In the whirlwind that was my 29th birthday - my entire family (parents, brother & Allie, plus Rachel) flying in for the New York party, immediately embarking to SF for the second bash, then a half week of meetings followed by the 8 person trip to Aspen - I never had a chance to thank all of the people who made it possible. We raised over $2,000 for Susan G. Komen for the Cure (plus Rachel’s birthday gift of my entry fee for the Chicago 3-Day Walk this coming August), and welcomed over 500 preppy pink & white’d guests combined on two coasts to our 2nd Annual Bicoastal Birthday Bashes.
Because no epic fete is ever constructed alone, I’d like to take this moment to me acknowledge a few VKPs (Very Kind People):
First and foremost, the superwoman Megan Alagna, without whom I wouldn’t get anything done (and she knows it). She made it all look easy when it most certainly was not. I could thank her for a solid five paragraphs and still not be done, but suffice it to say: she is organized, loyal, smart, and a perpetual calm in the storm of my life. I love you, Megs.
My intern, Emily Rose, was a total superstar as well, handling details like ordering the Unbelievably Awesome Step n Repeat and then driving ALL THE WAY FROM OHIO in a snowstorm to help out with the event. That is dedication, people.
To Randi, without whom this crazy Bicoastal Birthday Bash wouldn’t have ever happened, thank you for putting together such an incredible San Fran party - especially in the midst of a travel schedule that would exhaust Hillary Clinton. Thank you also for being the Only Human Being on Earth who would agree to wear Matching Pink Bestey Johnson confections (plus headbands!) with me every year. You never do anything half-ass, and that’s what I love about you.
To Caitlin over at Skyy vodka (which graciously sponsored the alcohol at both bashes), THANK YOU for you and your company’s generosity. I didn’t actually get to have a drink, but from the looks of the photographs, everyone else did. ;)
If I have a party, but no one takes a photo, did it really happen? Thanks to our three stellar photographers, we didn’t have to find out: Mo Pitz and Nick McGlynn (in New York) and Carmen Alvarez (in SF). They took some seriously stunning shots. I couldn’t ask for more.
To David, over at NYC Photobooth - you are AMAZING. Very few people have as much reverence for photobooths as I do, and NYC Photobooth does it better than anyone else, merging the old school prints with new school digital files and amazing customizable PDF backgrounds. I would have spent the entire party in the photobooth if I could have! (Unfortunately I only had time for two sets of pictures.) Rest assured, I’ll have one of these at every birthday party I have until I’m dead. And probably at my funeral, too.
To Melissa at Baked By Melissa, who graciously sponsored 200 out of the 300 cupcakes - WOW. People gobbled them up in about 30 minutes and then spent the rest of the party asking if there were more. Next time I’m ordering 1000!!
To Danny, the owner of The Gates, thank you for being so kind as to allow 300 prepped out pink & white clad interlopers into your classy club. I can’t say enough good things about the space, and I hope to have many more events there in the future - although I probably won’t, as you suggested, be opening a new nightclub with you anytime soon. Although if we could decorate it entirely in pink, I might be persuaded to reconsider …
To DJ Tanner, who took my pleas of “Dear God, please please please don’t play embarrassing music like Kei$ha in front of my parents” and turned the place into one of the best oldies-classic-rock-with-a-twist dance parties I’ve ever heard, you are officially my DJ hero. (Yeah, I went there. I made that pun. I’m owning it.) Even had my parents NOT been there, I loved the way he spun - everyone wanted to sing along. That’s the mark of an amazing DJ.
And finally, last but definitely NOT least, thank you to my darling Prom King, who miraculously didn’t dump me after I turned into a total Birthday-zilla for two solid weeks leading up to the events (and a good week after, if I’m being totally honest). He helped me with everything from arranging the cupcakes to recommending the DJ to letting my little brother & Allie crash on his couch to loaning me his SUV to get around during the snowstorm. Most of all, he was there when I needed him. And after he stayed until the last guest left, then drove me in my crazy pink tulle dress home and talked with me in the car for an hour (despite his almost total exhaustion), that’s when I realized that I loved him for the first time.
