celebration: home depot birthday party

my oldest just turned 6 last week. for his birthday party, he decided he wanted it at our local home depot store. slight problem: home depot doesn't do birthday parties. 

i wanted to make this birthday a happy one for my first born, so i set out to make it happen. after lots of begging and pleading and general niceness, i was able to make it happen! (rock star mom moment).

have you ever been to one of the kids workshops that home depot has? (if not, check out your local store---they are so much fun!) our home depot hosts one every saturday and the boys and i have so much fun building an awesome project together (last week was a bug catcher). as a single mama on a budget, the bonus is that they are also *free*. the amazing woman that runs the kids workshops at our local store went above and beyond to make my son's dreams of having a "kids workshop" home depot birthday party a reality.

we took over the training room, every child built and painted a tool box with their parent (all of the instructions, materials and paint was supplied). after the building was complete, the candles were blown out on the tray of homemade cupcakes, bellies were filled with birthday, sugary goodness, and each child went home with their finished project as well as some quality time with one of their parents.

the cherry on top of the proverbial sundae was that the party was *free*. home depot didn't charge us a dime. 

the only things i spent money on were:
plates, napkins, cupcake supplies, plastic construction hats and little favor bags that were filled with a few goodies.

it was a birthday party that he will never forget....and a happy mommy moment too. happy birthday, little man. your mama sure loves you.

making memories at the newly remodeled home depot genesee

this is a sponsored post by me on behalf of the home depot.

on saturday i had the pleasure of attending the grand re-opening of my local, san diego home depot store located on the corner of genesse and balboa.

the newly remodeled store features a 40,000 feet outdoor garden center, larger kitchen and appliance showrooms, a millwork showroom, an improved pro-desk and expanded tool rental. the store is beautiful, clean and open with large aisles and the associates were so kind and helpful.

the event was made extra special for me because it was a time for just me and my first born. as a single mama with two fun loving boys there isn't a ton for time for just one-on-one special moments----i seized this opportunity as one of those times and we had so much fun!

first up, we went straight to the kids diy workshop to learn how to make our own mini soccer game/foosball table. we worked together and ended up with an awesome new game to take home with us and enjoy. 

home depot kids workshop runs the first saturday of every month from 9am until noon. there is no signing up and it is *free*. if you are local, check out the home depot genesee on facebook for information on all of their frequent events. you can also find information on all of the home depot workshops for kids and adults on their website. i am really looking forward to attending more diy workshops in the future!

aside from the diy workshop, my little man's favorite things were spinning the prize wheel and the awesome balloon artist. he won a baseball on his spin and the balloon artist was even able to make the "buzz lightyear spaceship" that he requested. impressive!

we had a blast participating in the scavenger hunt around the store searching for clues and riddles hidden in homer buckets--what a fantastic way to explore the store and enjoy a little friendly competition with my little man. we downloaded the home depot app and it provided us with a helpful advantage to locate items and needed information.

mommy's favorite part of the newly remodeled store was the incredible 40,000 square foot garden center. it was filled with so many beautiful plants, flowers and veggies that it made this aspiring gardener truly inspired to try my hand at some new landscaping/gardening projects that have been on my pinterest "to-do" list.

a wonderful time was had by all and the only dilemma i am left with is what project i want to start first. once i decide, i will be headed back to the beautiful, home depot genesee store to stock up on supplies and get to work!

the newly reopened home depot genesee now features a 40,000 square foot outdoor garden center, larger kitchen and appliance showrooms, a millwork showroom, an improved pro-desk and expanded tool rental.
it also provides workshops and events year-round that the whole family can participate in. please visit https://www.facebook.com/Home.Depot.Genesee.Ca for more information.

this is a sponsored post by me on behalf of the home depot.

operation green thumb: gardening in raised planter beds

my thumb is not even close to green. they are in fact both a very deep, dark black. my sweet grandmommie had the greenest of green thumbs......i did not inherit that gardening gene. in all truth, i have trouble keeping alive the plants that people insist i will be unable to kill and are described as "low maintenance" or "hearty". so, when my amazing landlords built raided planter beds in our backyard i was excited.....but scared. mostly scared.  

i hate failing (and there has been a lot of failing in my life lately). it wasn't about me though.....my two sweet boys were *so* very excited about the idea of planting and growing their favorite fruits and veggies so i decided to get over my mental hurdle and go for it. i did a little research (and called a dear friend for a TON of advice) and headed off to the land of orange shopping carts. i loaded up the car with a bunch of goodies and headed home to plant. (notice i picked plants and not seeds. i think they already have a fighting chance, right? they have already started to grow! no seeds for me this time. i am not that stupid brave. here's to hoping and praying that my theory is correct). 

it actually was pretty easy. I added a ton of soil to the beds and went to work planting. the kids had so much fun and so did i! it was a beautiful day outside, the sun was shining and it felt good to dig my hands into the soil and dream about the bounty of fruits and veggies it will (hopefully) someday produce in abundance.

tomatoes, basil and blueberries, oh my!

if you look really close you will see a tiny green tomato growing!

strawberries!

the *best* part was buying a 10 lb bag of worms and letting them lose in the soil. i was told it is really good for the plants and soil but the most wonderful part was spending time with the boys and seeing the wonder and excitement on their faces as we watched the worms dig their way into the soil and disappear. it was awesome! (and i forgot to take pictures, of course! ugh.)

will the plants grow? will they bear fruit or veggies? the truth is......i am really not sure. one thing i have learned is that there are no guarantees in life. what i do know is this; i took a risk. i conquered my fears and i tried. i tried!!!  i may fail.....it's a very real possibility.....*but* i didn't let my fear of that failure get in the way of trying. and, for today.....well, that is a really, really big thing.