Polka-Dotty Place

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

Fireman Fletcher Turns 2

We headed out of town this past weekend to celebrate Fletcher's birthday with our families. We had a party with Kevin's family on Saturday and my family on Sunday. They were so much fun. Fletcher totally knew the parties were for him and he loved them.

I made the same desserts for each party. I planned the menus around all of Fletcher's favorite foods. He happily taste tested as I baked.

Match stick pretzels. White chocolate and red sprinkles.

Chocolate Chip Cookies with m&ms. My recipe here

Funfetti with homemade buttercream. My recipe here.

Fletcher had firetruck gear to wear all weekend long. He was so happy! I've never seen him so excited about clothes before. These are all Carters from Kohls.

Olive did really well with all of the birthday attention going to Fletcher about 95 % of the weekend. She was genuinely so excited for him and kept telling him Happy Birthday. This was the first year for that to happen. I just loved it!

I feel like this could be a whole series... "Hi I'm Fletcher and I'm just here for the food." We ate burgers and all the usual sides. Olive said a sweet prayer and the weather was gross. Glad we were able to do everything indoors.

Fletcher opened gifts with minimal help. He wanted everything opened to play with ASAP.

The most exciting portion of the evening was when he got surprised with his very own Lightning McQueen car. It's really cute. It is maller than usual motorized cars and all the controls are on the steering wheel making it perfect for younger kids. Both of my kids can drive it and I'm sure they'll be fighting over it in no time. He's terrible at actually steering, but as long as he's got a straight shot he's fine. Here's the link to it -->
Power Wheels Lil Lightning McQueen

We're always so lucky to have family come to celebrate our kids. It's definitely not easy for us to plan all the party details from out of town and get on the road with two little kids. But, we feel like it's worth it to get to be surrounded by family.

Great Grandparents!

More Great Grandparents.

Fletcher was smiling EAR TO EAR the whole evening (minus bedtime).

Celebrating with cousins!

Olive's biggest request for the evening was... can you make sure I get to hold baby Carter?? Done!

What a fun evening celebrating Fletcher!

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Monday, March 26, 2018

Everything Easter

I just love this time of year with the pastels, the bunnies and all the cheerful decorations. I'm excited to share my favorite Easter recipes and crafts with you along with some decor inspiration. I got the house all decorated. Let's start the tour!

Our tulips aren't blooming yet, but my front door is!!

Kitchen:

Olive painted this egg at school and I just love it!

I found these Cynthia Rowley plates at TJ Maxx this year and love them! They're melamine and really durable. We eat off of them all the time and they'll be great for our Easter meals.

These carrots are my favorite! Kevin and I went on a cruise several years ago and I brought them back from Mexico. He thought I was nuts for buying carrots. I just knew they'd be perfect for Easter.

We tried something new this year. Each kid got to pick out a bunny for their bedroom. Fletcher picked a bunny in a carrot car in true boy fashion.

Olive picked out a floral/lace bunny in true Olive fashion. She's loved bunnies her whole life so she was eager to decorate for Easter.

Family Room:
Bunnies and signs of Spring all over the place.

I picked up this sweet turquoise bunny while we were at Notre Dame earlier in the month. I love picking up holiday or home decor souvenirs when we travel. It just makes me so happy to decorate with items that are sentimental to me!

I always add holiday things to our bookshelves.

Here are a few of my favorite Easter recipes and crafts:

Chalkboard Easter eggs
(all the details here)

Egg Carton Lunch
(all the details here)

Resurrection Rolls
(all the details here)

Bunny Prints
(all the details here)

What are your plans for Easter this year?

We've got brunch with the Easter bunny, we'll do an Easter egg hunt and baskets at home, will go to church and I'll cook some yummy Easter meals.

Linking up with Heather for Hello Monday!

Friday, March 23, 2018

March JOY

We packed a lot into the month of March! I'm excited to share all of the joyful moments with you today. We've still got some more celebrating to do in the next week or so - Fletcher turns 2 and Easter is right around the corner!

DISNEY ON ICE
Olive and I got to go to Disney on Ice with our friends Jacque & Scarlett. Olive packed her Cinderella dress & accessories and off we went. We had the best time! The girls were so cute in their princess attire and the moms enjoyed catching up. Win-win for everyone. The show was really great and the souvenirs were crazy expensive. It was so fun to watch the girls sing,

ST PATRICK'S DAY
Our city has a St Patty's Day parade every year and we were excited to get to go with friends this year. The kids had the best time dressing up for it. Being Notre Dame fans means that you've got TONS of Irish gear to wear in March.

Thankful to have an extra set of hands to keep a close eye on Fletcher. This was the first parade where they were big enough to participate. They were sharks for all the candy that came their way.

The highlight of Fletcher's life was seeing the firetruck ( or a ding ding as he calls them)

We had a great St Patrick's Day. I cooked breakfast for our Lucky to Love You dinner and made some delicious cookies. It was a really fun weekend.

BFFS
My kids have been playing really well together. Olive is learning to be more patient and Fletcher is always excited to do what his big sister is doing. I found them sitting in our playroom windows this week. They love to hang out in their teepee, too. It's tons of fun and on sale right now!

HAPPY SPRING
I made Olive a fun Spring themed lunch one day. She was underwhelmed, but I thought it was cute.

LEARNING TO SPELL
Olive is very curious about letters, sounds, rhyming words, drawing, etc. these days. She worked so hard on this family picture and writing I LOVE YOU.

CATS
Our cats find a lot of joy taking naps in Olive's bedroom. I'm jealous of all their naps.

SPRING SNOW
I know that not everyone is excited for snow in March, but my family loves it. We got ready for school early so we could play in the snow for a bit.

GOLDEN POTHOS
I spotted this gorgeous plant at Meijer this week and knew it had to come home with me. It's HUGE and it was only $14.99. I've been working on my gardening skills. I always struggle keeping indoor plants alive. Wish me luck in keeping this beauty alive. Rumor is it's an easy plant to care for so it's perfect for me.

EASTER DECOR
Our house is all decorated for Easter. I'll have to snap some pictures and share them next week. I just love all the pastels and bunnies this time of year.

CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
One of our favorite things to do in our city is to hang out at the Children's Museum. It's so fun!! The kids have a great time and the moms enjoy visiting while they play. My kids are obsessed with milking this cow haha and I love this play area.