brooklynn's birthday party

Today at my parents house in California we had Brooklynn's birthday party. Let me tell you, we had SO much fun today! There was so much that went into making this day special and boy was it special. Get ready for A LOT of photos! But first I gotta tell you about some of the people who made it perfect.

The party theme was Elmo. I mean, who doesn't love Elmo?? :)

The invitations were so cute. I got them here.

Her outfit. OMG was the CUTEST! I got that here.

Now, the cake pops and cup cakes.. wait until you see how incredible they are.

They were made by my old friend Kodye who I used to dance with. She is incredible. These treats were not only absolutely adorable but they were SO YUMMY! If you live in the Orange County, CA area you have GOT to hire here! Check out here website here.

Like her on Facebook here.

And check out her personal blog here. She is the cutest! She's new to the blogging world so go show her some love and FOLLOW HER!

Now, back to the party. We got an Elmo bounce house, my dad cooked burgers, we had dino nuggets for the kids, and a lot of hanging out! It was so much fun to see the babies and kids play together. My nephews as you will see in the photos LOVE Brookie. Especially Carson, who you will see loves to hold and kiss her. It is so sweet. Well, I'll just let you look at the photos. Cause like I said.. there are a lot.. haha.

Oh baby Brooklynn, I can't believe you are one. I love your little sweetness more than you know!

NOW STOP GROWING!!

HOW AWESOME IS THAT??

AND TOMORROW IS MY BIRTHDAY!!! 

wiww :: thriller

Tonight we went on our double date to see Thriller. Ah the dancing was SO good!!

After we went to this little basement pizza place called "the pie".

This is a place that mostly U students go to. It's amazing pizza and has a cool atmosphere. 

We love it.

 me ::

carigan :: target

shirt :: target

jeans :: forever 21

uggs :: don't remember. sorry

curtis ::

sweater :: eddie bauer 

jeans :: calvin klein

shoes :: merrel

oh the pain.

Have any of you taken a spinning class? 

Well, I took one yesterday morning and it's a great workout. But how do you get through the pain from the seat?? My butt hurts so bad!! I would have been able to work out so much harder if I hadn't been in so much pain! YIKES!!

On another note, Brooklynn LOVES apples! So much. Yesterday Curtis had gone to the store and came home with two bags of apples to juice. Once she saw the green apples she of course HAD to have one.. then she saw the red apples... and HAD to have one of those. So, she walked around for a couple hours eating TWO apples. One green and one red. She is so funny.

Now, I have to go get ready! Tonight Curtis and I are going on a double date with his best friend Jake and his wife Heather. We're going to see Thriller at the U and then dinner after! So excited! We rarely ever have a babysitter so it'll be fun to go out!! :)

guest post :: giveaway :: from ashley!

First of all, let me tell you how EXCITED I am to be guest posting here today at Jenna's. Her's was one of the first blogs I came across when I discovered the world of blogging. I thought to myself "what have I been missing out on?!"  I quickly came to feel like I knew her and looked forward to reading her new posts. It was blogs like hers that inspired me to start my own.

So, let me introduce myself! I am Ashley and I am a stay at home momma to two energetic toddlers! My son Jaxson is 2 1/2 and my daughter Kendra is almost 14 months! I just started my blog a few months ago and absolutely love it. You can find me here. I really feel like I am finding things out about myself through blogging. I love to write and always have, but I have never really "put myself out there", if you know what I mean.

When I sat down to write this I realized that tends to be a common theme for me. I have a hard time stepping out of my comfort zone. For too many years I have let fear guide my decisions. It's always been the fear of rejection that has held me back. I think we all experience this in some form or another. For instance, I thought about starting a blog long before I ever did. I kept thinking "what if no one even cares what I have to say".

What I have come to realize lately is that sometimes you don't realize what you are missing when you are too afraid to try. You may think you are happy not making a change or taking a chance, but you don't know how happy you really can be. I took the leap and started my blog a few months ago and haven't regretted it once. I have met so many interesting, supportive and encouraging people. I have been so inspired by so many of you to tap into my creative side. I have even started designing and making hair clips. I thought I would just do it as a hobby, but deep down I knew I wanted it to be more, but fear was holding me back again. This time, though, I am not letting it stop me. I think sometimes the best things in life can be found when you step outside of your comfort zone. I am having the time of my life trying new things and putting myself out there. So, please stop by my blog and join me!

With that said, I would love to offer one lucky reader a chance to get their hands on two pairs of my clips and a headband my mother in law made. We are in the process of building up an inventory before we open up shop. :)

Here are the rules:

- It's mandatory to be a follower of The Duty Family by GFC

- It's also mandatory to be a follower of my blog... you can do that here

-additional entries include sharing a time when you went out of your comfort zone and it was totally worth it.

- head on over and like The Duty Family on Facebook here

There are four possible entries so be sure to do all and come back and comment for the best chance and good luck!

early morning hike

Yesterday morning we woke up early to go on a hike to Donut Falls. It is a waterfall the has eroded through a huge rock to make a hole in the middle. It was really fun. It was a little too cold for my liking but I was glad we did it. It's amazing that we live so close to such beautiful hikes and sites. 

I love it so much.