A Fiesta for Twins

We officially have three-year-old twins! It's crazy how it can seem like we just brought them home, but also like we've had them forever. This year was one of my favorites because we have so many friends with little ones who got to come and play with the boys for the afternoon. You know they're all in heaven when they are squealing and giggling for three solid hours.

As many of you know, I love me a good theme party. I need a goal to work towards, so I pick a theme and run. I lucked out with year with Fiesta + Cinco De Mayo! Plus, what is better to eat or cheaper than chips & salsa? PartyCity was our main party outfitter this year, and you should have heard the squeals between Maddie and I when we started throwing party decor into our cart! It was so fun!

Unlike before, I was way behind the 8-ball in planning this fiesta because #life. I had fully planned on phoning this party in, but a quick pep talk from my girlfriend and I had a complete tablescape planned, complete with cactus cupcakes! My dear friend, Chele, came over early with Starbucks and set to work on making these darling cupcakes for my boys! They look intricate, but a quick look on Pinterest proved that they are really quite easy. You can check out a simple walk through here!

And this banner. This was the inpsiration for it all! You guys know how I love womenpreneurs and when I found The Glitzy Craft, I knew immediately that I wanted to have a fiesta for the boys! The entire banner inspired their party!

The mustaches didn't necessarily go with the fiesta, but they are next to the fiesta section in Party City, so we went with it. Turned out to be a huge hit!

This girl. She is such a beauty inside and out, and was so excited to celebrate her brothers' this year! And yes, that dress is the best thing ever. Many of you have asked where I found it - Etsy! Always! More on her darling dress and how to snag one from Sonoran Sewing later this week!

Sophisticated, serious friends are must-have.

This year, they got the present thing. Not like, they acquired presents. Like, they totally oohed and ahhed over every bag, every present, every piece of tissue paper. It was such a riot watching these big boys get excited about trucks and water guns and Lincoln logs and everything in between. Watching their excitement is why I celebrate them every year. Their lives are so special and magical, and celebrating them is just the most fun because of their joy.

We cannot thanks our friends and family enough for coming to celebrate our boys! They are insane and wild and smelly and sweet and giggly and gross, and having you here to celebrate all that they are just made the day!

A huge thank you to The Glitzy Craft and Sonoran Sewing for being a part of our day and inspiring such a fun party!

A Lumberjack Birthday Party

When you see this picture, I know many of you are thinking that I, clearly, slaved for months, spent a fortune, and went crazy on this party. Nine days ago, I had a lantern. That was it.

A facking red lantern.

You'd be surprised to find that, in the great lumberjack state of Colorado, buffalo plaid, moose, and wood-anything is hard to find in the month of May. Thankfully, I sent up the bat signal and the only thing I wound up needing was that amazing buffalo check blanket.

This PERFECT cake was my inspiration for the entire shindig. I sent some designs to DaddyCakes and let him take creative license. It was, literally, the icing on the cake that made this party come together.

Then, MamaCakes walked in with these cookies and my heart exploded.

I needed a backdrop. I always need one. It's the cornerstone of my parties. I needed wood. I didn't have time to make one. I didn't want to pay for one. Oh. Duh. I have a headboard made of wood that I built a few months back.

I ordered this beautiful custom birthday banner from Magnolia Tree Designs, and the party decor finally started to come together. I could breathe a little.

Once the party had started, the stars of the show finally decided to grace us with their presence. However, they were completely uninterested in being social.

Quite possibly one of my favorite pictures I've ever been in. His face, my hair. Perfection.

He is sweet, loving, snuggly, giggly, sensitive, shy, loud, weird and so many other things. If ever a picture summed him up, it's this one. Dirty, shoeless, and smiling. My beefcake.

The first present. That excitement. That anticipation. Throwing clothes out of the way to get to the real present.

And then, the exact moment that you realize your aunt totally screwed you over.

Let's stop right here and talk about Jett Lucas. This boy is just everything. He's hilarious, weird as hell, loud, rude, sweet, funny, mean, obnoxious, wonderful, giggly, scrawny, adventurous, wild, dirty, gorgeous, and a million other things. He is in timeout before 9am nearly every morning. He is the loudest squawker I have ever met. His scream could burst an ear drum. And he is the coolest damn kid I have ever met. His personality is so gigantic. He will be class clown in high school, be the cool kid in school, and will have every single lady wrapped around his finger. His two-year-old self is making me crazy, but I can't believe Jesus gave Him to me because I'm not cool enough to be his mom.

Now here is where I get super sappy and emoshies about friends who love my kids like they are their own.

I didn't always have this and I didn't know that I would, but I love this moment at every single birthday party: I stop, look around, and my heart, literally, swells with emotion. I love that I have a house full of people who absolutely adore my kids, discipline them when they talk back to me, tickle them, blow bubbles with them, kiss them, snuggle them, and love them as though they were their own. I have this moment every year, and now I have it twice a year. Them. All of them. Loving my brood.

Oh, and those shirts. I know. All thanks to Our5Loves!

  

I live for these parties, for these people, and for the love and laughter that fills my house on these days. Happy Birthday, my sweet, crazy boys. Our family is now complete.

Yes, that was a vasectomy reference.

A Kentucky Derby Party

If you know anything about this group of girls, it's that we love to throw parties. We come up with any ol' excuse to eat, drink, & be merry together. While our husbands cannot possibly understand our obsession, they give in to our frivolities nearly every time.

Kentucky Derby happened to fall just a week after our twins' birthday, so we consolidated.

If it didn't get Instagrammed, it didn't happen.

Just before the 60-second race, we opened prezzies for our twins. Here's what you need to know about them.

Brianne is shy in the beginning. When she has gotten to know you and feel comfortable around you, she has the dry joke delivery that makes you pee your pants. She is sassy and goofy, and she'd literally give you the shirt off her back if you needed it. She's the classic closet freak, and she fills the perfect spot in our group of ladies.

Nikki is loud and smiley. This girl may be having a bad day, but she turns her attitude around like none other. I've never seen a white girl with such amazing rhythm. She is kind, funny, humble, gorgeous, and fiercely loyal. Our group wouldn't be complete without her.

Ok, now on to the good stuff. The crab boil.

We were hungry. Like, hadn't eaten all day and then we started drinking champagne, so we were a mess. And yes, we were even worse the next morning, but I digress.

Host or attend a crab boil at least once in your life. You have never eaten such an amazing combination of food. And if you host one, invite the people who make you cackle until you pee. It's the most fun you'll ever have.

Maren was camping, so we needed a hat to complete our collage. Ray was stone-cold sober at this point, believe it or not.

Stay tuned for more girlfran parties this summer. I should start a series. We're obnoxious, but we love it.