Fish Themed Birthday Cake + Food + Invitation + Decorations

I have a two-year-old!  How is this possible?  Our Harlow loves fish, so we had a fish themed party at our house.

The invitation artwork is free from freepik.  Stanton Aquarium is our house ;).

Let's talk cake...that's what's really important.

I made a strawberry cake in a bundt pan.  I cut it in half and put icing in the middle.  The icing in the middle had strawberries blended in with it.  You can't have strawberry cake without strawberry icing!  I didn't put strawberries in the icing on the outside of the cake, because I wanted the icing to be blue.  I used the same cake and icing recipes as last year.  Click HERE for the recipes.  This year I added blue food coloring to the icing (and of course left out strawberries on the outside).

I decorated the cake with gummy worms and fish and a gator and frog and shark sprinkles.  Blue cotton candy is in the middle of the cake (the bundt hole).  I made a fish (or mermaid) tail with cardboard and sequins.  The glitter number 2 candle is from Walmart.  Those confetti balloons are also from Walmart.

On the cake table there were also strawberries and jello with Juju fish.

The food table had chili cheese dip, chips, black bean hummus, roasted red pepper hummus, whales (Walmart's take on Goldfish) in a sand bucket, strawberry shortcake Goldfish, vanilla cupcake Goldfish, and a raw sushi bar Swedish fish, Juju fish, gummy worms, and sour straws.  We served drinks in a swimming pool, because duh!

I had books with fish in them around the dining room and a banner.  And lots of pictures of Harlow (these were printed from Parabo).

Harlow (with occasional help from me and Colin) colored lots of fish coloring pages we found online, and I hung them on the curtain rod and the doorway with yarn and small craft clothespins.

It was a fun day!  If you're thinking of having a fish themed party, I hope this gave you some ideas!

Harlow's Birthday | Pumpkin Patch | Monogrammed Shirt (& An Embroidery Mistake!)

I now have a two-year-old.  I can't believe it.  For Harlow's first and now second birthday, we have gone to the pumpkin patch.  Last year was fun, but this year was even more entertaining with her running all around.  At the end of this post I'm going to tell you about the shirt she's wearing.  First, I'll show you some pictures from the pumpkin patch!  My parents went with us this year.  Harlow loved walking through the tunnel, playing on all the playground equipment, seeing the animals, and picking out pumpkins.  It was a fun day!

Now, let's chat about the shirt and the big boo-boo I made...

Cute design, huh?  Well, first let's talk about how I ruined the shirt.  I was embroidering while texting and comforting a crying toddler.  What was I thinking?  You can't embroider and multitask.  The sleeve worked its way under the hoop and got embroidered to the back of the design.  Heavy sigh.  I had to cut it loose.

I didn't think I could talk Harlow into keeping her arm tucked to her side to hide the hole.  I could have cut the sleeves above the hole and hemmed them to be shorter, but I wanted to keep them long.  That brings us to leaf patches!  Work with me here.  I cut some leaf shapes out of felt and hand stitched one over the hole and another on the sleeve at the same spot.

The shirt is Okie Dokie Peplum from JCPenney (order through ebates.com to get 8% cash back).  You can get this monogram design at Planet Appliqué (click HERE to get 20% off).  Just stay focused :).

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Pics + Video: Petit Jean State Park (with a Toddler)

For 13 years now, I have lived less than an hour away from Petit Jean Mountain and State Park and have never been there until last week.  I can't believe it!  Arkansas has so many great places to visit and explore, and I just hadn't made it to Petit Jean yet.  Colin hadn't been in a very long time, and of course, Harlow had never been, so we all loaded up in the Beetle and took the back highway for a day at Petit Jean.

We barely scratched the surface of what there is to see and do at Petit Jean.  We did what was feasible and enjoyable with an almost two-year-old.  We went to overlooks and easy trails.  Harlow is a little too big to be carried for very long and a little too small to walk some trails on her own.  Colin and I are planning on going back soon when it's just the two of us.  There was so much I wanted to see that we didn't get to on this trip (like the waterfall!).  But that's okay!  There is still so much you can enjoy as a family with younger kids.  Harlow had a great time!

We stopped at the visitor center after we walked to the first overlook.  There you'll find maps and details about the trails.  I have photos of the brochures at the end of this blog post, along with a video from our trip.

Now, let me show you what we did while we had a few hours at Petit Jean State Park.

Cedar Falls Overlook

This is an easy walk to the overlook to see the waterfall.  Harlow had no trouble with the distance or terrain.  It's a beautiful walk and view.

Rock House Cave Trail

We started this trail after stopping by the visitor center.  I wore Harlow on my back.  We didn't too far past the turtle rocks before heading back.  We were the only ones on the trail at the time, and we heard some growling.  I didn't feel comfortable with the unknown while Harlow was with us.  This is definitely a trail I have to go back to see.  The rocks that look like turtles are a sight to see.

Mather Lodge

We had lunch at Mather Lodge, a beautiful restaurant with an amazing view.  It's surrounded by cabins and rooms.  I've looked at pictures of the lodging online, and the rooms look pretty impressive.  After lunch, we lingered around the lodge to enjoy the view.

Bear Cave Trail

This is an easy walk and fun for families.  We only stayed at the top of the trail around the rock formations and the little "bear" cave.

Palisades Overlook

Before leaving Petit Jean, we drove to this overlook to take in the top of the mountain and the deep valley.  It was a great way to top off the trip.

Whether you live within an hour's drive of Petit Jean or a few states over, it's worth a visit!  Colin and I are planning our return trip and are determined to make it a regular family outing.  If you're a regular visitor to Petit Jean, give me some tips (for times with or without toddlers) and tell me your favorite trail or activity!