These last two months have been nothing short of a whirlwind! 

Between Beckett's Mother's Day Out,  root canals, traveling to San Francisco, Waco & Round Top, Petting Zoos & Halloween, work, and now a move (UGH, yes, again) I've been swamped from sun rise to bed time!

'School' is going great and Beckett has completely adjusted- he walks right on it, puts his lunchbox in his basket (I have to carry the backpack because it's heavy!) and he goes right on into his classroom without even saying goodbye. It's so great that he enjoys it, but come on kid! Kiss your Momma goodbye at least! 

Halloween was seriously fun this year. Beckett went as Captain Jake from Jake and the Neverland Pirates and i'm 100% sure if I never took off his costume, he wouldn't have minded! We were able to go to a trunk-or-treat at his school which was a great dress rehearsal! He also had a costume parade at school plus Halloween, so at least I feel like he got great use out of his costume!

yo ho let's go!

I'm trying to remain positive about this move, but what a pain! The house we are leasing currently has really, really bad foundation issues and the owner is going to A) have to spend a LOT of money on repairs- like ripping up all the flooring and master bathroom and kitchen kind of repairs, or B) going to sell the house because it's basically a wash. So needless to say when we asked to renew under the condition that the foundation was checked and fixed and got the results, we knew that we had to get out of here. We can't wait to share our new home but until then, i'm trying to stay on top of packing so that it's as seamless as possible! 

I finished my 2nd half marathon in San Francisco. i finished. That's about all i'm going to say about that! I'm about to start training for a 3rd in March that I plan on being way more prepared for! It was great to get away for a weekend by myself, but I did miss my guys when I neared the finish line!

As we gear up for the holidays, (hey Thanksgiving! You're my fav!) Im constantly reminded how lucky I am even if I am going a mile a minute! This is the busiest season of the year, and with a toddler in tow it's even busier, but I wouldn't trade it for the world! What are you thankful for during this busy season?!

Beckett's 1st Halloween!

Beckett's first Halloween was just as I expected.. totally fun, and outrageously adorable! <br></br> The Tuesday before Halloween I took my little Kermie to Santana Row for their Mommy & Me Halloween Family Fest. From what I had heard it was a smallish Halloween party where you could dress up your kiddo, decorate pumpkins, safely trick-or-treat, and have a great time.. BOY was I wrong! We got there a little late and there was no less than 5,000 people there. It was a crowded mess!

  Since we were already dressed (and there, and finally found parking!) I decided to brave the masses and stay for a little!
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Beckett was the cutest Kermit the Frog! We decorated a pumpkin (well, I stuck some stickers on it while he tried to eat a blue marker...) and walked the row before bailing! There were just too many people!

It rained on Halloween, which was a bummer (and a blessing! We need rain!) so we took some photos inside before putting our costume on again and heading to Campbell for Trick-or-Treating with his buddy Cole!

We met up with our friends Ashley & Jeremy and let the boys Trick-Or-Treat together! It was so fun! The boys were so cute and so well behaved!

Kermit the Frog and Jim Harbaugh

Kermit the Frog and Hipster Kitty

It was a great first Halloween and I am SO excited for next year! I'm already brainstorming costume ideas!

How To: Let's Party!

With (my) wedding season over and holiday parties season rapidly approaching, I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite party tips for any occasion!

Check the calendar. I know this seems like a no brainer, but it's details like this that make everyone want to come to your get together! Being from the south, the fall is reserved for football season, so if you are inviting a large group of people who are loyal fans, don't plan your party the day of their teams biggest rivalry game. Unless it's a watch party, then game on! Same goes for the World Series, NBA playoffs, etc.
Order Tangible Invitations

Whether it's a cocktail party or bridal shower, order invitations. Not only is it a good reminder for your guests, but everyone loves getting mail that isn't a bill! Companies like Tiny Prints make it so easy to send invites! They have such a large selection of the cutest invitations and are incredibly easy to make your own! Choose something fun and festive to get your guests excited! Plus they will even address and send them for you! They even have an online tracking and RSVP site for free! 
For a happy hour party, I chose these fun Joyful Herringbone geometric invitations! With the fun colors and graphic print, it really allowed me to design the mood of the party!

Tiny Prints also has the best selection of address return labels. This is my least favorite part of sending mail (writing the return address!) so I always order labels! They have rectangular, circular and wrap labels as well as custom stamps and embossers!  Check them out here! I love these circular return address labels I got! They are an ombre green and are really clean and modern!

Keep the Decor Simple Since Pinterest exploded all over the internet, people are getting really carried away with party decor. Will someone really notice the hand lettered display cards labeling each snack and drink? Yes. But will they notice they are missing? No.

A great way to add an inexpensive little pop of fun into your decor? Personalized napkins! It adds a personal touch without going overboard- they look great on a table and even better in everyone's hands with a drink! Tiny Prints has a great selection of fun colors and designs!
And how cute are these Wit&Delight cocktail napkins from Target? They were perfect for cocktails!

Fresh flowers in clean, modern vases are always a great touch. Keep the flowers seasonal and colorful and fragrant. Stargazer lilies are my fav! A few votive UNSCENTED candles are the perfect finishing touch to setting the mood. (you can use scented candles if you have non-fragrant flowers!) It doesn't take much so make a big statement!

 Have a Signature Drink

Signature drinks are all the rage right now, and I love the idea. We had a signature drink at our wedding and everyone loved it! 
For a fun happy hour party, try individual splits of bubbles for everyone! A metallic sharpie for claiming your split and fun paper straws makes this a fun way to get the party started!

If that's not in your budget, try a mixed drink bar. My new fav? Absolut Texas Vodka. It's a cucumber and Serrano chili infused vodka and it is spicy, cool and delicious. You can mix it with a myriad of things including tonic water, cranberry, pineapple, lime juice or bloody mary mix! My fav? Absolut Texas Vodka with seltzer water and a squeeze of lime on ice!

You can set up a bar with different juices, fruits and veggies (lime, watermelon, jalapeno slices, cilantro, cucumber), and flavored salts and let your guests create their own libation! A bloody Mary bar for brunch, anyone?
A selection of beer and wine work really well too! Just make sure if you have red wine that you hide (or cover!) all your light/white upholstered items and carpet!
Small Bites Unless you are serving dinner, keep the hor's d'oeuvres (holy hell I just spelled that without spell check! #winning) to bite sized. Nothing dampens the mood like having to saw an app into pieces on a paper/plastic plate with a plastic fork or knife. Guests are more likely to snack on something small but remember bite sized apps go fast though, so make sure  you have enough!
Cheese trays, nuts, fruit and olives with charcuterie (spelled that correct too! woo!) are always a hit. Vegetable crudite are always a staple, and there are tons of fun ways to display and serve veggies so you don't end up with a plate of cut of veggies at the end of the night!
Here is one of my go to one bite appetizer recipes! They always disappear quickly!

Serve Dessert Any fête  large or small deserves a sweet ending. Obviously if it's a birthday party, bridal or baby shower there will probably be a cake to cut, but even cocktail parties deserve some sweets! Bite size brownies, cookies, cannolis, pies- the list goes on and on! Recently I went to a party with a build your own brownie sundae bar and it was a hit! So fun too! Warm brownies (or mini store bought ones work great too!) vanilla ice cream and toppings galore!

Enjoy Yourself! Most hostesses and hosts put a lot of pressure on themselves when entertaining that they don't even enjoy themselves. I know i'm guilty of running around trying to make sure everything is picture perfect. Your guests will feed off your energy, so if you are stressed they won't relax. Have a cocktail, kick back, and have a good time! You'll be glad you did! Besides you've prepared everything ahead of time and set the perfect atmosphere, so it will be great! And if not, no one will know but you! 
Cheers!

Becektt's 1st Trip to the Pumpkin Patch!

Having a baby makes every holiday even more special and even more fun. This past weekend we finally got to take Beckett to the pumpkin patch and it was oh, so fun! My Mom even ordered him this adorable shirt to document his first fall! And this adorable monogrammed pumpkin for trick or treating! SO cute. (Yes, i'm from the south, so everything needs to be embroidered and monogrammed! duh!)

Pumpkin onesie from Darling Little Bow Shop and pumpkin treat bag from Pottery Barn Kids (no longer available)

CL found us the most epic pumpkin patch farm and we headed to San Martin last Saturday to check it out! Uesugi Farms Pumpkin Patch is legit... if you live in the Bay Area it's worth the drive! They have an epic corn maze, pumpkin cannons, tons of cool pumpkins, train rides, a hayride, a carousel, pony rides, a petting zoo, all sorts of pumpkin snacks, food- you name it!

the biggest pumpkin was 2,036 pounds this year!

 Beckett couldn't be bothered with anything but hay in the pumpkin patch.. lots and lots of hay. Every time we turned around there was a handful of hay in his hands and mouth. I'm shocked that he didn't get sick!

 Winner winner! There we go! It takes a million shots to get one great one!

 The grounds were beautiful- there were pumpkins and orange and yellow marigolds everywhere!

It was a gorgeous day to be out, so we enjoyed our time at the farm. I know as Beckett gets older he will have more and more fun making these trips! 

They had these tiny little pumpkins called 'Goblin Eggs' Beckett loved them! They are rock hard so he's loving them on his swollen, teething gums. (And yes, I washed it off before letting him go to town with it!)

And if you've made it this far, here is a sneak peek of his Halloween costume...!

Have a great Halloween weekend, everyone!