BIRTHDAY FUN!!

No matter how many times I tell myself that "next year I'm not going to do an all-out party for the kids" it always still happens.  I think I'm a sucker for cuteness.  And birthdays are just that.  Cute kids, cute invites, cute decor, cute, Cute, CUTE!!!  So, I love it and at least all the kids' birthdays are spaced far enough apart that I forget how much stress they are.  I have learned a few tricks to make them less stressful though and that makes it all the better.  Without further adieu I give you little A's most recent party and let the cuteness be shared:

BIG tray of delicious cupcakes for the big girl

A picnic/water party is SOOO perfect for a June birthday!!  These cupcakes were divine--watermelon flavored cupcakes with whipped cream frosting (the BEST frostings are with whipped cream) and sour watermelon candies.  The cake/ice cream part is one that I've dialed down on.  Now I go for cute and easy cupcakes rather than cut cakes & I only have ice cream if it's in cake form and it is the cake. 

Aren't the watermelons in the background adorable?!  These were the party favors and were filled with candy.  I love getting my kids a little involved in helping with their party so Little A painted them and I think she could have done at least a dozen more.  That's my girl!

I bought this slide at the beginning of summer because I always enjoy getting a new thing to keep the kids active and having fun at home.  They have a blast with this slide.  This is one of little A's best friends who moved but not before she came to the party.

B taking a turn

Little A splashes down!

This guy loved trying different positions of flying through the tunnel

J helped with this game.  The girls had to shoot the ping pong balls off this game he made quite a while ago.  Verdict is that all but little A need some aiming lessons....though looking at the guests none of them have brothers, at least old enough to play shooting games with.

B helped with this game of sponge filler.  Both teams were super competitive and the timing was tight. 

Jeff helped with this game--all of them helped with a game while I got A's requested picnic lunch the rest of the way ready and set up.

The picnic spread: Mac 'N Cheese, grape kabobs, watermelon popsicles, chips, veggie platter with ants on a log, cukes and carrots and juice boxes.  I think almost everything got eaten.

"Happy Birthday to you...."

And, of course, a water balloon fight!!  Check out the balloon that B just threw and is in the air headed for its target.

At one point the kids all attacked me so I had to retaliate.  After this we put a sprinkler on the trampoline until parents came.

This is after her actual bday by a week or so.  She's showing a considerable amount of self-discipline with those white chocolate Kit-Kats.

Her actual bday was while we were in Colorado so we had ice cream cones to celebrate

We also did a pinata filled with candy and it actually went through all 11 kids so little A got to do it again until it popped.  

We just celebrated her tons this birthday season and will be drawing it out until August for her baptism too.  She is such a joyful part of our lives and we just love her tons and bunches.  It's definitely worth the small amount of work to celebrate her with friends and family.

What, a 2nd post within days?  It must be important....

Science Fair!  

p.s.  there's no way I'm old enough to be helping my own kids with science fair.  Who's kid is this?!

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK!

These were all received different weeks but we just got the final one so figured I'd post them all together since really they've all been great students all year!  We started a tradition (that the kids adore) of a giant cookie for the recipient (to share) for getting this covetous prize.

This little has loved homework since Kindergarten.  This year in 2nd grade she adores Math.  She comes home and talks about "passing off her 7s".  That means she's done several worksheets with addition and subtraction of 7 and completed a page of addition and subtraction with 7s within a certain time limit.  She is so excited she has moved on from that and is now starting multiplication.  She also continues to advance up the reading chain.  She no longer needs to bring home "take home" books and is well above the reading level required for 2nd grade.  She loves art and definitely puts her own little unique stamp on her work.  She is friendly with everyone in class and I know she is a great student who follows rules, listens to her teacher and is a joy to teach.  Even though I miss her during the days the big hugs I get after school let me know I'm still #1 in her book.

This is my favorite little boy.  He is a great example of who I think would be the dream student.  Social and friendly yet takes his work seriously.  He learns super fast and if he went at his own pace he could be well into Jr. High stuff by now.  His favorite subject is math but I've also seen him reading a LOT more than usual this year.  He started the Harry Potter books but by the 5th one I think it was getting a bit intense and maybe a bit wordy for him.  I think he's saving the last two for this summer.  He loves funny books.  His writing seems to be improving this year; I think he has a hard time focusing on what to say and how to say it but I'm sure it will come along he is becoming a bit of a storyteller.  He loves for me to tell him stories from when I was little every night I put him to bed.  He shows that also in his reading choices--though he likes fiction he also really enjoys non-fiction stories of people from the past and present.  

This gal is also an excellent student.  It often takes a little while for new concepts to click but once they do she's got it down good.  She has really become responsible getting herself up and ready for orchestra before school 2-3 days a week and choir early Saturday mornings.  She really enjoys science, art, reading and writing.  She disappeared the other day and let us know quite a while later that she'd made a power point presentation just for fun.  It is all about her favorites and things she enjoys.  Today she made another one about beaches while Jeff & I were on a date and after she'd gotten her siblings to bed.  Adore!  She is getting into emailing too which makes me a tad nervous but I trust her judgement and hopefully she will talk to me if any issues arise.  She is also using google to find power point pictures.  A lot of me wants to look into blocking software to protect her but a lot of me also wants to teach her the dangers and let her make decisions because they are there to make--not blocked.  At any rate she is enjoying using technology for the craftier part of her brain.  We've also started a Spanish club with friends and it's fun to see her get so into it.  I often tell myself that in many schools she'd be a Jr. High kid.  I certainly do see her changing and maturing into an great gal.

Minnie Mouse Birthday!!

We recently celebrated THIS cute gal's birthday.  After checking out pinterest, of course, we had narrowed it down to two options and she chose a Minnie Mouse party!!  I was completely on board.

AND, while passing out the invites a friend said she had done one for her daughter before and still had CUTE!! decorations (such as the Minnie's Bowtique sign in this pic) that she let me use/borrow, cute bow napkins, a welcome sign and Happy Bday sign all very cute and very Minnie themed.  Awesome!!

I'm sure he secretly loves that I involve him in all the kids' bday parties I can.

We had such fun at my brother's wedding photo booth that we had to do one.  I made a few Minnie Mouse ears for extremely cheap and my birthday girl gathered up fun dress up stuff we already had.  One roll of wrapping paper, the sign and the dress ups was all it took.  Fun, adorable, easy and affordable win.  My eldest was the photographer and we just set the camera on a tripod and let her go to work.  A few days after the party I printed off pictures of each girl with the group, alone or with friends and one with the birthday gal who also wrote her thank-you on the back and passed them out.

These glam gals had a blast dressing up and taking fun pics.

The gathering activity was decorating bags which they all got very into and then we played a rousing game of "Minnie, Minnie, where's the Minnie?" that the girls LOVED (I'd found a Minnie Mouse figurine at the dollar store) and then we headed downstairs where they were free to do the activities at will:  photo booth, get their nails painted (with strict rules that only I was to touch and apply the polish. I learned my lesson when B had her 10th polish bday party, Oi.), color Minnie pages and cut their bow out for pin-the-bow-on-Minnie.

I had this draped across the doorway for the bows.  I traced bows (using a butterfly cookie cutter I had) and put the rectangle up and they chose from all different papers which they wanted and then they cut them out--which saved me some time cutting.  I was going to have them decorate their own bow but thought this may be more fun since we already decorated bags & had coloring pages and I have tons of cute paper begging to be used.  I loved that this activity doubled as decorations and this way the next person to pin the bow was chosen by order of the bows which helped it be organized and the girls could see when their turn was coming up.  

My older daughter reminded me just before we started that we needed a blind-fold--Duh! and I thought I'd thought of everything, geesh!--and the girls just giggled and giggled about where the bows were going on Minnie.  What a fun group of gals we had!

Sampling of the pages they colored courtesy of the birthday girl, whose these are. 

These cupcakes were incredibly easy to make.  These were actually one of the main reasons we wanted a  Minnie party.  And we LOVE chocolate cupcakes with whipped cream frosting and then it's just the little and big Oreo's (that bday girl put on) with a bow.  Adorably easy and delicious!!  

I can't believe I didn't get pics of the favors!  They turned out SO cute--and also easy which added to the cuteness!!  I did little clear bags with a small bag of pink or purple Skittles (clearance from Easter), Jellie Bellies that were black, white and different shades of pink and pink & silver Kisses (also clearance from Easter).  They were so stinkin' cute!

Each girl also got to choose a Minnie necklace that I'd made.  I also failed to get a photo of all of them--they all turned out ADORABLE!!--but these are the two my girls chose.  Props to this photo for inspiration.

I loved that my birthday girl wanted to and did help with just about every piece of the party.  She is just the best.  What would I do without her snuggles, love and humor??!  

This is the loot from the family that she opened once everyone left and then we did sparklers also in celebration (and because Jeff and I were gone on the 4th and I HAD to still do sparklers with them).  I took her out to lunch at Costa Vida (a favorite in large part because of the Horchata) and we'd had a bday party with the hubs family a week or so before so all in all I'd say she had a fantastic birthday.  We celebrate her every day but birthdays are so fun to really go all out on while they are young and love it.  Plus I have a great excuse to get my craft on (it doesn't happen every birthday but when it does I eat it up)

Forever since a post

Sacajawea for the wax museum

Well done for last minute. She was making the headband the night before.

19th place at the state chess tourney

Rice Krispie cake anyone?  

I personally love the no frosting concept.

We started the party with chalking up the driveway which now has many birthday wishes for the birthday gal. Then they moved in for snacks followed by finding easter eggs with glow sticks in them in the dark downstairs.  After decorating themselves with the sticks they had a glow in the dark dance party/dance off and some glow games like ring toss & cups pyramid toss.  Then they goofed off with their glow stuff and hung out for a bit before presents and then cake.  A bit of a quiet group but fun still.

Fruit kabobs & chips & guacamole

Glow in the dark dance party!!

Lights on

Lights off

Living Room Makeover

I didn't have a good picture of the living room with our furniture (this is from the previous owners) but this gives you a good idea of the walls, etc.  I knew as soon as we bought the house that this room would be perfect for wainscoting but also that it wouldn't be first on the list.  Almost within two years is pretty good!

Prep time.  This takes a lot of time.

Cutting & rolling the bottom.  

I ended up doing this twice because the first white was too white.  I ended up mixing two colors to get the perfect white, but then later for the boxes Lowe's couldn't color match it so I had to mix again. 

Putting on the top color

The room stayed this way for a while before we got up the nerve to cut boxes

A little dark, but this is once I got all the boxes measured, cut, glued together, glued & nailed onto the wall and caulked and wood filled.  Oi!  SOOO much work!

Ahhhhh!!!  I LOVE it!!  So worth all the hours spent devouring blog tutorials, choosing a style, picking out wood, measuring, cutting, gluing, taping, painting, caulking, measuring, nailing, more gluing, more painting, more cutting, more measuring, more caulking, wood putty, mixing, etc.  Now I get to find lighting, curtains and pictures.  As nice as it would have been to have it done by a pro I find it very fulfilling to turn out a successful project all on our own.

Here's a good before on this section

And after.  LOVE!!!!

XTERRA

Before the sprint start 

A fan

More fans

Finished the .5 mile or so swim. Made great time in the 60 degree water!

12 miles up the mountain later he's ready for the bike-->run transition

Feeling a bit tired.  Only 3.2 miles uphill to go.

DONE!!!!!

Before they were X-Men

Now they are X-Men.  Xterra.  Where the real men compete.  

Haha--am I a commercial or what?