Annnnd....I'm back...for good this time

Well my life has been crazy lately. As you can probably imagine...DD is just a few weeks shy of 9mos and DS has just begun playing for a new baseball team. But summer is over,  and with DS back in school I've got a little more me-time (aka blog time) on my hands.

So here is my summer recap:

DD learned to crawl, stand (assisted), simultaneously learned to wave and said her first word, "bye-bye," went to the beach for the first time (accompanied by her first mouthful of sand), and has just begun finger foods.

Mom turned the big 6-0 and DH and I treated her to a Disneyland vacation to make her feel young again. But the cherry on that cake was the surprise dinner we had planned for her at Catal in downtown Disney. She was so floored when she walked in and saw her close friends and family (the ones that live in Los Angeles, ofcourse) yelling out "SURPRISE". I wanted to make it her best birthday ever and I think it was a success. Here are a couple of pictures from our trip:

This is the amazing cake I ordered for my mom for the surprise dinner, and her reaction.

DH, Me, DD, and DS in the hotel room, just before heading in to the park...outfits inspired by Disneybound as Donald, Daisy, Minnie, and Mickey.

DS and I (with my baby sis in the background) on King Triton's Carousel

World of Color...SO INCREDIBLE. This makes the Bellagio look like a lawn sprinkler.

Enjoying some Mickey-shaped deliciousness...Pretzel on the left, Waffle on the right

PCH Grill Character Breakfast Photo

Me and DH relaxing at the pool

It was an incredible trip...especially for a Disney addict such as myself. But I think of the whole experience, my mom's favorite things were the gifts I made with the kids to give to her as a birthday.

 They were both really simple to make and practically free since I was able to use supplies I already had, but since they had such a huge impact I wanted to share what I did. With the holidays coming soon, these make great "from the kids" gifts for any mom, dad, or grandparent. So you can see the step by step instructions on how I made these here.