Mother Nature - Getting in on the Act...

So you can say that Mother Nature really wanted to be a part of showering Baby D with love and you'll soon find out why...

Six beautiful friends hosted the most amazing baby shower for us July 31st at Garden*Hood - www.gardenhoodatlanta.com. Our amazing friend and next door neighbor Alyssa (who has 6-moth old Charlie) spearheaded the big day. She managed to stay out of every photo taken but was captured on some video (there is a link below). In addition Abigail, Andy, Jen, Julie and Melissa each focused on making our eco-friendly shower one of the best shower's I have ever been to (and not just because it was ours) - let me tell you why.

So many personal touches really made this a wonderful event. First it was in our local Garden Center - Garden*Hood, where you can find so many cool species of plants, trees, fruits and veggies. It's really a great place and across the street from one of our fav breakfast spots - Stone Soup Kitchen stonesoupkitchen.net. 

A whole bunch of pop-up tents, fans and tubs of ice water (for hot pregnant feet) were added to make this sweltering afternoon tolerable - and it was! There were 3 other pregnant mama's in attendance - so the tubs were a perfect addition! Although Ben thought they were for better for gathering gravel - which kept him quite busy!


Really cute graphic signage which focused on Growing, Harvest, Bounty and Sharing added such a great touch with sweet future messages for Baby D. I am hoping to frame each of the pieces for HerHe's room since Aunt Andy did such a great job designing them.

Baby D's Bounty of Gifts

All of the guests were asked not to wrap gifts (it's eco-friendly remember?) so we received so many cute baskets of books, gifts and goodies for HerHe! A bracelet of flowers and flowers for my hair made me feel in touch with the whole theme of the day as well.

The hostess' thought of everything - especially focusing on our personal palettes: 

• Mediterranean Watermelon Bites - Sliced watermelon topped with feta, basil and a balsamic reduction
• Spicy Avocado-Cucumber Soup Shots
• Chilled Asian Chicken Noodle Lettuce Cups
• Seared Beef Tenderloin Crostinis with Basil Pesto and Shaved Parmesan
• Parmesan Crisp topped with Marinated Cherry Tomatoes, Basil and Mozzarella Cheese

Julie & Jen - Caterer & Baker of YUM!

All of the light fare was prepared by our friend Jen who just started her own catering company - be sure to email her - jlpetrone@gmail.com if you need some delicious, local, organic edibles for your next party! Julie (who helped Jen with a ton of prep/serving work and is also the baker of the group - served one of my personal favs - coconut macaroons along with some really cute pink and green shortbread cookies for dessert - YUM!

Sweetheart Wishing Tree

There was even a wishing tree (a Sweetheart Tree - Euscaphasis Japonica) where everyone hung their personal wishes or great suggestions for happy parenting. Some of our favs were:

Feed, Burp, Change, Repeat.  (Hopefully they just forgot NAP!)

Coffee & Alcohol

Dance in the Rain

We can't wait to plant it in our backyard and watch it grow just as Baby D evolves and grows up admiring it's leaves, red buds in the fall and many branches to swing from!

The drink selection was divine - Abigail (with the help of Beth & Jason) made a heavenly Mint Lemonade along with a fruity White Sangria, which really kept everyone cool that afternoon. Everyone drank from the Mason Jar mugs (leftover from our wedding) with a personally designed nametag on each. 

Dad Dojnik & Aunt Mary sipping away

Each guest got to take their pick of a mint or basil plant wrapped in burlap to take home with them. The burlap (also left over from our wedding - recycle, reuse folks!) made all of these special touches for just so touching for us. 

It was a simple reminder that just 10 short months ago Steve and I said our vows under our 100 year old oak tree in our backyard - with many of these same friends and family in attendance. Baby D was conceived with love and will be brought into a neighborhood of family and friends that overflows with generosity and kindness. 

The basil and mint plants each came with handmade envelopes and recipes from the day - again those personal touches which just make you smile!

Dan & Louie braving the elements!

So all was going as planned until about 5PM when Mother Nature decided to sing. And she sang with all her might as she rolled in a late afternoon thunderstorm. We had many brave men battling the rain and wind to hold down tents and not let everything get totally soaked. 

Jason re-enacting the tornado from the Wizard of Oz

It truly was a baby SHOWER then, but rest assured we were all safe and sound. The torrential rain lasted about 30 min and then subsided and cooled everything off just in time to pack up and head home.

Here is a link to the rest of the photos of our great day - Thanks to Brian Irving and Melissa Dreyer for taking such great shots and really capturing the day! >PHOTOS

There is also some great video of our day with wishes for HerHe from our good friend Dorothea - @Dorothea007. Some are hard to hear with all of the background noise but the last one in the line-up is the funniest from Julie (at least I think it is - being on the short side!) >Videos

Steve and I really are blessed with such wonderful friends and family in our lives. We cannot wait for HerHe's arrival in just about 3 short weeks (maybe sooner who knows???) Let me tell you this baby is about ready to come out ready to rumble, because HerHe's been going nutso inside lately! Kicks, rolls and punches by this almost 6 or 7 pounder have kept us quite amused. Babycenter.com says to picture a Crenshaw melon.

Love this shot!

Time with Grandpa

We were also lucky enough to have Baby D's cousin Charlie, Aunt Mary, Uncle IV and Grandpa Dojnik in town for the shower. 
 

Charlie trying on his Halloween gear!

We had such a great time with everyone! Cousin Charlie got to test out how functional Baby D's room is going to be, we went to the drive-in, visited the Farmer's Market, made lots of great food and hit up the pool while everyone was here! A link to all the photos: >PHOTOS

Here are some highlights from their time spent with us:

Charlie & his future Cousin!

Time at the Grant Park Pool!

Does this make my butt look big?

Trying out the glider!

Grandpa D relaxing at the drive-in!

I can't wait to really have some of Uncle Steve's cooking!