DIY

FINN’S CONSTRUCTION PARTY

There’s nothing we love more than throwing a party, and this time we were so excited to design a construction-themed party for sweet Finn’s second birthday. He (like so many little dudes) is obsessed with diggers and trucks, so naturally, his mom came up with a construction theme. We wanted to keep the look simple and modern like we do for our own parties, so we took out orange and kept the main colors kraft, black, and yellow.
To direct guests into the house, we set up a detour sign and lined the walkway with cones HERE. We bought a raw wood saw horse at Home Depot and painted the legs in black for that “dipped” look.
 Here’s the birthday boy, Finn! Isn’t he gorgeous? 
FOOD & DRINKS:
Because we peer pressured Finn’s parents to serve their guests alcohol at their kid’s party like WE do… 
a “Site Managers Only” sign was needed!
 The “road” backdrop in all of these shots is just black wrapping paper with yellow card stock lines stuck on with double stick tape.
FAVORS:
Teeny toy trucks HERE.
 We found these goofy tool tattoos at Hobby Lobby! A little stereotypical… but fun, right? 
Teeny treat bags HERE.
 Toddler crack bubbles from the dollar store.
Construction hats HERE.
Dirt Pops AKA jumbo marshmallows dipped in white chocolate candy melts, rolled in crushed graham crackers. SO GOOD you guys. You can display these bad boys in extra graham cracker crumbs.
Tip: dip the lollipop sticks in the candy melts FIRST, push that into the marshmallow and let dry- this will secure the marshmallow to the stick. Then you can dip the marshmallows in candy melts, shake off extra chocolate, and roll in the crumbs. You can keep these frozen for a week or so before the event.
We packaged the goodies up in THESE boxes and personalized them for each child.
FUN & GAMES:
 We made the photo booth by simply painting a flattened cardboard box!
 Photo booth props: We hot glued the paper props we made to dowels, vest HERE, hats HERE.
 Finn’s big sis, Annie.
Awwww yeah, every little boy’s fantasy, every parent’s nightmare. Finn’s parents are troopers! 
 The kids ate lunch picnic-style on tarps because… duh.
Happy Birthday, Finn! We had so much fun dreaming up your construction party and hope you got your fill of digging, dirt, and sweet treats!

JENNI’S PINK POM POM BABY SHOWER

I’ve been waiting (impatiently) to share one of my favorite events… Jenni’s baby shower! Almost three years ago I co-hosted this charming fete for my bestie along with two incredible and important women in Jenni’s life, Lori and Amanda. Although it was a couple’s shower, we decided on a pink pom pom / chevron theme to match Amara’s nursery (scroll down to see) and just told the boys to get over it! Plus I guarantee 99% of the guys never noticed the girly theme when there was plenty of drinks, great food, and lots of late-night dancing going on! And Jenni and Gabe’s friends can DANCE, people. Actually the dance floor was my favorite area strung with tons and tons of pom poms!
The dessert table laden with all pink desserts and a garland of little tissue paper squares.
Gabe and Jenni! Youngin’s…
I found this pink box in the office section at Walmart!! and filled it with teeny treat bags full of Gabe’s favorite candies, Reeses Pieces. Gotta give the dad one thing, right?
Lori made the BEST oreo truffles…omg 
We wrapped the vases and tables with ribbon – simple!
Late night s’mores around the fire pit were the perfect way to end the night!
My favorite thing to make for baby showers- a diaper cake! To fit with the pom pom theme, I just made tiny ones and stuck them in with floral wire.
To give the cake an ombre look, use matching tissue paper and ribbon: two fuschia tiers, one light pink tier, and two white tiers. Normally I use Pamper Swaddlers diapers since they’re all white… but honestly I had these on hand and didn’t mind the touch of green.
More of our diaper cakes HERE and HERE.
We asked Jenni and Gabe’s parents to send us pictures of them when they were little for the centerpieces, so we could imagine what Amara will look like! (Spoiler: exactly like Gabe).
We even anchored some poms in the pool to carry the theme throughout the yard. Amanda’s home is stunning, right??
I made this chevron photo booth backdrop with just squares of pink and white tissue paper. Just layer the squares- no cutting! I used double stick tape on two large pieces of foam core and Lori’s insanely handy hubby hung them with fishing line. 
Photo booth props: empty barnwood frames from Hobby Lobby, and a baby bump pillow were favorites. We also left a blank scrap book out for guests to write their best advice and wishes!

Here’s the gorgeous Jenni in Amara’s nursery- the inspiration for the whole shower! She and Lori hand painted this wall! To see Amara’s white and modern big girl room, click HERE, though after all that hard work painting, I can’t believe Jenni switched the look!
The invite! Inspired by the pink chevron wall above. By Rock Paper Scissors.
What a joyful night! We celebrated the crap out of these two. Deserving people who created the most special little lady, Amara. Let’s do it again, Jenni! (She’s reading this going, noooo way!)
-L

SUMMA SUMMA SUMMERTIME – OUTDOOR DINING

You guys! Its summer, and all I can do is think about outdoor dining. Well…. not literally, but it is kind of my fave! Even when my husband and I are scouting out a place to eat lunch or dinner, my first comment is usually “who has great patio seating?” It truly is one of my most adored thing in life…. dining al fresca.
We have been hard at work on our kitchen (I can’t wait to share), however, that has left us with not much time or dolla bills to whip our tiny little backyard and slab of a patio into shape. I am patiently waiting and dreaming in the meantime. Here are some inspirational pics that I can’t stop staring at. I love that outdoor dining (decor) doesn’t have to be “expensive” or even look a certain way. Globe lights are a must though! I just adore the family feel that comes with dining outside. Don’t you ?
^^ Dying dying dying over this gorgeous pergola with the baby swing attached! ^^
Enjoy your weekend loves! Grab a cocktail, and enjoy it outdoors with great company!
XO

PARTY HAT TUTORIAL – FREE DOWNLOAD

Here’s a quick and easy party hat tutorial for you. If you want a solidly constructed hat with the string and everything (so you can force your baby to wear it like I do) but have it match your decorations, this is my fav way to go. Scroll down for the tutorial and download.
Ari’s third birthday party HERE
Ari’s second birthday party HERE

 PARTY HAT TUTORIAL:

1. Start with any store-bought hat
2. Unfold the hat, design-side down
3. Trace around the hat
4. Cut out traced shape, a little outside the lines to leave room for error
5. Put double stick tape on the two straight edges of the traced shape
6. Start with the “tab” side and tape on the hat, wrapping around the paper as you go
(If you want to do a little fringe or pom pom add this in before you close up the hat)
7. Decorate! 
Download party hat numbers HERE
 And here are my babies in their birthday hats! Oh how I love to torture them.

Jenni covered her hats with chalkboard paper and wrote with chalk. Amara’s first birthday party HERE

We’d love to see your party hats! Email us!
 -L

TEACHER’S TOTE BAG – FREE DOWNLOAD

For teacher appreciation week I made Ari’s teachers these cheeky tote bags, and wanted to share with you! Every teacher needs a tote right? And they certainly need to know how much they are appreciated. You can fill your teacher’s tote with flowers, school supplies, or simply a handwritten note to tell them how much of a difference they have made in your child’s life. I know Ari’s teachers have a LOT to deal with! Oh the potty training years are fun, aren’t they? 
Scroll down for instructions and download.
“You’re TOTES the best teacher ever” Totes. It’s a tote. (Get it, Dad?)
Stuff you need:
Canvas tote bag (craft store)
Iron transfer paper
Iron
Scissors
1. Download the apple image HERE
2. Print image, following instructions given with your transfer paper pack
3. CUT carefully around image
4. Place image FACE DOWN and follow ironing instructions in your transfer paper pack
5. Wait until image is completely cool before carefully peeling off
For the GIFT TAG, download HERE.
For more teacher gift ideas see THIS POST.
Happy teacher appreciation week!
-L

TEACHER GIFTS ROUNDUP

Teacher appreciation day is coming up, and we know a lot of you busy mamas have been asking for some easy gift ideas. Let’s treat the (very patient) people who take care of our kids, feed them, change them, clean them, teach them, love them… and they’re not even their own kids! Who does that? Not these ladies right here. No thank you.
Here are some of our fav DIY/free printable gifts plus more on our Pinterest board HERE
Click numbers for links: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8
See more HERE
Remember A+ for effort, right?

MOTHER’S DAY CRAFT – TEA TOWELS

Mother’s day is quickly approaching…grab your kid and let’s get crafting! 
We’re making hand print embroidered tea towels- WAIT! Don’t leave the page! I swear it’s a lot easier than it sounds. You don’t need to know how to embroider or sew to make this project. Just a little practice. Another option- use a fabric marker. That’s easier, right?
Jenni and I made these for our moms and mothers-in-laws 2 years ago and they were a hit! 
Here’s what you need: 

– Tea towel (Any will work. I got mine from Hobby Lobby)
– Embroidery hoop
– Embroidery floss and needle
– Teeny hand

Instructions:
1. Trace child’s hand on paper and cut out the traced shape
2. Stretch tea towel and fasten tightly in embroidery hoop
3. Trace hand shape on the towel with a pencil (easier for wriggly kiddos than to trace directly on towel)
4. Embroider: for the hand and name use a split stitch (tutorial HERE). For the heart, draw a little heart outline with pencil then use a satin stitch (tutorial HERE). To make the heart puffed up like I did, do a split stitch outline of the heart FIRST then cover those stitches with the satin stitch. 
5. Give to your deserving mama and tell her now you know how it feels to love your kid more than life itself. Oh and sorry for all the teenage years.

Love & Lion Mother’s Day circa 2012! Look at our little babies!!

PIPER’S BUNNY THEMED 2ND BIRTHDAY

You are officially invited to the most fabulous 2nd birthday party for the cutest little bunny lover we know. When Lauren of Rock Paper Scissors was deciding on a theme for her sweet girl, Piper, there was no question that Floppy ( her little bunny) would need to be the guest of honor. Piper and Floppy are BFFs for sure! We love how Lauren took something so meaningful to Piper and created a party around that.
We are so excited to share this with you all…. especially during this Easter season. The touches are all so sweet and the details are nothing short of perfection!
^^ Lauren is our girl when it comes to invites! We are just swooning over this beautiful invite she custom designed for the party. Who wouldn’t want to come after seeing this!?! ^^
^^ Honestly, our absolute favorite detail were these pink painted carrots! SO creative!! ^^
^^ Right when you entered, there was a little coloring station where each party guest could color their own “floppy”…. after you put your bunny ears on of course. ^^

^^ Can we just talk about this for a second?! Each flower was handmade by the fab mama herself to create a garland along the mantel. Definitely time consuming, but absolutely worth it all we think! ^^
^^ The celebration wouldn’t be complete without this incredible cake to blow candles out on. 
Beautiful! ^^

^^ We love that there was a little something there for the adults to do. A little bunny origami 
anyone? ^^
^^ There were actually REAL bunnies there for the party guests ( adults included) to snuggle on! They were a huge hit, and seriously the “cherry on top” of this big ole fat, delicious cupcake of a party! ^^
^^ Lastly, each little party guest left with their very own finger puppet attached to a custom designed card showing little Miss Piper herself. ^^ 
Lauren! We adore it all!! Thank you for letting us share your party. It is clear that so much love and thought went into making this day so special for your little.

DOUBLE FEATURE!

So so so incredibly honored to have Ari’s Animal Party AND Max’s nursery featured over on 
Red Tricycle, the go-to blog for stylish, awesome, busy mamas. They take the work out of scouring the internet to find cool crafts, unique nurseries, creative parties, and recipes your kids will actually eat. We read the baby/bump pages but for you all in Atlanta, Chicago, New York, LA, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, SoCal, and DC, you have your very own section of fun things to do around your town, fav children’s boutiques, monthly event calendars, kid-friendly food trucks, and more… 
how perfect is this if you’re traveling with your littles to any of these cities?! We love it! 
See THIS post for Ari’s 2nd Birthday feature
See THIS post for 13 inspirational nurseries- including Max’s!
And see ALL posts for just general awesomeness 🙂 Thanks, Red Tricycle!

REBECCA’S BASEBALL THEMED BRIDAL SHOWER

It’s #TBT party series time! Rebecca is one of my very best friends since childhood. She got engaged at game 7 of the 2011 World Series- go Cards!! Rebecca and her now husband, Mike, are reaaaally into baseball, so we thought it appropriate to throw an All American Girls Baseball themed bridal shower for her! I planned this party with one of the most creative people I know and a bestie of Rebecca’s, Sam Schmiz. We had a tough time finding inspiration for a modern adult girls baseball theme so we stuck with simple colors pink, red, and mint, and gave it a vintage style. 
Instead of a guest book, we had everyone sign baseballs! Another fun thing we did was take pictures of each guest in the photo booth, then as the party went on, we secretly made baseball cards for each guest to take home and a copy for Rebecca. We also gave Rebecca coordinating stationery and presented everything in a “baseball memorabilia” box with stat cards from each guest
Here’s the bride-to-be and the baseball themed food table. Hot dogs, nacho bar, popcorn, soft pretzels, and peanuts. 
I painted these forks just by taping off sections. (I’ll post a polka dot DIY soon.) Napkins by Shop Sweet Lulu– our fav party supplies site!
Cracker Jack Treats… oooommmmggg you guys. Recipe HERE just sprinkle fleur de sel on top.
We thought it would be fun to put the toppings into those little plastic baseball hats you get at the game for ice cream (AKA one of the only reasons I attend baseball games).
This was so fun- instead of playing a game we had the guests fill out these “stat cards”. Each square had a number involved in it to fit the baseball theme, like 7 is the number of___, on their 10 anniversary___, etc. We gave Rebecca the stat cards for her memorabilia box. PURCHASE HERE
How cute are these pennant invites Sam designed?
Sam used her Cricut to make the bunting banners, confetti, and this photo booth backdrop. Anyone have the new Cricut Explore? Dying for one!!
Anyone throwing a baseball themed shower? We’d love to see what you come up with!
-L

BUNNY TAILS AND CARROT STICKS

Easter is a very special holiday to my little family, not to mention all of the kids’ stuff that Target puts out every year is always so much fun to hang in Amara’s room. Amara has fun decorating her little tree (which we bought more decorations for this year) and hanging a wreath on her door. We just make a big deal out of it and she tells me how pretty it all is…. it is a win win really! I wasn’t super crazy about any of the garlands I came across, so I just decided to make my own. I wanted a more playful one since it was for a little girl’s room, ya know? I settled on bunny tails and carrot sticks. I simply used the items I already had on hand, which made it free… which makes it awesome!
Items you will need: I freehanded these little guys, so feel free to do the same or you can trace my kindergarten drawing HERE, one sheet of orange felt, 2 sheets of cream felt, two cotton balls, green yarn, and twine of some sort! Here is a great tutorial for making poms carrot tops if you don’t already know how to do it. Simply trace and cut, make your poms, break apart your little pieces of cotton and roll them into balls and go to town with your hot glue gun!
I bought this wreath and tree from Target! I probably could have saved some money and made this wreath by myself! Twine, yarn and a wreath form??? I went a little “crazy shopper lady” and snagged it off the shelf since it was the last one. I wasn’t thinking clearly people. 

I will certainly make my attempt to explain what Easter is really all about to Amara, and I anxiously await the day when she “gets it”. In the meantime, it is a lot of fun to just put up pretty things!!
What are some of your favorite Easter traditions / things to do with you kiddos? Any suggestions on how to teach a toddler?
-J

DONUT PARTY (FREE PRINTABLES)

My mom was in town this weekend for her birthday, so I threw her a brunch featuring her favorite food ever: donuts! Sweet friends that she’s gotten to know over the years when visiting us, great conversation, yummy donuts, and colorful decorations made the party a hit. 
Free printables for you at the end of the post!
DIY sprinkle confetti: just cut cut cut up your scraps of tissue paper and voila! Sprinkles!
DIY Sprinkle Forks: I used a letter “I” rubber stamp and just stamped it in different colors to look like sprinkles! For extra fun, I put the forks in a delicious glass of real sprinkles.
I didn’t have time to fully complete the donut balloons, nor did I supervise the lady at Kroger inflating these… half way. UGH! Much cuter HERE.

I left out treat boxes for guests to take home extras… I do NOT need donuts sitting around my house! 
The birthday girl, my beautiful mom, Marty! And little Max of course.
To make your life a lot easier… free printables:
Donuts HERE and HERE
Tags HERE and HERE
Menu (blank) HERE
-L
Oh… and the winner of the FRESHLY PICKED MOCCS GIVEAWAY is…
RACHEL ARNOLD!! (e-mail us mama!)
Yippee! Congrats!
We clearly have the best followers EVER!! Thank you ALL for your entries and sweet comments. Get hype for some more giveaways coming up!