Lemon & Lime Wedding {Save the Date}

I've had so many wedding invitation projects lately. It's fun to work with these unique couples to create a feel for their big day. Above is a save the date design for lemon and lime themed summer wedding. The photo is one from the engagement shoot I did with them in April. I loved the pose and was so sad when those yellow wild flowers stopped blooming. Now, it's just blooming HOT. Below are a few shots from their session. Aren't they sweet?

Marin's Ballet Recital {May 19, 2012}

 Do you SEE that face? Oh, my....I can't tell you how much I hope that the weekend of May 19, 2012 is one that Marin remembers with fondness. Because I'm going to tell you, right now, I would never survive as a "Dance Mom." Seriously. That much makeup and hairspray on a four year old just feels WRONG. Speaking of makeup, the best moment was when Marin insisted that she KNEW how to put on makeup and so thought to myself "okay, I'll let her do the blush." Handing her the blush I turned to do something else and when I looked back she was applying pink rouge to every surface of her face. I think I might have over reacted just a tad when I realized what she was doing. Below is a shot of the second attempt.

I can't tell you why really, but I was SO NERVOUS for Marin. I guess this was our first performance oriented demonstration and I had such fears for her. What if she falls? Or what if they do something cute and people laugh? Marin HATES for people to laugh at her even when she is being funny. What if she can't find her "x" or what if another little girl stands on Marin's "x". How will she react? Marin sees things in black and white. No grey areas allowed. Something either is or isn't and if there is a rule, or practice, that's just the way things are. So for something to CHANGE is challenging. All my worry was in vain. She was a star!

She will be turning five next month. Funny, to think about her begging to take ballet when she was only three and I told her she had to wait until she was four. At the time, that was nine months away. She waited patiently and ballet was the first thing on her mind after her fourth birthday party. This post has a picture of her first class.

Giving each of my girls extended, focused attention, or one on one time, is difficult and rare. This was a special time for me and for Marin. Doing girly stuff. Spending time with close friends and doing something new outside of both our comfort zones.

A little glimpse of the "back stage" activities. Mermaid coloring pages for everyone. That and a wild and crazy round of UNO.  

Our New Patio

I don't know how many times, while giving tours to friends and family, I've said: "The plan is to make this room our family room with a set of french doors going out onto a patio into the back yard." Two down, one to go! We have french doors AND a fresh new patio!!!! My hardworking hubby and his Dad did all the work on forming, pouring and finishing our new, wash gravel patio. Here are a few shots of the process.

Can you believe how agile my father-in-law is? Amazing to watch how fast and hard he works.

 The girls watching paw paw and Daddy in action. 

Today Steven is burring a pipe for the rain gutter to drain into and then we'll be working on the flower bed between the house and the sidewalk. We are already enjoying the new space. Here's proof:

Adalyn's Eyes

Through your eyes skies look brighter
Grass more green clouds are whiter.
When you're close cares grow lighter,
I'm glad that you were born.
Through your eyes hills stretch higher.
When you smile you inspire hearts to sing in a choir.
I'm glad that you were born.
Born to laugh, born to dream
Born to spread your light.
Through your eyes I see clearer
You bring God so much nearer.
Life has grown so much dearer,
I'm glad that you were...

Born to laugh, born to dream.
Born to spread your light.

Through your eyes I see clearer You being God so much nearer. Life has grown so much dearer I'm glad that you were born.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, musical Composed by Gene de Paul

These lyrics are how I feel about Adalyn's eyes. Which is why they were incorporated into the invitation design for her first birthday. And here I am celebrating another year with her and thinking about the magic of her eyes. Happy birthday, little one. I love you!

Butterfly Birthday {The Party}

It rained the day of Adalyn's butterfly birthday party. So, all of my plans for sun filled, happy photos were "drenched." Instead the crowd moved inside and we celebrated in tight quarters under low light. The birthday girl on the other hand was GLOWING. See how excited she was to show off her butterfly cake?! That's what matters, right?

I filled vintage butterfly tea cups with "Flower straws" and labeled the drinks "nectar." (My mom's clever idea.) The Butterfly shaped chalk boards were at Michaels.

 The centerpiece was two butterfly catchers and magnetic butterflies in a simple vase. The bowl of caterpillars (gummy worms) were a big hit.

 The girls and I had a blast making these candy filled butterflies. Inspired by this post. Adalyn was SCARED of the googly eyes when they were in the package but were okay with them once we had them on the butterfly bodies. Too funny. The kiddos loved them and they were simple to make. Clothes pins covered in colored paper. Black pipe cleaner for the antennas. Googly eyes and candy bags filled with Skittles (Adalyn's favorite candy).

 The cake was inspired by her butterfly feet birthday party invitation. The wings were heart shaped and it was delicious!

 She had a blast opening gifts and was so sweet to everyone. I could listen to her say "tank too" over and over. Oh, and can you believe that she actually wore that adorable butterfly wing head band all evening?!

Happy birthday, sweet Adalyn. We love you!

Metamorphosis {aka The Very Hungry Caterpillar}

Just so you know, my mom is really cool.

She makes finding caterpillars and putting them in containers for her granddaughters a priority. End result? They L.O.V.E "Ganny." Here are photos of Granny and the girls on May 8. Hello new caterpillar friend that we will check on daily with great anticipation of metamorphosis.

For the last 16 days this little fella was given prominent placement on their dresser and checked with diligence each day for progress. Today May 24, 2012, was a BIG deal because their caterpillar became "a beautiful butterfly." (Excuse the hair, ahem. We were playing in the sprinkler just before the release.)

The object of our affection was a gulf fritillary butterfly. Here is a great video on its life cycle.

Thank you, again Granny.

Butterfly Birthday Feet {The Invitation}

We celebrated Adalyn's second birthday on Tuesday with a butterfly theme birthday party. I was inspired by butterfly feet artwork that I found on Pinterest. I tracked down the party and it's a sweet story. I loved that the size of Adalyn's feet would be captured at a time where a baby becomes a toddler so the footprints that make the butterfly are her actual footprint at 100%.

The girls had a BLAST making the butterflies. By the end of our project the bottoms of their feet were an awful color. I found that ink pads worked much better than paint. To make the invitation above I made prints of Adalyns feet in black ink, scanned in the prints and changed the colors using Photoshop. However, the girls enjoyed making many butterflies of various colors with just the ink pads. Here is a sampling: