At this point, everyone has had a pandemic birthday.
Hooray for us?!
Uh, no, definitely not.
I’m sure for most of us this past year, any pandemic birthday celebration we had has been muted, at best. Most likely, it involved sitting on the couch in tie-dye sweats, watching Netflix, and sticking a candle in a pint of ice-cream. (Oh wait, minus the candle, that’s been every night during the pandemic….)
Anyway…the point I’m making is that most of us probably had birthdays this year that sucked, or weren’t celebrated at all. And it’s even worse for people, like my husband, who had milestone birthdays.
He turned 40 in January. In normal times, I would have thrown him a blow-out party, with lots of bourbon cocktails (his favorite). We would have also taken a trip together somewhere because you know, YOLO.
But fate had other plans in store for all of us.
That said, I wasn’t going to let the pandemic completely ruin his 40th birthday. Instead, I got creative and figured out a way that we could safely celebrate with close family members who have been in our pandemic bubble this past year.
In this post, I’m sharing with you all of the creative ideas I came up with to make his birthday special and memorable. Plus, I’m sharing ideas on how you can celebrate a pandemic birthday this coming year because even with the rollout of the vaccine, it’s still going to be quite some time before things are ‘normal’ again.
I just want to add that I know everyone has different levels of comfort regarding COVID-19, and what they are and aren’t willing to do. With that in mind, please note that everything I talk about in this post is suggestions of ways to celebrate but I’m not encouraging people to do anything they don’t feel safe doing.
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Celebrating My Husband’s 40th Birthday During the Pandemic
For my husband’s 40th birthday, I wanted to do something that would be really special and fun for him, but I also had to stick to New York State’s COVID-19 guidelines. At the time, we were allowed to have gatherings of up to 10 people indoors.
After doing some brainstorming, I came up with the idea of throwing an intimate dinner party and hiring a private chef and bartender to help. I got his family on board with the idea, and we all got tested a week before the event and then quarantined until we saw each other.
To find the chef and bartender, I used Thumbtack. It’s a great app that helps you find someone you need to hire, whether it’s a handyman, DJ, or in my case, private chef, for free. You just answer a few questions and explain your specific needs, and the app matches you with people in your area who could be a good fit.
This is how I found Tamara, an incredibly talented Australian chef. When we first connected on the phone, I learned more about her story. Like so many others, she lost her business – a catering company – during the pandemic. Knowing the struggles she had been through, I was so happy to hire her and provide her with some income.
We quickly worked out the details of the event and planned the 3-course menu, which included a seafood bisque with jumbo shrimp and mussels, risotto with seared sea scallops, and rosemary rubbed lamb lollipops with honey mustard Brussel sprouts and parsnip puree. For dessert, I bought the Brooklyn Blackout cake from Ladybird Bakery, because it’s my husband’s absolute favorite. (If you live in Brooklyn, you MUST try this cake!)
The seared scallop and spring pea risotto
My husband also really loves his bourbon, so I knew I also wanted to incorporate bourbon into the evening. We picked two bourbon cocktails to serve at the dinner, an Old Fashioned and a Cranberry-Maple Bourbon Smash cocktail, along with wine and other spirits.
Decorating for a Birthday During the Pandemic
Blowing up all the balloons for the balloon arch
Because I was throwing an intimate dinner party for my husband’s 40th pandemic birthday rather than a huge party with all his friends, I wanted to compensate with some really fun, over-the-top decorations.
My idea was to design a colorful backdrop with a balloon arch and other decorations so we could create a photo wall to take fun and silly pictures throughout the evening. First, I went to Party City. That was a bust! Every location of the franchise was sold out of balloon arches. (Who knew these arches were so popular?!)
Second I reached out to balloon companies in the area. That caused quite a bit of sticker shock for me because the cheapest quote I got for a balloon arch was $270! There was no way I was spending that much on balloons. I figured there had to be a more affordable way to get a balloon arch.
All I can say is, thank god for Amazon! After doing a bit of research, I discovered so many fun and affordable decorating items, including a balloon arch kit for $13. I also spent an extra $22 for an electric air balloon pump which was a game-changer! (It fills the balloons with regular air, not helium.) It made blowing up the 50+ balloons so much easier.
I went with a black, gold, and white theme for the colors and everything turned out great. Between the balloon arch, hanging lanterns, honeycomb centerpieces, and fun photo booth props, the decorations were a hit! And everything was a lot less than $270!
I’m listing everything I bought on Amazon here so you can check out how many fun and affordable decorations they have for birthdays and other milestone occasions. I highly recommend everything I got for my husband’s birthday.
The Best Birthday Decorations from Amazon
1. These honeycomb centerpieces were fun to put on the table and kitchen island. The set comes with 8 total.
2. This balloon arch kit was so amazing and it was only $13! The directions for putting the arch together are relatively easy. However, I definitely recommend getting the electric air balloon pump to help with blowing up the balloons.
3. I got these big, numbered candles to put on top of the cake.
4. I hung these paper lanterns from the ceiling to make things more festive. 6 come in the package.
5. To complete the photo wall, I also bought these additional birthday decorations which came with a gold foil fringe curtain, a happy birthday sign, and additional balloons. We got the 4 and 0 mylar balloons filled with helium.
6. This is the electric air balloon pump I bought and it was so helpful. You can actually blow up two balloons at a time and there’s also a mechanism to help you tie the knots more easily. (Please note: this pump uses regular air, not helium!)
7. I bought additional birthday candles to add to the cake along with the numbered candles.
8. This USB chargeable lighter is amazing. I use it all the time now to light candles in our house.
9. Last but not least, we got a bunch of photo booth props to take fun and silly pictures throughout the evening.
More Pandemic Birthday Ideas
There are plenty of ways to celebrate a pandemic birthday besides throwing an intimate dinner party. To get you inspired, here are a few options.
Book a Virtual Experience
Consider a virtual experience to celebrate your pandemic birthday. There are so many options out there from bourbon and wine tastings, cooking classes, magic shows, and even virtual murder mysteries.
For my husband’s birthday, we also did a virtual bourbon tasting with Kings County Distillery. (Another place you must visit if you live in or come to visit Brooklyn!) Since the distillery is located in Brooklyn, I was able to pick up the bourbon but they also ship to most states in the country.
I also wanted to recommend a virtual cooking class that my husband and I did this year for his company’s holiday party. It’s called Nonna Live, and 84-year-old Nonna and her family share their family recipes for homemade pasta. They teach from their home in Rome, Italy, and everything from their accents, to the rustic kitchen where they demo everything is authentic and wonderful.
Surprise Your Loved One With a Subscription
Give your friend or loved one a subscription to help celebrate their pandemic birthday. There are so many monthly or weekly options to choose from.
You can send monthly flowers, coffee, or wine. If your friend is into wellness, consider a 6-month subscription to a fitness app or CBD products. (Equilibria, a CBD company that is geared towards women, is my favorite.) For your friend who loves to cook, consider a weekly meal kit subscription. I recently tried Marley Spoon and Green Chef and really love both of these brands.
Related: Everything you need to know about CBD
Create a Birthday Video
Another option to celebrate a pandemic birthday is by putting together a birthday video. This is another thing I did for my husband, especially since he has so many friends that live all over the world. I used Tribute, which helped facilitate everything, including reminder emails to our list of friends. You can either edit the videos yourself or pay a small fee to have the company do so.
Send a Creative Kit
Consider sending your friends a fun distraction to celebrate a pandemic birthday. There are so many fun craft kits or creative projects available that include everything from needlepoint and pottery to jewelry making.
The Best Birthday Celebration We Could Have Asked For
In the end, my husband and I agreed that this was the best celebration we could have dreamed of for his 40th birthday. We got to spend a fun, intimate evening with his family. Everything felt elevated because we dressed up, had over-the-top decorations, and an incredible chef cooking a wonderful meal for us.
I’ve said it many times now on this blog and I’ll say it again because it is the truth. The pandemic has taught me that what’s most valuable in life are the simple pleasures we experience every day. The simple act of sitting down to a delicious, home-cooked meal with his family was all we needed to sustain us and to make my husband’s birthday one of the most memorable yet.
I hope that you can also find joy in the simple pleasures when you celebrate your pandemic birthday!
Now I’d love to hear from you. How have you celebrated your pandemic birthday this year? Would you consider any of the ideas on this list? What other suggestions do you have for celebrating a pandemic birthday? Please comment below!
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