Real Party: Cowgirl Baby Shower

Several of my girlfriends threw me a Cowgirl themed baby shower a few weeks ago.  It was incredible!

They used this invite from Etsy, but had the colors adjusted to fit their vision for the party.  I was so excited to see what they had up their sleeves after receiving this in the mail!

The shower was held in my friend Lindsay's backyard. 

Two long tables were set-up for a sit-down brunch.  I loved the burlap runners, mason jars holding babies breath, and pink party poms in the trees. 

 

Each seat at the table had a cute little cowgirl boot place card, a pink napkin tied with a gingham swatch, and a card of wishes for guests to fill out. What a wonderful keepsake for me to have!

The food, and presentation of the food, was amazing.  My friends are very good cooks, and everything was homemade and delicious! 

The appetizers consisted of mini croissants, scones, coffee cake, donut holes, and yogurt parfait.  Everything was to die for!

Mason jars served as drinking glasses.  Lemonade, water, and tea were available. 

Lindsay converted an old window into a pin board and used it to display sheriff badges for all the guests.  This served as the backdrop for the appetizer display. 

And a sweet bunting banner hung over the display.  

After guests lingered for awhile, the actual brunch was served.  (After all those apps? I know!)  My girlfriends made a chili cheese egg puff, happy potatoes, turkey sausage, and spinach salad.  Again: YUM!

The recipe for happy potatoes can be found here.  Trust me, this is one you should include in your next brunch. 

The party favors were, of course, Bakerella's famous Cowgirl Cookies.  Too cute!

Thank you so much to all the girls who made this incredible shower happen! 

Lindsay, Janelle, Jeani, Drea, Katie, Leslie, and Deb!

Between this shower, and the nesting shower I shared a few weeks ago, this baby girl is LOVED!

Maybe a new record? For us I think it is: 

8 pregnant guests at the shower! 

I'm waiting for the first one to pop - any day now! :)

Summer Party Tips!

I've got a new article up over at Tablespoon.

Its full of ideas for celebrating summer. 

Hint: it involves a few of these: 

Come on over and check it out! Let me know what you think!

Inspiration: Chili Cook Off Centerpieces

This year's Superbowl Party with my friends is going to be a Chili Cook-Off. 

My friends Katie and Casey are hosting.  

I am going to be helping Katie with some of the decor this week. 

I've been brainstorming for styling ideas and I think it would be really fun to incorporate peppers since its a chili cook-off. 

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I love the bright colors and the fact that they tie in the chili theme.  

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These centerpieces with pepper mixed in are too cute. 

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Even just a cluster of different kinds and colors of pepper could be cute.  Clustered around a hurricane, or in a large footed bowl perhaps. 

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Bell pepper votives are an easy addition to the decor! 

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This topiary doesn't actually have any peppers on it, but it definitely inspires me to think about making a similar one out of chili peppers. 

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Dried chili peppers make a nice flower substitute. 

Off to research my chili recipe... :)

Strawberry Rhubarb Cream Cake

Sorry again for the long absence...what a busy summer it has been. 

I've been here...

...relaxing, barbecuing, catching up with friends, and toasting these two...

Jason & Jen
(my good friends who are recently engaged!)

We decorated our cabin with a little last-minute-construction-paper-banner in honor of them!

Enough about my friends' exciting news though, the reason for this post is actually to share a new cake recipe.  (Which was adapted from one that Jen gave me over the weekend.)

Strawberry Rhubarb Cream Cake
Make one yellow boxed cake as directed and pour into greased 9x13 pan
Sprinkle 2 cups of thinly sliced rhubarb and 2 cups thinly sliced strawberries over the uncooked cake
Sprinkle 3/4 cup sugar over the uncooked cake
Pour 1 cup heavy whipping cream over the uncooked cake
Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes

We ate it with whipped cream - YUM!

And special thanks to my parents who let me raid their ridiculously-huge rhubarb bush...

...for the baseball-bat-sized rhubarb used to make this cake!

You've got to try this cake, its perfect for summer!

PS thanks for your patience while I get together the post about the Six-Tea party! I promise I'm working on it!

I am Loving: Summer Party Play List

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We all know that perfectly planned parties require great music.  

This is a detail I have been known to overlook. 

Luckily I can count on Martha in this department! Her summer party playlist is great! 

Check it out here.  I am loving this list for barbeques and other summery shindigs! 

Are you as surprised as I am that Martha's list includes Guns N' Roses?  I guess even Martha likes to rock out in the summer sun!

Now go get your Ipod and get outside! :)

DIY Idea: Outdoor Light String

I spotted this idea on Rahael Ray's Everyday.  

They used holiday-style white lights and added colorful baking cups.

I love this because you can change out the baking cups for any backyard party you might throw.  

The options for colors and patterns of baking cups are endless!  

Rachael's site suggests shopping here. I love here.

I wish I would have seen this before the 4th of July! These baking cups from Bake it Pretty would have made the perfect light string for our barbeque! Maybe next year...   

Cute Summer Cookies

How adorable are these cookies from Martha Stewart?

They are called Chocolate-Ginger Bathing Beauties...too cute! 

Though they won't help you fit into your bikini, they are perfect for summer! 

They'd be adorable for a pool party, don't you agree? Thanks Martha! 

Real Party: 4th of July Barbeque

We had a nice 4th of July here. We celebrated with a backyard barbeque with friends. 

Here's some scenes from our day: 

I kept my decorations pretty simple, but there was no mistaking what we were celebrating! 

 

The patriotic ice cream sandwiches were a hit, as always!

And my genius of a husband decided to put mint from our garden and cucumber slices in the water. Um, delicious! It was almost like another dessert. 

Our very cooperative dog was a good sport and let me dress him up in some American colors.
And I just have to say that I love Trader Joe's for offering red, white, and blue tortilla chips!

Hope you all had a great weekend and happy 4th of July!

4th of July Hostess Gift Tag

All of my favorite blogs are full of ideas for hosting your own 4th of July party this weekend & I am loving it! There are so many cute red, white & blue ideas out there! 

However, if you're not playing hostess this weekend, I found something cute for you too!

Attach one of these tags to your hostess gift and you will be the most polite guest at the party! 

Available for free download at Vale Design.

I am Loving: Ice Cream Sandwiches

It has definitely been ice cream eating weather around here! 

We made some of these a few weeks ago for a barbeque.  Yum! 

They are especially cute if you roll them in sprinkles.

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We used "break & bake" cookie dough to make ours. Delicious & easy!

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I've always made these with chocolate chip cookies and vanilla ice cream, but next time I think I will get a little more creative.  Here's a little inspiration: 

Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream Sandwiches by Paula Dean. Recipe is here. 

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Ice Cream Sandwiches by Martha. Recipe is here.

Chocolate Caramel Ice Cream Sandwiches by About.com.  Recipe is here. 

Which to try first? 

Don't forget to enter the giveaway! Its a good one! 
Entries accepted through Friday!

I am Loving: Paper Lantern Vase

I've been browsing for ideas for simple centerpieces for the 4th of July, and I came across this cutie:

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A paper lantern as a vase!  Festive & simple.  Perfect for a backyard barbeque. 

I think this would be pretty easy to recreate in red, white, and blue. 

I might hit up the dollar store to see if they have any lanterns. 

Has anyone tried this? Have any tips to share? 

I am Loving: Personalized Plates

I told you recently how much I love melamine plates for a barbeque.  

I saw these in House Beautiful Magazine. 

Wouldn't they be a fun gift? Wedding or shower gift for a barbeque-loving couple?
Lots of fun fonts and colors available!

I am Loving: Red & White Country Table

How do I love this red & white table from Project Wedding?

Let me count the ways...

1. The strawberry trail is genius.  So simple and fun.  This is for a wedding, but this would be great for any number of parties: kids birthday (let the little ones gobble them up!), a Memorial Day (or any summer weekend!) barbeque, or a country-style wedding.

2. The napkin, silverware, and name card on the ball jar atop the plate.  Oh so cute!

3.  Multiple shapes of sizes of jars holding white blooms. I. Love. That.

Doesn't this sweet table just make you happy?

I am Loving: French Fry Cones

A perfect addition to any Memorial Day Barbeque:

Wire french fry and burger baskets from Crate & Barrel.  They are selling the cute red, white & blue liner papers too!

Wouldn't a few of these down the center of your backyard table be perfect this weekend?

Of course, you don't have to shell out a lot of dough to display your fries:

Even paper cups can be cute & add color to your table-- like these that Martha used. 

(the ones in this picture are carrot fries...I'm skeptical of this. One should not mess with french fries in my opinion.)

Image via Intimate Weddings Blog
This is another easy way to serve fries, for a slightly classier affair.  Pre-dipped in ketchup.  Or ranch, or barbeque saurce, or whatever you desire. :) 

Remember my friend Katie's Superbowl french fry cones? These would be easy to recreate in red, white, and blue for this weekend. 

BBQ Season!

It is officially barbeque season in our area and I could not be happier about it! 

We kicked it off with 2 barbeques in our backyard this weekend...Saturday and Sunday. 

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I wanted to share some of my favorite items to make a barbeque in my backyard run more smoothly. 

My white melamine dinner plates.
They are perfect for outdoor dining: sturdy & dishwasher safe.  If someone drops one, it will survive.  Mine are from Crate & Barrel Outlet, but I've seen them many different places.  There are lots of fun patterned versions, but my white ones go well with any table linens I decide to use.  More "green" than paper plates too! 

My silverware basket. 

I picked this up at Home Goods.  For a casual barbeque, I put silverware in the basket and let people grab what they need. I think the basket looks cute on the table or food buffet, and its so much easier to carry everything to the backyard in a basket.  It has a slot for napkins too.

Trays. 
I have a few trays, one is similar to this wicker one from Target.  They are great for carrying food or dishes to the backyard.  More stylish to carry buns out on a tray, then in their plastic bag, don't you agree? 

Here's to many more barbeques this season! :)