Rainbows, Unicorns and Magic!

A few weeks ago, we attended the birthday party of a sweet little girl. Baby E's family and my family met via our blogs and I am so grateful for the friendship because we get to watch each other's kids grow and really enjoy the experience of motherhood together. 

Baby E is just such a delightful young girl. Her smile really brightens up the room and we were really honored to attend her first birthday celebration. 
Note: For privacy reasons, I did not post direct pictures of the kids at the birthday party. 

Her mom and dad went all out with her party. The theme of the party was Rainbows and Unicorns. It was so much fun that JOE and JAE were still talking about the party a few days after. 

Here are some of the pictures from the beautiful celebration.

Beautiful focal table. This table was filled with so much yummy goodness.

Unicorn cookies!

JOE has requested a Trolls themed birthday party for her 5th. It was nice to see these colorful cookies because they certainly gave me ideas for her party later on this year.

How cute is this cake? VERY!!!

Awww...

 
And the throne for the little princess. 

 

They had a magician at the party and he was so entertaining. Both JOE and JAE especially enjoyed the show.

JAE was wicked excited!

Hey there Minnie. JAE is totally going through her Minnie Mouse phase. She is into EVERYTHING Minnie.

JOE volunteered to be an "assistant" during the show. 

She took the job VERY seriously!

That face and that smile! She aws so happy to be a part of the show.

And she got a hat to go. 

Helping with the magic.

 

 

Of course, JAE quickly took the hat when JOE came back.

E's older brothers were also assistants and they did a fantastic job.

Cool as a cucumber! Check them out!

It was a truly magical party and all the kids there had a great time! Thank you Peg for including us in your family's festivities. We look forward to celebrating many future events with you!

Have a fabulously blessed new week and remember to be kind to strangers. 

Photo Dump Friday: The little things

We had a great week this week and are looking forward to our weekend. The best part of the week? Seeing a -25lb weight loss on the scale. It totally made my day and I feel like I have been walking on air every since! 

Our basement renovation is just about done. Today, we will install the last accordion door to encase the storage area and then we will officially be done. 

The decor is just about done as well. Since it is a basement, we aren't really doing too too much. Hubby set up his cars a few weeks ago in the shelves we had put in under the stairs. 

We are also going to have a flower wall. I am making the paper flowers for the wall. It is taking quite a bit of time since I am only doing it during my spare time. But so far, all the flowers are turning out really nice. This is an easy DIY. There are A TON of videos out there if you are interested in making them.

Like I said, my new found weight loss has me trying out new things. Including this African print top I made for myself. It was a free style top that I put together the day before for an event we attended as a family for J's boss. I LOVE the way it turned out. 
Also, I was having a "bad" hair day. As in, I couldn't figure out what to do with my hair so I decided to do a high bun. Not too too bad.

That's me. Wearing an off the shoulder top that I made. I love the entire look. This item is not listed on AyoBE Boutique but if you would like one made for you, feel free to reach out.

I took a nap last week Saturday after we got home from the event. J came to wake me up so we could get ready for dinner. I looked up and saw J's handsome smile and this Tee shirt from AyoBE Boutique. It is quickly becoming his favorite! I have seen him wear it so many times. I love that he supports my business :-).

My little JAE is getting more and more creative! I love how much she is growing and thriving. Her imagination has really taken off. 
Here, JAE put her fairy wings on Supergirl because Supergirl lost her cape. How creative is this?

We match! Tees can be found here and here. You can have one made for the entire family.

Family car selfies on Sunday on our way to Church. JAE really was not feeling it. SMH...

I refused to give her her milk to drink in the car. Hence the look.

She was promised milk and check out her smile. My child...

So what is up with my curls? I have the "hanging tail" thing going. I did a spray and go (basically, the same as a wash and go except that I sprayed with water then used gel instead of washing my hair first). Anyways, I'm am not sure of what to do with it. The back of my hair grows wicked fast. Almost at twice the speed as the rest of my hair. Which ordinarily wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that the same back area has a looser curl pattern. Translation? I often look like I have a mohawk! I often have to try to brush to blend it all in. I'm not complaining though. I love my curls.

Sunday is cooking day. I picked up a bag of cauliflower rice on a whim while shopping. I decided to make some Nigerian fried rice for J since he mentioned that he also hadn't had rice since I started my healthy eating plan in April. Anyways, I made the same sauce for the rice but instead of rice for me, I added a couple of fried eggs and used the cauliflower rice for my dishes. 
LORD!!! This dish was DELISH! I felt guilty eating it! It was THAT good and honestly, if I didn't tell you, you wouldn't know it wasn't real rice. This is going to be a new staple in my eating plan. YUM! I'll blog this recipe later.

Sunday evenings = hair braiding for the girls. This week, JOE decided she only wanted a single braid. I haven't done that in a year so I figured why not. Her hair really is something. It is thriving. Long and THICK! I admire it and she is doing so much better with getting her hair done.

JAE's hair is also thriving. I feel truly accomplished when their hair is done.

Trying to get a picture of this little one. She is such a hoot. Love her so much! My baby...

This message spoke to me. Almost a year ago, I experienced a set back in my career that really had me questioning my career goals, myself as an individual and just my calling. One year later, I have no doubt that God is indeed in the details. 

When I experienced the setback, I questioned why God let this happen. To say it was a truly humbling experience would be an understatement. BUT God was only using that circumstance to prepare me for something greater. The lesson from this to you is to always in everything TRUST GOD!

I hope you had a lovely week. Have a fabulous weekend and always take any given opportunity to be kind to strangers!

Photo Dump Friday: Progress

Happy Friday everyone! It always seems that the first week after a holiday week is very long. But overall, it was a progressive week.

If you don't follow AyoBE Boutique on Instagram or Facebook, you might not have seen this so I am sharing it here. Be sure to go check out the site and follow us! So many items are on sale. We are reducing our inventory so items are going quickly.

I follow Heather Love on Instagram. Last week, she posted this on her page and it really spoke to me. Honestly, comparison is the killer of many dreams. These words came at a time where I needed it.

Full disclosure here...I was really considering closing down my business because I felt that I should be at a certain place by now but wasn't there. I compared myself to other businesses that started around the same time and who I perceived as being more successful. 

Well, when I saw these words, I immediately asked for God's forgiveness and started giving thanks for the blessings I have received so far. I have been blessed through this business, I have built relationships and have met people I wouldn't otherwise have met. Yes, I have a vision and a dream but ultimately, God's time IS THE BEST time. ALWAYS.

JOE is now at an age where she likes to make her own clothing choices. Sometimes, I have to steer her in a different direction if what she wants isn't appropriate but for the most part, I let her make her own decision. 
Well, last Sunday, she selected what she wanted to Church. JAE promptly decided she wanted to choose her outfit as well. I love to somewhat coordinate our outfits on Sundays but I let them choose what they wanted to wear. And this is what I got.

Granteed, they didn't match but I love that at least they chose items that are wearable to Church in the summer.

Car selfie on our way to church. Yes, it does seem like JAE is always drinking her milk in the car when we take these.

Me and my mini. The bow on my shoulder is from AyoBE Boutique and the Tassel earrings can be found here. I love the way they complimented my outfit. 
Oh and J and I decided to coordinate since the girls were doing their own thing.

Sunday school was full for JOE's age group so she came in the santuary with us. Why were they taking selfies in Church?

Even JAE!

Like I said earlier, I am reducing my inventory so I can focus on a few key items and be more efficient with my time. 
Below are some of the mom and me items that you'll be seeing more of. Our site has also been revamped to bring you more of our best sellers. Be sure to check it out.

Pics of my baby. I love this little girl's personality so much.

As I draw closer to the big 4-0, I have decided to focus more on taking care of myself. This includes getting my nails done and just relaxing a bit more. 
I got my nails done earlier this week and even though my big toes have a chip (#annoyed), I LOVE the way they turned out. If you've been watching my stories on AyoBE Boutique, you've seen the beautiful green color I got on my toes. 
Anyways, of course I have to represent when I go out. And I always get compliments :-).

Why is this picture significant? For 2 MAJOR reasons. 1. I haven't been this size since BEFORE I had JOE. That was over 4-years ago. 2. I haven't worn outdoor shorts to go out in that time. So yeah...it felt great to be able to wear and feel good in shorts. 
I am only 1/3 of the way through my journey but this encouraged me.
Not apologizing for the mirror. This is the norm in my home. What can I say? I have kids.

I am taking more pictures of myself. It is amazing how much things change when you grow to love the way you look. The last time I wore the dress below was when JOE had her church blessing. That was in April 2013. WOW! Time flies!!! I hadn't worn it since because it didn't fit and I just didn't like how round I looked in it. 

Well, check me out :-).

I love when people stop me in the hallway to tell me how great I look. Don't get me wrong, I never thought I looked awful. I just wasn't comfortable with all the weight I had put on in 5+ years. I am happy to be doing something about it and seeing positive results.

So last week, I put on 2lbs and posted about it. Well, this week, I focused more on what was going in my mouth and I am happy to say that not only did I lose the 2-lbs but I lost an additional pound. Bringing my total weight loss to 23-lbs. WOOHOO!!! EXCITED!

Hope you had a fabulously blessed week. Have a great weekend and remember always to be kind to strangers!