Sara Horgen

Since Sloane’s birthday was close to Valentine’s Day I thought a heart themed party would be perfect, and decor items readily available.  I’ve also always loved anything heart and love themed, so it was an easy theme to choose!
For the waffle bar, I made the waffles the night before and reheated them on a low temp once guests arrived. The kids loved being able to add their own toppings.  The heart waffle maker worked really well and I’ll be able to use it for Valentine’s Day for years to come!
I decided to do a heart shaped pancake cake for just her.  It was super easy and cheap!  I bought the pancakes from a local diner and the frosting from the bakery we use often.  I could have made the pancakes myself of course but figured why not get perfectly shaped and fluffy ones made by someone else!  I then used a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut them out.
The kids gift bags included plastic heart shaped glasses, heart bouncy balls, bubbles and assorted candy.  Not pictured were some heart activity books and stickers for the kiddos to make Valentines with.  The bargain section at Target was a gold mine for these items!

Having the privilege to decorate a nursey was something I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to do. For my husband and I our journey to parenthood was a 3 year or so up hill battle. It took us 6 IUI cycles and 7 IVF cycles (including 2 early miscarriages) to finally get the love of our lives, little baby Sloane.
I didn’t really start planning the nursery until we were far enough along in the pregnancy. Although I will admit, once we got to the IVF point I thought it would work right away and did buy her rocker. Originally it sat in its box in her empty room, where eventually it got moved downstairs to either hopefully be used one day or sold if not. Thankfully a couple years later we got to bring it upstairs and it still suited the room well.
Even though I didn’t plan any of the décor early in advance I always knew I’d want neutrals of gray, white, black & gold along with a pop of color throughout, just like the rest of our home. I chose corals and peaches as the main pop of color. The nursery is overall a budget friendly project. I like to find higher end inspiration ideas and find a way to make a cheaper version. The “marble” shelving is actually Ikea plastic brackets spray painted gold and pine shelves covered in marble contact paper. The mid-century dresser, which is one of my favorite pieces in the room, was a Craigslist find that I refinished adding the white paint, staining the legs and underside darker and drilling holes for the new knobs. Another one of my favorite items would be the heart blanket my Mom crocheted. Most of everything else was purchased from Home Goods, Target, West Elm, Urban Outfitters and Pottery Barn Kids. I couldn’t love the outcome more and I think her room can easily grow with her as the years go by!