The Last Day

Hi There,

Well, another summer has come and gone, and another school year it about to begin.  Am I excited?  Ummmmm, NO.  Haha!  No, I'm really not, because I don't like school work, and being homeschooled sort of cancels out the social advantages. :P  So, I'm going to enjoy my Last. Day. Of. Summer. :'(  Although I'm not excited for school, I'm of course going to do my best, get good grades, and have a good year. :)

Are you excited to start school?

End of Summer Sharing

Hi!

I don't know about you, but I am so sad that summer is almost over. :'(  I wish it would go on forever!!

To help reminisce our favorite summer memories, we want you to send us a paragraph or two telling us about your favorite summer memory.  We would love to see a picture too, so send us your short memory and a picture, and we'll have a wonderful collab post sharing all of our favorite summer memories!  Send your story and picture to:

americangirlgrace@yahoo.com

Sounds fun, right?  We can't wait!

Have a wonderful day!

Catching Up

Hi!

Since I hadn't posted for two weeks since my last post *bad blogger award goes to me* I thought I would post some pictures of what I've been doing the last couple weeks. :)

I got all dressed up and went to church with my friend. :)

My cousin came and visited us for a day, and we had so much fun!!

We made a DELICIOUS no-bake cake/pie thing, and oh my gosh was it good. :)  Check out the recipe here.

We had some friends over to swim, and had fun swimming in the pool and *attempting* to play ping pong. :P 

We also had our friends over for a sleepover, and yes, I fell asleep with by legs on the back of the chair. *bizarre sleeper here*

I also got to go to a water park with my friend, and we had SO MUCH FUN!!!!!  We are also total dorks around each other, which adds to the fun by about 1000%. :P :P :P

We have been having so much fun enjoying our last bits of summer, and we hope you have been, too. :)

We'd love to here about your end of summer fun, so leave a comment below and tell us about some of your favorite things about this summer!

Have a wonderful night!

Summer Sweets Giveaway and Review Sponsored by Minnie Kitchen! **CLOSED**

Disclaimer: This post contains a review

and giveaway of American Girl Doll food

provided by Minnie Kitchen.  All opinions

are my own.

Hi!

Who doesn't love a delicious summer treat?  Minnie Kitchen has generously sponsored us for a super fun AG summer sweets giveaway!

Isn't this cupcake realistic?

And these cookies.... Too cute!!

Isn't it the perfect size? 

Love it!!

They are just way too realistic and cute!!  Amazing!!

Let's talk about the cupcake first. :)  This cupcake is THE cutest!!  The frosting is amazingly realistic (seriously, it looks good enough to eat!), and the sprinkles MUST be real.  It is the perfect size for your doll, and the mint green liner contrasts perfectly with the vanilla cupcake and chocolate frosting!  I am IN LOVE with this cupcake, and so are my dolls! :P  Such a tasty treat!

These cookies are super adorable!  They could not possibly look any more realistic.  I mean, they totally look edible!!! :P  The pink frosting is, once again, perfectly realistic.  It seriously looks like somebody spread it on there with a knife!  This is such a special summer treat, and both my dolls and I LOVE them!!!

Here's how to enter for your chance to win:

1. You must be a PUBLIC follower of It's My Life.

2. You must have your parent/guardian's permission if you are under 18, as you will have to give me your address if you win.

3. Comment below with your name or nickname, and tell me what your favorite summer treat is.

4. Go visit Janet's shop, Minnie Kitchen, and take a look around.  Come back here and tell me which item is your favorite in your comment.

5. For extra points, put my button on your blog (+3), post about this giveaway on your blog (+5), pin this giveaway (+3), email 10 friends including me (+5), buy a bag from me; see this post (+20), buy an item from Minnie Kitchen (+20).  Make sure to comment below and let me know/leave me a link if you do any of these things. :)

Giveaway ends August 4, 2013 at 12 midnight PST.

Sorry, I can only ship to the US and Canada. :(

Winner will be decided by Random.Org.

Good luck, and thanks for entering!

P.S. A big thank you to Elizabeth for being our hand model today. :P

**Plate is not included in the prize. :)

7/11

Hey There!

HAPPY 7-Eleven DAY!!!!!!!  Do you know what that means?  Free slurpees!!!!!!!!  YEAH!!!!!!  7-Eleven opened on 7/11 (July 11th), so to celebrate 7-Eleven's birthday, we get free slurpees!  What a fantastic summer treat!  Make sure to go to your local 7-Eleven for a free slurpee!!!!

New Summer Design!

Hi!

What do you think of my new summer design?  I love all of the colorfulness!!! :P  Please vote on my pole on the right sidebar to tell me what you think of it!

Have a great night!

Summer Fun Contest!

Hi!

I have some super duper exciting news for you!!!!  We are having a summer fun video contest on our YouTube channel, FantasticalAGStudios!!!!  You could win an amazingly adorable dress for your doll from MandySewSweet!!!  We would love it if you'd enter, so please check out all of the rules and how to enter here!

Good luck, and have fun!!!

Where I've Been ~ Part 1

Hi Everyone!

Now that all of our guests are gone, it's time for me to tell you what I've been doing!

Before all of our company arrived, Lindsay and I made swimsuits for our dolls using My Froggy Stuff's video.  They turned out great!  We actually found the exact same socks that My Froggy Stuff used at Target on clearance for a $1.50.  We decided to use the other sock, too, and made a towel out of the upper part.  We cut the sock at the ankle for the towels (they were knee socks), so the foot part of the sock works as an ankle sock, and we were very proud of ourselves for not wasting any part of the sock.  Click here to watch the video on how to make the swimsuits.

We have been on several hikes, but that will be another post, because I have SO many pictures!

A few months ago, my grandmother (dad's mom) passed away.  We called her 'Muffin.'  Muffin had been coming to the lake since she was a little girl, and my dad and his brother and sister have been coming here all their lives.  Muffin didn't want a "funeral" and she wanted her memorial to be at Lake Tahoe.  Summer was her favorite season here, so everyone came this summer for a reunion and memorial for Muffin.  We went on a hike, and from where we were at, we had a beautiful view of the lake.  We definitely have her to thank for exposing us to this special place.  We read some of her favorite poems, and we all shared special memories and thoughts, and then we toasted to her with champagne (a favorite of hers) - of course, the kids had sparkling cider.  We all had a piece of chocolate (another favorite of hers).  It was very nice.  We were able to ride our bikes to our hiking spot, and it was a beautiful day.  We were lucky enough to have our spot all to ourselves that day; there were no other hikers during a special time of remembrance.  That evening we did her favorite summer BBQ, and followed that with her favorite desserts.  We shared memories and special times about her as a family.  We continued the memorial throughout the week by doing things that she loved and did with her children and remembering the special times they had.

When my aunt, uncle, and cousins were here, we did lots of fun stuff!  In our family, we have a very special tradition; every year when they are here, we go to Sand Harbor.  My dad and his sister and brother went there every year when they were kids with their mom, so we've continued the tradition.  When we go to Sand Harbor, we always make Tuna Salad Sandwiches.  I haven't liked them for a long time, but this year I tried it again, and I really like them now!  We had a lot of fun at the beach, and the water felt really nice!

Other adventures throughout the week included rafting down the river, jet skiing, bike riding, and fishing.  I didn't want to go on the jet ski at first, but then I decided I would.  At first I was TERRIFIED!!  But then, near the end of my ride, I calmed down, and my dad went a little faster.  It became fun, and I had a great time!

Unfortunately, one of my cousins (the oldest) could only stay for a few days, because he had to fly back home to get back to work.  My other cousin really wanted to go fishing, so he bought a fishing pole, bait, hooks, and some other things to fish with.  We fished of the dock a little bit, and he caught a small fish, but he let it go, because it was too small to keep.  We decided to go to D.L. Bliss to fish, but even though we were there for hours, we only got one bite, and didn't catch anything.  That night, we went down to the pier, and right as we were going to leave, I asked if I could cast one more time.  I hooked a fish, and we reeled it in.  We decided to bring it home for a little appetizer, because we were pretty desperate.  We cleaned it up, and casted for a little while longer.  We hooked a few more (and lost them), but decided to go home, because it was getting dark, and it was starting to rain.  My dad BBQ'd it up for everyone and it tasted very good.  We were happy that we caught SOMETHING, even though it was only about a foot long!

Speaking of rain, my aunt loves it when there is a mountain thunderstorm, and we had a full on electrical storm!  It rained and thundered, and the lightning was incredible!  We stood out on the deck under the umbrella, and it was amazing!  Summer storms are pretty cool!

In the midst of all of this, Lindsay lost a tooth!  My cousin kept telling her: "just pull it out!" and she did!

On the last night of our reunion/memorial week, another aunt, uncle, and cousin arrived.  We were happy to have one night where everyone could be together and had a lot of fun.  It was a great visit!  I hope to see them again soon!

Here are some pictures:

 Elizabeth in the swimsuit I made her.  I made one for Audrey too, but I don't have any pictures.  Her swimsuit is the exact same as the one that My Froggy Stuff made.

So cute!

On the hike for Muffin's memorial.

My aunt reading poems.

 We continued our celebration of Muffin with a summer BBQ with her favorites, and her favorite chocolate ice cream (Sunnyside Brand "Death By Chocolate") and chocolate cake.  She loved chocolate!

 My aunt making Tuna Salad Sandwiches.

 Me going in the water at Sand Harbor.

I swam out to the tube with my dad and sister.

Lindsay in a raft.

Me on the jet ski with my dad.

It was a lot of fun!

Lindsay with her tooth.

Unfortunately, I don't really have a picture of the fish we caught that doesn't look kinda gross, so I'll just leave that to your imagination!

~Grace

4th of July and Catching Up

Hello Everyone!

First, I want to say THANK YOU to my new follower Jess!  I now have 4 followers!  I'm so excited!  Also, I started a "My Reading" tab, so now you can see what I'm reading.  I started from what I've read since June 1st.

Second, Happy 4th of July! (Late)  I hope everybody had a really nice day.  We went on a bike ride into town, hung out for a while, and went to our favorite pizza place.  Then, we went home and had yummy BBQ'd burgers.  Yum!  Later, we went into town again, (by car this time) and watched the fireworks show with some friends.  We were able to see 3 or 4 different fireworks shows from the beach we were at.  Of course, the only one that wasn't minuscule was the one we were up close to.  It was a lot of fun, and the fireworks were HUGE!!!  One really cool thing that we noticed was that the fireworks created a continuous echo in the basin.  It sounded like somebody was playing the drums.  It was really fascinating!  What did you do on the 4th?  Please leave me a comment and let me know.

I know I haven't been on a consistent post schedule, so let me bring you up to date:

At the end of June, I had a big Double Feature dance show.  Double Feature means 2 shows in 1.  We did "Don Quixote" (ballet) and "The Wizard of Oz" (every other style of dance that our studio does).  It was a lot of fun, but it was also a lot of work.  The shows were fantastic!

The past 11 days, our friends have been up at their cabin, which is right next door to ours.  We met them 3 years ago when they came up here.  We have been building a fort with them every summer.  It is kind of funny, because every year we are rushing to finish up the fort the day before they leave so we can play in it.  We call it "Fort Pine."  I guess we have more fun building the fort, than actually playing in it.

Last week, a friend took us on a beautiful hike in the Desolation Wilderness.  We started out in the forest, but then it transitioned into gigantic slabs of granite.  We kept going back and forth between hiking in the forest and on granite "plains."  To mark paths, people make "trail ducks,", which are little stacks of rocks.  Our friend was teaching Lindsay and I about finding the trail and had us go in front and lead everyone.  I did pretty well, so I was in front for most of the time.  We found a nice spot to eat our lunch right next to a stream.  The water was fairly warm, and we walked around and explored for a while.  When we finished eating, we went to a swimming hole that was up a little further.  Right above the swimming hole, there was a little pool of water that was warm.  We called it "the bathtub."  It was so beautiful and fun to swim in!  I have never swam in a natural swimming hole, so it was extra special for me personally.  My mom found a caterpillar, and we all found it so interesting and fun to hold.  Except Lindsay.  She was very scared, and didn't want to hold it at first.  She conquered her fears, and held it for quite a while, and discovered it was very fun to hold.  We were so proud of her for overcoming her fears and being okay with it afterwards.  It was such an amazing hike, and we plan on going back soon, because in a couple weeks, it will be blooming with wild flowers, and the water will be even warmer.  The hike was wonderful, and the scenery was absolutely gorgeous.

Also last week, we got to go on a boat ride on our friends' boat.  It was a lot of fun!  I even got to drive the boat a little bit in Emerald Bay, which is where we went.  We also retrieved 2 hats from the water.  One is a very stylish girl's hat that Lindsay was very excited about, because she loves hats.  It was pretty funny that we found 2, much less that we were able to rescue them from the lake!  After we got back, we had lunch on the little patio area on the top of their boathouse.  We then hung out and talked for a while, and I actually got a little bit tan!!!!  This is exciting for me, because it is very hard for me to tan without burning.  We had a lot of fun.

Here are some pictures:

I made 4th of July cupcakes for a BBQ.

Elizabeth in her patriotic colors!

Happy 4th of July!

This is a fun picture of my friends and I in our colorful costumes!

At the beginning of the hike by a little pond.

The granite "plains."

An interesting little lily we noticed.

If you look really closely, you can see a little lizard in the middle of the picture on the rock.

2 beautiful butterflies!

A swimming hole.

These are the roots of a fallen tree.

The big dark strip in the center is all water.

In "the bathtub."

Holding the caterpillar.

These are Hemlock trees.  John Muir named them "gossipers of the forest" because the tips of the trees are tilted towards each other like they are whispering secrets.

A trail duck.

Kooper sleeping in his crate.  He likes to sleep in there a lot, and I thought this was sooooo cute!

There was a bear in our backyard the other morning eating carpenter ants out of a rotten log.  He is so cute!

We have had a really nice summer so far. We have been doing lots of fun stuff, and we plan to do more. Have you done anything fun this summer, or do you have any plans? Please comment and let me know! :)

~Grace

P.S. I don't have any pics of Fort Pine right now, but I will take some soon. :)