a mermaid party

This year we decided to finally have a kid birthday party for Amelia since turning 5 is kind of a big deal (we still got to have the family party the following weekend, but that will be for another post). She wanted a mermaid party and there was no changing her mind on the matter. That's her favorite part of Peter Pan. So I did my best to pull a few things together and I think all the kids had a good time. : )

I couldn't resist these cupcake toppers. So cute.

I got them here on etsy.

One of the cute little boys in attendance. : )

The coloring girls.

Pin the flower on the mermaid. The kids ended up being too smart for this game!

The kids had more fun making up their own games, like "jump on the clubhouse couch cushions." This is especially fun when you're not allowed to do that at home.

The after party.

The birthday girl had fever, sore throat and a runny nose when all was said and done. A relapse from earlier in the week.

Nothing like some new birthday presents to get your mind off the sniffles.

dogs & rocks

A couple weeks ago, Daddy had to go to San Diego for work, so we decided last minute to tag along for the short trip. We got to stay at Uncle Clint and Aunt Sara's and enjoy the morning there while Daddy went to his meeting. And thanks, Clint and Sara for letting us all stop in last minute.

This one cracks me up. Amelia is pouting inside the house b/c "we left her all alone." That's what happens when you don't want to play with the dogs...

They were excited to do some more "rock climbing."

A year ago, Aunt Lindsay bought these shoes for Amelia when we were visiting Sicily. I think she got her money's worth! And definitely a go-to shoe when planning on going rock climbing. haha.

a tea party

First and foremost, the little girl in pink, er... the one on the right, is turning five today. Wow. She'll probably wear this outfit again today. : )

The rest of this post has nothing to do with birthdays though, just a fun little tea party we had a couple of weeks ago. As you can tell, some pictures were taken before their hair was one, some after. : ) I had a hankering for pumpkin scones and my sis-in-law Sara gave me a wonderful recipe for them and they are oh, so yummy. I've heard they taste just like the ones at Starbucks. If you're interested in the recipe you can find it on http://theshoeboxkitchen.com/ just search pumpkin scones, it should be about the fourth post down.

♥

exploring downtown

On a beautiful, warm Southern California Friday, we went and visited Daddy at work. Instead of doing our usual picnic, we decided to explore right around the building where Nathan works. There was so much to see in just a few blocks! We look forward to going back and doing more soon.

These gulls seem to have evenly spaced personal bubbles.

Daddy's building.

On the home front, we had some Irish Moss move in to the top of our pallets.