Operation Shower

For those of you who aren't aware of the amazing organization, Operation Shower, please take a moment to check them out. Operation Shower is a non-profit organization that recognizes and honors the sacrifices military families make by producing and coordinating unit-wide baby showers and "showers in a box" for pregnant or expecting military families in a deployment or high stress situation. For the past two months, Sheek Shindigs has been working with our local community to help raise $$ and donations for Operation Shower. We have raised almost $350 so far as well as many boxes of items to be donated to their "showers in a box". Horray! If you would like to make a monetary donation or donate new items to this worthy cause, please visit them online here (tell them that Sheek Shindigs sent you). If you live locally and would like more information on how to contribute to our efforts contact us! Thank you for your support!




Above pictures are from Operation Showers recent Red, White, and Coo Shower.

Sweet {Summer} Treats

Today I picked up the August issue of Family Fun and was happy to find some FUN summer "treat" ideas.

These "Sweet Sandals" are really cute and sound super easy to put together!



Frozen Flower Pops will satisfy a sweet tooth and cool your kiddos down after playing out in the heat. And, they just make me smile ;)



Frozen Fruit Bites combine sweet fruit and a refreshingly tart cheesecake-like filling into kid-sized treats. They could also pass as "dainty" desserts for adults as well! In fact, these may be the "adult" snack for my upcoming Popsicle Party next week...yummy!

Local Love: Magpie's Cake

I recently read about Magpie's Cake on one of my favorite local blogs, the ritzy bee. Magpie’s Cake offers the Washington DC Metro area a unique, fresh interpretation of cake creation. Drawing on her background as a classical ballet dancer, Chef and owner Maggie LaBaugh creates confections which display symmetry, elegance, detail, and sophistication. With the subtle yet unmistakable mark of haute couture, Magpie’s Cake is the cake for those who will not settle for “off the rack”. Magpie's Cake is yet another gem within the DC Metro area.







For more information on Magpie's Cake, click here.

3 Ring Circus Baby Shower

This elephant 3 ring circus baby shower photographed by Gertrude & Mabel is Adorable!! I love, love the circus awning above the dessert table! The colors are great and all of the details are even better.







For more pictures, click here. Enjoy!

Customized Chocolate Bars

For all of those chocolate lovers {and gifters} out there, check this out! Chocri, a German chocolate company that is now in the U.S., allows its customers to customize their own chocolate bars. You begin by picking a base chocolate. Then, you have over 100 toppings to choose from, including fruit, spices, nuts, confections, decor, and grains. After you have created your customized chocolate bar, you give it a personalized name and it is packaged and delieverd to your doorstep. Did I mention that Chocri only uses organic, fair trade chocolate from belgium? And, for every 5 bars that you order you get 1 for free! What a fun, YUMMY way to add your personal touch to favors or a hostess gift. Have fun creating!

Above image from Amy Atlas. Thanks for the post on Chocri, Amy!

Easy Paper Pouches

With a few easy folds, you can turn plain paper into super cute pouches for serving fruit and other snacks to your guests. Use sheets of glassine and parchment paper for moist foods, such as fruit. You can also incorporate printed paper to go along with your event's theme and color scheme. These pouches would be especially wonderful for events with small children (pre-packaged snacks can be a huge help to the supervising adults!). See directions below.

For each cup, start with one sheet each of glassine and parchment paper. Cut whichever sheet will form the inside of the cup to 9 1/2 inches square; cut the other to 10 inches square. Center the small sheet on top of the large sheet, and attach in center with a piece of double-sided tape.


Fold square in half to form a triangle.

Fold bottom-right corner to left side.

Fold bottom-left corner to right side.

Fold front top points over front of cup, then rear top points behind back. To complete, hold top of cup open with one hand, then gently press bottom seam up at the center with other hand.

Images and directions are from Martha Stewart.

An 85th Surprise!

This past weekend we helped my Grandfather celebrate his 85th birthday by throwing him a surprise birthday party. A small group of family and friends got together to honor the wonderful person that he is. I did two mini dessert tables to compliment the dinner that my mom provided. I chose blue, green and white to use in the color scheme. The desserts included dark chocolate brownies, assorted cake balls, shortbread "85" cookies, peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, M&Ms, meringue cookies, and my favorite, blueberry cupcakes.







I hope that you enjoyed the surprise, Granddaddy. We love you!