For Katie Cook and her family, celebrating the birthdays of near and dear ones has been a family tradition for many generations, a celebration of the worth and value of the family member. Thus, for her 40th birthday, the Jane Austen fan decided to host a Regency ball.
“I wanted to do a party because I wanted to have all the people I love in one place,” Mrs. Cook told The Epoch Times. “I realized I love Jane Austen.”
Combining the two ideas, with support from her friends and family, the mom of four picked a beautiful venue and hosted a memorable night.
‘Honor Milestones’
Mrs. Cook, a marriage and family therapist, hails from a family of rice farmers and is also married to one. She lives with her husband Kevin Cook, 40, and their three sons and one daughter in their home in Northern California.After completing college, Mrs. Cook studied international relations at the University of California Davis and later traveled the world.
“I taught English in Thailand, and I worked for a lot of different organizations in Africa,” she said. “My husband and I lived in Nepal for a while.”
In Nepal, after helping to set up an aftercare home for girls rescued from abusive situations, she recognized her calling, got her master’s in counseling, and became a therapist.
Between their rice farming business and therapy work, Mr. and Mrs. Cook homeschool their four children.
One of the ways they show love to their children is by maintaining family traditions that, just like the rice farming business, have been passed down through the generations.
One of those is celebrating birthdays by starting the day with breakfast in bed and singing for the family member from the moment they wake up.
Additionally, the birthday girl or boy is given the option to pick their choice of dinner.
Apart from celebrating each birthday, Mr. and Mrs. Cook have also picked some milestone birthdays for their children that they consider really important.
“So, when our kids are 5, we like to do a tradition where we take them out, just my husband and I, and get them a treat. And I talk about what a treasure they are,” Mrs. Cook said. “With my daughter, I got her a little crown and some Christian books that talked about what a treasure to God they are and how much God loves them.”
Nobody’s turned 10 yet, but when they reach that age, the parents want to take the birthday girl or boy on a special trip somewhere. Meanwhile, for their sweet 16, the parents have decided to take the birthday child on an adventure overseas with one of them.
Jane Austen Regency Ball
Being big on birthday celebrations, when Mrs. Cook approached her 40th birthday, she and her family wanted to do something significant to mark the milestone.The family is no stranger to hosting themed parties—in the past, they’ve organized dances like a 1960s Mad Men-themed party and a Downtown Abbey-themed party.
So when it came to organizing her 40th birthday celebration, Mrs. Cook began consulting with friends and family six months prior.
The response to her Regency ball idea was very positive.
She then began the preparation process by renting a historic room in her town with big windows, beams, and chandeliers.
Next, for the costumes, Mrs. Cook’s mom—a seamstress—volunteered to sew dresses for the family. However, when the family browsed on Amazon, they found dresses at affordable prices and opted for that instead.
After trying six different gown options, Mrs. Cook settled on a blue full-length gown with white evening party gloves.
As the days went by, a brewing excitement surrounded the Cook family.
“My kids got really into their costumes,” Mrs. Cook said. “We got my daughter’s costume on Amazon as well. Every couple of days she would ask to try it on, and she was trying different necklaces with it.”
Aware that many of the 80 guests wouldn’t know how to break into the Regency dance routine, Mrs. Cook sought the help of her sister, a dance expert.
“My sister stood up on the stage with my other sister and showed us how to do it,” Mrs. Cook said. “And then we all broke into two lines and practiced. After we practiced with everybody, it was a very easy dance to pick up, and people got really into it.”
The ball, which took place on March 9, included a Regency photobooth, Jane Austen trivia, a poster for guests to find their Jane Austen name, Regency dancing, Mexican food, a string quartet playing Regency music, a tea bar, and a session where guests all shared what they loved and appreciated about Mrs. Cook.
“I felt so loved by that,“ she said. ”I was just filled to the brim with everybody’s words of affirmation for me.”
The venue comprised long tables with brass candlesticks and was decorated with olive branches.
Whether it was her children, her friends, or her family, everyone present enjoyed Mrs. Cook’s celebration. Although she didn’t intend it, she garnered many views on her social media pages when she shared pictures and videos of the ball.
“I wasn’t doing it to get followers, but I was just doing it to share my birthday. But people were really into it,“ Mrs. Cook said. ”I think there’s just a lot of people online that love Jane Austen and love doing something a little bit different for their birthday.”
Encouraged by the overwhelming response to her Regency ball-themed birthday, she’s now urging others to look for unique ways to celebrate their milestones.
