Broke-Ass Bride NEEDS our help!

Dishing for Dana

Spread the Word!

Looking for a special cause to donate to but don’t know where to start? Maybe you need to check off a task from your “101 in 1001” DayZero list? Well, look no further and Dish for Dana!

Dana is the woman behind the blog, The Broke-Ass Bride, helping brides to plan a wedding on a Broke-ass budget! Today though, she really needs your help! Click HERE to learn more about Dana and her battle!

Not only can you help monetarily but this is also a chance to share your favorite comfort food recipe and get it put in a recipe book!

All help is greatly encouraged and appreciated! Don’t think twice…just do it!

Thank you from the bottom of our heart!

XOXO

http://dishingfordana.com

101 in 1001 -- Task # 13

#13 – Have 10 Friends Suggest a Book and Read Them All

THANK YOU to all my friends who offered their book suggestions! Unfortunately, I had to only select 10 BUT rest assured, I will be reading the other books that were not selected once I complete this task.

Here are the 10 books I will be reading (in no particular order):

• Marley and Me by John Grogan
• My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
• Oogy by Larry Levin
• When I was Puerto Rican by Esmeralda Santiago
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
• The Red Thread by Ann Hood
• 90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper
• Child Called It by Dave Pelzer
• Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon
• A Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

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C  Check back to see how I am doing with accomplishing the 101 tasks.

"101 in 1001" - The Day Zero Project

A while back during my hiatus I found the “101 in 1001” blog entry on one of my favorite blogs that I follow, HowJoyful.com. I read it and knew that I wanted to learn more about it and eventually create my own list. Well, I finally got the chance to see what it was about.

It really is similar to a bucket list except that there is a known time “limit”. You get to evaluate your personal goals and dreams and document what you would like to do in that time frame. Seriously, how many times have you said, “I want to do this someday,” or “OoOO, let’s do this,” but never get around to doing it? Well there is no day like today, so why not do it now?

The “rules” of this little experiment is for you to pick goals that are realistic and attainable but maybe a bit reaching to get you out of your comfort zone. Of course, you can pick ones that are basic but make sure to change it up a bit.

To review my list, click on the 101 in 1001 menu option at the top of my blog or just click HERE.

I really encourage you to take part in this. Who knows, maybe it will be fun!

Learn more about the project or create your own list at: Day Zero Project

My Inspiration came from Joy of HowJoyful.com

Project 1st Birthday

Project 1st Birthday

First off, I cannot believe how fast time has flown by. I always agreed with people when they said that she will grow  up quickly but it just seems too fast. I mean Saya baby is nearly 1 years old! Well since her 1st birthday is literally right around the corner, I need to get a move on planning her 1st birthday bash. I know it is going to be a bit difficult planning this with a rambunctious 9 month old moving around but I have faith that I can get this party as close to what I want. :)


Here's what I have come up with so far...

Theme: Cupcake


Colors: Multi colors and probably multi patterns


Guests: Immediate family, those with young kids and our closest friends


Food: Finger foods and tons of cupcakes and other handheld snacks




And it all starts with the invitations...


So far I love this invitation from LollipopPrints on Etsy:

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The colors are nice and bright and the multiple patterns are exactly what I have envisioned. And of course the cupcake helped too!

Because we have not had pro pictures done of Saya since her 1st week of life, we don't have any "great" pictures to be used for these invitations. To solve that, I have recruited my cousin, a photographer just getting in the business, to take the pictures. Because Miss Saya has to look all cute for her pictures, I decided to buy this cute cupcake themed tu-tu style dress from Carter's:

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As of today, I will be pairing this super cute hair bow with a cotton white headband, specially made for us by MorganLaneBoutique from Etsy:

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Have you seen any cute cupcake themed items out on the web? How about 1st birthday ideas? Have you recently held a child's birthday party? Share your details, por favor! :)


This is a work in progress so stayed tuned as I "build" this party!

FANTABULOUS Five for Friday

T.G.I.F!

Since Fridays are my favorite day of the week, I thought I would share a few of my favorite things. Each week, I would like to share with you these "FANTABULOUS" items in hopes that you share some of your favorites with me but also get you introduced to some products or services that you may not have known about otherwise.

Today is all about my favorite Etsy shops so far... I am sure I will have many more and will share them with you as I find them!

 Have a HAPPY Friday!

• GeeZees Canvas and Prints
• A local shop who creates beautiful canvas art. Stephanie, the shop owner was wonderful to work with and very prompt in her delivery even with having such a short deadline. I had purchased a canvas that had a picture of my parent's engagement photo with the lyrics to the song they used for their 1st dance (similar to 1st picture below). The piece was just amazing. I was shocked at how beautiful it was because the picture I gave her was a 31 year old photo that wasn't of great quality and it was scanned in. These pieces would make for a great gift (think wedding, birth, anniversary, etc.) or even for decor for your own living space.

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• Morgan Lane Boutique
• There is nothing more to say other than the hair accessories that she makes are just too darn cute! The shop owner took her love for big stylish headpieces for children that even her daughter  wears and decided to start her own shop making them. Her choice in fabrics and colors are eye catching and still provide a bit of uniqueness in the world of big hair accessories. Also, her blog is a great one to follow as well. 

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• miaMallows
• Homemade gourmet marshmallows? Um... Yes, please! These little squares of goodness apparently are worth every penny! Unfortunately, I did have not had the pleasure of eating these yet but when I bought them for my dessert table at my wedding, they were GONE! We had some pretty happy guests. I think the best part of these marshmallows is the variety of flavors. We're talking 35 flavors folks! These pics make my mouth water!

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• Keep Calm Shop
• Just the name of the shop can change your mood... OK, well maybe not BUT I would love to say a few of these phrases to people sometime except for my words may not be so nice :) ! These vintage inspired prints and posters are a cool way to "spice" up your decor and even would make for cool gifts. I know at some point I will be purchasing a few for my daughter's 1st birthday party. It will help to decorate a few spots that need a little help!

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• TomKat Studio
• A one-stop-shop for all your party printables! Geared more towards birthday parties, this is a great shop to get some professional looking designs for your DIY party. Need some favor tags, fancy labels, or a birthday banner, then this is the place for you! For your convenience, they also provided full packages for particular themes. I have seen work from similar shops but by far these are my favorite! Again, I haven't purchased anything yet but I will be using them in the very near future. You will see that clearly they are a favorite amongst other Etsy-ians too with their 100% rating. It's worth checking them out!

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What are some of your favorite Etsy shops? Please share!

**Disclaimer:  I did not receive any compensation or discounts for posting these shops. These are merely my opinions based on the products that they provide or the quality service that I had experienced.

Celebrations and Updates

Well hello there my FAB followers! There have been many things that have occurred that I would love to share. Just finding time to do so, is yet another challenge. Little by little, I will let you back into my life. There's so much to share :)


So to get things started...


I want to say THANK YOU to all who kept my sister in your thoughts and prayers while she battled her bout with Hodgkin's Lyphoma! As of the 2nd week of February, she had completed her last round of Chemotherapy. A few days after, she had a scan taken and was in the clear. Now the only trace left of her battle is her hair, which is growing in differently but quite nicely. My sister is now in remission :)! Hoping and praying for her future and that nothing returns!

Since her 28th birthday was a few days after her last treatment, my family wanted to hold a surprise birthday party to bring together all her supporters to celebrate her "new" life. Let me tell you how difficult that was! We've never had a "successful" surprise party for her because she is very nosy about the details but some how we were able to pull it off. It really did end up being a great celebration and the best part of it all is that she was truly surprised! BTW - Say HELLO to Natalie! All her wigs were given a name and it was quite funny because she took on different personalities depending which she wore!

In closing, I would like to provide an update on a little boy named, Brayden, whose life story I have been following through his Mother's blog, Live. Laugh. Love. Born 12 weeks early at just 2 lbs. and 14 oz., he had a long road ahead of him with many obstacles that he would have to overcome. I am elated to say that this once very fragile, premature baby boy has grown into this strong and quite handsome little boy. With all the love, support, strength and prayers of his family, caretakers, friends and followers, he has been able to take on these obstacles head on with a few set-backs. What a little soldier he is!


So if you have a moment to spare, check out Brayden's life story and show some love and support to Brayden and his family!


Until next time!


ETA: I was incorrect about my sister's next scan. She is in the process of having a scan and depending on her results, she may have to have chemo for another two more months. Please keep her in your thoughts!