The Royal Wedding!!

To say that I am excited about the upcoming Royal Wedding...is an understatement!!
I am in love with the UK, a good friend of mine moved to London many years ago and I was fortunate enough to visit her a couple of times!!
I have always been drawn to all things British.........and when I was ready to register for my china before my wedding I found the most gorgeous place settings by Wedgwood ....named 'Crown' platinum of course! I remember so many friends and family trying to talk me out of the high priced china explaining that I would not get all of the pieces because of the high ticket price.....but I did not care, I had to have it and decided that I would slowly collect it through the years..........I was very lucky that a family friend moved to London and visited the Wedgwood factory outlet often!! She was able to find the remaining pieces of my china for me and brought them back to the US for me!!

Here is the Tea cup and saucer from my place settings.....I just love it and we had to have them out for our 'royal' tea party!!

I have been wearing my Burberry charm watch that has many British inspired charms....it is really getting me in the spirit for the big event!!

We decided it would be fitting to have a tea party and I decided to pull out my travel albums and share my UK visits with my children and discuss all of the history behind this royal event.........
One of my favorite places I went to was The Tower of London which is home to the famous Crown Jewels. I was able to see many of the Crown Jewels that are still used by the royal family today....I can not wait to see what gorgeous jewels the bride wears on her wedding day!!
I visited a jewelry store in the tower of London and purchased these charms with small jewels. I was not married and did not have any children yet-- but I decided to buy a little crown as well to pass on to my own child someday...........I am going to give this crown to my daughter tomorrow so she will always remember this event and her mommy's love for all things royal!!

Easter Fun!

Well I know everyone is done with Easter planning but I thought I would post a few photos of the brunch and egg hunt that we hosted yesterday.................and no--it is not your imagination....both my daughter and her bunny wore two different dresses on Easter, I have no idea where she gets her obsession with shoes and clothes hee hee!

Margarita Cakes for Cinco De Mayo!

I have been experimenting with new desserts and created one that you are sure to love....these strawberry margarita cakes are the perfect for spring and summer treat!
I start off by placing the rim of a margarita glass in a bowl of water and the dip the glass in sugar (to look like salt).........................

I make this sugar/water/strawberry mix ahead of time and place it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.......it consists of a handful of cut up strawberries with a couple tablespoons of sugar and a half cup of water and you can always add a splash of tequila if you prefer...........
I use pound cake and start by cutting off a corner of the cake and placing it at the bottom of the glass.........it is important to have this slice at the bottom to soak up all of the yumminess!!
I then place a layer of the strawberry mixture over the cake........................

I use a smaller circle form (smaller than the rim of the glass) to cut out the upper layers of cake and repeat the process.....................
These can be served immediately or stored in the refrigerator a couple of hours before serving......you and your guests will not be disappointed!! Enjoy.....just in time for Cinco de Mayo!

Popcorn Carrots

Well it is official......I have found a way to make marshmallow popcorn balls for every holiday! I basically use the rice crispy treat recipe and substitute the puffed rice with popcorn...............
before adding the popcorn I add in food coloring..........
after adding in the popcorn I mold clumps of the mixture into carrot forms...........the trick is to cover your hands with butter to keep them from sticking.
I then make the green carrot tops with coconut. I take a handful of coconut and place it into a ziplock bag with two drops of green food coloring and shake the bag until all of the coconut is covered green...........then you are ready to enjoy a yummy sticky treat!!!

Spring Break Water Party

We had a Spring Break Water Party today with some of my son's friends from school. We moved recently and bought a house with a pool in southern California so we were ready to celebrate the warm weather with new friends!
We used a lot of of ocean theme decor because we live so close to the beach and Spring is opening season for some fabulous beach weather! My son wanted Tall Ships as the central theme.... We live near a harbor that has classic Tall Ships where the kids attend The Ocean Institute and explore marine life and oceanography.
We made our own ice sculpture using a fish mold and added blue food coloring...... the kids thought it was 'the coolest thing ever"!
Our dessert table was a huge hit, we found a variety of nautical themed and colored candy and I made lobster cookies!!!

The kids had a great time swimming in this gorgeous weather and celebrating their first day of Spring Break!!

Fabulous Printables from The TomKat Studio.

Table linens and party decor from pottery barn kids.