Notes on 9 Acres: Princess? or Pirate?

I admit that this has nothing to do with our country life or renovation, not directly anyway, but I still feel it worth sharing…

One of my dearest friends, a life-long friend that I have known since high school, is halfway through her pregnancy with her second child. As is tradition these days, she and her husband wanted to have a gender reveal party to celebrate with friends and all be surprised with the knowledge of Baby #2’s gender. Instead of letting a bakery full of strangers be the first to discover the big news, I suggested that our other girlfriend and I were up to the task. Honestly, I was a little surprised she said yes and honored that she entrusted us with such precious information. AND she invited me to help plan the party! I love planning events and until my recent decision to quit working and move to the country, have done so professionally for the past 8 years.

(I guess this sort of does have to do with my move to the country and out of the workplace since I actually had time to plan this shindig and wasn't busy planning a huge fundraiser event for someone else.)

She and her husband chose a movie theme for their gender reveal: The Princess Bride. Best I can tell, this was a new idea as Pinterest shows no evidence of such an affair. (And Pinterest is, of course, the ultimate authority on available party themes.) So, away my party planning brain went, and now, I present to you the outcome:

Instead of the standard pink and blue, we opted for pink and black. I cannot bring myself to use plastic table covers even at outdoor parties, so linens are layers of pink, black, black ticking stripe, burlap and cream.

Will baby be a princess like Buttercup or a pirate like the Man in Black? A painted wooden castle stood in for the Buttercup's castle and a black pirate ship for the Dred Pirate Roberts' vessel.
The party itself was hosted at a neighborhood park with a nice green space for kite flying, a playground for the kids and a quaint fishing pond.

In addition to the official gender revealing cake, chocolate frosted cupcakes and some with pink icing were offered, each bearing some of the many beloved quotes from the cult classic Princess Bride.

Some quotes were especially perfect for the theme of the event...

And there were even clues hidden in the cupcakes.

Guests were asked to make their guess for Baby's gender by selecting either a black mask or pink crown to clip onto their clothing prior to the big reveal.