Featured Vendor: Sugar Cookie Creations

Michelle of Sugar Cookie Creations is my "go-to" person for decorated sugar cookies. Not only are her cookies gorgeous, they're so tasty they'll make you forget all about counting calories. Show her a design and she'll replicate it. I love her attention to detail, and it's great that she's local. If you're looking for sugar cookies with that "wow-factor", be sure to check out her cookie gallery.

1. Trick-or-Treat Halloween Party
2. DinoFOUR Birthday Party
3. Mini Chef Birthday Party
4. Lego Star Wars Birthday Party
5. Gingham Easter Party

Featured Vendor: Rebecca Watkins Photography

For me, having a photographer that you can count on to capture the details of an event is key. On the day of the party, there's just no time to take pictures when you're greeting and entertaining guests, setting up the food and beverage area, and putting the finishing touches on the dessert table. Ever since Rebecca Watkins photographed my nephew's DinoFOUR birthday party, I've been able to focus on what I love best -- hosting joyful parties for children. Having Rebecca there means I can relax and grab a piece of birthday cake without missing a picture-perfect moment.

1. Children's Alopecia Project Thanksgiving Potluck
2. DinoFOUR Birthday Party
3. TransFOURmers Birthday Party
4. Gingham Easter Party

This past weekend, Rebecca was gracious enough to donate her time to the Children's Alopecia Project (CAP) hair drive and fundraiser. I'll be sharing those pictures soon. Thanks, Rebecca!

Featured Vendor: Monkey Moo Moo

With my one year blogging anniversary just around the corner, I wanted to feature some of the amazing designers, bakers, photographers, and other vendors that I've had the absolute pleasure of working with over the past twelve months.

First on the list is Donna of Monkey Moo Moo. Both my Halloween and Easter parties were inspired by Monkey Moo Moo's designs, so when Donna launched her blog last week, I became one of her first followers. Did you catch her Rootin Tootin Western Party on Kara's Party Ideas? I always knew Donna was an incredible designer, but I was really blown away by her talent for styling parties. Visit her Etsy shop and new blog, and see why I've been such a big fan of her work.

Gingham Easter Party

This past Sunday, we hosted an Easter Party at our home. I decided to go with a gingham theme and incorporate subtle Japanese influences. In the end, I was really happy with how everything came together.

My daughter's green gingham shower curtain from Pottery Barn Kids served as the perfect backdrop for the dessert table. For the banner, printable cards from Monkey Moo Moo were edged with gingham Japanese washi tape, sprinkled with glitter, then strung together with pink ribbon. The pair of topiaries which flanked the cherry blossom centerpiece (go here for the tutorial), were inspired by Frog Prince Paperie's pomander flower ball tutorial. Kristen of Decorate This! beautifully handcrafted the pinwheels using cherry blossom vellum paper.

The bunny and chick cake bites, lemon and raspberry French macarons, and coordinating sugar cookies were all made locally. Of course, I had to make some Peepshi (or Peeps sushi) for the party -- I just couldn't resist. They were a big hit! You can't go wrong with Peeps, Rice Krispie Treats, and Fruit By the Foot. 

Wondering how I made the lollipop flower favors? I'll be sharing the tutorial soon. Loan's Easter cake was almost too stunning to eat!

While all 150+ Easter eggs were being hidden, the kids decorated their eggs and personalized baskets with little gems, washi tape, and stickers. You can see my guest post about decorating eggs with washi tape on Ucreate with Kids.

We wanted to have the egg hunt at a wooded park situated at the end of our court, so all week long, I was crossing my fingers for no rain. Fortunately, we had mild and sunny conditions that day. Whew! It just wouldn't have been the same having it indoors.

We also had egg tosses in our backyard. A big thanks to Rebecca Watkins Photography for capturing all of the party details. It's so rare to get a great photograph of the family at our parties, but she managed to do it. If you missed Rebecca's tips for photographing children's parties, go here.

Wishing you a happy Easter!

Photography: Rebecca Watkins Photography and Pure Joy Events / Printables: Monkey Moo Moo / Sugar Cookies: Sugar Cookie Creations / Macarons: Pastry Xpo / Cake Bites: Kerry Dangerfield / Pinwheels: Decorate This! / Printing: Brick Wall Printing and Graphics

As Seen On: Catch My Party / P is for Party / Spaceships and Laser Beams