While I can’t actually vouch for the quality of Krusteaz’s new gluten free mixes, I’m just super excited to announce the arrival of a gluten free berry muffin mix. I used to love blueberry muffins for breakfast, lunch, or snack. they were always just a perfect addition to my day. As of late, baking and cooking me has really taken a backseat so anything that can make my life easier like a ready to bake mix I’m on board to try.
Trying a new gluten free product is always a toughie for me. I’m a little wary and anxious because of the usual higher pricing but I am just as excited to unearth the next gluten free star. I cannot tell you how excited I am to try these out. I always really enjoyed Krusteaz mixes prior to going gluten free so I’m hoping their gluten free mixes standup to their great reputation from before. I haven’t yet spotted these in my local store but I’m surely on the lookout now, with a sweet little $1 off coupon in my pocket!
So keep your eyes out for Krusteaz’s new gluten free blueberry mix and make sure you print your coupon today for your first try!
Even before we found out that we were expecting, the idea of creating a beautiful big girl room for my baby had been floating around for awhile. The plan is to move our little girl out of the Bambi nursery and into her very special big girl room prior to when the new baby arrives. A new room and a new sister or brother is a whole lot of transition for our precious 2 year old so we wanted to create a new room that fits our little girl perfectly and introduce her to it before she meets her sibling.
We could have definitely walked the path of a character room, but I’ll be honest, Disney is floating around in our house everywhere so I wanted to really have her room as a room that she could be 2 and then 3 and then 4, and really grow up in. So as of right now the new oasis for our little girl is presently what’s left of our once home office. We wanted to do the room renovation in the most price conscious way possible since we have a new baby on the way so we started a little savings on the side for this project, putting odds and ends from yard sales in the pot. As of right now we have a good amount to work with but I’m a bargain hunter to the core so I’ll scout out the best deal possible and then snatch it up.
Thus far, I’m at the beginning of planning but I have collected a few things for the room as I’ve seen them. So without further ado, I wanted to share what my plan was for the big sister-to-be through this Polyvore inspiration board.
A Big Girl Room Is On Its Way For A Soon-To-Be Big Sister!
Hands down, my little girl’s favorite identifiable color is purple so I knew I wanted to incorporate purple into the room somehow without everything being purple. So I was thinking on doing a light aqua wall with purple accents in the room and a more neutral light gray rug that could work down the road with lots of different color combinations. As far as the furniture, I’m a huge fan of white furniture, especially for a little girl’s bedroom, so we’re doing a white tufted bed, dresser, curtains, and a very special tea table. I love the play tables on Pottery Barn and Land of Nod but they’re tremendously expensive so we snagged a perfect one with tons of character from a sale site and plan on either painting it white or staining it, either way it’ll be such a cute addition to the room for her to have her tea parties that she loves with all of her stuffed animal friends.
One of my favorite additions to the room is a big surprise for her that we plan on kind of gifting to her as she becomes a big sister and that’s a little play house area in the room. I’ve seen tons of these adorable teepees and canopies that make perfect little play or reading corners in a bedroom. I knew when we were in talks about the big girl room that this would make her feel like her room is really hers and it’s an extra special space created just for her. Another addition that I wanted for the room was a weathered/distressed end table. I snatched the perfect one up at Target for a fantastic clearance price, but I just have to see height wise if it works in the finished room. Finally, as far as lighting, we have a wooden ceiling fan in there as of now and it may remain depending on if we can find anything out there for a good price like the one in the inspiration board. Lighting is so expensive and we like the addition of a ceiling fan in the bedrooms so we’re not too hard pressed to replace what we already have but we’ll see.
I hope you enjoyed a small glimpse into my little girl’s transition to becoming a big sister. We’ve got the ball rolling for sure and it brings tears to my eyes knowing she won’t be in the nursery anymore as our baby but I knew after she dismounted unexpectedly out of her crib at only 15 months that the baby days were on their way out quickly. Truth is she’ll always be my baby but watching her become an older sibling and pour all of her love into her new lifelong friend will make my heart grow one more size.
As a mommy and mommy-to-be I just love sharing this phase of life so I’ll be sure to keep you posted on how her room is coming!
I’ve always loved smoothies and juices but when my picky pregnancy palette and lack of energy to actually make them came around, my smoothie and juice making, among many other culinary exploits, went on the back burner. Without my oh so favorite smoothies, I’ve had a really hard time so far this pregnancy eating nutritiously or eating period and gaining weight. So lately I’ve been on a mission to track down some gluten free foods/drinks that’ll not only please my palette but also pack a huge punch on the nutritious end. Sounds like fun to add some new gluten free items to my normal everyday diet but eating has become more of a job lately so off to work I go.
So the credit for this find actually needs to be given to my husband Dan. On a trip to BJs he was on a mission to uncover protein packed, gluten free marked foods that would suit his pregnant wife’s needs, no easy task but my Dan is a brave soul that’s for sure. First on his list was to find a potential replacement for my smoothies/juices and that he did. Who would’ve thought that Dannon made yogurt shakes that were perfect in texture and packed full of vitamins and protein, not to mention are beautifully marked “certified gluten free.”
Gluten Free Dannon Light & Fit Protein Shake
These shakes are a great alternative to a homemade smoothie and come in a couple of different flavors including strawberry, mixed berry, banana, and vanilla. At BJs, we snagged a super size pack of the shakes all in strawberry so I haven’t tried the other flavors but the strawberry flavor certainly gets my vote. On top of their delicious taste and smooth and creamy texture, they’re packed with 12 g of protein and 5 g of fiber, making them a perfect addition to my pregnancy gluten free diet. To check out these shakes in all of their deliciousness and find them in a local store near you, check out Dannon’s site and pick out your favorite flavor and location.
These tasty shakes and smoothies have slowly become a permanent part of my breakfast and I couldn’t be happier to report that so far no food aversion has developed to these, fingers crossed. For now, I’ll enjoy their addition to my daily diet and keep hoping that they help restore some of that energy that I miss so much.
Nothing beats the moment you go from just regular you to an expecting mommy. The 2-3 minute wait before that seems like forever and the Clearblue blinking countdown just can’t move fast enough. But when that word “Pregnant” flashes across the screen you’re instantly filled with excitement, tears, butterflies, and about every other emotion in the book. It’s a feeling you’ll never forget and one that pretty much doesn’t leave for the next 40 weeks or so. Each time I faced the dreaded couple minute wait I had Dan right by side, just the way it should be. We had hoped and prayed together to be blessed with a baby and decided it would only be fitting if we learned the news together. And together we did! A moment neither one of us will ever forget and one we can share with both of our little ones in the future.
With my first pregnancy, I was working and we were traveling quite a bit so time just kind of got away from us making it really tough to document every step of the way, but in retrospect, I wish we had been able to capture at least more of my pregnant moments for us to look back on now. So for this time around, Dan and I decided to try our very best to capture week by week my progress through this pregnancy, from when we first found out to the day we meet our new addition. With the hoopla of the holidays passed, I decided to start with my 12 week picture even though I’m a little past that now. But no worries I’ll catch you all up in no time.
12 weeks along with Baby #2 and a blossoming bump already!
12 weeks and I already had a blossoming bump, that’s what you get with a second baby! I personally love the growing baby bump, it just reminds you of the miracle that’s happening inside. By 12 weeks I still didn’t have much of an appetite yet not to mention much of a stomach to support it even if I did. But by far my favorite part about the 12 weeks mark was seeing our little one live and on camera at our 1st trimester screen ultrasound which happened to take place a few days before Christmas, can’t ask for a better present than that! The little one was so active, bouncing around constantly, really making the ultrasound tech work hard. But the moment that really took the cake was when our little one was sucking its thumb, so precious to see this little plum sized baby look and act just like one in your arms. For a few more details about the nitty gritty of this week, take a look below for things like my go to gluten free foods.
Go to gluten free foods: Bagels, apples with peanut butter, pretzels, chips, and some holiday treats too! Yay, homemade, gluten free pizzelles!
How am I sleeping?: Sleep, what’s sleep? Sleeping is always tough for me but I’ve been pretty restless lately.
Have we told our friends and family yet?: So we did spill the beans a little earlier than 12 weeks just because I was showing already but we revealed it to some of the others as our early Christmas present. I’m working on a cute formal announcement as we speak!
What’s going on this week: Christmas is finally upon us! We’re even more excited than usual this year especially since our now two year old seems to kind of get the fun of some of the Christmas traditions.
Looking forward to: The wait to finding out if the baby is a boy or girl reminds me of that few minute wait for the pregnancy test. We’re so excited to hear the news, 18 weeks just can’t come soon enough.
What I love most at this point: Since we first found out we were pregnant we starting telling our little girl about the baby but now that my belly is sticking out more she’s just loving kissing and hugging it and saying hi. Each moment of her love just steals another piece of my heart!
Hard to believe but Christmas 2014 has come and gone. My most favorite time of year is coming to a close but I have to say it was one of our favorite Christmas’ thus far with our little girl. As she turned two this December there was no doubt that she understood 100% the idea of presents and parties/family gatherings too. The party side of things wasn’t overly thrilling for our little girl who seemed to be a bit more shy around the entire family this year but the presents were a very different story. We just loved watching her tear into her birthday and Christmas presents with such amazement and surprise at each one, followed by a little squeal of excitement and a thank you. It was a wonderful Christmas that’s for sure!And following with holiday tradition I seem to have come down with my usual cold post-holiday and unfortunately my little girl has tagged along. We’re surviving, no worries, little one seems to be doing just fine but mommy is having a little bit of a harder time. Being sick while pregnant is the worst, and this pregnancy I’ve been unlucky enough to be sick a couple of times already; fingers crossed I’ll be finished after this bout. Thankfully, though we have tons of Christmas treats to keep us occupied from little one’s new coloring table and kitchen to my new sewing machine that I cannot wait to figure out!
I was kind of disappointed that this year we didn’t have a chance to catch the Christmas lights at Peddler’s Village so colds or not, I was determined to squeeze in a trip post-Christmas. The other night we bundled up and headed out for a little drive to enjoy a chilly walk through the light displays. In route to Peddler’s Village our little girl was on the lookout for Christmas lights already, yelling out with excitement as we spotted some decorated houses; it’s definitely going to be sad when all of the lights come down this year, especially since our little one seems to enjoy them as much as her Mommy always does. Finally, after a little while we arrived at Peddler’s Village, which is the most adorable little village with all different kinds of shops and restaurants. This trip it was all about the Christmas lights and our little girl couldn’t have been more thrilled at the lights everywhere. We had a great time and it was definitely kind of the perfect way to end the holiday season. I hope all of you had a very Merry Christmas and from my growing family to yours, we wish you a Happy New Year! Stay tuned in 2015 for lots of pregnancy news!
Gluten Free Mom To Be is going become a mommy of two!
Meet Baby #2! With Christmas only two days away and my grandfather home and on the mend, we couldn’t be happier to announce that we’re expecting our second baby, coming this summer. We’ve hoped and prayed that God would bless us with another little miracle and our prayers have been answered. The past few months have been a whirlwind of emotions, mostly filled with overwhelming joy and excitement to become a mommy of two. And as excited as both Dan and I are to welcome a new little baby into this world. we can’t help but be equally as excited for our little girl. She’ll one day soon be a big sister, mommy’s big helper, and have an eternal playmate and best friend. While our lives are changing immensely, our precious little girl’s is doing just the same and in ways she’s too young to understand.
After finding out the good news we started planting the seed with our little one that there was a baby in Mommy’s belly. At first, her interest was for a grand total of two seconds but now she’ll point to my belly telling me where the baby is, always following that with her amazing hugs and kisses for her sister/brother to be. As I’ve been everyday since my little girl was born, I’m in absolute awe at how big her little heart is. Ever since her very beginning she’s been my little love bug, always sharing a hug and kiss and now as she’s become a new two year old she understands exactly what love is and never stops sharing her “I love you”s and “I miss you”s. Seeing just how sweet she is with baby still inside, I can’t wait to see her reaction when she first lays eyes on her new sibling. It’ll be a day that none of us will ever forget but thankfully one that we have a little bit of time yet to prepare for.
In the meantime, it’s onto celebrating the holidays and looking forward to the new year that is ahead of us. We’ve got big plans for our big two year old this Christmas, especially since she’s well warmed up on the present opening front thanks to her birthday. I can’t wait to see her joy and amazement Christmas morning all dressed up in her Christmas jammies with her amazing bed hair. It’ll be one of the best Christmas’s yet for Mommy, Daddy, and Little Girl (and we can’t forget baby too!), we can’t wait! I’m so thankful for the new little blessing that we have this holiday and the good health and happiness of the rest of my family. Cheers to a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday to you all!
Note: You might’ve noticed the absence of my gluten free food posts lately. This first trimester has been really rough so food in any form has not been my friend at all but hopefully from here on things will get a bit easier. Stay tuned for my favorite gluten free foods while pregnant, the ins and outs of my first trimester, and pregnancy bump updates and vlogs!
It really is the most wonderful time of the year. I’m one of those people that cannot wait to hear the first Christmas songs on the radio and listens religiously to them until the holiday (and trust me I would totally listen past Christmas if the radio didn’t all of the sudden turn them off after the 25th passes). I love everything about the holiday, the music, the decorations, the cooking and baking, but most of all, all of the family time. My family’s holiday traditions are definitely some that I’m trying to pass on to our little girl and make a few new ones of our own too so she becomes just as much a Christmas lover as her mommy. This year our Christmas season has been a bit more hectic so the Gluten Free Mom To Be has been a little absent this past week but with holiday prep, a big birthday, and some family health problems, our plate has been a little fuller than usual.First comes first, the highlight of our weeks before Christmas have been and always will be our little girl’s birthday. For our little family of three, we’ve been lucky enough to have one more reason to love Christmas time thanks to our little girl who entered the world just shortly before Christmas only two years ago. As the holiday season rolls around each year since her grand arrival, we’re reminded of just how much our little Christmas angel has added to our lives. As her mommy, I’m always reminded of just how much she’s grown since that memorable day two years ago and although it makes me so proud looking at the beautiful toddler standing before me it brings tears to my eyes just the same. As her birthday comes close each year I catch myself in awe as I watch my almost birthday girl run around and explore because for me I’m also picturing that tiny little baby who laid on my chest in a knit baby Christmas hat. So much has changed in such a short time and even though we’re no longer in the tiny baby stage I wouldn’t have it any other way. With huge warm hugs and kisses, jibber jabbering that goes on all day, and walking hand in hand with her mommy, she’s my baby, and even though she’ll grow one year older each Christmas season, she always will be.
My little girl’s birthday was most certainly the high point of my week’s hiatus but unfortunately our holiday season this year hasn’t all been merry and bright. Sadly, my dear grandfather was scheduled for heart surgery and to make matters worse my grandmother was restricted to staying home due to some of her ongoing health issues. We’ve walked the path of health obstacles during the holidays before, with my grandmother in particular, and as a whole family of Christmas lovers, it’s devastating to spend the happiest time of year with fear and sadness. This Christmas season it looked like we’d have to work extra hard to spread some holiday cheer for my grandparents who would face yet another road block.
It was a hectic few days with bouncing between grandmother at home and grandfather in the hospital but as a family we’re surviving. It’s difficult anytime to watch anyone you love, let alone two people, be in pain but it’s especially hard so close to Christmas when all we wish for them is to be happy and healthy at home, together just as they have been for the past sixty years or so. I fondly remember enjoying our Christmas days’ of years past at my grandparents house, which is just a short walk down the street from my parents house. As we’ve grown, some traditions have changed but one thing always will stay the same and it’s that walk down to their house on Christmas day, but now it’s with a bunch of little great grandchildren in tow. Hopefully this year we can continue that tradition and spend the holiday all together.
I’ll always be a Christmas lover through and through, the music, the food, the decorations, giving gifts, but most importantly that time we get to share with our family that just seems more and more precious as years pass. This year I hope and pray that things turn around and that my grandparents can be together once again for another Christmas. You certainly never do know what life will throw at you but after watching the strength and courage of my grandparents after all of these years I’ve certainly learned how to be a survivor.
Cheers to all of you for a merry and bright holiday season with your loved ones!
Christmas came early for the Gluten Free Mom To Be with two fantastic deliveries from Udi’s yesterday! The first was a huge box of frozen samples that were all completely new to me, but the second was a holiday gluten free goodie box from their #EatDrinkBeMerry holiday campaign. Among the amazing treats were their Double Vanilla Muffins, Soft and Chewy Snicker Doodle Cookies, Steel Cut Oats with Currants, Flax, and Chia, and finally their Soft and Chewy Dark Chocolate Brownie Bites. Being a chocolate girl, my eyes immediately were drawn to the chocolate brownies, especially the words soft and chewy across their label, two my favorite food adjectives. Without any hesitation, the brownies were first up on the sample list and barely survived another minute without being opened. After popping open the carton, I finally caught a glimpse and whiff of the deliciousness of Udi’s brownie bites. If anyone remembers those white individual sized bags of muffin looking brownie bites by Entenmanns these look and taste exactly like them, from what I remember at least; keep in mind it’s probably been a good 15 years since I’d actually tasted one of them but nonetheless a girl never forgets brownie bites. These Udi’s bites look like miniature muffins, wrapped with a cupcake/muffin wrapper with chocolate chips poking through the top. Now, you’re probably wondering if they hold up to their description of being soft and chewy, just like an actual brownie. Ready to find out?Well, I have fantastic news to report! These gluten free chocolate brownie bites are everything that they’re described to be. They’re filled with just the right amount of chocolate, but most importantly they’re perfectly soft and chewy just as promised. Many a gluten free product that I’ve tasted over the years seems to fall short in the texture department, usually being rock hard or crumbling at your touch, far from what they actually should feel like. Udi’s brownie bites, even though their presentation may resemble a miniature cupcake, have succeeded in giving us a chewy brownie that’s perfection, no cake texture here. You certainly get what’s promised on the package and your taste buds will not be disappointed. The only downside with these fantastic gluten free brownie bites is that you will definitely not be able to stop at one, not really a downside I know. These are a perfect premade snack for anyone gluten free, especially when you’re on the go. I’m all for baking brownies and cookies from scratch or at least from a box but I’m certainly not one to pass up the convenient and equally as delicious alternative of a premade snack. Udi’s brownie bites are just that, and I can see myself bringing along this convenient little carton to many a day trip or even vacation to Disney World, when I can find them in my local store at least. Sadly I haven’t spotted these in any of my local grocery stores but fingers crossed that they pop up soon!
Make sure you keep an eye out for these adorable little bites and snatch them up when you see them so you always have a sweet treat on hand! After all, what’s better than a bunch of adorable little brownies nestled snugly in your cabinet?
I cannot believe we celebrated my daughter’s 2nd birthday this weekend. Even though she won’t officially be two until a little before Christmas, we wanted to have her big celebration a little early so it was a bit separated from the holiday. So for our almost two year old we had a Snow White birthday party, per her request, with everything apple inspired. She was dressed in her Snow White best and was surrounded by family, not a bad way to ring in the big 2. Watching her this birthday from the last was a real eye opener as to how much she’s grown and changed in just a year. Something tells me I’m in for many more of those moments down the road, but for now I’m just going to sit back and bask in the start of the toddler years.
With a couple Disney trips under my little girl’s belt, it’s become pretty obvious that she loves just about everything Disney, but one of favorite friends in Disney World is Snow White. So when it came time to choose what direction her 2nd birthday party would go in we had a couple ideas and decided to let the birthday girl choose the winner. Without hesitation, Snow White was the winner for sure and the planning began.
There’s no denying that one of my daughter’s favorite features of the party was her very special Snow White dress. I’d been eyeing these uniquely adorable Disney dresses for quite some time, for a milestone photo or special occasion, but when I spotted the Snow White option I couldn’t think of a more perfect event than for her 2nd birthday. So as an early birthday gift from Mommy and Daddy, we snatched the very special Snow White dress made by Lover Dovers Clothing on Etsy. Because this dress was such a big hit with my little girl, I’m talking love at first sight not wanting to take off and constantly twirling around, I did an extra special feature on this dress with my little one making her vlog debut. Meet my little Snow White and find out why Mommy loves the Snow White dress too on our vlog.
Snow White 2nd Birthday Party Postcard Invitation
With the birthday girl’s outfit picked out, the party ball was rolling and Mommy jumped into planner mode. First up was the invitation. Last year for our little one’s “it’s a small world” party I made these adorable postcard, front and back invitations with Vistaprint and I just loved the feel and look of them. I decided to go with Vistaprint again this year and do a similar front and back invitation, but this time with a moment of Snow White love on the front and a personalized design on the back, made by yours truly. The picture for the front was an easy choice for me, it’s one of our Disney favorites, but the back I had to put a little more thought into. I knew I wanted to incorporate the signature phrase from the movie so I decided to top the back with a mirror image to which I glued mirror scrapbook paper to, the picture above is an extra invitation that didn’t get the mirror glued on. As far as the invitation text below, I used an amazing authentic Disney text that was perfectly suited for this occasion and the rest I threw together with inspiration from the movie and my little one herself.
“Magic mirror on the wall, who is the fairest birthday girl of all?
With a smile that shines and eyes that sparkle,
is a lovely maiden who is turning two.
Bouncing brown curls and a heart as pure as gold,
“name” wishes to celebrate with you.
Come join us for “name”‘s royal celebration
on “date”
at “time” at The “last name” Cottage.”
Magical Kiss Sugar Cookies
With the invitations finished and sent off it was time to design a menu. We decided to just go with a sweet theme, with a few savory snacks on the side; keep in mind we have eight nieces and nephews that were going to be in attendance and plenty of adults that I just knew would all appreciate sweets galore to kick off the holiday month. First up, I knew I wanted to incorporate the magical kiss at the end of the movie so I decided to use a holiday favorite and make Magical Kiss Sugar Cookies. A sugar cookie with a milk chocolate Hershey kiss smooshed in the middle, sprinkled with some magical red sugar on top. These were a huge hit with not only the kids but also the adults too.
Marshmallow Apple Pops
Next, I wanted to do something that was really kid friendly so all of our little one’s cousins could grab an easy but adorable treat. I used red candy wafers by Wilton, which are gluten free by the way, large marshmallows that were my store brand which were also gluten free, lollipop sticks, and Spice Farms chocolate sprinkles which as an added bonus were also gluten free. And voila! You have Marshmallow Apple Pops that look like little apples, some with and some without the chocolate topping. These were a lovely bonus for Mommy too, seeing as they were gluten free!
Apple Cutout Sugar Cookies
When I was perusing the candy/cake making aisle in one of the craft stores for the hundredth time, I spotted a 99 cents apple cookie cutter and just couldn’t resist making Apple Cutout Sugar Cookies. I decided to dip some of the cookies in a reddish powder sugar frosting that I made. To give the apple cookies that extra sparkle and shine, I just took the freshly frosted cookies and sprinkled them with the red sugar sprinkles. I added the frosted cookies and a few plain cookies to a cute basket that I thought would really go with the Snow White woodsy theme.
Chocolate Dipped Apples
With a Snow White theme, I just couldn’t help myself with all of the apples, besides they are one of my daughter’s favorite and most requested food. One thing I knew I had to do was feature the actual apple itself and what better way to do that then to dip them in chocolate and roll them in sprinkles, behold my Chocolate Dipped Apples hold the poison. These were a huge hit and looked so pretty, a great touch to the sweets table that’s for sure.
Red Apple Triple Chocolate Cupcakes
Dan and I had decided pre-planning to make cupcakes for the guests and order a special small cake for our little girl to save a little bit of money. I’m really glad we did because we ended up with a gorgeous cake that couldn’t have been more special for the birthday girl and equally as beautiful apple inspired cupcakes that won over the masses. For the cupcakes themselves I decided to go with red velvet for obvious reasons of course and triple chocolate for the chocolate lovers. To differentiate between the two I decided to decorate a little differently between both sets. For frosting, I colored white buttercream to this gorgeous red color, piped the frosting on, and topped all of them with those delicious looking red sugary sprinkles that made them shine and sparkle. The Red Apple Triple Chocolate Cupcakes were topped with a small piece of pretzel stick and green chocolate curls to give that stem and leaf feeling of the apple.
Red Apple Velvet Cupcakes
For my Red Apple Velvet Cupcakes, I went with the simple red frosting and red sprinkles and just let them shine and sparkle on their own. You might have noticed the awesome cupcake stands that I was using. These are actually birch rounds that I picked up at the craft store. They’re about two inches thick and a foot or so wide and added that woodsy feel that you obviously see plenty of in the Snow White movie. This party would’ve been amazing in our backyard that has a couple gorgeous trees but seeing as we have a winter birthday I really wanted to bring some of the outdoor feel inside. With these wood rounds and wooden baskets I managed to do just that.
Custom Snow White Cake For The Birthday Girl
Finally, onto the birthday girl’s special little cake. I had some idea of what I wanted but with the help of pinterest and the amazing cake decorators at Classic Cake in New Jersey we were able to put together a really spectacular cake that fit perfectly in our budget. A 6 inch vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream filling was covered in yellow fondant and draped with royal blue fondant around the top, subtly reminds me of Snow White’s dress. With a few gold accents making it extra elegant, we also decided to add a red satin bow at the base, one of my favorite parts of the Snow White look and one that I love to put on my little one anytime she allows for a headband. Finally, to top it all off, the signature red apple was added as the topper with a gold 2 on the center. I was thrilled with how the cake turned out and I just love working with Classic Cake. I should also mention that they offer some gluten free treats too; my husband surprised me with some gluten free macaroons as my sweet treat at the party since most of the party food was not gluten free. They were a perfect surprise for Mommy and the cake was an even better one for our little girl.
Snowy Wishing Tree and Handmade Apple Garland
With all of the food made, it was time to finish decorating and get the show on the road. I used that apple cookie cutter from the cookies and red paper to make these apple cutouts that I strung together to make apple garland. On either side of the apple garland, Dan hung red streamers which really finished off a fun backdrop. I also decided to add a snowy, light up tree to the table to tie in that woodsy feel. A great addition!
Chalkboard Snack Signs and Miner’s Jewels
I made these apple shaped signs to label all of the snacks for our guests. I wanted to have chalkboard kind of signs so I used my daughter’s black construction paper and white crayon and went to town. Another cute addition that I didn’t really have to bake were the Miner’s Jewels that I packed into a basket on the table. These were the perfect favor for the kids and a cute idea tying in the dwarves too. I picked up some muslin favor bags that tied at the top and stuffed them with jolly rancher candies, a jewel like candy for sure but also one that was friendly for my nephew with food allergies.
The Birthday Girl’s Snow White Cake
With a cake stand that I already had, little one’s cake was proudly displayed front and center with all of the other treats on either side.
Snow White Storybook Birthday Banner
Without further ado, here’s the final product of our Snow White table. With red, yellow, and blue balloons floating around the room and a giant red two attached to our little girl’s birthday seat, the decorations all pulled together perfectly. But, one of my favorite decorations that I put together was the storybook banner on the front. I took our large Snow White book and made copies of the pages. I cut the pages into pennant shapes and strung them together with red satin ribbon. I also made a miniature version to string along the front of little one’s birthday booster chair too. It was a perfect final touch to it all and I couldn’t have been more excited for our little girl to see it all put together.
Little one ended up loving all of the snacks, decorations, balloons especially, but just the party as a whole. With cake coming first, she ended up really not liking all of the attention and turning very shy, pretty unexpected since she greeted everyone with warm hugs. But I must say she is her mother’s daughter since apparently I too at that age wasn’t a fan of being the center of attention. No worries though once the birthday song was sung, the birthday girl lifted her head and gave some cake a try, very daintily I might add, just as she did on her first birthday. But without a doubt, present time was the highlight of the night. Her reactions were priceless, so innocent and genuinely happy and excited over every single gift, even squeaking out some thank yous here and there. With some warm hugs and kisses goodbye, the party came to a close and bedtime drew near. It’s sad for me as her mom to see another birthday pass but I couldn’t be more happy and in love with this adorably precious little girl that seems to be growing and changing so quickly. It was another birthday for the baby book and one that we’ll always remember.
I cannot believe it’s been almost two years since our little girl came into this world. When our little one was born we just knew that we were in for a lot of smiles, a lot of laughs, and tons of personality. She was just that since day 1 and has never sold us short on any of those since. Everyday we’re blessed to see that beautiful smile and hear her giggles and hearty belly laughs amidst watching her figure out her world while getting into a little trouble along the way. Turning two is a huge milestone for our little one but a big one for Mommy and Daddy too. In a sentimental way it makes me kind of sad that our little one is growing so quickly but at the same time that’s part of having kids. They can’t stay babies forever and each moment after they’re born holds a new memory and a new adventure. For us, that’s exactly how I would describe the past two years with our little girl, one adventure after another and filled with more memories than I could ask for.
So, without further ado, I’d like to introduce you to our Little Snow White!
Loving my little girl’s Snow White party dress? You absolutely have to check out Lover Dovers Clothing on Etsy, They have amazing, handmade Disney dresses that are perfectly comfortable and so incredibly sweet.
So there’s a sneak peak at our little one’s 2nd birthday party. Stay tuned early next week for some details from the big day!
