Jacob is THREE!

The balloons are limp, the cupcakes have been eaten, and daddy is back at work. Jacob's birthday weekend has officially come to an end. But that doesn't mean I can't relive all its glory through this post! Let's go!

 

We started the weekend on Friday, his actual birthday, with donuts for breakfast (just happened to be National Donut Day, too!) and a birthday party for another friend. It worked out good because Jacob got to play with his friends at a super fun trampoline park ON his actual birthday! I think he was a little confused why people were singing to her and not him, but he got over it quickly.

 

 

Daddy stayed home with Judd because he hurt his back and wanted to be well enough to partake in Jacob's party the next day. So, Jacob and I had a blast at the trampoline park!

 

For his birthday dinner, we got Sonic because he loves their corndogs. I even splurged and let him have a small chocolate shake. He is one lucky little boy!

 

Before bed he rode around on his scooter (gift from mom and dad) with his new stuffed Bolt (gift from his Aunt Carrie). I just know he had the best day!

 

Saturday morning we headed to the pool early and set-up for Jacob's Lightning McQueen party! I went low-key this year and it ended up being so.much.fun!

 

We actually managed a family picture! Go us! (thanks Amy!)

Everyone spent the first hour swimming and splashing around. This was Judd's first time in a pool, too! I think he liked it!

 

Chatting with his "girlfriend", Etta.

 

And he spent a good portion of the party jumping in to the pool with his Grandpas. Love this picture!

Then we ate pizza, sang Happy Birthday and had cupcakes!

 

He loooooved his Lightning McQueen cake!

Then we headed home to open all his presents. He was having so much fun playing, he barely took a nap!

We spent the rest of the weekend opening and playing with all his gifts. He had so much fun!

As I watch him play and create, I can't help but marvel at just how big he's gotten. He so much fun these days! So imaginative, and creative. His mind is constantly exploring and discovering.

Mommy and daddy love you so much, Jacob! Can't wait for another FUN year!

Jacob's 2nd birthday party

We had Jacob's SECOND birthday party this weekend at our house, and I would consider it a success. My energy and motivation were seriously lacking this year (thanks preggo brain), so I went for a pretty low-key party with friends and family. It was so low-key that I completely forgot to bring out the fruit tray I prepared! Ack!

 

Anyways, here's some of the decorations and pictures from the party.

 

I sent a BUNCH (I think 90) Instagram pictures directly from my iPhone to Walgreens, had them printed and taped them to the wall in the number "2." I love looking at all the pictures and had such a fun time putting them all up and reminiscing. It's absolutely incredible to see his transformation over the past year!

 

 

And no party of mine is complete without a personalized chalkboard by moi. I was pretty proud of this one.

I always put the desserts on our buffet. It's kind of in a walkway/pass-thru to the kitchen, so people can walk by the cake and admire it. In addition to the cake, I also had a family friend make these adorable cookies. I somehow missed a close-up of the cookies, but they were sooo cute!

 

 

This year, I decided to make the cake myself. Which was fun, because I also got to destroy it too! Ha!

I used a few of Jacob's birthday presents (the construction trucks) on the food table as "props." We had Chic-fil-a nuggets (which I swear are my new go-to party food- so easy and everyone loves them!), queso, pretzels and cheese balls. Should've also had a fruit tray...oh well!

I quickly and cheaply made this wreath with a foam wreath form I had, and some caution tape I bought at HobLob (which I also used to wrap a pillar in our house). I think it turned out perfect for the day!

I leave you with a few party pictures, most of which include ME being WAY MORE excited than Jacob. Haha! Soooo typical!

 

Jacob got so many trucks and tractors. I swear every time he opened a new present, he was freaking out! It was so so cute!

 

And, a picture of our little family. I still cannot believe our sweet baby is TWO! I think I've had a harder time swallowing TWO than I did with ONE!? How is that possible?!

 

Jacob's 2nd Birthday Inspiration: Construction Crew!



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I can hardly believe Jacob's SECOND birthday is just around the corner. I swear it seems like yesterday we were celebrating him turning ONE! I say it all the time, but where on Earth does the time go?! Goodness!!

This year I thought a construction theme would be fun. Mostly because he's obsessed with trucks and things that "go", plus I can pretty much DIY everything and Jacob will just keep all the props to play with later! Win | Win in my book!

The party will be in the afternoon, so I won't serve a full meal like last year- just some easy finger foods, and cake and ice cream, of course! I love the idea of incorporating actual Tonka trucks on the food table, too.

 

We're giving Jacob a large wooden swingset for his birthday, so that'll hopefully keep the kids busy in the backyard! We just have to put it together in the upcoming weeks...cough, cough...

Hope you're having a lovely "pre-Friday!" Cheers!

Emily's "Very Hungry Caterpillar" Baby Shower

I had the privilege of co-hosting my sister-in-law's baby shower, with Alicia at Adventures at Naptime, and oh my gosh! Everything turned out so cute, so perfect and so delicious!!!

Since they aren't finding out the gender ahead of time, we decided to do a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" themed shower. It's a great theme for either gender, and really easy to play off of. Tons of fun colors, foods, shapes and of course an adorable caterpillar and butterfly!

I was also lucky enough to work with Tiny Prints again for the invitations! Isn't this invitation so cute?!

 

It's actually a moving announcement postcard, but I fell in love with the Eric Carle-esque pineapple and loved the idea of sending postcards! I love finding gems like this and re-purposing to meet my needs.

For the actual décor, we decided to really play-up the caterpillar theme with tons of bright colors and, of course, a giant caterpillar!

I made this using paper lanterns, twine and construction paper for the eyes. I think it cost less than $10 total and it made a HUGE statement! It's kinda hard to tell by the pictures, but this sucker was at least 8 feet long!

I also made a fruity banner to hang above the food table. This turned out really cute, too! I literally free-handed the different fruit shapes on construction paper and then used a stencil for the letters. Again, super cheap and simple, but so cute!!!

 

It's kinda hard to see in the picture, but for food- I made yummy fruit kabobs (which somewhat resembled caterpillars), a vegetable platter with lots of fun colors, my (errr...Rachael Ray's) famous swiss bacon dip and served my sister-in-law's favorite pasta salad from Eatzi's! All the food was a big hit and it was the perfect variety for an afternoon shower.

 

Alicia made this fabulous diaper cake.

 

 

LOOK how adorable it is! And it's super legit- with lots of diapers (obv), burp cloths, and toys in there! She's got an awesome tutorial on her blog, make sure you check it out.

And last, but certainly not least. The wreath. No party is complete without a wreath, and this one stole the show! I literally just hot glued a ton of pom poms to a foam wreath, tied some pretty chevron ribbon to the top and called it a day.

I love throwing showers, and this one will always hold a special place in my heart. I cannot wait to meet my FIRST niece/nephew, and I cannot wait to see my brother/sister-in-law as parents. They are going to me amazing!

Thanks again to Tiny Prints for supplying the beautiful invitations. If y'all are hosting a shower, you should definitely check out their selection! Baby or wedding- they've got you covered in the shower department!

And also a big thanks for Alicia for hosting this shower with me! She's a hilarious mom of three with stories for days- y'all should really follow her blog!

Hope y'all have a wonderful weekend! Cheers!

Linking up with: A Savory Feast, Hope Studios, Lewis Lane Designs

My sister is MARRIED!

This post is mostly a photo dump, but I'll do a brief summary too.

 

My sister married Joe on Saturday, October 5 in Austin, TX. The ceremony was at the beautiful Chapel Dulcinea in the Texas Hill Country, and the reception was at Scholz Garten.

 

The ceremony was at 10:30am, so it was a very early morning with hair and makeup. Then we made our way out to the venue for last minute touch-ups and getting everyone dressed. My sister got us bridesmaids these awesome running shorts with our monogram! How perfect! And I think they looked pretty phenom with our boots, huh?

 

 

 

 

 

 

flowers by Bouquets of Austin

 

my dad with his daughters and grandson

 The ceremony was absolutely breathtaking. It was such a still autumn morning, so peaceful and serene. It was just perfect.

 

 

And no wedding is complete without a little "ice breaker." In this case, the best man (Joe's older brother) dropped the rings and they nearly fell into the fountain! Haha!

 

 

After the ceremony, Joe and Carrie got to ring the chapel bell. It was such a magical way to end the ceremony!

 





 

 

And Jacob got to play in the fountain while everyone mingled and took pictures. What a cutie!

 

 

Here's a bunch of pictures from the day... 







 

The reception was a relaxed afternoon party, complete with kegs and BBQ. So much fun, and such a perfect party for Joe and Carrie!

 

 

The bride's cake and groom's cake were combined into one big cake. The bride's cake was funfetti, obviously...

And here's a little photo collage of mine and the best man's speeches. Love these people!

 

And I'll leave you with my favorite picture from the weekend. A picture of my sweet little family. I love these guys more than words can even express, and I don't know what I'd do without them! They are my world. My happiness.