A friend of mine is getting married. I am a bridesmaid. It's a destination wedding.
The bridesmaids threw her a shower and of course it was designed by yours truly.
And its possible for you to do it too!
Links:
Happy Easter Everyone!
Easter this year was a little chaotic for us.
We went from splitting Easter, between his parents and mine, to having EVERYONE (and I mean EVERYONE) at our house. Brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, all totaling around 20 people.
Now keep in mind, we have a small house there was no way we were going to have a sit down lunch with that many people indoors.
Thank god the weather was decent this weekend! We were able set up a nice big long table for everyone in our HUGE back yard. I swear to you our backyard is bigger than our house. That's just how the story goes I guess.
From a potluck lunch, to an Egg hunt for the kids and lots of pictures with our photo backdrop (Thanks to Twisted Bridge - ME.) you can say Easter 2019 was pretty amazing.
Nothing is more important than family time.
LINKS:
Backdrop - Twisted Bridge Creations
Green Photo Backdrop - Amazon
Table - Was literally plywood from Home Depot
Chairs - Ikea
Rainbow Easter Eggs - Dollar Tree
Clear Plates - Amazon
I know we've seen this hack before, but I wanted to share my version.
I turned our guestroom into a 'Babe Cave'. Trust me, its exciting as it sounds.
And well, I needed a cute (cheap) shelf.
A little spray paint and adhesive paper and bam!
First I spray painted the legs. I got a cheap black spray paint from Lowes. Nothing fancy.
Then I ordered this marble adhesive paper from Amazon. And let me tell you, this stuff is amazing - thick, shiny and classy looking.
Let me know what you think! I love love love it.
Before and After
Babe Cave Setup
Party decorations and putting together cute photo backdrops are all the excuses I need to have a get together. This was a very last minute 'hey let's get the kids together for Valentine's Day' shindig. I am lucky two of my closest friends have kiddos close in age to Violet - I mean they are all 6 months apart, and I love it! A quick trip to Dollar Tree and Walmart, and we were in business. I was able to use stuff from home for the backdrop too, so it worked out great.
Hope you all have a fun Valentine's Day and celebrate LOVE.
Links:
Love Balloon | Heart Cutouts | Fluffy Sugar Cookies |
Hope you all have a fun Valentine's Day and celebrate LOVE.
Links:
Love Balloon | Heart Cutouts | Fluffy Sugar Cookies |
We had a bagel bar, a yogurt bar and let's not forget the a mimosas bar. Even the beautiful homemade floral center pieces and homemade sugar scrubs as favors came out amazing.
Links:
White balloons | Garland | Love balloon | Gold frames | Mini chalk signs | Backdrop stand | DIY Moss frames
Here are some of the cutest details fromViolet's 1st Birthday party.
Ross: Chalk sign $30
Target (dollar spot): Happy Birthday banner $5, ONE balloon $5
99cent Store: Tassel streamers (6) $6
Etsy - Twisted Bridge Creations: Ice Cream Cake Topper $7 & Cupcake Toppers
Smash Cake: Sweets by Theresa (my sister-in-law) $95 - cupcakes were included
1-12 Photo Banner - made by yours truly
All within a budget and completely doable!
Money: Set a dollar amount you are okay spending for your baby’s 1st birthday.
Include costs for venue, rentals, food/desserts, decorations, props, gifts and party favors etc. And always save a little extra in case you forget something.
If your anything like me, all the money spending comes toward the end because I tend to forget things or throw last minute things in the mix. Plan for this!!
Venue: Where are you having the party - your house, relatives house, pizza joint?
This can be a huge cost saving if you use your home or let's say grandma's house.
Date and Time: This should be the easiest since it will be on or near your baby's birthday. Weekends obviously work better than weekdays. Also, it might be easier to set a time limit for the party, say 2-3 hours. All the excitement of the party can be very overwhelming for your little one.
Guests: A party is not enough without the guests. You need to decide how many guests you are able to host. Do you want to keep this an intimate celebration or go all out? Remember to include the people whom you wouldn’t celebrate without. Then if you can still add, keep going. Close family and friends are your best bet.
Birthday Theme: These days its all about the theme of the party. For your one year old, pick something you know they would love. Your going to have these memories and pictures for a lifetime, make it count.
Entertainment: Babies really don’t need a lot of entertainment. Give them a balloon to play with and they should be good for a little while. Remember there will be older kids at the party, so make sure to have entertainment for them.
In our case, living in Arizona and hosting a summer birthday party without a pool can be brutal. The best entertain solution for us, is renting a Water Bounce House.
In our case, living in Arizona and hosting a summer birthday party without a pool can be brutal. The best entertain solution for us, is renting a Water Bounce House.
Invitations: You can make invitation cards to send out or sent them electronically. This also depends on your budget and/or your DIY skills.
Photo Backdrop: Add more fun and excitement to your birthday party with a photo backdrop. There are a million different ways you can do a photo backdrop. Use a wall you can decorate and go all out. Your guests will surely love it.
Food: This should be easy. You know what your people like. And on the weather, you might have a lot of options. Pick the popular choice.
In the AZ summer hear, pizza did not sound appealing for us. We decided to do cold sandwiches, chips and an ice cream bar!
In the AZ summer hear, pizza did not sound appealing for us. We decided to do cold sandwiches, chips and an ice cream bar!
Party Vendors: Assuming your budget will allow for vendors: some of the top party vendors you might want to consider are photographers, caterers, party planners, decorators, disc jockeys, entertains and others.
Happy Party Planning and remember... Don't stress!! Have fun with it.
Happy Party Planning and remember... Don't stress!! Have fun with it.
Oh my baby!
So much has happened in the last 3 months... So many firsts.
It’s crazy how many firsts you take for granted as an adult, when you’re a baby the first mean so much. From first vacation, first airplane ride, first time say 'hi' which you can’t stop say hi anymore, but secretly love it when you say it. Your very first Valentine's Day. The first tooth, teeth coming in, first time you drink from a straw and spilled it all over yourself, first time you stood up on your own, it's more like a balancing act, but your getting there.
I LOVE EVERY FIRST.
We had our first family vacation to Jamaica, as soon has you hit the 8 month mark. This trip is probably the highlight of our year. You loved the sandy beach, but you weren't 100% about the water. Everyone loved the cutest baby on the beach, every morning we'd hear 'wheres my baby Violet' from the staff. You just smiled at anyone who gave you any love and attention. Here we had more first. First time in the ocean and the first time having your feet in the sand.
We took you on your first hike for Easter this year. It
was your first Easter. You love to be bounced around in the carrier hanging
onto your dad. Front to back, swing side to side, jumping up and down. You even fell sleep at
one point. And then all the excitement happening and getting to watch your uncle proposed to his
girlfriend. Guess what.... your going to be the flower girl!
And then came the trip to Florida. We got to hang out
with your grandma Mimi, and you got to meet your great grandma Gigi and great grandpa Vu for the first time. You also got to meet your great-great grandmother, five
generations together for the first time. Your great grandparents couldn't get enough of you.
So many first in so little time.
Just know you are LOVED baby girl. xoxo
How about setting a new year goal your going to stick to.
Let's be honest here. Sure, the first month or two you'll stick to your resolutions. By March, you think, I'm stilling doing it. I'll start again tomorrow. And then again tomorrow. Until you realize its August and ooops, so much for signing up for that gym membership.
This year, I decided to start with simple goals. Something I know I will stick with and not give up with in a few months.
2018 Goals - and let me tell you why....
1. Declutter
OMG if you've ever met my mom, you'll know she is the queen of clutter. Not like a crazy hoarder or anything like that but more like 'ohh I'll use this one day' collector. Of course, it just piles and 2 years later she still hasn't used it. Anyway, I've realized I was slowly heading in that direction. And HELLO, it freaked me out. Who wants to be their mom, I love my mommy, but no. Hence, my decision for this New Year resolution to declutter. The minimalist look is becoming popular and while I am no minimalist, I do like the clean look. So I am selling, donating, giving away little by little to get things gone and clean.
Having a new baby is probably not going to help with all the new baby things always coming in - playpen, walker, high chair, toys, toys, toys!! But I vow to make it work.
2. Write a Letter to my Baby at least once a month
This is for all the cute reasons in the world. I think it would be pretty awesome to have something to look back on when your older. I know I would have liked that. Now the every month letters seems unrealistic to me. I am a full time working mom, with a side business and a house to maintain. So, I going to do milestone letters - 6 months, 9 months, a year, two years and so on. Yup, that sounds way better.
3. Save a little from each paycheck.
Everyone needs to save for a rainy day. Save for vacations. Save for birthdays. Save for Christmas. Save for a huge purchase. But mostly, I want to save for vacations and Christmas. Maybe some shopping sprees here and there. Done.
4. Spend less on junk (adds to clutter).
I am that person that will buy something simply because "I might need/use it later". No more. Every time I've been tempted, I think of all the junk I still have to get rid of and then the temptation goes away. It's work so far...
These sound simple enough right?! Only time will tell.
Today is a New Year.
2018.
Today you are 9 days away from being 7 months old.
Today I failed you as a mother.
We
spent New Years weekend in Rocky Point, Mexico, with your Grandma
Christine and Papa. It was a fun, eventfully and a very exhausting weekend.
Before we left for Mexico, you got you 6 months shots. You also got a
slight fever from those shots. A sick baby traveling is not fun for
anyone, but being the trooper you are, you smiled the whole way through.
You didn’t sleep much on this trip. You wanted to be nursed and comforted every hour on the hour. With your lack
of sleep plus mommy and daddy‘s lack of sleep ... we were a tired bunch
and we couldn’t wait to get home.
Finally home, Mommy rushed to get
things unpack and washed to have a fresh start to the week. Since you
didn’t sleep much over the weekend you were a fussy tired baby. My first
mistake was not stopping what I was doing to comfort your fussiness. I
was in and out of the room putting things away.
One second.
They say.
All it takes is one second. That loud thud had me running. Your screams
torn me in two. And seeing you on the ground broke my heart. All I could do was hold you
and rock you, praying to god you were okay. Your daddy went to get your
doggies, so he doesn’t know about your fall. My fail. Mommy is a little scared to
tell him.
My lesson was definitely learned! You wont remember this when your older, but I will for the rest of my life.
Mommy loves you V.
My little one is 6 months old now and our breastfeeding journey has not been easy but we have stuck to it. I have tried everything out there. From any type of supplements, teas, smoothies, lactation cookies (purchased locally) to eating better, drinking lakes of water and moringa.
Nothing seemed to help, except this recipe for these boost bites. I noticed an increase in my milk supply within a couple of days.
And believe me when I tell you, I now make these boost bites every weekend. So I always have my snack during the day and on the run.
But always remember. WATER. WATER. WATER. Make sure to drink plenty of it.
Check it out. Its simple and easy, and it doesn't hurt that it tastes pretty good!
This is the first time I have been away from Baby V for more than 9 hours.
Don't get me wrong, a getaway is needed every now and again to stay sane, but that doesn't mean I don't want to be with her 24/7.
Because I do.
At first, I had mixed feelings about leaving her. I was nervous to leave her in someone else's care for 24 hours at a time, regardless if it was her daddy or not.
There are some things only mommy's know how to deal with and sometimes babies just need/want their mommies.
Were here today, so it all worked out, it took a lot of phone and video calls, but we made it through.
It was just one of those things, where you have to let go and go with it.
So this weekend is Vegas Weekend.
We're going to celebrate my cousin's big 3-0. Been there and done that.
This weekend is meant for gambling, food and relaxation. No partying. And that's 100% okay with me.
Vegas doesn't always mean you have to party. Right??
It was a nice, quiet, relaxing and stressful weekend.
Why stressful you ask? If you are a nursing mom, you'll understand why. We were always on the go, whether to a different casino or another restaurant. Sadly every 4-5 hours, I had to rush back to our room for 'mommy time'. That was stressful.
Two and a half days later, I'm home and my little girl is waiting for me.
To say, I am not going anywhere without her for a while, is an understatement!
BTW if your in Vegas... Make sure you check out these places.
The food.... AMAZING!
