Christmas Musical 2012

Paige was part of the Children's Christmas Musical this year at church as part of the Choir.  The kids worked really hard and it went really well.  And I was lucky enough to be able to hold/play with a 3 week old and an 18 month old during the practices and performances!

Thanksgiving 2012

We got the family together at Justin's Grandma's Sisters house in Auburn again this year!  As usual, we had a great time.  We took Grandma & Joseph, Tyler & Stan up the day before.  We stayed in a 2 bedroom suite at the Residence Inn for two nights.  And the next day we went Ice Skating with the Kids on Paige's actual birthday! 

A Fancy & Faboulous Fifth Birthday Party

Paige was turning 5 this year.  We started brainstorming months before about what she would like to have for a party.  She loves princesses, dresses, barbie, anything Pink, etc but we could not decide on a theme!  But then I stumbled across a blog with this "Fancy & Fabulous Fifth Birthday Party" and we started designing & planning.  I have to say, I may not really like the color pink and I am far from fancy myself, but I had a great time planning and executing this party.

Invitations:  I designed this on my computer and had them printed out like papers.  Of course, I put them in the mail to over 20 kids (I love getting mail so I insist on having real invitations)

Decorations:  I made a ton of Paper flowers, a "Paige" banner from Coffee filters and Craft paper, and we used lots of Pink, White, and Zebra print Crepe paper.

Food/Drinks:
We had a food Table that included:
A Barbie Cake with Pink Cupcakes
A Punch Fountain filled with Pink Lemonade
Individual Veggie Dips
Fruit Skewers (With pineapples in the shape of a heart)
Veggie Pizza
Pancake Bites (Blueberry & Chocolate Chip)
Mini Cream cheese and jelly pinwheel sandwhiches
Mini Turkey & Cheese Sandwiches cut in the shape of stars & hearts
We also had little waters available

The Favors:
We had a table with decorated bags to fill/shop with.  There were:
Tiarras
Feather Boas
Bead Necklaces
Fans
Rings
A wand
And Princess Tatoos
(The two boys also had Hot Wheels in their gift bags and Pirate Patches)

 Activities;
When the kids first arrived they were invited to fill their gift bags with their items so they wouldn't forget them later.  They were also allowed to put on any items they wanted to wear.  Then they could go to Paiges room for a Photo shoot area with dress up items.  That part was easier for the first few children, but by the time all 18 or so kids arrived, it was too chaotic.  After everyone had arrived, I took the kids out front for some games.

Game # 1: Balancing a Banana race.  We lined up 3-4 kids (Tried to get at about the same level in each round) at a start line.  They had to get to the finish line while balancing a banana on their head and the person who one got to pick out a prize.  The other kids got another opportunity after all the kids had gone.  Almost all of the kids who wanted to play got a prize.

Game #2: Bippity Boppity Boo (Think duck duck goose with different words).  Once they got the hang of it, they had a blast.

Then we headed back in for food.  Since our house is small and there were so many people we had a picnic in the Living room.  After food, we sang happy birthday and had cupcakes.  Then Paige opened her presents and the kids all played until their parents (the ones who had left) showed up until our house was empty again!

Overall- The party was a success.  All of the kids seemed to have a good time, even the two boys (Who's sisters were also there).