I’m sorry for being a bit MIA— if you follow me on Facebook, you know last week was a big week in the lives of many of my closest friends. One friend had a baby (Baby Emi has joined us!), one friend got engaged, and one friend got married! So I’ve been busy celebrating, even from afar.
So things are still a bit hectic, but I saw these awesome animal DIY puppets, I had to share. Aren’t they so cute? And easy to make!
I wanted to share some pictures of the ribbon mobile I made for Baby Emi. I’m not sure it photographs well laying down, so I took a few of it hanging. I also thought this could be a great hands-on project for a baby shower– or many hung together for decoration!
This was one of the harder projects, and one of the reasons the box barely made it before the baby did! At first I thought I would do 3 tiers, then the ribbons kept coming off, then I changed my mind on the colors… Due to this my “in process” photos won’t really help. I did finally pulled it together and think it turned out really nice!
In the end I used a simple slip knot and slid a bit of glue under the loop to ensure it stayed tight. I kept the hanging ribbons long to make it adjustable {and safe!} in the baby’s room.
The silver ribbon was a last minute addition, and I think it really added to the final product.
I hope Baby Emi likes it!
One of the hardest things about living overseas is being {and sometimes feeling} far away from your friends and family during important times in their lives. Technology has made it a lot easier to stay in touch and even be a part of big days, but sometimes things you can touch and feel make your relationship more tangible.
One of my dearest friends in New York is nearly due with a little girl named Emi. The mother-t0-be is one of the strongest people I know, and yet physically one of the smallest! This kick-ass lady loves pink like nobodies business so I know her baby will be dressed as the princess- and athlete– that she will become. I can’t wait for this litte girl to be born and I couldn’t help but put together a box of love for Emi and her mommy.
My friend also spent some time in Hong Kong, so I added some items that are specific to the region, like this baby book and tiny chinese slippers {ok, and maybe to remind Emi of her Aunt Sara} . I made a banner– for her room or to welcome her home, personalized special. I also made the mobile, and put together a little pampering kit for my friend, including some fun nail polish and masks. A little learning toy is a necessity and I found the color card at Prints, fitting the color scheme nicely.
I hope Emi and her mommy love it! xoxo
Inspired by my blog post last week, I was pondering having a crafty day with kids and friends over this long weekend on our terrace. Then the torrential rains came and that was no longer an option, so an awesome friend offered to host. After the initial idea, she ran with it, creating a fabulously fun and messy day for a bunch of little girls– and me.
The adults handled the egg dying {one of the mothers was a pro- thank goodness!}—
while we munched on some yummy food–bunny sandwiches, raisin and carrot muffins, carrot shaped kiddie treats, and fruit.
Once the eggs were dyed, the kids got to decorating. Painting, beads, glue, glitter, and tissue paper were all options.
While those dried, we played pin the nose on the bunny. Using the first letter of our names to mark our attempts, everyone spun around blindfolded trying to mark the nose. The kids loved this part, as my friend’s daughter displays. Love her!
And then we had an easter egg hunt! {using plastic eggs, not the decorated ones}
It was such a fun day! Adults and kids are now ready for Easter!
Just around this time last year I was getting ready for a special little girl’s birthday party.
Starting from this inspiration page…
To this fun party {Part 1, Part 2}…
It was a great day, and I can’t help but smile looking at these pictures. Her mom and I had so much fun planning this party. I know this year will be just as special.
Happy Birthday, Charlee!
Wouldn’t these be awesome on a small table for book club or a library themed wedding or a fairy tale birthday party? It would be hard to cut up a book, but the results are amazing. {via Geek Tyrant}
One of my favorite clients is working on a birthday party for her little girl. She told me the colors and the theme– Pink Power Ranger. I need to do some research on this character, but I was so inspired by the color scheme of pink, gold, black and white that I started with a mood board. I’m still working on adding in the Power Ranger, but this inspiration was too pretty not to share. 
Wouldn’t these polka dots be a great backdrop for food?
I love the pale pink candy bar here with black accents.
More polka dots, and color appropriate cakesters.
Hot pink and gold wrapping.
I love how the runner here matches the Power Range belt. With black chevron? Get out of here!
Cute black and white straws.
Awesome striped table cloths. Oh yeah.
I love these invites— and the gold and pink tinsel back drop. I’d love to see some ninja poses in front of that!
You probably already know that I love travel related things, but this awesome execution by the University of North Texas to take mandatory requirements of education exploration into a passport is just too cool. I love the idea of turning “musts” into something fun and engaging.
Event Planners– and many parents(!)– turn the ordinary into a game everyday. How fun would life be if we all did this? Have to go a trade show and speak to so many people? Turn it into a passport game! Chores to do, or want your kids to do? Give them stamps or stickers for every activity completed! Want your guests to check out a certain number of stations at your event? Give them an incentive to do so!
See more of their beautiful work here.
If anything can equal my love of bright, saturated colors it’s stark modern black and white. Both palettes leave a statement, and the bolder the better, in my book. The only question left is: which one to chose?
Images: black and white balloons/two tone balloons
cookies and milk/disposable bakeware (!)
black confetti garland/polka dot garland
Did you grow up with birthday traditions in your family? Since I grew up in Florida and my birthday is in December, I always remember having fresh squeezed orange juice from the oranges from the tree in our backyard on my special day. That, and my mom taking me shopping.
If you are thinking about starting some traditions with your kid(s)– something they can count on and look forward to every year, here are some great suggestions. Pick one or more and have fun with it– as long as it’s special to you both, it could have the same impact as a yearly party. {via Calgarys Child}
1. Rise and shine. Wake kids up on their birthday not with, “Get up! It’s time for school!” but with an extra long snuggle and the condensed version of the day they were born. Who doesn’t like to hear their birth story?! Adopted and foster children can be told how they were meant to be brought into the family and how special they are.
2. Birthday letter. Type up a birthday letter for each child telling them what great things they did and said and learned during the past year. Give the birthday child a copy, then save a copy in a binder and on the computer because we all know kids can’t keep track of stuff. Then plan to give each of child a copy of all their letters when they move out, which means they’ll have somewhere between 18 and 30 letters to enjoy!
3. Birthday slideshow. With just a few clicks of your mouse, you can create a special slideshow using PowerPoint or a similar computer program. Just pop in photos, size them and add cute captions. You can even add some music if you like. After your child watches it about a zillion times, save it to a CD and pop it in a special place (safe deposit box, fireproof box, etc.) so your child will always have it.
4. Photos. Take as many pictures as you can on birthdays and even make sure you are included in some of them! Later, we can get out old photo albums and the birthday kid’s baby album.
5. Special meal. Some kids love the neighborhood restaurant where they sing Happy Birthday and are given a balloon to take home. Others are content heading to the local fast-food indoor play area and grabbing bites of food in between trips down the slide. Make at least one meal of the birthday child’s day something out of the ordinary!
6. Special treat. Hit the cupcake restaurant or grab huge, frosted cookies from a local baker and share with our friends and neighbors to spread the celebration around. A cheap – and just as special – route would be to make your child’s favorite dessert at home: cookies, cake, banana splits, shakes or ice cream sundaes are always a good bet. Depending on which fruit is in season (or go frozen!), a decadent fruit smoothie made with frozen yogurt could be nice.
7. Party (doesn’t have to be on the actual birthday). If you get a few gray hairs every time you think of planning a birthday party, don’t fret. Options include: a simple party at your place with just a few people, a bash at a park shelter or a celebration where a local children’s party place does all the work.
8. Birthday weekend sleepover with a few special friends (for kids over age seven). Warning: this one is not for the faint of heart! Maybe suggest a maximum of three friends to stay the night at your house on a Friday night around the time of your child’s birthday. Order pizza to make life easy on yourself, grab some movies from the library and have them set up their sleeping bags as far away from your bedroom as possible.
