{Winter ONEderland!}

Dylan's 1st birthday was a success!  Our Winter ONEderland theme was so much fun to coordinate.

My mom and sister-in-law made the most scrumptious, delicious, festive (and gluten free!) cake pops! I documented the loooooong process...

This gf cake mix taste like brownies! 

After coming out of the cake pop mold

Candy melts heated up made the cake pop shell.

Decorating was the best part!

Finished product!!

Then we had to let Dylan have his very own cake.  Who better than our old friend, Frosty, to join the festivities?

My brother made these fantastic signs...they were a huge hit!

As a proud mama of this happy little one-year-old, I can proudly say that he had a great time!

He figured out very quickly how to open  presents...

 Now we are on to Year Two!
(Sigh)

Xoxo,

Mama D

Wanna-Be DIYer

My New Year's resolution inspiration has come early this year.   I want to channel my inner-Martha and become a bona fide DIYer. Perhaps I've been watching too much HGTV, or possibly spending a few too many hours on Pinterest. It's likely that I've realized that being uber-crafty is totally in right now. Who knows?Maybe I'll discover my artistic alter ego has been dying to make it's debut and I can make some extra spending money selling my masterpieces on Etsy.

So far, my new birthday present (insert plug for the best husband in the world) has proven to be an addicting little hobby.  Nicki, the Nikon (clever, I know), has slept by my side each night.  Every morning, I slip my not-so-compact camera into my purse to bring to work and my husband wonders what could be so picturesque from inside my office cubicle. I'm sure I'll run out of close up, focus shots sooner or later. But for now, I'm having a lot of fun playing with it. Either way, I'm easing my way in...

First, the inanimate objects:

Nom nom nom.

Then on to my child and dog:

Pretty sure he hates me.

He was more interested in the shoebox.

 Then, I took my creativity up a notch and attempted an actual craft-related project.  I tried to make my son's 1st birthday hat.

I was wrong, now he really hates me.

Not too shabby, especially considering my non-creative self bought the wrong size glue stick for my glue gun, and had to carve away at it like a boy-scout carving a wooden stick. Pretty sure I broke the glue gun, but at least I (sort of) made something. Then I got to photograph it, so it was a win-win situation.

More projects (mostly photos) to be expected in the next year.

Until then,

XOXO
Mama D.

The Christmas House

Well, we've done it again! Our short stint in the 'burbs left us craving a shorter commute, the soothing sound of a busy street, and the city at our fingertips.  Yes, friends, we've moved again.

Turns out our investment property proved itself to be an investment sooner than we thought. So we found ourselves a quaint little love nest back in Bellevue.  Sacrificing the square footage of the south for the convenience of the city was definitely something to be considered.  However, the pros weighed out the cons in this decision making process.  By the time most of my colleagues are getting home, I've already started dinner, finished up some miscellaneous items around the house and cozied up in my  comfies to enjoy some quality time with my fam.  I also look at it this way, 1100 square feet is a whole lot less to clean than 1900. :)

I've got to give my husband credit for his tenacious moving skills. His 18+ moves by the time he was in college gave him the scrappy skills that it takes to move mountains (or so it seems).  Moving day was Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and we've already got everything in it's place, pictures hung, decor set.  (Another bonus of a smaller house...less furnishing to do!)  

We've dubbed our little snuggle cabin 'The Christmas House' due to it's festive appearance. Red with white trim.  I'm basically living in the North Pole and loving every second of it. My childlike enthusiasm for Yule-Tide happenings isn't getting any better being 1.2 miles from the most magical urban Christmas celebration on the face of the planet...

Two words: Snowflake Lane.  

When: 7pm every night throughout the month of December. 

Where: The Bellevue Collection

What you can expect: Pure happiness, enchantment, holiday tunes to be heard within a 5 block radius, Christmas characters parading in the streets, and guaranteed snow.  

It's Christmas crack. And I'm a junkie. 

Borrowed from: santaphotos.com

Borrowed from: thebellevuescene.com

PS- Word on the street Mr. Claus is bringing me my very own camera this year. Expect some more photo updates! 

Until then...

HoHoHo

Mama D.