Star Wars Surprise 40th

Truth be told: my husband is a true Star Wars Geek. Totally and completely in love with everything Star Wars. I think I won him over when one of our very first conversations was about the movies. I like Star Wars as well, but I am not nearly the "Fan Boy" he is.

This brings me to his 40th birthday. I wanted it to be special. I wanted it to be unique. I wanted it to be a surprise. But above all, I knew I wanted it to be Star Wars themed. I did a lot of research for this party. Spent a lot of very late nights searching, gathering, and creating the perfect party. Let's just say I started this in January and his party was just last weekend.

This was definitely a labor of love. I absolutely love my husband and so he became my muse. The first thing I decided on was the food. I saw other Star Wars themed parties in my internet searches and loved the idea of naming all the food "something Star Wars." I also liked the idea of having it all laid out on a table with signs that told you what everything was. Pics are below, but please don't mind my cheesy, horrible set-up!

The cookies were a hit! Yup, "Wookiee Cookies They're Chewie" was number two on my list of favorite food from the party. I found the recipe HERE if interested on making them yourself. I will say they do take some time, but all worth it in the end. Best part, they are so delicious!

My number one favorite food from this party was the birthday cake. Yes, the Sarlacc Pit and Boba Fett make an appearance and boy did it pack a punch! I found the "How To" video HERE. I made my own yellow cake from scratch and I used ground Nilla Wafers instead of ginger snaps. This cake not only looked bad-ass, it tasted yummy, too.

The food makes the party, in my opinion. It's the highlight. But it wasn't the only thing that caught guest's eyes...

Backside and Front

The invitation was my second creation for this party. These were handmade by myself and really took some time to do, but I loved every second of it. I had seen similar handmade invitations on the internet and wanted to improve on it. I wanted to make them a little more grown up looking. Mind you, pretty much everything I found on Star Wars themed parties were for kids. So I created my lightsaber and then my wording - in the voice of Yoda.  It was then time to print, cut, paste, and insert for the perfect lightsaber invitation.

Next came the stamp. I designed the stamp so guests would know right away that it was a surprise and that it had to do with Star Wars. The envelope is the very first impression and I wanted it to stand out. I addressed all the guests by some kind of Star Wars name, whether it was a family: "clan" (The Gorman Clan), or individuals: "Jedi Master Joe" "Princess Judy" "Weapon Master K.C." "Jedi Diplomat Richard" and so on, and so on, and so on.

The extras came in the way of posters. The one at the very beginning of this post and the one here. I created the wording to try to get our guests pumped about really making this the best birthday surprise Dan has ever had. I included his very first picture (from the hospital) which his hand was in the most perfect position to hold a lightsaber. I also included a pic of him now...his head anyway! I put his head on Luke Skywalker, his favorite character. Then I made his lightsaber blue to stay consistent with the baby pic and the invitation.

Now, every party must have party games and what better for a 40th Birthday than some fun old school games with a twist? I'm talking about Pin the Tail On The...Tauntaun? Yup! Pin the Tail on the Tauntaun. Awesome! I found the pic online, removed the tail in photoshop, made it black and white (cheaper for printing), and went to Staples to print it 18"x24". I printed the tails at home.

Next I made lightsabers out of pool noodles. I swear I was getting high off the fumes of the sharpie marker. I figured we could all battle it out and no one would get hurt.

Then came the Jedi Training Quizzes. Yes, a quiz of seven questions for each Star Wars movie. You can find the quiz HERE. I gave away Star Wars Pez dispensers as the prizes.

I was going to make a Darth Vader pinata so our guests could have a lightsaber battle with him but I ran out of time. Very disappointed, although it did rain all day, so that made me feel a little better about it. I mean, I wouldn't have done the pinata inside, so I guess it all worked out.

My mom thought I was crazy for doing "kiddie" games, but isn't that what you want for your 40th? You want to be reminded of the simple times in your life before responsibilities, before work, before marriage, before kids. You want to know that you still can be fun and have fun playing games that once made you jump for joy if you ever went to a party where these games were played. Nostalgia. Plain and simple!

Star Wars cereal... Cool!

Such a comfy Jedi robe

Ok, so this isn't Star Wars, but it is Star Trek and that's just a good.

Nice wrapping paper! LOL

Oh boy! Anyone who has seen our backyard will know this was the perfect gift

A great big "Thank you!" to my parents and my in-laws for helping me pull this surprise off. Without your help, the party would not have been. 

"Thanks a bunch!" to Dan's close friend, Kevin, for getting him out of the house so I could set up. You really are a true friend. 

Lastly, "Thank you!" to all those who actually replied to this invitation and for the one's who were able to make it. Hope you all had a good time eating, drinking, playing, and just catching up.

So that was that. The party came and went and now I wonder what I'm going to do with all the extra time I have now that I don't have to plan anymore. Oh, yeah... take care of my three little ones and get more sleep!