Ready to get back in the swing of things...

I was just looking back at the posts I have written in the last few weeks...and I can definitely tell when things were getting really busy.  Fewer and fewer posts the closer we got to the end of the school year. 

At the end of last week, Jason and I took the girls up to the mountains for a little reboot before we officially started our summer.  At first I panicked a little that we had no access to wifi or any cell reception, but then, I felt a little liberated.  With intermittent rain storms, and a cool breeze, the past few days were exactly what I needed to regain some energy and motivation.

Here's a peek into our weekend-

{ old-fashioned fly deterrent...I have never truly believed in it until this past weekend }

{ a trip to an old railroad station with model railroad for the kids }

{one of the most interesting pizza places we have ever been to...it looked like a couple of silos and had a theater inside }

{ a table completely covered in Calvin & Hobbs comic strips...still one of my all-time favorites }

{ This is Bacon...a basset hound from Europe.  He was sooooo cute and also very stinky : )   }

{ the girls got to play with the goats at Carl Sandburg's home }

{ and these guys kept trying to eat my hair }

{ the farm's cat was completely comfortable in the goat's food.  Nothing was going to move her from her bed }

{ One of the highlights from the weekend was meeting the newest addition to our family... Miss Cora Josephine.  She is adorable! }

{ an old-fashioned drugstore/ soda shop }

{ and ice cream was had by all : )  }

I feel completely rejuvenated from the craziness that the last few weeks have been.  And hopefully, I will have a little more time to spend on the blog.  I have truly missed it.  Hope you all had a wonderful weekend with lots of rest and relaxation. 

Until tomorrow....

An "Alice in Wonderland" Birthday Party

This past weekend was Isabella's 5th birthday...and my little Alice had a wonderful time in Wonderland with all of her friends : )  I was sooooo excited when she told me she wanted an Alice in Wonderland party.  The potential for magical moments was limitless.  It was difficult, but I think we were able to throw a magical party she will not forget...and if she does, I will constantly remind her : )

It started with the invitation that my friend Carolyn and I designed. 

And then the party got started...

I wanted to give the children a map to guide them through the party and hopefully provide a little order to the chaos that birthday parties can quickly become. So I drew up this card that tells them all of the things they were going to see and do while visiting Wonderland.  

The first stop was "Down the Rabbit Hole" which brought the kids to this room.  One of the first things I knew we had to have was the room where Alice shrinks to go through the tiny door.  I knew we were going to have the party entirely outside, so I built this faux wall with the help of my wonderful husband.  I painted the walls pink and white and added a chair rail and baseboards to make it look more realistic.  On the walls, I hung a couple watercolors from the vintage Alice in Wonderland illustrations. 

On the table, I had a small platter of tiny cupcakes that said "Eat Me" for the kids to munch on and then they would "shrink" so they could go through the tiny door.  And yes...I do know that Alice had to drink to shrink, but I opted for cakes instead : )

On the other side of the tiny door, was the Mad Hatter Tea Party!  I used a couple drapes from IKEA as a backdrop for the table and to hide the playground. 

Above the table, I hung pink paper lanterns and strands of paper "poofs" and giant paper pocket-watches. 

On the table, I decorated with paper place-mats I made using a garden trellis paper punch and 6 different colors of 12"x12" cardstock.

I also used a couple teapots to make fresh flower arrangements.  And then placed these adorable mushrooms...

...and these carved bunnies on the table to finish up the design.

I served traditional tea party fare with a couple of Isabella's favorites added in.  We had lemon poppyseed muffins with strawberry butter, mini powdered doughnuts, meringue cookies. 

Ham and cheese sliders (you can find the recipe here) and chicken salad croissants.

And fruit salad, pasta salad and my favorite...fruit pizza : )

We served lemonade and punch in these "Drink Me" glasses (You may recognize them from Ava's Camping Birthday Party).  I just changed the paper and ribbons and then they worked  perfectly for this Wonderland party.

I made these paper teacups and placed them on the Mad Hatter table, also on the food table and I also used them to make the favors.

I used these IKEA frames to display some of my favorite quotes from the book.  I placed them on the food table. 

Next, came the games...

Tweedledee and Tweedledum Three-legged Race...

...and Pin the Grin on the Cheshire Cat...

I painted this happy cat and then painted an extra smile that the kids could try and pin in place.  

...and the last game was the Teacup water Race.

For this one, the kids had to split into teams and try and carry water with teacups from one bucket to another.  The first team to fill their bucket to the the line would win the race. 

The last thing to do on this tour through Wonderland was to sing "Happy Birthday" to Alice and eat some cake.  

Before everyone left, Isabella gave them a paper teacup filled with sweet treats.  

And that's a wrap!  Isabella is now 5 and I am exhausted! But, I had a blast with the Alice in Wonderland theme.  I can't wait to see what she comes up with next year : )

Happy Birthday to my sweet and crazy munchkin!
You always make life more interesting and fun : )

* How to make Fruit pizza 

Have you seen this?...NBBJ's design for Amazon's New Biodome Headquarters in Seattle

I have written about some amazing architectural designs in the past...remember the trampoline bridge in Paris...or the lowline in New York City? But the new design for Amazon's Seattle headquarters by the NBBJ architectural firm,  is one my favorites!  I may have to make a special trip to Seattle just to see this amazing architectural feat in person.

The design consists of three 5-story high bio-domes which will house retail, dining and work space.   I think what I love most about this idea, is that the bio-domes will also consist of a variety of botanical zones from around the world.  Once again a large corporation such as Amazon, like Apple and Google before it, is stressing the importance that nature and sustainability play on forming a happier and more productive work force.  "The generative idea is that a plant-rich environment has many positive qualities that are not often found in a typical office setting,” states the design brief published by NBBJ.

I am thoroughly impressed and can't wait to see if this design gets the thumbs-up from the Seattle community...and the rest of the design world.  

(all images via My Modern Met.  You can see more of NBBJ's designs on their website here)

A Saturday Song...

This entire week has been dedicated to party prep and end-of-year room mom duties.  All leading up to today, which is my Isabella's  Alice in Wonderland 5th birthday party.  So...this is going to be short and sweet.

Here is a song for your Saturday...

I hope you have a wonderful weekend : )