You can read a summary of the book below. Emily’s favorite part about the website is that she can read, “Lauren’s Blog” and catch up on what is happening in her life.

“Meet Lauren McKenna, an inspiring eight-year-old girl with dreams in her heart and stars in her eyes. Her life revolves around her family, and around their home, a stately old mansion called Hailey grove, nestled on the outskirts of the small town of Hailey Hollow. As Lauren faithfully writes her thoughts and feelings in her diary, from the mysterious clues awaiting her at the end of a daring treasure hunt to the birth of a young girl’s courage, they magically unfold in the stories she tells. She writes about her first giddy crush and she shares life’s most enduring lessons. Lauren’s diary holds secrets she wouldn’t even tell her best friend…”

Emily and I both LOVE Michaels.  In fact it is pretty dangerous to go in there as we have a tendency to “overshop”.  Since Emily would like to get more serious about the craft segment of Emily Rose TV – I was doing some research online and came across a FREE American Girl craft event at Michaels.  You can make this adorable American Girl Flower Card for absolutely free!  It’s this Saturday in ALL US stores so mark your calendars.

Here’s a guest post from my wonderful assistant Nina. What do you reminisce about?

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The drive to our destination took too long and the drive on the way home was a breeze. I guess when you’re excited, time passes by really really slowly. I used to love the gas station stops. There was one particular gas station that was an absolute hit with all of us kids. It had a mini-park! I would spend the entire stop see-saw-ing or riding the swing. Once we get to the beach, it would be lunch time and wow, it was a great challenge for me to sit and eat when the waves were calling!!! My mom wouldn’t let us swim immediately after eating because she said our bodies needed to digest the food before we can engage in other activities. That used to drive me nuts! All I wanted was to don my swimsuit and ride the waves, feel the wet sand on my feet and pretend I was Ariel (from The Little Mermaid).

You don’t realize how much you will miss something – until its gone (or in this case, you don’t get to do it as often). That is why this year, I am organizing a beach trip with my family! But this time around, I will be the one with the checklist.

Its very easy and Felicity provides step by step instructions on how to create these hairstyles. Your little girls will love trying these hairstyles on their dolls!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKE2WutIu6c

Materials

- Two thirds yard of nylon net that is 42 inches wide.
- One quarter inch elastic that is one half inch longer than waist measurement.
- Decorations for the finishing touch.

Construction

1. I used a stiff nylon net material in a strip 11 inches by 42 inches (the width of the nylon net).
2. Fold the netting in half on the long edge so it is 5.5 inches wide and 2 layers thick.
3. I recommend the fullness to be 7 times the waist measurement of your doll. So, if she has a 12 inch waist you’ll need to make the width 84 inches. That would be one more piece like in number 1. This gives your doll a nice full skirt. There is no need for a side seam because of the fullness of the skirt and additionally, nylon net does not ravel.
4. Next, sew a casing for one quarter inch wide elastic along the folded edge by stitching in one half inch from the folded edge.
5. Measure your doll’s waist and cut a one quarter inch wide piece of elastic one half inch longer for overlap.
6. Thread elastic through casing and stitch elastic closed. Again, you do not need to sew netting together because it is so full.

Head on over to BellaOnline for the full article!

The title of this post translates to “Submarine”. Who knew that something so simple could cure ills, relieve travel fatigue and cheer disappointments. At our first stop in Buenos Aires Emily asked in very good Spanish for a “Chocolata Caliente” (I may have spelled that wrong), or a “hot chocolate”. She was very disappointed when the waitress informed her that she did not have hot chocolate but she did have “Submarinos”. We didn’t know what it was but we were feeling adventurous so we agreed to try it. Well guess what? It is a hot chocolate… but a FUN one. The waitress delivered a glass of hot steamed milk, a plate of little chocolate cookies and a bar of dark semi-sweet chocolate. You stir the chocolate in to the milk and “voila”… hot chocolate! That is if you can keep from eating all of the chocolate before you stir it in! We spent a significant portion of the remaining trip visiting all of the tiny kiosk sweet shops looking for the exact bar of chocolate to bring home. We were successful in finding exactly 17 of them (they were only a few cents each) so Emily is going to have to ration her submarino intake over the next few months.

But guess what? As soon as we got home we tried it with a regular bar of semi-sweet chocolate and it works! We don’t have a cappuccino maker or any product with a steamer (if you do that’s the best way to serve the milk) so we microwaved instead. Emily has also included a quick recipe on Emily Rose TV. Enjoy!

Here’s a cool post on how to make a purse for your American Girl doll from wikihow.  I love, love this craft.  It is so easy to follow – especially with all of the photo instructions and it is so adaptable.  You could use very inexpensive craft shop felt (good if you want to practice first) but you could also use left-over fabric or even an old fancy pillow case – or the extra hem you cut off of your curtains  Since the fabric requirements are so small it really opens up opportunities for experimentation.  Why not give your American Girl ® doll a purse to match every outfit?  The same goes for the trim.  Sequins anyone?  Ribbons?  Beads?

If you and your daughter have a try at this craft we would love to see your results.  You can send them via email or post to our Facebook page.

I can see our Emily Rose @Home consultants adding pre-stitched versions of these little purses to their parties.  Just bring hot glue and a box of beads and sparkly things and the girls can decorate their hearts out!