Thank you so much for taking the time to visit my blog! Please look around and see what my blog has to offer, from party inspiration, DIY craft tutorials, yummy treat ideas, and so much more! And make sure to pin on Pinterest! If you click on the Free Printables tab on the top of this page, you will find all of my posts with free printables. Also, if you would like to stay up-to-date with all of my new posts, subscribe by email (enter it on the right margin of this page) or like my Facebook page HERE. Have a blessed day!

Monday, January 31, 2011

Skylar's Olivia the Pig Birthday Party


I can't believe my little girl is 2 years old.  Yes, Skylar turned 2 and we threw her an Olivia the Pig inspired celebration.  Why Olivia the Pig you might ask? I don't remember when exactly this started, but some time after she turned one, Skylar would demand to watch Olivia on Nick Jr. while having her nighttime bottle.  She could barely say a few words, but she would yell "OLEEVA!! OLEEVA!!" every time I would sit on the couch holding her and her bottle.  And the whole family (Brody included) fell in love with the character.  So thus I started to plan her 2nd birthday party.  

Overall, the party was everything I hoped it would be.  Skylar was surrounded by family who love her and our birthday girl had a fabulous time!  I am extremely grateful to my husband who helped me with numerous projects and who listened to hundreds of ideas that would randomly pop up in my head.  Thank you Chris for being a supportive and loving husband.

Here are some pictures:



Favor bags for the kids







Red velvet birthday cake

Custom banner with photos of Skylar from the past year











Family with the birthday girl

Vendors/Credits:

To stay on a low budget, I baked all of the treats except for the actual birthday cake that we purchased from Walmart. I also created all of the party printables (dessert labels, cupcake toppers, banners, favor tags, and "2" cake topper) - Sweet Metel Moments shop is now on Etsy!  The birthday girl is wearing a cardigan and Olivia t-shirt from Target and polka dot skirt from Babies R'Us.  I made the custom hairbows just for her!

I am so grateful to the hard-working women of the following sites who inspire me in so many ways!
 Olivia the Pig party theme inspiration: Heavenly Blooms
Overall Party/Dessert Table Inspiration: TomKat Studio, Hostess with the Mostess, Amy Atlas Events, HowDoesShe, and Pizzazzerie.

Photography by: Chris and Iris Metel, Family Photo by: Michelle Fisher
Future posts and links for DIY projects and recipes coming soon so stay tuned!!

Thank you to our family who attended Skylar's celebration and has showered her with love for the past 2 years!  I know that Skylar will have a great support system as she grows up.  Love you guys! 

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Happy 2nd Birthday Skylar Rose!


Happy birthday to our precious angel, Skylar Rose.  We are so thankful that the Lord brought you into our lives on this day two years ago.  He created a perfect little girl for this family.  You give us so much joy and we love you so much!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Sweet Memories - Hilton Head Island


Since I am in the middle of most of my birthday party projects and can't show you finished work, I wanted to share some pics from our most recent vacation to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.  Chris and I started visiting Hilton Head in 2002, the year we got married.  We instantly fell in love with the city and have been visiting every year!  We've been there so many times that we feel like its our home away from home.

Our main goal when we go there is to do nothing but RELAX!  And of course eat some great seafood!  We also bring our bikes and since our little Brody started riding a 2-wheeler when he was 3-years-old, bike riding is pretty much a big part of all of our vacations.  We rode our bikes every day, and when we were walking around the hotel, we actually heard some guests say, "Hey, there's bike boy!"  

Brody also loved playing shuffleboard, and Skylar liked waving the big shuffleboard sticks around.  More highlights included, feeding the ducks in the hotel pond, doing some post-holiday shopping, and our trip to The Sandbox, a non-profit, hands-on interactive children's museum.  It was such a perfect place to let the kids play and explore and to end our vacation on a high note.  Here are some pictures from our wonderful trip:


Shuffleboard anyone?
Our new animal friends
Bike Boy!
My world - Chris and the kids (Skylar was finished with taking pictures)
Skylar got her second wind!

Just for fun, here are some pictures of our past memories on Hilton Head Island:

2005
2006
2008
2009

Monday, January 10, 2011

Sneak Peek - Skylar's Birthday Party Invitation


As you know, I've been pretty busy working on Skylar's birthday party, so I wanted to share with you the invitation I designed for her Olivia the Pig birthday party.  I haven't even mailed these out yet (yes, I know I am running behind), so you saw them here first!

Skylar absolutely loves Olivia the Pig and honestly, so do I!  I don't know if it's because Olivia reminds me a lot of Skylar, or maybe Olivia reminds me of little me!  Anyways, I can't believe I did two posts today, but one of my new year's resolution is "Do more, talk less" so I've been busy doing more and thought I would share my work!  Does blogging count as talking?

Free Printable - Valentine's Day Mini Treat Bag Labels



So I am in the middle of finishing touches for Skylar's birthday party and since her colors are red, black, and white, I thought I could use part of her birthday designs to incorporate into Valentine's Day labels for Brody to give out to his preschool class.  Aren't these little favor bags so cute? 

The bags I used are standard 3" x 4" mini favor bags that you can purchase at any craft store (I bought a jumbo pack either at Michaels or Jo-Ann). Brody and I haven't decided what to give to his friends yet, but he wants to give out something sweet.  I put some Smarties, Hershey Kisses, and an eraser in 3 different bags just to test it out for the picture above.  But you can put in any small items like friendship bracelets, small cookies, small toy figures, stickers, etc.

Since I am so grateful to those of you who read my blog, I wanted to make these labels available to you!  Don't worry, Brody's name won't be on your labels.  They are blank where his name is so you can fill that in yourself.  Download your free DIY label HERE.


 Once you download it, just print on white heavy cardstock paper, cut out each label like this... 


Then fold in half like this...

 
And then staple over the bag filled with a treat!  Enjoy!

Sunday, January 9, 2011

The Lollipop Spot Giveaway Winner

And the winner of the $30 round cake order from the Lollipop Spot is...


Comment #22: Kim D.

Kim said, "I "like" The Lollipop Spot on Facebook."

Congratulations Kim!  Please contact me at sweetmetelmoments[at]gmail[dot]com so you can claim your prize.  Thank you so much to everyone who entered, and a BIG thank you to Martha for providing such a wonderful and yummy prize!!

*******

It is officially birthday season in the Metel household.  With both Brody and Skylar having birthdays 2 weeks apart in January and February, I will be doing lots of projects for their birthday parties this month!  Stay tuned for some easy DIY projects that you can do for upcoming celebrations.  Plus I am working on a free printable for Valentine's Day that I will be posting soon.  Wish me luck!

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Giveaway - The Lollipop Spot

UPDATE!!  

This giveaway is closed.  We already picked our winner.  Thanks for all who entered!  Click HERE to see who won!



 Happy New Year!!  I hope everyone had a great holiday season and is ready for the wonderful adventures that lie ahead in 2011.  I am excited to introduce to you my friend Martha, owner and creator of The Lollipop Spot.   She makes the most amazing chocolate treats and I've been very lucky to taste her creations (like the Red Velvet Cake Balls she gave my family for Christmas - YUMMY!  I savored every bite and am craving more!)   I am thrilled to announce that she is sponsoring a giveaway for the Sweet Metel Moments readers!  One lucky winner will receive a credit for a basic $30 round cake.  Winner will have until June 2011 to order the cake from Martha and must be able to pick it up in the Orlando, FL area (I apologize to my non-local readers).  Here is a message from Martha:

Hello to all, my name is Martha Drinan and I would like you to know about The Lollipop Spot where I make gourmet chocolate party favors, chocolate treats, cakes, and more. I have always been a chocolate fan so after having my  two boys and staying home, I really enjoyed spending more time in the kitchen creating yummy sweets for family and friends. I really hope to have the pleasure to make you some treats in the near future. Please visit my website at www.thelollipopspot.com and call me if you have any questions or ideas for your next party or celebration. 

So here is how to enter for your chance to win:

Enter up to 4 times by doing each of the following.
Make sure to leave a separate comment for each action that you complete.

Required Entry:

1. Visit 
The Lollipop Spot, come back here, and leave a comment with which treat you wish you were eating right now.

Optional Extra Entries:

2.  Become a fan of The Lollipop Stop on Facebook and leave a comment here that you did! 


3.
Post a link of this giveaway on your Facebook Page and comment here that you did.

4. Subscribe to Sweet Metel Moments HERE and leave a comment that you are a subscriber (or already were!)

Winner will be chosen on Friday, January 7, 2011 at 8:00 pm (EST).
Any entries received after this time, will not be considered. 
Winner will be chosen using random.org and announced by Monday, January 10th and will need to contact me to claim his/her prize.

Good luck!