Friday - the one before the party

Ya'll I am so deep in party prep I don't even know what to say!!  The "good" thing about hosting parties at your home is that it kinda gives you the motivation to get some of those "to-do's" off your list.  By no means was doing much of any of our yard work a requirement for Ellie's party but having that deadline really got our rears in gear!!  Party inspiration can be found here.

1

I have been a spray painting machine!  Most of our outdoor furniture is white metal which requires a new coat of paint each year.  Mostly because we are lazy and even though we live on a farm we have no storage space for these items so they get left out all year long!! which means they have to weather the elements and that doesn't always look good come summer time.  So I have sprayed two loveseats, 3 side tables, 4 dining chairs, a dining table and a few plant stands....my forearms are speckled with white all over!

2

Ellie's swing set parts finally came in yesterday (after the shipped the day after they were supposed to arrive...) so when I get done with work tonight that is our evening project.  Hopefully it goes quickly and smoothly and we don't try to kill each other or have the neighbors call the cops on our arguing!!

3

I just have a bunch of the party decor to put up that I have been piecemealing together from lots of different places...thankfully we live close to all the shops I need: Hoblob, Target, Michaels, HomeGoods, JoAnn's, Party City, and Marshalls/TJMaxx.  I still couldn't find everything I wanted but I guess that's what happens when you fail to order online in time....maybe one year I'll have my life figured out.

4

Yard work has been at an all time high since we decided to rip down a fence.  And then Thomas dug out the biggest stump we've had on the property from a shrub we have been trying to get rid of for 7 years!  It was a Laurel and while I love them dearly, I just don't like them smack dab in the middle of my backyard.  I'm telling you the previous owners had some wacky quacky ideas for landscaping...So luckily we compost all our horse shit so we had some "free" dirt to fill in the crater!  Additionally we have patches of composted horse manure all over our back yard filling in all the holes from the posts of the fences and the remaining stumps that finally got pulled.  Our deck is almost completely sanded (hallelujah the angel choir sings) with the exception of a small corner that is covered with our indoor/outdoor rug so no one knows...well except all ya'll since I just spilled the beans.  And I have planted lots of new flowers (my love language) and have a feeling that this will be the year for our garden!

5

Finally I have a confession....I am already thinking of ideas for Ellie's birthday next year.....I actually started that about a month ago.

♥ Ashley

In case you missed it:

Monday I shared about how we celebrated Ellie's 2nd Birthday

Wednesday I joined the Whats Up Wednesday Linkup

linking up here