Gender Reveal: Scratch-off Cards

 

On Tuesday afternoon, my husband and I went to get our half-way point ultrasound and doctor’s appointment. During this appointment, we found out the gender of our baby.

On Wednesday evening, we took our parent’s to dinner and gave them scratch-off cards to reveal the gender. We wanted to do something different than what we have seen other couple’s do but keep it really casual. We asked our parents to sit around the table, gave them a coin and waited for their response. By the way, we also asked them to wear the color of what they thought the baby would be – they all showed up in blue.

And, it’s official. Parent’s are always right.

We are having a healthy baby boy. Our parents are completely ecstatic and so are we. I am going to be surrounded by boys!

Here’s how I created the scratch-off cards (which would be good for things besides just gender reveals like homemade coupons, greeting cards or fun games):

What you need:

• White card stock from Paper Source
• Silver acrylic paint from Hobby Lobby
• Paint brush from Hobby Lobby
• Dish soap
• Sticky backed plastic (clear shipping tape or clear contact paper)

What to do:

Make your design or download this gender announcement listed below.

Print the design onto your white card stock paper.

Take the sticky backed plastic (I used clear shipping table) and apply to the correct area onto the design.

Mix your silver acrylic paint with your dish soap. You need 1 part dish soap to 2 parts paint. Mix well.

Paint the plastic part of the card and then let dry. You might have to do another coat if you can still see through it.

After the card is dry, it’s ready!

Then scratch off one to test it!

I went ahead and created three versions (blank, boy and girl) for you to download.

Download the blank version here. 

 

Download the boy version here.

Download the girl version here. 

Check out our pregnancy announcement details here.

How did you tell your family what the gender of your baby was? Or, how do you plan to tell them?

Where to find us:
Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest.

Enjoy,

Ellen

Setting the Table: Summer Movie Preview

As part of the continuation of our popular Setting the Table series, we asked our friend Mitch to provide his summer movie preview.

I met Mitch in 2007 when we worked at a local Kansas City advertising agency. He’s a great guy, fabulous friend and a movie buff.

Jamie and I are extremely excited to go see Magic Mike this summer – don’t judge us!

Enjoy,
Ellen 

Summer Movie Preview

The official beginning of summer may not be until June 20 according to your calendar, but for Hollywood, summer kicks off in early May.  The summer box office has already had its share of hits (The Avengers with $523 million and counting) and misses (Battleship with $44 million and sinking).  However, with Memorial Day now in the books, the real battle for your box office dollar begins.  Here is your guide to all of the biggest movies coming to a theater near you this summer!

JUNE:

 

Snow White and the Huntsman(June 1) – The ever-annoying Kristen Stewart stars as Snow White alongside the ever-beautiful and talented Charlize Theron as the Evil Queen.

 Prometheus (June 8) – Charlize Theron has been a busy lady!  Theron stars alongside Noomi Rapace (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class) in Ridley Scott’s is-it-or-isn’t-it-a-prequel-to-Alien sci-fi film. 

Rock of Ages (June 15) – Tom Cruise as an idolized 80s hair band god?  Apparently someone saw it.  Ages is the film version of the popular Broadway musical of the same name.  Catherine Zeta Jones (Chicago) and Julianne Hough (Footloose) also star.

  

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter(June 22) – And the winner for most ridiculous and, at the same time, awesome movie title of the summer goes to Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  The title pretty descriptive as to the plot of the movie – Lincoln is hunting vampires in pre-Civil War America.  Hmmmm.

Magic Mike (June 29) – This one is most definitely for the women.  Magic Mike is loosely based on star Channing Tatum’s (The Vow) own personal life story as a stripper – pre-Hollywood success.

JULY:

The Amazing Spider-Man (July 3) – Tobey Maguire unofficially started the superhero craze when he starred as the web slinger in 2002 (and then for the sequels in 2004 and 2007).  Now, Andrew Garfield (The Social Network) and Emma Stone (Easy A) get a chance to reboot the series.

Ted (July 13) – Okay, just hear me out on this one.  This is the story of a man and his teddy bear, “who comes alive as a result of a childhood wish.”  BUT, it’s written by Seth McFarland, the guy behind TV’s Family Guy and it’s rated R for crude, sexual content, language and drug use.  Sounds promising, right?  Mark Wahlberg (The Departed) stars.

The Dark Knight Rises (July 20) – Arguably the biggest, most anticipated movie of the summer is the final Batman film in Christian Bale’s trilogy.  After the last Batman movie made $533 million, it’s between Rises and The Avengersfor the box office win.

AUGUST:

The Bourne Legacy (August 3) – This is the first Bourne movie without Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne.  This go-around stars Jeremy Renner (The Avengers) as Aaron Cross, a different CIA operative in Bourne’s former outfit.

The Campaign (August 10) – Zach Galifianakis + Will Ferrell + a baby-punching incident = a potentially hilarious end-of-summer comedy.

 

The Expendables 2 (August 17) – The action stars of the 80s and early 90s finally have a steady job – sequels to the surprise hit 2010 film The Expendables.  In this installment, Liam Hemsworth (The Avengers) joins Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Willis, Norris and Van Damme.

Enjoy the show,
Mitch

Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches

I am in love with the Shatto Milk and Dolce Bakery ice cream sammich. Have you tried them? I love the sugar cookie with strawberry ice cream. Shatto is one of our Kansas City favorite things.

My husband and I were telling our friends about them and they said their mother always makes homemade ice cream sandwiches. She keeps them in the freezer at all times. I knew that’s the type of mom I wanted to be so I started thinking of what kind I would want to make. My husband really wanted me to make my own version using his favorite cookie I make – the double peanut butter cup cookie. It’s actually a recipe from Brooklyn Decker. So, I did it over Memorial Day weekend.

Here’s the recipe for Double Peanut Butter Cup Cookie: Brooklyn Decker.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened natural coca
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch fine salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup peanut butter chips
• 20 miniature peanut butter cups, halved

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside. 
3. Cream the butter and sugars together in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add the peanut butter, vanilla and eggs and mix on low. Stir in the flour-cocoa mixture until just mixed. Fold in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and peanut butter cups and stir with a wooden spoon.
4. Drop a heaping tablespoonful of dough onto baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each cookie to allow them to spread. Bake until set, but still a touch soft inside, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.

And, now on to the best part, making the homemade ice cream sandwiches recipe.

Homemade Ice Cream Sandwich recipe: Ellen of White Table Style.

Ingredients:

• Homemade cookies (I used the recipe above)
• Shatto Milk vanilla ice cream

Directions:

1. Wait until the cookies have completely cooled – even a day if you can.
2. Take your ice cream right out of the freezer. You don’t want it to be too soft.
3. Set-up your sandwich making station. You will need two cookies that are about the same size. Dollop on as much or little ice cream as you want and then put the top cookie on. Let it set on a cookie sheet.
4. Eat one immediately! 
5. Then, store the rest in your freezer on a cookie sheet or flat storage. Then, sample as you want!

Where to find us:
Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest.

Enjoy,

Ellen

Happy Memorial Day.

We hoping you are having a wonderful and safe Memorial Day with family and friends. We will see you back on the blog tomorrow.

xoxoxo,

Ellen and Jamie

The latest in hair

I asked my go-to hair gal extraordinaire Rachel from Beauty Brands what the top trends are right now in the hair world. She came back with these three trends.

1. Bobs are really in right now. And what a perfect season to go in for a chop. Celebrities that had great bobs this year are Katie Holmes and Brooklyn Decker. There seem to be a lot of bobs in hollywood with bangs, asymmetrical lengths and chunky layers. It is very tempting!
2. Another trend right now is ombré coloring. It is when you do not color the roots, but instead only color the bottom or underneath layers. Ellen has done this a few times and loves it. It really helps to make your color last in between salon visits. On the runways this spring some of the models were even doing reverse ombré with the top really light and the bottom dark. Sarah Jessica Parker has always been my hair crush and has sported ombré for years. I think I might try this one at my next appointment.
3. And last are waves and loose curls, which are my personal favorite. I wear this style almost daily. I use a one and a half inch, big barrel curling iron to curl sections into ringlets and at the end brush them out with my fingers. I usually do not go all the way to the ends when curling so it doesn’t look too much like prom hair and has a more natural look. By the middle of the day, my curls have usually fallen a little more so my hair has more of a wavy look than curl. 

Whats your favorite hair style right now?

Au revior,
Jamie

Soon-to-be Mrs. Fashion.

I recently shared on Julie Blanner’s blog my favorite wedding fashion which is from the Kate Spade Mrs. bridal line.

As a recent bride, I am sad that this line launched after I got married. These make great gifts from bridesmaids to the bride, mother of the bride and definitely the husband.

 Mrs passport holder from your mother.

Mrs earrings from the bridesmaids.

I Kissed a Frog clutch for the bachelorette party.

Fella flat for the reception and honeymoon.

Mrs cosmetic bag as a treat for yourself for the honeymoon.

I Do necklace from the husband.

Don’t forget to check out my Top 10 Registry Picks from Crate and Barrel.

Enjoy,

Ellen

Favorite Thing: Bark at the Park at Kauffman Stadium

We decided to take our dog Stanley to the Bark at the Park for the Royals game on Sunday at Kauffman Stadium. We were a little nervous about going because Stanley gets scared with large crowds of people. He did an amazing job and we were so proud of him.

It’s the fourth year that they have been putting on this event (our first year to attend) and it was presented by Bayer K9 Advantix II. Stanley even got his Bayer scarf to wear! Before the game, you can walk your dog around one area of the stadium and visit multiple vendors. We got a few treats from Three Dog Bakery (Stanley’s favorite). With the ticket purchase, you get a canine bag dispenser and place a donation to Wayside Waifs.

The event was amazing! I highly recommend it if you like to spoil your puppy. Be sure to check it out next year. We will definitely be going back.

Have you been to Bark at the Park?

Enjoy,

Ellen

Home Renovation: My Second Bedroom – Finished!

My husband and I purchased a 50+ year old house as our first home a few years ago. While the house only had one previous owner (they built it and lived in it their entire lives), we had a lot of updates to do as every room has three layers of wallpaper. You may remember my previous posts about our hall bathroom makeover, the master bathroom makeover and the master bedroom makeover.

We have officially finished our second bedroom! We use this room as our guest bedroom and wanted it to have a clean look so we could continually change out the accessories in the room.

Here’s what it looked like before:

And, here’s my inspiration for the bedroom (thanks to House Beautiful for the image):

And, here’s how it turned out:

The specifics of the room:

• The iron bed was my grandmother’s – similar to our master bedroom. 
• The artwork is from a local photographer, Regnier Photography, and is of downtown Kansas City. I thought this would be perfect for guest room.
• Wall paint color is Oyster White from Sherwin Williams.
• Trim paint color is Bright White from Valspar.
• The curtains and rods are from Walmart.
• The new light is from Lowe’s.
• The dresser and night table are old pieces that were in the room.
• The comforter is from Anthropologie (three years ago).
• My favorite piece is my grandmother’s wood couch. I will be attempting to re-cover it this summer.

Thanks again to House Beautiful for the inspiration.

What do you think? We still need to hang some more artwork (and we need to do that throughout the house).

Where to find us:
Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest.

Enjoy,

Ellen

Fashion Friday: Pool Time

My pool opens this weekend. I repeat. My pool opens this weekend. I am ready and then again I am not. I need to make sure my winter skin is ready. But the worst part, I havent even bought a new suit. Have you? Here are a few essentials I found to head to the pool, lake or beach – of course in-style.

Au revoir,
Jamie

Floppy Hat

Love bandeau bikinis with boy shorts

Fancy thongs from Sam Edelmen (very comfy)

Terry cloth cover-up

Straw bag – perfect for magazines, water bottle, rolled up towel and dont forget the sunscreen

My Beauty Bag.

I am actually cheating and don’t use a beauty bag unless I travel. With the bathroom remodel, I use a desk drawer organizer to contain all of my day-to-day makeup. I also have a secret stash for events and nights out that I hid in my linen closet. I am a type a person that likes to have everything completely organized and visible. Just ask my husband – no junk drawers allowed in our house.

But, to the main event, here is my makeup organizer and I am including my favorite must-haves:

Eucerin Everyday Protection Moisturizer. This is the best moisturizer I have ever used. It has a 30 SPF and it never makes my face oily!

Too Faced Pink Leopard Bronzer from Beauty Brands. The Too Faced bronzer is amazing! It naturally highlights and bronzes your face right where you need it. It really makes your skin glow.

MAC eyeshadows. Period. They are the best eye shadows I use. I do love my Bare Escentuals but I don’t like how they shake out all of the time and sometimes the matte doesn’t glide as well. All of the MAC eyeshadows I have used have stayed on for long periods of times and the ease of application is amazing.

High quality brushes. My brush collection is from everywhere but the better the quality, the better the application. I do love my Bare Escentuals brushes. And, don’t forget to clean them weekly!

What are your favorite items in your beauty bag? Do you have something I should try?

Enjoy,

Ellen