We are back! We had an amazing trip in Italy- I cannot wait to share photos and more soon (once our lost luggage- with our nice camera inside- gets to us!). The shop is now fully open and we are taking custom orders again.

I came home to some great news- the new issue of Utterly Engaged is live today and our flags are featured in a super fun spread! My friend Jesi Haack invited me to be a part of the shoot and a few different styles of flags were used. Everything is so funky and dreamy!

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I LOVE how Jesi used our flags in the bike baskets- so cute!!

Check out the whole issue here- it is lovely!

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Such a great vendor team:

design & planning: Jesi Haack

photography: Jasmine Star

floral design: oak and the owl

hair & makeup: 1011 makeup

rentals: found rentals & signature rentals

Just wanted to remind everyone that our etsy shop will be closed started next Monday, April 22nd through May 3rd because WE ARE GOING TO ITALY!!!! So excited!

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So if you have anything you are planning on ordering, be sure to place your order by the weekend. Any ready to ship items will be shipped before Monday and all made to order items will have their normal turn around time.

Friday again! That means I’m linking up with Jeannett at Life Rearranged, sharing moments I’ve captured on my phone throughout the week. I’m @courttoney on instagram if you would like to follow along day to day.

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Flags flags flags! I’ve had 12 custom flags ship over the past week, so it’s been flag land over here. I loved these four pretties:

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In the middle of a crazy week, the Inspired By This girls made my day when they told me I had won ice cream from Sweet Lucie’s! I’m so excited- this stuff is delicious! Isaiah had his mind blown when I told him we would be getting ice cream in the mail :)

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There is not much cuter than a 5 year old in catcher’s gear. People agree- this is my most liked photo ever on instagram & facebook.

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This big ugly contraption is not my favorite. It takes up a bunch of space in our small back yard. Did I mention it is ugly and huge? However- I put it up with it because my husband makes some delicious food in there. Last weekend, he made pulled pork and it was super yummy. (It’s a smoker if you are wondering. And, not only do we have this huge contraption, but also a big BBQ. And my husband wanted a charcoal grill back there too…)

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My husband had never seen The Sound of Music. Crazy, right? Like he had no idea what it was about. He kept picturing Heidi :)  So, for date #12 out of 50 (more info on our date plan here) we watched it! Along with homemade ice cream sandwiches.

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The verdict: he liked it! Way more than he thought he would like an old musical :)

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The countdown to Italy is on! 10 rings left on Isaiah’s countdown chain:

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Isaiah loves Star Wars. Isaiah loves drawing and painting. Put them together: Isaiah’s newest art installment:

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We finally took Isaiah’s training wheels off yesterday. Up until 6 months ago, we lived on a super hilly street with no sidewalk. Nowhere to ride a bike except in circles on our back porch. We would take him to the park occasionally, but he really did not have that much opportunity to ride his bike. When we moved to our new opportunity, we were all stoked that there is tons of room for him to ride his bike and he has been loving it. He was really nervous about taking the training wheels off though, until he watched a special agent oso episode where they taught a boy to ride without them. Then he had to take them off that. very. minute.

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He did pretty good! I’m thankful my husband is so patient and such a great teacher.

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Happy weekend! I’m off to attempt to get all of our orders done so I can focus on getting ready for Italy next week!

Right now, all ready to ship items in our shop are on sale- some up to 50% off!

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These are all one of a kind pieces, so once they are gone, they are gone. I am trying to clear out old inventory to make way for new fun pieces coming later this spring!

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Get them while you can! :)

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I love it when customers send me pictures of their weddings! This wedding was a nautical beach destination wedding in Mexico and I just love it- especially the fun attire for the men!

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We made a flag with a cute red and white nautical knot print as well as simple thank you & mr & mrs banners.

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all photos by Natalie Ginele Miller Photography

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As a reminder, we are not taking custom orders (flags, banners, etc) until the beginning of May. I may be able to take a couple more rush orders if they are placed this week. If you are interested, please contact me through the etsy shop.

Friday again! That means I’m linking up with Jeannett to recap some moments from my week, captured on my phone. If you would like to follow me on instagram, I’m @courttoney.

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We started last weekend off with an awesome date night at Balboa Park. Yesterday, I shared a recap of the first 10 dates out of 50 in 2013, if you would like to find out more :)

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At his second baseball game, Isaiah was given a player of the game award for sportsmanship. Made this mama so proud!

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On St. Patrick’s Day, I let the boys have Lucky Charms. Definitely the only time they are allowed to have that sugary of a cereal (and the only day of the year that we have green milk!). They loved it!

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Green juice balances out the sugar, right? Isaiah called it leprechaun juice.

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At another baseball game, Isaiah was given the game ball. I am so thankful that his coaches let us know a few minutes ahead of time so that we could catch his sweet reaction on camera and film.

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He was a little excited about it :)

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Sometimes, when you’re a mom, you wing it and throw some torn up dino chicken nuggets on a salad and call it dinner. Fancy.

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A pretty little flag that we shipped out to a bride this week:

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Isaiah had his class easter party & easter egg hunt today. He was particularly stoked on his bunny hat.

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I hung out with my other kid this week too. I know you wouldn’t know it by my pictures, but I promise we spent some good time together :)

If you are thinking of placing a custom order or ordering one of our made-to-order items in the shop (flags, thank you & just married banners, etc) the time to order is now! After next tuesday, the 26th, I will not be taking orders for these items until May.

photo by Jose Villa

Why? We are going to Italy!!!!! Because of this, I will only be offering banners that are ready to ship through mid-April and starting the 19th, my shop will be completely closed for 2 weeks.

photo by EP Love

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So if you want an order for a May event, order now :)

I missed a week, so I’m recapping the past two weeks in one instafriday post, linking up with Jeannett.

We had a couple of weeks full of 1st’s and one big 2nd for me.

Isaiah had his first opening day for baseball- it was so cute!

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A week and half later, after rain delays, he finally had his first game. He loved it and was so adorable to watch. This is his first at bat ever:

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Put me in coach!

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Another first: Hudson stuck a piece of carrot up his nose. And it got stuck. After 10 minutes of the doctor trying, with 3 of us holding him down, he thankfully got it out. Fun times in motherhood. This was when we got back home. Life is much better without a carrot in your nose, right buddy?

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My little skater boy:

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Isaiah decided that there should be a Star Wars Day and that it should be a national holiday. He picked a day and declared it, always and forever to be, Star Wars Day. What happens on Star Wars Day, you ask? We watched episode 4, had light saber fights, played with star wars legos and painted rocks:

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For dinner, we had HANburgers, boba fruit and millenium falCORN. Guess what happened while Isaiah bit into that HANburger? Another first: he lost a tooth!

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Custom owl-themed banners and cupcake toppers for a sweet client:

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A friend gave me her old bookshelf, which was a blessing, as I had been needing one for a while. I decided to give it a quick little makeover. The entire project cost me less than $15!

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Two treats in one day: lollipops and a visit from Aunt Heather!

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And, now, the big 2nd for me: my ear drum ruptured again. It happened 2 years ago, just days before Hudson was born. Then, suddenly, last Saturday, with little notice, I had extreme ear pain and was off to the ER since it was late in the evening. During the night, it ruptured again, keeping me up all night in pain. No fun. Apparently, this is something I am susceptible to now. I am much better now, just can’t hear much out of that ear and it is a bit uncomfortable. For a while there, my body was pretty wiped as at fought the infection and I dealt with having my equilibrium off a bit and some pain. Thankfully, my husband is an amazing gift to me and convinced me to rest and take it easy (which goes against my push through it & keep going nature).

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He took care of the boys while I was able to catch up on sleep, read and recuperate for a couple of days. It was SO needed and SO nice! I even read two books during those few days :)  (more on that coming next week- an update on my reading list for the year)

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 I am so thankful for that man of mine!

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We got a couple of dates in during these two weeks as well, but I am going to save that for next week as well. We’ve hit 10 out of 50 dates! Yay!

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I am hoping for a no-carrot-in-the-nose and no-ear-drum-bursting kind of weekend. I wish you the same :)

I first met Tessa while helping plan her sister Kelsey’s wedding. I just love their family! When it came time for Tessa & Taylor to get married, I had sold my business and was no longer planning weddings. They kept with the Joyful Weddings & Events family though and had the wonderful Bre work on their wedding.

It is so special to me when I can still be a part of weddings, even though I am no longer a planner. After talking to Tessa about her design scheme, I made a “beloved” banner for their dessert table and matching mr & mrs signs for their chair backs. What a gorgeous couple!! All of the beautiful photos are by Matthew Morgan.

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You can see more of their wedding on Matt’s blog. Interested in custom banners for your wedding? Contact me through my etsy shop!

When I retired from wedding planning, it was such a blessing to be able to hand the company over to Bre, who had been working for me for a couple of years. During that time, she had become a dear friend and I couldn’t imagine anyone else taking over the business I had built.

Fast forward a year and  a half and I was back in my wedding planner shoes for a very special wedding: Bre’s! It was one of my favorite weddings I have ever had the opportunity to be a part of. Not only was it amazing because Bre is a great planner and made every single detail absolutely gorgeous, but it was so full of love. Love between Kyle & Bre, love for and from their families and you could truly see the love of God shining through on their day. It was an absolute joy to be a part of.

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Yesterday, their wedding was featured on Style Me Pretty! The photos by Lane Dittoe are absolutely stunning- I’ve included a handful of my favorites here, but be sure to hop over to the feature to see everything. You can spot a few of my banners in there :)

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Bre’s family made pretty much everything- the altar piece, the boutonnières, the napkins, the table runners, the pallet fence and even the dining tables! Bre’s mom & aunt started a vintage rental rental company the year before her wedding so they had tons of fun pieces!

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Definitely one of my most favorite bouquets I’ve ever seen by the extremely talented Hannah of Modern Bouquet.

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We had this grooms cake from Sweet & Saucy Shop in our car for the entire 10 hour drive. I have never been more nervous about how my husband was driving :)

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Wedding Photography: Lane Dittoe Photography

Wedding Venue: Leaning Tree Lodge in Placerville, California (Bre’s family home)

 Wedding Design + Planning: Bride, Owner of Joyful Weddings and Events

Floral Design: Modern Bouquet

Wedding Cake + Giant’s Groom’s Cake: Sweet and Saucy Shop

Desserts: Sugar Lilies Bakery + Chelsey Chamberlain

DJ: Kik Entertainment

Banners: Joyful Joyful Designs

Rentals: Forever Vintage Rentals

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Love you Bre & Kyle!