I've gone bi-scraptual!!

Well, not really, but tonight I was shopping around on 2 peas, and I started looking at the digital kits. They all looked really cool, and were inexpensive, so I started to get an urge to BUY, BUY, BUY!!! But instead of succumbing to temptation, I opened my Photoshop Elements and played around with the FREE digi kit I downloaded off of 2 peas last April..... and ...... WAAAA LAAAAA!! I made my first digital scrapbook page! I think it's pretty cute.... and with Pepper snuggled up on my lap, I appreciate it even more.Also, it was easy, fast and required no clean up! There certainly is something to be said for that!

Me

Some random thoughts for tonight.....

I wish I were a better photographer
I haven't cooked dinner for the last 2 nights
I have been obsessed with work and making my curriculum the best it can be
I miss my old house at least 1,000 times each day
I am thankful to be near my family
I had a good talk with Kyla about boys today
Mason took a 37 minute shower last night
I saw a doe and her fawn go across our street 3 times today
Mark will be 40 in 9 short days... birthday plans are in motion
I helped Kyla put up the Halloween decorations
I fed Pepper some tuna and regretted it later (pee-yew)
It was foggy all day and drizzling this evening
I had a hot chocolate from Starbucks right before dinner
I found some great ideas online for pumpkin activities for the classroom
I did my 'shrink your female fat zones' tape today
I didn't get out of bed until 9:48 this morning
I listened to Matchbox 20 and The Big Chill soundtrack and U2 today
I cut out at least 800 paper mittens
I did not do any laundry

Sweet Ryan

So, with so many new babies getting ready to come into the world (In addition to Michelle & Jim's twins, my brother in law and sister in law are having a baby soon!!!!) I have been getting baby fever. So, I guess it's time to work on Ryan's baby album.

When my dear friend Michelle had her little Alison 2 years ago, I created her a first year album before she was born!! So when Ryan came along the next year, I thought he should get one, too!! Unfortunately, I have finished about 3 of the 15 pages so far, and Ryan is already 9 months old!! I absolutely MUST finish it and send it along to Michelle and Mike!! By the way Michelle, this is the title page. Do you like it?

I actually packed a whole suitcase of scrapping supplies and took them to Australia this summer with the intention of completing Ryan's book on our 2 week vacation..... but, alas, the creative bug necessary for this project was not with me!! But here it is, the weekend, and Kyla is spending the night with her cousin, and Mason's football game was canceled, and the creative bug is buzzing around my scraproom!! So Ryan's album might just get finished!!!

Twins on the way!!

I just received an email tonight that my friend Michelle is almost ready to have her sweet twin boys. She is on bed rest trying to hold out until the 15th....... Keep her in your prayers!!

Pages complete!!

For most of the summer I was in a scrapbooking hiatus.... not on purpose, I just couldn't seem to find the energy and creativity to make any pages.... but in the last week I have been scrapping like crazy.... well maybe not crazy, but certainly energetically! I finished Mason's 2005 album this week, and he actually looked at it! It was the most attention he's ever paid to a scrapbook!! I also added some pictures to some already completed pages, and did 2 pages for our family 2005 album (only 22 more pages to finish!). And then today, I did this page for Kyla's toddler album for 1995-1996....There's actually a pink border around the whole layout, but my scanner cut it off! Anyway, I love these new Bohemia papers and rub ons.... Only wish I had been a better photographer back then.... after working on this picture for over an hour with photoshop this is the best I could do!

Here's hoping you have a creative week!

The child, the myth, the legend

Now these are all stories my mom has told me about my baby / toddlerhood... I have no memory of any of them, and I do not know how much is factual and how much is exaggerated... but I want to write them down before I forget....

When I was about 1 or so it garden planting time again, and, being a curious and spoiled child, I wanted to help. So when it came to planting the corn, my mother swears I stomped my chubby little feet on each mound of dirt. Now all of you corn planters out there know that for the corn to grow, the soil should be lightly tapped over the top of the seeds, so my dad was insistent that I not be allowed to ruin the corn. But, of course, my grandpa insisted that if it made me happy it was OK, so I stomped and stomped each mound.... my dad getting madder and madder by the moment and everyone else happy to amuse the baby. My mom also swears it was the best corn patch they ever had.

Along the same lines is the cooking incident...... Growing up the front right burner on the stove didn't work, and the story goes that I wanted to cook, so I filled a plastic bowl with water and proceeded to melt it all over the stove and almost catch my grandpa's thin white hair on fire... all the while my parents were flabbergasted and my grandpa was chuckling.

Another way my grandpa indulged me was by allowing me to eat complete cubes of butter whenever I wanted and to cover my peas with a mound of sugar bigger than the actual mound of peas. I was also allowed to drink Pepsi in my bottle and to put me to sleep at night the trick was sugar water with a dash of whiskey!!!! ACK!

So, now you all know, the myths of my childhood...... Does this help you to understand the strangeness that is me?

Memories at Random

So one of my goals this fall is to start writing down memories I have from my childhood. I would like to create a 'Random Childhood Memories' type of album and add to it whenever inspiration strikes.

So on this night, while Mark is in Kansas City, and Mason and Kyla are doing whatever it is they do in their rooms at night, and Pepper is asleep on my lap, I thought I would write down a memory for my (someday) book.

I loved to play outdoors as a little girl (as indoors there was not much room!) so a couple of different times I built a school house on top of the haystack. I took books and paper and pencils and chairs and blankets and who knows what and lugged each piece up to the top of the haystack and built a classroom. I would always play the teacher. I had great times whenever my sister would join me and be my student, but as I was very bossy, that did not happen very often. So usually it was just me on top of the haystack with a stuffed animal or kitten, playing school. I remember I always had to reprimand the boys for their messy handwriting. I don't know where this came from, but it was likely something I heard my teachers do at school. This is one of the reasons why I listen very carefully to how the students in my class talk to each other when they play teacher at school......

so far, so good!