Riley's Fall Farm Adventure

Over the weekend we rang in fall at Riley's Farm. It's a local apple farm that puts on a huge spread for dinner and then performs the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The play is pretty cheesy but the food, contests, dancing, and hay ride make up for it. Clearly based on what we are wearing in the pictures the fall weather hasn't arrived yet...

They have a seed spitting competition along with apple eating, pumpkin carving, and pie eating contests. There was about 10 of us in our group and we almost swept the competition entirely. We were basically robbed from the pumpkin carving contest. : /

Her snail even had a trail of pumpkin seeds!

Have you done anything festive for fall yet? I still want to take Blair to the apple picking orchards and the huge pumpkin patch that's close by. Maybe make some fall cookies and donuts too?! So much fun so little time...

Geometric Dinosaur Baby Shower

I said I wasn't going to host/throw/decorate for any more events until Blair's birthday in March. I lied. My good friend had her third babe (and first BOY!) so we couldn't skip out on that. We had to celebrate! I worked with some friends to throw her a sprinkle since she didn't know the sex till he was born. We decided on a dinosaur theme and added geometric elements to make it extra modern which was super fun to execute since we are usually dreaming up girl parties. :)

The most delicious banana cream pudding!

Hand painted dinosaurs using stencils.

Hexagon plates HERE.

Geometric dome from World Market.

Beautiful Mama and sweet boy!

Oh, and hey all you local babes I'm actually selling this whole party as a package if you are interested! This includes the hexagon backdrop, wooden dinos, plastic metallic dinos, stenciled dinos, and dessert jars with dinos on top. The price is $60...that's a whole lotta DIY goodness that you don't have to recreate! This "party in a box" would be perfect for a baby shower OR birthday party. The opportunities are endless. ;) Email me if you are interested. Unfortunately, these items would be too hard to ship.

I hope you all had a great weekend and manage to get through Monday without a hitch. :)

(In)Fertility Friday

A lot has happened this past week...let's catch up!

Medical
I had an ultrasound on Monday...good news! No cysts! I am now currently taking Letrozole and have my second ultrasound scheduled for next Thursday. At that time I will see whether I give myself the HCG shot to release my egg that day or the following day. We decided to try insemination (IUI) this month. May as well pull out all the stops before we attempt IVF. Plus, we haven't tried IUI since I have been on my new medication (metformin and progesterone). We'll see!

Emotional
My spirits are good this week because we found out that Matt's new job has medical insurance that partially covers infertility. Say what?!? We are still figuring out the extent of the coverage but hallelujah anything is better than nothing! I also discovered that the clinic we want to go to, (that has a 70% success rate for live births for women under 35) is in network! This is awesome news for us. Oh, and the fact that they are $3,000 less than our current clinic is also a win!

Unfortunately, the clinic plans on raising their IVF prices in January (when we wanted to try IVF). Because of this we have made a choice to try IVF sooner rather than later. We can't meet with the new doctor till October 29th and since I have no idea at what point in my cycle they start shooting me up with hormones, retrieving eggs, fertilizing eggs, implanting embryos etc. we likely will be starting the IVF process in November. I hear it's about a 7 week process. Regardless of when we start, I'm definitely excited/nervous. Things have been working out for us lately and I'm thankful for the Lord's blessings.

Spiritual
I'm in the awkward place of wanting to be hopeful, yet wanting to protect my heart from disappointment. You can pray that I keep my hope in Him and that way I will not be disappointed. You can also pray for the logistics of the IUI and that I ovulate sooner rather than later so we don't have to drive to LA on Saturday. Insert teeth clenching face here.

A friend emailed me a journal entry that really spoke to me. Here is what she said, "Waiting on Baby J wasn't about me and giving me my baby at the right time in my life.  It was about His perfect timing for Baby J and the plans he has for J's life, the accomplishments he will have, and the people's lives he is meant to affect and be a part of."

We so often think of God's timing for US and OUR lives.  Having J was always something I thought about in terms of timing for my life and how God would bring him at the right time in my life.  But He wanted me to know it had had nothing to do with me the whole time, but with J and J's life and the plans God has for him.  It unfortunately meant waiting 2.5 years, but was necessary for everything God has set up for J and his life.
 
Keep believing and thanking God that He has a plan for your children and their lives and the people they will come across and that He is at work setting all of that up now. And unfortunately, that may mean having to wait until other things are in line and other people's lives, that you don't even know right now or have any idea about, are all set up perfectly, too, and ready for your little one to eventually be a part of."

When I think about my life, and the fact that it took my parents several years to have me, I realize that I likely would have never met my husband had they gotten pregnant right away. I would have been several years older than him and our paths wouldn't have crossed so easily. I see how the timing of my own birth meant that I met some amazing friends in high school, college, and while getting my masters. The Lord knew the perfect time for me to be born and I trust that He knows the perfect timing for this next baby too. Even though the waiting is hard I know it is purposeful.


This weekend I'm helping throw a baby shower for a friend. I'm sure this surprises you all. ;) It's a little different though because she waited till he was born to find out he was a boy. Other than that I plan on doing a little fall baking with my sidekick. Enjoy your weekend!

Fall Mantle

In an attempt to get in on the fall action I busted out my autumn mantle decor! I love fall but let me be honest and say orange/red/yellow aren't colors that look so great in our house. So, I went for a more neutral palette. :)

Before

And after.

I copied the chalkboard design off of Pinterest . The glazed pumpkins are old from Tuesday Mornings. The others are from Target (years ago).My acorn garland is from target currently on sale. :) Happy fall!

Oh, and just for fun I spotted Kendra Wilkinson and her husband Hank Baskett at Disneyland yesterday. Check out the photo I took of them on Instagram @disneylandcelebrities. :)

Boho Girls Nursery Mood Board

Although we're not in the market for a nursery any time soon (hello, we need a baby first) I still like to dream them up in my head. The inspiration behind this nursery mood board was this pillow. I just love its boho vibe and I think it would be so adorable in a little girls room.

boho pillow

white crib sheet/grey bumper

pink pom pom crib skirt

navy blue tassel curtains

flokati rug

geo wood lamp

nightstand

book shelves (spice racks from Ikea)

books (amazon)

woven wall art

toy box

knit puppy doll

 I love flokati rugs in nursery's. They are just so soft and cozy and work for a boy or a girl. Hint hint they are in Costco right now for the fall/winter season and are much cheaper than the Land of Nod ones! I'm so tempted to buy one but I also hate to put the cart before the horse. I've also been eyeing that pink woven toy box for quite some time now so I knew I wanted to add it to this mood board. Likewise, woven wall tapestries are SO in right now. M realllllly hates them but I think a small one would be cute in a nursery. And even though I pulled the curtains from Serena and Lily I know for a fact that they are easy to DIY since that's what I did for Blair's room. I hope you enjoyed my mood board for a little girl...stay tuned for a baby boy mood board!

I Heart Mustard

Mustard, butterscotch, goldenrod...whatever you want to call it, I've been crushing hard on this color for fall. I've been seeing it pop up and I just love how cheerful it is. And apparently I'm not the only one!

pillow

toddler blouse

vest

wall weaving

sweater

lamp shade

rug

chair

Happy first week of fall! Now if only the weather would cooperate...

(In)Fertility Friday

Looks like the 24 hour flu came and went for B and for that I'm thankful! She only managed to puke on her new cat Halloween jammies, blankie (no harm there) and the leather couch. All were easily cleaned (she's lucky). ;)

Medical
I had a very insightful conversation with one of my Mom's friends who is an infertility nurse. She just got done with a conference in which PCOS was highly discussed. She said she knows about all the up-to-date equipment that is being used successfully in IVF labs and cutting edge medical procedures. By talking to her I realized what I suspected: that I produce eggs but I likely don't actually release them (ovulate). This is common with PCOS patients. The fix? A simple HCG shot to ensure that my eggs are released. I'll definitely be doing this these next 3-4 months along with Letrozole which is the best egg maturing drug out there right now. We discussed many other things such as determining which IVF clinic is best. Because I mean if you're spending 20K you may as well be going to the best one in your area. This website allows you to compare clinics in your area. So helpful! Turns out the one I'm currently going to gets really good ratings.

Emotional
I'm continuing to learn so much throughout this trial. A friend of mine actually found out she was prego this week and texted me literally the day she peed on the stick. I had known she was trying, which is always helpful when someone drops the news on me because I've had time to prepare myself for the inevitable. She was incredibly sensitive to my feelings and if someone had to write a book titled "How to Tell Your Infertile Friend You are Pregnant" she would be the best author. Here's what she said,
"Hey I want to tell you something, something that I actually do not want to tell you. I got a positive pregnancy test today, it hasn't been confirmed by a doctor but I wanted to tell you. I hate that this will make you sad. I hate that you are going through this. I hate it. I wish you were pregnant before me. I know it was hard for me to hear when I was trying. You are such an amazing woman, I love you and want only the greatest for you-just think if I (a sinner) want that for you how much more God wants it for you. Hang in there. I love you so much and I am so sorry that my news will make your situation harder. I'm probably not the person you'd want to talk to about this but I am here to talk if you need me. You don't have to ever be fake or pretend with me, you can be real."

Not surprisingly I cried. But not for the reasons you're thinking. She made me realize how incredibly blessed I am to be surrounded by friends who care. Yes, this whole thing sucks. But if I have to go through it I'd like to do it with people like her.

Spiritual
I listened to an awesome sermon recommended by (another!) great friend. You can listen to it here. It was all about trusting the Lord and not doubting. I happen to believe that the Lord will bless us with another baby one day. The unbelief comes when I see everyone else getting what I want so badly with (usually) great ease. I need to snap out of that and this is the verse that spoke to me, "But when you ask (for wisdom), you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do." 

Oy. The part that gets me is when it says, 'That person should not expect to receive ANYTHING from the Lord.' I don't want to have any unbelief. However I know the only way to rid myself of that is by asking Christ for help. So please, Lord, help my unbelief!

Nuggets
I decided to add this section when a friend (that's 3 good friends in one post!) told me that she was praying that God gives me a "nugget" each day. Basically that I would recognize His grace and goodness in small (or big) ways. This week the nugget was getting in touch with the infertility nurse. Having her undivided attention for 30 minutes was a huge blessing. I asked her questions that I've never truly gotten a straight answer to before and felt so peaceful and confident afterwards. This could only be from the Lord.

If you've made it to the end of this post you either a. must really care about me b. have PCOS or c. be on bed rest and have nothing better to do. :) Either way thanks for indulging me. These posts are difficult and time consuming to write. They are emotionally exhausting and it's always good to hear someone (besides me) is benefiting from them!

A few of the "rocks" in my life. :)

PS Blair had a stage 10 melt down yesterday because I wouldn't drive her to Dirty Baby's friend's house. Every day when we run errands she points to random homes and says, "Look! That's where Baby's friends live!" Apparently yesterday was the "real" house and when I said we couldn't actually go there and knock on the door she FREAKED.  I tried to explain that strangers live there (stupid) and it wouldn't be safe. This pissed her off even more to which she responded, "They aren't strangers! They're real!" Sigh. I've got my work cut out for me...

Sick Blair

So Blair came home yesterday with a 103 fever and then blessed me by puking all over herself and the couch (Thank God for leather). Taking care of her pretty much summed up my day...see you tomorrow! Insert grimace emoji here.

Rain Gear for Toddlers

     Lately I feel like I've been living in Hawaii with how rainy and humid it's been here. I'm not complaining because we desperately need the rain but it inspired me to check out some rain gear for Blair. She's whining that her Hunter rain boots are feeling small (What?! I just bought those last year!) so I browsed around for some and am waiting for a sale soon. Here are my toddler rain gear picks for girls and boys...

 Jacket 

Umbrella 

Boots 

Socks 

Pants

     I had to choose orange and purple attire since those are Blair's favorite colors. Even though she has nothing orange in her closet I know she'd flip for these.

     While browsing around I stumbled upon a company called Hatley. They sell their apparel at Nordstrom, Zappos, and Amazon etc. I had never heard of them before and they have the cutest stuff! So many fun prints to choose from and much cheaper than Hunter.

And now for the boys...

Umbrella

Jacket

Socks

Boots

Pants

Don't you just love the moose print? They have everything you can think of from robots, sharks, to bears and it's all adorable. With all the cute options, Rain you can come any day!

Camp Inspired Bachelorette Party

Last weekend we celebrated my best's bachelorette party on the Russian River in Northern California. It's about an hour north of San Francisco in wine country and is absolutely stunning! We decided to go with a "camping" theme since we were among all the redwoods and I have to say it came out really cute. My friend, Mandy, designed the Camp Cannon brand (the bride's new last name) and it really gave the party a cohesive look. I love that she incorporated water color in the prettiest jewel tones. Matte gold, peacock blue, navy, raspberry, and forest green were our inspiration.

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

We had a blast cruising a few wineries, floating on the river, and eating delicious food all weekend. We even went to a brewery and tried "Pliney the Elder" which is an IPA that apparently is really hard to find because everyone loves it so much. Our men were all quite jealous of that jaunt. ;)

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Photo Credit: @mandyansari

Isn't she cute?!

It was such a fun weekend and I totally want to go back one day with M because I know he will love it. And if I could get away with a "glamping party" for Blair I'd be all over it. Somehow  I don't think she is going to let me do anything but Disney Princess. Oy.

Toddler Boys Halloween Attire

I had a super fun weekend at my best's bachelorette party this weekend and I can't wait to show you once I get all the pictures downloaded. It was a little crazy driving 8 hours to get there but totally worth it! More on that soon. :)

Last week I posted about some of my toddler GIRL Halloween favorites and now it's time for the BOYS!

All items from Gap.

If you have twins they have some fun options like girl and boy monster jammies. Plus the kitty cat ones could go either way. Happy shopping!

(In)Fertility Friday

Medical
Last Friday I went in for my second ultra sound to see if the Letrozole did what it was supposed to. The good news is that it did! I had two big, fat, mature eggs...go me! My lining was great and there were no cysts. I'm currently in the waiting phase of my cycle and not feeling pregnant at all which is ok I guess. I'm willing to try these meds while we wait for January to come.

Emotional
This week I wasn't a basket case so there's that. In fact I don't think I even cried once. :)

Spiritual
     I re-read one of my favorite days in my devotional, "The question often comes, 'Why didn't He help me sooner?' It is not His order. He must first adjust you to the trouble and cause you to learn your lesson from it. His promise is, 'I will be with you in trouble, I will deliver you and honor you.' He must be with you in the trouble first all day and all night. Then He will take you out of it. This will not come till you have stopped being restless and fretful about it and become  calm and quiet. Then He will say, 'It is enough.'
     God uses trouble to teach us precious lessons. They are intended to educate us. There is a sweet joy and real value in them. He does not regard them as difficulties but opportunities.
     I'm trying to remind myself that this is an opportunity to glorify God and I don't want to waste that. I don't want to look back at these years when I'm older and regret the way I spent my time. I want to cherish this time with Blair with a joyful and hopeful heart.
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And now to completely change the topic....this weekend I am celebrating my bff's bachelorette party in northern California. We plan on floating down the Russian River with drinks in our hands and soaking up some sunshine. That does a body good, right?

Here is one teeny tiny peak at some goodies I put in the swag bags. More details next week!

Have a great weekend and find something to do that keeps you cool!

Halloween Attire for Toddler Girls

Eeek! Halloween must be coming because all the stores are coming out with cute festive attire for little gremlins...and I'm a sucker for it for sure. I gathered up some ghastly garments for all the little ladies out there and will get to my picks for the boys next week!

all items from Gap except panties: old navy and tutu: gymboree

I snagged the dancing kitty nightgown for B since, she hates wearing pants to bed, along with the witch tee shirt. I'm tempted to add the orange tutu only because orange and purple are her absolute favorite colors (weird, right?) This holiday must be her jam with her favorite colors colliding and add candy and dress up?! Her mind is blown.

DIY giant paper flower backdrop

I've had a lot of requests on how to create the giant paper flower back drop I created for my friend's bridal shower seen below:

Since there are SO many different types of flowers we made I am just going to feature one for this DIY. I honestly just kind of winged it with many of these flowers but I know that's not helpful. Here are some you tube videos that I found helpful:
-Giant Flowers
- Medium Flowers

Today I am showing you how to create a medium sized flower (about 1 foot in diameter). If you look at the above photo it is the bright pink one with an orange center. You will need:

-this petal template
-9 pieces of 8.5 by 11 inch paper
-glue dots
scissors

Directions:

Print and cut out the petal templates.

Fold paper in half and trace and cut out the large petals. You will need 7.

Cut a two inch slit up from the bottom center.

Attach a glue dot.

Cross the paper over to secure. This gives the flower dimension. Larger petals should be looser and smaller petals should be pulled tighter.

Hold the base of the petal and roll it back against itself to give it more dimension.

It should end up with a slight bend.

Using the glue dots start attaching one petal to another.

After you attached all the large flowers you will do the same for the medium and small. You will make 6 medium and 3 small.

To create the center stamen just use a long piece of tissue paper.

Fold in half two times and cut from the folded side.

Be sure not to cut all the way through.

Roll the tissue up when all the strips are cut and pull it through the hole in the center of the flower.

Ta-da! You now have ONE flower lol. Have fun making the rest!

If you want to create a "bud" type of flower then you can follow the above DIY and just DON'T curl the petals under. This will make the flower more small like a bud. For the larger flowers I encourage you to watch to you tube tutorial above. :) Enjoy!