Fall Harvest Birthday Party

The real day isn't until Thursday, but this past weekend, I hosted a Fall Harvest-themed birthday party for myself! Over the past few years, it's become a bit of a tradition for me to throw a themed party, have a feast and invite folks over to play board games. It's simple, but I find everyone really enjoys it and it's super recession-friendly! Here's some pics from the party:

I picked up these gorgeous dahlias and foliage from The Fresh Market and added some guinea feathers I bought from a craft store. Those candles, by the way, were amazing and didn't drip at all! Dreams do come true.

I was excited to decorate with my pear collection, which I started after my NaNa died. She collected pear jewelry. 

Of all the parties I've had, this year's signature cocktail was by far the most popular. We found the recipe on Pinterest, where it was called "Thanksgiving in a Glass," but by the end of the night, we were calling it "Yankee Candle Autumn in a Glass" because it reminded us of a trip to that crazy candle store.

The ingredients are simple: apple cider + Pinnacle Pumpkin Pie Vodka + tonic. It is delicious and the Pinnacle vodka, while not super pumpkin-y, disappears and makes the drink sweet and easy to enjoy.

I served a salad made with herb mix, pomegranate seeds, parmesan, candied walnuts and this delicious maple cider vinaigrette, which includes apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, dijon mustard, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Everyone feasted on Irish stew, which is seriously the way to a man's heart if your man is anything like my Sean.

I also made a batch of my smoked gouda mac and cheese, this time swapping bacon for chives.

For dessert, I served "orange and white" cookies from The Fresh Market, Trader Joe's pumpkin macarons and Trader's pumpkin mousse cake. I also made apple "nachos" (not pictured) with apple slices drizzled with caramel and sprinkled with chocolate chips and cinnamon sugar. Delicious, plus I can imagine it being a great dessert for kids!

The night included presents (yay!) and hilarious games of Apples to Apples and Balderdash. The food was all GONE, so I think I can call this year's party a success.

Check out my previous birthday parties: country-themed and 7th-grade pizza party-themed.