Super Mario Bros. Wedding Shower

With my sister in law now married off, and my responsibilities not so great at this point, I thought I would share with you the ultimate wedding shower, Super Mario Bros. style. Being not quite 30, I'm part of the Nintendo generation where Mario, Luigi, and the others have been a regular part of my life. Since my sister in law grew up watching her brother (my hubby) play Nintendo as well, it was only fitting for me to give her a one of a kind party.

First, the decorations make a theme party every time. Add in some awesome gift boxes and some food to go along, and you've got yourself a party to remember.

Here is a shot of one of the ceramic mushrooms I happened to find, along with a gift box, and the tiara the bride got to wear. The "Koopas" in the foreground are chocolate turtles.

Chain chompers guarding prize boxes? I think so! I used a white paint marker on black balloons to make them, then tied them off with silver string. The best part about it? When you walk past them, they "chase" you.



Boos guarded the food table quite well. With the windows open just slightly, they drifted around, and occassionally attacked people.

Fire flowers are always fun, especially when you find them in warp pipes. Here, plenty of fireballs are included.

Sometimes, they're even guarded by Bowser himself!

What's a party without food? 1-up and extra life mushroom cupcakes to the rescue! Of course, Daisy and Luigi have to take center stage.

And all their other friends join in. I used all the pieces from a Super Mario Bros. chess set.



Chips, dip, some princess worthy fruit-filled cookies, and Mario fruit snacks should make anyone happy. Throw in some chocolate coins, and you're good to go!

Who doesn't like princess punch? Raspberry sorbet + gingerale = happy people.

The princess of the day: my sister in law decked out in her Princess Toadstool tiara and boa, plus Daisy's royal sceptre. It was a bonus that she decided to wear her Yoshi shirt that day.

Now you know how I throw an awesome bridal shower. :)

I'm Baaack

What have I been doing for the last month or so? Helping with weddings. My cousin got married at the beginning of March and I assisted my mom with the flowers, which my allergies are still trying to get over, and my sister in law will be married this Saturday. I've hosted a bridal shower, helped out the photographer (who is awesome btw) and will be cohosting the bachelorette party this Friday. Throw in some gardening, a garage sale, repairing sprinkler lines, and kids, and you don't get much time off, even if it is for good behavior. I've got several new posts in the works with pictures, so my time away wasn't completely wasted. :) I posted a link to the photographer's website, Mulberry Lane Studios, above to give you yet another way to waste your time today. The redheaded bride laying down with the lilies is my sister in law. She's gorgeous! BTW, you can follow me on Facebook via the link to the right or find me under Tinkerschnitzel.

The Big Thaw

I apologize for my absenteeism over the last couple of weeks. Work and home life have picked up tremendously, and it seems that every time I try to get on my computer from home, my youngest walks up and turns it off. I'm also trying to fight off a nasty bout of depression, which I'm sure is due to being cooped up with lots of people for long periods of time, and not getting to see my friend the sun. I have been reading everyone's blogs, I just haven't had much of a chance to comment or any smart ass comments to leave. So, yes I still love you all.

Fortunately, we've thawed out! We're finally back up to our semi-normal temps in the 70's and the sun has been shining. This means it's time to prepare for the ever so wonderful Spring Cleaning. (Insert sarcastic font here.) I'm trying to work in a garage sale to get rid of lots of unwanted things (I can't sell my brother, as much as I want to some days.) amongst camping plans, two weddings and all the things that go with it, a trip to go see my dad, and Easter. Busy much? I'm also hoping that we can get my mom and brother moved out next month, which will help fascilitate said cleaning by removing all their stuff from the mix. In the meantime, I will be getting garden beds prepared and searching out plants. I am still working on plans to remodel the master bathroom, the major hinderance being the 4'x5' mirror seemingly permanantly attached to the wall. I've gotten some good advice from a contractor, so we'll see if I can get it down without destroying either the mirror or the wall.

Finally, a great big, huge thanks to Kathryn at From the Inside Out for the Google coffee mug. You know me too well, and I'll get it washed today so I can use it tomorrow. :D

Snowmagedon

Have I told you all how much I hate winter? We're on day 3 of Snowmagedon in DFW. Between the subfreezing temps and windchills that are below 0, it's difficult to get out of the house. Oh, yeah, and there's ice on EVERYTHING including the roads. Did I mention the rolling blackouts? My hubby has managed to make it to work for the last 2 days, but I don't dare venture out into the tundra. I can't drive on this stuff, and I'm not going to attempt to get my boys out in it when I can work from home.  Besides, someone has to be home to clean up the mess from burst water pipes.

This is quite possibly the worst time a storm like this could come through. As many of you know, we're hosting the Super Bowl this Sunday and this weather is putting a real damper on the parties and shopping that normally take place. I just hope that all the folks from up north are used to driving on ice, because it looks like we may be stuck here through tomorrow. 

So, my question is: How do you folks up north deal with this kind of stuff? Do you normally get ice storms, and if so how do you drive on it?!

I think I need a camping trip when this is all done.

Master Bathroom: Phase I

That's right! I'm getting my butt in gear and getting something done around the house that doesn't involve cleaning in glorious expectancy of a garage sale. Phase I of the master bath started today, helped by the fact that everything (almost) that I wanted went on clearance. Let me break everything down so that we can all have an idea of what is going on. (I'm a list person, what can I say?)

Phase I: accessories. These will allow me to pick the right paint colors I need.

Phase II: remove the mirror! This thing is a behemoth. I need to have it cut down in to two smaller mirrors so I can proceed.

Phase III: Paint. I'm tired of looking at white walls throughout my house and unfinished oak that looks startlingly pink.

Phase IV: Shelving and storage. Towels.

Phase V: Replace bathtub. It has inexplicably developed a good sized chip and crack in the bottom of it. I'm sure it's from the over excitedness of my youngest and his toys.

Let me say that we are in the middle of a color scheme change. When we originally started, the bathroom was blue and gold celestial stuff, hence the blue and beige towels. I am moving to a more modern look, with apple green and chocolate brown as my colors of choice.

On to the pictures! These first ones are the before pictures. (Ignore the mess, please.)

 The double sink and monstrosity of a mirror.

 Shower and towels. 

(Don't ask why the hubby put those plaques up. They don't match anything.)

Bathtub. I know the fake flowers went out years ago. I've had them for about 13 years, so I would know.

My after pictures (the bottom one is a little fuzzy, but I think you get the idea.):

 Shower curtain! I purchased bronze shower hooks, but a white shower rod. (I know.) They didn't have any bronze curtain rods, so I got what they had.

 My new accessories. :) (and me in the background.)

The (somewhat) finished portion of phase I. Look! I cleaned it off just for you!