September 18, 2013
by Dawn Marie Leave a comment

A Birthday Beach Bonanza

When Ian was born during spring break, which is in March, I was sad he couldn’t ever have a pool party at my mom’s house. Well unless everyone has wet suits.

Then Sid was due in mid-Sept. and I thought for sure he would be early and was excited cause we could have a pool party/BBQ for his first birthday.

I was wrong and he wasn’t early, but right on time, he was born on his namesake’s birthday. So when his first birthday was approaching I decided to have his party on the first Saturday after the Labor Day holiday. In hopes that the weather would still be nice that early in Sept.

I decided on a beach theme; melding a luau, surfer and underwater theme.

As usual I spent a lot of time on Pinterest finding inspiration. I can’t believe how creative people are with food!

I got one of my hubby’s old surfboards down and sat Baby Sid on it for some pictures for his invitations.

The picture for Sid’s invitation

For the decorations I used five digital scrapbook kits from Just So Scrappy.

Aloha
Bubbling Over
Lil Red
Summer Fun
Under the Sea

I of course had to make a “Happy Birthday Baby Sid” banner for the gazebo on my mom’s deck. I also made some triangle and circle bunting banners.

“Happy Birthday Sid”

Bunting

I also made an “I am 1” banner for Sid’s high chair.

Highchair bunting and The Birthday Boy

I saw these Jelly Fish made out of paper lanterns and thought they would be perfect for hanging in the gazebo.

Jelly Fish

My mom collects mugs, and has a wall of mugs in her dinning room. Yes a WALL of mugs, which holds the ones she doesn’t want used that often. Cause there are more in her kitchen. This is only a problem when I am trying to take pictures of our food table and/or cake.

This time I decided to make a back drop to hide the mugs. I made the “Surf’s Up” banner and glued it to cardboard taping the crape paper behind it along with some circles taped to ribbon and the blue “Happy Birthday” garland.

Backdrop and Cake

Let’s talk about THIS cake. Not only was it adorable, with the little fondant boy to match the invitations, but it was DELICIOUS!!! My Auntie made the cake, she does all our cakes. It was vanilla with an orange cream filling. Yes it tasted like a dreamsicle ice cream bar. And yes it was dreamlike and I probably could have eaten the whole cake. By. My. Self.

The Cake table

The Cake!

We made some fun beach themed food. My mom hand dipped the Bugles in white chocolate to make sweet/salty shark teeth. I bought the white powdered sugar doughnuts and pipped on frosting to make life preservers. Using frosting we turned Nutter Butter Cookies into flip-flops. The oyster pearls are Sixlets and Bubble Gum that I bought at the craft store in the wedding section.

Shark Teeth, Life Preservers, Flip Flop Cookies, Oyster Pearls

My nieces decorated Jello cups with Teddy Graham, Swedish Fish and Gummy Life Savers. My sister and nieces then made a beach scene on a platter for more fun edible decorations. Brown Sugar was used for all the beaches and sand.

Food Table

We also had Sour Punch Straws as pool noodles, Sour Gummy worms as fish bait and Goldfish Crackers as the catch of the day.

Food Table

Of course I had to have food tag tents, how else would people know what they are eating? My sister came up with some witty little names for the dishes.

Food Tags

The menu included

Puffer Fish Pizza Puffs; Three Cheese or Pepperoni
Driftwood Deli Meat Dip
Under the Seafood Dip
Chicken Curry Sand-Crab-wiches
Egg Salad Sand-Crab-wiches
Garlic Dip
High Tide Veggies and Ranch

Sand-crab-wiches

We made a Surf’s Up Strawberry Punch and a Sparkling Beach Berry Lemonade and also offered soda, juice and water to drink.

Beverages

I made the little thank you tags for the guest gifts.

“Thanks a beach”

I bought the items for the guest gifts from Oriental Trading Company.

Mini beach bucket with shovel, rake and scoop
Mini beach ball
Bubbles
Shark tooth necklace
Shark Tattoos
Slide Puzzle with tropical sea creatures

Guest Gifts

I made this sign to hang on the front of my mom’s house.

Beach Access Sign

I also made this photo collage of pictures from Baby Sid’s first year.

A year of photos collage

Baby Sid woke up from his nap right before the party and came down to see the house decorated. He was so excited! I wish I had my camera at hand, but I didn’t know his whole face would light up! He was wonderful and such a little trooper with all the excitement and people.

The weather was great so the kids got to swim and use the slip ‘n slide.

As always I couldn’t have pulled it off with out the help of my mom, sister and the rest of my family.

Happy Party Planning

August 27, 2013
by Dawn Marie Leave a comment

Wordless Wednesday Aug 27

It has been said a picture is worth a thousand words. Hopefully on Wednesday’s I won’t have to write one.

August 17, 2013
by Dawn Marie 15 Comments

Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree

Carefree

Footloose and fancy free

This weeks photo challenge topic is Carefree.

I have always felt carefree during summer.

When I was little I would start the day in my swimsuit and wouldn’t take it off till bed time, if then. We would spend all day outside, swimming, playing in the sprinkler or in the tree house. We would go to the park and camping.

We would consume massive amounts of Popsicles.

As I got older the summers turned into me and my future hubby taking off to go camping or a drive to the beach for some surfing. Well, surfing for him, not me, our coastal waters are too cold for me to get into.

Now that I have children I still love summer time and all that comes with it.

Eating Popsicles for lunch

Or teaching Ian to swim ‘all-my-by-self’ in his life jacket

And the fact that Baby Sid is so happy in the water

My mom has always had the perfect yard for a slip n’ slide

And nothing says Carefree like taking a bath outside in a wash tub that has seen every baby bottom in our family

For me Carefree = Summer

Happy Shooting

August 14, 2013
by Dawn Marie 2 Comments

Necessities for Baby- What To Save On and What To Splurge On {Guest Post}

There was another baby added to our family (not by me!) recently.

The birth of babies always has me thinking back to when I had my boys. Which makes me think about the things that we need and don’t really need for these tiny little humans.

Katie Moore from Moore From Katie would like to share with you what she feels is a necessity for new babies.

Necessities for Baby: What To Save On and What To Splurge On

When I was pregnant with my daughter, it was quite overwhelming to see all of the different baby items that were available for purchase online and at baby stores in my area. I had no idea whether or not some of these items were actually necessary or if they were just over-hyped and far too expensive for what they were worth! With a little experimenting and the help of other expectant parents, I was able to narrow down the list of items that I would actually need for my little one. If you are just as overwhelmed while doing your baby shopping, these tips will assist you in picking some things that you should definitely splurge on while opting to save on others.

Splurge On A Crib

Splurging on a crib is a must when expecting a newborn. A quality and safe crib is an important investment for any nursery. A crib should never be purchased used as it may no longer be safe or may have been recalled in previous years. Opt for a crib made from high quality wood that will offer sturdy construction and a long-lasting design that can be used from infancy throughout toddler-hood when choosing a crib that converts into a toddler bed.

~Babies R Us

Splurge On Cord Blood Banking

Cord blood banking has become an increasingly popular choice over the last several years. Cord blood comes directly from the umbilical cord after birth, so the decision to splurge on this option should be made before the birth of your child. Your child’s cord blood can provide your family with a source of related stem cells, which could possibly be used in a medical treatment – should the need ever arise. Make this a splurge but be sure to do your homework; talk with your doctor and find out more about cord blood banking and potential benefits.

Save On A Diaper Bag

Forget about picking out a stylish diaper bag that could run you into the hundreds. Instead, opt for a more practical, comfortable bag as this will most likely take the place of your purse and be something that you will be carrying around with you for years to come. The most important thing about a diaper bag is that you have enough space for diapers, wipes, bottles and other necessities!

Save On A Wipe Warmer

Wipe warmers are simply something that you do not really need to have for your child. While having a warm wipe may feel nicer during diaper changes, there is no need to warm a wipe before using it. If you do want to warm the wipe, simply rub it between your palms before changing your little one. If this is something that you must have, consider buying one used or a cheap model rather than splurging on an expensive wipe warmer that you may rarely, if ever use.

~ Babies R Us

Take it from me- a little bit of research can go a long way when trying to prepare for a baby on a budget. Talk to others parents and find what worked and what didn’t work for them. This exciting time will be much smoother with extra change in your pocket!

Katie Moore has written and submitted this article, all the opinions expressed are her own and may not be that of the owner of this blog. Katie is an active blogger who discusses the topics of, motherhood, children, fitness, health and all other things Mommy. She enjoys writing, blogging, and meeting new people! To connect with Katie contact her via her blog, Moore From Katie or her twitter, @moorekm26