Happy Monday and Happy October! I, myself, am approaching a BIG Birthday so I know the planning that goes into one. As I spotlighted last time, it's sometimes easier to plan one for a woman than for a man...or it seems like it would be! Surprise...it's NOT! Most of the men I have spoken with just want some good food, great drinks and their friends around. They are not interested in frills and flowers. They don't require anything too fancy. In fact, a Backyard BBq seems to be the ticket. So if you have a guy who is approaching a BIG Birthday and you want to throw him a bash then here are some ideas for you!

There are two types of BIG Birthday people...those who are  having fun with turning 30-40-50 etc. and those who don't want to face getting older and don't want the number mentioned at all. For the first type of person, and I'm that kind of person, who doesn't mind getting older and are having fun with it then the type of invitation spotlighted above might fit the bill. For this 40th themed Guy's Birthday the invites from Zazzle.com are only about $1.70 each to have printed up!

For those who are a bit more sensitive about getting older you can always use invites like these from Announcingit.com and are about $2 each to get printed up. They definitely set the mood for your outdoor themed birthday party!

The fun thing about these ideas is that you can use them all INSIDE too! Some of us are having an "Indian Summer" or what we are still calling "Summer" so having an outside event is still a good idea but part of the US is seeing a lot of rain and cooler weather so all of these ideas translate to indoors as well as outdoors. Like this use of dollar store frames for the printed Menus. LittleMissPartyPlanner.com had the right idea with this table set up. Notice the corn on the cob on a stick stuck into a box with frito chips to anchor them? Use a strip of styrofoam in the bottom to help anchor them as well and they will be much more sturdy. Also, love the way they set up the hotdog bar with tons of toppings. Perfect!

Don't forget to use unusual containers for your food. Brown paper bags filled with different types of chips fit perfectly into these fabric sided baskets. Easy for your guests to serve themselves and yet a decorative way to add color and texture to your table!

Not a hotdog person? How about these Pepperoni Pizza Burgers from ThePioneerwoman.com! These burgers are made with a mix of hamburger and Italian sausage, has rounds of Pepperoni on them and are served with melted mozzarella and pizza sauce. The great thing is that you can easily switch out the burger for a grilled portobello mushroom cap for those who don't eat meat! YUMMY! The whole idea is for this party to spotlight "guy food" or "comfort food" that guys like.

Make sure to keep lots of different types of drinks available for your guests. That doesn't mean you have to serve alcohol if your home is a "dry" zone. It just means to offer an assortment of drinks such as lemonade, vitamin water, soda, water, and juice. Then, if you do drink, add in a few beers or a couple of bottles of wine for those guests who also drink. Just keep in mind that not everyone does so you need to have an assortment for those who don't. A drink bucket is a wonderful way to serve your drinks and keep them cold. I love having a couple of these at the party location so it makes it easy for everyone to pick out their drink.

BIG Birthdays require favors for your guests. Chances are they are making a bigger deal for your guy because it's a big birthday so you want to remember to say thank you with a little gift of your own. These packs of caramel corn from cool-party-favors.com are only about $2.50 each.

Looking for a favor that will hang around a bit longer than a bag of popcorn? How about these mini-tool keychains that feature not only a corkscrew but also a couple of blades on a wine bottle holder? Also from cool-party-favors.com these are just $2.75 each.

And speaking of tools. Now this toolbox cake, yes, it's cake, from Cat's Cakes was a perfect fit for BIG Birthday Guy Nate. Whatever your guy is into can be translated into cake! I've made footballs, golf clubs and Courses, pool tables, rum barrels, beer buckets and more for special "Guy" birthdays. Check with your cake artist to see what they can do to capture in cake that which your guy loves to do!

Hope you got some really great ideas this week for your special guy's party! I'll see you back here next week with a new twist on an Island Wedding.

Cat