life lately: xmas edition

merry christmas! we had a great holiday season but man, i am ready for it to be over! i'm ready for regular life to begin again. and by regular life, i mean school. i am so ready for school to be back in session. anywho, here's what we've been up to at christmas time. 

life lately has been joyful. we started off the season by visiting the magical forest at opportunity village. it's become a great family tradition and we love going. especially this year since all the kids could go on all the rides. we got to go see landon at school where he presented his puppet. it's been fireplace time. seriously, we have it burning almost every night. we love snuggling up and warming up near the fire. it's really one of the reasons why i love my house. and here's another gem from the magical forest- me and my boys in the cinderella carriage.

life has been lazy. justin will bring in our spare mattress sometimes in front of the TV and we love snuggling and sleeping on it. life has been delicious and full of cookies. my waistline sure is suffering because of it but man, i love cookie season. and apparently griffin does too.  we went to the annual ornament exchange and have a fun time with our family friends. we also decorated gingerbread houses with the irelands and ate way too much candy before dinner. mom win!

 lately i've been taking care of me. kayla and i went to a spa one afternoon and go massages. we spent a lot of time naked, going between freezing and burning temperatures. it was awesome. we visited santa at our church christmas party where landon stared at one of the wiseman. i am a proud mama! we watched a lot of christmas movies [some of us SLEPT through it] and built a snowman on our door.

life has been spending a lot of time at home. meghan got landon an awesome craft kit and books. he has been so excited to make crafts and do different things each day. we've built tents, done crafts, and fought. a lot of fighting.

christmas eve we spent at mema's house where the boys were spoiled as usual. she bought all of them a bike/ride! i didn't think santa would ever come to our house because porter was up past 11pm! we're saying goodbye to naptime. we had a great time christmas morning before church. landon got a nerf gun bow and arrow that he wanted. porter got a paw patrol steering wheel and griffin got a little people car ramp [along with other things]. christmas was extra special since it landed on a sunday.

christmas night we had dinner at grandpa dave's and had a fabulous time. the highlight there was....legoland season passes!! we cannot wait to go. griffin really understood how to open presents and was even a little overzealous. i just love christmas time with kids.

 the day after christmas, my sister anna came into town. we celebrated noah's birthday and had dinner with my brother. the kids got an awesome paw patrol game and slurpees!

lastly, life has been sweet. although i am MORE then ready for school to go back in session, it has been nice having a lot of down time. we've played robot turtles, gone on mommy dates, and watched too much tv. oh, and a project. TBA!

the bride tribe

after kayla's bridal shower, i met my mom & the kids at mcdonalds. they were having so much fun with grandma, they didn't even miss me. i had missed them terribly and it had only been a few hours. i switched cars and headed to meet the girls at the dollhouse blowout bar [at tivoli village]. the owner set us up in the bar with free *cotton candy* champagne. it was here that i ordered my first drink! i didn't consume that drink but i sure ate some cotton candy off the top. most of the girls got blowouts. i got a pedicure. we ran over to downtown summerlin and met up with everyone for dinner at CRAVE. it was a sushi/steakhouse and was so delicious! downtown summerlin on a saturday night is a crazy time but luckily the restaurant wasn't too crowded and easily accommodated our giant group. we showered our bride with some sexy gifts and i ate the most delicious steak medallions i've ever had.

after that we walked to dave & busters [newly opened in vegas]. there was a boxing match that night so there was a cover charge. luckily we got in free because we were a bachelorette party! gotta love vegas! we played lots of games and tried to get kayla drunk [didn't happen]. i had never been but it is literally a grown up chuck e cheese. except more expensive. with better food. i prefer chuck e cheese. it still was a lot of fun!

after that we drove downtown to the cosmopolian. here we met even more saturday night traffic, especially on the strip. we had a lot of fun in the car. that was the most fun i had all night. just girls being girls! right when we walked into the restaurant [we had come for some delicious deserts] i saw a high school buddy. well, he was justin's football friend but i knew him from that circle. justin had mentioned he worked there but i, of course, forgot. he's the operations manager so he totally set us up! free appetizers, discounts, and i got my dessert on the house! i think it helped that i brought up the fact that he got smashed in my church parking lot at my wedding reception. by that time it was well after midnight and i was tuckered. i have to nap for my 10pm bedtime; after midnight was killing me! while we ate we went around talking about our favorite memories of kayla. luckily i had plenty to share! my friend also came by and offered us these dry ice/flavored mint thingys. basically you put it on your tongue and it makes your mouth smoke as it melts. well the first time i just couldn't handle it and spit it out everywhere. everyone laughed. then i thought i could handle it now that i knew what i was getting into but no, i spit that out too. i am weak sauce.

the night was far from over though. i was the DD for the night and had the privilege to drive all the girls back to their cars and houses. worth it to keep everyone safe! it was seriously so much fun but going to church the next morning was very, very painful. and a little embarrassing because i had a 'bride tribe' tattoo on my face i couldn't wash off.

oh, i forgot to mention the best parts! i made these adorable diamond themed invitations for the party. they took so much time and work and yet i still took almost no pictures of them. inside was the schedule, what to pack, and info on the party. all of us girls wore britney spears themed shirts. kayla's read 'i'm the bride b*tch'. mine said 'you want a piece of me?'. originally we were going to see britney in concert but that got too expensive but the shirts stayed. i also made survival kits for the girls who came. inside was a granola bar, water bottle, tylenol, hair tie ['to have and hold your hair back'], a thank you note from the bride herself, a bride tribe tattoo, party beads, chocolate, and make-up remover wipes. the bags were so cute and the details were amazing! yet again, i didn't take any pictures. oy vey.

i'm so happy it's all over! it was so stressful but worth it. i'm so excited for zack and kayla. can't wait for march!

brunch & bubbly [well, not for me]

whew! i am DONE with my parties for the year- DONE! i have put my sweat, blood and tears into this particular wedding weekend and it was worth it. everything went off without a hitch and it was just as much fun as i had hoped. i'm so happy for kayla and her wedding has been YEARS in the making. she is a gorgeous bride and i can't wait for march.

kayla's pinterest board was super helpful and i had some ideas of my own. thanks to pinterest of course. my main focus was these paper flowers. i really stressed about making these and put them off for a long time. eventually once i started, i couldn't stop. it was a lot easier then i thought and they were so cute. the pictures don't do them justice. i wish i could have gotten one solid background but i love them. here's the bride with her mother in law [who flew in from wisconsin] and kayla's mom.

 another decoration that i wanted to do was this hula hoop balloon thing. i have an amazing facebook friend who throws amazing parties. she thought this up [well, a better version of it] and i copied it the best i could. it was not easy to hang up, let me tell you. thankfully the man of the house figured it up. speaking of which, kayla's good friend from church hosted the party. games were minimal. we did bridal shower bingo, he said/she said, and i videotaped zack, kayla's fiance, answer some questions. it was hilarious and the hit of the party.

the party favor was a small succulent that said 'see you sedona' [where she's getting married]. we had a date jar and some jenga blocks that guests signed with advice for building a happy marriage.

kayla's sister was in charge of the menu which was a huge load off my back. it was delicious! chicken salad sandwiches, french toast and egg casserole, fruit bruschetta; to name a few. oh, and mimosas. which i didn't even know what those were. live and learn!

there was a good number of friends there, mostly from california, which is a huge compliment to kayla. it was a nice bridal shower and so much fun not taking care of my kids all day! next stop, the bachelorette party!

the girl who lived

i've dropped hints about this party, especially on instagram, and i hope you guys are excited to see it as excited i am to show you how it all went down!

i won't even begin to proclaim that i am the biggest harry potter nerd ever. i know several who are WAY bigger potterheads then me. still though, harry potter is THE book of my childhood. half of the movies were released my birthday weekend. the two fantastic beasts movies will come out that same weekend. november 16, 2001 i had my birthday party at the first official movie release. i bought tickets, FROM THE THEATRE, weeks in advance. that was before fandango people. i had to wait in a LINE. it was magical. flash forward a million years and here i am, 30 years old. and having another harry potter birthday party. because i'm an old lady. 

i planned this party for weeks! it really helped me keep sane while i was going through a tough patch in my depression. pinterest was my best friend! i knew i wanted a couple's dinner party which was perfect because meghan wanted to throw one. and thankfully since justin was feeling super guilty, he agreed to dress up and not grumble about it all. which is really hard for justin because he's the person form of grumpy cat.

invitations were sent via white owl to my friends a few weeks before. i had a picture on instagram and am too lazy to post it up here. i bought some stuff from china and ebay, some from hobby lobby, but most decorations were just printed and taped on. that's the bread and butter of my parties! around the house i had various decorations: framed picture of dumbledore, potion bottles, and house banners. in the bathroom i had a picture of moaning myrtle, directions to the ministry and also a haunting message from ginny. on the table i had some spell books, floating candles, wands, the mauruder's map. greeting our guests was the entrance to platform 9 and three quarters.

meghan and holly helped me with the menu since a) i'm not that great of a cook and b) i was super swamped that day. i really wanted to make a decadent chocolate cake and this one did not disappoint. it was delicious and everyone waned to take some home- the sign of a good cake.

i wanted the meal to center around my favorite - thanksgiving dinner. unfortunately i put off buying my turkey and then got sick friday night. i sent justin to the store with directions to buy a frozen turkey and awoke at 5am saturday to a frozen cajun turkey breast. imagine my horror! i rushed off to albertsons to find a non-cajun kind and was disappointed. i bought some pot roast but then realized that wouldn't work with my gluten-free friend. so cajun turkey it was! it wasn't as bad as i thought but definitely was not my favorite. the meal was still delicious.

my king's table finally got used to capacity and the setting was gorgeous. i especially love meghan's floating candles. notice the cute golden snitches i made.

 i told my friends that if they didn't show up in costume, they would be refused at the door. i made an exception for ali because she just had a baby a week ago. and hasn't been the movies. holly & nate were bellatrix and voldemort [the skull cap didn't quite work out but he got sown into his costume and she had on fake nails. so they won 'most dedicated']. kim & victor were ron & mcgonagall. she was supposed to be hermoine but forgot. meghan & steven were mcgonagall [she even bought a turtleneck. never seen the movies either]. steven was hagrid.

we got sorted into houses, played horocrux hunt, and some harry potter trivia. then we tried bernie's every flavor beans and they were disgusting but super fun at the same time.

 it was a ton of work for a three hour dinner party but it was still a blast and everything i hoped it would be. meghan asked me as we were cleaning up [which took forever] if i was sad it was over but i wasn't. november is going to be super jammed packed for me, especially with parties and things to look forward to. bring it on!

landon's olympic 5th birthday

aren't you sick of reading about my first born yet? you know i'm not but i gave birth to him. seriously people he's not that special.

but hey, since you're here, let me tell you about his party. it was so much fun! the best one i've thrown yet. i got the idea from a summer play group i did. landon just adored it and i knew that's what i wanted to do. he loves competing and at the end of the day, the best thing you can do is actually PLAY with your child instead of just throwing money at them. and that's exactly what i did! plus it worked out that his birthday came after the 4th of july and after the summer olympics.

i bought 85% of the stuff early and on clearance! sha-zam! i also got a flag banner from aliexpress that was seriously the best money i've ever spent. i planned the party 3-5 so i didn't have to spend as much money on food/prizes and more on the games and invite more friends. we had a total of 18 kids - can you imagine? it was chaos. it was so much fun though. the day before a family friend offered a bounce house for their present [it's their business] and that was a huge hit! we played on that for the first bit and then moved into the clubhouse for the opening ceremonies [pledge of alliance and flag raising]. then we moved onto the games!

he chose dinner at north side nathans pizza - griffin was not pleased

we did a replay race with the olympic torch, balance beams, water relay, javelin [water balloon toss], skiing [ramp race], archery [water bottle squirting] and make your own flag. thankfully i had some great friends that took a lot of pictures. landon's favorite part was when my brother climbed on the roof of the clubhouse and drenched me in a bucket of water. sadly that was griffin's worst memory because i was holding him at the same time.

treats were minimal: strawberries, cheeto puffs, patriotic twizzlers & chocolates, cupcakes and by special request, sour patch rice krispie treats. the goody bag had chocolates in them and each kid left with their own flag and a medal. like i said, minimal because the emphasis was on the fun. landon received awesome gifts including roller skates, lego sets, building sets, hero toy, scooter, battleship, watch, power ranger costume, leap frog games, snap circuits, art supplies, and his personal favorite, a special date with mema to chuck e cheese with his best friend tanner.

i just love spoiling my kids and throwing parties. we had such a fun time. now just keep an eye out for MY 30th birthday party....

all hallow's eve

halloween was a bit more low-key this year then last. three kids really are a handful. you know that jim gaffigan quote?

it's the truth people. truth. i feel like i am constantly drowning, trying to keep afloat. but i'm happy as one can be in the water! really, my kids are wonderful and i love life. especially when i'm caffinated.

that being said, we've got a lot going on around here. selling my parent's house, cutting down giant pine trees and hauling them away, callings & babies & classes & cleaning & butt wiping. really, i feel awfully overwhelmed some days. goodness, isn't this a post about halloween and here i am whining about life?

landon has a party at his preschool with his friends where they painted a pumpkin. he was so excited to dress up as a police officer and arrest his friends. at the community center he dressed up as a pirate and porter was a batman. that one is a blast because it really caters to young kids. friday we had a playgroup with our friends at the church and ate some goodies. on halloween we visited mema and her neighbors then peanut and his neighborhood. a lot of mothers i've talked to about trick or treating remarked that they believed it wasn't safe anymore to go house to house. i call bull. if parents walk around their own neighborhood or to people they know, it's perfectly safe. we had dinner with the irelands and then the boys took the kids around their neighborhood. i had so much fun handing out candy. growing up we never had trick or treaters [being out in the boondocks] and we never went to trunk or treat. my mom would buy us a bag of candy to enjoy - not the same. so i really love handing out candy and seeing the happy faces of the kids.

i love holidays with kids - it really does make life so much more fun. i'm excited for thanksgiving and christmas!

porter's pirate party

landon has another birthday party last weekend, to celebrate porter's birth. because really, one year old's don't know what a party is but their 3 year old brother does. we celebrated porter with an awesome pirate party! for landon's first birthday, i threw a lavish [for me] and expensive party at the park with his two friends- and it was ridiculous. so for porter i had to do something [esp since i love parties] so we had a no-present pirate party with pizza! and thankfully with the help of pinterest, i looked like a superstar with minimal effort.

justin created a dotted line 'map' up to our door, complete with an 'x' to mark the spot. in order to enter, the pirates had to say the pirate password a la 'jake & the neverland pirates'- yo ho ho! grandpa dave & kristi went with a pirate theme for halloween so they gave us a lot of their decorations to reuse for the party which was nice. the party was pretty small with only the irelanders and greens, plus grandparents but that was just fine with me. little buccaneers received eye patches and pirates hats as souvenirs which helped them when we went on a treasure hunt in the backyard! they found gold doubloons buried in the sand box- what treasure! for lunch we had costco pizza [only the finest for my friends], fruit, my mom's fabulous pasta salad, and blue jello cups with an orange slice and pirate flag in it [to resemble a ship- adorable!]. after lunch we opened presents, because no one followed the no-present rule, then enjoyed delicious blue cupcakes! porter especially loved the cupcakes. he truly enjoys his treats- which is funny because landon wouldn't touch his on his first birthday.

after cupcakes, unkie showed up and was wonderful enough to pretend to be captain hook for the kids. they got to fight him with swords [some more enthusiastically then others- like landon. he took out an eye]. in all it was a great party- and a long long day! thankfully with my mom in town, she took the kids for two hours at night so justin and i could sneak away for some alone time [aka after the kids are in bed].

i feel so incredibly blessed to have porter in our family. despite breaking his two top teeth on his birthday and party, he was such a sweet and happy kid. i feel so lucky to have him. i remember feeling so scared that i couldn't love another person like i love landon- but i do. i just love them for different reasons. my mom brought up something i said in the hospital when i was delivering porter. i told the nurse that there wouldn't be a third baby if this one turned out to be another landon and the nurse thought that was hilarious that a mom could be planning on having another one while delivering a baby. well the lord heard me! he sent me a happy and easy baby! i love you portabella!