This was the last shower for Seanna before the big wedding day. I helped put this one together and I was so proud that I have to share some of the shots from the day.

These cookies I made myself and I was so happy with how they turned out. I think they look like something you would buy. We put one at each persons place setting.


We also got cupcakes for everyone from Saint Cupcake in Portland. I was drawn to them because of the boxes that fit our theme-pink!


These little petits fours came from Beaverton Bakery. Aren't they sweet??



Overall the shower was tons of fun. We had so many sweets even above what I took pictures of. We also served a signature drink-sparking bride.

After three days of following my vacation food photos we finally made it to the actual shower photos! It was such a fun shower. I really enjoyed meeting Seanna's friends and family. It was also fun to visit Sacramento and see all the places I have been hearing about.

Seanna's shower was held at La Provence Restaurant and Terrace. When we walked into the private room at the restaurant the tables were decorated so beautifully with roses, butterfly bookmarks, and pens wrapped to look like flowers. So much thought was put into all the details.


After we were seated bread with butter and hummus was delivered to our tables. I am a bread girl so a bread starter is always welcome :)


The meals were different based on what was requested on our RSVPs and what I chose was the open face shrimp salad sandwich. So so good! What a simple but delicious meal that really hit the spot. My mom had the turkey sandwich on brioche which was also very good (from the sample I had). The bread on it was soft and slightly sweet.


The meal and shower ended with this amazing cake. It was so perfect looking. Hard to believe the flowers on top were edible! The cake was one of the best I have ever had. I am not a cake fan but I found it hard to put the fork down with this one.


Overall the weekend, the food, the company, and weather were all perfect. I had so much fun and am so grateful to be adding Seanna to our family.

And with that I end my "mini series" on Seanna's California Shower. I hope you enjoyed seeing Zocalo, Crepeville, and La Provence Restaurant and Terrace.

Part two of our weekend in California for Seanna's shower. The next day started with a stop at Crepeville for breakfast. We had walked past it the night before and knew we wanted to try it before we left town. It was fabulous! So good in fact we went back on Sunday morning too before leaving town.

I could kick myself for not taking pictures the second day since we ordered different food but that is what happens when you are too excited to eat something you just can't wait.

The french toast was presented beautifully with fresh fruit on a large platter like plate.
How can you not eat something that looks this good!?


The crepe we tried was strawberry. The whipped cream topped with cinnamon along with the fresh berries and berry sauce made this feel like a dessert for breakfast. Rich and delicious.


We also ordered a side of eggs at this meal but the side of scrambled eggs just didn't steal the show. We thought we probably needed some protein though-wise move.

This was a great breakfast treat and I am looking forward to our trip in November for the wedding so I can eat there again.

I said in my menu plan post that I would share pictures from Seanna's beautiful shower and also some of the other delicious meals we had while in California. This evening I decided sooner rather than later would be good with these yummy photos and got to work. I realized as I was loading all the photos that this had to be a three part series. So here is post one of our California weekend.

The first night after a long day of driving we went to dinner at a cool restaurant called Zocalo. The food was incredible. We ordered several dishes so we could sample everything.

We started with the shrimp ceviche. So fresh- a great way to start the meal. I especially loved the avocados.


Next up was tacos. Don't these just look beautiful?


Then there was the guanajuato enchiladas. I think this was one of my favorites from the meal. The green sauce was super good.


They also brought us a sample tray of different meats and specialities. On this tray we got to try the carne asada, pork, tamal, and stuffed mushroom. Out of all those foods what do you think my favorite was??? It was the mushroom! I don't know why since I don't even like mushrooms but this one was incredible. Great flavor.


To finish the meal we sampled two desserts. Brownie con nieve and Churros. The brownie was served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and coffee sauce. The churro, however, was my favorite. This was like no other churro I have ever tried. It is filled with vanilla ice cream and coated with cinnamon sugar. It is then served with more vanilla ice cream and a caramel sauce. What a way to end the night!


As you can imagine we left the restaurant completely stuffed and had to do stairs at the hotel to try and burn some of the delicious dinner eats off.

If you are ever in the Sacramento area this is a must do.

I have to share the fun idea I did on Sunday for our 4th of July family BBQ. I know this is a little late for this year but the idea can be used for any holiday by changing the jello colors. I took our little set of shot glasses and made mini jello trifles.

I love making little finger foods in these glasses. It makes anything look fancier and for some reason stuff in little servings tastes better to me. For another party I had made mini chocolate trifles with Oreos but now back to the 4th of July.

I made blue jello using the quick set method and poured it into mini shot glasses half way up. I let that chill for 2 hours and then I mixed up red jello using the quick set method. I poured the red jello over the blue and then let that chill until it was firm.

Once the jello was set I piped Cool Whip on the top, sprinkled them with holiday sprinkles and finished with a 4th of July themed marshmallow. They turned out super cute and were very refreshing. I almost feel silly sharing this recipe because it is so easy to make.

Once in a while I like to share some of the fun foods others make and I get to eat. It is wonderful to eat something you haven't made. I don't know why but for me it always tastes better coming from someone else. It might have to do with still being hungry when it is served because I didn't "test" the food as I was cooking.

These pictures are from a bridal dinner I went to last week. I was the Matron of Honor in a friend from high school's wedding and she had a dinner to thank all of us for sharing in her big day.

The food they served was amazing! I am sorry I don't have pictures of dessert. I ate it too fast!

The top picture was coconut shrimp with a sweet chili dipping sauce. I could have eaten 10 but trying to be more lady like I kept it to 2.

The other appetizer was these shrimp salad rolls. They were served with a peanut dipping sauce. I learned how to make something very similar in a cooking class a year ago and I had forgotten how much I like them. They will probably be making a summer appearance on my menu plan soon.



Our main dish was teriyaki chicken, rice, marinated cucumbers and green beans. It all tasted so fresh and perfectly cooked. My favorite item on the plate was the marinated cucumbers. Wow they were amazing! When my garden starts producing cucumbers this will be making a regular appearance at our menu plan.



Now after seeing all that don't you wish you had been in the wedding too?!?

As some of you know, I am getting married to Sheena's brother in a couple months! This picture is from the cake tasting for the wedding. We tried every single one and afterward we had a headache from all the sugar! The top left plate was from a cake shop, the right plate was all cupcakes from a bakery, and the little plate is cupcakes from another bakery. I liked the strawberry shortcake (top left plate, bottom left corner) and then the vanilla cupcake (bottom right). Honorable mention goes to the cookie cupcake (top right). Final decision will be the strawberry cake in a small 8 inch round for us and the wedding party and then the vanilla cupcakes for the guests. They will all have pink flowers on top and match the cake of course! It was all so much fun! More wedding things to come...

As promised here are pictures from the fabulous shower my Aunt threw for my cousin over last weekend. Everything was so beautiful and put together I felt special just being there.



These were appetizers that my mom and I made. I actually ate so many of them while I was making them that I couldn't eat any during the party.



These were little tropical fruit cups. My mom cut up tropical fruit into tiny pieces and then layered them in shot glasses. They were so good!



These were some of the amazing floral arrangements my Aunt had ordered. Really set the tropical theme.



This punch was fantastic! My mom made it and it is one of the only punches I have heard of that needs to sit overnight. I will see if I can get the recipe to share.



For Dessert we had these yummy little cakes from Beaverton Bakery. They were the perfect sweet finish.



As a surprise my Aunt hired a Hawaiian Dancer to come teach and entertain us. So original!



I had to take a picture of the presents just because they looked pretty.



To end the day there was a nice tray of exotic coconut soap waiting for us to take at the elevators.

A perfect afternoon! Thank you to all who were involved!

Over the weekend I attended a lingerie shower for one of my best friends. Two of the other bridesmaids put the shower together and I thought they did an amazing job. The theme was red since it is the brides favorite color. The food table was gorgeous my pictures don't do it justice. There were mini cheesecakes, lip shaped cookies, strawberries filled with a delicious creamy center, and mini cakes.

My favorite by far was the little strawberries filled with creamy goodness. Luckily for you and me I have convinced the hostess to share her recipe for the filling. Once you make the filling all she did was hollow out the strawberries with a melon bowler and pipe in the filling. She also drizzled chocolate over the top. A perfect bite size treat. I could have eaten the whole plate but for everyone else's sake I remembered my manners.

Now what are you waiting for?? Go make these tonight. A perfect dessert after your perfect dinner.

Strawberry Filling

1 Cup Powdered Sugar
8 Ounces Cream Cheese, softened
1 Teaspoon Vanilla

Beat with a mixer until thoroughly combined. Put in a pastry bag and pipe into hallowed out strawberries. If you don't have a pastry bag a Ziploc bag with the corner cut off with work too. The only draw back is that you will not have a pretty texture on the filling.

This weekend was a girls party that my friend and I did together. I was excited about the food we made so I thought I would share with the world.


This is our table. Wish I had taken a better picture but we will work with what we've got.


Spinach and artichoke cups hot out of the oven. Yum!


Mini trifles with Oreo, chocolate pudding, and Cool Whip.


Brownie bites with drizzled chocolate.