Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Presents, Presents, Presents

Jaden bought these Hannah Montana flip flops & wallet with her gift card from Paula

Opening up one of Grandma Frances' gifts (pink legos)





opening one of the gifts that I got for her (from mommy & daddy) - It is similar to the one that I had when I was small- She can copy the pictures & match up different outfits to make different dolls.
Jaden did this by herself- not bad tracing for a 5 year old!!
Jaden shares all of her stuff with Morgan.
Morgan just scribbled on the page, but she still liked doing what Jaden was doing.
a present that I wasn't able to wrap...
Aunt Janet gave Jaden a world globe! This will come in handy when we are doing school work and discussing other countries!!





Another present from Grandma Frances- regular Legos to mix with her pink ones
The second gift I bought for Jaden is another toy similar to what I had when I was little. I was going to get her the styling head with brown hair and tan skin, but I was able to get this one for $20 less... So, I don't think it is that big of a deal. I usually pick the dolls that look most like her, but one blond hair doll won't kill her.


Kate got this for Jaden. Kate was sick, so she wasn't able to come to the party. She sure knew what to pick... How did she know what Jaden would like??? Oh yeah, maybe it is because they are the same age!
Jaden putting on the lipstick from Kate- notice her blue hair... The blue was in the makeup kit, too. It is "hair mascara".








Grandma Leslie & Grandpa Lyale got Jaden a bike seat for her baby (check out her makeup that she still has on)

Jaden had a great birthday! She is very excited to be 5 years old! So many new and exciting things are coming up for her! She is doing her schoolwork & LOVES it!!! She is learning to read, working on her handwriting, math (addition & subtraction), science, geography, and Spanish. She will be losing her 1st tooth soon. It is really loose already! She is growing up so fast!! Looking back at her baby pictures, it is hard to remember her at that age.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Loving their cousins






Lastly, to wrap up Jaden's 5th birthday party, both girls enjoyed playing with the 2 cousins that were able to make it to the party. Gavin and Morgan are the same age, and he is my cousin Nicole's little boy. Kasey is 10, and is LeCount's sister Roxanne's daughter.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Opening Presents

Morgan got 2 pairs of shoes from Kasey & Aunt Roxanne (and a reusable bag)!

Jaden showing off dresses from Grandma Leslie and Grandpa Lyale

Jaden hugging the stuffed dog she got from Kasey & Aunt Roxanne
This is the dog carrier (above)
Gavin, the Petersons and Peads gave Jaden a dress, jump rope, and jewelry

Jaden had a lot of fun opening up presents at her party. She got a $10 gift card from Paula, and some money in the mail from others that will be mentioned later. Since her birthday technically wasn't until 4 days after the party, I saved the rest of the presents for later... So, you will see her open up the other presents in future posts. Stay tuned...

Friday, August 7, 2009

Birthday Activities

Gavin putting his home-made body glitter on his grandma (Aunt Carol)
Jaden making body glitter
Check out Gavin's huge lolli-pop! It was so big that it folded over!!
Look at that BIG Lollipop!!!

Getting the candy ready to make the lollipops
Kasey, Morgan & Jaden taking the candy out of the wrappers to make their lollipops.
The candy laid out on the pan before going into the oven.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Trofast from Ikea







It is very difficult to impress me with high ticket items (things that would cost me over $100). However, with our storage issues & organizational problems, these have caught my attention. Especially, since we are home-schooling, we need a better storage system. I am not sure how I got on the Ikea mailing list, but I got their catalog the other day. I finally opened it to the children's IKEA. My mouth dropped open when I saw the coolest system that could solve most of our storage problems. The cool thing about this system is you can make it as big or as small as you need... Plus, for people like me who can't afford to buy a HUGE system (even if I need one), you can buy it a few pieces or one piece at a time. Now, I don't know when I will be able to buy my first piece, but I am working toward that goal. I am already dreaming about the possibilities. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/search/?query=trofast&pageNumber=0

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Making lip gloss















I had the kids make their own lip gloss, & then, they gave make overs to Grandma Leslie, Aunt Carol & Nicole!!! The three lucky ladies came away from the party looking gorgeous, as you can tell ;0)
The lip gloss was made with vegetable shortening and kool-aid. They made grape, fruit punch, and orange flavors.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

I think this was Jaden's favorite part





Jaden was so excited to hear everyone singing to her and looking at her. I love to see her with her big, dimpled, & genuine smile!!

Books to read:

  • Diary of a Mad Mother to Be by Laura Wolf
  • Diary of a Mad Bride by Laura Wolf
  • The Nanny Diaries by Emma Mclaughlin and Nicola Kraus
  • Love in the Driest Season by Neely Tucker
  • Restavec by Jean-Robert Cadet