Spring is here and after the spring of 2020, the Spring of 2021 is actually full of hope and optimism. I am here for all of that!

Sally of Pretty Little Events and Amy from White Blossom Events threw together this Spring party and just blew everyone away. They are so ridiculously talented, and very inspiring.

This gorgeous spring picnic was adorable and whimsical. Everything Spring should be. The soft muted palette under that gorgeous willow tree, it’s just perfection. I just want to sit here with a charcuterie board and a glass of wine and feel the warm sun and light wind on me. So inviting!

Erin, from Erin J Saldana Photography, did a gorgeous job of capturing all the little details while also really providing the sweet and delicate tone of this picnic.

As one of the biggest animal lovers I know, I was so giddy when I saw they had real bunnies from Fable Farm Events. I mean, what else screams Spring more than fluffy bunnies?! Plus, it’s a great activity for the little ones to stay busy and to also get some one on one experiences with animals they may not experience in their everyday life.

The soft florals, which might have been an enticing dessert for those bunnies since they are just so gorgeous looking, were from LV Floral Events. The florals are really the main attribute to the softened mood for this picnic. They remind me of just more fluffy and inviting pillows.

I absolutely love anytime I get to work with Pretty Little Events or White Blossom Events, but when they work together…it’s just that much more reason to get excited! They always round up the most amazing vendors as well. Salt Paper Co. is a talent that I’ve been wanting to work with. I love her notepads and use them around the house but her custom work is even more to die for. Look how cute these casual invites are?! Who could say no to that invitation?!

We were so excited to do these carrot gift tags/place cards for this picnic! This picnic was the perfect way to showcase them and it meant so much to me that we were asked to be a part of it.

This stunning cake was just perfect for this little picnic afternoon. It tied everything in exquisitely. Miso Bakes designed this whimsical cake with flowers and mushrooms.

They used our custom engraved carrot name tags on personal milk bottles for each guest. They turned out so cute! We’ve also used them on Easter baskets and even gift tags.

My favorite, e2beauty gave all these girls an adorable mini spring makeover with some animal face painting. Not only is that a great activity for a group of girls, but it just completely adds to that whimsical mood for this picnic. Those little faces are just too cute!

I am so ready for Spring and all the warmer weather. I’m ready for a fresh new season and more gatherings, more reasons to celebrate, and even more reasons to smile.

Design and Planning: Pretty Little Events and White Blossom Events

Photography: Erin Saldana

Florals: LV Floral Events

Cake: Miso Bakes

Rentals: Found Rental Co. and Create a Party

Balloons: Pretty Little Events

Makeup: e2beauty

Invitations & Banner: Salt Paper Co.

Laser Cut Pieces: Delovely Details

Bunnies: Experience Fable

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. We aren’t generally big “Valentine’s Day” people, but this is the first time Evelyn will get to pass out Valentines to her friends. Obviously things are a bit different due to the pandemic, we had to drop her valentines off two weeks early so they could sit in the class before she can pass them out. I am not complaining, we are just so grateful she even has this opportunity.

However, that two week early period really crept up on me! I’m not a “store bought” kind of gal, so I had to think quick to pull something together.

Evelyn had received sunglasses from a friend last year for Valentine’s Day and so it was her wish to give out sunglasses this year to her friends. I ordered these off Oriental Trading Co. and then designed a post card that we could print at home. I also found these cute sunglasses from Amazon that ship out quickly and they are about $1 each. You can’t go wrong! Then we attached the sunglasses with some washi tape and Evelyn “wrote” her friend’s name and her name on the bottom.

This is Evelyn’s first year in school so this is the first time she’ll do an exchange like this. She was so excited to take these to class, but wasn’t really understanding that she would have to wait to pass them out for two weeks. She’s just anxious to share with her friends.

This week in her class, they are learning about kindness and friendship. So it just seems fitting that I make this printable available to any one who wants it! Just sign up below (full disclosure, you’ll also be added to my newsletter list but who doesn’t want to get updates on new products and sales?!) and I’ll email you this downloadable printable for your own use! I recommend on printing on thick cardstock, there are two per page. Let me know what you think!

Make sure you tag us in your pictures if you use our printable so we can share them!

I don’t even know where to start with this year end review. I think the easiest way to do this would be to divide this review into two sections. My family life and my business life have both been quite the rollercoaster this year…

Personally, this year has been one of the best years for my family. We will definitely cherish 2020 in the way that it brought us our Hazel(nut). She has been such an amazing blessing to our family, completely rounding us out. She’s the perfect addition. It was pretty intense right before her arrival. I was very uncomfortable, nervous about giving birth during a global pandemic, worried about my family’s health, mentally wrapping my head around all the civil injustices and civil unrest our country was going through. Just when my heart was starting to really sink at our situation, Hazel made her grand debut. She’s been everything we need to handle this pandemic with a huge smile and full heart. I don’t know how we could have done it without her.

I was, and I continue to be, so worried about how to manage being a parent during this crazy year to an active curious toddler, during a year full of huge changes for her. As far as the pandemic, I know everyone says children are resilient, and they are to some degree. But I wanted her to feel safe to be sad, frustrated, and even mad about any of these crazy situations. She is very aware that her life has changed big time and she expresses that to us. I know we are doing our very best under the circumstances to give her a normal childhood, help her continue to grow and learn, and nurture the beautiful person she is. She has somehow, under these crazy conditions, thrived! I am so proud of her. Becoming a big sister was actually an easy transition with her because she ended up having two parents at home with her instead of feeling the huge change in decreased attention from me most of the day. Drew was working from home since the start of this and so Evelyn was able to have a parent available to her while the other one tended to the baby. Silver lining I guess. I know there will be a transition for her when Drew goes back to work in the office but I think she will be flexible and understanding. We are lucky enough that our school district was able to reopen and she’s been able to attend preschool in person. That has been a huge positive in her life and I feel so blessed that she’s been able to have that during this time.

Drew and I have always been a great team. We really enjoy spending time together and with two (even one kid), it’s been hard to find that time together. When Drew started working from home, we were both genuinely curious if we would burn out of each other. Look, I want to be authentic, there were a few times we were grateful I had a studio one of us could escape too. However, it really was only a few times. The majority of the time, we really loved having the time to be together as a family. Adding a new family member is a huge change to dynamics, roles, and how a family will function. We were able to focus on finding how to make this work for us without the pressure of him going back to the office. I am a huge advocate for long maternity times and also paternity time off as well. Our entire life needed a “pivot” (word of the year) and I’m grateful I had my awesome teammate by my side. We have always been able to come together during some of our darkest moments (family death, house fires…just to name a few) and we felt this year was actually one of the easier years for our marriage.

While family life seemed for the most part, blissful…the business has had a crazy year. We started off with a bang and things were looking great for us. I had been planning and setting things up so that I could take a real maternity leave finally. When everything shut down and weddings cancelled, I had to refund so many orders. It was scary not knowing how things were going to work out. Drew works in the biomedical field and I had been following the news about COVID since January in China, we both didn’t see this ending anytime soon. So we immediately jumped into our pivot. Started working with new planners, creating new products, and rebranded to keep us motivated. It hasn't been pretty and there have been more than a couple of times where I wondered if this should just be the end. I don’t think either of us have ever worked this hard in both of our careers. Long and hard discussions have been had, we’ve been realistic with ourselves. But we made it this far. I see a light at the end of the tunnel and I am going to keep pushing.

Since owning my business, every single order has been a “do a boogie” moment for me. I can’t tell you how excited I get for EVERY SINGLE ORDER I get. This year though, each order meant SO much more. It wasn’t just a dance, it was a huge sigh of relief. A little light during a really dark storm. Each order gave me hope that next year, I would still be doing what I love.

Like everyone else, this year was a rollercoaster for us. But Hazel, hands down, makes it a complete win. I could get very philological about all the lessons I think we were meant to take away from this year, but ultimately…it is gratitude. And I am more than thankful for this very blessed year.

2021…bring it.

Extremely grateful for all these gorgeous photos captured by Hanh Nguyen Photography.

Evelyn and my gorgeous outfits are from Morning Lavender.