A Forest-Themed Baby Shower

I'm not entirely sure who I can credit with this term, but I refer to showers (bridal or baby or whatever milestone reason to have a shower) as "hen parties." Yes, because of the cackling of many ladies combined. Oh and then there's the games...everyone's favorite, right? Cackling and games aside, every single time I leave a shower (especially after experiencing my own), I'm incredibly touched by people's generosity and kindness. To the credit of those who took the time to attend my baby and bridal showers, I'm fortunate enough to have an extremely well-stocked kitchen (which by the way, I LOVE and use ALL.THE.TIME.) and all the necessary baby accessories to raise our little lady. Maybe I'm odd, but to all the people who feel like their shower gifts are just another gift in the sea of blessings a soon-to-be mom or bride receives that day, it really is remembered! I seldom prep a meal in my kitchen or tidy the nursery without a little smile gracing my face as I'm reminded "oh yeah, ___ gave us this."

Tablescape

Now that I'm a homeowner, I have all these aspirations of entertaining...like having a sweet deck party complete with lemonade-filled mason jars with the cute paper straws and those fabulous cafe lights strung about (and no mosquitos). This past weekend I got to host a baby shower and help celebrate one of the beautiful moms in my life. She and my cousin are expecting a little boy in just a few short weeks and with their outdoorsy lifestyle in mind, I opted for a forest theme.

I'm usually not much for themed parties but in this case, I was able to repurpose many of the decorations in my house to create the tablescape pictured. Ahh!!! Wooden mushrooms, a paper mache rabbit, lots of mosses and other natural elements. So much fun. I'm one of those neutral purists and the mere thought of a bright pink or blue baby shower upsetting my calm household palette terrifies me a little bit! Oh yep, the decorator nerd in me has been revealed on the internets. Yikes. Well, here's the proof that a tasteful, natural/neutral baby shower can be done without feeling dull or not festive.

Menu: s'mores cupcakes, forest friends trail mix (with Teddy Grahams and Goldfish crackers mixed in), fresh fruit skewers and a not-too-sweet citrusy punch. (Thanks mom for the trail mix and fruit!)

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2015: New Year, New Brushes

I'm never been much for New Year's resolutions mostly because I guess if something is worth while starting or stopping or changing or learning, anytime is a fine time to start. But this year, my goal is to tackle a couple of things on my list of "Stuff I'm Not Good At." Like many people, there are things I haven't bothered to try more than once because I failed miserably the first time...and it's no fun not to be good at something. Ah! It's scary to do stuff you're not good at, right?!

To soften the blow, I started out with the least daunting of the two items on my list: watercolor. Before I got into drawing, I LOVED painting. Color everywhere. I was like a kid in a candy store picking out acrylics and mediums and brushes. Hobby Lobby took a LOT of my discretionary income between the ages of 18 and 23 and most of it was spent on paint. I took a painting class and failed MISERABLY at watercolor. I felt like there was no control (compared to acrylics, there really isn't...at least not with my "technique"), it was messy, it was pointless, it was hopeless. A little went more than a long way and stuff never stayed where I wanted it to. My attempts at watercolor looked something like the sad results of a fruit and veggie smoothie making without a lid on the blender. Not good.

I've been meaning to get back to my roots after spending WAY too much of my creative juices designing away on the computer and get a brush back in my hands. After a couple of difficult weeks, a little watercolor therapy is just what I needed. A couple trial runs and some practice later, things started to come back to me and feel a little more natural. I mixed this new watercolor thang with some hand lettering (another love) and this is the miniature little painting that was born of my practice of both. I'm pumped to keep going with this!

Next "Stuff I'm Not Good At" endeavor: sewing! Ah! Sewing involves needles...much more scary than watercolor. House before and afters still to come too! I just need to find time to get all my photos organized!

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