BACKYARD COMMUNION PARTY DETAILS

Let me first start out with saying how proud I am of our Summer for making her First Holy Communion this past weekend. She looked radiant and seeing her innocence is something I will never forget. Such a beautiful day surrounded by friends and family who love her dearly. If you follow me on Instagram then you may have caught my stories recapping this beautiful day. BUT if you missed it no worries. Sharing all of the backyard Communion party details in great depth for today’s post. The theme, the vendors, the decor, the food and everything else that made the day what it was.

If you’ve been following me long enough then you know how much thought and detail goes into our parties. I usually come up with a theme and then me along with my mom and Erik bring the ideas to life. Being this was a party in April I immediately came up with an English garden theme for our backyard Communion party. I just felt this would be such a pretty theme not only for a Communion but for a springtime event.

Being in the line of work I’m in I am fortunate enough to connect with so many brands on a daily basis. The ones that worked alongside me for our backyard Communion party each have a personal relationship with me. By the end of the party I can honestly say I’d consider each brand a friend. That is something that is special to me. You are entrusting brands to take part in your special day. It’s important to feel a solid connection to each and every one of them. So let’s dive into the backyard Communion party details shall we?

HAIR

SALON: LAMBS & WOLVES | STYLIST: AMBER

I made a promise to Summer that I’d roll out the red carpet for her special day. That of course included a trip to our hair salon to have curls put into her hair. They did a perfect job as always.

YARD SIGN

HOORAY! YARD CARDS OF ESSEX & MORRIS COUNTY| INSTAGRAM

I knew flowers alone weren’t going to overexcite Summer as far as the decor went. The day was all about her so I wanted to add something in that would really make her happy. I went back and forth whether to use balloons or not but decided to have a yard sign put up the morning of her Communion. The sign was customized by Hooray! Yard Cards of Essex & Morris County. A big sign to match the colors of our party was placed on our front yard for everyone to see as they pulled up. Rory, the owner of the company couldn’t have been any sweeter. I honestly felt like we were immediate friends and from our initial point of contact I could see how much pride she took in making everything perfect for such a special day.

Rory put the sign up that morning and came back the next day to take everything down. She was amazing to work with. While she is based in Morris & Essex County she has no problem traveling to Monmouth County and really goes the extra mile to get the details down perfectly.

TABLE SETTING

LARGE WHITE BIRD CAGE | SMALL WHITE BIRD CAGE | METAL BASKET

Considering we are still in the age of Covid we had to keep the guestlist smaller which allowed me the opportunity to create one large, long table for our guests to sit at. I have always wanted to do that but our parties are usually too large.

To match the theme of our backyard Communion party I rented white linens and white garden chairs. My Mom made the burlap runner and I went to Trader Joe’s and bought a ton of fresh flowers.

I used white and pink roses, babies breathe and berries. I had a few bird cages at home but then grabbed a few more at Michael’s to put the flower arrangements in.

DECOR

FLOWER ARCH & FLOWER CART BY: ENCHANTED BLOSSOMS | INSTAGRAM

The absolute highlight of the party though was the fresh floral decor by Enchanted Blossoms. I had connected with these ladies on Instagram recently and was so excited to work with them. I couldn’t help but notice their flower hustle and unique business concept that they have. They aren’t just any old florist. Enchanted Blossoms is based in Monmouth County and they can often be found at Bell Works (their shop will be opening there shortly), on Hance Avenue in Tinton Falls with their flower cart or other locations throughout Monmouth. Their flowers are farm grown, they use sustainable flowers and all their packaging uses biodegradable materials.

MY SKIRT (also styled in this blog post) | TOP | SANDALS

Enchanted Blossoms offers a ton of personal services for your party whether it be a backyard Communion party, baby shower, bridal shower, weddings, engagement parties and more. They offer rentable items such as their flower cart and flower arch that they custom designed to match our party. They came and built the arch in our yard and used all fresh flowers creating the most jaw dropping photo backdrop. It really set the theme for our party when you walked in and made for such beautiful photos.

BUT the real talk of the party was the flower cart. Enchanted Blossoms set the cart up as decor for our party with all fresh flowers and then came to help all our guests build their own bouquets that they brought home as favors. Everyone and I mean everyone (ladies, men, kids) all said how they have never seen anything like it.

It was interactive, the flowers were so fresh and everyone took part making their bouquets. I got countless texts after the party of photos in vases that our guests brought home. That’s how you know it was a hit!

And the attention to detail! Every bouquet like the one I’m holding was beautifully packaged, wrapped in a wet cloth and 5 days later my blooms are still fresh! Be sure to follow these flower hustling mamas on Instagram for all the latest they have going on. You can order from their website to have flowers delivered in the Monmouth area and again they will be opening a physical shop at Bell Works within the next few weeks! PS they are taking pre-orders for Mother’s Day now.

THE FOOD

CATERER: FRESHII MIDDLETOWN | INSTAGRAM

Food can absolutely break or make a party. Being it was a backyard Communion party during the day I really wanted to do something light but also delicious. I’ve worked with Freshii Middletown since last Summer and honestly have such love for them that it was a no brainer to ask them to cater.

I always like to think of them as healthy takeout. They make the tastiest, freshest wraps, burritos, salads, soups and bowls. AND it’s not your run of the mill kinda food. Their menu uses healthy ingredients like quinoa, kale, and all the latest healthy food trends.

I sat down with Kevin, the owner and he helped me create the perfect menu for our party. We decided to do an assortment of their best selling burritos, wraps and he made 2 stunning salads. Everything was so light, looked vibrant when displayed (that’s important to me. Food should look colorful), and our guests loved the variety. For dine in or phone orders you can mention HOUSEOFLEOBLOG for 10% off your order at Freshii Middletown.

Most of our parties are at night but being this was earlier in the day I jumped at the opportunity to make a mimosa bar cart. I used 3 kinds of juices (mango, orange and pineapple). Got some champagne and added fresh flowers to pull the theme in.

As for the cake? My mama made it. She has been doing Summer’s cakes for years but this one I think is her best yet! Carrot cake and red velvet. It was as gorgeous as it was delicious.

THANK YOU

It takes a village doesn’t it? I honestly couldn’t have had a better team behind me in pulling off Summer’s backyard Communion party. Everything from party planning to the actual day couldn’t have gone anymore perfect. Thank you to all those that worked with me to make this a day we will never forget.

I will never forget how beautiful she shined on her First Holy Communion Day. I still remember my Communion so vividly and I hope she will cherish the memories of this day just as I have. This day especially has so much meaning and brought with it so much love. The next time I see her shine in a white dress it’ll be her wedding day. Time goes by so fast. Cherishing each day, each milestone and each important event so closely to my heart.