Browsing Tag

birthday

Fashion & Beauty, Lifestyle & Social

My week on Instagram

2nd June, 2019

Another big week on Instagram (and on my blog)! I shared a few snaps from Sophia’s 5th birthday on our family farm in the Southern Highlands – if you’ve got a Disney princess lover in your life check it out! 

Also given it’s officially winter I’m sharing my new skincare routine. The cooler weather means I’m more focused on looking after my skin – nothing worse than a dry, damaged complexion so I’m employing a new beauty regimen.

Here’s to another great week ahead!

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Lifestyle, Lifestyle & Social

Sophia’s 5th Birthday

29th May, 2019

It only seemed like yesterday that Sophia was born so it’s hard to imagine my little angel is now five! To mark such a milestone occasion we threw a party for Sophia at my parents’ farm in the Southern Highlands in NSW. We always like to host parties there as there’s plenty of room for the kids to play and run around.

This year the theme was pretty much what every five year old girl I know is into: Disney Princess! I love a themed party as it makes everything else easier from the cake to the entertainment as there’s a distinct theme to work around.

For food, we did a sausage sizzle which is something we’ve done a couple of times that works really well for feeding both adults and kids. That’s my number one piece of advice when throwing a kids’ party: don’t double cater. We also had a few fruit and cheese platters and sandwiches, whilst the kids had a few treats like popcorn and lollies. We had a Disney Princess cake by Sweet Mama Cupcakes and cupcakes by My Little Cupcake.

As far as entertainment went we had pony rides for the kids (always a crowd pleaser!) and a jumping castle. I also always hire a birthday fairy to help keep the kids entertained and in the one spot. The kids love it but as a parent it’s always good to know that all the little ones aren’t running off doing their own thing.

We had gorgeous weather for the party so it was a perfect day for Sophia to celebrate with all her friends. Until next year’s party!

Luke and I with the girls
Grace enjoying the cake
The birthday girl getting ready to blow her candles
Sophia with the Birthday Fairy
Princess pinata!
Enjoying the yummy cupcakes
Playing games
Princesses and pony rides!
The princess themed jumping castle
Sophia’s princess cake up close
The kids had a ball
Party details

Entertainment: Princess Belle by Birthday Fairy 

Jumping Castle: Princess Carriage Combo by Castle Kingdom

Cake: Custom made by Sweet Mama Cakes

Balloons: Highlands Helium Balloons

Cupcakes: My Little Cupcake

Lifestyle

Sophia’s 4th Birthday Fairy Picnic

30th May, 2018

I still remember sharing Sophia’s first birthday on the blog with you all so it’s so hard for me to believe that she’s now turning four! I’m sure most parents would agree that time really does fly and each birthday comes around quicker than the next. This year we decided to hold Sophia’s party at our family property in the Southern Highlands. Given we were going for a fairy picnic theme it seemed the perfect setting.

We decided on a picnic as it made a lot simpler to style and we just wanted guests to feel relaxed throughout the day. We stuck to a simple colour palette of soft pink and white with little touches of gold which we carried through to everything from the lollies to the cake and the decorations. Sophia was able to have a little more input in her party this year and she actually chose her tutu (from Tutu Du Monde) and the cake that she wanted. We found the cake on Instagram (from @sweetmamacakes) and it worked well with the theme as it was a fairy with a mushroom house.

In terms of decorations we opted for a few balloons and some bunting to give the party area a festive atmosphere. We put down a few pink and white blankets on the grass and scattered a few pillows for the kids to sit on and dotted the place with flowers and gold confetti. It dressed the area up quite easily and it didn’t require us to spend hours decorating.

We didn’t really want to be stressing about catering on the day so we stuck to a simple menu. We had finger foods such as sandwiches, fairy bread (of course!), sultanas, popcorn and cupcakes and fruit platters for the little ones. For the adults we had a few cheese platters and fruit platters and had a good ol’ fashioned sausage sizzle, which worked out great as it was quick and easy.

We always like to have some entertainment on hand to keep the kids occupied so we hired a birthday fairy and she did everything from  dancing with the kids to games like pass the parcel and activities like colouring in. As a special treat we also had pony rides with our family ponies Harley and Jack, and we dressed them up with unicorn horns in keeping with the magical theme.

It was a great day with a few close family and friends and Sophia had the time of her life. I’m sure the next birthday celebration will sneak up on us just as quickly!

Photography: Sophia Athas

Party for the kids

The birthday girl

The picnic set up

Sophia with her friends

Sophia with the birthday fairy

It was a great day for the four of us

The kids having a ball

Grace and I with our friend Emma Watkins aka the Yellow Wiggle!

Cutting the cake

The gorgeous cake

A great day with family and friends

 

Lifestyle, Social

A peek inside my birthday party with Sterling Vineyards

7th December, 2017

I usually keep my birthday quite low key these days and spend it with the girls and Luke and close family which is always really lovely. This year however, Sterling Vineyards generously offered to host a party for me at Sydney’s La Porte space ahead of my actual birthday today. How could I say no?

It was a great opportunity to celebrate with 30 of my close friends, some of which I’ve known since kindergarten and others I’ve made in the industry and throughout my career, alongside Luke and my brother and sister-in-law. I think it’s always really special being able to gather your nearest and dearest together at an intimate event that’s just all about celebrating and enjoying lots of great food, drinks and each other’s company. And as the official craziness of the festive season ramps up over the next few weeks it was a nice way to catch up with my friends in the one spot.

I think a birthday party is always a great excuse to get all dressed up and I was glad to have the opportunity to wear a striped Maggie Marilyn dress I’ve been dying to wear. I needed standout shoes to match so opted for my pink Marco de Vincenzo braided heels. It was a fun outfit that was befitting of such a great occasion.

One of the great things on the day was being blown away by the amazing space and set up when I first arrived. Lunch was set in a gorgeous courtyard area and had been decorated with a white balloon installation and a long banquet table dotted with beautiful blooms. And what’s a party without a delicious spread to match? We enjoyed a long lunch in the sun and were treated to a delicious grazing menu that included smokehouse salmon with with baby capers, shallots and lemon, mixed grain salad and a caprese salad-esque platter with buffalo mozzarella, heirloom tomato and basil. We had matching wines for each course starting with prosecco with canapés, a pinot noir chardonnay for lunch and rosé for dessert (fun fact: Sterling Vineyards is actually a wine brand from the US but they’ve recently come into the Australian market and use Aussie grapes for their range). Speaking of dessert! I’m still thinking about the white chocolate rocky road, handmade milk and dark chocolate bark and summer berries with meringue and mascarpone we were served up. What are birthdays for if not for indulging a little, right?

It feels as if each birthday rolls around quicker than the last and it can flash by just like that so it was amazing to be able to take the time to celebrate with all my friends. It makes me appreciate all the wonderful people in my life even more and another year spent enjoying my time with them.

Check out a few of my favourite snaps from the day below…

The gorgeous table setting

The impressive balloon installation

Bottles chilling on ice ready for guests to arrive

Having a great time with Luke

Selfie time with Terry Biviano

Tanja Gacic, Yan Yan Chan, Sara Crampton, Nadia Fairfax

With the Heinrich sisters, Andrea and Anna

Nadia with my brother, Tom and sister-in-law, Hoda

So lovely having all my nearest and dearest in the one spot

The delicious spread for lunch

Toasting another birthday!

With Tim Robards and Jordan and Zac Stenmark

With Terry and her husband, Anthony Minichiello

With Emma Watson and Sara

Personalised bottles for all my guests

Photography: Sophia Athas

This post was created in collaboration with Sterling Vineyards