Hot Cocoa Bar

Last month I had the extreme honor of hosting a personal shower for one of my dearest friends, Lindsay! Around the time I was starting to plan the shower, I noticed different hot cocoa bars circulating on Pinterest and thought that would be such a fun setup since the shower would be in December. For the spread, I offered a couple different flavors of hot cocoa, a variety of toppings, and a mix of cookies and cupcakes. My Keurig was setup near the table so the guests had quick access to hot water. They aren't pictured below, but I used craft twine to attach tags with each guest's name on each mug so they wouldn't get mixed up throughout the night. Overall, it was a hit! If you're ever planning a party/shower/event during the winter months, I highly suggest having a hot cocoa bar! It's an easy, affordable, fun treat for your guests and there are so many creative ways you can set one up (just search hot cocoa bar on Pinterest). Enjoy the pics!

You still have January and February of this year to try out your own hot cocoa bar! I'd love to hear/see your ideas! Thanks for stopping by!

"J-O-Y" to the World {pt. 3 | Christmas Decor '13}

In the 3rd installment of my "Christmas Decor '13" blog series (here are pt. 1 & pt. 2), I'm featuring one of my favorite Christmas DIY projects, a "J-O-Y" display. We recently moved my great grandmother's piano into our house, and I remembered something I had pinned on Pinterest that came from this blog that inspired me to make this display for it. 

Target had the perfect wreath to be the "O" and anchor for this display, and thankfully Hobby Lobby had the perfect sized wooden letters for the "J" & "Y". To differentiate the two wooden letters, I wrapped the "J" in cream-colored yarn and stained the "Y" with left-over stain used on the crown-molding of our house. To complete the display, I added a red tablecloth, burlap runner, gold tinsel, and a couple of sparkly red decorative boxes. I was happy with how it turned out and am already thinking of different ways I can display "J-O-Y" in our home for Christmases to come! 

I have about two more posts to go in this series, so stay tuned! I wish you the best in your last few days leading up to Christmas! I'm having to remind myself to make time to stop, breathe, and remember the true meaning of Christmas! Have a blessed weekend!

50th Birthday Party

Both of my parents turned "50" this month - for my mom, it's TODAY! :) In honor of this milestone in their lives, I wanted to throw them a joint celebration with all of our family. Naturally, I turned to Pinterest for ideas...

One of my favorite ideas was creating a poster commemorating the year they were born, which in their case was 1963. The poster was more than a decoration though - it proved useful for a game we played later in the evening that involved trivia about the year 1963. Those that paid attention to the poster definitely had an advantage! 

Another Pinterest idea I had fun executing was the floral "50" inspired by this pin. I photographed my own execution of this project and plan to blog about it soon! What I loved about this craft is that it not only anchored the theme of the decor, but it was also a souvenir that my parents got to take home after the party! 

The party favors ("the 50s are HOT!") were another Pinterest-inspired idea - Hot Tamales! :)

One idea that I came up with last minute was to have all the guests write down "advice for turning 50" or a short message to my parents. We photographed each person &/or couple holding up their sign so I can compile them to give to my parents later on. Here are a few of my favorites...

Happy birthday, Mom & Dad! I'm incredibly blessed to have you as my parents! I love you! :)

Thanks for reading! If you ever have a 50th birthday party to plan or know someone else who will, I hope this post will provide some inspiration!