Guest Blogger: Every Girl Like Me

Hi!  I'm Amanda over at Every Girl Like Me.  I "met" Amanda back when we both were expecting our little ones.  We both had joined WTE's (What to Expect When Your Expecting) January 2010 message board.  However my little Miss came a few weeks early in December 2009.  Definitely not what I was expecting.  I am the wife to Travis who works for a manufacturing plant and mother to two awesome stepsons, Ben 12 and Jake 9, and mom to our daughter Brynleigh Paige, almost 23 months.

I am a working momma and so I cherish every moment I get to spend with Brynleigh.  Recently we've had a few weeks of illness and finally we're past it.  Now since it's an extremely busy time at work for both Travis and I we really don't get much family time in the evenings so I have definitely let the housework slide.  Something's gotta give right?  We're working on some potty training now.  And since birthday's are right around the corner, I started doing some major birthday party planning.

Party planning is not easy when it comes to having a birthday 6 days before Christmas.  There has to be a lot of thought on how to have the best party, little stress and inexpensive.  I say inexpensive because well Christmas is within a few days and plus Brynleigh's birthday is the day before mine.  Some factors I have to take into account are my dad is a GM for a retail store and Travis's dad does Loss Prevention for a different retail store.  For them to both be able to attend we have to coordinate what weekend day and time works best for their schedules.  Then living in the Midwest, there is no telling if there will be frigid temps, mild temps, freezing rain and even snow.  Last year Bryn's birthday party was great but it was stressful.  I have only put on a few parties and am not a big party planner.  Thankfully I have an awesome mom and mother in law to help out with things.

Last year we did the basic "1" birthday party theme.  This year I wanted it to be different.  Bryn has shown a huge interest in owls.  I really am not sure where she decided she loved them so much but owls is the theme I was set on.  Yeah, it's pretty easy to find the Whoo's turning 1 Owl party theme.  Not as easy when your looking for just basic owl prints in pinks for a 2 year old.  I am getting extremely excited though because I have found an owl theme I love over at Etsy.  Haha, yeah it's pretty funny though because I am no longer creative.  I used to be.  Now I feel like I am diving in head first into a very creative birthday party.  But when it comes to doing something inexpensive, I am definitely willing to give it a try.  Locations for winter parties usually cost $$ because you can't just have an outdoor party at a free location.  So we have opted per my mom's suggestion to do an Open House style birthday party.

I am totally looking forward to it.  Picture this, appetizers, vegi tray, cupcakes and a Sundae bar.  Guests can come anytime during a 3 hour block and they can have some yummy food, get to watch Brynleigh open their gift and we'll be able to be casual and get to spend time talking with our guests.  I'm sure in my head it sounds smoother than will actually happen, but a girl can dream right?

Back to the whole creative thing, I found the invites on Etsy and fell in love.  I am so excited to get it ordered and the best part is I'll be the one doing the printing.  So I'll take the file over to the local UPS store and get copies made, same goes for a banner, cupcake toppers, thank you's and maybe some other things.  Head on over here and check out our invitations.

Stop by my blog and keep up with us as I plan out the perfect "2nd" birthday party and also keep track of our Elf on the Shelf Christmas Tradition we are starting this year.  Grab a button if you like and I would love to have you as a new follower through GFC or Twitter.

Thanks Amanda for letting me guest post on your blog!  I hope your family is having a wonderful and much deserved vacation.

Thanks to Amanda for this fun, crafty post! You can visit Amanda and the gorgeous Brynleigh over at her blog, and follow along with the party planning! I know I can't wait to see how it all unfolds!