cinco de mayo 2016

be sure to tell christopher how much fun you had and everything

he missed out on tonight.

- chuck a

i just returned home from a cinco de mayo party that

was AMAZING, as always.  every year, dpr construction

hosts a huge party and it's the one event that anyone who
wants to see and be seen in san diego's AEC industry

architecture/engineering/construction) attends. 

everyone's there!

san diego has learned this general contractor knows how to party.

it was fully catered, with servers around every corner,

an open bar, a tequila tasting room, and excellent live music.

i literally could have stayed and closed it down but

i have to work tomorrow morning and more importantly,

drive home.

my darling c was home with the boys as scout had his bestie

spending the night. it's a thursday night but tomorrow is not a

school day.  the high tech community has a 'snow day'. 

ridiculous right?  why don't they just call it a 'beach day' or a

'may holiday'?

anyway, i made it home safely, got a quick update on how the

boys' evening was {finn cooked a spaghetti dinner for all}, and

they enjoyed an episode of star trek: the next generation.

as i promised chuck, i was sure to tell c that i was partying with his

tennis partner and wife for the last few hours. he smiled and said,

i'll beat him on the courts this weekend. *grin*

~ i ate a churro cupcake tonight - possibly one of the most

delectable cupcakes i've ever had!

star trek party

finn's 12th birthday celebration is just around the corner!

he's been making his way through all the star trek: next generation episodes
over this past year, and he chose this year's birthday theme.
{i was so glad he didn't tell me he was too old for a theme party}

with the opening of the new star wars movie and all the hype surrounding it,
i thought he might have chosen it instead. when i asked him what made him
chose star trek he said "star wars is fun, but it's not as intelligent as star trek".

no argument there.

unlike star wars, which has simple good and evil and the 'force',
star trek is all about a complex, science-based technological future where lots
of different species unite...for the betterment of all.  every single episode
deals with some type of complex ethical issues.
{with so much bad tv, i gladly give my approval for this kind of tv}

the theme of star trek has always been the same: Exploration: to seek out new
life and new civilizations, and to boldy go where no one has gone before. 

it's a perfect party theme for our firstborn... a kid who attended 'explorer' elementary,
who is fascinated with space and science and our {meaning humans] place in the universe.
i told c we could put him on the uss enterprise and one might think he was captain picard's son. *grin*

as soon as i learned of his birthday theme, i went looking for invitations.
the invitation is important to me as it sets the tone of the entire party.
i found this talented designer on etsy and purchased not only her stark trek invitation,
but her whole printable party package...with some slight modifications.

the invites have been mailed out and the party will take place next saturday.
it will be a home party...with pizza and cake and yes, and star trek on the big screen.
{finn wishes he could transport himself to the future...he is so excited!}

i'm excited to see what kind of cake christopher comes up with this year.
if i were making the cake, i'd go with a simple trek logo.
who knows what mr. gerber will do...

finn's birthday bash - No. 9

i've been wanting to get these photos posted but wouldn't
allow myself to do it until finn and i had all his thank you cards
written.  we finished last night so here are a handful from his special day.

his name and celebration was posted 

radar cake {baked and decorated by c}

 

























i've enjoyed all of finney's birthday celebrations over the years,
but i think this birthday held on the uss midway, was by far the coolest!
{scoutie would disagree because it didn't have a pinata} *grin*

not only were all his besties there, including his auntie jen,
but he got to wear a flight suit and REAL wings that his uncle chad,
an f-18 hornet navy pilot, sent him in the mail.
he was so proud of those wings {and didn't miss an opportunity to show them off}

the party was not only fun, but very educational.
it included a tour of the inside of the carrier,
and the kids got to see where the fleet ate, slept, did their laundry,
sent and received mail, and they even went to the brig {jail} and stood behind the bars.
the kids loved this!  after cake, they went to the flight deck {my personal fav}.

as i was tucking finn into bed that evening,
i asked him what the highlight of HIS day was.
he responded, "riding the flight simulator with dad,
but i loved the cake too."  you think?

~ this party was bigger than anything we've done in year's past.
we both agreed it would have been more appropriate for his double digit birthday (#10),
the only reason we did it this year was it was easy and with the recent move and all the
work that is going into a 'fixer' home, we needed easy.
{next year's celebration will be much smaller}.

prettiest party ever

it's early and before easter weekend festivities begin,
i wanted to share a link to the prettiest little girls party
i have ever seen - srsly EVER!

penn paper flowers

now jessica of pen n paper flowers is queen Party Girl.
i don't mean the type of girl that likes to go out clubbing all night long.
i mean the party girl that dreams, designs, coordinates, and styles
amazing celebrations. it's her passion.

this lady isn't just creative in her designs and styling,
she also bakes like no body's business, guest blogs for famous
hostess with the mostess and has a patented-pending product,
called the pastry pedestal that she is selling all over the world.
she could go head to head with martha stewart and hold her own.
the woman is this tremendously talented.

i think about all the work that we goes into the boys' birthdays.
and though we strive for simple, they still require a good amount of work
and leave us exhausted. two parties a year and we're done.
it's hard to imagine the amount of passion she has to do it all year long.

so i was visiting jess' blog to see if she was embarking on another
promise me journey for this year, and i got sidetracked when i came
across her pocket full of posies party post.

this is the party she styled for her 3 year old daughter ella's birthday.
Oh. My. Goodness!!  i was picking my jaw off the floor.
it's truly the prettiest party i've EVER seen.

beautiful, simple and vintage are 3 words that come to mind.
it's not over the top or too matchy matchy with paper products,
everything seems perfectly balanced.
i have no doubt this little party will be posted and re-posted
all over the party blogging world...and maybe even beyond.

and as for the promise me list that i originally was looking for.
i never did find a post on her blog for 2012,
but i've decided to do it again this year even if jess doesn't
officially lead it.  i'll gather up some friends who participated
last year and we can cheer each other along as we check things off.

~ Easter is just around the corner!!
i found these adorable cupcakes on-line using peeps as toppers.
i baked cupcakes last night with the boys and thought it would be
fun to do but



via

the boys wanted nothing to do with peeps.
they don't like 'em...at all.
they will eat plain marshmallows. *sigh*

so
colored frosting and sprinkles will be as fancy we can go.

on the horizon

my parent's 50th anniversary is just around the corner
and i'm excited about flying home to florida to spend
a weekend celebrating this special event.

these are the beautiful invitations that were sent out a few weeks ago.

.














my sis chose this design out of many from this on-line card store.
i love the vintage-like design and feel of the invitation,
it fits perfectly with the old faded wedding day photo.
they never had a professional photographer,
snapshots are all they have.

there are a few handful of events that truly make
me giddy - weddings, births, major milestone birthdays and
this one - my parents 50th wedding anniversary.
it's so rare anymore and i admit, i'm very proud to have
parents who beat the odds. *wink*

my parents declined a big party in their honor,
but they are allowing us (their children) to plan a celebratory weekend
full of activities. it begins in st. augustine - the oldest inhabited city in the country,

my father is a huge history buff and hasn't visited,
so i'm excited about experiencing it with him.
i think my mother will love the charm of this spanish city and especially
enjoy the historic homes and bed and breakfasts.

there's lots to look forward and i'm counting down the weeks!

~ on a not so fun note, scoutie woke at 4am with an painful earache.
i have a call into his pediatrician hoping to get him in to see her this morning.
i can't recall him ever having one before.
finn however, had several as a toddler - they were horrible!
most were middle and outer ear infections, and no antibiotics were given.
his pediatrician (who is also scouts) would only call in a prescription for an
'inner' ear infection.  i wonder what scoutie has.  this could be a long day...

i'm just coming back to this post to drop in this picture of scoutie.
it's rare this little guy gets sick but this day, he was completely MISERABLE. 
until we got the medicine in him, there was nothing i could do to help him.
as a parent, there's nothing worse than to watch your babies hurting and
not being able to make it better.


scoutie and patch
just leaving the doctors office (before medicine)



lots of lovely

ok, for those of you i haven't shared with yet,
get ready to see LOTS and LOTS of lovely!

my girlfriend jess could go up against martha stewart any day of the week.
seriously, she is one talented woman.
she created a 'french themed pastry' birthday party for her little ella
who celebrated her 1st birthday last weekend.
 click HERE and get ready to say ooooooh and ahhhhhh (and yum).

the birthday girl enjoying her cake
 borrowed from jessica's blog