Two birthdays One weekend

I grew up in a pretty large family. My paternal grandparents had 9 children and all of them married at some point and had children and now most of those children have had children and even some of those children have children....hahah. So I had 18 aunts and uncles, tons of cousins, and starting to have a good amount of 2nd and 3rd cousins. We didn't all live down the street from each other but in our way, our family is very close and we surely see each other at least once a year at someone's birthday, anniversary, wedding, baby shower, or sadly lately and too often a funeral...but that's life. Now that I have married the love of my life I have even more family and Nick's side of the family is pretty large as well. His brother alone has 4 children. So with all these wonderful people in my life, it is always someone's birthday! This weekend we are celebrating my brother-in-law Chris's 28th and my niece Lyla's 2nd birthday (Yes, I have a Lily and my sister has a Lyla...it gets confusing). So its a weekend filled with celebration and family.
This morning we are prepping the house to have my mother and father-in-law come stay the night and Lily is really enjoying watching us run around her tidying up! I just have to show off this adorable outfit she is wearing...

One thing we must tackle today is our backyard. My poor poor yard and garden has turned into a dead sad jungle. Somehow we are still getting tomatoes which is great but everything else is a hot hot mess. My herbs have flowered from over growth, my roses and salvia have stopped blooming from lack of water and trimming, the patio has sprouted so many weeds that you can hardly see the brick....its a horrid mess. With Lily still waking up about 3-4 times a night, its hard to find the energy to take care of my garden. Its at the point now where neighbors might complain so we have to at least mow.....how embarrassing right? I was so proud of my back yard and now its like a dirty little secret behind our fence.

Hopefully we have everything done in time to go to Chris's birthday gathering. Chris and I have a passion for grilling and sauces so I am excited to see if he whipped up something new today for his party. He has a great grill and a smoker and has produced some of the best tasting ribs and wings I have had....even better than mine and that's hard for me to admit. So I will have to share later if he has some fabulous saucy grilled meats at his shin dig.


We also have my little niece Lyla's birthday party tomorrow and I ordered her cupcakes from The Cupcake Chic! My friend and co-worker Stephanie Baron makes beautiful and delicious cupcakes for all occasions. She did cupcakes for my wedding, baby showers, and now for Lyla's birthday. If you live near Frederickburg's VA she is available for weddings and special occasions but she will travel. She has a day job in Fairfax and can work out bringing cupcake orders there for pick as well.
She is really fabulous and creative...check out her website to see pictures and flavors.


www.thecupcakechic.webs.com


Here is a picture from my wedding of the cupcake tower she did and then below that is a picture of the rainbow carebear cupcakes she did for Lyla.....Awesome! 

I can't wait to see Lyla smash her little face into all that icing. Kid's birthdays are some of the best. I can't wait until Lily can eat and smash cake. 
Have a great weekend everyone and when in doubt, just add bacon or cheese or cheese and bacon....