Raleigh's Winter ONEderland

Our sweet little Raleigh turned ONE yesterday! We celebrated with a Winter ONEderland Snowflake theme, and loved sharing the day with our family and friends!

 

  

 The birthday girl exploring her party decorations!

 

 The gorgeous photograph was brought as a surprise by her grandfather!

 

  

We are so in love with her!

The framed signs and folded labels were ordered custom from Grace and Guy Paperie Design Co.

The Polar Pie recipe is from Pen N' Paperflowers.

The invitations (not pictured) were ordered from Party Paper Printables.

Our little love Harlow,

 

You are THREE.

You are gorgeous, smart, and kind.

You are silly and fun. 

You always ask to smell the flowers.

 And you love cupcakes, cookies, and popcorn.

 Oh, and apples too.

 

 You had a summer love affair with ponies...

that may have been replaced by ballet.

 Or maybe you just prefer horses named Buttercup that fit in your arms.

You are the most loving big sister.

 

 But you will always be our little princess.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl. We love you more everyday.

Printables were purchased from The Green Grass Grows.

The stork should be visiting around January 9th!

We are so excited for this next sweet girl! From the ultrasound profile, it looks like Harlow may have a twin!

Some Things Old, Some Things New, Some Things Borrowed (But Not Too Much Blue)!

My next step in party planning is to make lists, lots of lists, and to add in links when I can. I usually have these lists in a Word doc or in an email to myself (so I can access them from my phone any where). I start by searching my theme keywords ("barnyard birthday," "farm birthday," "sheep cake," etc.) in Google, Pinterest, and Etsy to get some inspiration. The following list started out with just a few notes and links, and as my ideas grew, so did the list. Once you have 20 + items, it's time to categorize as I did below. Also, you may notice that this list is not complete... I'll be referring to it and filling in sections over the next month.

*Whenever possible, try to think of an alternative that can be borrowed or crafted. Sure, some beautiful  milk glass platters would be amazing to serve the food on, but I will be borrowing clear plastic serving ware from Grandma Reil. And yes, it would be simple to purchase felt board animals, but it's cheaper to make them, and a special gift you can keep for rainy day play!

Inspiration
Let's Party: BARNYARD BASH!
Sweet & Girly Barnyard Birthday

Main Colors
Red
Pink
White

Set-Up
4 Adult Tables (Borrow from Grandma and Grandpa Reil)
Straw Bales as Seating (Purchase)
Tot Table
1 Food Table (Borrow from Grandma and Grandpa Reil)
1 Dessert Table (Borrow from Grandma and Grandpa Reil)
1 Gift Wagon
Corrals for Petting Zoo (Project for Seth)

Decorations
4 Adult Tables:
4 Red Gingham Tablecloths (Found On Sale by Nana at Fred Meyer)
Burlap Roll Table Runners (Purchase Burlap at Jo-Ann  Fabrics & Crafts)
4 Red, Pink, and White Gerbera Daisy Bouquets
Jars for Bouquets
Ribbon for Bouquets
Balloons

Activities
Petting Corrals (Sheep, Chickens, possibly Horse, Cow, Pig)
Large Farm Felt Board (Homemade Craft)
Pin the Tail on the Pig (Homemade Craft)
Slip 'N Slide (Purchase)
Coloring (Printables and assemble Crayon Kits)
Animal Songs (Borrow)
Corn Hole (Already Own)
Music (Pandora)

Drinks
Water Bottle Labels (Purchase Printables and DIY)
Food

Desserts (plural... always plural)
Sundae Bar:
Galvanized Bucket with Ice
3 Ice Cream Scoops
Vanilla, Chocolate, and Strawberry Ice Cream
Waffle Cones and Bowls, Spoons
Wood Berry Baskets (Wash with Red Acrylic Paint)
Wooden Scoops
10 Basket Toppings: Sprinkles, Crushed Oreos, Brownie Bits, Gummy Worms, Sliced Strawberries, Sliced Bananas, Raspberries, M&M'S, Chocolate Chip Mix (White, Milk, Dark), Cinnamon Apples and Granola
Other Toppings: Chocolate Syrup, Carmel Syrup, Strawberry Sauce, Whipped Cream
Sundae Bar Banner (Homemade Craft)
Topping Labels

Cake

Easter Weekend

Happy Easter!

We had a wonderful weekend! On Saturday morning Harlow opened an Easter package from her Nana and Opa! After, we went to a friend's house for a BBQ and then to Home Depot for some plants. Seth planted some spring flowers in the front yard and I filled Easter eggs on the front porch while Harlow took a much needed nap, and then later she explored the new additions to the yard and used her sidewalk chalk for the first time. She LOVES drawing outside!

 

I'm really excited for these plants to grow! In the flowerbed, the larger plants are Evergreen Azaleas. They are supposed to get quite large, and I'm hoping soon, because all I want is for the base of the house (where it is discolored) to be hidden! The row of potted plants is Seth's genius way of baby-proofing the yard! There used to be a fence there years ago, but all we were left with were short metal base poles that could have been very dangerous if Harlow tripped near them. We bought the plastic pots and he drilled holes in the base of each wide enough for the metal poles to fit into, so now we don't have to worry about her falling!

When Harlow woke up on Sunday, she discovered that the Easter Bunny had been in her room and left her presents! We found her standing in her crib, pointing to her gifts, and asking, "What is it?! What is it?!" She was so excited! The Easter Bunny left eggs filled with snacks (organic cheddar bunnies, fruit snacks, yogurt melts, and animal crackers) as well as hair clips and stickers, fingerpaints and paper, new books, a lunchbox for picnics at the park, bunny slippers, and a bunny plate, cup, and bowl set!

 

A little later in the day we had a small Easter Brunch with our San Diego family! Well, we've known these friends so long, and celebrated holidays with them over the years, so we consider them family! I had a little too much fun making a "hoppy easter" banner, centerpiece, and cupcake toppers! I hadn't finished making the deviled eggs yet when these photos were taken, and some of the food was already eaten, but at least I got a picture! Seth made the most delicious breakfast bruschetta and chicken salad on croissants. I made cupcakes, fruit salad, and of course, deviled eggs.

   

 We had fun hiding Easter eggs for the little ones! I of course filled them with stickers and healthy snacks, since they were already getting cupcakes and jelly beans! Can I just say that I LOVE planning things for Harlow and her friends?

 

 Harlow was pretty interested in the Egg Hunt sign at first, but then started to pick up a few with our help! She also liked to take a break from searching to open them and have a snack! After a few minutes though, she decided to give us her eggs and focus on chalk and an orange that fell from our tree. While JJ, Kaydence, Dylan, and Daphne opened their eggs, Harlow decided to play some more in the front yard!

 

Right before her bath, Harlow used her new fingerpaints from the Easter Bunny and created her first fingerpainting! She also painted the floor, rug, fridge, herself, and me! Thank you, Crayola, for creating washable fun! 

All clean and wearing her bunny pajamas from Nana and Opa, and her bunny slippers from Mommy and Daddy! We hope you had a wonderful Easter too!