Diaper Cakes & Baby Showers

Just a couple of diaper cakes for some showers....

This ultra girly one for my friend Karyss:

And this fire fighter diaper cake for my friend Holly's baby shower. 

I also strung together a little garland of firefighter onesies. Her husband and her dad are both firemen so it was the theme of the party.  I helped host with two of her other good friends and everything turned out super cute!  Check out these sweet favors and amazing cake my co hosts made:



A Shower for My Sister

My sister in law, Brigitte, is getting married.  Which means Landon is getting another uncle and I'm getting another brother! Yay!  It is such an exciting thing to have your family expanding.  I am so happy for Brigitte, she is just the sweetest sister in law ever.  She was the first person to really welcome me into the family when I started dating Ben and has always been so supportive and encouraging to both of us. 

So in honor of my lovely SIL (who threw me a fantastic baby shower) I threw her a bridal shower.  Brigitte's Aunt Sally was kind enough to host it at her beautiful home. 

Pictured above:  The lovely bride opening some presents, a picture of Brigitte and her soon to be mother-in-law, guests playing Bridal Bingo and the Clothespin Game.

Decor:  Chalkboard Frames, Painted Jars & Bottles, Cupcake Toppers, Cake Stand, Tissue Paper Pom Poms

I always like to creat an address-your-own-thank-you-card station where guests can write their address on an envelope and save the bride or expectant mother some time. It's such a busy and stressful few months leading up to a wedding or a birth that any little cut corner helps :)

Pictured above:  Me, Brigitte and Sydney (my other sister in law)

It was an easy shower to host with such a great group of women. I am so excited for my sister in law's big day!!  It's just around the corner!

Linked to:  Tatertots & Jello, Serenity Now, I Heart Nap Time, Snips & Spice, Nifty Thrifty Things,  I Heart Nap Time,  Not Just a Housewife, The DIY Showoff, The 36th Avenue, A Diamond in the Stuff

DIY Cup Cake Toppers

Why in the world are cup cake toppers so expensive?  It's only paper glued on to a toothpick!  So here is how you can make your own:

Toothpicks
Glue
Scrapbook paper
A Paper Punch (you don't need one but it certainly makes things easier!)

Easy Peasy!!

Cake Stand

I have been in major craft mode preparing for my sister-in-law's bridal shower (yay, another wedding for Landon to shower off his ring bearing skills)!!

So when Ben's grandma dropped off some stuff for our garage sale I found this little candle pillar in one of the boxes.  I put it aside it in hopes of creating some more cake stands. 

I eventually spray painted it gray and hot glued a purple plate on it.  Well, actually it's a purple charger....which according to the warning label technically you aren't supposed to use for food but I'm planning on either placing the lined cupcakes on it or using it for favors so no biggie :)

Linking Up: A Diamond in the Stuff, At Home With K, The 36th Avenue, I Heart Nap Time, Not JUST a Housewife

Jessica & Logan Get Hitched

My little sister is a married woman now!  I can hardly believe it and I'm SO happy for the both of them as they start their new lives together.  My entire family has been rooting for this boy to marry this girl since the very beginning and I think most of us knew Jessica would marry Logan before she did :)

Here is a glimpse into last Saturday's loveliness:

They couldn't have asked for a prettier venue! And my sister made a drop dead gorgeous bride.  I had a hard time holding it together when she walked down the aisle.  Little ring bearing Landon only made it half way down the aisle before he noticed he had everyones attention and started clapping.  My dad had the honor and privilege of marrying them (he married Ben and I too). 

Although sunny during the ceremony, the reception brought the rain and we were forced to rush through some formalities.  But hey, what's a wedding without something not going as planned? This is what I love about my sister, because while rain may have brought some brides to tears, Jessica was out dancing in the rain and loving every minute of it.  The rain was gone as quickly as it appeared and everyone continued celebrating.

From top left: Bridesmaids at the bridal party table.  Landon taking a bite of his grandpa's lunch.  Landon getting away with eating a cake pop, which he thoroughly enjoyed.  The Bride & Groom with the cake.

Mom & Dad with Jessica & Logan:

The Bride & Groom enjoying their first dance:

 Landon cutting a rug with his aunt:

Sisters:

My youngest sister, Jaclyn caught the bouquet :)

Bridesmaids posing in the AWESOME photo stand my dad built:

Ben, Landon and I:

Sending off the Bride & Groom:

So now it's official.  My little sister is married. Landon has his first uncle and I have my first brother.

Diaper Cake: Lost & Found

Do you ever lose pictures only to find them MONTHS later in the most random files?  Well, I do.  It's why I hardly ever delete anything off my camera.  These photos have been missing since September!!! And they have been recently uncovered in the file "Raymond Lake 2011."  Really, I don't know how it happens. 

So hooray for lost and FOUND!  And here is a tutorial for a diaper cake that I made for my dear friend Lindsey.

Here are my supplies for this particular cake:

For the Base:

• Cardboard
• Wrapping Paper
• Tape

For the Cake:

• Roughly 30 diapers (so hang on to those ones your kiddos grow out of!)

• Rubber bands

• Ribbon
• Flowers/Toys/Decorations of your choosing

• Bottle (I just used a plastic water bottle)
• Push Pins (or hot glue works too)

For the base,  cut a circle out of some cardboard (I used one of my many MANY Amazon boxes) and cover it with wrapping paper of your choosing.

For the cake, start by rolling up your diapers and rubber banding them.  Once you have them all made you can start playing around with your layers. 

The ratio I used for this cake:

• Base Layer  - 20 Diapers
• Middle Layer - 7 Diapers
• Top Layer - 3 Diapers.

Replace (or cover) your rubber bands with ribbons on the outer layer diapers.

I garnished the cake with some fake flowers to go with the colors of the shower, but I've also used small baby toys, rattles, pacifiers, etc. 

And now you have a gift and a decoration all rolled (literally) into one!!

A Very First Birthday Party

We had a little Nemo party for Landon's first birthday.  We invited immediate family only, which was a difficult decision since I wanted pretty much everyone I know to see my Little Wombat dive head first into his very first cake.  But I also didn't want him to be too overwhelmed and didn't think I could cram many people into my teeny tiny house.  Plus some of our family members don't get to see him all that often so I wanted them to be able to get some quality time with L.  I am incredibly thankful that we had so many awesome family members (some of whom traveled six hours round trip!) who were able to spend this special occasion with us!

{Cake Stands}       {Garland}

It is nearly impossible for Ben to get time off work so my poor husband had to go to work and then come home just in time for the festivities. Luckily, my parents and sister came down the night before to help out or else I'm not sure how I would have pulled this off. 

When everyone arrived, Landon quickly realized he was the center of everone's attention.  We are all putty in his hands and I swear he already knows it. He was eager to show off his new moves (walking).

He walked, he clapped, he waved and most importantly he had fun (which is the number one rule according to my mother). 

His cousin Ella helped him open his presents to speed things along.  Landon usually gets very distracted by bows and ribbons :)   I had to post this next picture because he is actually still wearing his shoes!!!  They are my favs for him to wear, but they are his favorite to take off.

Ben is an Air Traffic Controller, so I about died when I found this:

Pure joy while being tickled by his Auntie Jaclyn.

Our family photo. Somehow we ended up with a blue eyed, fair haired child.

And of course, the moment everyone had been waiting for: THE CAKE.  Landon took a few bites of cake and then was more interested in destroying it. Typical boy. My favorite part was when Ben said "This time, they won't find Nemo." Hahaha.

All bathed and enjoying his spring horse from Grandma and Grandpa.  This was originally supposed to be kept at their house but it is somehow still taking up half my living room! (Hint Hint Mom)

It was a great day and I am so glad my little man seemed to thoroughly enjoy himself.  I still CANNOT believe he is one.  It flew by.  It seems like he was just born yesterday and yet at the same time if feels as if he's always been a part of our family.  Year one was such a blessing and I can't wait to see what adventures year two brings :)

___

Linking to:

I Heart Nap Time

Serenity Now
Ni Hao Y'all
The 36th Avenue
Crafty, Scrappy, Happy
A Turtle's Life For Me

DIY Garland

I just love garland.  It gives any event a little extra flare.  A while ago I pinned a homemade Pom Pom Garland that was just to die for and I knew I had to try it.

Now that I have a curious little toddler who likes to climb things and eat bugs, I love finding easy to put down and pick back up again projects.  This craft was definitely a winner and will be making more appearances in parties to come...

I wasn't too worried about the quality of the yarn, so I just picked out some cheapo stuff at Walmart.  Start by wrapping your yarn around a wooden serving fork (any will do).  Take a small separate piece of yarn and tie tight knot around your creation.  Then simply slip the whole thing off the fork and cut the loops to make your pom pom!

For the next step, use a needle and yarn to string your poms together.  I tacked mine to the wall and then made some simple flowers out of napkins.

I'm so happy with the way the garland turned out....just wish I had taken some better pictures!!

Crepe Paper Flowers

So I have a couple showers to go to and since my last crepe paper flower was a bit of a hit, I've pretty much been making them for every present I wrap.  The more I make the easier and faster it gets.  I made these ones during Sesame Street:

All of my wrapping paper is from the dollar store...they have crepe paper there too!  If you would like to see my tutorial you can head on back to my original yellow crepe paper flower post :)

Linking Up:

A Turtle's Life For Me
Crafty, Scrappy, Happy
The 36th Avenue
Whipperberry

Bridal Shower

My little sister Jessica, is all grown up and getting married.  I am so SO happy for her and her fiance, Logan.  Wayyyyy before he even proposed I informed her that she should marry him...then I told her she couldn't get mad because I was pregnant and therefore got a free pass for such ramblings.  And now I am so  honored to stand at their wedding, to witness what my entire family has been praying and hoping for pretty much ever since we all met Logan.  And I am excited for my son Landon to get his very first official uncle (and he's getting another one in September when my SIL gets married too!)

ANYWAYS, kicking off the wedding festivities, my littlest sister Jaclyn (yep all J's) and I just threw Jess  a bridal shower up at my parent's house.  Here is a little peek:

Crepe Paper Flower Tutorial

Chalkboards

The whole lot of us:

Sisters
From left -  Jaclyn, Jessica, Me: