Dora Birthday

Okay, well, I know it's been almost a month, but I decided to record Natalie's birthday party for posterity. Since I stressed about it for weeks in advance, I figure it deserves a spot on the blog.

Of course we did a Dora themed party, since Natalie has been pretending she's Dora and I'm Boots for her whole second year on this earth. Well, did I order the bounce house and pizza and call it a day? Of course not, that would have been too easy! I planned a Dora course complete with a ransom note from Swiper who swiped our Dora pinata, a map to tell us where to go (through the musical garden, to starcatcher pond, and across Bubble bridge), and little activities along the way. Well, I guess all the hard work payed off, because Natalie and her friends really did have a great time. But next year, it's a bounce house.

A shout out to my friend Jodie who created this amazing Dora cake, yes folks, she molded each tiny character with love, she is amazing. See her cake blog here.



Dora and Diego tatoos for everyone, I didn't think church was the next day, oh swell!



The course begins:



Starcatcher Pond (a fountain near our house)



Natalie opens her presents, she wanted to play with each one afterward, and I'm like, "No, onto the next one, sorry Nat, you must open them all first!"



Sidenote: Seriously the week after this party, Natalie's favorite show switched from Dora to the Backyardigans, so I guess Dora went out with a bang.

Taggage.

So I've often read people's posts who say "I've been tagged." And then asked myself, "How come no one ever tags me (sniff)?" Well, thank you Erin, for thinking of little old me. Note: this is not an invitation for everyone and their dog to now tag me.

Here goes.

Three Joys:
1. Annie's Fluffy hair
2. Getting hugs from my kids and hubby.
3. Going out to dinner, preferably without the kids.

Three Fears:
1. My girls waking up too early from their nap/sleep.
2. Natalie hitting her face...again. Please let my child not scar her beautiful face because she happens to fall on hard things, A LOT.
3. Being bored.

Three Obsessions/Collections:
1. Ben Folds
2. blog hopping
3. keeping my mind/hands busy at all times.

Three Surprising Facts:
1. I used to watch "Lizzie McGuire" because I actually liked it.
2. Going to bed at 11pm is a late night for me.
3. I hardly had any pain when I gave birth to Annette. Even before the epidural.

Now I get to tag, hmmm...I tag Sara C., Natalie D., and Kathryn O.

Why, oh why...

Do I ever look at the Mini Boden Catalogue?





So cute...so unaffordable.

Things I Love Right Now

1. The Inspector Linley series on Mystery!...so good!



2. My fly swatter, because it's helped me kill about 40 flies in my house this last weekend...no exaggeration, so gross.



3. Google Reader...hello! Why didn't anybody tell me about this a long time ago? You check the blogs you love to check, only when they're updated, so you don't have to keep checking the sites to see if they've updated yet. So great.



4. Cricklers. A word puzzle I can sit and do in five minutes, need I say more.

5. The Olympics. The only sporting events I TRULY enjoy watching. I am so amazed by these athletes, it's been really fun to watch.



6. These hairbows I figured out how to do last night, I can't wait to make more! Now I have something to keep my hands busy while I watch tv. These ones are a picture I borrowed from the site I got the tutorial at, not mine. I used satin ribbon and they turned out really cute.



7. Sorry. I have to say it. The perfect summer weather we're having right now. Okay, I won't dwell for those of you who don't live here.

A Family Party

Everyone in my family was able to celebrate Nat's birthday with her, we had a lot of fun! Cupcakes at the park, yum!



The guests




Awww, young love...



Opening presents



Don't forget about me!




The big reveal, a new pink and purple bike from Grandma!



Cousins are the best! Brady, Lily, and Natalie.

She's...

Brand new



One



Two



And Three



Today is Natalie's Birthday. We love our little Nat girl, she is fun, friendly, loves her sister, loves to swim, jump, dance, and play. Our lives are so much fuller because you're here. We love you, Natalie.

Baby Girl Blanket

This is a gift I made for my friend for her baby. I just thought this fabric was totally her and had to get it. Then, I paired it with a pink plaid. I loved how it turned out. This is my first blanket I've ever made, believe it or not! I've made quilts, but not any blankets. It was totally fun and super easy, it just took one evening. I just looked at a blanket my friend Holly gave me when Natalie was born and copied hers! Thanks Holly!

Kelley's Shower

My friends and I were lucky enough to be able to plan our good friend, Kelley's, shower. We had so much fun planning and getting everything ready. It was a great evening spent poolside with good friends. I am so excited for Kelley to have a baby girl, she's such a great mom and I feel so lucky to know her.

Jen did a great job with the centerpieces, simple, but elegant.



Melissa C. used her baking talents and made this beautiful turtle dessert, it was yummy!



Yummy salad and rolls for dinner, a joint effort.



The venue. Sunset by the pool.



The guest of honor, what a cute prego!

This Morning

We had chocolate chip pancakes.



Annie liked them.

As Promised

Natalie modeling her new skirt. It was like pulling teeth to get her to do it.



P.S. Pictures of another sewing project coming soon...

How could anyone mistake me for a boy?

I'm so obviously not!

Some Fun Things

We've been doing some really fun things lately. I thought my friend had a really cute idea to give her daughter Tavy a "Fancy Nancy" themed party. The girls and I had a lot of fun dressing up for the party. Note to self: Even though invitations say to get dressed up, this usually applies to just your kids. You can wear your comfortable flip-flops instead of your "fancy" platform shoes. And by the way, getting ready for this party made me realize I am seriously lacking in fancy items in my wardrobe. Plain, plain, plain!



Then, it was so fun to have Natalie's cousins up last weekend, she just had a blast! I loved these pictures we got of Annie, this just totally shows off her personality. We had a picnic with In 'n Out, can't beat that!




And to top the day off, rolling down a grassy hill (check out Natalie, mid-somersault), thanks for coming up guys!

Simple Skirt

Thanks to Holly, I decided to try my hand at sewing a skirt for Natalie. And I think it turned out pretty cute, I'm so excited to try different variations on the same theme. Now that I know how to do it, this project will take no time at all, maybe about an hour. I would have taken pictures of the Nat girl modeling it, but she's sleeping...I'll post some later.

10 Things Done Over the 4th

1. James had fun building sand castles. (And Natalie too)


2. Watched this life guard tower topple over...twice. It was replaced the next morning.



3. Spent quality time with our girls, just relaxing.



4. Catan was played. Efforts were made by the Whites to become Lord(ess) of Catan, and we failed miserably. Darn it!



5. We attended the 4th of July Parade in Coronado, as you can see it was a big hit with Natalie.



6. Annie liked it!



7. Sand was eaten...and enjoyed thoroughly actually.



8. This view was enjoyed, every night.



9. Fireworks were watched (and a little tv, too).



10. A surrey ride with the L.'s. Yes, we did actually do this. And it WAS the highlight of the trip!