“Listen to the wisdom of the toothless ones.” 

~Fijian Proverb

A quick snapshot of my little man + his new toothless grin. I treasure the craziness in this photograph–his crazy hair, the signature way he loves to wear his shirt both backwards + inside-out, his cute little grin after a visit from the tooth fairy, and the fact that he only stayed like this for oh, two seconds…THIS is Jackson at five years old. Not all photographs have to be perfect to have a special place in your heart–to me, this is my perfection.

xoxo,

mama

 ”It takes a long time to become young.”

~pablo picasso

This year for our sweet Addie’s birthday, a Muddy Puddles party with Peppa Pig was a MUST. This little girl is OBSESSED. Have you ever seen this little gem of a show? Simply darling! Because it is a British show, anything Peppa Pig is nearly impossible to come by here in the U.S., so I decided to make it a celebration of muddy puddles–one of the Pig family’s favorite activities! Guests could step in “muddy puddles” made from kraft paper as they walked to the door, don a pair of rain boots and step on in!

The invitation set the tone for the party–I used an adorable template from Oh Snap Boutique and customized it a bit for the party–LOVE! The ever-talented Melissa of Decadent Delight Cakes used it to design the most perfect cake–Addie was WAY impressed to see herself standing next to Peppa on top!

72 votes

The darling puffy heart clouds made by my dear friend Grace of Finley and Oliver were amazing! Don’t you LOVE!

69 votes

I couldn’t resist this little green piggy when I spotted him at Homegoods!

67 votes

The fondant cupcake toppers are a spitting image of Peppa and were created by the fabulous Charynn of Two Sugar Babies!

67 votes

66 votes

67 votes

I placed little rubber balls–what child (or adult!) doesn’t love them?–inside these with stickers that say, “We had a BALL!”–I placed them in this fabulous antique shop find that I spray painted pink. LOVE it, and I plan to use it to put photographs in and cards at Christmas time. FUN!

67 votes

67 votes

64 votes

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These little pinwheels are always quite the hit (I used them as Humvee Tires for Jackson’s Army Birthday), and now they are “Muddy Puddle Jumpers”!

65 votes

Addison is a book fanatic AND a Peppa fanatic, so I ordered this awesome personalized Peppa book, “Peppa Goes to Addie’s Birthday Party” and had the guests sign it for her.

67 votes

65 votes

Muddy puddle cups, of course.

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67 votes

 Thanks for taking a peek at our fun! Happy birthday, sweet girl!

Vendors

Peppa Pig Cake with fondant Toppers | Decadent Delight Cakes

Fondant Cupcake Toppers | Two Sugar Babies

Felt Cloud Mobiles with Hearts | Finley and Oliver {diy tutorial here}

Felt Hearts on Sticks | Finley and Oliver

Invitation + Party Signage | Original Template with clouds + hearts from Oh Snap Boutique, customized with colors, fonts, papers and Peppa by moi.

Addie’s Chevron Dress | The Fresh Stitch

Backdrop Fabric | Hobby Lobby

Green + Pink Long-Stemmed Blooms | Hobby Lobby

Chevron Favor Bags | Shop Sweet Lulu

Turquoise Frame | Fanciful Frames

Fabric Bunting | Ivy and A

xoxo,

laura

“Angels can fly because they carry no burdens. “

~ The Angels’ Little Instruction Book, Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994

I simply adore these two talented designers!! The precious outfit–perfect for spring!!–is from Cici & Ryann, while the fabulous backpack is Merah Muda. LOVE!  Head on over + give them some love!  More fun commercial images from both designers coming up soon…:)

30 votes

30 votes

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30 votes

30 votes

30 votes

31 votes

Angel Backpack | Merah Muda

Skirt, Top + Headband | Cici & Ryann

xoxo,

laura

“That’s what makes it so right. Your eyes– your soul is there, but the rest of you is still so undefined. That’s the beauty of childhood. The eyes show everything you’ve seen so far, but the rest of you is still so open to possibility, to whatever you might become.”

~bree despain

I just love this sweet little number from the talented Heather of laken & lila. So lovely in its vintage cuteness.  Addie felt so comfortable in it and had a blast running around pushing this old toy. I loved the little smile on her face as she pushed it–I would have thought it was too young a toy for an almost-three-year-old, but it brought such joy! Oh, and don’t you simply ahhh-dore that cute little pink wooden camera? Yep, I kind of have a problem with little camera props. The kids are in love with it, though, and have been posing and photographing their stuffed animals in all the best-lit places in the house.

12 votes

12 votes

17 votes

15 votes

The Ana Vintage Vibe Dress | laken & lila

Knit Hat | Three Yellow Starfish

Pink Wooden Camera | Twig Creative

xoxo,

laura

“This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.” 

~Elmer Davis

25 votes

I am FINALLY getting around to blogging some of the birthday parties that my kiddos have had–yay! Jackson wanted an “ARMY” party for his 5th birthday, so this modern mama tried her best to give that camo a little umpf! As an army brat myself, this party was a blast to plan, and we had the resident Colonel {my dad!} to ask questions of to ensure authenticity!

30 votes

The kiddos were each given buckets filled with dog tags, camo scarves and canteens so that we could begin boot camp in style! Jack was one happy soldier!

25 votes

I made this camo corn and coordinating signage using a recipe found on the fabulous Pinterest, of course! Popcorn, jelly beans and m&ms…mmm!

26 votes

I found these amazing chocolate covered marshmallow and graham cracker cookies and knew I had to use them!  We found the authentic ammunition crates at an Army Surplus store, and they were the perfect perch for Jack’s little army vehicles!

24 votes

The talented and creative Melissa of Decadent Delights made my “modern camo” vision come to life with this stunning cake–complete with dog tags and Army Jack on top! The inside is just as fabulous as the outside! Jack chose chocolate chip cake with chocolate mousse frosting. Divine!!

21 votes

Each child was given a kraft gable box labeled “CHOW for Jack’s Army”, filled with PB+J Sandwiches, chips, apples and other yummy sustenance for the troops!

22 votes

Adults dined on yummies from the Taco Bar. Don’t you love this vintage poster we found at the Army Surplus shop? It is now hanging in Jack’s room and he loves it!

30 votes

Candy-dipped pretzels served as Army Swords and these fabulous Army men gummies found at Sweeties were perfect for mini cupcake toppers!

27 votes

24 votes

Cake | Decadent Delights

31 votes

23 votes

26 votes

xoxo,

laura

“Every man should be born again on the first day of January.  Start with a fresh page.  Take up one hole more in the buckle if necessary, or let down one, according to circumstances; but on the first of January let every man gird himself once more, with his face to the front, and take no interest in the things that were and are past.”

  ~Henry Ward Beecher

64 votes

May your New Year’s Eve be filled with confetti, laughter, friends, fun and promises of a beautiful new year…

Check out some of the fun client images from 2011 in our recap HERE.

here’s to a fab 2012,

laura

{image from the Finley and Oliver commercial shoot}

“Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.”
~Seymour Miller & Jill Jackson, “Let There Be Peace on Earth,”

You all know how much I adore the fabulous gals behind Oh Fiddlesticks!  They are so creative, fun and each new design is oh-so-fab.  Their newest creations are these adorable {PEACE} tees, perfect for a holiday photo shoot, playdate, gathering or for everyday! LOVE! Don’t you simply love the rockin’ fonts, too?!

17 votes

16 votes

14 votes

14 votes

17 votes

16 votes

17 votes

11 votes

13 votes

14 votes

14 votes

Oh Fiddlesticks | Shop

Oh Fiddlesticks | Facebook

Girl’s PEACE tee

Boy’s PEACE tee

xoxo,

laura

“Colors are the smiles of nature.” 

~Leigh Hunt

I simply fell in love with this dress from The Fresh Stitch–the colors, the design.  SO fabulous! Addie had a blast exploring, singing songs and just being the silly two year old that she is!

21 votes

23 votes

304 votes

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14 votes

The Fresh Stitch | Shop

The Fresh Stitch | Facebook

xoxo,

laura

Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is.

~Mary Anne Radmacher

My dear Addie, you are growing up too fast for this mama. You have a sweet twinkle in your eye and have become oh-so-talkative.  You love your brother, making crafts, coloring with great concentration, and messing up your room.  You are not a fan of naps right now and obviously think they are highly overrated, much preferring the company of your books, your myriad of stuffed animals, climbing on your furniture and getting into anything that will make a mess.  I wish for you a life that always includes laughter, fun and the balance of calmness to wildness that you currently have. I love when you stroke my face and tell me that I am the best mama in the whole world, and I love when you have your independent streak and yell that you don’t want me to help you.

You and I sing the “Hello/Goodbye” song in Spanish…

Buenos Dias, Buenos Dias

?Como estas? ?Como estas?

Muy bien gracias, Muy bien gracias

Adios, adios…

Only, your ears hear “ADDIE-OS” at the end, so then you sing

“Addie-os, Mama-os, Jacky-os, Dada-os!”

I love your new Spanish words, my love. Stay sweet always…

Dress by the lovely Tickled Pink Girls

10 votes

8 votes

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9 votes

8 votes

8 votes

10 votes

xoxo,

laura

“Hey, I’m a girl, and we like to play dress-up. “

~charlize theron

I thought that I had shared these images taken for designer Laken and Lila on the bloggie, but didn’t until now…I always love Heather’s gorgeous fabrics and fun designs. SO much fun to photograph and the perfect outfits for any little sweetie! Lots of fun fall + holiday outfits in stock now! Yay!

11 votes

7 votes

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19 votes

Skirts + dress | Laken and Lila

Blue hair accessory | Whippy Cake

xoxo,

laura