Nautical Second Birthday Party

Our little boy turned two recently and I had so much fun planning his birthday party!  He loves going to the water by our house and watching the boats, so I decided to go with a nautical theme.  I took a little bit of a risk and planned his party in a park near our home and right next to the water.  I felt like this was the perfect venue for his party because it fit with the theme perfectly, but also because he loves being outside and this way clean up would be way easier for me!  We lucked out and the day was absolutely perfect!    

I made these cute little sail boats with my Silhouette and the nautical plates were party favors that the kids could take with them.  I also ordered some sailor hats online for the kids, but they were kind of a bust.  None of the kids were really into them.  Bummer because they were really cute!

Lunch consisted of a variety of cold cuts and bread, so that people could make their own gourmet sandwiches or the kids could snack on whatever they liked.  There were also mini homemade chocolate chip cookies and each kid was given a bag of these at the end of the party.  I decided against making a birthday cake or cupcakes, since my son really doesn't like cake.  He loves chocolate and cookies.  So, in addition to the cookies I cut out little whale brownies.  They were super cute and easy!

Even though the party was outside and running around a park is probably sufficient to keep two year olds happy...I wanted to be sure that they had a couple of activities to keep them busy.  I made a bean bag toss out of a box and the bean bags I made out of some scrap indoor/outdoor fabric and filled them with split peas.  I also bought a bowling set.  Both of these were a hit with the kids!

Happy birthday little man!

So much to be thankful for...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!


I love this time of the year.  The colors of orange, yellow, brown, gold and red surround us.  Candlelight, the smell of leather, spices, comfy sweaters and cozy blankets...these are all my favorite things.  The weather is perfect, the food is delicious...I can't get enough pumpkin!  The grocery store that I shop at currently stocks pumpkin everything!  They even have pumpkin croutons...they're amazing.  My goal is to try everything on their pumpkin list.

We are taking full advantage of fall this year, as it may very well be our last fall here.  So, aside from producing all sorts of mouthwatering smells from the kitchen, we've also stocked up on a bunch of pumpkins to decorate our home.

My son and I created our very own "Thankful Tree" yesterday as well.  We collected a bunch of crazy driftwood branches by the water yesterday morning and although it was a little bit difficult explaining the concept of what it means to be thankful to a two year old, we managed to create a good list of things that we are thankful for.

I wish everyone a wonderful fall and hope that you are able to spend it with the ones that you love most.

~Jackie