Celebrations

Fall picnic date in your own backyard

Our first picnic together was also our first Valentine’s Day together. It was 7days after Jimmy asked me to be his girlfriend. That first picnic was simple. I didn’t really have time to help with the planning. I had homework for my post bachelors teaching certification that I finished right before Jimmy picked me up. Plus he wanted to be sweet and take care of the date. We stopped by Eegee’s (it’s a local thing) for some sandwiches and frozen fruit type drinks on our way to a beautiful and my favorite park in Tucson,AZ. Ever since that first picnic date February 14th, 2010, picnics have been something the hubby and I love doing together. We enjoy the fresh air, good food, good conversation and each other’s company.

Along with all of you I’ve been inspired by the colors, tastes and what should be the feels of fall. I wanted to do something intentional to make it feel like fall around here. We don’t get the changing fall leaves or the crisp air, so I planned a fall picnic date in our own backyard. I was on a mission to bring the senses of fall to us.

Jimmy loves chili which alongside cornbread in this case gluten-free cornbread is the perfect fall meal. I made a pot of extra spicy grass fed organic beef and organic three bean chili- I prepared toppings of grated cheese, sour cream, diced red onion and diced jalapeños.

I wanted it to be all those fall colors browns, oranges, and burgundies. I styled the picnic by layering two blankets first a burgundy one and then a plaid one over. I added some lanterns and some flowers from a bush in our backyard. I love incorporating greenery from my surroundings whenever I do a little layout like this. Stay tuned the spicy chili recipe will be posted soon!

Joint 60th surprise party

On Sunday September 24th we celebrated my parents- each turned 60 within a week of each other. My brothers and I threw a joint surprise party for them. It was the least we could do to celebrate the people who gave us life and made us who we are. The party took so much planning and delegation, but came and went so quickly!

Let me share a little about the details. My dad loves everything camo, outdoorsy (hunting and camping), and my mom loves everything floral and Victorian (silver tea sets and porcelain floral teacups). The party’s theme was just that, camo and floral. Half of the tables were decorated in pine, lanterns, logs and antlers- the other half in silver teapots filled with flowers and branches, silver platters with tea light candles and teacups with flowers or candles. The food also reflected their preferences. We had a mini pie bar instead of cake because my parents love fruit pies. My mom loves chicken flautas (rolled fried chicken tacos) and they both love nopalitos con carne and chile (beef and cactus in a red chili sauce), so those items were on the dinner menu along with other tasty items like rice, beans, guacamole, two kinds of salsa and mini Sonoran hotdogs.

My brothers were troopers throughout the whole process and dealing with me the bossy party planner. Once again my hubby helped execute the decor details like building a canopy of lights and a photo backdrop. We had so much help from my dad’s siblings, my sister in law, my nieces and nephew. Seriously, we never could have pulled something like this off without the love and support of all those who helped and contributed somehow.

I didn’t get to take many pictures because I was busy running around. The ones I did manage to take where in the daylight. I wish I could’ve taken good ones with all the lights and candles twinkling. Nonetheless, I hope you guys enjoy the pics and gain a little inspiration ❤️




That’s wrapping paper?!

I don’t know about you, but we are still a young family- I don’t have a huge amount of disposable income to throw at all the beautiful home decor trinkets my heart desires. I don’t want to let that get in the way of making our house a home, so I am always looking at ways to make entertaining, celebrations and our home beautiful for less. One of my favorite things to use is wrapping paper! Let me share with you three different ways I utilize wrapping paper…

  1. As art!…There really are so much varieties of wrapping paper out there. I had been looking for a piece of art for my son’s room. We went to a boutique toy store and they had sheets of specialty wrapping paper. They had beautiful options! I loved it so much I framed it.
  2. As a table runner!… I’ve used rolls of wrapping paper cut into a table runner several times for different occasions. I don’t have a collection of beautiful linens I can pull out for several occasions, so using wrapping paper really opens up the options to create a beautiful tablescape. There are so many options on color schemes and patterns to choose from, and I know I can find beautiful rolls of paper at Tj Maxx or Homegoods. Click here to see details from this Thanksgiving tablescape
  3. To make party decorations… Specialty craft paper can be expensive, and paper decorations can add up if you want to have a big amount to make an impact. For my baby’s first birthday, I wanted to make paper decorations mixing and matching different patterns and colors. I found rolls of wrapping paper on clearance at Michaels for $0.75 a roll!!! I used it for table runners as mentioned above and to make the background for the cake table. I used the paper to make fans and wrap her name. The possibilities are endless all you need is a little creativity or Pinterest! Click here to see more from her first birthday party

Have you used wrapping paper for something different other than wrapping gifts or from the ways I already mentioned? Please feel free to share with me in the comments.

BBQ Meatball Sliders

So this weekend was our daughters first birthday. See here. Since then, we’ve had several requests for the BBQ meatball recipe. Not even my mom knew how we had made these. It’s so funny how simple they are and slightly embarrassing to give out our so called “secret” recipe, but I am never one to hold out on recipes. It’s so fun to share and learn from each other. I always love learning easy tips especially for gatherings and parties. Let’s be honest, it’s not always we have hours on end to slave over the food to feed over 70 people – the easier the better!

That’s exactly what we needed for this party… simple hearty food to feed a big crowd. Instead of making the more predictable marinera meatball sliders, I wanted to make something different, so I wanted to make BBQ meatball sliders. I chose Hawaiian bread rolls because I knew the sweetness of the rolls would compliment the smokiness and sweetness of the BBQ.

So here it goes!… To make these meatballs you need to buy the Costco beef meatballs and the KC masterpiece original private stock BBQ sauce. It has to be this sauce! We bought it at Costco too. I included a picture.

You put one bag of frozen meatballs and one bottle of sauce in a large crockpot. You then remove the crockpot container from inside the crockpot and refrigerate the meatballs in the sauce all night. I think this helped the flavors marry even more. The next day you take the container out, put it back in the crock pot and cook on high for 2-2.5 hours. During your party or gathering keep them on low/warm to stay warm. They are amazing!!

There you have it the simplest recipe ever! Hahaha not homemade, but so good and easy for a party.

First Birthday Shenanigans

Our little curious girl turned one! We wanted to celebrate her life with a birthday bash that would reflect all that we love about her. She is incredibly curious, active and determined. Her personality is bright, joyous, loving and loud. Really all of that is crammed into our petite little one year old!

The theme I chose was ice cream and popsicles. I did it all in a labor of love and to be honest to nurture my love of design and party planning…I hand made fans, popsicles, ice cream cones, tulle table skirts, circle garlands, flower centerpieces and also created chandelier type hanging decor. My hubby made cake pops in the shape of popsicles and an adorable “melted ice cream cone” smash cake.

Her birthday was a shower of love over her…as those nearest and dearest to us contributed by helping my hubby and I put up the last little details, or by preparing a dish or by bringing the most beautifully decorated sugar cookies, by trying their best to corral and lead wild kids to play games, by setting up music, or by being in the kitchen cleaning and replenishing the food table. We are blessed to have a village.

I hope you enjoy the party details.












Invites and decor: Made and coordinated by me. I found blank cards at Michaels and turned them into invites.
Centerpieces were flowers in ice cream
paper cups with pictures of Aila and a little popsicle or ice cream cone and also an ice cream cone base with a ballon, set on a paper runner.

Menu: BBQ meatball sliders, mini BLT’s, Croissant chicken salad sandwiches, potato salad, pasta salad, chips, spinach dip, onion dip and salsa. The drinks were tea and different flavored punch in drink dispensers.

Desserts: popsicle cake pops funfetti flavored, ice cream sundaes with chocolate syrup, whipped cream and sprinkles, and frosted sugar cookies in the shape of cones and popsicles.

Entertainment: games and a piñata

Favors: the sugar cookies and bubbles in the shape of a popsicle.