A girl walks through a field in a white dress and boots

Throwing a Party Your Kids Will Never Forget (Without Losing Your Mind in the Process)

Picture this. It’s the day before the party. Half the balloons are blown up, the Pinterest board is a little too ambitious, your to-do list somehow got longer overnight, and you’re starting to stress sweat (please tell me I’m not alone in this!). If you’ve been there, you know how fast a “fun celebration” can turn into a full-on family stress event. It doesn’t have to be that way, and Grace Swanson of Easy Does It, an Oregon party rental and setup company that brings sleepover parties in Salem and across the Willamette Valley right to your home, is the perfect person to show you how. And she doesn’t stop at sleepovers. Read on to learn all the great things she can plan for your family (the spa party sounds divine!!)

I’m always looking for ways to connect my clients with people and businesses that make family life a little more joyful and a little less chaotic. So when I met Grace through a Salem networking group and learned about Easy Does It, I knew I had to introduce her to you. I sent Grace a list of questions, and her answers were so warm, so real, and so helpful that I turned them into this post. I believe the beautiful moments in your family’s story deserve to be celebrated, and you deserve support in making that happen.

2 young sisters sit on a log near a pond

Meet Grace, the Woman Behind Easy Does It

Grace is a native Oregonian, a homeschool mom to three kids, and, in her words, “a type A and type B kinda person.” She’s infinitely creative and always working on something new, but she also starts her Christmas shopping in July. She listens to Bigfoot podcasts. She sings Broadway show tunes. She describes herself as “appropriately quirky,” and I could not love that description more.

Grace has been doing event and wedding planning, on and off, for 19 years. She started Easy Does It in late 2019 as a traditional event planning company. When the pandemic hit in 2020, there weren’t many weddings happening, and she realized something else too. Her kids didn’t love it when Mom was gone for 16 hours at a time. In 2021, she added sleepovers as a smaller, easy-to-package offering, and they were a bigger hit than she expected. In 2022, she stopped doing weddings entirely to focus on sleepovers, spa parties, picnics, balloons, and other smaller events. That way she could spend more time with her kids and homeschool them, and the smaller events gave her family the flexibility it needed.

Today, Easy Does It offers packaged, themed rental and setup services for small family events. Here’s what that includes.

Sleepover parties with individual teepee tents, inflatable mattresses, sheets, comforters, pillows, themed decor (including lots of fun throw pillows and blankets), night lights, tray tables, banners, and balloons
Spa parties with themed decor and everything needed for upscale DIY facials, manicures, and pedicures, plus spa robes, spa headbands, and picnic-style floor seating and tables
Picnics
Balloons and backdrops
Karaoke with over 100,000 songs (yes, really)
Event rentals, decor, and dinner parties for small gatherings

As Grace puts it, “The decor is the biggest part of the vibe. We completely transform the space.”

Her personal favorites to create are balloons and backdrops, plus the more unusual events like bachelorette party sleepovers and anniversary picnics.

2 girls play in a field

What Makes Sleepovers and Spa Parties So Special

I asked Grace what makes her sleepover and spa parties more special than a traditional birthday party, and her answer was so good I’m going to let her tell you.

“It’s designed by an event professional, so it looks immensely better. But it’s also completely set up by an event professional. We come into your home, set everything up, and when you’re done, we come back and take everything down.”

It’s more than just a few balloons and a cake. Grace is creating an entire hangout space for your kids. Think a grown-up, hotel-like sleepover with all the cute vibes they love, or a spa party at home that actually feels like a spa, tailored to kids.

Her events are also designed to be intimate. While most event planners specialize in large gatherings, Grace focuses on memorable gatherings of 30 or fewer. That’s far less stressful than hosting at an event space with party packages, dozens of other kids running around, and a noisy party atmosphere that isn’t even from your family’s party.

Most of her parties are for kids ages 6 to 13, but she also does bachelorette party sleepovers, Sweet 16 sleepovers, and dinner parties for adults.

As for themes, Grace says what’s popular changes all the time with new shows, books, and TV series. One minute it’s all about K-Pop, and the next it’s a ’90s throwback. Her most popular theme is probably the pink boho sleepover, but she does a surprising number of custom-themed sleepovers, because every kid is unique in what they like.

Grace says her two main clients are parents who want a memorable birthday celebration for their kids but don’t have the time or the eye for it, and parents thinking, “How do we top last year?”

What Parents Are Usually Surprised to Learn

I asked Grace what surprises people most, and two things stood out.

1. The pricing

Given everything Grace does and the quality of her events, people are surprised at how affordable she is. She’s been doing this for years, she’s very efficient, and she does many events over the course of a weekend, so she can offer an extremely high-quality party at an affordable rate.

All of her pricing is online and transparent. You can click through packages, options, and add-ons, browse an enormous gallery for ideas, and plan most of your party in just a few clicks while seeing the price instantly. If you want customizations that aren’t on the website, she’s quick to put together a quote. And with 19 years of event experience, she says nothing really fazes her team.

Even if you’re planning a traditional birthday, she has balloon, decor, and setup options that will make your event shine without all the effort.

2. How fast it all happens

People are also surprised by how much inventory Grace’s team brings in and out of their home, and how quickly they set up and tear down.

Toddler in a pink dress stands near a pond

What Grace Loves Most About This Work

Grace is a busy homeschool mom who puts a lot of thought into creating structure and schedules for her own family. As a busy mom myself, I could totally relate to her answer when I asked what she loves most about creating these experiences.

“Birthday planning stress can have an impact on the entire home. I love that I get to help the entire family continue to function at a high level and still create something that’s really memorable.”

She talked about how birthday parties have become bigger and bigger in our culture, and how she loves helping families celebrate without it being a massive stress on parents. Mom and Dad have so much less stress, and the kids get an event they’ll remember. It’s a win-win. Or, as Grace put it,

“I just like the idea that I’m helping create core memories for kids while parents are not having to burn themselves out to provide that for their kids.”

That idea that the people behind the celebration deserve care too is something I connect with deeply in my own work. Whether I’m photographing a newborn session or a family on the Oregon Coast, my goal is always for the experience to feel easy and joyful for everyone, not just for the final images to look beautiful. And of course as a mom, I LOVE the idea of someone taking over the million details involved in party planning.

young girl in cowboy boots and a skirt

How to Book Sleepover Parties in Salem With Easy Does It

True to its tagline, “Excellent Events Delivered,” Easy Does It brings the whole party to you. If this sounds like exactly what your family needs for your next celebration, here’s where to find Easy Does It. Her website is the best place to see packages, pricing, options, and add-ons, and to book a party. But if you have questions or just feel more comfortable talking to a human, she’s always available by phone, email, and text.

Visit www.ediparty.com to browse packages and book
Call or text 503-395-5978 (phone is the best way to reach her)
Email info@ediparty.com
Follow along on Instagram at @easydoesitevents
Find her on Facebook at facebook.com/salemevents

Grace and her team mainly serve families between Eugene and Portland, including Salem, and they’re also willing to travel. She’s hoping to roll out themed traditional birthday packages soon, with tables, chairs, backdrops, balloons, decor, and fancy shatter-proof table settings, to help ease birthday stress for even more families.

A Final Thought From Me

One of my favorite things about being a photographer is getting to be part of the moments families create together. Connecting you with people like Grace, who care just as much about your family’s joy as I do, feels like a natural extension of that. If you book with Easy Does It, I think you’re going to love what Grace creates for your family.