Here's the Deal...30th Birthday Poker Party

September is birthday month in our house. At least, that's what my husband claims, hoping he can milk the entire month of his birthday for as long as possible. This year, it might be different.

This year, he turns 30.

He loves playing poker and blackjack, but we didn't really want the effort of going to a casino - so instead, we hosted a casino party!

I originally looked into renting a couple of tables and dealers from some local companies - the pricing really wasn't too unreasonable, but it didn't come with the flexibility we needed.

Instead, we purchased one of these blackjack tablecloths from Party City and set it up on a folding table with some stools. They have roulette and craps tablecloths too, in case you want a variety of games.

We own a poker table, which was the perfect centerpiece for the evening. It went right in front of the custom banner I printed at Walgreens - which is going to my new go-to decoration for parties! This banner was simple to design and have printed, but has such a "wow factor" for very little effort.

For food and treats, the goal was simple, filling and not a cook-out. Ha! Because it was Labor Day weekend, we didn't want to do burgers and brats - people might be sick of that.

We put some grilled hot dogs in a crockpot, pulled a bag of chili out of the freezer, and served up some mac and cheese (I made this ahead of time and put it in a crockpot too). We also had garden fresh veggies, some crackers and dip, and of course - all of the necessary hot dog fixin's.

The best part about all of this food is it could be prepared ahead of time and set in the refrigerator until about an hour before the party. At that point, all I had to do was turn the crockpots to warm and stir a few times before the party started.

I have to say, though, this layered salad from the Pioneer Woman was the star of the show. I plan on using the recipe again and again, especially for potlucks and carry ins. I mean, c'mon, it's fresh, healthy, can be made ahead of time, and looks great in any glass dish.

It's beautiful, right?

But, what's a birthday party without dessert?!

Cupcakes topped in all the suits - my sister made these adorable cupcake toppers and put them in the mail. They add so much to the little treats - and you don't have to worry about ordering custom from a bakery!

These little cheesecake cups were my pride and joy for the event. I saw a picture on Pinterest, but was quickly discouraged because the link was not working. So, I improvised! My mother-in-law makes these huge sheet cake style, no-bake cheesecakes, so I used her recipe for the cream cheese filling, scooped on top of some crumbled graham crackers, and topped with cherry and strawberry pie filling.

Yet another fabulous item added to the potluck party arsenal.

Decorations were fun and simple.

This was one of the first parties we hosted where guests used the front door, so I created this fun little vignette to greet them as they arrived.

We had such a blast hosting casino games, I see a few poker parties in our future!