8/13 through 8/24 Miscellaneous Fun Stuff

8•13 Taking Jenna to Costco resulted in her purchase of a bear. The $35 price tag was great, and she made the decision to purchase after listening to my caution about the bear being so big it would eventually be in her way and become annoying. Life lessons.

 8•14 Our desire to make Heather's 16th a huge celebration has just been split into all kinds of pieces. There was dinner and gifts on her birthday, the trip to Phantom of The Opera the following week, and the OMAM Concert this month. Today we finally got some brownies and her #16 candles on them. We'll just have a new hashtag that says, "Celebrate all year!" Luckily she's a happy girl.

8•15 Jenna was able to go to the temple to do baptisms with the Young Women today.

 8•20 Jenna grabbed some new chalk I purchased and created a driveway masterpiece. We were seriously impressed. Our neighbor was impressed too and asked her to recreate it on her driveway for an upcoming girls' retreat being held at her house. Go Jen!

 8•24 Our friend's son was married last week in Utah and had a California reception here.We met Smith and Tricia and their two kids, Jordan (age 12) and Rachel (age 8) when they moved into our neighborhood and ward.  That was eons ago when Jenna was just a baby. Jordan met a wonderful girl named Danielle, and after they both served missions for our church, they decided they were meant to be. We were so happy to help them celebrate!

The Phantom of The Opera

Tonight we went to see The Phantom of the Opera at the Pantages Theater in Los Angeles. We were able to find excellent $45.00 tickets, and we love the Pantages because every seat is spectacular no matter where you sit. We were in the mezzanine and loved the seats. It was so wonderful to have this experience as a family! Kelly and I saw this play when we were first married, and our girls have seen and love the movie, especially Heather. We all enjoyed the performance and were moved, even Jenna commented on how sad it was. We are so fortunate to share experiences like this with our girls, and what a great 16th birthday present for Heather. She brought some birthday money to purchase a souvenir and bought a diamond-esque studded mask. This was some great memory making for the Peterson clan.

Nails

Things are getting real.  Multiple colors purchased as well as a nail polish rack and nail tools. There is even an Instagram page to follow Jenna's creations. I love that she is so passionate about learning to do nails. Her Grandma Carol would like that. Jenna is so artistic too and not afraid to experiment. Love this girl and her talent!

Jenna's Creations - Hair and Nail Design

Jenna continues to wow us with her designs whether they be hair or nail creations. We've been impressed with her level of commitment to learning her craft. She has been collecting nail polishes and purchased a caddy and some tools to practice with. She finds designs and tries to replicate them, and she does a pretty darn good job. She paints on her self and this month she tried painting on a nail that wasn't on her hand. Her polish and designs change a few times during the week or whenever she's inspired to try something new.  I love her passion for this hobby and can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

Art Class Success!

Jenna had an idea to buy some white shoes and decorate them with markers.  She worked on her shoes in art class today, and they were a success!  Her teacher was so inspired, she designed some also.  I love Jenna's eye for creativity.  She has been really into creating designs for her nails and hair, and she has some great ideas.  I don't know if I would have had the courage to create on a pair of shoes!  She is quite spectacular, and we love this talent she has for taking care and making things beautiful.

Art Class Fun

Jenna is continuing to take art classes with my friend, Shea.  They come up with creative ideas and experiment with different mediums, and I love the out come.  Shea's studio, Make and Take Art, is a great place for exploring art, and Shea is fabulous.  You can find the studio website HERE.

December Artwork - Jenna and Sarah

The girls were only able to fit in one art class this month, and they finished a project they started during the last class.  Shea wants art to be meaningful to the girls as she introduces different mediums, so soccer cleats were perfect.  She taught the girls to position and draw their cleats, and the sketch was colored with oil pastel crayons.  Jenna isn't fond of hers because of the way the black reacted on the paper and smudged, but we are continually impressed with her work.

Art Class - Watercolor

Shea provided a watercolor project for the girls' last art class together.  They did a beautiful job.  We are  so proud of Jenna and excited to see what is next for her.  

Art Class - Pencil

Today's creations were kittens with pencil.  These girls are so talented!