Thursday, February 10, 2011

The Nitty Gritty

I had not realized how long it would take me to recover mentally and physically from the Bat Mitzvah weekend. It really was a marathon.

Wednesday.
Out-of-towners began to arrive.
Friday. Shabbat Dinner for 30 hosted by my parents and MIL. Services at the synagogue. Oneg.
Saturday. Bat Mitzvah. Kiddush Lunch. Party.
Sunday. Brunch and Superbowl for 35 at the house.
Monday. Clean up.
Tuesday. Clean up.
Wednesday. Clean up. Will the house ever be put back together?! The chaos is getting to me.

Shabbat Dinner
My parents and MIL threw a delicious and beautiful dinner for the family and out-of-towners at Pasta's Trattoria Friday night. It was also Paris' 13th Birthday.

The Bat Mitzvah
So proud. So happy to have so many family and friends involved. Caryl Lyons' cake donuts got a lot of attention at the lunch.

The Party
I chose the Oak Hill Park Community Center for the Broadway-themed evening event. It was ideal for adults and kids; the kids, the kid food and the DJ were in one room and the adults, show tunes and adult food were in a smaller room across the hall. The adults could go back and forth for dancing and not be subjected to the deafening dance music all night long.

Balloon Thrills brought in hundreds of pink and green balloons, and two dozen uplights. There were also strand-lit posters of RENT, Les Miz, Phantom of the Opera, Hairspray and Wicked. Instead of a guest book we did sketch pads with markers, and the talented Jill did the flowers. The requisite sign in board was a Playbill featuring Paris. Adult centerpieces were cheesecakes on Martha Stewart cake stands adorned with brown and pink ribbon explosions. The Under 21s had white sofas and pink bean bags, lounge-style, with candy centerpieces on low cocktail tables. Denon & Doyle kept everyone on their feet and we did the Hora with the chairs. Oy!

The Under 21s ate New York street food -- hot dogs, pretzels, pizza. The Over 21s ate knishes, warm pastrami, corned beef and turkey sandwiches, salad and coleslaw, pickles.


Clyde The Ring Guy turned quarters into Liberty Rings for all the guests. He makes them for Sundance.

San Francisco Photo Booth shot silly pictures and printed them out on site, which the kids loved. The kids also posed with Thank You bubble signs I created in advance then wrote letters to the troops stationed in Afghanistan and put them in care packages we'd preassembled. Doing for others makes me happy. Very happy.

A vendor called Marlyss & Stacey created most of the signage and shipped it out. They must buy glitter and string lights by the truckload. Anyone need Broadway party decor? We have a garage full of it.


The adults drank VB and wine we drove up from Southern California, and the kids had Glinda and Elphaba drinks we created in neon, light up martini glasses. Toward the end of the evening a hot chocolate beverage bar with mix and match toppings appeared.

Paris did a candle lighting to recognize family and friends, including Cayman Sophie, and we showed an embarrassing photo montage. We remembered Ruth, her great grandmother, who she was very close to, with a gift of a mink teddy bear made from one of her coats.


At 9:30p the Karavan, the Kara's Cupcake mobile truck, pulled up and the kids and some adults sugared up for another 90 minutes of dancing. Of the four kinds of cupcakes, the s'mores ones went fastest.

Sunday Brunch & Superbowl
The Packers won and we feasted on Millie's coffee cake and family favorites I'd handed off to a local caterer to prep and deliver. Brilliant! Around 7pm the last guest left and we collapsed.

This was a truly amazing, surreal weekend that I could not have pulled off without the help of many.

5 comments:

Neeracha T. said...

Now you should get some well-deserved rest! We had a fabulous time, the party rocked!

Tristan said...

You are a ROCKSTAR! You pulled off the most successful busy weekend I have ever seen! You deserve a week by the pool with some pretty fruity little drinks brought to you and a never-ending bowl of your favorite chocolates!

Paige said...

I think it might take weeks to recover from the years of Planning! And then you get to do it again x2! Hope you took notes so next time is easier! Best. Party. Ever. I dream about those wicked drinks.

Sara said...

I hope you get a massage this week to help you recover. Paris was perfect & everything else was great! Saturday night may have been the best party I've ever been to.

Terri OConnor said...

Hey, My daughter is married to Paige's little brother. I love parties (probably planning more than attending).... this looked like so much fun. I checked your site just for the cupcake truck link! There was so much more. Thanks for the ideas!!