Trolls Birthday Party!

Violet and Lucy had their shared birthday party this past weekend! I can't believe they are four and seven! Where has the time gone? They both thankfully wanted the same theme this year - Trolls! So much easier for this busy mama. Here are some of the photos from their party, taken by my dad <3

x

Sources:
Number Balloons: Party City
Marbled Balloons: Shop Sweet Lulu
Rainbow Decoration: DIY
Rock Candy: Party City
Cupcakes: 874 Cake Studio
Troll Headbands: DIY

Violet & Lucy's Playhouse: Week 1

This is a project we've been wanting to start for the girls for a long time, but we knew that we weren't going to be at our first house forever, so we waited. We were super excited when we finally found our forever home that we could make this a reality for the girls. Since we're thinking long-term, we decided to make a playhouse that had a future function when the girls have outgrown it. Kevin really misses his little vegetable garden from the old house (and I miss walking out the door when I need some fresh tomatoes!), so we decided to make the playhouse adult sized so that someday it can become a garden shed. We'll be planting a vegetable garden on the back side of the play house - it's a spot that gets a lot of sunshine and we thought it would be a great natural way to create some division to the yard for our little patch of veggies. Kevin and his dad have been working on it from morning til dinner for a week now and it's really starting to take shape!

The plan is to paint it white, with a wooden pergola off of the front, and some fun accent colors. The front door will *hopefully* be a Dutch door, and the back door will be a sliding barn door. We're also going to plant lots of pretty bushy flower and things around it. The girls are so excited to walk out the door every day and see it transform.

I'm crazy excited to decorate the inside. I'm kind of a freak like that. In this section we're going to paint, and probably add their play kitchen and some fun accessories:

On the opposite side, we're planning to build a lofted area with a ladder or some ship stairs and some sort of lounge area. The girls have requested beds. We've thrown around a bunch of ideas from suspended rope beds, a hammock, bunk beds, or even moving the toddler bed out here:

I seriously can't believe how hard Kev and his dad have been working on this thing, and I am so impressed with what they've done so far. Hopefully someday the girls will really be able to appreciate the hours and hours of hard work were put into creating this for them. We're three really lucky girls.

I'm planning on sharing some inspiration photos for the space tomorrow! xx, Lauren

Our Summer Bucket List: On the Farm

We're really lucky that my parents spend a lot of time with our girls. They get them almost every week for an overnight stay, and they do all kinds of fun things with them. Parks, playgrounds, pool time, tractor rides - you name it. They've also been helping the girls check things off of their summer bucket list. One thing the girls really wanted to do was "feed the ducks," so my parents took them to a farm down the road from their house where there are always a ton of ducks and geese. The farmer is fine with them feeding the animals and poking around, so they actually visit there pretty frequently.

Normally I'm not along to see their farm visits, but I hear about them a lot. Kevin and I usually use Nonny and Poppy time to have date nights and get things done around the house. This time though, I was excited to get some pictures! My dad is really into photography (I'm forever stealing his camera!), and I was really excited when he sent me a bunch of photos from their day. Thanks, Daddy!

That guy's expression totally cracks me up. And can you tell that long stars and stripes number is Violet's favorite dress?! She always wants to wear it to the most impractical places :) Total girly girl, through and through.

Speaking of the summer bucket list, I'm super excited to say that the play house build is in full swing! I can't wait to share some progress photos with you all soon. Hope you're all enjoying some simple summer fun! xo, Lauren

A Simple Summer Bucket List

I've been meaning to share our summer bucket list with you all, but I guess we're having too much fun checking things off for blogging! The girls and I worked on it together, and we wanted to keep it simple. You know, the good parts of summer:

We've already checked a bunch of things off of the list (not to say that we won't do some of them again!) Someone got the girls one of those crazy water balloon things that you see on TV where you can fill up like 50 water balloons in a few seconds, and the two of them went at it! At first it started off really tame. They kind of faced off duel style and took turns. One would turn around, the other would walk up and slam a water balloon into their back. After like five minutes of this I eventually suggested running around while throwing the balloons (they aren't very experienced in the world of water balloon fights apparently!) and they went crazy. Water balloon fight...check. Now we have to buy more of these amazing water balloons because it's all they every want to do.

Catching fireflies is always a little challenging, because they usually are in bed before it gets dark enough for the fireflies to come out. I'm all for bending the rules and schedules in the summer time, but they just get plain tired by like 7:30/8:00 at night. We got lucky the other night though because we stayed up specifically for the fireworks, and the park that we were in was absolutely covered in them. You could literally put your hands into the grass and scoop one right up - they were everywhere. It was pretty amazing. Not to mention the perfect sunset.

We got really lucky with the fireworks too. We ended up going on the 3rd of July - not quite as legit, but that's when our little part of town has their at the local park. The big display downtown was on the fourth, but we always like this one better. It's nice to pull up, lay out a blanket on the grass, and hang out instead of filing into a big crowded stadium. This year we were so thankful that we went this route because it was seriously the perfect night (see sunset shots above!) Fireflies, great temperature, beautiful sunset, perfect weather. The actually fourth of July ended up being a big bummer - really rainy and kind cold. I didn't get any pictures of the actual fireworks because Lucy got kind of manic (late bedtime, argh!) and was basically doing flips on me during the display, but I did get the cutest ever pic of the girls snuggling with their dad:

 I'll be sharing more bucket-list fun as we check things off the list! I'd love to hear what's on your summer bucket list! xo, Lauren

An Update on Violet's Room

Please forgive the grainy photo! It was a quick snap with my iPhone. The last time we talked about Violet's room we were trying to figure out the best way to get her a cozy "nook" similar to the alcove in her bedroom at our former home. The winner turned out to be using curtains to sort of canopy her bed. Next we had to figure out if the layout of Violet's room would allow us to actually do this. The other day we tested out a few furniture arrangements to see what would work best.

After we had all of the major furniture pieces in place, I took a pair of curtains and hung them from the ceiling using some string and tape (classy looking, I know!), to see if we liked the look. Violet was a little upset at first about the idea of her furniture being shifted around (change is hard, even if it's wanted change!), but when she saw this she gasped and said, "It looks so pretty in here, Mommy!" I knew we had a winner. I'm planning for longer drapes, a framed out top, and four panels rather than two. Here area  few of my inspiration images:

I really love the look of the built-in bookcase in the above photo, but unfortunately there is a vent that prevents a bookcase from happening without a lot of extra work (Kev has enough on his plate as it is!), so I don't think that will work in Violet's room. I'm trying to keep this as low-maintenance as possible because I know he already has so much planned for this summer.

The colors in the photo above are so pretty, and so Violet. She's a purple and pink fan forever. In fact, she wants to keep the current purple wall color of her room, so we're probably just going to paint the trim and maybe the ceiling. I also love all of the pattern and the fact that the curtains are lined with a contrasting color/design.

Love this space too! So fun with the punchy colors and kid art. I definitely want to include some of Violet's artwork in the space (you can see one of her many rainbow paintings in the photo up above). What I'm trying to decide currently is what color fabric/curtains I want to use. Should I stick with white with a fun tassel or pom pom trim? Or maybe go with a more bold color? What do you think?xo, Lauren

Images 1 . 2 . 3. 4

Image 1 Credit: A Lovely Lark

Image 2 Credit: Trevor Tondro

Image 3 Credit: Melanie Acevedo

Image 4 Credit: Lily Z Interior Design
*I hope all of these are correct - I pinned them long ago and some of them are no longer visible on these sites.

Little Summer Style Favorites

Here are a few things that the girls are wearing now that the weather is (finally!) warm...

Floral Surf/Water Shoes - are these not the cutest water shoes you have ever laid eyes on?!
Sunglasses - love these - comfy, cheap, go with everything.
Kitty Cat Sandals - Violet loves kitty cat shoes. She has probably had some form of cat shoes since she was two years old. Luckily I keep finding them so she keeps wearing them.
Flamingo Headband - flamingo. headband. Need I say more?
Tutu Dress - we have this in multiple colors! It is seriously so adorable and we got them on sale at 40% off so it was a fab deal
Flower Hairties - we got these a year or two ago and the girls literally argue daily over who gets to wear them!
Striped Rainbow Maxi Dress - Violet loves rainbows and maxi dresses, so this was a no-brainer.
Ruffle Swimsuit - the toughest thing about this suit is deciding which color to buy! So flippin' cute.
Natives Perforated Slip-on Shoes - the girls wear these constantly in the warm months. They are great because they can get wet, they're super comfy and act like sneakers for playing at the park, but they don't get smelly if the girls wear them sans socks.
Rosette Swimsuit - Violet always requests flowers on her swimsuit, plus as a bonus this one comes in her favorite color
Rainbow Striped Skater Dress - the girls seriously live in skater dresses over the summer. Our favorites are from H&M and American Apparel.
Flower Power Headband - this was a birthday gift and Violet loves, loves, loves it.
First Gloss Hunter Rain Boots - so they can jump in muddy puddles "just like Peppa"

Ideas for Violet's Room: Creating a Bed Nook

The girls have handled the transition to our new house fairly well, but it's definitely been a bit harder on Violet. She was at an age where she had started creating real memories in our first little house, and there are things she misses dreadfully. Her top two complaints are missing her "secret garden" (a large rhododendron that was in front of our house that she would play beneath), and her bed nook. She just loved that she could close the curtains and feel like she was in her own secret fort. She misses the coziness of sleeping in that little space tremendously.

So as I've been thinking about how to design her new space, I've been trying to think of creative ways to give her that same cozy, adventurous feeling. My Pinterest board for her room is full of these sleeping "nooks," whether it be a cupboard-type bed, a canopy, or even a lofted playhouse. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. I love this cupboard-style bed. The designer actually created it out of necessity to hide a staircase. I think it would give Violet a really similar feeling to her previous bedroom (and those red check curtains are so cute!):

2. Here's another very similar bed nook. I love that this one has storage beneath and the curved edges and little wall light are just adorable:

3. Here's a super-fancy version of a cupboard bed with all of that gingerbread trim. I absolutely adore that one of the drawers pulls out to reveal stairs, and I think Violet would love the sconces on the inside (especially if they were on a dimmer switch!):

4. It looks like this one was created with just fabric, which is something I could more likely accomplish on my own without as much help from Kev, although it probably would look this professional and tailored than this photo!

5. This is from good ol' IKEA, which I'm guessing means that it has potential to be a "me" project as well. It looks like you just suspend this curtain rod system. from the ceiling, hang curtains, and voila - instant dreamy bed nook:

6. This is incredibly adorable. I've found a bunch of different versions of playhouse beds (even some that you can buy, although they're completely out of our price range. I even found one that is a hack of the IKEA .

7. And last but not least, here is a more trendy and insanely adorable bed nook complete with shiplap and some of my fave wallpaper! I adore the little inset bookshelf:

Now that I've collected a bunch, I think it's time to show them to the boss (AKA Violet) and see what she thinks! Which is your favorite?

Sources: 1 . 2. 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7

Violet & Lucy's Minecraft - Dinosaur Birthday Party

I'll admit that I actually wasn't planning on letting the girls choose a birthday party theme this year. It's been a rough year - I started a new full-time job, which has me completely exhausted and beyond stressed at the end of the day every day. The first half of the school year I was coming home crying almost daily. Add to that fact that Violet started school this year, we moved into a new house (on the day that Violet started kindergarten and I started my new job), and that Lucy is two (just turned three!), and it's a recipe for wanting a simple, easy birthday party! Much to my dismay, the girls remembered choosing their themes before, and announced without being asked that they wanted a "girly" Minecraft (Violet) party / dinosaur (Lucy) party. So I mustered what little I had left and this is what I came up with. In the end I'm glad that we did it, and I'm happy that they were both happy!

We had a dinosaur bean bag toss that Violet helped me to paint onto a cardboard box using some leftover paint testers, and a pin-the-tail on the Minecraft pig that I made out of paper. I had some other fun ideas (Pinterest!!!), but managed to reign myself in and not overwhelm myself with unnecessary details. It was a really fun day and we got SO lucky with the weather (I think every other weekend has been cold/rainy so far). I still can't believe I am the mother of a three and six-year-old! Happy birthday girls, we love you to the moon and back! xo, Mommy & Daddy

P.S. If you want to see a few of the girls' past birthday parties here you go! 2015 . 2014 . 2013