Saturday, April 21, 2018

My "When Calls the Heart" Birthday Celebration - before the Finale!


As Season 5 of “When Calls the Heart” comes to an end, with all of its emotions, drama, and suspense… I thought this would be a good time to share my very HAPPY “When Calls the Heart” birthday celebration – from earlier this month!

It is my birthday wish that you enjoy this special look at my celebration and it fills you with “hope” …

From my cake and decorations… to my very “Elizabeth” looking dress…

Let’s begin with my “When Calls the Heart” birthday cake…

My Momma, Sister, and I had such fun making it together! (A.K.A. Abigail, Rosemary, and Elizabeth!)



The cake featured two layers, with gold frames picturing cast members, and small items that represent each character, by occupation, interests, and lifestyle. For instance, near Bill Avery you will find a guitar, type writer, and magnify glass… near Rosemary you will find a tea set, and next to Elizabeth, books, Jack, a red lantern, Abigail, an apron and mixing bowls, Opal, a bear named Brownie (of course!), Lee, a stack of wood and saw, Dr. Carson and Nurse Faith, a stethoscope and nurse’s hat, Clara, a sewing basket, and the children, a baseball bat & glove and a doll.

My sister, who is very much like Rosemary, found all of these amazing pieces; my absolute favorites are the beautiful white dress form and the Ford Model “T”! (I can just hear Rosemary (Pascale Hutton) in my mind saying… “Oh, Lee… You bought a car!”)






On the very top of the cake is the Hope Valley Church with a wagon and horses, and a grapevine heart to symbolize all the love in their little town. The second layer is covered with a quilt made of edible fondant and wafer paper, which was kind of interesting to piece together, at first, but in the end, I was amazed at how it came out so beautifully!




For the party, the cake was left intact and cupcakes (see below) were served… my Great-Grandmother’s Million Dollar Pound Cake… it’s a white cake, and most delicious! The recipe has been handed down -generation after generation! Come to think about it… this particular cake was most likely baked around the era represented in “When Calls the Heart,” by my Great-Grandmother, or perhaps, even her Mother! That very idea – makes it all the more special!

In each of the cupcakes, as you can see below, are cupcake-picks I simply printed out of various characters from “When Calls the Heart,” in heart-shaped cupcake wrappers - which you can get at Michaels craft store!






I just loved these little party tea cups - made of paper! They would be perfect for a little girl's tea party, too!





Here’s a bit closer look of the cake and the characters featured from “When Calls the Heart…”







All the ladies who attended the party wore beautiful white dresses, and the men, white dress shirts and casual pants. Two of the children surprised me by specially dressing up… one in a prairie girl costume, just like Opal, and the boy, a Mountie, just like Jack… with the red jacket, Canadian Mountie hat, and everything! It was so sweet! I loved and cherished every minute!

The moment I saw the dress I wore for the party, I simply fell in love with it! Thankfully, I was able to shop around a bit, and I found it at an incredibly reduced price! It was perfect... I felt just like I borrowed my dress from “Elizabeth’s” closet for the day and stepped right into Hope Valley!











These exquisite party plates (yes, they are paper!) and napkins were the perfect elegant touch for a “When Calls the Heart” celebration!





One of my birthday gifts was a sweet teddy bear, in honor of sweet Opal’s bear, Brownie! Isn’t he just adorable?









I also received the “When Calls the Heart” devotional and journal, a “When Calls the Heart” Christmas DVD my collection was lacking, the latest “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” DVD release “Truth be Told,” a canning jar by Pioneer Woman, a Royal Fine Bone Old Country Rose Heart Music Box, a China Tea Cup, with Lid, Magnetic Dart Board game, Little Blue House by Hatley Teacup PJ’s, and a Hearties “When Calls the Heart” t-shirt & tank from Zazzle.









This sweet country church painting titled "Sunday Go To Meeting" (with actual lights that light up by timer every day - in each church window!) reminded me of the Hope Valley church, and not only was it beautiful dรฉcor for the party, but a truly lovely piece of artwork and conversation piece.





This church window below, made of wood and corrugated galvanized metal, from Hobby Lobby, is a wonderful magnetic board. I had such fun choosing which “When Calls the Heart” pictures to clip to the display!


A scripture of “hope” for Hope Valley and all of us each day…

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace
as you trust in Him,
so that you may overflow with hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
~ Romans 15:13





My Momma and Daddy's old-fashioned distressed black frame, with gold hearts in each corner, was an ideal display for this cast picture of “When Calls the Heart.”



And, an overall look of the entire "When Calls the Heart" party table… with a chalkboard - where my sweet sister, who is a fantastic artist, wrote "Happy Birthday" so beautifully in chalk.


"From chalk dust to eternity"
~Elizabeth Thatcher


Thank you all who visit here and give me the gift of your presence! I am blessed by your friendship, your warm-hearted comments, and all of our discussions on family movies and shows, like “When Calls the Heart.” I would have loved to have shared this birthday with all of you! So, I hope you have enjoyed this little taste of the celebration!

Blessings to you all, Net


Season 5 Finale
Episode 10: "Close to my Heart"
Sunday, April 22, 2018
9pm/8c. on the Hallmark Channel



33 comments:

  1. Joyce in CarolinaSaturday, April 21, 2018

    This is just awesome! How very lovely and sweet! What great memories you and your family created for your birthday celebration! You should share the cake recipe with us!! Sounds so yummy!
    Blessings to you Net and your family!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, thank you so much, Joyce! It was, indeed, a wonderful day... filled with lots of sweet memories! I would love to share the cake recipe with my "It's a Wonderful Movie" family! I'll be sure to snatch the recipe & decode it for you...it may be a little faded, but it's totally worth it, and yes, so Yummy!!!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
    2. Joyce in CarolinaSaturday, April 21, 2018

      Thanks Net..looking forward to that recipe! And I'm going to order two of the lighted pictures of the church....one for me and will give one to my cousin for her birthday. Her birthday is not until August but I can't wait that long! Will have to give it now!

      Delete
    3. Awww, I love it, Joyce! I hope you both enjoy it very much... it is so pretty in person! I would never be able to wait until August, either! That is so sweet of you! :)

      Delete
  2. Oh, Net, how gorgeous! Thank you so much for sharing this special day with us. I love absolutely every single piece but the cake is truly wonderful and those paper teacups are adorable! What a beautiful, beautiful celebration. I'm so happy for you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How sweet! Thank you, Emma Rose! It was my joy to share my day with all of you. The cake was so fun to do... I printed out the pictures for the gold frames the week or so before, which was quite easy. The most time consuming part was simply deciding which images to use! And the day before my birthday, we made all the cake and put the big cake together! I was amazed that it actually didn't take that long, at all, to do.

      Thank you for sharing in my "happy" day!
      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  3. Happy Birthday dear Net! Praying you have a wonderful day! You are such a blessing to my husband and I with your website!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lizzy, your comment was such a blessing to me! I am deeply honored that my site touches you both! What a gift that is!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  4. Oh my gosh, Net, I feel like I did attend your beautiful, festive, WCTH, Hope Valley celebration just from viewing all the glorious, creative goodies and clever decorations. Your family has truly showered you with love and a remembrance of your very special day!! I loved it all...thank you for sharing!! P.S. The dress and shoes..."PERFECT"!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, Linda, as always, you make me feel so special! I so appreciate you sharing your time and blessing me with your encouraging words. It was such fun to share my day and cake (if only you could taste it!) with all of you... my dear "It's a Wonderful Movie" family!

      Oh, and I'm so glad you liked the dress & shoes, too! Thank you for always being such a dear friend to me! Blessings, Net

      Delete
  5. Absolutely beautiful! All of it! Happy Birthday Net!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you ever so much, Catherine! I'm so glad you enjoyed see it... I appreciate your comment. That truly means the world to me!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  6. Net, all I can say is...WOW! You and your family really know how to throw a party! All of you obviously put a lot of time and effort into this, and it looks like everything turned out perfectly! I'm so glad for you -- you deserve this with all of your hard work on IAWM!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Mark! My family truly is wonderful! God is so good! We have been doing party planning together for several years now, so it actually doesn't take quite as long as it might look. We enjoy the time of being together and with everybody's busy schedules it's nice to work on these fun projects together!

      I appreciate your thoughtful comments!
      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  7. My goodness, that cake is amazing! Your dress is lovely. Happy birthday, Net!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Natalie, for sharing in my day and all the wonderful birthday wishes, too… how sweet and thoughtful!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  8. Beautiful! Happy Birthday, Net! ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿง๐Ÿฐ๐ŸŽ‚

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, thank you so much!!! Love all the birthday emoji's... so fun!!! ๐ŸŽ‚

      Delete
  9. Oh my! My girls are going to want those teacups and teddy Bear... for their next tea party! I can't wait to show them. This is truly stunning, Net! You're family must be so gifted! Lovely dress and lovely decorations for such a lovely person!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How sweet, Anna, thank you so much! I sure hope your girls enjoy this birthday post! Those tea cups are perfect for holding cupcakes or tea! And, Brownie bear would be the perfect tea party guest! How fun! Thank you so much for your heartfelt comment, it means so much to me!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  10. Ok, I didn't think this
    Party post would interest me, being a guy and all, but that Ford model "T" i's pretty cool. I had no idea Amazon had such a big selection of mini old cars.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for sharing that, CJ. That Ford model "T" is definitely cool. And, in case you are wondering... it actually rolls! :)

      Delete
  11. I loved your party shoes!!! Where did you get those?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, thank you! My boots are from Anthropologie, by Jeffrey Campbell.

      Delete
  12. Happy Birthday, Net. Thank you for sharing your special day with us and the beautiful cake and decorations. I love this site. Blessings to you and your talented family.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Marianne! It was my joy to share my day with all my dear friends here.

      I'm so glad you enjoy your visits here!
      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  13. LOVE everything about this beautifully done birthday party! From the cake to the decor to the presentation, it is sheer perfection!!! THANK YOU for sharing with us all. The cake recipe sounds delish!!! All the best to you in the coming year my friend. Cheers to many more!!!

    Kerry:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kerry, I so appreciate your sweet comment! It means the world to me! I know you are a connoisseur of great desserts... I'm sure you would love my Great-Grandmother's cake, too!

      Thank you for all the endearing well wishes & your friendship! Blessings, Net

      Delete
  14. dearest Net,

    my, the amount of Love your' Family has for you is staggering and immense, look at those pics, WOW !

    it all seemed like such a festive and lovely day for all to've had that were there.

    i LOVE the peachy/cream sash on your' gorgeous ' Elizabeth ' dress....it really sets it off beautifully.

    my ONLY complaint is that you chose not to grace us with a snap of the lovely You, wearing the dress !

    come on Net, pleeeeease ????

    * hugs and love *

    KL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Katy Lynn, What a sweet comment! It was pure joy to share all that went in to making the celebration so special.

      My dress was truly my favorite thing... I'm so glad you loved it as much as I did!

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  15. I don't watch the show, but I love what you did with the cake and dรฉcor! You and your family are very talented. We are so lucky to have this wonderful site.

    Happy Birthday!

    Misty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Misty! My family is such a blessing... so much love went into making my birthday so special. The theme of WCTH now is bittersweet, but I cherish the memories we made that day.

      Thank you for being such a faithful follower here at "It's a Wonderful Movie." It's people like you, Misty, that make my site a wonderful place to visit and share.

      Blessings, Net

      Delete
  16. The birthday cake looks amazing, and it must have taken a lot of time and effort to prepare it. It is certainly very creative and impressive. I’m also baking a cake for my niece’s birthday party as her mom is busy with other arrangements. We are organizing the party this weekend at one of the popular Los Angeles event venues.

    ReplyDelete

Please COMMENT and share your thoughts on Movies and More...

You may comment by using an Account, Name, or by choosing Anonymous! (If you pick Name, you can add your name, nickname, initials, or favorite handle! You can also leave the URL space blank, if you do not have a web-site.)

Whatever you choose, I enjoy hearing from you! Blessings, Net