Lydia's Elegant 12th Birthday

We've had some pretty fancy birthday parties this year, including Lydia's birthday party. It isn't every day that a girl turns 12. We decided to have an evening of elegance and refinement. We sent fancy invitations and asked the girls to dress up. Lydia chose to wear her southern belle costume. The girls started out the evening playing croquet.

All of her friends dressed so beautifully. One of the girls even had an Austen inspired dress made just for the party.

Adelle was excited she could join in the fun. She wore an Arwen dress that Wes made for Lydia years ago.

Speaking of Wes, he was wonderful and kept Violet entertained. She really wanted to run off with the croquet balls.

It was a pretty hot afternoon so the girls decided to delay the game in favor of dinner. The tables were set up outside with linen table clothes and fancy punch glasses. We even picked up some fancy sundae cups. Wes and Lydia composed and printed off menus. Each entree had a french name, with descriptions in English. Each of the girls could choose a drink, sandwich and choose what type of sundae they wanted. I made several different punches and had a few different sodas. The girls could choose an egg salad sandwich on wheat toast, chicken salad on a croissant, or ham and cheese on a roll. The tables also had luscious strawberries with a sweet vanilla dip, and a cheese ball with crackers.

For the desert the girls chose the toppings of their choice. Lydia's was topped with a candle as well.

I was the waitress and I did a lot of running around taking orders, bringing food, and refilling drinks. I think this was probably the girls favorite part.

After dinner Lydia's friends showered her with gifts. They were so generous and sweet!

After presents the girls settled down to watch Pride and Prejudice.

The girls headed outside to finish out the night. The all practiced their fancy walking and waving.

Lydia had a wonderful time. She really is growing up so quickly and I am just so proud of her. It will be a night to always remember.

Lydia and her Choir

On December 16 Lydia performed with her school choir. They put on a great show and sang some fun songs. They sang classic Christmas songs and some silly songs as well, like "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer". Lydia was even chosen to sing a solo. Her voice rang out so beautifully and clear! I am so proud of her.

After the performance the kids had a short party complete with karaoke and tons of food. By the time Lydia got to the treat table though it had pretty much been cleared out! It is pretty crazy how much 4th, 5th, and 6th graders can eat. Lydia still managed to come home pretty sugared up! It has been fun to watch her sing in the choir. It enjoyed being in choirs as a kid and it is fun to see her picking up the tradition. Her voice is getting stronger as time goes by as well! Way to go Lydia!

School Days

Both of my girls were excited to start school this year. Adelle is going to a different school than last year and she gets to take the bus! Even though she is on the bus for almost an hour she absolutely loves it!! She is quite the social child so the she enjoys visiting with her friends. Whenever I ask her how school went she says she can't remember. After coaxing her I usually get the most information about lunch and recess. She says her class if fun though. She gets a new "job" every week and her teacher sends her home with fun projects every so often. The first project we had was to find a pattern in our home or yard. She was even sent home with a disposable camera so we could take a picture of it. We bent the assignment a little and decided to go for a walk where we found the yellow and blue pattern of the high school track. I am excited that Adelle is enjoying school this year and that she isn't bored. Lydia is a 6th grader if you can believe it! She is quite grown up and mature. She has the same home room teacher as last year which helped with the beginning of school anxiety. She really likes her teacher and was especially glad she also has her for math and even for science currently. She has decided to take Violin lessons again this year. The only problems we've had so far is with some of the social issues with certain girls. Why can girls of this age be so mean at times? Lydia and I have had a lot of good discussions and I've given her lots of hugs. I remind her of how much we love and appreciate her. I know it probably isn't quite the same. I think she will rise above everything that is happening though.

I am so proud of both of my girls and can't wait to see what this school year will bring.

Lydia's Friend Party

The Friday after Lydia's birthday she had a party with a few of her friends and her cousin. It was Lydia's first birthday party with friends. We usually have just had parties with family members. She was so excited. All the girls and our family got swimsuits on and headed to the pool by our home. We were lucky enough that it ended up being a free swim day! It was the first time for Violet to go swimming. She seemed afraid of the water at first, but then she warmed up to it.

Lydia acts different around her friends! She is usually pretty quite around most people outside the family. She was quite playful and silly. The girls all had a really fun time swimming. We then headed home for pizza. Then the girls watched the new "Alice in Wonderland" in a tent in the backyard. Carly headed home part way through the movie since she had family plans in the evening. The rest of the girls, except Adelle, started their night sleeping in the tent. Adelle was devastated that she couldn't join in with the girls. It reminded me of when I was little.

The sleepover started well enough, but then Lydia's cousin got scared at 2:00 AM so all of the girls headed downstairs to finish out their night. Wes made the girls a special breakfast in the morning of pancakes, bacon and orange juice.

The party ended about 12:00. Lydia loved spending time with her friends!!

Lydia's 11th Birthday and Grown Up Milestones

June 22nd was Lydia's 11th Birthday. Wes and I were busy with work during the day. After work the girls had swimming lessons. Then we hung out at home and celebrated Lydia's big day. Lydia asked for an alarm clock. How many children would ever ask for that? I thought I might get her a cool one which she could dock her I-Pod in, but after looking at prices I figured just a basic alarm clock would work. Besides she said she just wanted one where she could see the numbers in the dark. We also gave her some sketching paper since she really has been into drawing different girls.

I also got a CD of her new favorite band, Owl City.

Lydia was super happy to get the last book in the Fablehaven series. She has wanted it for the longest time. She read it in just a few days.

I surprised Lydia with fake nails and makeup. She has gotten the nails before from relatives, but never grown up makeup. She had been wanting make up for a little while. Especially since all her friends have been wearing it. I got some very subtle shades of gloss, blush, and eye shadow. I figure we can get darker shades as she gets older. The Sunday after her birthday her and I sat together and I showed her how to properly apply her makeup. She was so excited! It makes her feel more grown up.

For dinner she requested Macaroni Turkey Bake. For dessert she requested her grammie's butterscotch brownies. I still have her recipe book from ages ago so I went ahead and made them especially for her.

The rest of us all shared in the sweets too!

After dinner and dessert Adelle kept bringing up toys of hers that she wanted to give to Lydia as presents. We finally convinced her to stop and instead so Adelle wouldn't be sad Lydia borrowed a stuffed snake for the night.

I can't believe how much Lydia has grown. Her presents this year reflect how much she is changing. Gone are the days of dolls, barbies, and toys. Instead it is requests for jewelry, clothes, makeup, music and books. I do like the relationship we have now. We are able to talk pretty freely and she often confides in me. I did embarrass her pretty badly at the airport though last week so hopefully she will still love me :)

Lydia and her Violin

Recently Lydia had her orchestra concert at her school. She did great! It was great to see the progress that was made by the orchestra from earlier in the year. Lydia's Dad even flew out to see her. Lydia also auditioned and was chosen to sing at the talent show with one of her friends. They were excellent! It is amazing how much Lydia is growing up. I am grateful that she is open and will talk to me freely about the things that are happening in her life. She often looks to me for advice and I hope that continues for a long time. I love my grown up girl!

Ice Princesses

The girls began ice skating lessons last week. Overall they seem to be enjoying it.

Adelle started out with a snazzy walker. She got a little frustrated without the walker last night and sat on the ice for half the time. I reminded her of the saying "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again". She had used the phrase one me earlier in the day while I was trying to practice for the math entrance exam.

Lydia was pretty wobbly her first lesson, but she is just getting better and more confident with each lesson. I am so proud of both my girls! I am also excited that they are trying new things. Go girls!

Beauty Is...

That is the PTA reflections theme for the year. Both Lydia and Adelle decided that they wanted to enter something. Lydia took white sculpey clay and wire to make this flower. Once it had baked she painted it. She carefully packed it in a box to take to school this morning. She asked me "Are you sure it doesn't look like a 4 year old made it"? I assured her it looks great.

Adelle drew a sunset using some true to life crayons. I like that she chose the sun going down behind the mountain. That is what it looks like by our home since we have mountains just to the west of us. Both girls seemed to have a fun time making their creations. Maybe we need to have art time more often.

Lydia's New Glasses

I snapped this quick photo of Lydia before she headed off to school this morning. She finally got her new glasses! These are the ones she chose and I thinks she looks quite cute. I think she was a little nervous to see what the kids at school will say. I know the glasses are already making a HUGE difference on how well she can see. Yeah!

Lydia the Musician

Lydia came home a few weeks ago and informed us that her school offers music lessons. She really wanted to learn how to play the violin. We decided to let her go for it. We have rented a violin and the lessons at the school are actually free. I think it would probably be a good idea to enroll her in some private lessons as well. I hope her interest lasts and she doesn't grow tired of it. I decided to "practice" with her one Sunday evening. I bought a violin for myself about 4 years ago. I thought for sure I would be able to teach myself. How silly I was. Anyway, I think Lydia and I had fun going over some of the basics. Now if I only I could learn how to play more than just the 4 basic notes :)

I am excited for Lydia and I hope that the violin will be something that she will enjoy forever.

5th Grade!

So the day has finally arrived. It is Lydia's first day of school for the year and she is starting 5th grade. She looks like a little model thanks to a recent school shopping trip with her Daddy. Hopefully she will have a wonderful year! The crushes are already going on from last year. Why do my girls have to grow up so quickly? Adelle will be starting school in one week. *sigh* My world is changing!

Let the Projects Begin

So the projects have officially begun. Friday night Wes and I printed off prints on nice ivory paper and sat around for a few hours to hand color them. This I am sure is the easiest project we will have for Violet's room. We decided on these four prints. The great thing about these John Tenniel pictures is that they are now in the public domain since they are more than 100 years old and that we can use these pictures free of guilt that we are violating some copyright. Wes used more subtle colors with various shades and complex colorings. Wes used to paint and do all sorts of art before law school sapped most of his creative energy.

I of course have never taken art classes and was at first afraid to color something that would be on my daughter's wall for years, but I went for it anyway. Not to bad, even if they are different from Wes' pictures above.

Now I just need to find some frames.

Then Saturday my mother-in-law and myself set out for HOURS to get supplies for the cross stitching and the bedding set. I left the house at 9:30 AM and didn't make it back until 6:00 PM. I was exhausted after going to a specialty cross stitch store, three Joann stores (including one in Orem), South Towne Mall and Ross. The last two stops were for a baby shower present. By the time we got back home I could hardly stand anymore. My mother-in-law really was sweet and I appreciated her help. Wes, Ellen and I even sat around for a few hours after dinner to prepare my stitching floss for the project. I had to buy 100 different colors for this massive thing! Thank heavens for people who love me despite my insanity.

Ellen has decided to cross stitch the Alice and the Cheshire cat picture and I am going to cross stitch the White Rabbit picture. After really looking at the size of these projects I have realized that it is very likely that they will not be on the wall for some time to come. It may be years, but I'm not giving up. I calculated the costs of the project and honestly I could have bought a really nice print for the amount of money that has already been sunk into the project. That is another reason I shouldn't quit. Besides, I am finding that I am enjoying it most of the time. I hate it though when I make a mistake and have to unstitch work that I have already done, but I am learning. Right now it looks like a few small color blobs on a very large piece of fabric. I know it will look amazing when I am finished, and readers...I will finish.

Wes has began work on the bedding set for Violet. We were able to find a beautiful print fabric. I think it will go great with the theme. Wes is planning on making the baby quilt, bumpers, a crib bed skirt and two fitted sheets. I know he will get these projects done on time because he is a master when it comes to sewing. I guess at least my girl will have a cute bed set and some Alice pictures on the wall. Hopefully we will be able to at least make the tea cup lamp as well.

Of course these are not the only projects we need to undertake. I have not forgotten about my beautiful girls that I already have and their big move to the family room in the basement. There is painting to be done and some furniture that needs sanding and re-painting. There is also organizing and trips to the DI to plan. I can't do most of these things like the painting and furniture. I can't move heavy things, but I can organize. One of these days we'll get a jump on everything.

At least the projects keep us busy. I usually have a hard time just sitting around not doing anything. I like to feel useful, even if I'm really just running around in circles sometimes. I am hoping that my girls' spaces will look amazing when we are all done!

Lydia the Great!

So school has officially ended for the year and I am so proud of my girl. She got 100% attendance for the year, straight A's, a Gold Medal for reading, and 100% on all of her spelling tests for the year. Since she did so well we took her out to her absolute favorite restaurant. Tepanyaki! It is expensive, but that is what we promised her if she got 100% spelling for the year. We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed watching the chef prepare our meals right in front of us. Lydia totally deserved it! We love her so much!!!!

Adelle found a vent and was our own little Marilyn Monroe.

Congrats again Lydia! You're my hero!!