Tagged: party

Jan 10

Project No. 5 – Owen’s Snowman Party

Last month, my baby turned one. Sit and cry about the passing of the last year? Or smile and celebrate the triumph of it? Maybe some of both. We have had an awesome year with Owen with some really great parenting milestones worth celebrating. We got Graham out of diapers and are counting the days until we can train Owen. Really looking forward to the milestone of not having to take a diaper bag with us everywhere we go. I threw out my nursing bras and said good riddance to the pump. And we finally stopped storing all the baby clothes. Once Owen outgrows it, it’s out the door!

Don’t get me wrong. I am very sad that he is growing up. His independence is everywhere these days. He walks. He talks. He makes sure we know what he wants. But he still loves to cuddle. And he still enjoys a bottle. Still my sweet little baby.

On to the party:

With a December for his birthday month, I went with a snowman themed party. We baptized him the same day we celebrated his birthday and had one big party to commemorate. I made a triple-layer cake and frosted it white to make a snowman head. The nose is made from a sugar ice cream cone and covered in orange frosting. The eyes and mouth are just chocolate that I shaped out on wax paper and let cool before adding.

We ordered cookies from a lady from our church and she did an awesome job as usual. (If you want her contact info, just let me know.) I loved the sweet little mittens and stocking hats. Another treat we made were chocolate dipped marshmallows. They were fun and the kids loved them! My two older kids even did the dipping for me. They went perfect with the pot of hot chocolate we had at the party.

Owen got all dressed up for his party and I couldn’t take my eyes off him. Not much cuter than a little boy in a suit. His outfit even had a pocket hankie that matched his neck tie. So handsome.

His baptism was beautiful. I am definitely a bit weepy that it will be our last baptism. The vows and song we sing to him are so true and precious to me.

Happy 1st birthday to my sweet baby.

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Posted in Uncategorized, craft

Feb 20

Choo choo, Graham is two.


Our son, Graham, turned two last week. Because he is in love with trains right now, we threw him a train-themed party.
train birthday cake and table

I had this dream of buying a fabulous cake so I wouldn’t stress myself out about making/decorating a cake. But when I started price-checking cakes like I wanted, I quickly retreated. So I whipped out my trusty old cake mix boxes and got to baking. The cake didn’t turn out anything like what I wanted, but I was still happy with it. I used cookie crumbs and chocolate frosting to make a track around the perimeter for his toy trains to sit on.


I also threw together a larger train car for snacks. I used shoe boxes, covered them in brown paper grocery bags and made the wheels out of rolled up strips of black felt. One of the cars had wheels made out of some vintage coasters.

We also had some sugar cookies made by a friend of my mom – and I was so happy with them! Adorable! My favorite was the RR crossing sign and the stop light. We used these as party favors for the kids as well.
train party cookies
For low cost decorations, I made him a birthday sign out of cardboard and reused our 4th of July pennant banners. I made the sign to match the party invitation that we mailed out. He was really funny with his invitation – he carried them around the house and called them his “tards”.
train invitation
Graham absolutely loved his day. He loved all the attention and all the snacking. He was super excited for presents and told each giver “than-too” after he unwrapped. We even had a difficult time pulling him away from his new toys to blow out his candles. But once he got to it, he was thrilled to hear his birthday song and huff, puff and blow his candles out. He was so darn cute doing it that we let him do it a couple more times.

Happy second birthday, Grahamser. It’s been two sweet years – here’s to many more!

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Posted in craft, family

Aug 16

Old.

This summer, my husband, my brother and his wife are all celebrating their thirtieth birthdays. (Thirty?? What? My husband is turning thirty?!?!? When did we get this old?) Of course, I am happy to celebrate with them as I have two more years before I hit that milestone.

Together, we all threw a party to help the three of them through this. Of course, good times were had by all. But I have to tell you the story of the cakes.

The damn cakes.

First of all, let me tell you that I was determined to buy the cakes, not to make them. For two reasons. One: I know very little about decorating cakes and have been “winging it” through each of my kids birthday so far. Two: I didn’t need that added stress in my life. However, when it turned out that my kids were going to their grandparents for a few days and I saw what the bakery wanted for three separate birthday cakes, I changed my mind. I thought, I’ve got plenty of time. I’ll just use a box mix and do something simple. No problem.

Right.

I made these cakes the night before. Mistake number one, perhaps? And, I used frosting from a can. Mistake number two? We’ll just say that Martha would not be proud of my cake decorating skills. Oh well. At least they tasted good. Didn’t stop me from eating two pieces today. (Hey, I’m eating for two, remember??)

But I do have to tell you that I did learn one thing in the process. I always get really frustrated when baking the layers of a cake because they always bake with a raised dome in the middle. Which I then have to chop off and discard (read: eat while waiting for cake to cool). But I feel like this wastes cake and my layers aren’t as tall as I want them after I level off the lump.

So, I googled it. And it turns out that I wasn’t the only one who was devastated by the dome. All it takes is some old wet towels wrapped around your cake pan as it bakes. Who knew?? I guess the moisture keeps the outside cool so it doesn’t cook as fast as it normally would. Follow these directions and you’ll get a perfectly level cake. Worked for me six times.

At least something worked.

Anyways, clearly the party was still a blast without beautiful cakes. Life is not about perfect cakes. Life is about good friends and good memories. Here’s to thirty more years of that with three of my favorite people in the world. Happy Birthday to Trever, Jenny and Brady! Love you guys!

Oh, and to explain the “23″ atop Jenny’s cake:
What woman wants to openly admit their true age, right? For this reason, I taught my daughter to say that her mommy and Aunt Jenny are “twenty-twee” whenever prompted. In fact, according to her, I turned 23 on my last two birthdays!! Love you, Lilah!

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Posted in craft, family

Jun 04

Three.


A few weeks ago, my baby turned three. Not so much of a baby anymore. Although you wouldn’t know it by the incessant amount of hardcore whining, fit-throwing, diaper-wearing, milk-drinking that still goes on around here. But she does do her fair amount of “big girl” things as well. Like wearing big girl pants all day. Or sleeping in her big girl bed.

For her birthday, she wanted a little mermaid party. Easy enough. I put on my party-planning shoes and whipped up some super simple invites. They were supposed to look like a mermaid tail, but I’m not so sure that’s obvious.

For the party, we planned a swim at the YMCA, dinner, cake and digging for seashells in the new sandbox she got for her birthday.

And the kids got beta fish as party favors. She named hers Flounder and surprisingly, she is still alive. Even though Lilah wants to feed it about a dozen times a day.

The cake was fairly simple to make. Turned out kinda sloppy, but Lilah never noticed. I bought the topper and the little sugar flowers at Cake Stuff and had no major problems, aside from the incident where Lilah stuck her little fingers into it the first time she saw it.

Her birthday party landed on Mother’s Day, so we were also celebrating that. My SIL, Jenny, and I decided it would be a great idea to have a portrait taken of the four grandchildren and give it to my mom. We took the kids to Portrait Innovations and it was NIGHTMARE. That’s all I will say about that. Any more details, and I’d need to start another post. However, the photo turned out great and Mom loved it – so mostly worth it.

Happy Birthday, Lilah! Here’s to many, many more years of giggles! Love you!

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Posted in craft, family

Mar 25

Birthdays and chocolate and cake, oh my.

Over a month ago (seriously, it’s been that long?!?!), my little guy turned one. As if that wasn’t a big enough milestone, we decided to baptize him then as well. Oh, and it was also Valentine’s Day.
Is that enough reasons to party? I think so.

Since it was Valentine’s, the theme for the party was pretty obvious. I called it the “Kind of our Hearts” party. Feeling inspired by some of the amazing desert tables going around the internet, I decided to go “all out”. (I may have also been high the day that decision was made ;)

Six glue sticks, five cake mixes, three jars of frosting and one crazy mama later:

Seriously, this was a lot of work. How do all these people pull it off? Maybe all those other mom’s out there aren’t doing it alone? I was exhausted after baking and decorating all day! Don’t get me wrong, it was fun and I loved planning and carrying out all the details, but it was a TON of work.

Like, if I still worked full time, this would have never happened.

Hell, if I still worked full time, I probably would have picked up cupcakes at Dillons and called Pizza Hut. (We also served lunch – pulled pork sandwiches, chicken salad sandwiches, fruits and veggies).

But anyways, enough about the work.

It all started with the invitations. These were pretty simple to make, and I had almost everything on hand already. I used an old deck of cards for them.




And more details from the party:

One of the reasons that this was time consuming was these little guys. I have a mini-bundt pan that cooks six of these at a time. I think I made like eight batches or something crazy like that – that is a lot of in-and-out of the oven, watching the timer, greasing the pan, etc, etc. BUT, aren’t they cute?!?!?

The cake stand was actually very simple (and cheap!!) and inspired by this easy tutorial.

The crown on top was originally going to be made from fondant. But, having never worked with it, I got intimidated at the last minute. This one is made from foam paper and served the purpose just as well.

For the wall art, I just used some leftover wrapping paper and taped it over the art. Be warned, this took a lot of tape and trial and error. Lots of error. (That damned thing would NOT stay up!)

Chocolate dipped pretzels. The strawberries were supposed to be dipped as well, but I ran out of energy. And chocolate.

And the birthday boy. Who loved his party, but mostly loved his cake. Which is a reminder of why, in the future, I need to just keep it simple.

Happy Birthday, Grahamsey.

All hail King G. (Which is what Brady and Lilah have nicknamed him.)

And I conclude this with a vow. A vow to never go overboard again.
At least until May. (Lilah’s birthday ;)

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Posted in craft, family

Mar 14

Me want cookies.

Last week, my neice Eva turned two and yesterday we celebrated. With an adorable Cookie Monster party theme. Now, if there ever was a little girl who loved cookies more than anybody in the world, Eva is her. She loves her cookies. So she was in heaven.

Cookie monster birthday party theme
There were Cookie Monster cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies and oatmeal peanut butter cookies. A little cookie-obsessed girl’s dream. (And mine too! I couldn’t resist a little of each!)
Cookie monster birthday party theme - cupcakes
Jenny and her sister decorated these and it sounded like they weren’t quite as easy as one might think. The cupcakes were too soft to cut into and shape. Maybe if you let them dry out for a day or two that would help?
Cookie monster birthday party theme

Those are real chocolate chips on there. I guess they had a problem with Eva sneaking the chocolates off throughout the day. (See the bottom left corner)

Blue plastic Solo cups + googly eyes = Cookie Monster. So simple and cute.
Cookie monster birthday party theme
She was pretty proud of her birthday spread.

Princess Eva and brother Jak. All the kids ate Cookie Monster’s eyes first.

Happy Birthday to Eva!

Eva received a Snow White dress as a gift and immediately put it on for the rest of the night. Even princesses have to go to bed at their own party.

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Posted in craft, family

Feb 08

Valentines DIY

So, with Valentine’s approaching and my son’s birthday this week, I am getting in the crafty mood. Been seeing lots of fun DIY projectsonline recently that I am putting on my “to-do” list. Wanted to share to see if any inspire you the way they have inspired me!

I actually attemped the cake stand this weekend and it was VERY simple. And inexpensive. Only needed to purchase the cardboard circles, and those were like $2 at the cake store. Also really want to get around to the little rose barrettes. I need more hours in the day!

Some of these have tutorials and some are just to give ideas. Enjoy!

1. Bakerella 2. One Charming Party 3. Kady Hope 4. Hanna Hoosier 4. Purl Bee via Twig and Thistle 5. Prudent Baby 6. Sew Mama Sew 7. Ali Edwards

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valentine-banner2valentines-bouquet3Screen shot 2010-02-08 at 7.13.37 AMPurlBee_Rose_BarrettesJCasaSMSProjectJan2010envelopesdiycakestand_1FTL1036a00d83451bb3569e20120a86fcf43970b

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Posted in craft

Jan 28

The hostess with the mostest.

Our little guy is about to turn one. And as I’m trying to keep my mind off the fact that my baby is that old, I’ve been diving into planning his birthday celebration. We are actually baptizing him the same day, plus, it’s Valentine’s Day. So, lots to celebrate!

Have you seen many of the fabulous dessert tables and event design that is out there these days?? It’s incredible! So much attention to detail – it’s fabulous! Don’t believe me? Check some of this out:

This Ragedy Ann party is blowing me away. How cute is this???
raggedyann

And how about this little boy’s party??? Can somebody come pick my jaw up off the floor?
4278356715_821b4ec1fc_b

And a very sweet, yet hip, baby shower.

alphabetselephants

A A beach party that makes me long for summer days.

beachparty

A super fun peppermint party.

peppermint

Amy Atlas is like the mother of all dessert table design. (didn’t know there was such thing, did ya?) Wanna be amazed? Go check out her portfolio.

Screen shot 2010-01-27 at 11.32.45 PM

A little different than the birthday parties I was raised on. And while I am in love with all of this and would kill to be able to pull something like that off, I am aware of the fact that it is all overkill. Graham is only one, will never remember and will probably take a nap through half the party anyways. But, a girl can dream, right?

parties1

Since his party is on Valentine’s, we’re going with a “King of Hearts” theme. Today’s project was to make a crown for the little guy. I had a couple of other kids underfoot who wanted their own crowns, so they got some of my “prototypes”.

parties2

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Posted in craft, family

Oct 20

Greens and yellows and browns, oh my.

Went with my friend, Michelle, to a great quilting store, called The Button Hole, in McPherson, KS this weekend. She has never quilted before and was very curious. I am a beginner who pretends to know what she is talking about. We make a funny combination. Anyways, she bought an awesome bunch of fabrics to make a friend a baby quilt, and I, as usual, bought a few mismatched, but beautiful fabrics – and an overambitious quilt pattern. Mostly just came home with some inspiration and motivation to actually get something made.


Also put together a cover for what will be a baby book for the new baby. Kinda boyish, I know. But don’t the floral patterns help girl it up a little?

And, on the family front – here are a few pics of my nephew, Jak’s, 2nd birthday party.


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The Cars cake was made by my SIL’s sister, Kathleen. She has quite a knack for cakes and gets more impressive ! So pretty we had a hard time cutting into it.

And one to prove that I am truly pregnant :)

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Posted in craft, family

Sep 14

Whew, that was a long post.

Haven’t posted lately cause I’ve been extra busy. Last weekend, we threw my folks a surprise party in honor of my Mom’s 50th birthday and their 30th wedding anniversary. Lots of work to get it all pulled together without them finding out, but in the end, we did it. We had about 100 people show up to surprise them, and it definitely worked!

Anyways, the point is, I’ve been busy lately, but not busy blogging! So, this is going to be a very long run-on post. Sorry :)

Ok, where to start? How about here:

So, this is probably old news for many people, but I had to include anyways. This sonogram is very old – we are having another tomorrow, and maybe I’ll update soon. Baby is due February 12 which makes me almost halfway there!

Here are some photos from our Labor Day getaway we took to Grand Lake. Went with some friends – Kelly, Sarah and Bo Kaiser.

A weenie-roast we had with my family a while back. The kids loved being outside by the fire and, more importantly, the swingset :)





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For the party, my sister-in-law, Jenny, and I made ’s cupcake bites. So fun! I would recommend this project to anybody who loves chocolate, sprinkles and has a little patience :)


The party was a blast to plan and even more fun to enjoy. We had hor’doerves and drinks and a dance. I think everybody had a great time – I know my feet were sore the next day! I had just started to be able to feel the baby move – and the loud music and dancing got the little one going!

My parent’s – 30 years ago!! Check out that suit on Rick!

Table decorations.

My brother gave a very emotional (ha) speech and we all toasted to 30 more years!

My parent’s wedding party! How cute is that?!?

Me and my brother.

My nephew enjoying one of our cake bites.

I didn’t have many great pics from that night because in typical Kylie-fashion, I took my camera, but no batteries!

I’ll wrap this up with some pictures of Miss Lilah, who is doing all kinds of cute things these days like dancing to “Ring around the Rosie” and wearing her hair in a ponytail!!! She also did something really crazy this weekend – she slept until NOON yesterday! That made 16 hours of sleep in one night! We couldn’t believe it and kept going in to check on her, but she was snoozing away.



Okay, I promise not to get so behind again! (Ya, right.)

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