Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Remembering Mom


To every thing there is a season, 
and a time to every purpose under the heaven…
(Ecclesiastes 3:1)
    


      It’s been a year since Mom had gone on to a better place. A place where there’s no pain and where breathing is effort-less. I cannot believe how fast time went by; nevertheless, I find myself feeling a deep sense of sadness every now and then, when I think about her.
      With Mom’s passing came an overwhelming sense of grief and sorrow…nothing can compare. It was awfully hard for me as I am away from the rest of the family.  It was a difficult process I needed to go through, a loss like no other.  But I guess with acceptance came some sort of “release”…both for me and for Mom.
     God has the best plans for us.  It’s an absolute truth I’ve always known and strongly relied on. About eight weeks after Mom passed away, I discovered I was gifted with a new life, a life that is now known as Jakey’s. I gained one as I had lost another.  I would like to believe Mom was instrumental in that huge phase of my life. She probably made a personal request to God, in my behalf. After all, she has direct access, she’s in heaven! And so Jake happened…not to fill the void Mom had left, but rather, to help me let go, have something special to look forward to, and give my life a new meaning.

To Mommy: Happy first birthday in heaven! I am happy for you, for I know you are at peace eternally. Once again, thank you for everything. I know you continue to watch over us (heck, I even ask you to watch over  Jakey when I’m asleep!) And for that, we are truly grateful. We love you!


Monday, August 5, 2013

He Has Arrived!

Our precious little one finally arrived! He decided he was ready for the world on July 27! That's 5 days earlier than the day he's supposed to come out : ). I still couldn't believe I worked 'til the day before his birthday, with no clue whatsoever of what would take place the next day! I had so many plans for the first few days of maternity leave that I would have had prior to my scheduled CS ( August 1st) but I guess when baby's ready, there's no stopping him or her. So you just go with the flow! That goes without saying I went into labor despite a scheduled CS. The pain was awful!!! But, it was all worth it. My little bundle of joy was the most effective pain medication! So meet my little guy, JOAQUIN CARLOS LLANOS! He's now 8 days old and doing really well.
On that note, I would probably be blogging even less... considering the demands of motherhood. No time to craft or create anything. I have some projects I finished a few months back, I just didn't have the time and energy to post about them. Hopefully soon... when things are less hectic.
So bye for now because baby needs mommy...but I shall be back soon.
Thanks for your peeks!

xoxo
HANNAH

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Ysabella's 8th Birthday Party Preparations

     Okay...so here are the photos I promised to share. These are the stuff I made as part of Ysabella's 8th Birthday Celebration which was movie-inspired. Please see related post below for a peek at the party.

     Let's start off with the save the date cards, invites, and TY tags. Note that the invites were not matted yet when photos were taken. I matted them on black cardstock eventually. I created them digitally...and had so much fun!


TY tags



Save The Date cards

Invites (I haven't matted them here yet)


Quick and simple...and super inexpensive, too!



     Now on to the party banner. I tried not to go crazy because as I mentioned in my last post, the party room was small so there wasn't much to decorate. However, I still wanted the banner to emphasize the party theme so I made one that had the look of a filmstrip! See photos below...


Black poster board, white copy papers



I cut the letters out of my Cricut

Forget the traditional "Happy Birthday"...
I wanted it to be a little different : )

Laying the characters down

Embellished with movie-inspired party decors
from Party City



Another party decor I used to
emphasize the theme



Tadaaa!!!

    

      For the favors or goody boxes... since the party was movie-themed, it was only fitting that I used popcorn boxes! : ) I purchased them from a dollar store for 2 boxes/dollar. I originally thought of making them out of my Cricut but since it would be paper-based, then it won't last so long. The popcorn containers can be re-used over and over so I thought it was more appropriate, especially if the kiddos were to watch home movies.









     I hope you liked my party decor ideas! If you have any questions, just leave a comment.
     Like the tag said...thanks for popping by! : )


xoxo,
HANNAH






Ysabella's 8th Birthday - A Movie Party

     Hello everyone! I've been wanting to share these photos eversince Ysabella's 8th Birthday Celebration was held but I just could not find the time to sit, sort the photos, and blog about them. But, here they are! So Ysabella celebrated her 8th birthday with a movie-themed party in our local theater almost 2 months ago and she and her friends had a blast! The party was small-scaled as compared to the one she had last year (pictures of which you can also find in a post from April of last year). The party room was small and could only hold so much kids and decors. Nevertheless, I wanted it to be special and memorable.

     First, Ysa and her friends had a pizza party along with some ice cream cake and then they set off to watch The Croods. They all had their kiddie meals and they occupied an entire row in the theater and they looked so cuuute!!!

     For the party decors, I mainly used movie-themed tablewares I purchased at Party City. I made a party banner that had the look of a film strip. Then for the favors, I purchased some popcorn boxes from the dollar store and filled them up with candies and toys. I made the save the date cards, invites, and favor tags myself. I will post about them separately. 

     Meanwhile, enjoy the pictures!



Birthday celebrant Ysabella with her movie clapboard : )





Movie-themed Ice Cream Birthday Cake by Carvel


Time flies...can't believe she's 8 : (

Delicious cheese pizza 

Movie-themed tablewares from Party City

Kiddie Meals for the movie

Delighted, excited!

Filmstrip Banner I created


What was in the popcorn favor boxes

My materials

The favors won't be complete without chocolates and
of course...popcorn!!!

Goody Boxes in the making...




I made the Thank You Tags for the favors

A closer look at the movie-inspired TY tags...
so fun to make!



     I will post some more photos of the other stuff I made for the party such as the save the date cards and invites. Ysabella's party this year was super simple and quick to put together yet she and her guests had a really great time. Not to forget, I myself had a blast planning and preparing for it! : )


     Thanks for being here!


xoxo,
HANNAH






Favorite Memories

A super quick mini album I made as requested by my coworker Pinky.

Sunday, April 28, 2013

The Big (and Special) Reason Why I Had Been Gone

     I am back!!! It feels so good to be back. I feel like I've neglected my blog with my absence. BUT! I have a very good excuse and SPECIAL REASON why I had been gone for a while...
   
     TADAA!!!

My very precious little one who's coming soon... the special reason
why I had to be away for a while.


     
     We are so blessed to have another baby...and this time it's a boy! So that makes it extra special. I didn't have the energy to keep up with the blog for almost 3 months because between work and my pregnancy...ugh! There's just not enough left. I had been crafting, though...but minimally. I will post my finished projects soon. For now I just wanted to update the blog {with a little splash of "boyish" color : )} and make a quick post regarding my absence and return. I am feeling so much better and more energetic so I think I can try and post regularly from now until the baby comes (due in August). Then we'll see what happens as I go along.

     Aside from posting projects and other good stuff, I also want this blog to be my journal about this special journey that I am currently going through. I want to be able to share the joy and excitement that I am feeling and I think that this is the best place. 

     I would like to conclude today's post with a special photo that Ysabella took of her Dad and my baby bump...

Baby Belly Kiss


    
     Thanks for being here!!!


xoxo,
HANNAH







Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Valentine's Gift

I wrapped a chocolate bar with Valentine's paper then decorated it with a paper flower. It's ready to go tomorrow as a V-Day gift for Ysabella's teacher.
I wish you all a Lovely & Happy Valentine's Day! ♥

xoxo,
HANNAH