Let the good times roll!
Honestly, one of my favorite things about living in Louisiana (besides the food, obviously) is Mardi Gras! It’s one of the most fun holidays to celebrate, because you essentially get a whole month to go to several parades, collect beads that are of no use or value to you, eat and drink delicious Mardi Gras-themed food and drinks (helloooo king cake) and go to lots of Mardi Gras parties!

Even though I love love love Mardi Gras, this is the first year I ever thought about throwing a party, and I’m so glad I did. It was a blast. My initial RSVP list was at about 20 people, but it ended up being so much more, and I loved it. There were strangers in my house that quickly became new friends. There was so much activity going on in all rooms of my house and outside, and it honestly made me so happy. I’ve always said that my dream is to have enough money to throw themed parties for all occasions and be “that girl” that always hosts fun things, so this was like a little glimpse into my future.
For food, I kept it simple and made dirty rice and heated up some frozen mini Natchitoches meat pies. One of the people at the party thought the meat pies were empanadas, and I honestly didn’t even know what those were. After Googling them, I could see why there was a mix-up, but I mean, we’re in Louisiana, so obviously they’re meat pies. For dessert, one of my friends made some cookies, I made some funfetti dip and two of my friends brought some king cake. All of the food, minus a little bit of the dessert, was gone by the end of the party (which I was sad about because I really wanted some dirty rice).
For drinks, I made lime, lemon and grape Jell-o shots to match the Mardi Gras colors – green, gold and purple. I also made three different punches – one in each color. All of the punch was gone pretty quickly, and they got good reviews, so I was pretty excited about that.
It wouldn’t be a party if I didn’t have a photobooth. I had lots of props, but by the end of the night, some of the props were worn home by some of the guests, which I was totally fine with. It was so much fun to take pictures and watch people pose for them.
At some point, a ton of us were in the living room, we played a game called Thumper, and it was so fun and also really confusing, but I loved it. Throughout the night, a dance party happened in the living and also a bonfire happened outside. Honestly, it was just a great night. There was so much chaos in the best way, and I was at my happiest.
After everyone left, three of us went to IHOP, which I was extremely grateful for because, as mentioned, the dirty rice was gone, and I was starving. I had red velvet pancakes that warmed my heart, and it was the perfect “after party.”
I’m excited that this was only the first of my Mardi Gras festivities. Mardi Gras isn’t until February 9th, and there’s so much more fun to be had!
Have you ever celebrated Mardi Gras?