Le Bon Temps Roule

We had a fabulous party last night to celebrate my dad's 70th birthday. It was also Uncle Larry and Sean's birthdays and my mom's birthday is a week away, so we celebrated everybody! My sister made 25 buttons that said, "It's my birthday!", and we handed them out to anyone who had a birthday with a week or so. It was so fun.
The theme was New Orleans and we flew in our favorite musician, Miss Sophie Lee and her band. She plays Thursday nights at the Spotted Cat and we always go to see her when we fly in. I can't believe we got her to agree to come! She was so amazing. Michael and I got to pick her up from the airport on Sunday morning. The kids made a sign and we stood at the bottom of the escalator to greet them.
We worked so hard to make the party festive. Tiffany and Keith made a gorgeous banner to hang behind the pool and they made cups with the birthday boys' names on them with their favorite beverage. Dad and Mom and I hung tons and tons of beads. We decorated the front gate, the railings all around the pool, the trees and the mule. We had the Texas Pie Company do the catering and it was so good! Julie, the head chef, is from Louisiana and she made some amazing crawfish pies. I made batch after batch of hurricanes and we had cases of red and white wine as well as two kegs- one of Abita Amber and one of Firemen's Four. Nobody was thirsty.
The weather was pretty perfect. It was a gorgeous fall day with a warm afternoon and a cool evening. I had a sitter, but she brought the kids over for a little while. We had about 175 people there I think, but it never felt too crowded. People laughed and ate and danced. Miss Sophie Lee and her band were so good! I can't believe they played live at my parents' house. I got to see so many people that I have known and loved for a long time. Old family friends and new ones were there to help us all celebrate. I had the BEST time I have had at a party in a long time. I went home and fell into bed and continued to party in my dreams all night long.
My parents are so much fun and throw the best parties.