Steve’s favorite songs from the 70’s.
She was one of the people who got up and told a story or memory about Steve. She did such a great job.
All the food had car names of some sort. These were some of the kid desserts.
You all would be proud of me: I came up with the name “Gas ‘Er Up Beans” for the baked beans. Pretty wild for a pastor’s wife, right?
“Zoom! Zoom!” is one of the Mazda Miata slogans so I thought it would be appropriate for the cake with the Miata on it.
A month before the party, I contacted friends and family and asked them to tell something they appreciated about Steve, or else share a special memory. (Either written or by video.) I got a great response and compiled all the written things in this book. (I even grabbed a few from the comments area of the blog.)
I was especially pleased that I added a little design thingie for the spine of the book. It’s the small things in life . . .
Sarah took the video responses and edited them into a compilation video, complete with background music. Steve was so touched by all the words and memories; it made his day.
Nathan and Meagan gave him this metal parking sign. It is a picture of his actual car; the company that makes the sign even asked for the VIN from his car so they could make sure they had exactly the right color and model.
I took the sign to the party and hung it outside the front door and put a parking cone in the spot. I told him that when he arrived, he was supposed to look for his reserved parking spot. He loved it.
Let me close with a lovely photo and cute video.
First the photo from Nathan and Meagan’s Mother’s Day. Heart-melting, is it not?
And even if you don’t watch this whole video, you HAVE to see the first fifteen seconds when Meagan tells Noah and Meagan how old Grandpa is. Their open-mouthed wonder is hilariously priceless.
So there you have it folks!
Steve survived turning sixty and I survived celebrating him turning sixty. A win-win!
Happy, happy birthday, Honey. So very thankful for the years we have gotten to celebrate each other.
Wow! What a party! It looks so organized and well thought out. I LOVE all the little touches!
Happy belated birthday Steve!!
LeeAnne,
Yes, it’s all those little touches that took so much work but they did make a huge difference. Thanks for noticing them!
Looks like a great birthday party! The decorations were great. I’ve been in the 60 club almost two years now, it’s not that bad. Happy belated birthday to Steve.
Phyllis,
Glad to know you are liking your 60’s! Just think–in ten years or so, you and Steve will be thinking how young you were “back then.” 🙂 It’s great to enjoy EVERY age.
Loved your decorating ideas! You sure had everything covered.
The photo of Sarah with the microphone, I could see a lot of you in that photo, combination of the profile, stance and holding the microphone.
Meagan and the grand kids are adorable in the video and that smile on Madison in the Mother’s Day photo was beautiful!
So glad Steve enjoyed his party!
Kari,
It’s always fun to hear that people can see me in Sarah. That’s the kind of thing that makes me have a happy heart!
And yes, I have to say that the grandkids are pretty cute–in the video and in the pictures. I still can’t watch that video without a big smile breaking out. 🙂
that has to be just about the cleverest decorated party ever! loved the car wash.
Happy belated Birthday Blessings, Steve. I’ve been out of touch for a couple of weeks because I moved
to a Senior Living place.
Mrs. Pam,
We’ve missed you! Moving is a big job no matter where you are moving to or moving from. I hope you are settling in and enjoying your new digs.
Wonderful memories. Pictures are great. Celebrate the entire month, Steve. Fantastic job, Becky and Sarah. Hugs
Ann,
Steve appreciated the card; you guys are always so thoughtful to remember ou special occasions.
Happy Birthday Steve! That looks like an awesome party! Very creative decorating!
Michele,
It was a fun party but I am glad there are no more “big birthdays” in my immediate future. I need a birthday vacation! 🙂
Happy Happy Birthday to Steve! The party theme was so cute and creative. And the video was too precious!
Sue Ellen,
Parties and videos and grandkids. Happy words in my life!
Looks like a great party with no details left out. Happy birthday Steve, my mother shared the same birthday but she would have been 100!
Margie,
A 100th birthday would certainly be an occasion to celebrate! It’s nice to remember the people we love on their special days–even after they are gone.
Wow! The party décor was fabulous! How fun. The grandkids video was so precious! Happy Birthday Steve!
Wendy,
Fabulous. Fun. Precious.
I love picking out those certain words from a comment that sum things up perfectly. And your words sure do!
Wow. The details that went into this are amazing. I think my favorite was the brownies. Loved the stop light idea. Looks like fun was had by all.
Mel,
Yes, I loved the stoplight brownies, too. So easy to put together (our associate pastor made them for me) but such a fun “theme idea.”
The party looked great and like a lot of work but I bet he LOVED the video from those sweet little babies the best!!!
Donna,
I know. That video just melted my heart. It was fun having one grand child but having two and seeing them interact with each other is really, really great.
Wow, I am very impressed! That looks like an awesome party! I love all the creative details.
Happy birthday Steve!
Jenna,
Since you’re a creative person, you would definitely appreciate the creative details. It was a fun challenge to put it all together.
Wow, that should be on Pinterest! I am totally impressed! Looks like it was the perfect party to celebrate an incredible (vintage-type) man! ?
Love, Deb
Thanks to you and everyone who helped make this special birthday celebration for Steve! Very impressive man cave in all the details. The smile on his face says how much he enjoyed!
Vernie,
I appreciate you sending all those memories to be included in his book. We loved reading them all!
Deb,
Yep. My vintage fella enjoyed his vintage-esque celebratory event!
And as much as he loves cars and all things mechanical, it seem liked the perfect theme. It will take me another week to get everything put away and squared away but it was worth it!
Wow, that was a great party. All the details! All so clever. Sixty is a big deal and so glad it went off without a hitch. Were his parents able to record something for the video?
Lesley,
His parents didn’t record anything but sent in several wonderful memories, a couple of which I had never even heard before. So that was fun!
With all your efforts, I have a question. Was it a total surprise to Steve?
Jim,
He knew we were having a party and he knew the theme but that’s it. He was surprised when he walked into the room and saw all those interesting details everywhere.
A halcyon day! Thank you my love for all you and your team did to make it happen.
Steve,
Halcyon days (and parties) are good! Glad you had such a good time. xxoo
A very special party for a very special guy! More than a few tears were shed reading about this wonderful celebration for a wonderful guy! They were happy tears!
Cindy,
It was a true joy to get to honor him and celebrate his life. Blessed!
And glad you had a chance to shed some happy tears. 🙂