cleaning house with cowgirl evie!

so as i mentioned last month, i'm busy working on the launch of my new blog.  it's taking a bit more time than anticipated but in the meantime, i figured i had some lil hoot biz-ness to wrap up.  the new blog will not be focused on kiddo parties, as this blog/biz began doing, so i'm trying to clean house and share some of lil hoot's work these past couple years before mr. hoot trades in his wings.

here are some never before shared images of cowgirl evie's 3rd birthday bash back in november.  this was another collaboration with some of my fave vendors/besties,.  evie's mom is also a friend who won our services at the queen of hearts auction to benefit the junior aid society. {this may sound familiar as she's a repeat philanthropist!}

glorious photos by meredith nelson photography {obvs}

fabulous paper goodies by paiges of style

purty cake by pickwick baking co.

pony {cake} pops by the cake poppery

 . . . and styled by yours truly

 

another party with heart for a cowgirl with plenty of spunk.

frenchie fete

my fave lil hoot party was featured on amy atlas yesterday.  i had such big fun working on this frenchie fete for my four year old daughters who are somehow fixated on going to paris {obvs not happening}.  

hangin' with george & looloo {our french bulldogs} and a 7ft. light up eiffel tower prom decoration will have to do for now!

jayme marie designs never ever disappoints and we just had too much fun with this one! look at the adorbs invite she created for the lucky birthday girls.

she also created all of the paper goods for the party, including the keepsake poster behind the dessert table.  and the pin the beret on the frenchie poster!  and the precious favor tags, and jar labels, and the dessert labels  . . . the mini french flags . . . i could go on and on {literally because i worship this woman and her positively charming designs!} 

speaking of the dessert table, pickwick baking co. outdid herself . . . again.  every delectable french creation she slaved over on that table tasted every bit as good as it looked.  {i should post the pics of the post-party croquembouche.  i meaaan, not okay.  had many a miranda moment when i was eating the remaining morsels out of the trash. TMI?}  

BEYOND delish.  ali is a french pastry genius.

 pickwick for prez!

btw, how miz pumped are george & loo in their striped shirts?

i am drooling reliving this dessert table.  the chocolate mousse. . . omg, sinful.

and the "pancake cakes" for C & P!  they each had their individual crepe cakes with their fave flavors.  

 if i absolutely had to choose a fave, it would be the sweet charlottes.  they were divine!

but wait, the croissants?  i die.  they were perfection.  if you ever have a chance to buy some pickwick croissants, do it.  {or don't do it because it will ruin every croissant you ever taste again on this side of the atlantic.}

some other fun deets . . . my parisian themed books for the kiddos to read . . .

 pin the beret on the frenchie. . .

monkeying around the eiffel tower and demonstrating impressionistic techniques on their favor mugs. . .

{p.s. love that the guests dressed the part!  or wait, i maybe suggested that. . . either way impressive that they listened to miss bossypants hostess}

the mugs at each place setting on the bistro tables with the frenchie cookies . . . 

the cookies created by batches.  so yummy and so adorbs!

the personalized favor jars with hot cocoa and mini-parisian landmarks spray-painted silver.

viva la france!

and viva la meredith michaud nelson of meredith nelson photography!

thank you for commemorating yet another birthday with your beautiful work.  can nevah evah thank you enough.  merci beaucoup just doesn't cut it!

so again, so much vendor love to jayme marie designs, pickwick baking co., and meredith nelson photography.  so inspired by you all. . .

and thank you to our little guests - we love you!

but the biggest thank you of all goes to my favorite "clients".  seeing the world through your eyes is a joy greater than i could have ever hoped for or imagined.  

joyeux anniversaire, mes filles douces !

{yikes, i am super emo today!  big post tomorrow on why. . . stay tuned}

BGR progress

so how am i doing?  new year's day post = FAIL.  and since i'm not using excuses anymore, i can't tell you why.   then i will have broken the only two publicly declared resolutions by day 2.  unacceptable.

i will offer up that we are finally taking the plunge on the big girl room!  the beds are being delivered next week and there is no turning back now.

we went with the land of nod beds i've been eyeing for quite some time and here are a few other goodies.  i'm exhausted from attempting to use photoshop for the first time in very long time. rusty?  understatement.  sort of embarrassed to even post this but it took me about 127 minutes so it's happening.  

{hey CK, i need a refresher, sister!}

1. the bob just had to send me the link to these serena & lily french tassel window panels.

2. it's really a lot harder than it should be to find adorbs little girl bedding.  but here's the front runner from dwellstudio.  totes not sold on this but i do think it's cute for a 4 year old . . . or two.  thoughts?

3.  the azure jenny lind land of nod twin beds .  done deal.  

4. creepy dog lady got a new picture frame from o'brien & schridde. holla! 

keep in mind, i'm moving them back to their original nursery where we just had all the fun with meredith and the confetti.  so we already have the striped wallpaper in that room.  CBC has made it very clear that we will not be taking down any wallpaper that i begged and pleaded for in the first place or painting. anything. ever.  such a horse's face sometimes. 

{oh and yes that's another aqua bed in the picture, because every family needs at least 3}

i truly welcome your feedback, unless it's bad. obvs.

I RESOLVE. . .

to be a better blogger!

i'm both shocked and embarrassed that i have not posted since november.  i meeaaaan, that's a lil ridic.  i have 101 excuses but i also resolve to stop making excuses . . . hmmm . . . so i guess i'll just start back up again and hope you'll forgive me?  pretty please with veuve on top?

via damsel in dior

the good news is that i have lots of fun things to share.  so much so that i don't even know where to begin {sigh}

how about the last 24 hours and then i'll work backwards?

first of all, santa brought me a new TV for my bedroom.  i saw an oprah once {God i miss that woman} that said there should be a NO TV in the bedroom rule. another friend {let's call her 'heater'} casually mentioned she didn't have one because it would mean the demise of her marriage.  so as CBC just hooked up 42 inches of marital doom, i realize that i'm okay with it.  i hope we are strong enough to make it through this new addition in our lives, but if not, i'm keeping the tv {and george.  obvs.} TV is pretty much the only thing i love more than . . . well, everything, including the horseface himself. {kidding. . . sort of}

okay, in another surprising turn of events, i attended my first patriots game yesterday!  it was about 46 degrees below zero and glorious.  i drank a thousand coors lights and officially feel foul as we enter 2013.  i resolve to do something about that, too.

so very very much more to share but i think i need a nap.  and the 42 inches of impending divorce is calling my name.

and then i need to rally for tonight.  i'm a little behind the 8 ball and there is more food & booze on the horizon.  obvs.  just what lil hoot needs.  i'm wearing this number.  and my hair pretty much looks like the model's right now so we're all set there.

oh, and i simply canNOT go another second without publicly thanking ms. meredith nelson photography, white loft studio, and the mostest fabulous friend and graphic designer evah, miss lucinda of chocolate creative design.  all these lovelies helped me create a pretty darn good Christmas card this year.  some of you are aware that i am in an intense Christmas card competition . . .  with myself.  i usually win.  ha!  {btw, i'm so glad i'm still hilare after my hiatus}

okay, so i'll send pics of the actual factual card later but here are the images we used.

can you even stand it?  this 'emergency' photo shoot with confetti was well worth the clean up.  i love these images with all of my heart for so many reasons.  not the least of which is that they will forever remind me of how lucky i am to have a friend like meredith, who despite me being a high-maint pain in the ass, miraculously still likes me.  oh, meredith, these bring me such joy, sweet lady.  you are amazing.  xoxoxo

oh and whaaattttt??  hello, my fave pup pictures EVAH.  when you see the rest of this gloriousness from miss heidi of white loft studio you just might die.  i want you all to make it to 2013 so i'll hold the rest back until then.  because i mean it, you'll DIE.  i have heart palpitations every time i look at them.

i am so darn lucky to have these talented ladies in my life.  they inspire me so and make my heart happy {so corny. . . so true}

miss lu also helped me with my fave christmas gift i've ever given.  ahhhhh, cannot wait to share with you!  i think tomorrow is the day as i can't think of a better way to kick off the new year of blogging.

happy happy happy new year to you all.  so sorry again for falling off the grid. 

i have missed you so and you'll be sick of me in no time.

and i leave you with this, because as previously mentioned, i heart oprah.

the G party: before

so, unless you missed my open love letter to miss meredith nelson, you probably know i adore this woman for so many reasons.  and i'm confident that those of you who also know her, feel the same way.

meredith is the type of gal to come over last minute during a foul yuck october snowstorm to take fabulous pics of your rando G party deets, and at the height of her busy season, i might add!

and only meredith could make girl scout cookies, goldfish, and gummy candy look quite so glamourous . . .

tune in later this afternoon to find out what happens when you combine gummies, goldfish, grey goose, and a bunch of animals our friends.

PS my fave thing about meredith is that she was in my kitchen shoving frozen pizza in her mouth at 3 am with the best of 'em.  obvs.

target tuesday: wellies

so we were spoiled last week but we are about to get wet here in new england.

hard to believe it's been a whole year since ms. meredith nelson took the best. pic. evah. 

it still makes me SO happy!  

what doesn't make me happy is that those precious boots are getting a bit snug and rain is on the way.  if C & P want to go to college i mustn't by them hunter boots every year. 

leave it to tar-zhay to come up some cute cost-effective alternatives.

adorbs. 

but who am i kidding?  i'm totes shoving their little piggies in the toddler size 8 hunters until they're twelve.

sprinkle for sugar on top!

was thrilled to have lil hoot's sprinkle for sugar on top on the tomkat studio this week.  the extraordinary kim of tomkat and meredith went to ASU together and it was so sweet of them to join forces so the gorge images of the sprinkle could be shared with the tomkat audience.  big thanks to you, sweet and uber-talented ladies!

meredith makes my heart sing with each and every image she takes but

this next one is my FAVE.  

{i simply cannot gush more about meredith because CBC is going to legit worry.  for those who want to know how i feel about her click here}

j'adore.

"let's toast the bun in the oven!" banner. get it?

i must admit i got a little too excited about my next brainchild.  i heart puns!

the booze menu.  love me some champers cocktails!  puntastic belly-inis and mommy-mosas were offered in sugar-rimmed aqua champagne flutes.  

as well as preggers punch. { non-alcoholic.  womp.}

always looking for creative ways to add dimension to a dessert table. for this one i tied ribbon from brightly colored whisks and spatulas and then hung from the ceiling.

and how fun is this baking cup garland?  i was inspired by the tutorial on hey look. a DIY even i could handle. {they are few and far between}

lined the shelves of both kitchens with aqua quatrafoil contact paper from macbeth collection.

thanks aunnie lauren for the rando washi tape!

 this was stacey's fave.  everyone wrote nice messages for the bun. {tip: champers helps with writer's block}

favors doubled as place setting holders.  guests took home these adorbs polka-dotted jessie steele oven mitts with favor tags tied with baker's twine. {and hopefully not the silver}

okay so here's that special cake i was referring to in my post yesterday.

do you die?  ali of pickwick baking co. knocked it out of the park. . . again.  this red velvet cake {inspired by sprinklebakes} tasted every bit as delightful as it looked.  

aaaannd, let's not forget the out of this world macs she whipped up in five different glorious flavors to match our color scheme.  did i mention the riot that ensued when i gave the green light on eating these babies?  let's just say the cute take home bags were not put to good use, as these beauties were devoured in a matter of minutes.

 {and some with sugar on top.  obvs.}

she made some fresh brioche cinnamon buns, too.  they were hot when i picked them up and i gained 15 pounds just smelling them.  Yum-O!

ali and pickwick baking co. are always so enthusiastic about my requests - and the love and attention to detail she puts into everything that comes out of her kitchen is truly appreciated - a real live vendor with heart.

oh, and wait, you didn't think i'd let the 9 months preggers guest of honor off the hook did you?  nope, stacey baked up these gorge heart cookies and delish cake pops. . . and delivered me an iced coffee.  obvs.

i. die.

other fab friends contributed with some yummy brunch dishes {we have the best friends evah.} - look closely for some hints at the sex of the baby. . . 

and then there's the paper goods . . . i mean, miss jayme of jayme marie designs outdid herself with this one.  she continues to amaze me with her fresh and lovely designs.  

she originally designed everything last summer for my darling design star meg caswell.  while meg was busy filming her new show for HGTV she was also running around throwing a baby shower for her friend and enlisted my help.  i was happy to do it and LOVED how everything turned out from jayme - so much so that i couldn't wait to put it to use personally. 

 And I had the just the perfect guest of honor in mind . . . 

lucky for the general public- jayme is now offering all of these paper goodies {invite, the banner, the menus, straw flags, food labels, and favor tags} in her etsy shoppe.  run don't walk!

wor-ship this austin gal and everything she designs!

{here's a shot of the menu that jayme took}  

so about that guest of honor.  i can't say enough good things about stacey. . . like i literally can't start or this will be the longest blog post ever.  but let's just say i feel so honored to have her as a friend.  she's just as sweet, pretty, and perfect as her cookies . . and funny, kind, oh no, i started . . .

okay, so huge potential for babble {per uzhe} so here's a couple glorious pics that meredith thought to take- stacey and her buns.

cutest. preggers. EVAH.

best part of the shower. . . 

the little bun himself.  

obvs.

welcome, nicholas robert butler!

Born february 28th at 12:55 in the morning
8.7 lbs 

21 inches

of pure adorbs-ness