Isabel, The Owl

As you know I have been working on my daughter's "big girl" room for quite a little while now, I wanted to wait until it was completely done before sharing it with you all. Life has gotten in the way though, and I haven't been able to spend as much time working on it as I would like. I am still in search of the perfect rug, owl lamp, and knick knacks for the shelves, and dresser. I don't want her room to be too cluttered though, because it's a tiny room!

 

One of my most favorite additions to her room is the hand painted tree mural I painted on the wall, also I added three shelves to the tree to make it fun, and functional. I needed to now find some items for the shelf! There's a picture, and small picture frame with a picture of mommy, and daddy, a small owl coin bank, a book (I'm looking for a couple of more books that she could read), and her newest friend Isabel, The Owl.

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 She is just so adorable!! We love her so much, and she is named after my grandmother, Isabel:)

 

I found the amazing shop Lou Loves This while searching for handmade dolls via Etsy. I saw the beautiful dolls, and just knew I had to have one for my daughter. I contacted the shop owner, Louise to see if she could make an owl (we love owls) that matches my daughter's big girl room. She was so sweet, and excited to be able to create this special friend for my munchkin. I sent her a picture of my daughter's room, so she could get the feel I was going for and the colors involved. She drew up a sketch, and Isabel was born. She is so perfect, exactly what I envisioned:)
Visit Lou Loves This Blog to see more of her amazing work, to see some of the sketches she makes to create these one of kind beauties, and tutorials for adorable items, like a cute little pin cushion.
Louise is extremely talented, and such a joy to do business with! I cannot say enough good things about her. I am so blessed to have found her, and so very thankful she was able to create something that my daughter, and I will cherish forever:) Thank you Louise!

Jaelyn & Isabel

 

 

 

 

 

Hello Kitty 4th Birthday Party

 

My hubby put me on a $200.00 budget for our daughter's 4th birthday, because we had a HUGE circus birthday party for her 3rd, about 100 people, and spent about $700.00! We have also decided to take her to Disney World for her 5th, so this party had to be affordable , and small.

 

My daughter, Jaelyn wanted a Hello Kitty party, which turned out well because she already had a lot of Hello Kitty toys I could use for decor.

We had about 30 adults and 10 kids. I choose to stick with the Hello Kitty theme, and served Japanese/Asian food, since she is Japanese made:)

 

The menu:

Chicken Yakitori (chicken on a stick with a sweet sauce)

Chicken fried rice

Egg rolls

and handmade California rolls

 

Cupcakes

vanilla candy melts covered fortune cookies with sprinkles

and Marshmallow, and fruit kabobs

 

Tea

Fruit punch

and water

 

The food is what took up most of the budget, because there was 40 people to feed. I managed to keep it around $140.00 for all of that, with the help of Sam's Club, discounts, and coupons:) I could of saved more had I made the cupcakes, cake, and fried rice myself, but I was already pretty busy with everything else, and didn't want to overwhelm myself. I bought 2 bags of chicken thighs at Sam's for $10.47/ bag, which is 12lbs of chicken, cut it all in small pieces, and put 5 pieces/skewer. I found a chicken yakitori sauce recipe online, and my hubby and uncle grilled them.

I also purchased 2 boxes of fried rice $8.98/box, and 2 boxes of egg rolls $7.98/box

I made California rolls: From Kroger I purchased 1 package of nori, 1 pack of crab meat, a cucumber, an avocado, sushi rice, and seasoned rice vinegar, enough to make 8 rolls (64 slices) about $20.00 for the California rolls.

I got 3 dozen cupcakes, and a "smash cake" from Walmart for $30.00

vanilla candy melts $2.49

Sprinkles from the clearance Valentine section at Walmart

Marshmallows, and fruit from Kroger. I cut the watermelon in thick slices, and used a small heart shaped cookie cutter to cut cute hearts out. I also got a gallon of tea, a gallon of fruit punch, and bottled water for drinks.

For the activities I made a Hello Kitty pinata for $3.69, and made a pin the bow on Hello Kitty, using poster board, and scrap paper. My little sister did some face painting, and tattoos on the kiddos.

For the decor I borrowed tables and chairs from friends, and family. I used some left over pink plastic table cloths from another party, and white plastic ones for the runners. I made 4 centerpieces for the tables. Red, white, and pink pom poms, in pink and red Chinese takeout boxes. I used my cricut, and Hello Kitty cartridge, card stock, ribbon, and tulle to make the Happy Birthday banner, name banner, cupcake toppers, and cake topper. I got all the plates, napkins, forks, and tissue paper for the pom poms at Walmart all for $1.00 each (they have a great party section) and red and white striped paper straws from the Michael's dollar section. I also found cute chopsticks to add to the theme. I used Hello Kitty coloring rolls from the dollar section at Michael's to make an awesome backdrop for the food, and over it made, and hung red, white, and pink tissue paper pom poms. For the dessert table I used my red and white tabletop tent to add a little drama (it was only $19.99 when I purchased it years ago)

The kid's party favors were mini takeout boxes filled with candy, a Hello Kitty Crayon, and a Hello Kitty stamp. They also got a Hello Kitty notepad, and pencil.

You don't have to spend hundreds to have a fabulous birthday party, I made almost everything, and used toys, and stuff we had around the house to decorate. I used my white platters, and glass mason jars to make it seem a bit fancier and less DIY;) The only thing that matters though is what my kiddo thinks, she had an amazing time, and thought her birthday party was beautiful.
Thank you to all my friends and family that came, making my baby feel extra special on her birthday. <3 We are so blessed to have such amazing people in our lives <3