Family of a NAVY dentist

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Priority MALE Baby Shower

We had a sweet little couple move into our ward and she was just over 7 months pregnant. I remember how hard it was moving into a new ward, but it's especially hard when you are going to be experiencing another major change in your life, like having a baby! (I know because THIS happened when we were pregnant with Jack!)

I wanted to throw her a shower, since this was her first baby, and to help the little ladies in our ward get to know her better. Due to scheduling issues, we didn't get the shower date selected until after he arrived. Which was fine because then we would get to see the cute little guy, and he sure was cute.

Since he was such a SPECIAL DELIVERY, I thought about this cute theme while waiting in line to buy stamps at the United States Postal Office.

And I must admit, this was so much fun to put together.

Made these fun invites and ALL the "Priority MALE" tags using picmonkey.com.

I LOVE that site! Totally free!

I put quotes on parenthood and other great advice from wise people on these tags. I then asked the sweet little ladies of our ward to write down some of their own personal advice from their own experiences as a mother, grandmother, aunt, etc. I encouraged her to take these notes and make her own little scrapbook. Hopefully she does. :)

I ordered a few boxes, 4 different sizes on USPS website to use as decor. However, I did NOT read the fine print that said "10 per order" or WHATEVER the crap it said. So... I had 40 different sized boxes that arrived on my doorstep. Oooooooooooops! (See them in the corner - They served a great party favors when the guests left. HA!)

But really, I returned EVERY box back to the USPS, just with a few little pieces of tape on them - but practically brand new! The postal worker thanked me for bringing them back - TRUE story!

Fun decorations!

I used what I had from my 4th of July stuff and the USPS boxes!

The onesies were part of her gift from me, so really the decor was practically FREE!

Gotta love that!

Landon - PRIORITY MALE indeed!

Sk8ter Boi

Dear Jack,

Although your shirt may only be the request of your loving mother, please know that you really don't want to grow up too fast. You talk regularly about "when I am big like daddy..." and it makes me smile because you have BIG dreams, but stay little my boy for as long as you can.

Stay sweet, still wanting to hold my hand. Stay loving, telling me "Sweet dreams and I love you Mommy" as I tuck you in each night. Stay innocent, batting those lashes to get you out of anything. Stay kind, rushing to the aid of your baby sister whenever she makes a sound. Stay carefree, rocking a cape, cowboy boots, and a soccer uniform all in the same outfit. Stay hopeful, believing the good in everyone you meet. Stay faithful, remembering that you are a child of God. Stay strong and brave, like Captain America and Ironman. Stay funny, making silly faces and singing your own made up songs. Stay smart, "Just like daddy." But most important, stay my little Sk8ter boi forever.

Monday, March 23, 2015

This CHICK is SIX!

A few months ago , I asked my girl what she wanted for her birthday party. Afton quickly responded, "A costume party."

Okay. Here you go sweet girl!

The Invites!

Made on www.picmonkey.com

The PARTY favors!

The Decor!

The best thing about the decor was that most of it (besides the masks from the dollar store and balloons), was just stuff we already had around the house. Many of the costumes have been donated to my girl from friends who have outgrown them so that is why we have so many! Cheap and easy way to decorate for a party, but still so much fun.

The food!

I can never get good pictures of this setting because of the lighting, but I thought it turned out cute. Just use your imagination!

Jocelyn was supposed to be a minion, but I gave her overalls away on accident in my rush to get rid of old baby clothes. Oops!

She was a last minute butterfly instead.

Daddy was supposed to be a dentist, but he was too cool for school to put on a costume (until the actual party was over).

I was a zookeeper.

Jack was Captain America.

Afton was Elsa, so "Flurryless Olaf" was her supporting costume food.

Cousin cowboy Andrew building an Olaf.

Her cake.

I tried to turn it into a 6!

Oh well.

You get the point.

The games!

I love melonheadz illustrations because they are so simple and cute. I used these to create a "Build a Costume" game.

The kids had to spin the wheel to build from one of these 6 different costumes.

(Don't worry. No USPS boxes were harmed in this game and all boxes will be broken down and returned, just like new to my nearest post office! I promise!)

Cheer leader, fire fighter,

mermaid, football player, Batman,

and robot.

To be honest, I thought the kids would really like this game. HOWEVER, it was NOT as captivating as I envisioned in my mind. They stuck around for their turn only, then quickly ran to the bounce house or trampoline. My little cousin Noah, said "I like the game when we get to throw darts at balloons A LOT better than this one!"

Noted. Thank you for your honestly little dude! :)

The rest of the Celebration!

She was so spoiled by all of her friends and family!

Some of the best gifts were, "A real live fish - like a real one, a skateboard, knee pads, pens, paints, dresses, bathing suits, books, well basically all of it. Oh, and my cool towel thing that has my name on it!"

The guests' costumes!