::art party feature::

Lily's art party got featured on a big party site called Catch my Party.  

Link here to check it out.

I am pretty pumped up about it because this is a site that "real" (at least in my mind) party planners get featured on.

  Thanks Bird for making it happen.  Your the best as always. 

::tea party planning::

I want to throw Lily a girls only end of school party.  (End of May)

A tea party.

A bright vibrant crazy tea party.

Like this...

link here to see more of this party

Here is my list so far:

Printables
    Cupcake rings
    Different color Gerber daisy  straw toppers
    Tooth pick toppers
    Treat bag tops
    Label for paper doll envelopes
   

love the bench, but need brighter colors

Decorations
    Colors - everything BRIGHT!!!! But not rainbow
        Teal, orange, fuchsia,
     (rain plan is Josh’s barn)
    Under the trees
    Dining room table
        X of rope above
            Hang tissue paper flowers and lanterns
        Tulle skirts on benches
        Chairs at each end
        BRIGHT fuchsia table cloth
        Use as much breakables as possible
        Several arrangements down the center of tables
            Gerber and duct table flowers
                (send home with guests)
        Two table runners on each side, or astro turf placemats
        Chairs on ends of table

       Jar water glasses or fancy plastic goblets
            Fancy straws with toppers
            Ribbon hot glue wrap
        Place setting- with name cards
            Tea cup
            Real plate
            Utensils
            Napkin wrapped in dot candy with daisy hair clip
                Gerber daisy hair clipped on top
                http://lifewiththree.blogspot.com/2009/02/how-to-make-cute-hair-clips-with.html
   

 

pic from here

Food Table
        Bright orange table cloth
        Use a table with an umbrella hole in it.  Make a ribbon or streamer umbrella for it to serve as a background. 
        Cupcake tower with fancy cupcakes with pearl sprinkles on top
            Making cupcake tower
                http://annies-eats.net/2010/08/19/how-to-make-a-cupcake-tower/
        Logs as risers
        Food
            Cheese pizza bites
            Soft mini pretzels
            Mini fruit kabobs with clip art tooth picks
            Cheese cut in cut shapes with clip art tooth picks
        

Treats
            Whoopie pies
            Double chocolate raspberry cupcakes
            Red velvet cupcakes
            Raspberry swirl cupcakes
            Mini ice cream sandwiches (Brownie cookies)
            Mini white chocolate mouse parfaits
            Mini Orange Ice Cream Popsicles
            Carmel corn in cupcake wrappers or small paper bowl
            Chocolate cover strawberries
            Fruit pops
                http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/frozen-flower-pops-906859/       

Craft Tables
    Opener crafts
        Paper hats
            http://mayamade.blogspot.com/2008/07/party-hats_22.html
        Decorate your cup and put it at your place setting
    Secondary crafts   
        Do Japanese trees
            Paint tree with water colors and punch out flowers to add to page
        Decorate fans           
    Face painting    station

Games
    Sugar cube stack
    Pass the sugar cube with a spoon
    Cut out paper dolls
        With envelope

Treat Bag- brown craft handle bag with ribbon and labels
    Bag of little candies
    Take home cup
    Flower seed pack - sunflowers
    Paper dolls
    Ring pop

What other ideas do you guys have?????

food pics from Annie's Eats
But I can't remember were the fruit flowers come from

::seeds ordered::

I took my valentines day present and blew the whole cash gift on seeds and plants.  

Scary.

Every year I am scared that I will plant all this stuff and nothing will grow.  

But also exciting because I can't wait to eat this stuff.

Here's the Internet order list.  The rest should come from Lowe's.

Two different kids of edible soybeans to eat fresh and the freeze

Kaleidoscope carrots - just because they look fun

Melons

LOTS

Four kinds of watermelon

two kinds of cantaloupe

One type of honey dew

And something called Creme De La Creme that is some sort of hybrid

Five kinds of different hot peppers because I like food to hurt just a little

8 types of tomatoes

Yellow, orange, super early, super late, white and red cherry, HUGE, paste, and heirloom

18 blueberry bushes

One luscious pack of sunflowers (pollen free for cut flowers)

Tons of little Zinnia's too.

Still to come from Lowe's:

Asparagus

Green beans

Broccoli

More carrots

Corn

Cucumbers

Eggplant

Leaf lettuce

Head lettuce

Red, yellow, white onions

Green onions

Pea's

Sugar snap pea's

LOTS of pumpkins

Gourds (small, large, birdhouse)

Lots of spinach

Squash - Butternut, spaghetti, luffa

Strawberries (just a few, next year we put in a large patch)

TONS of cilantro and parsley

Basil, lavender, oregano, and rosemary

WHAT ELSE AM I FORGETTING??

More fruit to be put in next year (Raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries)

::16 week countdown::

Things are going well.  I am settling in at work and getting on track.  I had a great talk with my boss and feel that there is a nice future available for me still.  I am hopefully optimistic.  It has also been amazing how many people at work have come up to me and told me about their own miscarriages.  They all lived and moved on and that makes me even more hopefully.  I felt like such a freak.  98% of miscarriages happen before week 12 and I just need to know it does happen to other people.  And I have met several.  It gives me such calm.   

This all that said - I want to scream from the tree tops how EXCITED I am to get pregnant again.  If I get pregnant on our first try (which would be the fourth time that would have happened) I am about 16 weeks out from starting again.  16 weeks from trying to get pregnant again.  I can't wait.  I am really pumped up to fall in love with another plus sign on a stick.  

Till then I really want to focus on my weight loss and increase my healthy living.  I am trucking along on my diet and exercise - down 12 pounds already.  I think in 16 weeks I can loose 25-30 more pounds.  It will be so wonderful to not go through this next pregnancy overweight.  Healthier for me and for baby 4.5

::marshmallow play time::

One day I turned the kids loose with the marshmallows and some toothpicks. 

I came up with this. 

Max did lots of this. 

Lily could not leave her new mini pillow pet out of the fun.  

::max vs the children's museum::

Lily and I dropped off Max at his Children's Museum class and took off to conquer the museum with some fun time.  

We loved the light fixtures.

Then after about 5 minutes we got called back to come help with Max who was loosing it. 

 

He recovered fast once his sister arrived.  

But then he made us stay with him the entire two hours.  

 

We still had a good time.  

::girl scouts invade::

We got in all our cookies.

Holy crap what a done Samoas to have do close, but so far away.  

And here is my helper two minutes after she took her pony tails out.

::harry potter birthday party::

My friend Hannah had one week to pull it off.

I was still off work and I had the desire to help her.

She is a very busy PhD student and does not have time to mess around.

We got to work, and with the support and assistance of her wonderful family, Ben had a great party.  

 

Link here for tutorial on wall and  sign.  

 

My Max loved it.  

 

Broom treat bags. 

 

Cauldron cakes.

All printables are off Etsy and come from here.

 

Quidditch World Cup.

Very clever idea by Hannah. 

 

Hannah's sister Leah made the candy wands. 

Which I taste tested and they were as good as they looked.  

Harry Potter cupcakes. 

 

Hannah made chocolate frogs and blow pops dipped in pop rocks.

I hear she dipped them in honey to make it work. 

 

The golden snitch cake.

 

Root beer with pumpkin juice labels.  

 

Little sister Maren.

My favorite picture of the day. 

 

Hannah cut her finger open on a can, and nurse Brooke butterflied her up.  

She was very brave.

And her uncle that ran out for supplies was ADORABLE, like tearing up adorable. 

Cousin Mathew.  So handsome.  I am such a sucker for chocolate eyes.  

 

Hannah made letters coming out of the fireplace.  

My Lily added to the cuteness.  (see why I am a sucker for chocolate eyes?)

Hannah enjoying the feast.

The food was amazing. 

 

Hannah had another food table set up near the kitchen.

Harry Potter books helped decorate. 

 

And the birthday boy thinking of a wish.

Such a big guy.   

All printables available from a great shop on etsy called Loralee Lewis.  Check it out.  Prices were very reasonable.