casa one.five.one

wordless wednesday

2012-01-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

silhouette {i finally did it}

2012-01-22T23:59:00.000-06:00

i did it. i finally bought a silouhette machine. it is quite a financial investment and i've been debating it for a while. like almost a year. i just couldn't let go of the money even though i knew i really wanted it.

when i was ready to pull the trigger back in the fall, the company announced that they would be coming out with a newer model, the cameo, in a few weeks. doink! so i postponed and waited for the new model. what was a few more weeks?

for those of you that are not familiar with silhouette, it is an electronic cutting machine that hooks up to your computer. it can cut paper, vinyl and fabric among other things. it is so fancy that i haven't figured out all of its fanciness yet.

but here's the little beauty sitting on top of my printer. yep, in my house!

i really didn't have a project in mind, but i couldn't let her sit idle for too long. i really wanted to try cutting & applying vinyl.

i had pinned a couple of ideas from the house of smiths.

Source: thehouseofsmiths.com via Courtney on Pinterest

Source: thehouseofsmithsdesigns.com via Courtney on Pinterest
and seriously, a pantry like this? i wish i could keep mine so organized!

Source: thehouseofsmiths.com via Courtney on Pinterest

i used shelley's pantry for inspiration.
{i don't like the word "copy." it sounds so rude.}
in our baking cabinet, i had some glass jars on the top shelf.

i quickly cut out the vinyl and applied it to my jars. it was much easier than i
anticipated. and i saved the layout for future use.

and it inspired me to clean out the cabinet - it was a bit overcrowded.

i love the numbers on her glass canisters, too. and i have three of those sitting on

my kitchen counter already.

1, 2, 3. BAM!

i must say that i was a bit apprehensive about using the machine. i thought it would be terribly complicated and i would be frustrated. but i will say, it is very user friendly.

i cranked out these two projects in under an hour.

my cabinets never looked so good. maybe that pantry is attainable?

i think me and miss cameo are about to become t.i.g.h.t.

big girl room {the details}

2012-01-15T20:49:00.001-06:00

i will tell you up front that this may or may not be the last post about the big girl room. it is now "complete" in my book but i know that it will forever be a revolving design door. even though it is technically functional and complete, i will continue to change and tweak it. especially the details and accessories. they are my favorite.

if you need to catch up on the big girl room transition, you can catch up here and here.

david took down the last two boob lights over christmas. one in the big girl room and the other in our guest room.

it's the south, people. we can't live without our ceiling fans. and i was happy to see the boob fixture go.

i ordered this print from sarah and abraham a while back. i just love this site. perfect for gifts, too.

this owl nightlight has certainly comforted camryn during this transition. it was a gift from my friend, nikki.

the area over the dresser is my favorite. i really had fun with this space.

i found the turquoise ceramic lamp at home goods.

the handprint owl was a pinterest idea. when we made the valentine version, we may one to match camryn's room, too. the white frames are from pottery barn.

the birdcage is from world market. i love this piece. and you can see we have a few valentine's decorations in her room already.

the embroidery hoops with fabric are all over the internet. i love this home-spun look. and super cheap. i got the hoops at hobby lobby (.79 - 1.99 each) and the fabric was leftover scraps. the other pb frame is empty but i'm sure it will be filled soon.

and on the other side of the dresser is a white owl vase and camryn's mailbox that i made last year for valentine's day.

lastly, above the bed is a gift from trish, bryan, ben and lily. they gave it to camryn for christmas. it is from southern proper monograms. it came unfinished and i painted it white. love.love.love.

december 29, 2011 was camryn's first night to sleep in the room. i love the excitement on her face. all went well.

she is very proud of her big girl room and after all that potty-training, she deserves it.

sources

ceiling fan: bellacor

art print: sarah + abraham

lamp: home goods

white frames: pottery barn

birdcage memo board: world market

wall monogram: southern proper monograms

big girl room {furniture}

2012-01-09T20:56:00.000-06:00

one of my goals with the transition to camryn's big girl room was to buy as little furniture as possible. or as economically as possible. i figure she's going to be pretty rough on it so there's no since in investing a ton of money.

i showed you in yesterday's post the iron bed. this was my college bed. it was a rusty bronze color but in great condition. it just needed a nice coat of black paint.

the dresser was david's father's as a child. it was in great condition but the stain had turned orange over the years.

and i don't know which was worse. the smell of the drawers or the hardware. it smelled like a musty old house. we put coffee grounds in plastic containers inside the drawers for a few days and it absorbed the odor. score.

i also had a nightstand that was a dark espresso stain. i didn't get a before photo but it is very basic.

the wood furniture took two coats of primer, a light sanding plus two coats of aspen grey paint by valspar. i'm not a grey paint kind of girl but i love the way it turned out. soft and neutral.

the brushed silver hardware is also from lowe's. $2.47 each. i wanted some glass pulls but they were $6 each. if i'm being honest here, i bought the glass pulls. after i saw the total on the receipt, i freaked {and david freaked, too} so i returned them. it was too much of an investment.

the nightstand looks cute, too.

i found the turquoise hardware from hobby lobby. $3.99 each but i waited until all hardware was 50% off.

and our elephant humidifier matches, too. i don't know about your house, but we cannot live without a humidifier.

the metal bin underneath wrangles some books and is from kirkland's.

and speaking of book wrangling, we have a lot of books. i wasn't sure what i was going to do with them. in the nursery they were stored in the pink striped cabinet.

i found this shelf at target. it was on sale for $35. awesome.

the blue bins are from lowe's - $6.99 each. target had some purple ones for $9.99 each but i went the cheaper route.

lastly, i found this chair at kirkland's. it was on clearance for $129.97. i love the grey velvet upholstery.

it is a perfect landing space for camryn's elephant and a monogrammed pillow from pb teen.

stay tuned for all of the details - walls, lighting, accessories. those are my favorite parts!

sources:

paint aspen grey by valspar at lowe's

silver hardware lowe's

turquoise hardware hobby lobby

cube bookshelf target

turquoise fabric bins lowe's

chair and black/white metal bin kirkland's

turquoise oblong pillow pb teen

christmas celebration {number 2}

2012-01-07T21:40:00.002-06:00

even though my valentine projects are in full swing, i've got to back track and post a few more christmas photos.

new year's weekend we went to celebrate christmas with my mom and my dad.

on saturday, we spent the morning with my mom. camryn received princess dresses and she has literally worn them most every day since she opened the box. no lie - you will see them in multiple photos on this post. she even wore one in the car on the way back home on sunday.

here's a photo of my mom with grandbabies - caysen & camryn. i swear i didn't slap caysen in the face right before i took this photo!!!

my dad went out for new year's and i had to snap a photo while he was all dressed up in his tux. and of course, camryn was still fancy in her princess dress.

on sunday morning, we opened gifts at my dad's house along with my brother, SIL and nephew.

sweet cousins.

afterwards, we all went to my grandmother's to open gifts with her and my uncle and enjoy a big lunch.

honestly, i didn't take as many photos as i would have liked but i will say that we had a great time and camryn is enjoying all of her gifts. since we celebrated off&on for 3 weeks, it's been a real buzz kill for camryn now that the gift giving/receiving/opening is over. oh well... back to reality.

big girl room {paint and bedding}

2012-01-02T20:47:00.002-06:00

as i stated before, we promised camryn a big girl bed once she was potty trained. it was time to deliver. david and i had some vacation time the week after christmas so we got to work.

the big girl room is one of our former guest rooms. it was easy to work on the project since she wasn't "living" in the room. we could work on it at night and during naps.

i didn't take a lot of before photos - i was so wrapped up in the project that i forgot. imagine builder beige walls. there. that's it. nothing in the old room is the same except flooring.

we painted the main wall {behind the bed} woodlawn charm by valspar {lowe's}- and the other three walls creamy by sherwin williams. again, it was nice to change from builder flat paint to eggshell finish. no more finger prints.

camryn wanted to be in the mix at all time. she even took a time out from dress up to inspect daddy's work.

i did get a before shot of the dresser. this belonged to david's father when he was a kiddo. it had good lines and was in excellent condition.

but the hardware had to go.

and so did the odor. we put small plastic containers with ground coffee in each drawer for a couple of days to soak up the smell.

here's a photo of the freshly painted walls. also, the antique iron bed got a nice new coat of black paint.

the bedding is a mix from pb teen and target. i will say that my main decision maker for bedding was NO PINK. it's been great for my sweet girl but i am over it.

i love the grey/aqua/purple combination.

and the purple velvet curtains with trellis burnout pattern are too cool for school.

and i made camryn a pillowcase to match when i made the others for preschool christmas gifts.

stay tuned for more details...furniture, walls and such.

sources

paint creamy sherwin-williams

and woodlawn charm by valspar at lowe's

bedding pb teen, pbteen and target

curtains pb teen

monogram pillowcase made by me

on to the next holiday

2012-01-02T20:31:00.001-06:00

yeah, i'm one of those people. the day after the holiday the decorations come down and i'm on to the next holiday. december 26th, i took down the decor and started thinking about valentine's day.

that would explain my valentine's board on pinterest. i haven't decided on valentine's for camryn's preschool but i did find this little owl that i couldn't resist.

Source: stuff-by-ash.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

after camryn's nap on sunday, i drug out all my supplies and called my trusty assistant to the kitchen counter. this one is totally my girl. she's up for a project. you should have seen her skills with a glue stick. wearin'.it.out.

this is her new "cheese" smile. i cut out the pieces and she glued them together.

i cut out the pieces and she glued them together.
she loved painting her hands and making the wings.

we made two versions - a pink version for valentine's

and a black/turquoise/purple one for her big girl room.

i framed up the valentine's version in a pre-made red mat from hobby lobby and a black frame i already owned. i looks cute next to camryn's valentine mailbox from last year

i am very pleased with our hooties and i think camryn enjoyed the project, too!

play date

2011-12-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

camryn's preschool is always closed the week after christmas. we've had fun catching up on projects, cleaning out, and playing with new christmas toys but it was time for camryn to play with one of her peers. we haven't had anyone over for a playdate yet so this was a new experience.

she was very excited to have tanner over to play. can you tell by the look on her face?

they enjoyed playing with camryn's new legos

and her kitchen.

these two monkeys crack me up!

it was fun having T over for a playdate!

christmas morning

2011-12-29T20:26:00.000-06:00

celebrating with a 2 1/2 year old was much fun.

these photos do not require a description.

i hope your christmas morning was magical.

merry christmas!

2011-12-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

we hope your christmas is amazing!

happy birthday, jesus!

christmas eve

2011-12-24T20:59:00.000-06:00

the reindeer food has been sprinkled on the lawn.

we've said goodbye to susie.

cookies and milk are strategically placed near the fireplace.

come on, santa! we're ready!

cookies for santa

2011-12-24T16:00:00.000-06:00

the time has come to introduce camryn to cookie decorating. since she has become my little kitchen assistant, i knew she would enjoy it. i let her wear an apron that my grandmother ruth made me when i was a little girl.

rather than make all of the cookies from scratch, i went the break and bake route. santa doesn't care, right?

cookie dance! whoop whoop!

straight out of the oven. a quick taste test.

let the decorating mayhem begin!

christmas lights drive thru

2011-12-24T13:45:00.001-06:00

there is a family near us that decorates their property with nearly 2 million lights. they have a drive thru display that is open to the public. we've heard great things about it so we decided to take camryn last night.

although my night time camera skills are lacking, i think you'll get the point.
we loved this old country store with the vintage truck outside.

they had a nice nativity scene. you drove underneath a barn as you passed by.

and they had a few live animals. there's a donkey and three sheep behind the fence.

follow me to see santa!

at the end, you drive thru santa's house to see him along with mrs. claus.
camryn was a bit uncertain at first.

then, he offered her candy and the world was good again.

aren't they adorable?

so proud of her treat!

at the end, there was even a break dancing snowman.

i think we've got a new christmas tradition on our hands!

christmas celebration {part 1}

2011-12-23T22:35:00.003-06:00

this year is a bittersweet christmas in terms of celebrating. we have decided to stay at home this weekend in order to let camryn celebrate at home. it is difficult to explain in words, but our christmas is usually a chaotic celebration in the best kind of way. both our our parents are divorced and we each have one living grandparent. our christmas eve and christmas day are spent bustling between houses - we make 2 stops on christmas eve and 5 stops on christmas day. we are truly blessed to have a wonderful family and enjoy seeing all of them.

with that said, we don't get to spend much time at each stop. if you figure 2 hours at each stop {10 hours} plus a little travel time in between {1 hour} and a naptime for camryn {3 hours}, that is 14 hours total. that makes for a long, exhausting day and usually a crabby toddler {and her parents, too}. again, it is a lot of fun but we don't get to spend much quality time with each family. we feel like we are rushing thru the day trying to get to the next stop.

this year, we have decided to break it up -

the weekend before christmas with david's family

the weekend of christmas at home

the weekend after christmas with my family

we hope this will allow camryn to have time to enjoy her santa gifts at home and we will be able to spend more quality, non-rushed time with each family.

last weekend we started with david's family. camryn is totally into the presents and fellowship this year and really enjoyed being with her cousins.

saturday at granddaddy and nana's house:

lily in ben's new cap. isn't she a doll?

gift bags as headgear

why do we buy gifts when they just want to play with the packaging?

ben on his new sled

sunday morning

time for presents at nan and joe's house

camryn got a new art smock from lily and ben and it was her attire for the rest of the morning.

and we gave lily dress up clothes....this was her attire for the rest of the morning.

concentration on gift opening

breakfast time at the kid table

sweet cousins

the weekend was great. we had plenty of time to spend with everyone and we were not rushed. honestly, david and i were less crabby at the end of the day, too.

potty power

2011-12-23T13:24:00.003-06:00

i could have posted this weeks ago but i was afraid i would jinx us!

camryn is potty trained! she has been doing a great job for a while now and i would consider her {daytime} potty trained.

her preschool uses the term 'potty power' so it has become a new part of our language here at home.

we used a treasure box with little trinkets and toys as a reward {same as preschool}. we've been wearing out the $1 bins at target. whatever works right?

btw - i did not tell her to pose like this!

she loves her big girl panties. she even has hootie-owl panties!

we are not potty trained for naps and overnight but that will come in time.
we promised her that she could move to a big girl bed once she was potty trained so now it's time for us to deliver! we will be working on her big girl room over the christmas break.

hooray for potty power!

birthday party for jesus

2011-12-23T09:15:00.000-06:00

i am attempting to get caught up on my blogging...bear with me!

last wednesday, our church hosted a birthday party for jesus for 2 year olds - 5th graders. most of our church activities start with the 3 yo but this one was opened up for the 2's so i decided to help in camryn's room.

we started the night with a pizza party.

then, we moved on to cupcakes. it's not a party without cupcakes!

the kids wanted to show off their green tongues.

then a little craftiness.

and a bit of dancing {this was the funniest part of the night}

camryn quickly discovered that she could see her reflection in the window. she was putting on a show for herself.

i wanted to get a snapshot of all the kids but it was impossible. we still had a few running around as we tried to herd them together.

we went to the sanctuary to hear the christmas story and then headed home.

what a fun celebration!

happy birthday, jesus!

preschool christmas gifts

2011-12-12T08:00:00.000-06:00

it's that time of year .... school parties and celebrations. camryn's class is having christmas lunch and parties for the next two days.

i like to give a little something for each child in camryn's class. translation - approx $5.00. in order to keep the costs down, i prefer to make it. and let's face it - they get plenty of toys and dollar bin junk as it is.

last year, i made crayon rolls and it was well received by both the kiddos and the parents.

this year, i decided to make personalized pillowcases. most of the kiddos are moving/will be moving to big beds soon so i thought the timing was appropriate.

on our recent trip to tuscaloosa, i used the time in the car to cut out all of the letters. i bagged them up so i wouldn't have to unscramble all the names when i got home.

i purchased white pillowcases at target for $5.83 each with tax. i laundered them and ironed the edges.

i laid out all of the names and started ironing them on the pillowcases.

ladies first.

after i ironed on all of the letters, i stitched around the letters with my sewing machine.

i washed and dried them so they would be clean and ready to go. also, i like how the washing machine frays the edges.

boys:

girls:

for packaging, i just rolled them up and tied a grosgrain ribbon around them. i ordered the tags from scrap bits on etsy {love these tags!}.

hope the kids love them.

merry christmas, grace 2yr old class!

visit with santa

2011-12-03T16:52:00.001-06:00

as a parent, it is your understood duty that you have to take your child to see santa. over the past two years, we've been to the same location - bass pro shop. their set up is great and your get a free photo {and you can take your own without anyone fussing at you}.

here are the last two year's photos.

2009 - ugh - my digital camera was super crappy.

2010 - my camera was better but camryn was NOT happy about santa.

we've really been talking up santa this year - how nice he is, he brings you gifts if you are a good girl, you get to make gift requests when you meet him and you can have your picture made with him. now that we are dealing with a 2 1/2 year old, i'm not sure which i was more scared of:

1). she would freak out and start screaming and crying.
or
2.) she would get up there and get nervous and have a potty accident on his lap.

we got up this morning and got moving. the store opened at 9:00 but santa didn't arrive until 10:00. we got to the store around 9:30 and got in line. we were fourth in line.
while david was super-daddy and held our spot, camryn and i walked around the store. i tried to keep her entertained while we waited. we watched fish and the big bear .... and all was successful.

santa arrived at 10am and greeted the crowd. i might add that by 10:00am the line was roughly an hour wait. hooray for the early saturday risers.

right before it was camryn's turn she was a bit nervous but she walked right up to him and started talking to him.

he was so kind & patient with her.
she requested "legos and books, please."

the best photo of the day. i can't wait to have this one printed.

and she was completely excited about the candy cane treat at the end.

it was a great morning and we have one happy little girl on our hands. hooray for a great visit with santa claus.

advent calendar 2011

2011-12-01T21:51:00.001-06:00

i love an advent calendar. a couple of years ago, i made one. this one is made of small cardboard boxes with magnets on the back. the frame is a piece of metal covered in burlap. it is hanging in our kitchen and i love the pop of color on the wall.

this year, camryn finally understands the concept of christmas. i hung the advent calendar last week while decorating the house. i explained to her that we would be counting down to jesus' birthday.

her interpretation: we will be counting down until the day we go to jesus' house?

me: no, honey, i'm not ready to go to his house. but we can count down until his birthday.

camryn: okay, mommy. can i have a kissie?

camryn had to finish her dinner before beginning the countdown.
please excuse the wild-postpreschool-hot mess-hairdo. just keepin' it real here.

and, here's the kissie.

these little fingers can't move fast enough.

yummy.

i love starting this tradition with her. and hopefully, it will be incentive to finish her dinner every night! hooray for two lessons in one.

introducing susie

2011-11-27T13:27:00.001-06:00

this year marks a new christmas tradition for our family. we have entered the era of "elf on a shelf."

Source: mrsnielson-2ndgrade.blogspot.com via Annie on Pinterest

if you are not familiar with the story, the elf has been sent by santa to watch over your children to see to if they have been naughty or nice. each night your elf flies back to santa to give a report. when he returns each morning, he will land in a different spot in the house and you must find him.

there's only one rule about the elf - you cannot touch him. he will lose his magical powers and won't be able to fly back to santa. you can talk to him and tell him your christmas wishes but no touching.

we started reading the book to camryn the week before thanksgiving. in the book, it tells the child to name their elf. camryn quickly determined that it was a GURL {girl} but just wanted to call her ELF.

after some coaching, we finally decided on SUSIE elf. you know in the movie, ELF, when buddy and jovie have a baby girl? her name is susie. :)

susie started appearing throughout our house last week.

she's been found in camryn's stocking

and hiding in the christmas tree.

she's a sneaky little elf and camryn is enjoying finding her each morning. camryn fully understands the elf story now and proclaims 'no touching susie' and 'susie, i went poop in the potty.' let's just say susie is also a good potty training tool!

tooth fairy pillow

2011-11-26T21:21:00.001-06:00

i saw this tooth fairy pillow on pinterest and immediately pinned it.

Source: 2.bp.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

{hopefully} camryn is a long way away from losing her teeth but my nephew, ben, just lost his first tooth. i seized the opportunity to make a replica for him.

this is an easy project and i used scrap fabric to make it. plus i already had the cotton filler so it was FREE!

here's a quick run down of the makings of it.

i cut 3 pieces of fabric 4 1/2" x 7 1/2". two pieces are the same pattern {striped} and one is a coordinate {dots}. all 3 could be the same. i also free-handed the horns. mirror image of each other so that you will have fronts and backs. they are approx 2 1/2" tall x 1" wide.
on one of the stripes, i folded in half and ironed.

for the teeth, i used white felt. again, i free handed the teeth the width of the fabric {4 1/2"}

i folded the felt in half to make it double thickness. this just makes it more sturdy.

this is what is looks like before stitching.

pin down and straight stitch around the edges.

back to the striped fabric that was folded in half. i also ironed a neat little hem at the top and bottom.

refold and sandwich the finished "teeth" in between.

stitch closed. you've just created the "mouth."

now for the horns. pin your two horns with right sides facing each other. stitch around the edges but leave the straight bottom open.

flip right side out. i used the end of an artist's brush to gently poke out the edges.

fill each horn with cotton batting.

again, i used the paint brush to help. you can see how they start to have some dimension.

back to the face. i used white and black felt for the eyes. i traced around a quarter and a dime for my templates. i'm high-tech, ya know?

pin and stitch around the edges.

now, to start assembling.
lay the mouth on top of the main piece.

lay the horns over the top of the main piece facing down. make sure to line up the edges.
he sure looks mean here, doesn't he?

lay the coordinating {back} piece face down on top and pin all the way around.

sew around the edges leaving a 2 1/2" opening at the bottom.

turn right side out.

use paint brush to gently poke out the corners.

fill with cotton batting

and stitch closed.

and that's it.
this tooth fairy pillow is ready to start collecting the cash.

btw - i hear kids get paper money now for teeth... what happened to coins?

being neighborly

2011-11-20T20:02:00.001-06:00

we've lived in our house for 3 years now. we have really nice neighbors in our cove and a new couple just moved in the street across from us. for the past two holiday seasons, i've promised myself that i would make/share a special treat with our super awesome neighbors.

the past two holiday seasons have come and gone without treats. i find myself waiting until the week of christmas to really start to think about it and then i am so frazzled with a million other things that it just doesn't happen.

this year i acted early. i came up with a plan and i executed.

i mentioned before that i found these pumpkin muffins on pinterest.

best muffins ever. and ridiculously easy to make. i've made them for sunday school, work and now my neighbors. and everyone has loved them.

then, i found these adorable tags on the jones design company blog. emily makes the cutest printables and i couldn't resist. just print, cut out, punch holes and use hole reinforcers.

i found paper bakery boxes at joann's. i bought a couple of different sizes based on the size of the families in our neighborhood.

the large boxes held 9 muffins and the small boxes held 3 muffins.

i tied the tags on with baker's twine that i bought from here. {i am going to use it to wrap all of our christmas gifts, too}
i added a message, signed our names and delivered the goodies to our neighbors.

i can finally check the "neighbor gifts" off of my list! mission accomplished.

bama versus lsu

2011-11-12T22:31:00.001-06:00

i'm still catching up on last week's events.

to recap, we had halloween, tear down halloween decor and put up baby girl decor, baby shower for emily and chris. and lastly, a parent's weekend out of town.

we went to tuscaloosa for the weekend. it was the game of the century. you may have heard of it {if not, you should get out from under that rock}.

#1 lsu versus #2 alabama

i've mentioned on this blog before that we are alabama fans. david's family has season tickets to the football games and every spring, we divide up the tickets and choose which games we'd like to attend. we've never seen lsu play so david picked the november 5th game.

score! who knew it would be such a big game.

we could have sold those tickets for several hundred, maybe even $1000+, but there was no way we were missing that game. and david's pawpaw would have rolled over in his grave if we would have scalped those tickets.

the game started at 7pm but we got to campus around 10:30 am just to take in all the events of the day.

here are a few snapshots from game day:

i've not experienced espn's college game day live so it was a treat to see it in person.

the college game day broadcast tent. that tiny head behind the desk is lee corso.

lots of houndstooth ribbons in remembrance of the tornado victims on april 27, 2011

check out this guy's "hat".

yes, it is styrofoam and glitter!

~~red~~ crimson velvet cupcakes

the atmosphere inside the stadium was insane! it was so loud that david & i both had headaches. we had to practically scream at each other during the game just to have a conversation.

the "bear"

deep thoughts....

i'm sure you all know by now that bama lost the game but we had a blast. it was nice to have a camryn-free weekend {thanks, meme} and the weather was absolutely perfect in t-town. roll tide!

baby shower for emily

2011-11-10T20:28:00.001-06:00

my co-workers {myself included} like to host parties. actually, we just like an excuse to make appetizers and break out the wine. let's just be honest about it.

emily and her hubs are expecting their first baby. sweet avery should be arriving into the world next week. we took the opportunity to ~~have drinks and appetizers~~ shower them with gifts. david and i hosted the event at our house on the wednesday after halloween.

erin rocked out the decor. she found these paper lanterns on clearance at hob lob. we hung them from the stairway railing.

erin also made the yarn wrapped letters that she saw on pinterest. she said they were a lot more time consuming than she thought but aren't they cute?

and they make a great keepsake for the baby.

i finally got to use my white owl vase for the flowers.

the console behind the couch looked pretty cute. check out that yummy plate of food on the corner.

and the special post-partum treat for mommy.

i made a pennant for the mantle and mommy took it home for the nursery.

can you tell that mommy likes pink and yellow?

here's the mom and daddy to be.

the guys hung out by the food table all night - surprised?

chris and emily enjoyed opening their gifts.

i made them a UT onesie {even though it is against my religion}.

we had a fun night showering mommy and daddy with gifts. we can't wait to meet miss avery!

halloween 2011

2011-11-08T22:04:00.001-06:00

i know what you are thinking....it's about time. halloween was over one week ago.

yeah. yeah. yeah.

last week was crazy busy {more posts to come} so i am still catching up.

on to the important stuff....halloween night.

camryn has been practicing knocking on the door and saying "trick or treat" for a couple of weeks. she was very pumped to finally be able to get into action. and of course, she was very excited about dressing up.

this is a not-so-happy morning photo but i snapped a quick picture before preschool on halloween morning.

fast forward a few hours. i get an email from our HOA stating that one of the neighbors was going to have jumpers and games in their yard from 6-8:30 on halloween night. BONUS! super awesome to have this literally across the street from our house. our neighbor, kelly, told us that her church sponsored it. it was awesome - can you imagine coming home to this?

and yes, they had mega lights in the front yard!

camryn climbed all the way to the top of the slide by herself - mommy & daddy were impressed!

whee!

now, as you may know, it is hard to pry a two year old away from jumpers and slides. but what is the best bribe?

let's go get candy!

works like a charm!

david pulled her in the wagon through the neighborhood.
rough life, huh?

camryn did a great job knocking on the doors and saying "trick or treat."

i was really proud of her because she thanked almost everyone.

we stopped by marc and reagan's house to take a peak at sweet morgan. she is just 3 months old. what a cute little bunny!

camryn was quite tired on the way home. she laid her head on the side of the wagon while chowing down on some m&m's.

back at the house, we inspected the loot and picked out a few special treats.

she picked out two tootsie pops - one for herself and one for her friend tanner who stopped by.

tanner the tiger and cowgirl camryn enjoying their treats.

it was a long night and our sweet cowgirl needed a bath to remove all of the sticky face.

here's the last shot of the evening. let's just say that the halloween hangover was starting to set in!