Bonnie's Pictures

I have been trying to take my kids annual pictures. I considered using Bonnie's picutre from her party, but the other two kids both had pictures done with thier book bags when they truned five. I figure I only have three kids there are a few traditions I should try to keep. The only problem is that I needed to get Bonnie a backpack for school, and I really didn't want to spend a lot of money on it. I was so excited to see backpacks on sale for $5.00 at Walmart sometime last week. Seeing that there are only two days left of February I decided I had better get Bonnie's pictures done. I like to take each kid out by them self. It gives me a little one on one time with them. Bonnie did so well this year. She smiled and even came up with her own little pose.This was Bonnie's pose.

Daddy Daughter Dance

Hannah's school had a Daddy Daughter's dance. Hannah was excited for the chance to go out just with her and her Dad. She mentioned a few days before that some of the girls were wearing poodle skirts, but she didn't care that she didn't have one. I wasn't going to worry about it. I have been very busy making props for the kids play. the day before I decided that I didn't have to make a fancy poodle skirt, but is would be kind of fun for them to get to dress up. I pulled out some fabric and made a very simple skirt. She added a tutu under to give it some poof. When she got all dressed it was very obvious that she was pleased with how she looked. She twirled and danced around. When Paul got home from work I suggested he wear his Letterman's jacket. To my surprise he got right into the spirit and pulled it out. I was told that they danced just about the entire time. Paul said that it wasn't that big of a deal to dance around when you've got 100 other Dads out their dancing around with their girls. Paul has done a lot of dancing this month. I guess that's just one more thing he is willing to do to show how much he love his girls.

making a fake cake

I have had fun today working on a fake cake for the children's play Sleeping Beauty. I needed something that will hold up for a few weeks. I considered making it out of rice krispies. It's not like we are going to eat it, but I thought it might be nice to have something not made with any kind of food. I decided that it would be OK to have a rectangular cake rather than round and decided that gifts boxes would work. The one thing I would have done different is to make sure that each box is glued closed very well. The middle section puckered a bit once it was painted. I then used caulk as frosting. I used a cheap plastic tip and a disposable bag. I figured it was better to not use tips that will be used with food. Even with washing things up I don't too comfortable know that chemicals that should not go into my body may still be present on the tips..

I added a ribbon, some flowers, and a little topper to celebrate Aurora's 16 birthday.

My most common phrase when I finish a project is... Well, it's not perfect, but it turned out pretty good.

Valentine treats and gifts

I got to help plan Connor's class valentine party. I was a bit slow getting my camera out. Connor had fun decorating a cookie at the treat station. I had fun beeing over the craft table. I found this cute little craft off familyfun.com. It took the perfect amount of time. The kids ended up needing a little help, but when the craft was complete it was fun to see them understand the valentine they made.This is my cute little model holding up her finished craft. A little bee mine valentine.
Paul called me during the day and asked me if I would be sad if I didn't get the traditional flowers and chocolates this year. Honestly I love getting flowers, but they don't last very long and it isn't uncommon for other people to eat the chocolate before I get to it. I was SO excited that Paul thought to get me a computer chair. We have been sitting on fold out metal chairs for the last 10 years. I am not complaining it is nice to have a chair to sit at, but it is really nice to have a more comfortable chair to sit at.

Happy Valentines Day

I really enjoy valentines day. I special day set aside to show love to the people that mean the most to you in your life. We don't go crazy, but I love the colors of white, red and pink. You can not think about those colors without thinking about LOVE and hearts. Paul was a good sport to join me at a couple of valentine dances this year. I love to go out and feel like a kid again. It is fun to dance around a be a little crazy. Who doesn't love to be taken in the arms of their sweet heart and dance around. My kids did great today getting up and getting ready quickly so that we could get a few pictures before everyone was off to school. This way I was able to make a little valentine card just for me, and to send to Grandparents. HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Fairy Party

About six months ago Bonnie attended a friends birthday party and they had a fun fairy party. Bonnie decided then that for her next party she wanted to have a fairy party. I made Bonnie this cute little dress and then had her take pictures. I realized as soon as I uploaded the pictures that we did not put the wings on . This mistake became the theme for Bonnie's party. We made up a cute invitation and waited for the day to arrive. Hannah was excited to get a fairy out fit too. I was happy to make her one. I made Bonnie's first and when I was done she honestly could have cared less. I probably spent more than 10 hours sewing this dress and she didn't care! Lucky for me the second one went much faster and once they were both done Hannah was very excited to put her dress on and Bonnie's excitement greatly increased.

The girls love to have a turn making silly faces. I figure it is the least I can do as long as they will continue to let me take pictures.

For the party I made necklaces with activities to get passed off to earn their wings.
The first activity was to get their face painted with a little green vine.
The second activity to was to learn how to dance like a fairy
For the third activity the fairies all got to eat pizza.
And for the final activity they played pin the wing on the fairy. I had an 8x10 of this picture of Bonnie made and then we made paper wings for each girl. Bonnie ended up with wings all over her, but the girls had a fun time playing.
For the cake we went with cupcakes this year. I got these cute little chocolate molds and made these chocolate crowns. The girls ate them up, so they must have been good.

Paul also got to be the the videographer while I took pictures. I can say that I put the party together, but I would not have been able to pull it off without his help.

I got this great idea of familyfun. com. To make These cookie wands. Each girl got to take one home with her at the end of the party. I could not have been more happy that they worked. I was worried that they would be too hard or break off, but they were pretty soft and held up great. We fed the kids pizza for dinner. Paul was a great helper. He got to be the pizza deliver man for the night and also ended up with the clean up job. Hannah and I kept the party going and Paul cleaned up a long the way. ALL OF THE LITTLE FAIRIES WITH THEIR WINGS!

Hannah Singing

Hannah came home from church sick today. She spent about 30 minutes in bed and then came out to let me know that she could not sleep and was feeling much better. I had this great idea that if she was feeling good. I should have the chance to try something out. I had her sing for me. So... this is my very first post with a video!

She is FIVE!

It is amazing how much an individual changes and learns in the first five years of their life. One thing that has not changed for Bonnie is that she has always been beautiful. As a baby she turned heads at stores. As a five year old she continues to get compliments from strangers what a beautiful girl she is. Bonnie was my biggest baby at 8 pounds six ounces. More to hold on to and lots to love. As a baby she came with her little attitude. I wouldn't change one thing about Bonnie. She is has turned into such a fun little girl. She has a wonderful imagination and the ability to play for hours. She loves to sing and dance around the house. Bonnie asked to a fairy party for her fifth birthday. I was happy to make her a little outfit, and she was patient to allow me to take some pictures. This morning Bonnie asked me, "Mom am I really FIVE." I guess it is hard to believe, but yes she is really five.