Where has Katelyn gone?

Hello everyone! I have returned! There are several reasons why I have disappeared for most of the month of January:
1) School started and I have been really busy!
2) There's a big violin concert coming up this spring, so I have almost doubled my daily practice time, leaving me with little to no time to write a blog post.
3) We're getting ready for a big skating recital/performance this spring, so I'm working hard three nights a week at skate practice and once I get back I'm so tired I pretty much collapse when I get home.
4) It was......... MY BIRTHDAY ON WEDNESDAY!!!!!!!!!! Here're some photos from the morning of my birthday:

 On the morning of my birthday, I was suddenly awakened by a weird sound.

 I sat up. Why was there a tray in front of me with a delicious smelling breakfast on it.

 Then I remembered it was my birthday! "YAY!" I screamed.

 Mmmm... yummy food!

 After I swallowed my breakfast, I ran out to the kitchen, where there was a pile of presents on the table.

 "Can I PLEASE open some mom?" I asked. She agreed.

 I quickly grabbed the wrapped box that was closest to me and pulled the lid off.

 Inside it looked like there was a piece of fabric and a pair of shoes, but when I pulled it out, that fabric turned out to be...

 An ADORABLE dress. I love it!

 The next present was a board game called Cadoo. It's fun, you get to act things out and build things with clay. I'm not that great at it yet, though.

 The next present was actually a card from my sisters. At first I thought they'd flaked out on my birthday, (again), but when I opened it, it turned out to be some movie tickets for Saturday! I can't wait! Thanks you guys!

 The next present I grabbed was small and rectangular, I pulled it open,

 It was the Wizard Of Oz, one of my all-time favorite books! Yippee!

 It's a really nice copy too! I can't wait to read it (again)!

 The next present was too big to be a book, but too flat to be much of anything else. What could it be?

 I see Addy, and the American Girl logo, that must be a good sign!

 It turned out to be an Addy activity book. It has dolls, a reversible play scene, a craft and a short story about Addy. I can't wait to do some of the projects in there!

 Here's one of the scenes, Addy's school-house. Awesome!

 The last present was very big...

 I pulled off the paper, it was Kaya! Yay!

 Isn't she so pretty? She has very long braids. I think she's so pretty!

 I think she's just perfect!

 I love her!

So, here's a picture of everything I got for my birthday. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for another post about my family and presents from my extended family that arrived later.

My Entry

Hey you guys! In case you didn't know, Gabby at I Heart American Girl is doing a Girl of The Year Contest, where you can create a girl of the year for 2013! I've always wanted to do something like this, so here goes my entry:

Name: Jade Evans

Where She Lives: Moab, Utah

Hobby/Marketing Promotion: Music. She plays guitar and American Girl would promote the Music Education Department as a part of Shine On Now.

Books: Jade & Rock On, Jade

Meet Outfit: Orange, white and purple plaid dress with attached belt, jeggings and High Tops shoes. She comes with three orange and three purple beads in her hair.

Story:  Book 1: Jade: Jade Evans is born to rock! She loves to play the guitar, piano and sing. When her beloved music teacher Mrs. Mason comes back to school after having her baby, Jade couldn't be more excited, but soon that excitement dwindles to annoyance when she is put in the worst possible group for the music class's bands unit while her BFF Macie is in a group with her friends. Then, her annoyance turns to pure horror when she learns that because of budget cuts, the school district has to cut the music program from all elementary and middle schools in Moab. When Jade gets the idea to put on a music show to raise money for the the music department, she doesn't want any help, and insults her friends when she doesn't take their input and help. But, when Jade runs into trouble, she has to find a way to get her friends back and learns that sometimes accepting help is a good thing.

Book 2: Rock on, Jade: Proud to be the savior of the music program, and the girl who inspired her class to love music, Jade is finding that she's enjoying music more and more each day. So, when the new girl, Amanda, who Jade is not fond of, falls behind in music, AND makes mean remarks about music class, Mrs. Mason puts Jade in charge of helping her love music and pick her grades up. Jade can't believe it! While working together, Amanda is always rude to Jade and reluctant to do anything productive. Finally, Jade looses her temper and shouts at Amanda. Instantly feeling bad for being as mean to Amanda as Amanda is to her, but not knowing how to apologize to someone who is so awful to her, Jade keeps her feelings inside and continues being mean to Amanda. Jade's mother then tells Jade that Amanda has had a difficult past and that she's probably not proud of the way she treated Jade and her friends. Jade feels even worse. Soon, Jade realizes that music always helps her let feelings out and get her out of tough situations. Can Jade find a way that music can help her make friends with Amanda and apologize to her for treating her badly?

A New Bedroom! (At Least New to Me...)

So, I told you earlier that we were in the middle of a big renovating project, and now it's almost finished! Here's what went down: Rebecca has been complaining lately about having to share her room with me, so we decided to switch around. Initially, Rebecca was going to get a new bed, and I was going to share the bunk-bed with Kit. So really they were just switching rooms, but then Rebecca said she wanted to take her bed off the bunks (you can unscrew them), but what would Kit do? Then, Felicity and Elizabeth said they would share Elizabeth's room and Rebecca could take Felicity's and use her bunk off the bed. Which means.............. I GET A ROOM TO MYSELF!!!!!!!!! And, with Rebecca's bed gone, it could be a loft bed. Just like McKenna's! I was so happy! Here are some pics of it:

The overview of my new loft bed! Now I actually have the top bunk, and there is no bottom bunk!

 Here's under the bed. It's an excellent hang-out spot! We still need to add a bookshelf, bulletin board and a beanbag chair. Well, that last one's optional. But I really want one!

 My violin corner, now under the bed. I like how it doesn't take up as much space in my room as before.

 And now I have room for Licorice's play house. She loves it!

 Here's my dresser! I also keep my dolls up here.

 Last but not least, the top view of my bed. It's a little scary up there, but I'm getting used to it.

Well, that's my new and improved room! I really love it, and hopefully it'll just get better.

What I got for Christmas/New Years

I had a wonderful Christmas/Hanukkah/New Years (Rebecca celebrates Hanukkah, and the rest of us celebrate Christmas, so during the holiday season, we celebrate our own holidays, and then as a family celebrate New Years. We get individual presents on our own holiday, then do a family gift exchange on New Years. That way it's not so complicated). I'll start with my Christmas presents:

I got this AWESOME laptop from my mom. It's where I'm blogging from right now! I just LOVE the dragonfly decals, and the beautiful shade of blue it is. I love it so much!

I also got this ADORABLE outfit from my mom. It's way too cute! I love it! The shades of blue go together with the brown so well, and the diamond gem on the little belt/sash adds a unique touch.

Last but most definitely not least, I got Addy! She is so beautiful! I'd been eyeing her for a while before I got her, I thought her story sounded interesting, but wasn't sure if I wanted the doll, so I checked her books out from the library. As soon as I'd read them, I knew Addy was the doll for me. I asked for her and Cecile for Christmas, but I'm very glad I got Addy. She's absolutely stunning! 

Well, that completes my Christmas gifts. Now on to New Years, in no particular order:

 From Rebecca I got a little set of Russian dolls like the ones she got for Hanukkah. Sorry about the picture quality in these next few pictures, but Kit insisted on taking the photos with her new camera, which isn't the best...

 Speaking of Kit, she gave me a little notepad for writing stories and poems in, saying that I could be a great writer like she is (somehow I doubt that...) if I practiced writing a lot. Well, I might write in it a little, but I think it might be more for doodling than writing. Don't tell Kit!

 I LOVE these purses Felicity gave me. They're both very stylish and cool, and I can choose which one matches my outfit the best! I can't wait to go shopping now, and usually I hate shopping!

Finally, from Elizabeth I got this neat little radio/alarm clock, because I'm always late and she's says she's tired of having to wake me up in the mornings. Perfect!

It was a great Christmas/New Years/Hanukkah! But wait, there's one more thing....

Yesterday, our presents from my Grandma and aunt arrived...

 My present was very big and wrapped in pretty yellow paper. What could it be? Wait a minute.... could it be? Was it possible?

 I tore off the paper and my suspicions were confirmed. A tiny little face was staring up at me! EEEEEEEE!

 I couldn't believe it, two American Girl dolls in ONE holiday season?! I know I had asked for two, but I really hadn't expected to get them both! SOOOOOOOO EXCITING!

 Isn't Cecile BEAUTIFUL?! I love her so much!

 Look at her gorgeous curls! They might be kind of hard to care for, so I might need to let the doll queen Felicity help me keep them in good shape.

I got started on her book right away. Cecile and Emily were friends instantly. Sadly, Addy was visiting Elizabeth's dolls and couldn't meet her till later, but that was okay. They're really good friends now, and share a lot of stories about being AG's only African American dolls. Gotta go now, I want to finish reading Meet Cecile now! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!

An Update

Just to let you guys know, I probably won't be updating much today because we're in the middle of a massive renovating project that includes completely rearranging my room. Here's a hint: I get the room to myself now!!!!

My Room

 I'll admit it, our house is pretty small, but my sisters and I all have a place to sleep, which is good.

 This is the room I share with Rebecca. Small, but perfect for us.

Here's Beckie's top bunk (it's a mess!) You can see her three American Girl Dolls, Nellie, Kirsten and Molly, her cat, Licorice (who's not supposed to be on the bed!) and Felicity and Elizabeth's dolls who for some reason are hanging out up there.









Lastly, here is my violin corner (sideways, because I couldn't figure out how to rotate it). I love practicing violin here.













So, that's our room. It'll be making an appearance in some later posts as well.