jaina's cooking party!

Jaina chose cooking for her birthday party theme about six months ago, and we've been talking about it ever since. She knew she wanted to make her own food, and I knew I wanted to use all of my vintage pyrex. ;)

 I've brought home so many vintage baking and tin pieces from my grandma's this year, and I love being able to use them.

It's fun when your dining room decor goes along with you party decor. ;)

I was a little stressed thinking of planning a birthday party just a few weeks after my sister's wedding, but turns out make-your-own food parties are THE BEST!

I made pasta and quinoa salads the day before, the kids topped their own pizzas and decorated their own cupcakes! No staying up late melting chocolate and icing cakes!

 I've loved that red Costco stool ever since I was a kid, and I'm so glad my girls get to use it now.

Plus you don't have to plan any games since cooking is quite an activity on it's own.

  When you're four you start to look quite grown up. ;)

Now I'm hungry...

 While the kiddos were waiting for their pizzas they played in Jaina's play kitchen, and I made "grown up" pizzas for the adults. Pesto broccoli, pepperoni basil, and sausage spinach provolone.

We always have the guests sign a "birthday book". This year's was Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. 

I came up with the idea for these paper chef's hats, and they couldn't have been easier. I printed a page with each kid's name on it - landscape and centered at the bottom. Then taped it to another piece of paper and drew the lines on with a fine-tip Sharpie. It didn't matter if the lines were wavy since it only helped to make it more realistic. Each kid also got their own apron for their favor.

I always wanna know what they're talking about!

That evening Jaina gave me a big hug and said she had sooooooo much fun at her party. So sweet!

This girl's gonna have some big adventures while she's four. Preschool, ballet, and who knows what else! She is kind, helpful, funny, responsible, thoughtful, and getting braver every day. I can't wait to see how she continues to grow!



Party Credits
Party Styling: Kara Hallead
Aprons: Hobby Lobby
Linens: Vintage
Dishware: Vintage
Chair: Vintage Costco stool
Banner paper: A.C. Moore

fiona's boho indian room

Welcome to my favorite room in the house!

Fiona's nursery is basically all of my favorite things in one room. India! Saris! Pillows! Wicker! Elephants! It's all about the textiles in here, and I love how lush it feels. The paint color is peach/salmon/pink - depending on the light - and is inspired by Hawa Mahal or the "Pink Palace" in Jaipur, western India. I visited Jaipur with my dad during my junior year of high school, and it was my favorite place in India.

Take a tour with me!

Jaina helped me color in these elephants before Fiona was born.

And she gladly donated her wooden animals for her baby sister's room.

Crocheted wall hanging and pom-pom garland by me. 

Photograph by my sister, Faith! Gorgeous, no?

Kind of obsessed with my new pom-pom maker.

I could make these things all day. They're a ton of fun. 

Possible future Etsy business. ;)

Fiona's first Christmas gift. Jaina also has a print by this artist.

The good old Rockasan got a new cover.

Both the lamp and the shade were from a local thrift store, though bought at different times. 

I added the pom-pom trim.

The sari over the crib is mine that I wore a few times. 

It's hung on three hanging plant hooks from Lowes. 

I sewed a few ties onto the fabric to secure it to the side of the crib. 

That way she can't pull it all in on herself.

I made the crib skirt from fabric that was on clearance at Joann's for around $2 a yard!

Stuffed elephant from Pier 1. Pillow and matching quilt brought back from India by Mom.

The mobile is from Thailand, brought back by Aunt Grace & Aunt Faith.

The curtains were from Pier 1 a long time ago. 

I've had them in this room since it was the guest room.

Cute little elephant hamper from good old Wehrly's Auction!

The fruit crates were my dad's. 

He used them to keep his records in while he was in college, and so did I. 

The painting is by my sister, Rebekah. 

The clothing pieces were either mine or the girls' from India, China, and Thailand.

I bought this clock at Wehrly's years ago. 

Beka stole it for a while, but I got it back and finally get to enjoy it. 

The Salwar is mine and is what I wore to see the Taj Mahal!

These pictures were taken over two months ago. Little Missy has grown up quite a bit since then!

Headband, bloomers, and stuffed elephant from Aunt Natalie brought back from Russia and Thailand.

"I don't do stuff on my head, Mom. You know this."

I've gotten to spend a looooot of time in this room, and I'm so glad I took the time to make it pretty. Sweety-Peety can't concentrate to eat unless she's in a darkened room, so a couple times a day I get to curl up and spend some quiet time in here.

Because we already had all of the furniture and most of the fabrics and pillows, I hardly bought anything for this room. I think the hamper, changing pad cover, and papasan cushion are about it. Someday we hope to move the girls into a room together, and I hope I can convince them to keep the boho-Indian theme cause it makes me very happy. ;)

candyland birthday party

Jaina turned THREE last month. This was one of those milestones when she actually seemed to change overnight. Three-year-olds can do simple addition (3 people in our family + 1 baby = 4 people in our family). Three-year-olds have vivid imaginations ("Pet my doggy, Mommy!" It's a string.). Three-year-olds like to pick out their own clothes (usually every piece in exactly the same shade because it "matches"). And three-year-olds ask "Why?"

All. 

The. 

Time. 

I had a blast getting her party ready. We chose a Candyland theme together months ago, and I've been pulling things together.

With New Baby on the way and being on "no lifting" orders from the doctor, I was determined to keep this year's party as low-key as possible. It was really nice to just have the party at our house, however squished it may be, and casually set up over the course of the week.

However, coming up with a candy-themed menu for a kid who's only ever had, like, 8 pieces of candy (not kidding) was rather tricky. We got creative, though. Everything within little hands' reach was fruit, vegetables, popcorn, and cheese. They had to ask to get to the good stuff.

Here's a tip on the cupcake-cones. Do NOT store them in an enclosed container. 

They become a soggy mess. Had to make round two the night before the party.

Kool-Aid Marshmallow Pops, Peanut Clusters, and Peppermint Lollipops

Babybel Cheese Pops

My friend (and practically cousin), Laura Harbold made these gorgeous Candyland gamepiece cookies for the party. Hire her! She is so talented. And they tasted great, too. Sugar cookies with lemon icing. Yum!

I just had to have the game pieces from the Candyland version I grew up with. The classic gingerbread men were a must. Thankfully I found someone to borrow the old game from since the one Mom and Dad had must have disintegrated over the years! These guys (washed, of course) became the cutest little cupcake toppers. I also used Starburst for the game path and the sugared Air Heads gummi rainbows.

The tortilla pinwheels on the left are one of my favorite appetizer recipes. They have roast beef, asparagus, and horseradish in them. Way yummy.

The cloud in the background was from the Rain Baby Shower I did a few years ago. The candy garlands were painstakingly threaded by me. Not sure I'd do it again. They were a sticky, gooey mess to make, and gumdrops and marshmallows are surprisingly heavy. The fishing line stretched a bit over the evening, but thankfully didn't fall down completely. 

Definitely the best version of Candyland. Princess Lolly is so cute!

Favors were just as hard to plan as the menu since I know our friends don't really do candy with their kids either. I found really cute ice cream cups for each kid, added stickers, crayons, coloring cards, one of Laura's special cookies, and a toothbrush. ; ) I also found the cutest little cupcake rattle for a tiny baby who was at the party! I was tickled about that. 

To make the coloring cards, I downloaded coloring pages that fit the theme, resized them to fit four to a page, and printed them out on card stock. I really like how they turned out, and I'll definitely use that for favors in the future.

Ten minutes before the party was supposed to start a huge rainstorm rolled in. Half the party was supposed to take place outside, so we had to bring things in pretty quickly. One part of the decor that isn't pictured is the giant lollipops and cellophane wrapped candies I had out front.

We started with a life-sized Candyland game for the kiddos. We taped a construction paper path from the front sidewalk, past the lollipops, to inside, through the living room, kitchen, and dining room, then it was supposed to go out back and end in the castle tent.

It was extremely hard to find graphics for the 80s version of the Candyland characters, but I eventually found some that someone had made. I made posters of each character and had them at all the "special" game spaces.

Two kiddos actually remained focused till the end! Yay! Pretty good for a toddler game.

She knew the pretzels were the only thing she could help herself to. I think she ate half the bowl.

I made Jaina's cupcake bow for the party. First time I've ever attempted the whole "boutique bow" thing. It's harder than it looks.

Over my shoulder you can see Princess Lolly and the lollipop game space on the ground.

Playing with the fancy new baby carrier!

Yup, totally pulled a Ryan Reynolds and put baby's feet out the bottom. We figured it out later.

Just three very pregnant mamas making candy necklaces with for their kiddos.

Even with the rain and only having my point and shoot camera this was my favorite party for Jaina so far. She really had fun and loved having her grandparents and friends over. She kept showing everyone her favorite foods and decorations and "introducing" them to all of the character posters. I'm glad my girl loves to party as much as I do!


Party Credits
Party Styling: Kara Hallead of Kara's Domestic Life
Desserts: Kara Hallead and Charlotte Sprenkle
Gingerbread Gamepiece Cookies: Laura Harbold
Peppermint Lollipops: Inspired by Find It Make It Love It!
Kool-Aid Marshmallow Pops: Inspired by The Decorated Cookie
Tablecloth fabric: Joann Fabrics
Favors: Party City & Dollar Tree
Sandwiches: Giant Food Stores