At the beginning of the year, I made a commitment to myself to finish 12 books in 2013. Giving myself this goal has made me allocate time for reading, whereas, before, I would say I didn’t have time to read. Now, I spend less time on social media and pinterest and more time in a book. I am loving it! For years I ignored reading unless it was required for bible study or the like and now I can say that I am a reader again :)

I wanted to update my progress- I am 9 books in!!!!! I am about done with book 10, so I think I’ll make my goal :)

Here is what I have read so far this year:

1: 1,000 gifts (This book affected my life and how I see my days profoundly. I highly, highly recommend it)

2,3,4: The Hunger Games Trilogy (loved them. Will probably read through them again before the 2nd movie comes out next fall)

5: Gone Girl (captivating- not my favorite because I didn’t love the ending, but I enjoyed it)

6: Gilead  (much slower to get through than the others, but was full of philosophy and theology and made me think)

7. The 19th Wife (Really, really interesting)

8. Divergent

9. Insurgent (LOVED these two! I read them in a couple of days while I was out of commission with my ear. I can’t wait for the 3rd one to come out next fall. If you are looking for a fun, quick read, I highly recommend them)

Right now, I’m reading Real Marriage by Mark Driscoll and am really enjoying it. If you are looking for a good Christian book on marriage, check it out.

With a trip to Italy coming up next month, I am sure I will hit 12 with all of that traveling time. It makes me excited to see what my total number will end up being.

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 :)

It feels like the first Friday of summer. It’s really the first Friday of March. Gotta love Southern CA!

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I’m linking up again with Jeannett at Life Rearranged to share moments from my week, captured on my phone. Speaking of phone photos, the great people behind TotallyRad! just released an iphone app called PicTapGo- it’s awesome! I highly recommend it. I used it on the picture above and the last photo in this post.

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Last Friday, I shared a couple of photos from our trip to Lake Arrowhead. I then filled up Instagram with a ton more (sorry friends who follow me!). Here are some more glimpses at our weekend away with my family and Hudson’s 2nd birthday:

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These boys know that Grandpa is always good for a treat:

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We didn’t do a real party for Hudson’s birthday- just family dinner. Isaiah would not have it. He demanded that the dinner have a theme. So Hudson had a mini mickey mouse party :) Cupcakes by the wonderful Cupcake Friday Girl and I whipped up a quick banner that looked much cuter in person- with the lighting in this pic, you can barely see the letters.

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I still can’t believe my sweet little guy is 2! (He says he is 3 when you ask him- slow down buddy, slow down!)

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We had so much fun sledding on a little hill on the side of the road.

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Isaiah was so stoked to make a little snowman and do snow angels.

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Sister time!

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Within a couple hours of leaving the mountains, we were here. We are so spoiled in San Diego!

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Starting him early:

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I had a really really hard day with the boys earlier this week. In the middle of the day, my sweet hubby sent me this:

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I didn’t know whether to laugh or be encouraged.

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Last night, we went on date #7 out of 50. We had an old gift card to Cheesecake factory- banana cheesecake with a side of hot fudge. Try it.

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Notice how handsome my cleanly shaven husband looks. Much better than his passport photo last week, right? :)

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Then we got up today and headed out for date #8! (thank goodness for grandmas!) We had coffee at our favorite coffee shop then headed down to the beach for some surfing, reading and walking. It was a PERFECT morning!

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This weekend is our first real weekend as baseball parents. A scrimmage today and opening day and photos tomorrow. Here we go!

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!

Today my baby turns 2! It’s hard to believe.

Happy birthday sweet boy! You bring us so much joy, such sweet cuddles and a whole bunch of entertainment daily. We love you.

We are up in Lake Arrowhead with my family for the weekend, so the boys had fun adventuring in the snow in their PJ’s this morning. Isaiah was just a little bit excited:

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This week’s instafriday post is super short- another week that I didn’t make pictures. I am still linking up with Jeannett anyway though :)

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I started watching Friday Night Lights- I am loving it! A did a little baby shower crafting while cuddled up in my bed with Coach Taylor…errrr…. my computer.

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We got Isaiah his passport this week- Italy here we come! Hudson decided he should get in the picture too :)

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I learned the hard this week that I cannot trust my husband with the job of passport photos.

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Yes, that is him, not a man off of the street and, yes, he messed up Isaiah’s hair on purpose. Notice that they have the same exact half smile. Aye. Security gates here we come :/

This deal is too good not to share!

You may remember me sharing photos of Isaiah with the cardboard rocket ship he got for Christmas a while back. The same one is on sale on Gilt today for only $14! Even with the shipping added, it’s just over $20, which is a great deal as it is normally $50!

It was pretty easy to assemble (comes all folded up in a skinny box) and Isaiah loved coloring it and playing in it. It stayed up for almost a month and now we have it stored away flat in the garage. It would make a great gift for any little kids!

Things usually sell pretty fast on Gilt, so hop over and grab one before it’s too late. If you are not a gilt member yet, it’s really easy to sign up.

**This is not a sponsored post. We just love the rocket ship, so I thought I’d share it with you all!**

I know I say this a lot, but I cannot believe that it is Friday again! This week has been fun but crazy (just ask the half painted bookshelf that has been hanging out in my garage since last Saturday…)

On Fridays, I share my instagram photos from the week both to recap life (a little scrapbook of sorts) and to link up with Jeannett at Life Rearranged.

Happy day after Valentine’s Day!

Last Saturday, we had dinner with friends and ended the night making ice cream with liquid nitrogen (thanks to my friend’s husband). It was really cool- definitely the first time I can say that dessert came from a science experiment :)

They approve of the ice cream:

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I don’t have a picture of this, but my husband preached on Sunday at our church. It was awesome! If you want to hear his sermon, you can hear it here.

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That night, my husband and I had date #5 out of 50 (our goal is 50 dates in 2013!). My husband, who is an incredible cook, made my favorite pasta from scratch. Here he is teaching Isaiah how to make the pasta dough:

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Side note: Daveed had always wanted to learn to make his own pasta. For Christmas 2 years ago, I signed him up for a class at Sur La Table. He loved it and has been making me fresh pasta ever since. The gift that keeps giving back to me :)

It takes a looooong time, so we fed the kids and then had our own dinner after the kids were asleep. He also made us tasty drinks and artichokes and we watched the Grammys while enjoying our amazing meal. Thanks babe for being awesome!

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Isaiah watched Mary Poppins for the first time (one of my childhood favorites!) and when the song “Step in Time” came on, he couldn’t help but get up and dance all over the house. It was hilarious!

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He found this book at the library and is so stoked to get crafting:

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The first line of the book is “may the glue gun be with you”.   :)

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Living in San Diego is great. It was 75 and beautiful today. I thought about going to the beach. In February. Also, there are so many cool things for kids to do here. All of the kindergarteners from Isaiah’s school got to go to Sea World this week for a field trip. He talked about it for weeks leading up to it and I am sure we will be hearing about it for weeks to come.

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I am so glad that I got to go with him. He held my hand often and wasn’t embarrassed in front of his friends. I know that is going to change some day, so I fully enjoyed his excitement over me being there.

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Isaiah’s valentines:

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I call this giving the kid what he wants while still making it crafty and homemade. I saw the idea on the blog Inchmark and he loved it, only to find (2 days before valentine’s day) that there was no downloadable template. Enter superdad and his photoshop skills.

At first, the perfectionist in me cringed a bit when Isaiah wanted to color all over them. I loved his sweet little hearts though. Makes star wars a bit cuter :)

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Valentine’s Week breakfast:

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The day before Valentine’s Day, we headed up to Santa Barbara to visit my husband’s grandma. She’s been sick and Valentine’s Day was her 85th birthday, so it was really special to be able to see her and share some love. The boys love their GG.

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When I married my husband, it was a great added plus that I got a grandma. I grew up without any grandparents, so it has been really special to get a grandma in my 20′s. She is wonderful and treats me as her own. We love you grandma!

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Thanks to my wonderful mother in law, we got to sneak away for the night and had brunch for our Valentine’s date (also date #6 of 50). Breakfast was delicious and we even had enough time to walk around State Street and shop a bit.

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I am so thankful for my man.

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It was a whirlwind trip, as we were back home less than 36 hours from when we left. Fun and good, but I am glad to be back at home, ready for a mellow weekend.

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I hope the love of Valentine’s Day spills over into the weekend for you friends!

I’m glad it’s Friday today. I’m not going to lie, this week wasn’t my favorite. It wasn’t terrible, but we had some rough days. I am very much looking forward to the rainy day today and the weekend.

And I’m excited that it’s friday because it means I get to link with Jeannett at Life Rearranged for InstaFriday! I didn’t post that many pictures on instagram this week- not because there were not lots of sweet and fun moment this week because there were (dinner with friends, including Hudson discovering barbies, superbowl with more friends, visits from both of the boys grandmas, going to an Andrew Peterson concert) but because I just didn’t take many pictures :)

Here are the moments I did capture:

Date night #4/50: For our 4th date of the year, my husband took me out for dessert and drinks. At a car dealership. Yep. Our local Lexus dealership is huge, shiny and new and has a really nice restaurant on the roof. Definitely on the random side, but it was tasty & comfy by the fire pits :)

On saturday, our 5 year old started tee ball. We are officially baseball parents. Crazy. He absolutely loves it!

Our we *heart* winter party was featured on Hostess with the Mostess this week. So fun!

On tuesday, both boys had a hard day. Meaning: they made the day hard for me. It started with this little curly haired guy deciding that I should not take a shower. He threw a tantrum the whole time I was in there- opening the shower curtain, resulting in a soaking wet hudson and a soaking wet bathroom. After my cold shower, he then decided that he did not like the fact that I needed to get ready or dry my hair either. It was not a quiet hour in my house.

But he’s just so cute. Even in the midst of his whining and crying.

I have had a few customers order custom  mini banners for their banner stands they purchased at the Queen Bee Market, which is so fun! (I do have a couple available in my etsy shop and can make any custom banner for these).

Hudson & I snuck outside to play a bit before the rain came this morning:

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

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!

It’s friday again! I’m linking up with Jeannet at Life Rearranged to share snippets of my week, all captured on my phone. If you want to follow me on instagram, I’m courttoney.

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Last weekend, my sweet niece taylor went back to school in new york. My fam all got together for dinner at our family favorite, Claim Jumper. We will miss you Tay! See you in the summer!

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Hudson’s dinner dates:

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Oops.

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Oh my heart. He’s almost 2.

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Isaiah had to get a shot (his biggest fear) so we celebrated his bravery with some golden spoon. For some reason, my boys always break into a dance party while we are there. I’ll have to post a video sometime- it’s so funny.

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I posted pics from Isaiah’s little man bedroom. It made me really miss the sweet built ins in our old 1945 cottage.

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It was really beautiful out today- mid 70′s with a breeze. We decided it was too nice to eat lunch inside.

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Isaiah also decided that it was perfect run through water from the hose weather. Welcome to Southern California winter.

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If you are on instagram, there are two fun things going on today. The ladies of Inspired By This are giving away our seersucker love banner. All you have to do is post a picture of your dream valentine’s date with the hastag #inspiredbythis and you’ll be entered to win. The giveaway ends tomorrow.

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I’m also doing a little instasale of heart banners just in time for Valentine’s day. You can check them all out in my feed (@courttoney).

Happy weekend everyone!