Raffa's 2nd Birthday Party

Today is Raffa's 2nd Birthday! But, on Saturday we celebrated Raffa's 2nd birthday. What was supposed to be a party at one of Raffa's favorite local parks, turned in to a small family get together at home due to some inclement weather. We had lots of rain the week leading up to Saturday, Saturday itself was cold and rainy, and Sunday we actually woke up to snow!

All week I watched the weather in anticipation of Saturday. By Thursday it was clear the weather was not going to cooperate. So, I sent out an email to friends. And, in lieu of the outdoor party in the park, we had a small family get-together at home. Raffa had a blast, which obviously was the only priority for me!

Last year, I made a banner  and this year's project (albeit an easy one) was a number "2" made out of photos. The project took all of a half an hour on Friday night, and was made up of about 40 more recent photos of Raffa. (I used The Print Studio to print recent photos of Raffa off of my Instagram feed.)

Raffa and Asher did some coloring with (Great) Grandma Shirley and Mimi. Raffa is obsessed with coloring, and loves his big Hello Kitty coloring sheets.

Originally, when the park was going to be at the park, party favors were supposed to be one of Raffa's favorite books for each kiddo, some gem crayons, and cat figurines (hey, Raffa likes cats). Instead Raffa and Asher each got more gem crayons, and Asher got a couple of Raffa's favorite books.

We had donuts (one of Raffa's favorites because of Donut Monday) and coffee from our favorite, Huckleberry Roasters.

I had ordered Sippy McSippersons from Shop Sweet Lulu thinking they had holes for straws punched in the caps. They didn't, so they were the most expensive toddler drinkware that was no more practical than a paper cup. Unfortunate, but all well. And, I have about ten left over since only Raffa and Asher used them.

Raffa, of course, enjoyed his donuts. He had one and half to be exact. A pink one and a "brown" (chocolate) one.

 We tried to keep gifts to a minimum because we have a very small house and Raffa already has a lot of cool stuff, but he did get some books to add to his library. He loves books, so that is always awesome. Mimi and Auntie Jonna each got him a Bruder truck, a crane and a trash truck, respectively. The boys LOVED the trucks and played with the, the rest of the party. Raffa had a particularly high-pitched crane sound I have never heard.

 Raffa was a little shy about having "Happy Birthday" sung to him. And, I helped him with his candles. (Great) Grandma Shirley had the honor of holding and snuggling him.

Mimi made the funfetti sprinkle cake which was delicious, although it was a lot of sweets on top of the donuts previously eaten.

 Raffa had an amazing time. So in the end, I could have cared less that my park party plans were spoiled by rain. The day turned out amazingly perfect.

book club // The Husband's Secret

The first two books we've read as part of the blog book club I started with JL of PRETTYblog have really put us on a roll. Both Where'd You Go, Bernadette and The Girl on the Train were great reads! The next book we have chosen sounds like it will not disappoint. We are continuing with that mystery theme, although just as the mystery in Bernadette and The Girl on the Train differed, this one does too.

The synopsis on amazon.com says that The Husband's Secret is about:

Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . . . 

Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.

Acclaimed author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how well it is really possible to know our spouses—and, ultimately, ourselves.

If you are reading along with us, go get your copy and begin! We have been taking anywhere from a month to a month and a half or so to read the books, so you can bet this one will be about the same. I am shooting to finish the first couple of weeks in June at the latest.

See the other book club posts here. 

19/52

a portrait of my son, once a week, every week, in 2015

photo taken May 9, 2015 // Denver, Colorado

We celebrated Raffa's 2nd birthday party this past weekend. It was supposed to a party in the park, but the rain we are getting put a stop to that and we had to change to a smaller, family party at home. The change turned out to be more than fine, though, as Raffa had an absolute blast.

See all photos in this series here.

you know when you know

Trust your guts. Have confidence in your decisions. Put faith in your intuition.

This month's digital desktop image and printable with 5x7" print and bookmark are now available on the PRETTYblog.

See the previous results of this collaboration here.

4 dresses for spring and summer

I shopped Revolve's Exclusive Early Access last week for access to styles early. I immediately found myself adding dresses to my cart (wtf?!). With nowhere to wear them, I love these styles nonetheless. I ended up going to for the Heartloom Roma Dress (date night option!) and the One Teaspoon Pinkie Dress (casual enough for everyday), but I also loved (and reluctantly abandoned) the Lovers + Friends Meet Me at Sunset Dress and the TryB212 Samira Dress.

18/52

a portrait of my son, once a week, every week, in 2015

photo taken May 1, 2015 // Denver, Colorado

Raffa loves walking, so a good activity when there isn't anything else to do is to go on a walk. Raffa has literally walked two miles (maybe more) on one walk - that's a lot of ground to cover for little legs!

See all photos in this series here.