9 weeks to go!

...until baby boy is here!!!    I cannot believe how quickly this is sneaking up on us. We've got to get cracking on the boys' room!!! :) xo!

good thoughts: no. 2

I think weekends are a time to share good thoughts through quotes and photos. :)   via   Today we will celebrate my new baby-to-be at my shower! Thank you to all the loving aunties who are helping to create such a special day for me and my new son!!! :) I am thrilled! I will share photos on Monday- can't wait!   Happy weekend! xo!  

good thoughts: no.1

I think weekends are the perfect time to share good thoughts through quotes and photos.    Birthdays are always happy. Celebrate regular old days like that too. Good attitudes all around! :)   We are off to John's cousin's daughter's {whew!} first birthday party today. {is there an easier way to say that???!} Happy birthday to little Sami! And a happy Saturday to you all! xo!  

a fantastic {double} giveaway!

  There is a GREAT double giveaway going on over at one of my favorite blogs, The Hollie Rouge. I am giving away $10 shop credit to my Etsy store and The Mom Diggity is giving away a small ad space on her blog!!!  YAY!!!  Plus, you get to read a great blog, written by one of the nicest bloggers ever.  Andi is wonderful!  Go say hello! :)   And good luck winning this giveaway! ;) Happy Thursday, xo!  

halloween printables! :)

Halloween is fast approaching!  One week away!!! :)  Do you have your decorating done?  We are fairly set for the holiday already.  Our decorations are up, except for some cobwebs I'd like to add last minute. We need to buy some Halloween candy for the trick-or-treaters as well.  And of course, this sign will greet them as they walk up to our door.....      E.M. Papers is offering up this spooky printable for your trick-or-treaters to read on Halloween.  SO cute to put on the front door next week!!  I've already "purchased" mine and am printing it out ASAP. 
Get the free printable here. 
{And the text is editable as well!}   I adore eye charts- something about them has always intrigued me. {Even though I can't read them for the life of me without glasses/contacts haha!} So for Halloween, my 8-year old will get a kick out of this one with me. Find the printable here. :)   I need something to hang on my mantle to complete the room.  This might be the ticket... Printable garland can be found here.   Or maybe these.  These ghosties are seriously adorable. Mustaches, bows, eyeglasses?  Love love love.  Find the printables here.   And last, but certainly not least, here is a great printable if you want to add some pizazz to cupcake toppers and the goodie bag toppers for your party or even for your kids class.  I think I'll use these to top bags of candy corn for Andrew and his classmates next week! :) Loving the chevron stripe background, too.  Find them here!   What is your favorite part of Halloween?? And don't forget to pop back in tomorrow for a giveaway! You will not want to miss this! :) xo!  

mani monday + i love fall!

Fall has finally hit around Southern California.  Andrew's baseball game was cancelled yesterday because of rain.  He was so bummed, because he was going to pitch!  BUT, we enjoyed a cozy day at home watching movies and playing games.  And I was inspired by the autumn season and all of my fall decorating, so my nails this week are reflecting that!    Here's the scoop on the polish:   Forever 21 Love & Beauty Nail Polish in Light Orange + Forever 21 Love & Beauty Glitter Polish in Gold/Clear + Top Coat of Sally Hansen Advanced Hard as Nails Strengthening TopCoat = Mani Monday!!   Go check out the other nails.  Seriously, you will be so inspired to paint away!  I am just loving doing my own nails lately, and it really is fun. Espeially going to pick out a bazillion new colors for fall here.  I love cheap nail polish with awesome topcoat- works like a charm!! :)  My nails don't chip for days!   PS.  Notice the sneak peek of my bedroom behind my nails?  I need to do a house tour soon, I am dying to share what John & I have done with our tiny little home.  I just love it. :) {H+J pillow on our bed is from my fab mom!  Her shop is here!}   Off to enjoy the cloudy weather and get some orders done before I pick up Andrew from school.  Then we are headed down to meet up with our fantastic friends for a long-overdue playdate for mommies and boys. :)   Happy Monday! xo!

third trimester! {yay!!}

Oh BOY! We have made it to the third trimester! Baby boy will be here in around 12 weeks! Seriously, these last three months are going to FLY. Baby has grown from the size of a poppyseed {what we affectionately called him after we found out we were expecting!} to the size of a head of iceberg lettuce.  Wow!   We are sooo thrilled to welcome this little bundle into our lives, and I cannot wait to be the mom to TWO adorable little boys.  I am blessed beyond belief!!!!!   OH yeah. And I'm turning 30 this week. That thought is scaring me, but I'll concentrate on something else until the day {thursday!} arrives.  Eek.  

wedding wednesday: setting up the bar.

At our wedding this past March, we had to think long and hard about how we were setting up the bar.  We knew we had to hire a bartender or two, as per our venue's rules.  So that meant setting up a specific place for our guests to get their drinks.  However, there are so many choices when it comes to alcohol at a wedding- do you need it?  Do you go wild and have an open bar?  Just beer and wine?  The options are limitless.    What we decided to go with was a specified menu for drinks.  We offered beer {from a keg behing the bar}, red and white wine, and three mixed drinks that we thought everyone would be happy with: margaritas, a vodka drink, and a whiskey drink.    I made up the menus {one on each side of the L-shaped bar} and the bartender stuck with our "rules" for the drinks.  It worked flawlessly! :)   We did add some cute cocktail napkins that I ordered from this website.  They were the perfect addition to grabbing a cocktail- cute, bright, and added a little color to the bar.  Plus, they were personalized, which is always fun. :)  Add votives and a jar of flowers {faux! I'll get to those in the coming weeks!} and it was the perfect bar.   But then, what about the non-drinkers?  What about the kids?  Do you want everyone having to run up to the bar, even to grab a water??  Nope.    We set up a separate table, next to the bar, where guests could "self serve" their water, lemonade, and iced tea. Cups were available and we used big glass jars to dispense the drinks. The jars without the spouts had big ladles in front of them, resting on fauz "grass" mats, made of plastic- to soak up the drips from the drink jars! It was perfect. Then we knew there were two places that our guests were able to quench their thirst. :)     Everything had labels on it, that I made from Martha Stewart stickers and label sheets from Michael's.  It couldn't have been easier! :)   I think our bar and drink station were the perfect set-up. :) {Except we had a looooot of extras.  Better to be safe than sorry.}  

yellow wedding dress? love!

I loved the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movies. Like, loved them. :) So imagine my happiness when I saw that Amber Tamblyn got married over the weekend in a beautiful & rustic outdoor setting.  And she hopped out of a red canoe to walk down the aisle barefoot with her dad in a..... YELLOW dress. Um, so darn cute. Could it be any more romantic????! I am a sucker for cute weddings and this one tops the charts. Plus, all her Sisterhood gals were there looking adorable as well! Love, love, love. Happy Tuesday! xo!

things that are exciting me lately + mani monday!

OK, I am seriously excited today. For quite a few reasons!   Number one?! I am officially in my THIRD TRIMESTER! Baby boy is the size of a cauliflower, weighing in at 2 pounds. He can blink, hiccup, and listen to me ramble on each day. yay! Only 13 more weeks until we get to meet our little man. Names have been the topic of discussion between my husband and me lately.  We've got a top two that we like, so let's keep our fingers crossed that we have something to call this baby soon. :)   Speaking of fingers... it's Mani Monday over at Just Lovely!   I usually have my fingernails done at a local salon, but got sick of having to go in there every couple of weeks.  SO, I decided to grab some fun new polish and give myself a manicure!  I am SO happy with the way it turned out, and am loving these greens. {The dark one is actually a slightly glittery black-green.}   Polishes I Used: Spoiled "The Parking Meteor Expired" + Sally Hansen Hard as Nails "Mint Sorbet" on my pinkies + a topping of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Topcoat = happy & cute fingers!   {PS.  I love the names of nail polishes.  So funny!}   Another exciting thing?? FALL television is back! New Grey's Anatomy, Parenthood, Modern Family, Private Practice, Once Upon a Time, Gossip Girl, and my personal FAVE..... EEEEEEK!  I've been waiting all summer for this one!  Can't wait!!!! Only three more days!!! :) I'm a total TV junkie, by the way. :) What are you watching?? Any new shows caught your attention? My husband and I are liking Revolution and Last Resort so far. :)   And always an exciting thing... I was so happy to make these darling birthday party invitations for a new customer- her son is having a Hallowen themed party and the invites sure turned out amazingly cute.  Yay!  Need some custom invites?  Pop over to the shop and I would love to help out :)   So, what is exciting YOU lately?! Happy Monday, xo!

a successful show!

The Queen Bee Market was a success!! This past Saturday, my talented sister and I put together a combined booth that turned out to be SO cute and so much fun!!  Both of our products meshed well together and the overall look of the booth was perfect.  Bright, happy and fun!!! :)   I had a display of new cards, tags, and cutouts!  My sister made amazing crowns, tiaras, headbands and wands! :)   All of my new items will be listed in the shop shortly.  If you see anything you'd like, contact me and I would be happy to arrange a custom order for you in my shop. :)     Like I said, I will be busy listing NEW items today and probably tomorrow as well, since there is a LOT to photograph and get posted.  Keep your eye on the shop for new additions- I am so proud of the items that I sold and am able to offer my customers now!    Thanks, Queen Bee! And thanks, Mallory, for being a fab sister & booth partner!!! :) xo!  

tomorrow's the day!

Tomorrow is the Queen Bee Market!!! I am sooo excited!!!  I will be there selling all of my paper goods with my sister, who will be selling her amazing kid's crowns, tiaras, headbands and wands.  YAY!   This is what my dining room table looks like at the moment.....   It is a pricing extravaganza!!!!  I am trying to get everything organized for the morning when we have to set up SUPER early before the show.   I truly hope that I am able to see some of you there!  Here are the specifics again...   Are you local to Southern California?! Then stop by and see me at the Queen Bee Market! Saturday, September 22nd from 9am to 3pm! Center for the Arts 340 N. Escondido Escondido, California   YAY!!!! I can't wait!!! OK, off to prep everything and make sure I am staying organized! Happy Friday to you all! xo! 

{wedding wednesday} a simple craft!

  I got married this past March, and I keep wanting to share all the little details of the wedding here on my blog.  John and I got married at the most perfect red barn, down near San Diego, and it was the most breathtking backdrop for what I wanted my wedding day to look like.    So today, I am working my way from the outside in, and I'm going to show you the front doors to the barn, where all the guests came in to be seated.  We also decorated the back doors, which were actually closed during the ceremony and that was the backdrop to where we got married.      {front doors}     {back doors & altar area}     {The wreaths in action behind us during our ceremony!  Love!}   I wanted to keep the doors simple, but add a special handmade touch.  I found this amazing wreath craft and knew I had hit the perfect decoration for the doors.  We had ongoing craft nights to make everything for my wedding {thank you to all the fab ladies who helped me!!!} so this was one of the crafts we accomplished.  Instead of a letter opener, we used a pencil to push the tissue paper into the styrofoam.  We also used Alene's craft glue instead of a glue gun, but either would work fine. :)   This is an amazingly simple craft that you can do for any season.  Use different colors of tissue paper to make a Halloween wreath {I think I will be doing a black glittery one for my front door next month!}, use Christmas or autumn colors, make a bright orange one for summer... the possibilities are seriously endless.  It is easy and effective and your front door will be so happy.   So glad to share this special handmade detail of my wedding day with you!  Stick with me as ech Wednesday I post something wedding-related :)  I am thrilled to finally be sharing all of this hard work with all of you.   I also want to give a huge THANKS to our amazing photographer, Leylla, who runs Imagery with Impact.  She took these fantastic photos and I will be forever grateful.  If you live anywhere near San Diego, call her immediately.  You won't regret it. :)   Happy Wednesday!! xo!  

on disarray.

{via}   My house is in a bit of a disarray at the moment. Let's be honest. With the Queen Bee Market in only 4 days, the corner of my office/bedroom looks like a tornado of paper has exploded. In a good way.  Cute stuff has been made!! {Or a bad way if you need to get into the left side of the closet.}   Seriously, I am not sure how people do markets and craft show like this all the time.  I would drive myself nuts.  My house is not a complete diaster, but the floors need to be swept, carpets vacuumed, the bathrooms could use a cleaning.  You know the drill.  It's just bugging me.  But I feel like I want to devote the time to my products, to ensure a successful show this Saturday.  Plus, I have been having weird dreams about forgetting essential items the day of the show and me not being prepared.  I won't let that happen. :)   So the floors might have to wait a couple more days and I'll put the windex back in the cupboard until Sunday. :) I'm a real person, I have a child and a husband, and my house is not perfect. There, I said it. Whew. OK, now back to cutting paper...... {but...who is going to take out the trash, though??}

baby bump! {24 weeks}

   Baby boy is now 24 weeks as of today!! {photo was taken over the weekend!}   By the way.. Time to get serious here.... Does anyone have any cute boy names?? We are SO stuck with names, it is ridiculous. Any ideas would be fantastic. :)   I watched my first born son play his first baseball game this weekend and I couldn't be prouder.  He is amazing and did so well {even in the so-cal heat!} and I am so lucky that soon I will have two darling boys. :)  Loving life, let me tell you.   Hope you all had an equally wonderful weekend! xo!