Yuck, gross, and yep, yuck again....

We are sick... didn't I have to write a similar post back at Thanksgiving? UGH! It started with Micah, then Emerson, now me... I am really hoping to keep Lincoln healthy. So, I am not a post slacker, just an achey, fevered, sore throated, puking, migrained woman. We took Em to the doctor yesterday... just a virus, it has to run its course... yeah. So, I am off to get back on the couch...my kids are watching way too much tv, and I am lysoling every surface... hopefully we'll be back to normal for the new years weekend festivities... Thanks Chanel for checking on me... :)

A little non holiday to share...

So, my sister Patti and I decided not to buy gifts for eachother or our spouses and kiddos this year. We both felt the holidays should not be about the gifts... HOWEVER... her idea of us NOT exchanging gifts was to give the boys all giftcards to Amazon.com, and me an iPod... I think we should NOT exchange gifts more regularly. Now,she probably already had these items when I brought up the no gifts, but being the gracious and generous person she is, she agreed. (Cause she could've said... "No, dummy... I've already shopped for you guys..." But she is not like that. Clearly I am since the thought even crosses my mind...) ANYWAY... (wow, I am so long winded... at least I can cherish that I will never be called "curt"...I think its a weird little word anyway... but, I digress...) Soooooooo.... I was going to make them this for Christmas anyway, but put it off, but after the no-gift gifts, I decided to go ahead and get it to them... If you are Patti stop reading this... it will ruin your NGG (that is No-Gift Gift in case you missed it...) It is one of those Maya Road chipboard books... it gets all big and fat once you have everything in it, so I couldn't even close it. I tied it all up with some cool ribbon though. I did NOT sand the photos... I did however sand all the stickers, the circle journal spots, and such... :) OK, more holidayish stuff soon okay... plus I am going to show you all a lovely little RAK I recieved... it deserves it own post though so... bye for now...

Tagged by...

I am taking the TAG from "Brown English Muffin" although I am going to come up with a name for her is she doesn't give me something to call her soon. I am too slow a typer to keep typing out "Brown English Muffin" and let's be honest here... The abbreviated "BEM" sounds like some kind of bowel movement syndrome or something. LOL. Brown English... you know I am just pickin'. Don't get all "bloody" mad at me... okay, that was my attempt at British sarcasm... hope that's not like a curse word or something in England! (oh yeah, and you all are TAGGED if you read this. Let me know in the comments section if you do it.)

1.Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Egg nog, but just one cup, on CHristmas Eve...
2.Does "Santa" wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Wrapped of course!
3.Colored lights on tree/house or white? White...
4.Do you hang mistletoe? Yep. just got a new one from my sis.. any reason to trap Micah for a kiss is a good one!!LOL 5.When do you put your decorations up? The day after Thanksgiving... ALWAYS!!
6.What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? My mother in laws Broccoli Casserole
7.Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Going to cut down our own tree... 4 girls, one mother, lots of snide comments, and probably a curse word or two. That is the funny one. The other is singing at church on Christmas Eve... I loved the little candles!
8.When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? Ya' know, I don't even remember, so apparently it wasn't too earth shattering for me!
9.Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Not usually.
10.How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? White lights, "old fashioned" looking ornaments,this year we added hand painted eggs that I picked up in Austria. 10.Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it! I stay home and bake!!!
11.Can you ice skate? A bit...
12.Do you remember your favorite gift? Sony headphones in the 5th grade...man I thought I was so cool!!!!!!!!!!!
13.What's the most exciting thing about the Holidays for you? The spiritual realization of Christ's birth... it amazes me to think what He gave up to become a helpless baby... We also love the tree decorating, the extra time with family and friends, the happiness of it all...
14.What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Apple pie... I love it- But only HOME MADE!!
15.What is your favorite holiday tradition? I love getting the tree after Thanksgiving. I also enjoy our Christmas Eve dinner. Every year we have a tradtional German meal... YUM! (Sorry Miss Brown English Muffin, no mint jelly here... unless you want it on your sauerkraut???LOL)
16.What tops your tree? The tree topper is an angel that a former student's "Granny" made for me... I love it! 17.Which do you prefer: give or receive? I like BOTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL... remember I am a 4th child folks!!
18.What is your favorite Christmas Song? Away in the Manger. I love it especially this year as both boys sing it in the back of the car... so cute!!
19. Candy Canes? The honest truth... ugh,this is so humiliating.... I like Candy Canes after a few months in the cookie jar... they get softer and "chewy", and I love them that way. THERE! NOW YOU KNOW...I LIKE OLD,SOFT, CANDY CANES... I realize I may never hear from some of you again once you read that shockingly gross fact about me, but it feels good to come clean.... Happy Holidays... Here are some Holiday album pages... do they make up for the fact that I am a GOCCE? (Gross Old Candy Cane Eater)

Guess where I was????

Hey all... did everyone in Blogland miss me? (um, this is where you lie and say yes...) We went to...

Yep, Disney! We went to see my sis and my little nephew down in Florida. He is such a cutie. We even went to Disney and the Animal Kingdom. The boys loved it, even though they are a bit too young to really get it some of it. They were happy just to see it all really!!


The funny thing was, Lincoln got most excited about the "train" ride from the parking lot to the entrance!LOL. Then we took him into toon town and I said, "Do you want to go see Mickey Mouse's house???" He got all excited and said. "Oh YES!!!!" and started running towards it. He stopped and looked at me and said, "Who is Mickey Mouse?" i was laughing so stinking hard.




Then, he sat on Santa's lap, and when Santa said, "What do you want for Christmas?" He said, "Oh, nothing. We already have a tree, but thanks Santa! BYe!" and hopped off running back to me. He was so funny! The weather was CHILLY for Florida too, but it was perfect for going to the theme parks. I was originally going to try and take Ali's classes in Tampa, but thanks to Jury Duty we had to cut the trip short, plus I felt bad taking a whole day of our mini-vacation and leaving Micah with all the kiddos... Here is the BEST part...we get home and ... yep, you guessed it... Micah did NOT even have to go down for the stinking jury duty! Oh, well... it just wasn't meant to be this time I guess!!LOL.


I will have to say, my little guys were sooooo good in the car. They played with little matchbox cars, read books, ate snacks, sang with us, and slept. It was a fun road trip... except for the EXTREMELY disappointing Vanilla Mocha Smoothie from the gas station... it was so gross. It tasted like cherry pipe tabacco. Really. Micah even said so. I was a bit bummed, it was my to be my special "car drink", but wowee, if that is the worst part of our trip... we did great!!LOL.
Hope you guys are all having fun planning and doing Holidayish things!! We sure are... I am off to get caught up on some "stuff"... laundry, bills, etc... I will post some Holiday album pics soon!

Our Holiday Album...

Here is the cover of our Holiday ALbum. I am using the Basic Grey Papers that some sweet woman sent me... ADRIENNE!! Thanks again, these totally inspired me to get this thing going!!
I had it all done on Friday, except the "2006". I thought I had little number stamps, so I wanted to use those with some paint... no, I do not own number stamps... weird that I thought I did though huh? So, I resorted, finally, to the rubons... not loving them... may cover them up at a later date and change it a little. I would like to note that there is no stapled ribbon, or paint on the edges thus far... a major accomplishment for me!LOL. I will be sanding all the photo edges though.... Come on, you didn't expect me to go cold turkey here did ya'?
The little trees in the left corner are actually triangle jump rings that I put patterned paper behind, I think they came out cute, except that the KI memories glue leaves a residue everywhere... I may have to modpodge the cover because if it. And that paper is not actually visible directly above the bookplate. The gluedots have a little "give" and shifted during scanning...
I am relaxed and having fun this holiday season already... I took alot of stress out by getting all adults giftcards,and not worrying over the outside decorations. So this little book should be fun, I am writing down the memories in my trusty little sketch book, so I can scrap them at any time.
Ok, its very late, I couldn't sleep, and now, I am clearly babbling, and oddly, I am not nearly as sarcastic at 3:21am as I am in the day... what a fun new fact about me... I am a nicer person in the middle of the night...um, when no one sees me... sweet... go Team Jude...

AEzine challenge...12-1-06

Okay, this is my challenge... do not laugh, but buttons are out of my comfort zone. I have seen all these great LOs over the last few months with buttons, and they look cool. Me with buttons is a bad thing though. I do not know when to stop. Hence I chose buttons as my challenge to the comfort zone. I held back from the overbuttoning... I think...??? I had to resist the urge to sand the photo, or paint the edeges of the paper white... I wanted it to look different than my normal LOs, and as we all know, those always include sanded photos... LOL. Here it is, and truth be told, I think it needs "something"...

I know... some cute little Atumn Leaves Swirl Stamps... stamped in red around the edges a little, yep that would've topped it off nicely I say. And Santa, if you are reading this, they are available at Linnecards. com or our LSS... just in case you want to know...Santa, that is... :)

Holy RAK Batman!!!

Okay, if you did not know, I was lucky enough to win a "Holiday LO RAK" from Adrienne... She and Toya both did one, and mine arrived today. Jen was here and opened the door, she said "is it...??? " I said happily, "I think it is... " and together, "THE RAK IS HERE!!" Look at all these goodies Adrienne sent me. I could not believe it. I was seriously going to buy some Basic Grey Christmas papers to use in my holiday book, and now I have a WHOLE pack to use! The pattern papers she sent are too beautiful... great designs. And see that Maya Road album... hello little Christmas album!!LOL. Seriously everyone, this is beyond generous. THANKS ADRIENNE!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanksgiving Album...

I am finally feeling better this morning. Better enough to wrestle with this demonized scanner we own. Sometimes, it scans so quickly and nicely... other times, it is like a trial of my patience as I wait to see if it will actually put the scanned image in the album. ANyhow, here is my Thanksgiving mini-book... proudly brought to you by the makers of Nyquil and Kleenex... two companies I have become rather close to this week... I used chipboard sheets, (the thinner kind of chipboard,) and did a little "snapshot" of four different times during the day of what I was Thankful for right then... all the pics are from the day too... Micah was NOT real into that first early morning shot. I was all "Honey, this is about capturing our life, right NOW, as we live it, and I want to record how thankful I am that I got to wake up to you!" He was wondering why the thankfulness couldn't be taken in a shot with combed hair... It is hole punched and I actually used the little circular picture clips to hold it all together. I got book clips for it, but they were too heavy. I was hesitating about more ribbon on the cover, or writing above the "thankful" something like "a time to be..." and I had planned on writing 2006 on it too... clearly the nyquil has affected my decision making abilities too. What would you do???

Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving!!

I am sick...

I am sick, my kids are semi-sick, and we have tons of activities today and this weekend... fun! Oh , well... gotta' suck it up and go on right? I did have a few bright moments of feeling good yesterday, and in one creative little hour and a half I managed to crank out the Thanksgiving album for us. I will try and scan it tonight to post, but since I have been intensely drugged, I am not promising anything too inspiring. In fact, I think the NyQuil has started to eat away at my brain, cause I can't even remember what exactly I made now... But, being sick already gave me something to be thankful for... On Monday I was "on the couch doubled over waiting to puke sick" and the ever faithful Jen went and picked up Lincoln for me, and brought me some gingerale and... a peppermint patty... NOW that is a good friend. She knew I would want that Pepeprmint Patty when I was feeling better, and sure enough, the next day... it hit the spot. So, I am thankful for my friend... I guess being sick has its perks!! LOL... Hope you and yours are staying healthy this Holiday week!! Check back later for the album pics... nyquil+ paint + patterned paper, it is sure to be interesting at least right???

AEzine challenge...11-17

I almost forgot to do this... since I was in "quick create" mode this afternoon, I got it done. (I wonder if the four excedrin migraine tablets and 3 cups of coffee have anything to do with this increased productivity??? Hmmmm... )

The point of this LO was to express your creative style and how it has changed. I think mine has changed most dramatically because I look at how and why I scrap differently. I used to be THE ultra perfectionist... everything had to be just so... including the pictures. NOW do NOT misunderstand me, if that is your style and you LIKE it and most importantly ENJOY it... then its great. But I would spend time fussing over capturing perfect event shots, making perfect little pages, and was NOT having fun... it was not my style...

I am not sure that I have a "style" now perse, but I know that I like using lots of "stuff" and being more creative now. I like getting influenced by other scrappers... I especially like that now I am capturing my LIFE... not just events. I still get events documented too, but I also like having pages about the fact that Lincoln fell asleep watching QVC with me, or that Emerson was playing cars on his dad while he slept. LIFE... OUR LIFE... documented for future generations... Hmmmm... Maybe I just discovered my "style"... And since I have now used the word "Hmmm..." twice in the same post I will go...

OK, Seriously....

If I don't get to scrap this weekend, my head will explode. Seriously. I know, you are thinking, "well dummy... if you weren't posting this blog message, you would have some time to scrap..."
True enough, a little. I have to clean my scrap space up a bit, and that will take a while, so I am avoiding the cleaning by blogging... what a lazy woman I am huh? So, I have designated Sunday as scrap day... I will create, make things, be artsy... can you schedule creativity? PLUS, I wanted to show you all that my new Autumn Leaves stamps are here... and My 7Gs too... YEAH! See... I must create. Did you see the Maya Road ribbons... CAN'T WAIT TO CREATE... hmmmm that rhymes a little too... see, bloggin can spark creativity... I am being poetic... OKay... laundry duties call, and putting away groceries, and you know what... I had to stop and wipe a butt while writing this... that's why I can't scrap right now... poop does not inspire me... well, not that much anyway...

UPDATE...

Ok, I couldn't take it... I just made this page in 20 minutes, literally... from printing the pictures to the finished LO... yeah, it might look like it only took 20 minutes, but who cares... I got a little creative burst out! LOL... and yeah, the picture stinks... I really want a 12x12 scanner!

Can we say EXCITED????

I am so excited,humbled,giddy,happy, and more... I won one of the two RAKS that Toya and Adrienne had for the Christmas LO. Mine is below, a few posts back. These two are not only great scrappers, they are creative in photography, sewing, cooking, and more... your average "superwomen"! They share these talents on their blogs, which I read everyday. Thanks to you both! Maria was the other winner,she is ultra-talented ... so, maybe now you know why I am so excited!!

Tagged...

I am happily taking Karla's tag challenge of fun little things about me... these are all scrappin' realted BTW...

My Loves:

1. My acrylic stamps... I have just gotten into these over the last few months, and I love them.I have TONS of the red stamps, and have used them for years, but I like being able to see where the image is going.


2.The new Ali E book... well, okay, its not so new now, but other than the Bible, I rarely pick up a book and repeatedly learn something from it. I always go there for quick inspiration.

3.Heidi Swapp chipboard... sand it, paint it, put rub ons on it... I love them...

4.Scenic Route Paper... it was like a mission for me to get them, and now i keep them out in a pile by my stuff because I keep using them...

5.My staedtler pens. DO i love them just because they are German, like me??? No, it is also because they are the only pens I have found that don't make a scritchy scratchy noise/feel when I write with them... anyone know what i am talking about??



Not So Much Love for:

1. Adhesive that is on my table, which I forget, until I go to pick up something, and it is stuck. I need a big quilt cutting mat. (or to remember to clean my table more...)

2.Scratchy pens... see the above "loves" #5 for more on that...

3.Paper cutters that cut crooked... I am putting great hope in that new one from Making Memories...

4.My messy desk...I know its not technically the desk's fault, but being the good 4th child that I am, I must assign blame to something other than myself...

5.Scrapper's Block...knowing what I want to create, but lacking the mojo to do it



Things I tend to repeat

1.Heidi Swapp chipboard titles... is there really a way to have too much HS chipboard though???Really??

2.Stapled ribbon...I just love it, and I am not ashamed to admit it. Long after the ribbon craze is over, you will still see a stapled ribbon on my work I am sure. I will cling to it like I did my 80s leggings... and you see what happened there, they are so back! (though I have vowed NOT to wear them under a mini skirt again...)

3.The off set photo on a large piece of Patterned Paper. (ya' know, like a 6x6 piece of PP and a 4x5 picture... I just can't seem to stop...)

4.Sanding photo edges... I love it,love it, love it... and if being in love with photo edge sanding is wrong, I don't want to be right... hahahahaha... I love a little country song sarcasm...

5.Staples...I know i already said stapled ribbon, but I also like to just add a few staples if a page looks empty. They're cute, fun, and come in so many cool colors now...



What I want to try

1. A digital LO... just one. I love paper and am too computer dumb to switch completely, but I am intrigued by the cool designs...

2.Sewing on a LO... I am a horrid seamstress though...

3.Printing text on Photos... I know I can do this easliy, but with two little kids, sometimes I just want to print the pictures and get to scrappin' ya' know??

4.Going to a scrap "event"... like Scrap Etc. or CKU... learning ,laughing, other crazy scrappers..fun,fun,fun!!

5.Distress powders... after years of embossing cards I have avoided this product, but now I am seeing such cool stuff with it, I am forgetting about all the curled paper,burnt fingers, etc...



Products I would be cranky without

1.7 Gypsies Word stickers... I got the whole alphabet collection from QVC, and I adore them. Yes, I did just go into Julie Andrew mode by using the word "adore" to describe a scrapbooking item... (she played in Sound Of Music, ya' know, the "Hills are Alive" and all that...)

2.Mono-Adhesive... yes, I realize there are much more hip adhesives out there. I even own the renowned hermafix, but good grief, who wants to reload that thing? I am a mono girl...

3.My staedtler pens. I use them for cards, LOs, journals, and even my Beth Moore "Breaking Free" Bible study book... I want the future generation who finds my Bible study books to know that, while, yes, I was a horrid sinner, struggling with all manner of poor behaviors, at least I took the time to write about in a neat fashion.

4.Glue Dots...I love them for embellishments, and for all that stapled ribbon I use...

5.Cropper Hopper Paper Holders... vertical storage is the bomb... eeewww did I just type the words "the bomb"... what a lingo geek I am... oh, well... at least my paper is stored in proper trendiness...



Weird Things I do when I scrap

1. Drink something... I am clutzy, so this is akin to... well, stupidity really...

2.Stop in the middle of scrapping to look at my favorite online store...

3.Say things like "Love it" the way Wheezy on Dragontales says it, when I like how something is looking... In fact, when I leave any of you comments and it says "LOVE IT" I am saying it just like Wheezy from Dragontales...

4.Take out way too many papers...

5.I refuse to sand over my work area, I turn around to the computer desk to sand things...cause ya' know, sand dust is good for computers...



Dear Santa...

1. More stamps... some little flourishes would be grand...

2.An office makeover... cool little cupboards, storage, etc...

3.A taller desk... yes, this could technically fall under the makeover, but I would love a big tall desk that my kids hands couldn't reach...

4.A printer/scanner that can handle 12x12... wouldn't that be the epson???

5.The new Canon Rebel...



So, there you have it. If you read all that, I commend you... consider yourself tagged... and let me know in the comments if you're going to do it so I can read yours... and I'll leave with a fun photo... these are on their way here as I type... and I type so slow that they may be here before I finish... ledger stamps from Autumn Leaves...

can't wait...

AEzine challenge...

Okay, so this IS a bit of "kill two birds with one stone." (and hello... how really sick is that little saying when you truly think about it?!Yuck... ) but, I digress... with the help of my ever faithful three dots, (...) I will get back to business...

So, I never get the Ali challenges done in time, but this week, I knew I could when I realized I had been using my stamps some in the JuSt tO LeT yOu KnOw album... technically, I think I was supposed to use a geometric as well, BUT in my defense... (You KNOW that phrase has to make it in every post, ugh, I am SUCH a 4th child.) My little swirly is a circle as well, so... again I get to use the el-sicko "kill two birds with one stone" saying. I finished them today, and Lincoln cheered for me. He was literally seeking high fives, and telling me the new pages were "GREAT!" How cool is he? (very cool!) Here are the pages, the second one is the challenge one... I am also going to add them to the slide show on the right. I now you can't read the writing when it won't enlarge, and if you click on them there, they'll be bigger. I never know the rhyme or reason behind blogger and the whole "clickable" photos...


JOBS... fun to remember the ol' days... If you read them, and you see the part where I was a produce clerk, and I call my boss "legless" I am not being mean. He really was, he lost his legs from above the knees down to diabetes. He still drove, kept that stand going, and was a kind boss. He once put his truck in reverse accidentally, while he had the door open. His legs flew off and out into the road. I heard him call me, and went to help him. He yelled for me to get his legs, so I did. Yep, a 13yr old girl, standing in the middle of the road with a leg... complete with sock and shoe... cars were clearly wondering... again, I digress...






This one was where you interview someone else, asking them questions about you... Oh my word, Micah and I were laughing so hard while I was asking him these. He was cracking me up, and I know it is not properly conveyed in writing, but when he was giving the airport "description" of me, he was all serious... until he broke out that little sign comment. (see, now you want to go click the slide show and read it don't ya'? or not... I don't mind... you're still reading aren't you... my three little dots have tricked you again... they are hypnotic aren't they... ?

Finally... it is here...

And it has some friends coming soon! I have long been coveting these, I missed my chance every time to order them, but finally I found them! (okay, I could have had them sooner, but I refused to pay as much for shipping as the stamp itself cost!That is my eternal pet peeve)This one came from eBay, the other two are from my new favorite online store, the one that feeds my Maya Road addiction!LOL. I cannot wait to use it, the only bad part... I have NO time to scrap until tomorrow night!

Monday....

What can you say? It is Monday. I am doing laundry, and trying to get lots of other little "chores" done. BUT.... I did workout again today. I am sitting here in my workout clothes, as a reminder to not go have that second cup of double creamered coffee... cause good grief if the sight of myself in this doesn't motivate me, nothing will!!!!!!!!!! LOL. The first time I worked out in ages, a few weeks ago, I was quite shocked. I did a video of all lower body weighted exercises. The woman even states that you are going for "muscle failure". (I was thinking, "lady, my muscles failed just haulin my booty out of bed, but okay, I'm with ya") So, after my workout, and yes, I managed to hang, I decided to go run on the treadmill. Now, I have always prided myself on being able to go run a mile, yes a sloooooooooooooow mile, but a mile no less. No matter how long its been since regular exercise, I can always do that mile. Well, NOT anymore, and espcially not after the "muscle failing lower body workout". I jacked that speed up, hopped on and folks, this is embarrassing, but a mere 3½ minutes later, I was done. Yes, I did say 3½ minutes. My little legs were shaking, literally. I am now, officially, old and out of shape. But I was challenged, and the next time out I did a half mile. Today, it is too cold to take Em out there, so I am signing off to go do some dancing with him instead. He is too little yet to realize just how bad a dancer his mother is... I will close with some little pics of my Halloween pirates. They were cute, giddy over people giving them candy, and even Em was saying "Twick or Tweet".

Christmas LO...

Here is the Christmas LO I did for Toya and Adrienne's RAK...

NOW... I do NOT have a scanner that will scan a 12x12 LO so, I actually found some very easy to follow directions, (and you know if I understood it they were literally made for computer dummies!) about how to scan in the LO in two parts and then "stitch " them together in your Paint program. Well, at first this was annoying because I couldn't get the edges to line up, but I finally got it to work okay this morning, by taking the scanner lid off. So, here are the LOs and YES I know there is a shadow, that is the line where i meshed the two images. (eve nwith the shadow though, it look better than the digital photos I got of it yesterday!)I realize this could have been fixed with all the "color saturation" features and such, but since i have never used them before, I thought it best to leave well enough alone. (unless Toya, Adrienne, Kristin, or someone else who knows what they are doing can come hold my hand through the process... LOL.) AND I resited the urge to sand photos, paint the edges of the paper, and use HS chipboard... it is a Christmas LO miracle folks...LOL. The picture on the LO is terrible, but it was taken with a cheap disposable camera, in a dark area. I am excited for Christmas just thinking back on this day, because my goals for what Christmas will be in our home is so different. I am looking forward to helping the boys give to others,not just receive, and to celebrating true family time,worship time, and being JOYful. I love this time of year!!!!!!!!! Oh, so I am babbling and you are ready to actually see the LO... sorry, here it is! Thanks for looking! Halloween photos are coming soon!

*** I just noticed the lovely white area still in my photos, clearly the stitching technique needs to be learned a little better. I think I just need to adjust the attributes, maybe...LOL

Does this make me a bad mom or a good one???

So, if you look at these pictures, does the fact that I allow my children to remove all the couch cushions and leap about the living room on them as if they are lily pads make me a good or bad mom?

See, you might say... "A Bad mom! How could you let your children behave like such little animals? What if they leave your home and think they can do this anywhere? They are not learning good behvior!! Bad, Bad Mommy. "

OR you might think...

"You are a good mom. You are allowing your children some freedom, even if it is a tad "reckless". They are having fun, and that is okay."

So... which camp are you in??? I think I would've labeled myself as #1 when I just had one child. BUT now that I have two, and they are BOYS after all, I am quite okay with a little reckless,fun, couch jumping. You see, what the pictures don't show is that when these two decide to do this, they are really cooperating. They have to help eachother remove the cushions, set them up, and then they take turns jumping. Em has even started to count before he jumps. So, looks can be deceiving... and don't worry, they don't do this at other people's homes.

Also, I have a new love... and don't fear, I am still giddily mad about my Micah. This falls into the food category of love... Here it is folks...pure delight, as the label says.

They make an almond toffee one too that is quite delish, but this one is like a little peppermint pattie in a bottle. And, as my reckless children would say... "Yummy,yummy in my tummy!" Or should that be "Yummy,yummy on lips, grows into a fat roll on my hips"???

JuSt tO LeT yOu KnOw... 2 more pages...

Here are two more pages from the JuSt tO LeT yOu KnOw album... I didn't do any of my normal "duties" so that I could get some scrap time in. I haven't had ANY time to scrap lately, so I decided it could all wait... meaning that my laundry isn't done, the house is a little messy, and the kids slept a little too long this afternoon... BUT Haha.. I did have time to get the dinner food done... and since blogger ate my first draft of this, I can now say it was quite a delicious dinner. (garlic pasta, broccoli, etc... yummy stuff) So, I have been using the computer to write in this journal. (I know you are SHOCKED!! You all thought I just wrote like an Olympia typwriter- portable model no less.) But, no, it is the computer and let me tell you... it really slows me down. I have been handwriting on my LOs (thank you Heidi Swapp, I am Learning to Love my Hand Writing.) and I forgot how bad a typer I am. Those of you who know me, know that I am a master of the ol' hen peck on the keyboard... so I find even this blogging laborious. I think I am being punished for calling all the girls in high school geeks for taking typing. In my defense, ( and have you noticed how often I have to use that term???) The internet was non existent, and computers were the obnoxious technology that we were forced to write our papers on, that ate whole doucuments, crashed without warning, and could never have properly set margins. So why learn to type right???... yep, that extra study hall sure was fun... (and as you can see, I skipped english grammer alot too, but I like the three dots (...) after every statement, they work for me... it makes you think I have something exciting to write next, and you keep reading, but ahhhh, the three dots have fooled you... I am just babbling again... LOLOLOL... okay I am LOL, you may not be after I have wasted so much of your time, but the pages, the pages will redeem me... no???

Oh, and I forgot to say that I cut that MM letter J... yep, broke out the ol' kitchen shears and cut off all the excess, then sanded it down a bit. I have been watching "This Old House" too much i think...

Silly Hair Day...

OK, so Lincoln's class had "Silly Hair Day" last week. Now that is the one day when a kid whose Mom used to do hair has an advantage... :) I mean, come on, its not like kids say "My dad is a brain surgeon" and the big come back is "Well... my mom can do foil highlights so there!" So, silly hair day is where we shine. Here is why...

I turned the boy's hair blue! Yep, a nice little blue mohawk. It was a nice, bright, blue too... and he loved it, so that is what counts. (and makes him such a cool little kid!!) Yes, it was permanent too. No wash out stuff here folks, this was a true "double process" as they say in the world of hair coloring. The best part actually came this morning... I had dried my own hair curly Sunday, and when I woke up Monday morning, I looked a little wild... red curls were everywhere. So, Micah says, "Hey look at Mommy's hair" to which my little stinker replies, "Yep, I guess its Silly Hair Day for her today huh?" So, apparently, "Silly Hair Day" will be a new term and insult around our house. Nice. Anyway, here are the pictures...

Before...

Bleaching it white...





The Bleached out look...

Applying the blue...




The results... a very cool blue!

Leaving for school...

And to anyone wondering, NO. It is not still there, we cut it all off into a cute little cropped cut on Saturday. So, no more blue. I did of course save a little lock of it for his baby book. HAHA!! I am such a cool mom.

Three More pages to see...

Here are pgs. 5,6, and 7 for the JuSt tO LeT yOu KnOw journal... We had good news this week... Lincoln got his cast off and did NOT have to get another hard cast. I was pretty shocked. He has to wear a removable hard splint type thing. His poor little arm still looks crooked, but the doctor said that was normal, and it could take up to 6 months to straighten out... yep, 6 months. When I first saw it I thought, "Uh-oh, its still messed up... he is going to need surgery or something!!" But, our great, and I do mean great Ortho Doc, explained why it still looked like that despite its being "healed". If all doctors were this good, no one would ever complain about having to go. He was kind to Lincoln, remembered us, took his time in explaining things, etc. AND once again, he e-mailed me the (new) x-ray photos!! Good Doctors=cool. :)

I was also tagged by Theresa ( www.mymiraculouslife.blogspot.com ) for this fun little quiz... Here goes! 5 Weird things about me...

1. I sing super loud in the car with the boys. I am usually hollaring off key and sounding terrible, so I am sure this is creating a non-pleasant experience for my kids...
2. I use liquid and powder creamer in my coffee
3. I have a highly powerful sense of smell
4. I do "voices" when I read the boys stories. (i.e. the Big Bad Wolf has a NY accent, etc.)
5. I have every ziploc bag known to man, and keep adding to them when they are on sale. I would hate to run out ya' know...

That last one was courtesy of Micah, who I must say seemed surprised that i needed a little help picking a 5th weird trait. Hmmmm... In my defense with the baggies, when you have coupons and they are sale, why not buy them up??? They aren't going to go bad or anything, and I am getting them for like, 50 cents a box! Fess up... what do you have stockpiled????