A National Park B’Earthday Bash

Each of us knows at least one person in our friends and family group that is obsessed with checking off that next National Park visit. Having been to Acadia National Park in Maine several times and Shenandoah once – I get the hype. This is how you can host a perfect party for that nature loving friend.

tablescape 2 — Tablescape curated with picnic and camping styled items.

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

In fact, it’s recommended! This nature inspired party is going to require you to wander and get a little lost in the woods. Little items such as pinecones, feathers, birch bark, pine boughs, abandoned bird nests and flowers are what this party calls for! A secret tip is I had a lot of Christmas decor that, once paired with the iconic plaid tablecloth, transformed the pieces and there were no Christmas vibes. If you’ve got fishing poles or butterfly nets, break them out too! When you intentionally curate and style items – they can tell whatever story you want.

What to Put in Your Online Basket

Or thrift or borrow from a friend! These are items that I purchased for decorating the rest of the space. For most of these items I had a second life already planned for them so it wasn’t a waste of money. I would consider these staple items but I will always encourage you to follow what inspires you and works for your budget.

Inflatable raft
Ranger hat
Bamboo skewers
Landscape banner
Gingham table cloth
Customized National Park Sign from Etsy (or craft yourself one like I did)
Speckled enamelware (any campfire tins, pots or pans will do)
Battery operated lantern

Don’t Feed the Bears but Do Feed the Guests

The menu for this party consisted of quintessential summer picnic items such as watermelon and cold cuts for deli sandwiches; campfire cooking such as a iron skillet of cornbread with a hot delicious pot of chili, fun twist on s’mores as well as “punny” choices such as a stock pot filled with goldfish.

Campbell’s Hearty Beef & Bean Chili

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef (or turkey)
1 large onion, chopped
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell’s Tomato Soup
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes
1/2 cup water
2 cans (about 15 ounces each) red kidney beans
1/4 cup chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin

Cook beef in skillet until browned. Pour off fat.
Mix beef, onion, garlic, soup, tomatoes, water, beans, chili powder and cumin in slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours or until done.
Makes 6 servings

Pine Cone Cookies

This recipe is from the Taste of Home Christmas Cookies book. I skip the final step of dusting the pine cone with confectioners’ sugar but if you are hosting this party in the winter you might want to keep it!

8 cups fudge brownie fish-shaped grahams (about 24 oz.), divided
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup Nutella
1/2 Biscoff creamy cookie spread
3 cups plus 2 Tbsp. confectioners’ sugar, divided
8 pretzel rods, halved

Pulse 1 cup of the grahams in a food processor until fine crumbs form. In a large bowl, beat butter, Nutella, cookie spread and 3 cups of confectioners’ sugar until smooth; stir in the graham crumbs.
Mold 1/4 cup dough around a pretzel rod into a cone shape to within 1 in. of the top of the pretzel; place on a waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Starting at the bottom, insert tail ends of fish-shaped grahams, flat side up, into the dough to resemble a pine cone, trimming tails of fish as needed near the top. Using kitchen scissors, cut off tip of pretzel; place a small amount of dough on the top of the pretzel. Repeat with the remaining dough and pretzels.
(Optional) Dust pine cones with the remaining 2 Tbsp. confectioners’ sugar. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Makes 16 pine cone cookies.

Fireless S’mores

12 large marshmallows
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 full-size (4.4 oz) graham crackers crushed or ½ cup graham cracker crumbs

Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set to the side.
Stick skewers into marshmallows.
Place crushed graham crackers in a small bowl.
In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate in 20-second intervals until smooth. Stirring in between each interval.
Dip marshmallows in melted chocolate then crushed graham crackers.
Place them on the lined baking sheet.
Refrigerate until hardened.
Arrange the s’mores in floral blocks and cover with pine boughs to recreate the look below!

Gifts They’ll Love

Every party should be personalized for the honoree. One way would be to invite invitees to donate to a nature-related charity like The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, Environmental Defense Fund, Jane Goodall Institute, and Rainforest Trust. They will be moved by the group’s gesture knowing they inspired these donations. Guests could also help them expand their garden by gifting an outdoor plant for their backyard – this way they’ll think of them every bloom!

How to Make the Iconic Sign

To create the National Park sign I visited Home Depot and picked a handi-panel (also called hobby boards) and picked a lauan wood piece. These less than 4 x 8 ft are really perfect for crafts and don’t require table saws or circular saws to get it down to the desired size. I traced the general outline of the signature sign shape then cut it out with a jigsaw. I painted the entire board with a dark brown and then dry brushed over with a lighter brown but this is not a necessary step.

Next, I picked up poster board letters and spray painted them with stone colored spray paint that I also picked up from Home Depot. I glued them to the board then completed with the white bottom and National Park Service emblem in the upper right-hand corner. I used cheap craft paints found at Michaels for those details.

The sign doesn’t have to be perfect for guests to understand! Allow yourself creative freedom and check what supplies you already have in your workbench.

Whether you raid your Christmas bins or wander your backyard for pinecones, the magic is in the curation. Gather what you have, style it with intention, and trust that your guest of honor will feel every bit of it!