It is always fun to look back on a year of super fun memories! Last year, I was motivated by my sister’s blog and created a 2010 recap.  I’ve got to say Lauren’s 2011 recap was even more exciting! You may see some overlap in our favorite memories from the year (hint hint, someone got hitched!) Here is a photo a month (or if I was really a busy girl… a few photos for each month) in 2011. Enjoy!

January: At the end of 2010 we found out that my grandma had breast cancer. Well, I’m excited to share that she beat the heck out of that stupid cancer! Here’s a snapshot of most of the girls in our family at lunch celebrating that she had a very successful surgery. In her honor, we supported her by hosting a no-bra-luncheon (since she couldn’t wear a bra!). I’m so thankful this is officially in the past!

February: In February, I got a new car!!! Yay! This was so exciting. As much as I loved my little jeep grand cherokee that I had been driving since my sophomore year of college, we had to part ways. When the repairs needed to keep her running outweighed about 5 months of a car payment for a new car, I got a new car! This is my oh-so-cute Pontiac Torrent – a totally random compact SUV that is hardly spotted on the road.  

March: In March, we hosted the cutest birthday party ever for our favorite 3-year old in the world, Dustin! Cynthia planned an AMAZING party – an adorable cake, party favors, photo booth, carnival snacks (hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy!)… We only supplied the backyard, so I can’t take any credit for this extravagentlyfun birthday party, but check out how flippin’ cute our yard was decorated with carnival games and Baby Dustin in the photo booth!  

April: In April I made my first pie! We have a loquattree in our backyard and I was determined to find something to do with the loquats, so after picking tons of these tiny little loquotsoff the tree, peeling and pitting them, I made a delicious pie. This is a snapshot before I baked it and covered it with a crumb topping. Yum! My recipe is coming soon to the blog… just in case you have a loquat tree in your yard!

May: In May we celebrated Jeremy’s mom’s birthday by taking a 7-day cruise to Mexico with the whole family. The trip was a total blast. We ate, drank, napped, went to the pool, drank margaritas on the beach, played some bingo, gambled a little in the casino, ate, drank and relaxed. It was so much fun! Here’s a snapshot of Jeremy and I before heading to dinner one evening. (Did I say that we ate?!)

Also in May I hosted my sister’s bridal shower at my house. We went with the theme “sweet and spicy”… We had food that was sweet and spicy, lots of pink and red and… of course, some “sweet” and “spicy” gifts. The day was perfect and even included toilet paper dressed brides!

June: At the start of summer I expanded the Embellish team by bringing on three fabulous interns! These girls are truly the most hard-working sweethearts in the world. They are going to graduate soon and become the most impressive professionals out there. Let me know if you are hiring… you are going to want these girls to work for you! I’m so thankful to have them by my side the second half of 2011 – and into 2012. Thanks to Carla, Yvonne and Ariel for all your hard work this year!

July: July was by far the busiest month of the year! Lauren’s bridesmaids and I planned a super fun bacheloretteparty for my sister. We enjoyed a day loungin’ by the pool, was picked up in a limo and dropped off downtown for an evening of festivities. We started with dinner and did a little bar hoppin’ and all spent the night in a gorgeous house. It was a total blast. Here are some of the goody bags I put together.

Also in July, I was invited to volunteer at CHA-Chicago with Charity Wings. Elena and her gals are so awesome – check out what they have in store for the Winter CHA Show in Anaheim! This is a snapshot of us at the American Crafts boothwith Amy Tangerine. I was completely insipired by the amazing designers and new products in the world of scrapbooking!

And… We can’t forget that my little sister became Mrs. Miller in July! Here is a beautiful photo of Lauren and Matt and the entire silly wedding party. They are the cutest couple ever and their wedding was absolutely stunning. Lauren’s creativity and DIY decorations for this backyard event looked like it came straight out of a magazine. A shout out to their photographers for capturing such a beautiful wedding.  (Check out their blog… so many adorable photos!)

Oh! And, if I didn’t have enough going on, the last weekend of July we hosted a massive fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day walk. The event was a huge success – we raised a few thousand dollars for our 3-day walk team, had live music, drink and food specials and a big raffle! Here are me and my girls fundraising away (and posing for a photo!).

August: As soon as one wedding finished up, we were on to the next! Our dear friends, Orrin and Shawndene, also tied the knot! Their beautiful vinyard wedding was in September. It was also absolutely gorgeous. My sister and Shawndene are bothso creative when it comes to pulling off the most impressive DIY weddings. Here is a snapshot with the bride-to-be at her Bachelorette Party weekend. We enjoyed an eventful girls night downtown San Diego!

Oh! And, Embellish was a finalist at the Moms in Business Unite Conferencein the Inventor Showcase for the Best New Product or Service designed by women! Yay!

Oh! Sheesh – this was a busy month! We also went with Jake and Ash to Vegas for a long weekend! We saw the show Blue Man Group! So much fun! The boys played a lot of craps while us girls went shopping.

September: On to September! In September, we launched our new website and online shop and introduced Embellish DIY Kits & Projects. These kits were a huge milestone for Embellish. Up to this point almost all of our sales were custom orders, but now we are offering an awesome collection of kits full of boutique papers, ribbons, embellishments and albums ready to inspire your creativity!

Also in September… a snapshot of Jeremy and I from Orrin and Shawndene’s wedding. Jeremy was quite a handsome groomsmen!

The last major milestone in September was planning my 10-year high school reunion! Somehow I didn’t end up with any photos from the evening, but I promise – I was there! We had a great turnout and I think everyone had a good time!

October: Before we knew it we were celebrating our 2-year anniversary! Where does the time go?? (By the way, I’m just now getting to changing my name on everything… such a long process!) October was an exciting month because back in July at CHA I fell in love with the new Sihouette Cameo personal die-cutting machine (and so much more!). This was my first project that I made. A little “BOO” banner for my mantel. I also had the pleasure of teaching a few scrapbook classes, including a class at YWCA Becky’s House, a shelter for women and children.

November: I didn’t do too much in November… just walked, and walked, and walked! I walked 60-miles in 3-days to raise money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. It was an inspirational experience close to my heart since I was walking for my grandma. Our team (pictured below) raised a total of over $12,000 to fight breast cancer. We did it!

Also, Jeremy and I visited his grandpa in Inyokern for his 75th birthday party! What a fun way to spend Thanksgiving weekend!

December: The holidays are always the busiest time of year – especially when you run a business making custom photo albums! We attended a ton of events showing off our super cute stuff, created beautiful custom albums, added new DIY projects & kits, developed our 2012 calendars and mini albums. It was a tad busy… plus, holiday parties and the “normal” Christmas festivities. Again, I was so grateful to have an awesome intern team by my side! Here’s Ariel helping at an event…

To finish off the year of photos, here’s a fun photo of Jeremy and me at his company party this year. I definitely have been bragging about my interns, friends and family in this post, so I owe Jeremy a few shouts outs, too… Acting as the Embellish “IT department” & ”CFO”, official brainstorming partner and my #1 cheerleader… I definitely couldn’t have gotten through 2011 without him! I’m one lucky lady!

In summary, it has been an incredibly busy BUT FUN year! So many accomplishments, celebrations and festivities! Both personally and professionally I feel like I’ve grown so much in 2011. I can’t wait to see what 2012 will bring! Thanks for following along my journey!

A few weeks ago I attended a beautiful bridal shower for my good friend, Shawndene. I am so excited for her upcoming wedding! I’ve seen a few sneak peaks of the DIY projects that she has created and I’m sure it will be absolutely stunning. They had an adorable candy bar at the shower and each guest got to take home a mason jar with two frosted cupcakes stacked in the jar. Delicious!

Here are a few snapshots with my girls from the party!

With the pretty bride-to-be, Shawndene…

Wedding Week Part 3! Get inspired with this fun brag book.

This is the first of three posts highlighting a wedding brag book! This adorable couple took some amazing photos at their destination wedding! This chipboard brag book is covered with fun, bright colors and chalked up on the scalloped edges. Too cute!

{mr.} & {mrs.} — Here’s a cute little 6×6 pre-designed mini album full of lots of love!  To order a cutesy romance album with a customized front cover, check out the listing on etsy!

xo

This page concludes the Embellish wedding series. A quick thought to leave you with… Professional wedding albums range in the thousands! For only $395, an Embellish Premium! Album provides the bride and groom a handmade, personalized, classy touch! Check out our wedding packages today!

Weddings are such a special occassion. At this point in my life, I LOVE that so many of my friends are getting married. I thought I’d dedicate this week’s blog to wedding gifts. Embellish Brag books and albums are perfect gifts for weddings, showers, parents of the bride / groom, bridesmaids, etc. Here’s the first brag book to check out!

This happy couple shows off their love as they strut their stuff in the woods. This is just one side of the six pages in this mini brag book. A perfect gift for an engagement party, bridal shower or wedding!

Here’s a shot of an engagement brag book — look at this happy couple!!

These are a few snapshots from my bridal shower in August 2009. Brooke, Jessica and I have all been the best of friends since middle school. I love these candid shots! Oh, and of course – we love the mimosas!

For bridesmaid gifts, I made each girl an album of key events leading up to the wedding. Here’s a page for Jessica from the bridal shower.