Pretty Smitten on Pizzazzerie!

Have you checked out the fantastic party website and blog Pizzazzerie yet? It's filled with some amazing entertaining tips...from inspirational parties, to recipes to DIY projects...it's a one stop shop! And I'm so thrilled that Courtney, Pizzazzerie's Editor and Founder, recently included Pretty Smitten in her blog post titled "Thankfully Inspired: 50 Inspirational Websites/Blogs". Wow, thank you Courtney! I feel so honored to be included with such amazing sites as Amy Atlas, Bake it Pretty, Eat Drink Pretty and TomKat Studio. Check out the full list here, you could be reading blogs all day!

And be sure to check out the Pizzazzerie website in all of it's glory. Here are a few of my favorite things that I found while browsing...

I've always wanted to try making homemade marshmallows, and yep, now want to try it even more. Aren't the adorable in all of their white fluffiness? Package them up in a DIY smores kit and you've got a great little gift.

And how's this for a Christmas party? Make your own gingerbread houses! My family has been making a gingerbread house each year since before I was born. We traditionally make them the weekend after Thanksgiving, keep them up until Christmas, and then get to devour the candy starting Christmas Day. I'll be sharing more pictures of the making of our gingerbread house later this week, but let me just tell you now...it's nothing like this gingerbread wonderland party featured here. Maybe something to aspire to for next year??

And how cute is this party? I love sock monkeys, and so does my little man. I simple adore that hat. Find all of the details here.

Check out Pizzazzerie for lots more fun stuff, and thanks again to Courtney for including Pretty Smitten!

Pretty Smitten with Janet Hill Studios

I've been smitten with Janet Hill Studios for quite a while now. Janet Hill's paintings of women, dresses, shoes and desserts are a little bit sweet, a touch glamorous and absolutely chic.

Here's the first print that caught my eye in her Etsy shop so long ago. Love the yellow with pops of red.

I recently bought this print titled "Francine and Her Frenchie" and it's now hanging in my office. I adore it, simply adore it. Isn't it darling?

I also bought this one titled "Sunday Picnic" and it hangs in Miss Amelia's room.

So what do I want next? Well...she also sells original oil paintings and I'm dying for this one titled "Dancers." Oh my, it's love at first site. Can I add it to my wishlist? Might have to settle for the print instead, but I'll happily take either.

A few other prints that I'd love to own....

Aren't they all just fabulous? And find many many more in her Etsy shop here. Enjoy!

Holiday Wishlist

Hello all! How was your weekend? Ours was filled with lots of holiday festivities. Yesterday we drove up to Hillside Tree Farm at Apple Hill to cut down our Christmas tree. Our little guy had tons of fun running in and out of the trees and we came home with an extra large tree for our living room, and a tiny tree for the playroom! I hope to be posting pictures of that adventure later this week. For today though I thought I'd put together my holiday (dream) wishlist. My mom and I did some serious Christmas shopping on Saturday (I think we logged about 7 hours) and not only did I buy ALL of the gifts for my family but I of course spotted some things I wouldn't mind to have myself...

I can never seem to pass the Nordstrom shoe department without finding a pair of boots that I want. These have been on my list for months, the Frye Melissa boots. Oh my how I would love to have them. They are the perfect go-with-everything comfortable boot to trek around in with my two babies. Stylish and practical. Love love love.

These are also great. Not only are they adorable with the tie at the top, but they're waterproof too. Perfect for our trips up to Tahoe.

I'm all about a feminine perfume. I like the fresh, clean, flower-y type and Twirl from Kate Spade definitely fits the bill! Yes please!

This faux fur throw from Pottery Barn would be perfect for our bedroom. Cozy cozy for the winter ahead.

Restoration Hardware has a great one too.

I did say this was my dream wishlist, so while I'm dreaming I'm going to put this Nikon digital SLR camera on my list too. I have a Canon EOS from years ago and while I have loved it and used it A LOT, I'm ready for an upgrade. I've heard nothing but great things about the Nikon and would love to own one myself. Anyone have one? Like it?

So what is on your holiday wishlist? Would love to hear!

Professional Photography Pics

How was your Thanksgiving weekend? We had such a nice, relaxing 4 days of family time...we went to the park, took a few long walks, watched football and just chilled out. Couldn't get much better. I also spent a lot of time this weekend pouring over the proofs from our professional photography shoot. We had our all time favorite photographer, Jill Carmel, come take some pictures right after Amelia was born. She sent us the slideshow this weekend and now it's time to pick which ones to order. This is a tough task, I love them all! Here are a few of my favorites...what do you think? And if you feel so inclined you can watch the full slideshow here...only for the next two days though, it closes on December 1st. And by the way, if you do watch the slideshow I'm now obsessed with the song playing in the background (and I've watched it like 50 times, so the song is permanently stuck in my head). It's called Dream by Priscilla Ahn. Listen to it here.

To any of you who live in the Sacramento area I HIGHLY recommend Jill. She's so easy to work with and such a sweet person.

Thanks Jill for an amazing photo shoot!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I will avoid the overly cheesy 'What I'm Thankful For' post...but I do have to say...

I am incredibly thankful for my family. I have a sweet, handsome, loving and very supportive husband that I adore. An amazing little boy who makes me laugh everyday. And the newest member of our family, our sweet baby girl. I am very lucky to have them in my life.

And I'm so thankful for the friends in my life. Motherhood is the best thing that ever happened to me, and it can also be the most tiring thing! Having girlfriends to laugh with, complain with, and just generally be with is such a blessing.

There are a million more things that I could list, but to keep my above promise...the last thing I'm thankful for that I'll mention here is Pretty Smitten. When my son was born I knew I wanted to do something creative in my life. From my love of parties, paper and all things beautiful came Pretty Smitten. It's enriched my life immensely and I can't wait to see what the future holds!

Happy Turkey day everyone!!

Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins

This past weekend was very rainy and cold so we spent a lot of cozy time indoors. It was the perfect chance to test out a new recipe....pumpkin doughnut muffins from Martha Stewart. Yum!! Below is a quick recap, and the full recipe can be found here.

I gathered all of my ingredients, greased and floured a standard muffin tin and then whisked together the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another.

Next up, mixing the brown sugar and butter until fluffy. Do you like how I captured the kitchenaid in motion?

Adding in two eggs....I cracked them in a separate bowl first, just like the Barefoot Contessa always says to do. I think she says 'in case you get a bad egg' which I have never had happen...but I still like to crack them in a bowl first. They're easier to pour in, and without the chance of broken shells!

Next I alternated adding the dry and wet ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture.

Voila! Batter done, pretty easy. I used my handy ice cream scoop to fill the muffin tins.

And then into the oven. The recipe called for 30 minutes, I think I cooked mine for like 27 minutes when they started to look brown around the edges and done.

Now here's the best part...after they cool for 10 minutes it's time to brush them with melted butter and then roll them in cinnamon sugar. Okay, so this is what makes them 'doughnuts' :)

And here's the finished product! I think they turned out pretty yummy, my husband definitely agrees. Hope you enjoy them too!

A few finds at Home Goods

A few days before Amelia was born I made a trip to Home Goods. It can be a hit or miss kind of place, but that day was definitely a hit...I came home with a lot of loot!

This lamp is the perfect size for the console table in my family room. I love the cut-out pattern on the lamp base. I plan on spray painting it white...

And I'm always a sucker for some blue and white pottery. This jar is huge! And only $40. Right now it's living on my buffet in the dining room, but not sure where it's permanent home will be quite yet.

And don't you just love the greek key details around the lid?

Got this blue and white vase too...

And I also picked up two cozy throws for our family room couch. The white one reminds me of this one from Pottery Barn...but instead of a price tag of $149...it was only $20. Perfect! The other throw is a fun giraffe print in orange. This might be one I'm tired of by next year, but with another $20 price tag I'm not worried if it doesn't make it for the long haul.

Gotta love Home Goods! Happy Monday!