Strawberry Dinner Party… Happy Birthday Lilli♡

🍓A Little Bit About Lilli

To say I absolutely love and adore Lilli is an understatement. She’s the sister I never had, and I feel so lucky to call her family. There’s nothing I love more than celebrating her and making her feel as special as she truly is.

This year, she turned 23, and its already been a big one. She officially became a second grade teacher (and, if you ask anyone who knows her, the best teacher). Her heart for children is something I hope to have even an ounce of one day. Her smile lights up every room. She is, without a doubt, a walking ray of sunshine.

That’s what led me to the strawberry dinner party.

Queue the dinner deets…

🍓The Menu

🍓Preparation

Here’s the little schedule I followed to keep things stress-free, no rushing around the day of:)

🛒 Day Before the Party:

Make the grocery list
- Ingredients for: steak, garlic mashed potatoes, asparagus, salad, brownies, strawberry muffins, mocktails
Grocery store run
Prep ahead
- Wash and trim strawberries for mocktails & muffins
- Make the muffins

🎉Day of the Party:

⏰Morning: Dessert Prep
- Cover or store for easy serving
- Bake brownies
- Let cool completely
⏰Early Afternoon: Decor & Table Setup
- Set the table (plates, glasses, silverware, napkins)
- Add flowers and any other birthday decorations

⏰Late Afternoon: Food Prepping
- Peel and chop potatoes; submerge in water in a pot
- Trim and season asparagus; refrigerate on tray
- Season steak; let it sit in fridge or marinate if needed
- Prep salad ingredients
⏰Evening: Cook Dinner
- Boil potatoes and start mashing process
- Roast asparagus
- Cook steaks to preferred doneness
- Toss the salad

🍓 Recipes

🥔Garlic Mashed Potatoes by Ina Garten
🍫Homemade Brownies from Love and Lemons
🍓Strawberry Muffins from Once Upon a Chef
🥗Strawberry Spinach Salad from Love & Lemons
🥩Pan-Seared Pepper Steak
- Greg was in charge of the steak… his “famous” recipe.
🍹Sparkling Strawberry Fizz
- For this, I do a 1:1 ratio of sparkling water and strawberry lemonade. If you want to jazz things up, add some strawberries for garnish.

🍓 The Decor Details

For the strawberry banner, I got a little crafty with what I had on hand. Some ribbon and extra napkins came together perfectly for a sweet, homemade touch.

I also made garland using pink, red, and white paper to tie everything together and give the space a soft, festive feel.

The table setting was a mix-and-match moment. I just played around with what I had until it felt cute and pulled together. Fresh flowers (always!) were the final touch… they truly bring a table to life.

I added a few little personal touches: some pink ribbon around the wine glasses, name tags made from strawberry paper, and a printed dinner menu at each spot. Nothing fancy, but it made the table feel a bit more special without being too formal.