A lil bit'o country

Two weeks ago my party partner (Julia) & I 

put together a cowboy baby shower

for my sweet cousin at her ranch out

in the soft rays of August sunshine.

The guest of honor sported her

baby belly beautifully (especially

considering she gave birth the

next day:)

We adorned the table with

sunflowers and spurs

and the little burlap bags held

favors of Udder Cream (hand lotion).

This woman was made to birth babies.

She delivered her little man 24 hours

after this photo was taken.

Total time in labor:

less than two hours.

And I thought I was fast

at a whopping four hours.

It must run in the family.

 

Here's the newest little man

and his older brothers one week

after the shower.

Such beautiful boys.

Independence Rocks

how beautiful is this flag?

And the rock stars on wheels?

Here we have our local 4th of July Parade

where the entire town marches & rolls down Main Street.

Such a fun tradition

And lastly I must share the most
bomb-diggity party on the west coast.
Hosted by the crazy talented Dellars.
Yep, we were there.
And it was fantastic.

What a blessing it is to celebrate and enjoy
the freedoms we have in this country.
Yaaaahoooo. 
I love America.

Showered & Blessed

This past weekend my sweet cousin through me a party
for the new life growing inside. 
Regardless of the gloomy weather,
some of my favorite mothers joined me in a sweet celebration. 
We dined on a freshly catered french meal
set before us on a table dressed for royalty. 
I felt utterly spoiled and loved.

After our amazing lunch~friends and family
blessed me with words of love, support and kindness
while I just sat and savored the treasure of their friendships. 
It was truly a beautiful experience that I will always remember. 

"Labor" day is fast approaching (a month away)
and I am getting prepared for our new little life outside the womb. 
We've decided to wait on finding out the sex
of our sweet new journey, but will know soon enough. 

Hoping to start posting a bit more before that day comes.

D + M = La, La, La Love

Last weekend we had the opportunity to witness the most beauty~full wedding of all time. My dear friends Julia & Dale graciously hosted an amazing party for their beloved daughter. Every detail was lovingly prepared by the newlyweds, their family and friends. From the sweetest of handwritten vows, to the handmade napkins, beautifully printed programs, flower arrangements, desserts and so much more ~ the love that is felt for these two was visibly present.


Just to warn you - this post contains more photos than any one post can handle, but I'm finding it impossible to weed out any more. It was that amazing! So enjoy the eye candy that tells the story of Meehan & Daniel's new beginning...

The gorgeous bride and groom

The Loving Family and Friends

The Simply Beautiful Reception

The Fantastic Food

The Flower Maidens

The Sparkly Sendoff (so much fun)

D & M

We love you and were so blessed to be included in your wedding festivities. We wish you a lifetime of love for each other and all of those around you, continued compassion for those in your journey, strength to overcome the hurdles that await you, and faith for a God that is bigger than all of us. Have a wonderful adventure!

Showered with love

My dear friend Julia had an incredible bridal shower for her beautiful daughter yesterday. This woman has so much talent...she is in a league of her own. No detail was left undone and our sweet bride-to-be was blessed by all who came. It was a celebration to remember!

Every detail was made by hand with love from the homemade napkins to the delicious food and fabulous ambrosia punch...amazing!

Our little Miss Maya was invited to be a flower girl and was given the sweetest white dress wear in the wedding.

Sweet M, we were so glad to rejoice in your upcoming marriage. You are going to be an amazing wife to your husband (and well equipped in the kitchen to boot). You are such a gift to all who know you, especially the parents who have raised you with such tenderness, discernment and love in their hearts. We are looking forward to the day when we watch you walk into your husbands arms!

xoxo

Saturday we had Maya's butterfly party. All the little insects had a fun time painting butterfly wings, making bubbles (the dad's had the most fun with this), getting their faces painted by our professional face painters (Bri and D) and just running around in the park.

I bought rolls, deli meat, cheese, fruit salad and bean salad at Costco for lunch which I have added to my list of musts for any future parties. Then to add my homemade touch I made carrot cupcakes (per the little butterfly's request). I made her little birthday crown and her butterfly wings for a special birthday "suit".

Four has been awesome so far!

5,475 days to celebrate

Today my first born child turned 15 (and yes, for the record and to be announced on a bullhorn to everyone I encounter ~ I know I look too young to have a fifteen year old daughter, but it's true and not just something I like to say for effect). From the day she was born she has blessed my life with her laughter and her love. Seeing her grow into such a kind, happy and playful young woman brings my heart such comfort and pure joy. So today we celebrated with her favorites........friends, chocolate and movies.

The dinner menu was simple...

Barbeque chicken salad with cheesy garlic bread & sparkling lemonade

The dessert menu was a little more involved...

mini hershey's bars

chocolate covered peanut butter cups

chocolate peppermints

chocolate wafers

chocolate chip cookies

chcolate truffle brownies

chocolate covered strawberries

chocolate cake

The girls feasted on chocolate until they could devour no more then finished up the night with some guitar hero (this deserves it's own post) and movies. Needless to say we've got a lot of chocolate treats waiting to be finished off, so if you're in the neighborhood stop by and I'll put together a choco-bag to indulge in...ahem...jenn.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRI!!!

goodies galore

Today we had the joy of celebrating little Mia's 3rd birthday. Just look at all these scrumptious treats! Mia's parents filled our bellies with every edible treasure under the sun. And since Andi is such an amazing baker ~ she made not only a delish marzipan cake, not just a yummy banana layer cake, but gave us the whole "shock and awe" syndrome when she unveiled the chocolate and vanilla cupcakes for decorating madness. The wee ones made wands embellished with streamers, ribbon, tulle, and butterflies to parade around the park before tearing into the delicious desserts. It was a day to remember for sure...what a spread.

happy birthday sweet one

Murder Mystery Bash

I've put on my party dress more than usual in the past month for some great shindigs. This murder mystery party was in celebration of our friend Andrea's 31st birthday. Andrea (the rockstar party planner that she is) put this thing together in a week. This is no small feat for a girl with two steady jobs and a social life to manage. We all had roles to perform (some in drag), 1920's lingo to learn and people to interrogate, steal from or bribe. At the end of the game/mystery we all tallied up our moneys and who we thought was the killer. I guessed it right!!! (just picked the least obvious person) along with about seven other people. I couldn't get over the costumes, wigs, feathers, fake cigs...people went all out. Andrea...you truly outdid yourself. Happy 31st year my friend!

P.S. If you click on the photo collage Andrea is the one looking gorgewa in the blue satin ensemble top center.

xoxo

Tieing the knot

This past Saturday my cousin, Nick was married to his sweet bride. Everything about the evening was beautiful...the weather, the setting and the celebration of love. I am so grateful to have the family that I do and the ability to share in moments like this one. It was a great time for all.

Three & counting...

Saturday was little Miss M's birthday party and it was loads of fun. We got a jumper for the kids (and some of us adults) and served sandwiches, fruit, chips and of course....cupcakes. Yum, yum. The weather was beautiful, the kids happy (all fourteen of them) and Maya was thrilled. Wonderful!!!