Bunny Cakes

Garden Elements - Boxwood

Every Spring my mind turns green while dreaming up possibilities for our landscaping.  We have a small backyard with a high sloping hill at the halfway point.  With two energetic boys we want to devote most of the space to a grassy play land.  This leaves the boarders of our yard and around the exterior of the house for planting.  Even with such limited space I still love to drool over inspiration pictures and dream of what could be.  To me the perfect landscaping includes at least these three elements: boxwood, hydrangea and roses.  

I love boxwood for the form, structure and greenery they provide.  They add a classic look to anything.  The other bonus to them is they are versatile, you can pot them, hedge them or use them to create amazing shapes.  They are also evergreen, so they will keep your garden green all year round.  Here are a few more reasons why I think boxwood (or any evergreen shrubs) are a must...

I could truly go on and on, but hopefully I have made my point.  If you want to see more you can check out my Pinterst 'Garden Inspiration' Board.

Our Easter Table

When setting up our Easter table I usually let the flowers dictate the color palette, so I am always at the mercy of our local flowershop (aka the grocery store).  I count on ranunculus being available at this time of year and I am usually not disappointed.  They are the perfect spring flower, bright and colorful with buds that look like they will burst open at any moment.  I cannot walk away from them.  This year I combined two bunches of ranunculus (light and dark pink) with two kinds of tulips (a parrot tulip and a soft baby pink tulip) to create our Easter centerpiece--total cost: $33.  I used our pink glasses and white & pink table runner to pick up the dark pink of the centerpiece and grounded everything on a soft blue linen table cloth.  A few bunnies and washi paper easter eggs finished the table.

The selection of ranunculus at our grocery store...check out the new maroon & gold variety and the spikey green variety!  The peachy color in the bottom picture is dreamy, I may have to use those next year.

-K

Turkey Day 2011

We had a very lovely *Thanksgiving*.  We stayed true to our family traditions and only veered slightly.  We went sans tablecloth (loved it, no last minute ironing) and because I missed out on making sugar cookies for Halloween I had to make some for Thanksgiving.  I added our guests names to turkey cookies and had intended them to be place-markers, but my icing script needs some work so I saved them for the dessert table.  We also made mini turkeys, fall leaves and flowers with the extra cookie dough.  This year's centerpiece was my favorite from last few years.  It consisted of four flower bunches from our local grocery store (salmon colored roses, orange and red berries & greenery) with some red leaves from our yard and peasant feathers added in to complete the look.

Little O had his first meal and year ago last Thanksgiving and he surely enjoyed his Thanksgiving meal again this year!  In this picture he looks so much like my sister as a baby.

-K

Pinkberry

All the rain has made our bushes explode with berries!  Right now the berries are various shades of pink.  I couldn't help snipping off some branches to bring their loveliness inside.

 

-K

Another Year

Today I turn 29 again.  I remember when the boys were real little, I used to feel old because I was a parent.  Now the boys actually make me feel younger.  They are at the age now where we can laugh together and joke around; its so fun.  I am looking forward to lots more!  Here are pictures from the birthday brunch this past weekend.  

-K 

Blue and Pink Non-Baby Shower Brunch

For the past 6 weekends, I have either been hosting a brunch or been out of town.  This weekend we had an intimate brunch to celebrate a friend's pregnancy.  Our friend was firmly set against a baby shower, so we came up with a brunch alternative with a very selective guest list.  The table was set with a baby blue, white and pink color palette.  She's having a boy, but since the brunch was for her I wanted to keep a feminine vibe.  I would have totally used peonies and ranunculus again for the center piece, but there were no more ranunculus to be found.  So instead I went with fuchsia peonies, green and white hydrangeas and pink lisianthus.  I loved how it turned out.  The colors were perfect, both soft and cheery. 

 A day after the brunch, I swapped out the table cloth for a few of the Calypso St. Barth for Target votives in pink (love them!).

-K

Pot Luck Mother's Day Brunch

This is the first year my mom, sister and I are all mothers, so we decided it was fitting to have a pot luck brunch.  This way no one had to over extend themselves on their special day and we didn't have to fight the crowds for a table at any of the local restaurants.  We all brought a little something and ended up having a nice, relaxing meal together.  The table centerpiece had peonies and ranunculus (two of my favorites) and I placed a little gift on the plates of each of the moms: succulents for my mom, a craft book and fabric for A and a little vase of ranunculus for me.  

The centerpiece was easy to create and only cost $30 in flowers ($15 for 5 peonies and two bunches of $7 ranunculus).  I also added in some willow branches I had from Easter to give a little more interest.  The urn shaped vase is a classic from Crate & Barrel and makes any larger arrangement look great.  Also, sometimes you when you unpack your ranunculus, you may find a few of the stems bent or broken.  Don't throw those away, just float them in shallow dishes and add them to your table.

I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day!

-K

Happy Mother's Day!

Have a wonderful Mother's Day!

-K

Bright and Colorful Easter Table

Usually for Easter I let the flowers dictate the color scheme for the table.  This year the flower arrangements had pink, bright yellows and soft green.  Lemon custard starters (no reason you can't start and end with dessert) with little spring chick cookies picked up the bright yellow color.  Colorful Easter eggs, sea blue glasses and our traditional plate of Easter sugar cookies completed the table.

-K

Purple and Orange - Fall Planting

The weather has been so beautiful lately if you discount the periodic rainy days.  Perfect outdoor weather and perfect for *Fall Planting*.  This year I didn't stray too far from my typical decorative kale and mix of purple and pale yellow pansies, but I did add some pumpkins.  I love how the purple and orange colors of the plants and pumpkins really stand out against each other, it makes the perfect weather that much more enjoyable.

-K