Drinks
Serve wine coolers (wine mixed with Sprite or 7UP—a favorite of the time). Also, celebrate beer in 1985-style by playing a few rounds of the drinking game “Quarters.” All you need is a shot glass, a quarter, a hard-surface table and lots and lots of beer. Get game rules and instructions. For a finale to celebrate your birthday, get guests to “shotgun” beers. Let John Cusack’s character “Gib” in The Sure Thing lead the way. Play his step-by-step demo beforehand, then go for it.

Food
Celebrate your birthday by serving an array of easy finger foods that are both yummy and won’t inspire guests to take long, unexpected snoozes in your bathroom or bedroom. Scatter big bowls of popcorn around the house. (Air poppers were big in ‘85, but why not stick with the modernity of microwaves for this one?) Add naughty-good snack foods like chicken fingers with multiple dips, Tater tots, flavored chips (also gaining popularity at that time) and crudités with classic onion dip.

Music
How could your newborn toes not have been tapping with hits such as Wham!’s “Careless Whispers,” Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got to Do with It” and Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” topping the charts? In the words of a classic movie quote long before you’re time, “Play it again, Sam!”

For more party planning tips and ideas for celebrating your birthday from Savvy Miss contributor Erika Lenkert, visit www.lastminutepartygirl.com.