Birthday and Valentines Day

Well... I am one year older!  I have survived 25 years on this earth.  This year I was busy with a bridal shower before my birthday so I spent it relaxing at home with Chrissy.  It was exactly what the doctor ordered!  I enjoyed doing nothing (not even watching the Superbowl) on my birthday including not changing out of my pj's all day long.  

One present that Chris got for me was the 1910 expansion pack for the game Ticket to Ride.  It includes a lot of extra tickets and new ways to play.  It turned out to be a lot of fun!

 Another great present my awesome hubby bought was the expansion Alvin and Dexter for the same game Ticket to Ride.  This expansion is a little different from the style of the Ticket to Ride game, but it proved to be a great addition.  You'll have to come by to try it out with us at our next game night.

 The third present that I got this year was a trip to Home Depot.  No, I did not get a new kitchen or a new washer and dryer... I got something better!  Magnetic and chalkboard paint!  How awesome is that?  I was really excited to pick it up because I have been thinking about it for a long time.  We have a high partial wall in our kitchen that is basically wasted wall space.  If we hang a picture on it, we would knock into it while passing into our kitchen.  So I decided it would be great to use that space to create a fun wall to decorate and hang stuff on.  We were a little disappointed with the magnetic paint.  You are required to put on at least 3 coats but the darn stuff isn't too strong.  As long as we have strong, strong magnets, we can hang stuff on the wall.  I think it turned out pretty cute considering!

Malia's Bridal Shower

This last Saturday I had the pleasure of co-hosting a bridal shower for my dear friend Malia.  We sent out about 50 invitations total, but sadly only 20 or so guests were able to come.  Pat Pace and I were able to decorate the local Relief Society room to house that guest list... now we realize that we didn't really need the space :)

To feed the guests I decided to make "gourmet" cupcakes.  I tried first to make cupcakes for Tina Croft's baby shower and work, and sadly, they did not live up to my expectations!  So I researched a little online and found some great youtube videos that explained everything!  I invested in a Wilton decorating kit that came with the perfect frosting tip.  The Wilton 1M tip is great with cupcakes.  I tried a few styles out and decided on the top rosette style.  

 This is a shot of the food table with my beautiful cupcakes and delicious cucumber sandwiches and 7-layer salad made by Pat.  

 Here is a close up of my gourmet cupcakes.  They turned out so beautifully!  I was really proud of myself and my cupcakes.  I made and frosted 72 of these bad boys!

 Pat invested in some table decorations that turned out great.

 This is the first table our guests saw when they walked in.  We had a guest book for our giant guest list  and we asked our guests to sign and record the gift they gave Malia... I also made a giant cupcake cake to give away as a prize for our bridal trivia game.  

 Here is a close-up of the giant cupcake cake.  It was a lot of fun to frost this one as well.  If you can't tell, Malia's wedding colors are purple and teal.  I know the cake looks like a Jazz cake but it was supposed to look like Malia and Goose's wedding colors :)

I am glad I could have done this with Pat for such a great friend!  I know our decorations are a little reception-like, but it turned out great in the end. Here is to Malia and Goose!