Simon's 2nd Birthday

For Simon's 2nd birthday we decided to go all out and throw a big party.  We didn't really give him one for his first birthday because we knew he wouldn't really get to enjoy it like he would if he was older.  He probably still didn't get into it as much at age 2 but oh well, we had fun and he seemed to have a good time.

  He is in the beloved train stage right now so we went with that as a theme but I wanted more the vintage look and not a specific look like Thomas.  There are so many cute ideas on Pinterest that we were able to incorporate and it turned out pretty cute.  Fortunately we had some outside help that made it a lot easier to pull off a party like this because if it was all up to me, it definitely would not have turned out this cute!

Coloring pages for the kids

Photo booth hanging up for pics

Train tracks that led upstairs to the playroom

Party favors: a train whistle, bandanna and stickers

Food table

Drink station

Getting his ticket punched...

Photo booth time!

Opening presents

Thank you to everyone who came and made his day so special!  It is a really fun memory that we will treasure for a long time.

XOXO

Joy

From Nursery to Big Boy Look: Simon's Room Grows Up

When we were expecting Simon, we didn't really have a room to make into a nursery and then by the time we moved, I just used what had been given to me to put something together.  We were so thankful that so many people generously gave us what they no longer needed - it truly saved us a lot of money!  And, of course, it all just happened to match!

Oak colored furniture is not my first choice but we were happy to be given such great stuff that we went with it.  Here is his nursery before (I had not put anything up on the walls since we moved in):

Now that we are expecting #2, I decided to do a "big boy" room for Simon and it turned out so cute that I had to share.  I am not one of those people that can just put something together without seeing it first.  I know what I like when I see it but it usually takes me a while to really know what I want.

 Naturally it took me 2 years to figure out what I wanted to do for Simon.  I knew that I didn't want a juvenile theme and I really didn't want to do sports so what did that leave me?  Modern. Western.

Bed:  Bunkbed from Pacific Lifestyle Furniture (Beaverton)
Quilt:  Redrainbootshandmade.bigcartel.com

Teepee:  Etsy (The Cuckoo Clock store)

Cowhide:  Ikea

Curtains:  Pottery Barn Kids

Moose:  The Orchard Store

Porcelain Deerhead:  The Land of Nod (online)

Pillowcases:  H&M (online)

 It didn't turn out perfectly - there are a lot of little tweaks that I'm going to do once we have purchased a house and aren't in a rental.  But the things that I got I am really happy with and will use for years.

He absolutely loves it and thinks it is so neat that he has his own big bed with pillows on it.  He helps to pick them up and put them back on the bed after he gets up which is so cute.

One thing I have to mention is the amazing, custom quilt that my sister made me for his bed.  It is one of my favorite pieces about his new room and is such great quality that it will last him forever!  You guys seriously have to check out her store and her amazing handmade stuff @ www.redrainbootshandmade.bigcartel.com/.

XOXO

Joy

Holiday Glow Makeup

Hey girls,
  I thought I would share a great little tip with you all for achieving that extra glow in your makeup look during the holidays.  You'll notice that winter makeup is very different than summer makeup and part of that is because your skin is different during the seasons.  During the winter your skin will need more help in looking less sallow and flat.  To help with this, use an illuminator to glow and soften everything up.  It's really that simple.  Another term you will hear for this is "dewey".  Here is a picture as an example:

Notice the light on her cheeks and above her eyebrows?  That is because of illuminator. It catches beautifully in the light and is just gorgeous.  It looks amazing in evening lighting and with all those Christmas lights everywhere you will never want for a great spotlight.  ;)

 I did a makeup tutorial to show you how to use one and where to use it on your face.  Sorry my lighting isn't the best so it's hard to see but you'll get the general idea.

XOXO

Joy