tea party baby shower: the menu

this is what really made the shower a success. i have very talented friends who made savory sandwiches and delicious desserts.

for some reason i struggled with what to serve at the party. i don't want you to struggle. i want you to copy if you would like!

we had chicken salad sandwiches served on crust-less white and wheat bread. i also made cucumber dill sandwiches on pumpernickel and my friend made tortilla spinners. all of these items were served on cake stands with paper doilies to continue the tea party feel.

my friends also made two salads and an assorted fruit tray. the final part of the menu was the most amazing part in my opinion.

charlotte's apricot and orange marmalade danishes:


melissa's white chocolate fudge:


and her cherry almond petit fours {garnished with white hydrangea which is not edible}:


and melissa's monogrammed sugar cookies {m is for micah, the baby girl's name}:


and finally melissa made mini carrot cake cupcakes which she embellished with toothpicks and paper that also had an "m":


the idea for food was to keep this fancy and dainty. i think my friends helped me to accomplish this! {thanks!}

of course there was tea, coffee and hot chocolate for non-tea drinkers.

24 hour redo

do you have a room that just confuses you? you don't know how to decorate it. you don't know what color to paint the walls? well, i have a room like that. my bathroom.

here is my issue. how do you take a 1969's bathroom {complete with mauve toilet and tub} and turn it into a cottage feeling-kid friendly-soothing for guest bathroom?

my first attempt was a calming color. so, days after moving into our new house i painted my white bathroom a mocha color.



hmmm... mission not accomplished. the room did not feel soothing nor kid friendly. i definitely did not achieve the cottage look i was going for. hmmm... how to fix this...


then a couple things happened.

i saw my friend melissa's all white bathroom. perfect for a cottage and for a small space. everything being white made the space feel larger.

then my sister gave me a can of green paint {which i ended up not using}. hmm...



finally i read an article about how to quickly perk up your bathroom. now an idea was coming together...

1.) paint the walls, trim and doors white. this will make the space feel bigger and will therefore be more soothing.

2.) paint the "furniture" {vanity and over the toilet cabinet} a spring green. this is cottagy and kid appropriate.

3.) do this as quickly as possible. need to get rid of that dreary bathroom stat!

so, last week the painting commenced. with much frustration, the walls went back to white. with some elbow grease, the door and trim white as well. with some delight the vanity went from ugly brown to green.







the bathroom isn't finished yet. of course i have more plans!

1.) we will hopefully be getting crisp, white toilet and tub this winter.

2.) i want to put a skirt on my vanity - continuing a cottage feel.

3.) new, all white shower curtain.

4.) more of the chalkboard towel hooks {i will DIY this project soon!}

5.) some candlelight, somehow, for me when i take baths.

6.) glass knobs on the vanity.

7.) some sort of bath toy storage.

8.) a step stool for my daughter for when she is old enough to brush her teeth!

tea party baby shower: tissue paper centerpieces

do you see tissue paper pom pom flowers on just about every blog?

i do.

so what is my response? copy it!


So last night, i decided to try one myself. my friend melissa had told me they were super easy to make. i was skeptical.

she was right.


i made a few large poms to hang from the ceiling in minutes. then i decided to try some smaller ones to see if they would look good in the tea tins i am planning on decorating the tables with.

they did.


see, for our guest of honor i really want to make her feel special - and she loves tea and flowers! problem is that real flowers are out of my budget. however, tissue paper flowers fit nicely into the budget, and if you try hard enough, i think you can convince yourself that they are peonies!




check out martha for instructions!

up to my neck...

in projects...

my goal is to have no house projects in december so that i can enjoy the holiday season and not be painting rooms, trim or furniture. so in light of that, i have been busy so far in november.


1.) we tore out our entry closet. now we need to put it back together.

2.) still need to finish up our hallway - touch up paint, get some cork, paint some frames

3.) last night i had a fever over 100. today i somehow woke up refreshed and started painting my bathroom. i had painted it once already when we moved into this house. unfortunately i disliked the color. now i am trying to correct it. painted the vanity and over the toilet cabinet spring green. painting the walls white (inspired by my super creative friend melissa and her white bathroom).

4.) i have random pieces of scrapbook and tissue paper all over my house in preparation for next weekend's shower. (many pictures to come)

5.) kitchen curtain and my daughter's curtains need to be made.

also daydreaming about christmas... decorating, gifts, food, parties...

tis the season to be busy!

mission accomplished

remember the post i showed you about the pottery barn shelves?


well, with some patience and some paint, i now have the shelves! 3 24 in. shelves for ... $18 total! that is what buying them unfinished and with coupons will accomplish. the finished 24 in. shelves at hobby lobby were $15 half price. for one. ouch.


so, i waited patiently for a 40% coupon and printed 3 of them to buy the shelves.


now, i need some cheap frames to put on the shelves.

it's halloween... time to start thinking about christmas

i am sorry. i can't help it. i love the season too much to resist.


november, i love you. i love you because you are the month that i start preparing for christmas. afterall, the preparing is the funnest part of the season!


so since i started thinking about christmas, i thought maybe you are too... here is something i found on a blog. i am thinking of doing my mantel this year in all greenery and mini- trees and moss topiaries.


anyone know a cheap place to get moss?

winter "one"derland part 2: snowmen

oh. my. gravy.


bh&g today had an enormous amount of really cute food ideas for snowmen. perfect for a winter themed birthday party. i was so excited when i saw their email today. so excited. no. snow excited.


hopefully you like these ideas too. i plan to copy like... all of them.


i know the food at the party will primarily be sweets, but why not for my sweet little girl? i plan on filling some of my jars with white candy as part of my decor. but i loved these ideas too!





any ideas for glass bottles i can use for the snowmen? the ribbon and donut holes will be easy, but what about a kid friendly white drink that comes in a glass bottle?