party planning

Magic Jump Rentals: Why Bounce Houses Make the Best Birthdays! September is a crazy month in my house. Not only is it back to school, but we’ve got three birthdays starting with mine on the 11th, Oliver’s on the 15th, and Jonah’s on the 20th.  What’s a mama to do?! Bounce! I wanted to keep Oliver’s birthday small and at home but also make sure there was enough to do for the little and big kids… So is there anything better than an awesome bounce house?! I teamed up with Magic Jump Rentals to find the perfect bounce house. Right now, Oliver is OBSESSED with Toy Story. Magic Jump Rentals provided an awesome ...Read More
Oliver’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear Birthday Party What Oliver wants, Oliver gets. Since day UNO. When he was a newborn…You want my boob at 1am, 4am and 6 times between 5:45 and 8:45pm? Here you go, baby. (Insert cartoon of a woman – hi, that’s me- throwing hoisting her boob over a nursing bra like a large net in the Bering sea). When he started to crawl… You want to push mommy’s new sunglasses around on the floor? Have at it. (They’re knock-offs anyway. Because, you.) When he started eating… You want to eat your weight in puffs and cheerios? Fine. Just, fine. (At least they are loaded with spinach and kale anti-oxidant chia flax omega 3 DHA super green beet juice. Who needs ...Read More
My Top Holiday Hosting Tips In just a few days, my house will be filled with 26 adults and 3 children (and 1 baby!) for Thanksgiving. While it may be totally nuts to take such a big hosting “gig” on with a newborn, I love this holiday and am excited to open our home to our favorite family and friends. Luckily (and I say this with lots of love in my heart, dear family), we do not have any out-of-towners. This means that no one is spending the night(s)… hence, the arduous task of laundry loads, changing out sheets, and a fridge stocked morning, noon, and night. However, with 29 people, ...Read More
Gender Reveal Party: It’s A…. When my doctor called and said she had the results from the DNA Test– a test that is done at 10 weeks that detects chromosomal abnormalities like trisomies 21, 13, 18; and various micro deletions, I had to brace myself. We had experienced a loss in August at j13 1/2 weeks, (a loss that frankly, I don’t know when or if I will be able to write about) and the thought of going through it again, was just… unbearable. But thankfully, luckily, beautifully, the doctor called with news that I could cry happy tears to: “Everything is normal!” After 7 months of heartbreak, I took my first breath. “Do ...Read More
Right now, as you read this, Nana and her boyfriend Burt are on a cruise around South America. In just 46, excuse me 48 months, (because Burt did correct my husband on this number on Thanksgiving lest anyone get it wrong) these two 85 year old love birds have been to China, New York, the Caribbean and up and down the coast at least a dozen times, just because. Spend 5 minutes with them and you’ll see that their love of all things life only gets greater each day. It’s inspiring, awesome, and frankly, makes me downright excited to know that life just gets better and better. I could go on and ...Read More
One month ago, I married the man of my dreams and we spent the night dancing and laughing with our closest family and friends. Per his request, but mostly in my planning (perfectionist) state, I handed off a desired playlist to our trusted music aficionado, Jesse Kivel of Dart DJ. Of course we had our picks for special moments like the first dance (Otis Redding’s “That’s How Strong My Love Is) , recessional music (Stevie Wonder’s “For Once in My Life”) and other important songs (Peter walked down to “Born to Run” by well, The Boss, of course). But, in my wildest dreams, I would have never thought that the song ...Read More