...blessings...

MOVING DAY!

2007-04-30T12:58:00.000-07:00

This blog is moving!

blessings

Change your bookmarks and come on over and see what is new!

AN UPDATE

2007-04-29T07:25:00.000-07:00

WHEW! It has been BUSY around here! I don't even know when the last time I posted was or what it was about. Let me just give you the condensed version of our activities:

Field Trip to a fun farm (pictures still on my camera)
Pre-Op appointments
Lance's operation- tubes in and adenoids out
Billy working a lot
Me working when I can
Initiated the sprinkler
Spending afternoons outside

Just busy, busy, busy!

Lance's surgery went good. He was not happy when he came out of the anesthesia. And he is recovering fine. He has his moments. Hopefully this is the last time we need to do this. Lance has added to his pile of stuff he drags around everywhere. His Thomas beach towel he got at Easter. He calls it his Thomas train blank. Blank is short for blankie. And ever since Friday he is attached to his pacifier. We were slowly breaking him of using it during the day but he was in such pain and so sad I gave in.

Garrett is doing fine. He goes and goes until he crashes. And it is not pretty. He announced the other night that he was getting me Oreos for Mother's Day. And when I was dropping him off with my mom the other day we were discussing why Lance was not with him and the surgery. He asked if Lance was going to the hospital and I told him he was. He then asked if "Lance be bornded again? Is he back in your tummy?"

OK- that is a wrap for today. My new blog/site will be open on Tuesday (maybe sooner) and will have a forum and gallery. Until then...

PLEASE EXCUSE THE BOXES

2007-04-24T14:53:00.000-07:00

This blog is packing up and moving to a new home!

COMING SOON!

EYE CANDY

2007-04-20T19:56:00.000-07:00

Credits are in my gallery HERE

And I am writing this post from my new space! Still working on hiding the wires and the little messes that come with moving rooms. I love it and in the few days it has been set up it has made a HUGE improvement in our household. Life is good!

CREATIVE TEAM CALL

2007-04-17T11:53:00.000-07:00

Amanda Heimann Designs
is now accepting applications for Creative Team members.

Please send an email to amandaheimanndesigns@gmail.com
with the following information:
1) name and usernames
2) a link to your main gallery
3) a brief bio of yourself and your scrapping history
4) a list of creative teams you are on
5) why you want to be a memeber of the team
Requirements: to create 4 layouts per month and have fun!
Benefits: access to all my designs

Call ends April 30, 2007.

HAPPY TAX DAY!

2007-04-17T09:08:00.000-07:00

If you are here looking for cute stories and pictures MOVE ALONG. This is all about Amanda Heimann Designs! Sorry Billy!

New to my store::

A Little Crumpled Ribbons

and added last week

Cornered

and you might want to run over to Plain Digital Wrapper today. Tanya is offering a 17% Refund on purchases and a little free gift with a $10 purchase!

MISSING: ONE EGG

2007-04-12T14:06:00.000-07:00

Saturday was an early Easter for use. It would be the boy's 3rd Easter celebration. We started the day by looking to see what the bunny left in the nest. He left the boys a little croquet set! They ripped into it and started playing with their uncles. Then they watched CARS with their uncles. And then it was lunch time and the Greats all came over to have lunch and hunt eggs. The egg hunt was super fast since it was so cold, windy and wet. Trevor was dressedd appropriately. A little while after that we loaded everything up and came on home. We gave the boys baths and made their indoor nests out of pillowcases for the bunny to leave surprises in. We told Garrett that the Easter Bunny would leave eggs inside since it was raining out and he thought that was cool.

On Sunday we woke the boys up to hunt eggs. They first saw their nests and spent a little time checking out all the goodies. Then Garrett realized there were eggs everywhere. They ran all over the living room looking high and low for eggs. And we are still missing one egg. A hard boiled egg. I am sure it will make its presence known soon.

After a good breakfast we went to church. Billy then decided that we would go to Great Grandma's for lunch and a quick visit. It was a quick visit because Lance was exhausted and I could see the meltdown coming. After we got home the boys played outside and Billy cooked fajitas. It was another early night. I think we have finally recovered from the busy weekend.

This week has been jsut a normal week. Lance had a few yucky days like he always does after a busy weekend. Luckily the sniffles have stopped. Garrett has been really good lately- makes me wonder.

Today I went to get Lance new shoes. He is in a size 8 now. He is growing too fast! And I had a very sad moment today. I went to Old Navy to exchange Garrett's new swimsuit. It was a 5T and was too big in the waist. I knew a 4T would be too small so I got an XS in the boy's size and IT FIT! He has outgrown the little boy section and is now in the BOYS section. No more cute matching clothes for him.

Time to go cook supper!

TOO MUCH FUN!

2007-04-11T07:25:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend! It was packed full of fun and there were 412 pictures taken. And since there were so many great pictures and stories to tell I think I will break it up into pieces so those with dial up (coughcoughgrandmacoughcough) can enjoy without having to wait and wait and wait.

FRIDAY
We got up early and headed to my parent's house. Billy had fishing fever and was shaking in excitement. We got there and unpacked and he was off to pick up my brother and go fishing for the day.

My mom and I took the boys to Walmart for some last minute Easter goodies. After that we went to the strawberry patch. The boys picked 2 buckets FULL of berries and ate a few along the way. I think we came home with 7 pounds of strawberries.

Then it was lunch and nap. PawPaw came home and Garrett helped him outside while Lance was sleeping. After Lance got up it was fishing time for the boys. First they had to dig for worms and there were some big worms! Lance had a cane pole and Garrett had a fishing rod. After a few casts Garrett caught a small mouth bass. The first one caught in the pond. He was done after that. Lance's fishing was a little bit different. He just slapped the pole into the water. He did foul hook one fish but it got away.

Then there was some more playing and Aunt Lauren and Jenna ate supper with us. Uncle Joby showed up not much longer after that and they all played croquet. Bath time was next and then they made a nest for the Easter Bunny to leave a gift in.

Billy and Uncle Shane came driving up and had 2 fish. I think we caught more in the pond than they did.

Lance crashed after that and Garrett convinced Uncle Joby to put him to bed. He played Uncle Joby! He made him read a bunch of books and stay in bed with him because he was scared. Joby fell for it.

Clayton and Laurie arrived with their new puppy. Maggie is the cutest little fuzz ball! After we played and talked for a bit we all went to bed.

Now for the pictures:

And these are from our egg dyeing experience. Lance + dye = big mess! Good thing I took their shirts off before we started!

I hear water running- need to go!

WEEK IN REVIEW

2007-04-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

Usually I do a weekend review but this week has just flown by and I forgot about my poor little blog. It is in need of a makeover and a little spring cleaning. So here goes the week:

Monday
see previous post

Tuesday
Garrett went to school while Lance and I went to the ENT. He still has fluid behind his eardrums. The doctor took his tubes out since they were just resting in the ear canal anyways. He said that as long as Lance is comfortable than there is no need to put another set of tubes in right now. It is bad timing with all the water activities that go on during the summer. If he does get another infection then we will reconsider. It is also something to think about in the fall. After that we came home and I tried to get him to nap. Didn't work. So we went to get Garrett and when we came home they were both cranky. Lance slept for an hour and Garrett watched Word Factory. I don't remember the rest of the day.

Wednesday
I woke up feeling horrible. Allergies. We just played around all day. The boys played "cup game." It is actually bowling with paper cups and little balls but Lance calls it "cup game." Garrett is the one who came up with the idea. They also played Teacher. Guess who was the teacher? Garrett was made for that role. He loves to boss. We dyed our eggs and that was interesting. Lance ended up looking like the Incredible Hulk. He was quite green when it was all said and done.

Thursday
Both boys went to school and had their egg hunt. Lance was very possessive of his basket when I picked him up and would not let me look in it. Garrett was very excited that he got bubble gum. We played outside and rode the power wheels and scooter in the driveway.

Friday
Billy is going fishing and we might go to the strawberry patch. I'll let you know what we did on Monday.

Designs

A Little Crumpled- Circles (If you buy the crumpled ribbons you can receive $1 the wrinkled ribbons- use coupon code dollar off)

Kelsey Paper Stack

Layouts
credits: template and staple by Jen Caputo, blue solid and green solid by me, papers and cardboard by Dani Mogstad, fonts are You Are Loved and Problem Secretary, Photoblast actions

credits: Love Sprung by Dani Mogstad and Traci Reid and the font is Jennifer by Darcy Baldwin.

The blog will be taking a hiatus this weekend. The house needs to be cleaned so the Easter Bunny won't kill himself tripping over all the toys. Have a happy weekend!

SQUIRREL MCQUEEN

2007-04-02T19:36:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend we had! It was a little dreary Saturday morning but it did not stop Billy from taking the boys to the BBQ. They had a good time. They love their "Guys Only" adventures. They even stopped on the way home and got me some flowers- a flat of begonias. We tried to get Lance to take a nap but he decided to spend the time spitting his milk out instead. So I let him watch Cars and this is how we found him 10 minutes later.

Later on Garrett declared that we were having pizza for supper. He went with Billy to the "pizza shop" to get it. This was the highlight of his day. Then it was time for showers and bed. I stayed up way to late loading stuff into the store and Billy fell asleep before SNL which is unheard of!

Sunday I overslept and missed church. Billy got up early, made breakfast and almost had the boys ready to go to church by the time I got up. After they came home and Garrett ate all the leftover pizza we tried to get the boys to nap. Didn't work. So we planted our flowers and looked for worms. The rest of the day was spent outside playing. It was gorgeous out and we enjoyed it.

The boys came up with an interesting game. From what we could understand, Lance was the puppy and Garrett was walking/running him and the slinky was the leash. It was amusing.

And today we just hung around the house. Did some laundry, cleaned the playroom and boy's room, played doctor.

It was uneventful until Garrett was trying to catch Lance with the butterfly net and knocked/pushed Lance down on the patio and gave him a huge owie. Lance was really upset but paci and Cars calmed him down.

(pretend calling Daddy to tell him about it)

But the big news around here is that we have a new pet. Garrett has named him (I am guessing it is a him) McQueen.

McQueen loves to climb up our tree, jump to the bird feeder and shake it so the seed falls to the ground. He then gets on the ground and eats. Lance thinks it is hilarious and about dies laughing when the squirrel eats. The were constantly running to the window to look for him.

See Billy, I made it an entire post without showing anything scrapbook related. Although I am going to scrap some of these pictures!

A THANK YOU AND A SALE!

2007-04-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

I'm open!

I want to thank Billy for putting up with me the past few days. He has been so supportive and understanding and I could not have made this step without his help. The little things he has done for me have made the biggest difference and I appreciate it.

There is no way I could have gotten everything up and running without a little help from Sarah VanDyke. She answered my million questions and held my hand. Thanks girl!

And to Darcy and Kirsty- thanks for being my cheerleaders. Your encouragement kept me going.

So, you want to see?

To celebrate I am offering a 35% off discount for today and tomorrow. CLICK HERE

Ok- now I need to get back to my real job and do some laundry. I'll be back tomorrow with a weekend recap and pictures!

PLAIN DIGITAL WRAPPER

2007-03-30T06:56:00.000-07:00

This happened so fast! I am going to be selling at Plain Digital Wrapper! It is still sinking in and I won't believe it until I make my first sale. I never knew what all went on behind the scenes and I am slowly learning the ropes. Sarah and Tanya have been loads of help and I am sure by Sunday they will be tired of my questions.

Here is my first kit:

I have a few ribbon packs and another kit that are in the works and hopefully will be finished by Sunday.

Other than that news there is nothing else going on. Tomorrow we have a BBQ Cook Off to go to. The boys should enjoy since they have a petting zoo and bounce houses. I am sure Lance will chase the chicken and try to kick it again.

OK- time to get moving! I have lots to do today!

A CONVERSATION

2007-03-28T10:29:00.000-07:00

Garrett: Daddy is so goopy (goofy)
Me: Why is Daddy goopy?
Garrett: Because he left the sauce out
Me: What sauce?
Garrett: In the kitchen

I go to investigate and found the salt.

Garrett: It burnted my mouth
Me: You ate the salt?
Garrett: Yes
Me: How much did you eat?
Garrett: About 50,000

STUFF

2007-03-28T06:53:00.000-07:00

My poor little neglected blog. I have not had much to post lately. For once my house is clean and I have been trying to keep it that way. The weather is great so we have been outside and my computer is inside. And I really have nothing to say. So I think I will just give little kiddie tidbits.

GARRETT
"We'll be back in a second ago"
"You don't understood me"
"Is Easter yesterday?"
"Lancey is not understanding me"
And he refuses to wear any clothes that are 3T.

LANCE
"Whered Mac go?" (his car)
"I hungee" (I'm hungry)
"Poop mess" (dirty diaper)
"Want crack" (crackers)
"Choc milk peas" (chocolate milk please)
"Git, Git" (calling Garrett)
"Soreeeeee" (Sorry)
And Lance is counting. I goes something like this: 1,2,3,5,9,1

Time to get ready for the Y and change the sheets on all the beds (Garrett had a rough night and wet two beds and Lance spit milk all over his)

FREEBIE FRIDAY

2007-03-23T07:45:00.000-07:00

Friday is finally here! And to celebrate I have a little gift for you. I have been working on a few ribbons and received great complements on the one I used in this layout:

CREDITS HERE

There are many more of these ribbons in the works right now. When I use ribbons on crafts and paper scrapbooking they are never straight. I am not sure if that is user error or not but I thought that my digi pages should have the same look. And since I am too cheap to buy something I could attempt to make I gave it a shot. Here is a sneak peek to what I have been up to:

There are wrinkled straight ribbons, crumpled crooked ribbons and crumpled circles. I have a few other shapes and styles ideas floating around in my head. And yes, there will be ric rac. That just takes longer.

So here is a chance to try one out for me. I wasn't to thrilled about the color so instead of trashing it I thought I would share it. Let me know what you think!

This link will be taken down tonight so grab it while you can! (drop shadows for preview only)

Yellow Crumpled Circle (sorry! link has been removed)

Enjoy your weekend!

Texas A&M vs. Grey's

2007-03-22T09:18:00.000-07:00

This is when I need Tivo! A&M plays tonight and Grey's Anatomy is on. We very seldom get to watch Aggie sports since we do not have cable and they are actually in the NCAA regional semi-finals. So I think the game will be on tonight. I am a little annoyed with the storylines in Grey's anyways. I really do not want to watch a soap opera. Just stick to the medical drama.

So that is where I will be this evening. Sitting in front of the tv folding clothes.

DANG OAK TREES

2007-03-20T11:04:00.001-07:00

The green stuff is in the air. Oak tree pollen is floating around and covering every surface. Which makes me suffer. Zyrtec can only take me so far. But hey- I know with the next rain it will knock the pollen count down. But then the rain makes the grass grow and grass allergies are my nemesis. COME ON SUMMER!

If you pay no attention to the 4 runny noses around here we are all great. Spring Break is over and we are trying to find our routine again. With the longer days it makes bedtime harder. But the boys are adjusting.

We spent the weekend working around the house. We emptied out the front flower beds and gave them a mini make over. The boys enjoyed all the worms we uncovered.

That is about it. Nothing exciting, just normal.

I did a little bit of designing and came up with this:

And I did a little bit of scrapping and came up with this:

This is a layout for Audrey Neal. I am a Guest CT this month and when I saw this kit I dug out a picture from Easter 1986 to use. Can you believe that was 20 years ago? Credits coming soon!

Credits Here

BLAH

2007-03-16T20:45:00.000-07:00

So the stomach bug hit me yesterday. I was miserable! My bones and joints still ache today.

So now the house is destroyed since the boys were able to get away with anything today. I am feeling much better and even ate supper tonight.

Sorry I am not chatty this evening. I am about to go to bed but I wanted to pop in and let you know I took the freebie links down. I was nearing my download limit for the month!

Night!

SPRING CLEANING

2007-03-14T11:45:00.000-07:00

Why is it that when you clean you make more of a mess? The spring cleaning bug has hit me and I am tackling some projects that were long overdue. But in the process I am making other little piles and messes. So frustrating! I did get my make up drawer cleaned out and the craft closet. Garrett will be thrilled to see all the paint materials I found. Of course I found other items that I now need to find a new home for. My next project is to get into the boy's closet and dig out summer clothes and make a bag of clothes to donate. I might have to throw a few toys in there also.

It is quiet around here today. The boys are at my parents for spring break. I tried to convince my mom that it should be the entire week but she did not agree. I think they might be coming home soon because Lance seems to have another cold and is not feeling well. I have enjoyed the alone time. It is amazing how much faster I can clean without little helpers!

I have only scrapped one page. I have been attempting to make elements to match my papers and that has taken all my computer time. But here is the layout of Lance's version of hide and seek:

CREDITS HERE

And here are the elements I made. This was so difficult to do and I am not all that happy with the results. But you have to start somewhere.

Included are 4 marker drawn stickers, 3 not so straight ribbons, 3 eyelets and 3 staples.

You can download them here. LINK REMOVED- Sorry!

The papers will be up for a couple more days. The links are a few posts below. I will take them down soon because I am reaching my download limit.

Thanks for all the lovely comments last week! I enjoyed reading them and they brightened my day! And please send me a link to any layouts using my stuff- I would love to leave praise!

OBLIGATORY BLOG POST

2007-03-11T21:02:00.000-07:00

This is for Billy. I guess he has forgotten all we did the past few days and needs me to document it.

Let me recap the weekend.

FRIDAY
MOPS in the morning
naps in the afternoon (me included)
out to eat when Billy got home
went to Lowe's to get seeds and plants
Billy set the enormous tent he bought in the backyard to "practice" camping
Garrett lasted about 45 minutes in the tent

SATURDAY
Lance woke us up at 6:15
went to HEB for groceries
planted tomatoes, peppers, mint and watermelon- a nice variety
I cleaned our bedroom from top to bottom- well not the top because I can't reach the fan
the boys played and worked outside
Billy cooked supper and we ate on the patio
folded some clothes
worked on another freebie

SUNDAY
Lance woke us up early again at 7:15 but it was really 6:15
went to church
Billy took the boys to my in-laws for the day
I went shopping and spent some quiet alone time
they came home exhausted- Garrett fell asleep saying his prayers!
finished one scrapbook page

That about sums it up. And if you were wondering how a 2 year old plants a garden here you go:

Yes my friends, that is a broom.

GOODIES

2007-03-08T13:27:00.000-08:00

I made more goodies! Patterns are MUCH harder than solids! And since I really have no clue what I am doing I did not venture into florals or ornate designs. I would love to try it but I am still trying to figure some of it out. Like where can you get brushes that are available for commercial use that are also free? What clip art is available? So many questions.

But this is what I came up with to match the Summer Solids:

And you can download it here. (Sorry- link removed!) The solids are still available below.

Enjoy!

Any suggestions for elements? I would love to hear some feedback if you have tried them. You can email me (address in the TOU) I need to know how to improve or what to fix. Thanks!

HOLY MOLY

2007-03-07T15:08:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the great response! I never imagined so many people would come and grab my papers. There have been OVER 1,000 hits on my blog since Monday morning. WOW! Now I have no way of knowing if everyone downloaded the papers- or if they are even using them but the interest makes me happy. And I am attempting to make pattern papers now. Not as easy as solids! LOL! A few people asked where I got my textures. They are all mine. :) See Billy- unfolded laundry has its strong points.

And a few have asked what made me decide to attempt to design something. I am the type of person that wants to know it all. I want to learn PSE5 and start using the many tools it offers. So I did a little research and read a few tutorials and combined all I learned and made papers. It was fun to do and opened a whole new world of learning for me.

Here is another link if the ones below expire: CLICK HERE

***********************************************************************************
LANCE
We went for his 2 year check up yesterday. The boy is big. He is 35 3/4 inches long (95%) which is 1/4 inch shorter than Garrett was at 2. I don't remember his weight but it was in the 75%. So was his head. Everything checked out ok and he only had one shot.

He is talking a mile a minute now. He newest is "Wook Ma!" He says that constantly when we are driving somewhere. And he is aware of bodily functions. He thinks it is funny to run and tell me "I toot!"

GARRETT
A little funny: We got Sonic drinks today after going to the Y. Garrett was drinking his pretty fast and I guess he inhaled a little bit of his Sprite. He told me he had "Sonic drink snot and it is cold!" Made me laugh.

BILLY
Billy made us a garden! The boys are so excited that they get to plant their seeds this weekend. We will be growing tomatoes, peppers and watermelon. Garrett thinks we will grow watermelon.

ME
I am just great! My house is in need of some spring cleaning and I could really use another arm. Or maybe x-ray vision so I could see through the walls when the boys are in another room. But life is good.

TREVOR
Trev is getting old. He is looking pretty pathetic right now. He was bit this past weekend and had to have a couple staples on the top of his head. In addition to the teeth he had pulled and his vaccinations he is feeling the pain right now. Poor Trev. We really have no idea how old he is most likely over 10 years old. He looks older right now with half of his head shaved and a droopy mouth where his tooth use to be.

LAYOUTS
I have 2 for your viewing pleasure.

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

Time to go make supper!

Lookie!

2007-03-05T12:45:00.000-08:00

So I was planning on having a 200th post blog party. But I am too impatient and decided to have it now!

In celebration of my blogiversary and my impending 200th post I have a gift for you! I have a major case of scrapper's block but needed to do something creative so I made papers. This is my first time designing anything so any feedback is great! Give me the good, the bad and even the ugly.

Here they are:

Summer Solids

My inspiration for the colors is our beach umbrella. I am so ready to get it out and start using it!

You can download it here. Sorry- link has been removed!

Please leave me a comment if you grab it and I would love to see any layouts using the papers.

The link is only good for 100 downloads so let me know if I need to fix it.

Thanks for a great blog year!

THE PARTY

2007-03-04T19:30:00.000-08:00

Lance had a great birthday! Lots of relatives, lots of presents, lots of good food and lots of cake. He was too cute when he was opening presents. Every present was ripped open and then followed by a "WOW Cool!" Every now and then he would say "dude!" That boy is too funny.

Here are a few pictures:

(yes, he is sitting in two chairs)

Here he is eating ice cream, cake and apple pie.

And the candle blowing video. I thought he was going to hyperventilate trying to blow the candles out.

I am all tuckered out. More later...

TWO

2007-03-01T20:57:00.000-08:00

By the time everyone reads this my baby will be two. Where did time go? Lancer turning 2 is much harder than when Garrett did. Maybe because this might be my last baby. Maybe because he is a momma's boy. All I know is that my heart is aching right now. Birthdays are always hard for a mommy because it is just another reminder that your children are growing up. If there was a time that I could bottle Lance up it would be now.

I miss having a baby in the house.

BLOG SLACKER

2007-02-28T10:37:00.000-08:00

I started this blog as a way to share with my family. We are scattered all about and this was an easy way to show off pictures and little tidbits of our daily lives. It has been over a year since I began this online journal and I am almost at my 200th post (might have to throw a little party!)

I know putting us out there kinda scares Billy so I try to keep to upbeat and not broadcast all the private details of our family. This is my journal, my way of remembering the little things that happen around here. And it is not all pleasant but I keep those moments to myself (or in layouts I do not share) because I would not want this blog to one day be used against me. I don't know why I am telling you this. Call it a disclaimer or an explanation to my kids. Our lives are normal. We have tough times but there are way more good times. What you see (read) is not always what you get.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*EARS*
There are only 3 ears in this household that are NOT infected. What a ride February has been. Both boys are on antibiotics and are sleeping right now. We took Lance to the DR yesterday because he had not been himself and I knew something was wrong. It was his ears. One of his tubes is on its way out and it was infected behind it. And now that he has had a dose of antibiotics he is 90% better. This is the first ear infection in 10 months! We now have to go back to the ENT to get the tubes checked and PRAY that he does not need them again. The poor boy had not eaten in 24 hours and finally came to me yesterday afternoon and told me "I Hungee" so I made him some nuggets and he scarfed them down with 2 glasses of milk. And now today he has been eating constantly. Trying to gain back the 3 pounds he lost.

Last night Garrett woke up crying and holding his ear. I finally got him back to sleep around 12:30 but he woke up 3 more times during the night. I called the DR again today and asked them to call something in. And he did! This totally surprised the nurse because he has never done that before. But I told the nurse that Dr. C knows us pretty well. Plus we were just there yesterday and last week. (Remember the other DR who said G had fluid behind his ear but refuse to give me an antibiotic) So after nap we will go get the meds and hopefully everyone will feel better tomorrow.

*PARTY*
Lance's birthday party is this weekend. He is turning 2! It should be lots of fun because he LOVES presents and gets the whole gift concept. He has also been practicing blowing out candles which usually involves a lot of spit. Might have to make him his own little cake...

*LANCE*
The boy is obsessed with CARS. He carried them around all day, takes one to bed with him, makes car noises and repeats phrases from the movie. He is also starting to use pronouns and sentences. The funniest thing he said recently was "schit ma" which translates into SIT MA but sounds really bad. I promise I am not teaching my child naughty words.

*GARRETT*
I bought G some faux Crocs at Target last week and he will not take them off. He loves them- even though they are too big. He thinks he is so cool. He is at that stage where he uses double negatives and it is hilarious! "I knowed" "You lieded to me" and there are others I need to jot down because they are just too funny. He also mixes up phrases he hears us say. When I ask him a question, usually to see if he has hurt Lance, I tell him "don't tell me a lie." The other day he was mad at me and he told me "don't tell me a truth Mommy."

*BILLY*
His ankle is much better. He is getting around fine with his boot and is able to walk without it but he only does that at night. He goes back in about 2 weeks and will start his physical therapy. Other than that he is just Billy.

*BIRTHDAY GIFT*
Lance got his birthday gift this past weekend. A sandbox. This has to be one of the most researched gifts I have bought. I read every review I could find about sandboxes. Why? Because we have cats that like to visit our yard. I found one that would hold 2+ kids and had a secure lid. And the boys love it! Garrett really enjoyed it Saturday and Lance was in it for a bit but that was when he was sick. I know it will get tons of use this summer.

The dirty face is compliments of Daddy and the 3 Popsicles he let him eat.

And this is how a 4 year old boy plays dress up:

Time to dose up the tylenol...

WELL

2007-02-22T14:39:00.000-08:00

I can't think of a title today. I can't think at all. The nasty virus that has plagued our house this winter has struck again.

I took Garrett to the doctor yesterday because he was complaining about his ears again. We did not see our usual doctor and the only appointment available was with the doctor I don't like. He said Garrett has fluid behind his ears but to wait and see if it gets better. He said it probably would. But he was not concerned about the green snot that Garrett has had for 3 weeks. He is coughing up all kinds of junk and his nose is still running. I was hoping for some kind of relief. So there goes $20.

We came home and Lance took a nap and woke up with a fever. UGH! So there was no AWANAS for Garrett again. And Lance still has a fever today. We had to make a quick trip to Walmart for Tylenol and pull ups. He took a long nap when we got home and now his fever is up to 102 this afternoon. So if it does not break tonight we will be back at the Drs tomorrow.

And I am in a foul mood because this weekend was going to be our little getaway. Just Billy and I. We had to cancel it because Billy's coworker had to go out of town for a family emergency. Which means Billy is now doing 2 jobs and has awful hours. He had to be at the jobsite at 3:00 AM Wednesday morn. That is insane!

We are hoping to go get Lance's birthday gift this weekend and set it up for the boys to play in. That was actually my plan today but we took a sick day today. Other than that we have no plans this weekend. Just rest and hopefully get well. Of course there is always housework to do! I need to make Garrett some new chore charts and add dusting to his list of things to do. The boy loves to dust. He goes to town with my Swiffer duster.

And in one week Lance will be 2! I can't believe it! I was holding him today and noticed how all his baby fat has disappeared. No more chunky legs. He is a little boy now.

I need to go before I make myself cry!

Here is a layout of my little one:

CREDITS HERE

THE WEEKEND

2007-02-18T20:12:00.000-08:00

Time sure does fly when Billy is around! It seems that there are never enough hours in the day to do all we want to do. It all started yesterday when Billy replaced the water pump in the TrailBlazer. That took a little while but he did most of it while the boys were napping. Then Lance went out to help him. After Garrett got out of his post-nap funk the boys rode their bikes down the sidewalk. This is the first time Garrett was excited about riding his bike and did not want any help from me. Until he fell off.

After that we went to return a few things, ate a Denny's and went grocery shopping. The boys cleaned their plates at Denny's. They have never eaten that much at a restaurant and they were so good! Billy and I were amazed! Garrett ate a personal sized pizza and applesauce. Lance had a Jr. Grand Slam and ate almost all of it! That is a serving of scrambled eggs, sausage link, bacon and 3 silver dollar pancakes and a little side of fruit. That boy would eat breakfast all day long if I let him.

On the way home from HEB we were wondering why traffic was so bad. Turns out that there was a gas pipeline explosion a about a mile from our house. I am so glad we weren't home. There was a huge fire but luckily it was in a pasture so nothing was hurt or damaged. A few of the intersections around the neighborhood were closed and that is why it took forever to get home. There have been helicopters flying over ever since. It is getting a little annoying.

And today we stayed home. Billy let me sleep in until 8:35! That felt good! Garrett and Lance are still coughing and snotty so I didn't want to take them to Sunday School and spread yucky germs around. And I did not feel comfortable leaving them here with Billy and his peg leg. Not both boys at least. So we did not make it to church. Billy did go on a few errands and picked up his new grill. It is so cool! I can't wait for April to come now!

The boys spent the day with Billy in the garage watching the "Piston Cup" (NASCAR), eating Popsicles and playing. I did a few things inside, got caught up on my email and scrapped! And Garrett made an executive decision that we would have supper outside. So we did. That was the end of the day. They fell pretty hard after that. And now all 3 are in their beds snoring. The two little ones snoring is cute. I am not liking the big one snoring.

Here are the layouts I finished up this weekend:

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE (coming soon)

Time to find the Breath Rights...

IT ONLY TOOK 23 MONTHS!

2007-02-17T12:11:00.000-08:00

Right now BOTH boys are napping! I am flabbergasted! The only downside to this monumental event is that if Garrett is napping he is most likely sick. But I can deal with that because I am sitting in absolute silence right now. It is exactly what I needed to recharge my batteries.

I need to go put another load of laundry in.

CRAZY CRAZY

2007-02-15T10:17:00.000-08:00

Just when I thought it would get back to what we call normal...

Garrett is now sick. He has a temp of 101 and a bad cough. I am sure Lance will be next since he is always taking away G's sippy cup. He stayed home with me today while Lance went to MDO. It has been a long time since we have had any time without Lance. Kinda nice. I need to do this when he is not sick. Maybe go on a date with just Garrett.

We took Billy to the doctor yesterday. He has a Level 3 sprain and is now in a walking boot. I (and Billy) are so relieved that he no longer has to use crutches. When he took the boot off last night I took a picture of his foot and it still looks like the picture I posted earlier. He has to wear the boot for at least a month and will start PT in a month. Getting rid of the crutches was the best Valentine's gift EVER!

Yesterday was a very nice Valentine's day. We got to spend half the day with Daddy. After his appintment we went to Gander Mountain to shop for his new gun. I picked up some Crocs for me picked out Billy's Father's Day gift that he is getting way early! I want it for trips to the beach.

I need to get busy attacking the laundry pile. I am leaving you with some layouts of Miss Shelby!

CREDITS HERE

:)

2007-02-14T07:43:00.000-08:00

Make video montages at onetruemedia.com

WANNA SEE SOMETHING GROSS?

2007-02-11T10:13:00.000-08:00

That is Billy's ankle. He sprained it yesterday. He was working cows and fell in rut on the ground. His ankle rolled inwards and he felt/heard a pop. The picture is what it looked like last night. He wrapped it and put some ice on it.

When we got up this morning it was very swollen and a pretty shade of purple. So he went to the ER while the boys and I went to church. He just came home on crutches and has a fiberglass splint on it. The doctor thinks it is just a sprain but his foot was so swollen he was not sure. So Billy has to go to a orthopedic doctor this week to have it looked at again.

Never a dull moment around here.

Be back later with pics and stuff...

NO PRESENTS FOR DADDY

2007-02-09T20:29:00.000-08:00

Billy's birthday is this Wednesday. Since that is Valentine's and AWANAS night we are celebrating on Sunday. We had a discussion tonight while giving the boys a bath about the festivities. Garrett was VERY adamant about Daddy NOT getting any presents. Billy told him he wanted a new cooler. Garrett's response was "you already have 2 in the garage." When Billy told him he gets a present because he was a good boy Garrett's response was "you were not a good boy. You said naughty words." So it looks like Billy will not be getting any presents this year. But he will get a cake- double chocolate!

CRAFT DAY

2007-02-06T10:21:00.000-08:00

The boys love it when we have Craft Day. We should do it more often but you can imagine the mess it makes! This is what they made:

We used papers from Dani Mogstad's Carzy Love kit.

And this is something Lance worked on:

And this is what I have been working on:

CREDITS HERE

The kit used in here was named after Garrett. Sarah was working on it and I was chatting with her. She told me she couldn't think of a name and I told her it looked like G's vest he wears constantly so she named it after him!

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

I need to go find some medicine. This cold is kicking my hiney! I want to feel normal again!

LITTLE GOODIES

2007-02-02T12:02:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is my 2nd most favorite holiday. Aw heck- who are we kidding? I love every holiday! But Valentine's Day is extra special since it is my sweetheart's birthday. And he hates it! So I try to separate the two events and this year I have something extra special planned for Billy. (Don't make plans for next weekend Billy!) Garrett is in on it with me and is getting excited also. Now I just need to figure out how to fit 32 candles on his cake.

The boys will have Valentine's parties at MDO and AWANAS. We already bought their CARS cards and tattoos. And I am making them a little something extra to pass out to their friends.

Aren't they the cutest! I made some using Dani's new kit also. And you can get them FREE! Check out Dani's blog and grab the link to her newsletter. Lots of inspiration in there!

***CLICK ME***

At the very bottom of the newsletter is a link to grab a page of 3 sweetheart box covers. Just print, tape/glue and add a little ribbon. I added the boy's names before printing but you could always add it with a Sharpie after printing.

Today is Craft Day in our household. That means that it will be a mess when you get home Billy. We are making a cute little project that involves red, pink and hearts! I miss making crafts- it is the only thing I miss about teaching. So I have decided to establish Craft Day.

But first I need to go to the grocery store. Super Bowl weekend is almost as crazy as Thanksgiving so I plan to get our goods before it gets crowded. And we need glue.

Have a great weekend! And check back soon- I hope to have adorable pictures up!

PASS THE COLD

2007-01-31T08:27:00.000-08:00

Ever play that game? Not fun!

I am now the one with the nasty cold. I sometimes wish that I was the first to get the cold so I would then know how it feels and what to do. I hate not knowing how to help my little ones. I totally understand the "bugs" in ears today! So I am taking some meds and drinking my orange juice and praying this does not turn into a sinus infection or bronchitis.

Yesterday my I met my mom and she took the boys for the night. It was a much needed break. I was already feeling crummy but the yuckies really hit me last night. So I got to sleep in this morning and now I am washing clothes and just sitting. Don't have any energy to do anything else. The boys will be back after lunch and hopefully we can just lay around and watch a movie. Garrett has AWANAS tonight and I don't think Billy will make it home in time to take him. Hopefully I can find a quiet corner in the church and just hang out with Lance until Billy gets there.

I promised more stuff to share with you and here it is!

This is a CD Magnet I made. I used papers from Dani Mogstad's Crazy Love kit and various ribbons.

And this is an invitation I made for Lance's 2nd birthday. I used papers from Dani's Hard At Play kit. NOTE TO FAMILY: THIS MAY NOT BE THE ACTUAL DATE! I AM STILL WORKING OUT DETAILS!

And right now I am printing out papers for the cutest little kiddie project ever! I did this with my students every Valentine's Day and they loved it! And hopefully Friday I can do it with Lance and Garrett.

Need to find a cough drop...

TUESDAY

2007-01-30T10:02:00.000-08:00

Another rainy Tuesday. I am sitting here listening to Lance playing in his bed. Hopefully he will fall asleep soon. He is cutting at least one 2 year molar and has been miserable lately. He just chews on his pacifier constantly. He will turn it sideways and just gnaw away. But the tooth pain has not stopped him from his destructive tendencies! He is at the stage where he loves to watch things fall down- the pile of folded clothes I was trying to put away, the tower of blocks Garrett was building, the dog bowl full of dog food and his food from his plate. He is also talking constantly. Sunday night (or should I say Monday morning) I heard him calling from his bed "Momma please" so I went in there and gave him some Motrin and milk. 30 minutes later I hear "Momma nutter milk peas" which translates to Momma another milk please. My favorite is when he comes to me, pulls my hand and says "come, please" and leads me to what he wants. It amazes me to watch him learn to talk. We never experienced this with Garrett. Garrett did not talk until he was almost 3. One day he woke up and decided to talk. He totally skipped the baby talk.

But Garrett is not skipping the horrible fours! If this is a glimpse of what will happen in ten years I am scared. He gets mad, storms into his room and slams the door. Tells me he doesn't like it here and is running away. Pushes Lance for no reason. Is very defiant. Ignores me. He is nothing like me- must get that from his Daddy. Deanna is you think the 2s are tough just wait! The 2s are just a precursor!

I have been busy creating lately. I have lots and lots of projects to show. But I think I will break it up over a few days.

First are 2 layouts I made using some new kits from Dani Mogstad (released on Feb. 1)

This kit is now in my all time favorites. If you haven't figured it out yet, I love to use orange. Don't know why. I was raised to not like orange- it was all maroon. But I guess it is a little bit of rebellion to use it now. And I like it.

CREDITS HERE

And this was for the Digi Dares. I had Garrett take my picture and ask me questions. Ohhh the mind of a 4 year old boy. I edited out the bodily noises questions. This kit will also be available Feb.1 and is a GREAT boy kit! Lots of goodies in it!

CREDITS HERE

I hear my little munchkin coughing. Guess I better go dose him up. Catch you later!

AS PROMISED

2007-01-25T11:32:00.000-08:00

Lance and his new hair cut:

Garrett climbing a tree:

CREDITS HERE
CREDITS HERE
CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE AND HERE

I took Garrett to see the doctor today and he does have an ear infection- two of them. The right ear is worse than the left but there were definitely "bugs" in there. So now he is on a round of antibiotics. This should be interesting since he is allergic to most antibiotics and will most likely get a rash. Dr. C checked and the last time he had to get medicine was last March.

After the Dr visit I took the boys to MDO. Lance was excited to go today. He must have had a growth spurt because he towers over all the other little kiddies. I went ahead and let Garrett go on his field trip since he did not have a fever and was dying to go. I drove him and a classmate to the jump place. And he jumped for 2 hours straight! They then had pizza and we took them back to the church. Garrett wanted to stay because they were going to "rest" and watch a movie. That was fine with me! So I have an hour to myself right now. And I am using that hour to get rid of the headache that 40 3 and 4 yr olds can give you.

After I pick them up and we have snack we are going to put all the toys in their proper homes. Somehow this week toys got scattered everywhere and it is driving me nuts! Lance is really into Thomas right now and there is a train in every room. And there is always laundry to do. Good thing Thursday night is my TV night. I can sit and fold while watching my shows.

Tomorrow is MOPS and more cleaning. Saturday is going to be a Family Fun Day and Sunday we have church and I need to get a good picture taken of the boys. Somewhere in there I would love to take a nap- or even sleep in but I doubt that is likely.

Time to go get the boys!

BUGS IN EARS

2007-01-24T18:56:00.000-08:00

Our phone is back! Turns out there was a problem with the underground line and they had to replace it. In the cold rain. It works now and my DSL is back on.

But we still have the sickies. Billy and I just feel run down. The boys have nasty coughs and noses. Garrett has sporadicly told me he has "bugs" in his ears which makes me think he might have an ear infection. He has said this for 3 days so just don't think he is being silly. So back to the doctor tomorrow to get it looked at. Which means he might not get to go on his field trip and Lance might miss MDO also. We did skip Awanas tonight because Garrett was very tired and had goopey eyes.

That is all the excitement around here.

I will be back tomorrow with an update, pictures and layouts. But I will leave you with this:

"NO!"

AGAIN

2007-01-24T07:40:00.000-08:00

Phone is out- again
Internet is sporadic- again
We are sick- again
House is messy- again
It is raining- again

DO YOU SEE THAT?

2007-01-21T11:46:00.000-08:00

It is the sun! Oh my! I actually forgot what sunshine feels and looks like. It has been well over a week since we have been blessed with any sunlight. Just a few wispy clouds in the sky and glorious sunshine! It feels like Texas again! (Shhhhh... I know there is another nasty winter storm coming but please let me have this moment)

I know it has been a few days since my last post but I really have nothing to talk about. Wednesday was nasty. We stayed inside and watched the icicles and ate a few of them. The boys had a great day at MDO Thursday and I had my quiet time. We did nothing Friday. I don't think Garrett even got out of his pjs. And yesterday the boys spent the day with my parents while Billy went hunting and I went to a meeting. The little boys got haircuts today and it is short! I'll have to get pictures when Lance wakes up. That is about it. Busy but boring.

And I have a few more pictures and layouts to show.

Looking at the ice

If you look closely in the Jeep is my oven mitt that Lance likes to wear when he is driving.

I had this layout finished for a while but forgot about it. Credits HERE

And this one is for the Amazing Digi Scrapbooking Race. The challenge was to make a layout about books. Credits HERE

The other challenge we had this week was to swap photos with our partner. So here is lovely Miss Emma. Credits HERE

5 THINGS

2007-01-17T10:45:00.000-08:00

Kirsty got me again!

5 Secrets

1.) I love to floss. And my favorite floss (yes, I have a favorite) is Crest Glide. It drives Billy nuts! He can't stand to hear the floss or see me do it. But I still love to floss.

2.) I always wanted a sister. And since that never happened I would dress my little brothers up and put make-up on them.

3.) I hate to use public restrooms. I must have to go pretty bad if I venture into the restroom at WalMart.

4.) I have never been able to do a cartwheel. Never ever.

5.) I wanted to be Anne of Green Gables when I was growing up.

So there. 5 things you never knew. And now I tag Dani, Jennifer, Sarah, Vicki and Brittany.

M&Ms

2007-01-16T11:47:00.000-08:00

My boys love M&Ms- especially the minis. And when they are extra good they get some at the store. Or when Sugie comes over she usually has some hiding in her bag. And this is what happens when you give Lance M&Ms. Or mmmmmssss as he calls them.

And if you needed more proof that Garrett LOVES chocolate:

And if you were wondering what we have been doing in this cold weather:

Playing pirates! I made the Cranium Mega Fort (great toy Santa!) into a pirate ship yesterday. Pirate Garrett made Pirate Lance walk the plank several times. And they used their map Garrett drew to find the "X" and the great treasure of fruit snacks.

It was good fun until Pirate Lance destroyed the ship.

It is just about time to get Garrett and since it will take me forever to get Lance's gloves, hat and jacket on I need to get going!

FAMILY

2007-01-14T13:45:00.000-08:00

I had one of those moments this morning. The warm, fuzzies make you heart sing moment. Billy went to get Lance out of the crib when he woke up and brought him to our bed. And Garrett followed along not too long after. And there we were all snuggly and warm in the bed. Of course it didn't last long but it was just enough to give me a happy heart all day long.

Playing with the boys is so much fun lately (if they had naps!!!) and always entertaining. Lance is repeating EVERYTHING we say and has his own version of jokes. Garrett is becoming very inquisitive and wants to know why, how and when. It has been a while since I documented what they can do so here we go:

Garrett: likes to "smell" words, is drawing much better, is talking to his teachers now, has a best friend, LOVES preschool, shares and takes turns, does his chores, loves to sing songs and make up songs, barely eats anything unless it is chocolate (he gets that from Billy)

Lance: is learning his shapes, tells us animal sounds, occasionally uses sentences, knows most colors, knows the letter "H", sings, can do puzzles, jumps really high, can throw overhand HARD, getting better at pedaling, holds the crayon the right way (he gets that from me), eating like it is going out of style

They are growing too fast! Lance will be two soon and I am not ready for that! Look at him here- he is too big!

Credits HERE

Credits HERE

Credits HERE

Credits HERE

OK- time to go. Super excited about 24 tonight!

UPDATE

2007-01-11T19:39:00.000-08:00

Lance is better. Still a sickie but getting better. He ended up having a nasal swab done and blood drawn. And since he has inherited his mother's scared veins the nurse had to poke him twice. And yes, he was screaming. I promised Garrett he could get some ice cream if he was a good boy and would stop asking me a million questions. That shut him up fast. So he got his ice cream with M&Ms and Lance got a strawberry shake. That is all he ate today. So sad. We did get the test results back and he has a virus. The doctor was worried about the flu but luckily it wasn't that. Now I just have to wait for Garrett to get it. The only thing these boys share are colds.

I have a massive headache and am heading to bed. I promise some pictures and layouts this weekend!

103.8

2007-01-11T10:27:00.000-08:00

That is what Lance woke up with this morning. I have no idea where this came from! We are going to the doctor this afternoon. I dropped Garrett off at MDO and Lance is asleep right now. I finally was able to lay him down. When he is sick he wants to constantly be held. Garrett is the opposite.

I just thought I would pop in to let you know I am still around. I need to go get the clorox out and disinfect the house while he is sleeping and find something to entertain G while we are at the doctor.

RANDOM

2007-01-07T10:03:00.000-08:00

Spent Saturday at my grandparent's house. Had fun.
Reba nipped Garrett in the butt.
Lance did not get car sick this weekend. Yay!
Billy is living his dream- hunting AND fishing.
I only took 7 pictures the entire weekend.
Garrett slept 14 hours last night.
Lance slept 10.5 hours.
I slept 4 (I can never sleep when Billy is not here)
Grocery bill was enormous. Why is produce so high?
Made it through the grocery store without a single whine or complain from the boys.
We are having breakfast for supper. YUM!
I am de-cluttering today.
We are the only ones that have taken our Christmas stuff down on our street.
I finished my entries for the first round of Amazing DigiScrapping Race. I am Kirsty's partner.
I found $25 in an old purse.

Kirsty's entry:

CREDITS HERE

My entry:

CREDITS HERE

THEY MAKE MY HEART HAPPY

2007-01-04T12:53:00.000-08:00

I just picked the boys up from MDO. I always get Garrett first. When he was leaving all the little kids in his class told him bye. Too cute! And then we go get Lance. I was talking to his teacher for a minute and he finally looked up and saw me and went flying through the door. He didn't stop at me. He ran straight to Garrett and gave him a HUGE hug! He missed his big brother! Garrett then gave Lance a hug. I started to tear up! I am so happy they have become best friends!

NORMALCY

2007-01-04T09:11:00.000-08:00

Finally! We are back to normal around here. The toys are put up, dishes are cleaned, laundry is in the process of being done and it feels great! It feels to go to have a cleaner house. Yes, it is only cleaner and not sparkling clean yet. It is a work in progress.

The boys went back to MDO today. Garrett was super excited because he no longer has rest time and did not have to take his napmat. Lance was fine until I turned around to leave. I felt like doing a Mary Tyler Moore move when I walked out the door. I love my boys and playing with them but I NEED the few hours of silence I get on Thursdays. The past two weeks made me realize that I need to find things to do this summer. A few days home are okay but the boys get bored with each other and get cabin fever. I think we might do swimming lessons. And I think I will be the one giving them. I also need to see what lessons the Y offers for little ones. Lance would be great in a gymnastics class!

I really don't have much to say today. Everything is A-OK around here. Lance is talking up a storm. He newest phrase he uses constantly is "ah mn" which means Aww Man! He also has learned to come to me and say "pleeeeeeeeeeease" and grab my hand and pull to what he wants. It is amusing to watch him talk to Garrett. He will repeat the last word Garrett says. And Garrett is coming our of his shell. He was never one that talked or sang when he played. But now he likes to carry around Lance's Learn Through Music microphone and do a running commentary that he then plays back for me. He thinks he is hilarious when he records fake burps and toots. He has turned into a full fledged boy. It is all about bodily noises.

I have enjoyed all my toys I received this year. I wish there was a way to make money doing scrapbook pages. Too bad hobbies don't pay. I have pages to show but Blogger is not working right now. So I will be back later!

HAPPY 2007 TO YOU!

2007-01-01T08:49:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it is 2007. And I have lived through 3 decades. Nothing like a new year to make you feel old.

We hung out at home last night and did our usual thing. The boys are worn out from all the fun times with Daddy. They were in bed by 8:30 and we were in bed at 11. I know- lame!

And now the boys are outside trimming the trees and bushes. I think Billy just loves all the help he gets! Sometime today Billy will also make his yummy black-eye peas. I look forward to it every year.

And with the new year come new resolutions. I have a pretty long list! I will share a few with you so you can hold me accountable.

1. clean out all closets and keep them organized
2. clean out all clutter in the kitchen
3. paint the interior and help Billy with the exterior
4. daily devotions and weekly devotions with Billy
5. drink 8 glasses of water daily.

There are others but they are a little too personal to put out there in blogland.

So I guess I should go get started. The water one sounds the easiest ;)

TRAINS

2006-12-29T13:13:00.000-08:00

Can a boy ever have enough trains? Santa and Sugie & PawPaw added to the GeoTrax collection this Christmas. And Daddy and Garrett worked on getting it just right today. It has now outgrown the playroom and resides in the living room. And I don't think all the pieces are pictured here. Yes, we have an obsession.

So this brings our train set tally up to four. One for all of us ;)

Today is just yucky. We were going a little stir crazy so we went for a quick trip to Target. After that it was lunch and nap time. Lance and I took a nap while Garrett watched CARS. He has to watch the movie with all his die-cast CARS lined up in a row. Billy paid bills and fun stuff like that. Now all three are in the garage "building" with scrap wood, screws and little plastic hammers.

Here is one of my construction workers.

I am enjoying all my presents I received. The tablet is awesome! So much fun being able to draw and actually use my own handwriting. I have a few layouts with my own handwriting but they still need some finishing touches. But I do have this one to share:

credits: Joy to the World by Ashley Olson available at The Digi Shoppe. Alpha is Stacie Prinzo's and scallop is Jen Caputo's from The Digi Shoppe Essentials. Font is pea Marcie.

That is all for now folks. Off to have more family time. Whatever will we do when Billy goes back to work? He has been on vacation for 8 days and has 3 days left. That has been the best Christmas gift so far!

CHRISTMAS MAYHEM!

2006-12-27T11:52:00.000-08:00

What a wonderful Christmas we had! Santa was very good to us! It all started Sunday around lunch when we went to my in laws for Christmas Eve. Good food, great presents and lots of entertainment provided by the boys.

And this grill. Love that I can now cook my chicken inside and not wait for Billy to get home. And I know Billy is excited about cooking breakfast on it. Aren't we dorks!

We came home, took baths, put out reindeer food and made a snack for Santa. Santa had a good variety- tortilla chips, slice of cheese, candy cane, sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies and milk. And we had to move the chair from in front of the fireplace so Santa could come inside. This was a major concern of Garrett's. Then it only took about 2 hours for the boys to calm down and go to sleep.

This is what they woke up to:

And a gift wrapped by Garrett:

They loved all their gifts but the biggest hit was the enormous Thomas and Friends train set. That sucker is 8 ft. long!

After they opened gifts and were busy playing Billy and I opened our gifts. The boys got me Photoshop Elements 5, mascara (Garrett picked it out), and a camera case. Billy got me a pillow because I am always taking his and a 2GB SD card (Yay! now I can shoot in RAW). And he totally surprised me with a Wacom tablet. I am having so much fun with it!

Billy got his fishing reel that he picked out, a few shirts, 2 corks that the boys picked out and a stocking full of stuff he needed.

After all that we went to my parents house for more madness. The boys had a blast playing with their cousins. Parker and Garrett played with their CARS and Lance just ran around following all the big kids. The adults had a Dirty Santa gift exchange that was as entertaining as ever.

Then after that crew left we had our gift exchange with my parents and brothers and sisters-in law. And I opened this:

I am out of USB ports now!

It was a wonderful Christmas for us all but the best present was seeing my boys having fun with family and the smiles and laughter. It gets better every year as they get older.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2006-12-22T15:44:00.000-08:00

We were not able to send out a letter this year with our cards. I think this is better! Enjoy!

Make an online slide show at onetruemedia.com

SUGAR HIGH

2006-12-22T12:17:00.000-08:00

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

2006-12-19T11:16:00.000-08:00

It all about how much longer around here. We are ready for Santa! The boys are getting very excited and anxious. Garrett knows what will happen and Lance just feeds off of Garrett. Not an hour goes by that we don't have a conversation about Christmas.

Yesterday we mailed another letter to Santa. Just in case he didn't get the first one. This time we had to go inside the post office and Garrett had to drop it in the slot himself. Lance did not want to be left out so he mailed a few letters also. But he thought it was like his mailbox at home and tried to get them out to mail again. He was a little frustrated and started growling. Yes, my sweet littel boy now growls.

After the post office we took Lance to see the doctor- again! We just couldn't make it through the month of December without a visit. This time it is a yeast infection that would not go away. And he has a cold but his doctor couldn't do anything about that. So now he is on a new cream that will hopefully clear this mess up. I guess I need to put him back on his daily yogurt. He has the most sensitive skin. I have no idea what triggered this infection. It came from out of the blue. Time to start potty training so I can get him out of diapers.

Today is Garrett's party at school. He was very proud because we brought a birthday cake for baby Jesus to the class. They will have pizza, cake and do a book exchange. Poor teachers! 12 little kids on a sugar high! I am sure he will crash into the grumpies when he gets home. Doesn't help that he has caught Lance's cold!

The rest of our week should be fun and relaxing!

Wednesday- make Gingerbread cookies
Thursday- shop for Daddy's gift, go to Target and Kroger
Friday- make cake balls and chocolate pretzels
Saturday- clean house, make reindeer food

and then it is Christmas Eve! YAY!

And since I will probably be covered in flour the next few days I thought I would update my layouts.

This is my good friend Kirsty's daughter:

credits: Jennilyn's Baby It's Cold Outside kit available at The Digi Shoppe, alpha is Vikki Stegall's DIY Chip Alpha filled with papers from Jennilyn's kit and the bow is Nikki Meador's- recolored. Font is pea Jessica (I think)

credits: Alpha is Misty Mareda's Brown Wrapper Alpha. Kraft paper is Misty Mareda's from The Digi Shoppe Essentials, solid papers and patterned papers are from Janel Kretschman's Down Home paper pack, tag and ball chain are also Janel's from The Digi Shoppe Essentials. Paper tears are Jen Caputo's also from The Essentials.Fonts are Amanda's Hand and Mom's Typewriter.

credits: Circle Square Template by Jennifer Layden, everything is by Dani Mogstad- Naughty or Nice mini kit. Fonts are pea Sarahloo and Stamp Act.

credits: papers and gems from Becky Vosburg's Sweet Thang mini kit, the stamped alpha is Stacie Prinzo's from The Essentials and the photo turn is Lauren Reid's from The Essentials. All are available at The Digi Shoppe. Font is Susie's Hand.

credits: Everything is from the 365 Collection by Christy Lyle and Robin Carlton. The papers and elements are from the September kit. Font is pea Karen Print.

BAD SANTA PHOTO

2006-12-17T17:51:00.000-08:00

Today we went to visit Santa. Luckily we got there early (like an hour early) because there were many other parents that put this event off to the last minute. Garrett was excited at first but as it got closer to lunch time and the longer we had to wait the less he wanted to see Santa. When it was finally our turn he refused to go near Santa. Rather than fight a very strong and loud boy I decided to torture Lance. Daddy and Garrett bypassed the jolly old man and I threw Lance on his lap. And this is the bad Santa photo:

BUT do not think there was ever a GOOD Santa photo!

From 2005(my personal favorite):

From 2004:

From 2003:

Ok- the one from '03 is kinda cute. Garrett just turned a year old and didn't know any better.

Sorry about the bad scans. I need to clean my scanner and reset the settings.

That is all for tonight. Taking three boys (one big, two little) to the mall can be exhausting.

PROUD MOMMA

2006-12-14T18:59:00.000-08:00

Tonight was Garrett's Christmas Program. It was adorable!

Not the best images. It was dark and there was a big bald guy in front of me. Garrett sang, he did the motions and he was very serious. I have some video but since all the other parents might not want their kiddos on here I will burn it to CD for the fam.

It is late and I am tired. We are crafting tomorrow. That should be entertaining!

TIDBITS

2006-12-11T07:29:00.000-08:00

Sesame Street cracks me up!

Lance's vocabulary is exploding. It now includes: Whoo Hoo, UH HUH, more, milk, G It (Garrett), ookie (cookie), chip, ingle (jingle bell), toes, nose, eye, I tuck (I stuck), Ideeit (I did it), git (get it or give it), me me me (mine), agin (again), BYE and HI. There is more but that is all I heard today. And he can now jump off the floor with both feet- at the same time.

Garrett is emotional. No other words to describe it. Everything upsets him and how he describes it is hilarious! "I too crowded." "I too excited to clean up." And the tattling has begun. My favorite is when he blames Lance for things that Lance cannot do. And when he blames Trevor.

Trevor is getting old. I have to push him out the door in the morning. He refuses to go out if it is wet. He spends his day under our bed hiding from Lance.

Billy is Billy. The same- never changes. I think I have about a week until he is no longer THE GRINCH. The Christmas spirit does not hit him until after December 15. I am looking forward to his office party without kids!!! I might even be able to convince him to dance a song or two.

The house. It does not stay clean. No matter how hard we try. I think we will be doing some majoring purging in January. Maybe I can convince Billy to build me some shelves.

The piano. It will be gone before Christmas. Sorry Clayton. It will be going to a family with 5 little ones. I know it will get lots of love and use.

Shopping is done- just waiting on my internet orders to get here. Christmas card is made and will be mailed this weekend. Need to start my baking soon.

Garrett has his first MDO program this week. I am looking forward to watching him stand on the stage and look down. I seriously doubt he will do any performing. I need to warn his teachers!

That is all for today. Need to go see what the boys are throwing in the playroom.

I CAN'T BELIEVE

2006-12-08T12:03:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that it is already Friday. Where did this week go? I don't even remember what all we did this week but I know it wasn't laundry.

I am just about done with my shopping. A few gifts that were ordered online are on their way and a few homemade ones still need to be done. I don't think Billy has started his shopping yet. But he always waits until the last minute.

The boys are starting to get excited. They both like singing Christmas songs and redecorating the tree. They are very concerned about a wooden Santa I have. He is hinged and his right foot fell off. Lance brought it to me and said "ix it." I guess they want Santa well so he can bring them all the goodies on their enormous wish list. Oh- Garrett made Lance's wish list as well as him own.

I did not take any pictures this week so I don't have any to share. But I do have one of the cutest "Natitity." The boys love playing with this. The hay is missing in this picture because I was needed at the Little People Thanksgiving Feast.

And a few more creations from me:

Everything is from the Year of Memories 2007 Collection by Dani Mogstad and Shawna Clingerman. I used the August kit and the binder clip is from September. Font is pea Jessica. Photoblast on the picture.

A Year of Memories 2007- March kit by Dani Mogstad and Shawna Clingerman. The frame is from Dani's Tool Box.

folded corner action and alpha (Blueberry Pop)are from Jen Caputo. Staples, tears are from Jen Caputo, tag and ribbon are from Julie Howard from The Digi Shoppe Essentials kit. Paper and holly are from Jennifer Layden's My Kinda Christmas kit available at The Digi Shopppe. Font is problem secretary.

clasp by Misty Mareda, tag and tears by Jen Caputo- part of the DigiShoppe Essentials, the folded corner is also by Jen Caputo. The papers and bow are from Tangerine Dreams by Scrapping with Nikki at The Digi Shoppe. Fonts are incognitype, stampact and pea Olson

Have a great weekend and stay warm!

IF YOU WANT TO SEE

2006-12-06T19:46:00.000-08:00

what Little Gran has been up to check out this link: Benavides ISD

AN UPDATE

2006-12-05T20:22:00.000-08:00

Blogging has fallen to the bottom of my list. What list? The mile long list of stuff to do this month. So here I am posting this and NOT folding clothes.

We are all well and staying warm. The boys are getting excited about Christmas. We talk about Jesus' birthday and Santa all the time. Garrett knows that he has to behave because Mommy knows Santa's phone number. And Lance is Lance. I think he enjoys the music the most.

We decorated the outside Sunday and had our own little lighting ceremony. Garrett thought it was great. He was really proud because he helped put the lights on the tree with Daddy.

I am just about done with the shopping. I have a few gifts to order online and a few to go buy this weekend. The boys are done and Billy is done. And they are wrapped. Now I just have 20 days to wait.

Here are a few new layouts. Enjoy!

CREDITS HERE

I AM NOT IGNORING YOU

2006-12-01T09:14:00.000-08:00

There is a problem with our phone lines. I can receive some calls but you can't hear me. And some calls aren't even coming through. So I am not ignoring you if you are trying to get in touch with me! Just send me an email- I'll be checking them throughout the day. Or call Billy if it is really important.

Be back later with a real post!

Holiday Tag

2006-11-29T06:48:00.000-08:00

Thanks Kirsty! I am going to stop reading your blog if you keep tagging me!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Both

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No but I need to ;)

5. When do you put your decorations up? They are up! And have been up! Usually before Thanksgiving.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? tamales at the in laws and turkey at my parents

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child: Having to sleep upstairs with my brothers and running down stairs to get to the presents only having Dad stop us at the door and make us wait while he had his coffee.

8. How and When did you learn the truth about Santa? What truth? Santa still visits me!

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? No. But we are usually at someone's house so we exchange gifts.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? TONS of ornaments, white lights (see picture a few posts below)

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it but remember- I live in Texas so I hardly ever get to see it.

12. Can you ice skate? Never tried. Nothing frozen around here.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? My engagement ring. My first Cabbage Patch kid closely follows.

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Celebrating Jesus' birthday.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? All of them but I look forward to Little Gran's Pralines!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? The countdown tree that we had as a child that Lance and Garrett now get to do.
17. What tops your tree? A star- Garrett will not let me do anything else.
18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? Giving.

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Anything but Grandma Got Run Over.

Now I get to tag some peeps.

Deanna
Susie
Ann
Sarah
Jennifer
and anyone else who wants to join in! Come back and leave me a link in the comments and I'll come check out your survey.

On to scrapbooking! I have a few that I haven't shown. I am loving using PSE5. So much faster and easier for me than DIP. That reminds me- I need to write my letter to Santa. Not sure if he has caught all my hints yet.

credits: Amanda Rockwell's Back in Black Collection- Fresh Kit. Alpha stamp and heart are Dani Mogstad's.

credits: Jennifer Layden's Pumpkin Cider kit, stitching from Gina miller, ric rac is Tiff Brady's and the pumpkin template is Karen Hunt's.

credits: Priceless Month tag from Christy Lyle, everything else is from the 365 Collection- August kit by Christy Lyle and Robin Carlton.

credits: everything from Jen Caputo- template from Collection 10, text paths and Blueberry Pop kit.

credits: Thankful kit by Kelly Shults and Amy Teets. Paper tear by Jen Caputo.

Time to go. I need to find G's "wish listus." THANKS AUNT LAUREN!

HOME SWEET HOME

2006-11-26T19:16:00.000-08:00

How was your Thanksgiving? We had a great time visiting our families. After being gone 4 days it is always the best feeling to walk back into your own house.

The boys had a blast playing with aunts, uncles, grandmas, grandpas and cousins. They are beyond tired. I have a feeling tomorrow will be a tough day around here. No more candy, no more getting their way, no more constant entertainment. Yup, it is a tough life when you have to come back to reality.

I tried the entire weekend to get THE Christmas card photo. I took over 300 pictures and not one of both the boys turned out. One would be looking the other way or moving. So frustrating! I am going to try again tomorrow night. I did get a few really great pictures.

Chief Garrett:

Garrett and Daddy fishing:

Lance's Big Fish:

Celebrating the Aggie win:

Daddy having fun in the dirt pile:

More fun in the dirt:

Trying again to get a picture:

Lance really did catch a fish. Don't know how he did because he just throws his line in and out. The poor fish was just tossed around. Garrett also caught a few fish.

It is getting late and I need to get to bed.
Night!

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS

2006-11-22T10:32:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know I am nuts. Billy tells me this often.

The boys love it! First thing they do in the morning is ask to turn the lights on. They are having a blast with the LP Nativity and Christmas Village.

Christmas is so much fun!

And so is Thanksgiving. I didn't forget about turkey day. How could I forget about turkey? Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE turkey. We got a coupon for a free bird from Kroger and I went and got the biggest I could find. 20lbs. I LOVE turkey! Billy will be cooking that for me in January.

The only thing that could make this holiday season better is the weather. It is gorgeous outside but we could be in shorts. I refuse to wear shorts right now. I wish it would stay cool. Garrett wants snow for Christmas and I think he might be disappointed. The last time it snowed I was pregnant with Lance. G was too little to remember.

Christmas decorating isn't all we have been doing. Yesterday was Garrett's REAL 4th birthday. He had birthday brownies after supper and ate 3 of them. That boy loves chocolate- just like his daddy. This morning was his check up and he is all good. Tall for his age but what do you expect? So is daddy! He did get 4 shots and is still whimpering about them. The highlight of the visit was that he got to pee in a cup. He thought that was hilarious! I think I am going to put all our cups out of reach.

We have a bunch of plans this weekend and I am sure we will be dead tired Sunday night. I was hoping to do some Black Friday shopping but the ads just aren't appealing. This year is Billy's turn to get a BIG gift. Any guesses as to what it is? The boys are getting him boots. Yes, I know he reads this but he has to try them on and pick them out but they will be wrapped and under the tree. Santa is also getting him a few things but nothing exciting. Still not sure what the boys are getting. I am sure it will involve some sort of train or Hot Wheels.

Check out this picture of Lance. That boys is clumsier than me! He has a gouge out of his nose and a scrapped forehead.

Off to do more laundry!

TA DA

2006-11-20T12:45:00.000-08:00

Lance has a new expression. He will hold his arms out and go "ta da" He is super proud of himself. Too cute!

We had a great weekend. Fun Day with Daddy went well. When I got home they were wiped out and went to bed without a peep. I am not sure what all they did but everyone was in one piece and the house was not destroyed.

Yesterday we went to church and played all day. It was another early night for the boys. Lance did get up 5 times last night because he couldn't breathe and was coughing like an old man. I was able to grab a cancellation appointment at the doctor this morning. When Dr. C walked in Lance stuck his tongue out and said "ahhhhhhhhhh." Dr. C busted out laughing. He put Lance on an antibiotic and cough medicine. He also got his flu shot. We go back on Wednesday for Garrett's 4th year check up. I am not looking forward to it.

I was looking at my photos from last Christmas and got the urge to scrap a few. We are trying to decide how to do this year's Christmas card picture and it is going to be hard to top last year's! And since it is impossible to get both boys sitting and smiling at the same time I am not sure what we will end up with!

CREDITS HERE

I need to get going and do some laundry. I am way behind! I am never really caught up but there is a mountain of laundry right now. Later.

COUGH COUGH

2006-11-17T12:40:00.000-08:00

We are now recovering. It as moved onto the coughing stage. I went to my allergist yesterday and he said I have bronchitis- again. So back to the inhaler and antibiotics. And then Garrett got sick last night. The yucky stomach stuff. Not sure if it was just something he ate or what but he is fine now.

So this week has just been blah. Nothing new. Just trying to get the house back to normal and everyone well. Oh- Lance does have some new words. In addition to his own little language he can say the following:

I did it! = Ideedit
BOOKS! = ooks
ball = ball
juice = uice
go night night = g nigh nigh
bath = baaaaaaa
duck = duck
snack = nack
Momma = MOMma
Daddy = DaDe
please = eez
Uhoh = uhoh
NO! = NA!
Yes = ssssss
toes = oes
nose = oes
eat = eeetttttttttt
Bye Bye = Bye Bye (with huge hand waving)

He is starting to combine his little words into sentences. There are still a few I haven't figured out yet.

And he is adding to his animal sounds but a duck still says DUCK DUCK.

And his favorite thing is to sing songs and do finger movements. And dance. Billy calls him a bobble head when he dance because that is the only part of him that moves.

That is all I have for today. I am sure I will have lots to tell on Sunday. Tomorrow is Fun with Daddy Day while Mommy does some GIRL ONLY shopping! This is my once a year trip and I am looking forward to it!

Found this picture from last year and wanted to share!

CREDITS HERE

I'VE BEEN REPLACED

2006-11-15T14:29:00.000-08:00

You do not want to venture into our household right now. As a matter of fact, you might just want to scoot away from the screen a little. We are SICK! It is so yucky! There are kleenex everywhere. Garrett started it Saturday and it has now made it way to me. I just hope Billy does not get it. But out of all of us Lance has it the worst. He just always seems to get the yuckiest. And he can't tell me what hurts so I don't know how to make him feel better. The nurse I talked to told me to start all of us Rescon GG. We love that stuff. It is about the nastiest liquid medicine you can take but it works. I just don't like giving it because it messes with our moods. Makes us drowsy and grumpy.

Today Lance took a nice long nap but woke up crying. I tried juice, rocking him, finding his entourage and singing to him. Nothing worked. He kept crying. I finally asked him if he wanted to watch The Wiggles and he hopped down off my lap and ran to the living room. I have moved down from being the coolest and best in his eyes. The Wiggles are number one right now. And as I type he is watching Rocking Christmas. Garrett is trying to teach him the dance moves.

Since we have been confined to the house I did do a few scrap pages. I am using the trial of PSE5 and I love it. It is on my wish list- you listening Santa Billy?

CREDITS HERE

I guess I should let the boys get some fresh air for a bit. Hopefully we won't get blown away. It is so windy outside. But our leaves are falling so maybe Garrett can actually make a pile of leaves to jump in.

Later...

THE WEEKEND

2006-11-12T17:07:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have been absent lately. It has been pure madness around here lately. And since I don't remember where I last left off I guess it is time for another round of weekend recap.

FRIDAY
MOPS in the morning. Lance and Garrett made the cutest projects. I need to scan them in. Came home for nap and cleaning. Went to Walmart for party goodies. Billy came home early and cooked. YAY! Sent boys to bed early. Billy went grocery shopping. Went to bed.

SATURDAY
Listened to Garrett ask "Is it my party yet?" about 5,467 times. Billy took the boys to get a haircut while I cleaned. Went to Lunar Golf and had a great party. Garrett and his friends (and family) had a wonderful time. Came home and Garrett played with every single gift. Cousins came over and had hamburgers. Boys played with cousins and had a good time. I crashed early.

SUNDAY
Woke up with a sick little boy. Billy stayed home with Lance and green nose Garrett. I went to church. Came home and Billy left to go hunting. Fed the boys and put Lance down for nap. Garrett played his Leapster all day and I piddled around. Lance took a 4 hour nap and woke up with a yucky nose. Played with the new toys. Had supper, bath and now the boys are in bed. YAY!

Another great weekend. Garrett told me it was the best party. He really had a great time and is enjoying all his new toys. I have pictures but since they were taken under blacklights I need to do a little editing. His real birthday is still over a week away and he is looking forward to our little party at home.

I do have a few other things I can share.

CREDITS HERE

I think that about wraps it up. I am sure I am forgetting something but right now I have a little boy that just got out of bed and told me he is still sick.

FALL

2006-11-08T11:12:00.000-08:00

I thought Fall was here but now it is 81 degrees outside again. I wish the cooler weather would come to stay. It is pretty pitiful that this little pile of leaves are all the boys have to jump in.

But they do have fun in the dirt.

DON'T FORGET

2006-11-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

TO VOTE!

WORRIED?

2006-11-06T21:05:00.000-08:00

Guess a few people actually read this thing. Do you miss me when I am gone? I am still here just busy and sick.

Let me backtrack for you.

THURSDAY
Took the boys to school. Ran to Walmart. Finished up a few projects. Picked boys up. Drove to parent's house and picked up Mom. Went to the circus. Garrett does not like clowns. Saw more of an elephant than I wanted to. Went back to my parent's house.

FRIDAY
Went for a great walk around the football stadium a few times. Played with the boys. Went to Walmart (again). Went to Payless and Mom got the boys the funniest slippers- pictures later. Watch the boys play in the 2 big dirt piles. Put the boys in the shower.

SATURDAY
Lounged around. Went into Houston and met a scrapping friend at Cheesecake Factory (Hi Christine!). Drove back to my parent's and picked the boys up. Drove back home. Both boys get car sick. Clean car seat. Feed the boys. Put them to bed. Take my temperature. Sick. Billy comes home from hunting.

SUNDAY
Sleep, sit, sniffle. Billy took care of the boys. They had fun.

I feel much better today. I just wish the dripping would stop. It is late and the bed is calling me. I'll try to put some pictures up tomorrow.

LANCE ON SUGAR

2006-10-31T19:08:00.000-08:00

I have learned my lesson! Do not give Lance sugar! That boy is hyped up right now.

They had fun trick or treating tonight. We went to about 5 houses which was just the right amount for Woody(Lance). He was adorable following Buzz (Garrett) around dragging his pumpkin behind him. And Buzz was so brave. He walked up to the houses by himself and rang the door bells and said "Trick or treat thank you." He was very proud of his candy. And had a fit when he thought Daddy was eating it.

We came home and let Garrett help pass out candy until it was bedtime. He was exhausted from Circus Day at school and then all the Halloween festivities tonight.

I have pictures to share and I am going to try to explain them if Blogger lets me.

Taking the guts out with Daddy on Sunday night.

Where is Garrett? He thought he was hilarious.

This is Lance at Circus Day at MDO. I can't show any other pictures because they have other little children in them. But I promise they are cute!

Garrett all ready to Trick or Treat!

Here we go! Lance rode in the wagon between houses.

Garrett is taking invetory of his candy.

Lance is looking for all the suckers- his favorites.

And a picture of our pumpkins. I forgot to turn off the flash!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2006-10-30T20:10:00.000-08:00

I know I am a little early but tomorrow will be busy and I didn't want you to miss out on these adorable pictures! These are straight off the camera and I can't wait to edit and play with them.

Tomorrow is Circus Day at MDO. Lance will miss out since he does not go on Tuesdays but I am sure he will enjoy his time with Sugie. I am going to help out with a few of the booths and hopefully get a few pictures of Garrett. He gets to wear his costume and that is all he has been talking about. That and how much candy he will get when he trick or treats.

It is getting late and I need my rest since I am sure we will be up late tomorrow night handing out candy.

I'M YOUR HUCKLEBERRY

2006-10-29T12:23:00.000-08:00

50 points if you know what movie that is from and an extra 10 if you know who said it. That movie brings back memories.

Last night Billy and I went out. Without kids! A co-worker of his had a Halloween costume party and we jumped a the chance to go! Even if it meant we had to dress up. And since Billy gave me about a weeks notice I couldn't come up with much. He thought of his own and scrambled around to throw something together for me. If you can't tell from the picture I am a witch (with the prettiest rhinestone eyelashes) and Billy is Huckleberry Finn.

It is a beautiful day out and I think I am going to step away from the computer and go play. Enjoy your day!

And I will be back tomorrow with the cutest little boys in costumes!

REAL QUICK

2006-10-26T20:23:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to put this up real quick before I head to bed. Deanna sent me this picture she caught of Shelby. I think it is from about a year ago. This is the Shelby I know!

journaling:
Maybe I can climb onto the table and get that really yummy snack Mommy never lets me eat. I better take a spoon just in case. Ok- I am here now. I need to be quiet so she doesn’t hear me. Wait! Is that her? Oh good, it is just Molly. Molly, would you like a pretzel?
Shhhhh... don’t tell Mommy I gave you one. Now lets see how many I can stuff in my mouth.. It is really hard to eat a pretzel with a spoon. Maybe I will just use both hands. Awwww Man! She caught me!

credits: flowers, bubble paper and purple stripe paper are from Dreamy by Kelly Shults, white paper is also by Kelly from her Lily kit and the hand-stamped alpha is by Lisa Whitney

GRUMPY GUS

2006-10-25T14:39:00.000-07:00

Guess who is a Grumpy Gus today?

I walk into my bedroom and that is what I find. All snuggled up in my bed. He even pulled the covers up himself. Looks like it will be an early night for him!

I had the chance to talk to my brother-in-law this morning. All is going well. Melanie is recovering from her c-section and is trying to get some rest. I remember how those first 36 hours are after surgery. Baby Gabe is doing great. He was 8 pounds and 15 ounces (boys tend to big on that side of the family- believe me I know!) and is 21 inches long. I am hoping for a picture soon!

And here is one of the 2 pictures Billy took on his trip. I am showing the one of the redfish (Spot on Tail is what G calls it)he caught. I would show the one of the trout but it has to be the wimpiest looking trout I have ever seen.

Lance is crying and I need to sew the patches on Garrett's Awanas vest. Later gators!

SAVE THE CHEERLEADER

2006-10-24T16:29:00.000-07:00

SAVE THE WORLD

Anyone watch Heroes? I am loving this show! Billy and I enjoy watching it together. It is never predictable and that makes it very entertaining. And I watch Studio 60 after that. Monday nights are great- almost date night.

Oh- I just got a phone call from my mother-in-law. Melanie is having a c-section right now! So excited to get the news about my nephew! I will post all the details when I get them.

I have 2 layouts to share. The first one was for an ad challenge on the Girl Talk blog. I even scrapped it rectangular. The next one is full of pumpkin picking pictures. Those are pictures of G and Lance (they had matching shirts) and it is hard to tell them apart in a small picture. It doesn't seem complete to me but I am going with it. I was looking for a cute little pumpkin to add but couldn't find one.

credits: Dani Mogstad's Old School kit available at ACOT and the stamped alpha is from her This Love Collection. Font is Times New Roman.

credits: Dani Mogstad's Fall Crush kit and Creative Crops shapes. Font is Problem Secretary.

Goodnight!

WHERE'S AMANDA

2006-10-22T13:19:00.000-07:00

How many of you were wondering that? 3 people? Well, I am back and I am glad you missed me :)

We (me and the boys) were at my parent's house. Really it was just my mom's house because all the guys were fishing in the Chandeleur Islands. They drove to Biloxi and went out in a yacht 40 miles into the Gulf of Mexico and spent 2 and a half days fishing. And I am sure there are stories to tell. Nine guys on a boat in the middle of the gulf for almost three days. But since they were 40 miles out they did not have cell service so I have no clue as to what really went on. I do know that everyone else was down money and Billy wasn't. I hope to have pictures to post tomorrow!

The boys and I drove to my mom's after MDO on Thursday. Aunt Lauren came over and played and played and played. Friday we went and picked pumpkins and made our way to Sugarland to do a little shopping. Garrett wanted Chick-Pil-A (yes, I spelled it like that) and then we went on back to Sugie's. The rest of the day was spent outside and watching Lauren make a cake. Highly amusing!

Saturday we went to my grandparent's house. The boys played with Mimi and JoJo and then Little Gran came over and we had lunch. Garrett and Mimi ate in the cardboard box "house " Garrett claimed. And the boys fed the horses Cheetos. Then it was back home and more playing outside. That afternoon Aunt Laurie came over and got her play time in.

And then it was today. I was ready to get back home so we left after lunch. Lance was very happy to see all his toys. He is dragging around all the stuffed animals he missed. Garrett is so cranky and tired he doesn't care. It will be an early night for all of us. We are worn out.

So I am unpacking and doing a little cleaning now. How can you leave with a clean house and come back and it is dirty? There must be an inch of dust everywhere. Tomorrow will be very busy with cleaning and a trip to the grocery store. And I have a million little projects I need to finish up. Does it ever end?

SAD LITTLE BOY

2006-10-17T09:43:00.000-07:00

Garrett had a huge disappointment today. His field trip was cancelled. When I told him his bottom lip just started quivering! It broke my heart. Why was it cancelled? Well- we had over 10 inches of rain in 24 hours. We were going to Dewberry Farm to pick pumpkins. He was so excited and it would have been his first field trip. Hopefully they can reschedule soon.

And because of the rain we do not have phone service. So I am not ignoring you if you are trying to call me. At least not today. It is weird because we have internet but not phone. And you can still leave a voice mail if you need to. Billy is checking them for me. The kicker is that they can not get out here to fix it today. It is a problem with our line and they will be here sometime tomorrow. So guess what I get to do tomorrow.

I am willing to bet the ants are the cause of my quiet phone today. Because they are back and they are invading the house. We can't keep them out and it is driving me nuts. I cleaned like a mad woman yesterday, vacuumed three times and picked up everything that they could be interested in. And they still come. I guess the rain is driving them in. Or else mt house is just that cozy.

So that is it for today. Isn't my life exciting?

TAGGED AGAIN

2006-10-15T18:31:00.000-07:00

Kari tagged me this time and it is a good one!

Tag Rules: List 5 Weird things about yourself or your pets. Tag 5 Friends and list them. Those people need to write on their blogs about 5 weird things, state the rules, and tag 5 more people. Don’t forget to let the people you tag know by posting a comment on their blog!

1. I cannot sleep if anyone is touching me, breathing on me or within a 2 foot radius of me.

2. I won't drink water from the faucet but I will drink it from the fridge dispenser (it is the same water)

3. I like things in sets of three.

4. I only write with ball-point pens.

5. Half of my hair is very wavy and the other side is almost straight.

And I tag KIRSTY (is this the only way you will update?), KRISTIN, and any of my relatives that are reading this and have a blog. I'd tag some of my other scrapping buddies but I think we have all been hit by this one.

Weekend Update

Saturday
Watched cartoons and did laundry in the morning. I took G to a birthday party in the afternoon while L and B watched the Aggie game and made hamburgers. On the way home from the party G was telling me he did not feel good and I just thought he had too many sweets. We got home and he went to bed. B woke him up to eat and he went into the living room and this is how we found him:

So I picked him up to put back in bed and he was burning up! Gave him some Motrin and tucked him in. Then I put L to bed. By this time the Motrin worked and G wanted to get up L thought he should also. So I let them watch a Little Einstein video and eat bread. B went grocery shopping for me and I put the boys back to bed. L was up fussing off and on all night. Remembered before bed that L flushed popsicle sticks down the toilet and it was out of order.

Sunday
Did not go to church. We were all tired and I have an eye gunk problem today. B made breakfast and then took apart the toilet and found the popsicle sticks. G and L were both felling better but we made them relax all day. B took G to Academy and Walmart while I played with L and cleaned out 2 closets. Had lunch, L napped and G played. After L woke up B went back to Walmart with L this time. Had fajitas for supper and both boys were asleep by 7:30.

I did get some time on the computer in bits and pieces. I got a lot done but can only show you a few since the rest are super cool Christmas gifts.

credits: papers, tag, beads and alpha are from Jennifer Layden's Pumpkin Cider kit available at The Digi Shoppe, stitches and screw (Designer's Studio 10) are from Gina Miller. Fonts are Mom's Typewriter and pea Jenny Script.

credit: Warm kit from Amanda Rockwell's A Mother's Love Collection and Michelle Coleman's Hand Stamped Alpha. Fonts are Times New Roman and Texas Hero.

Have a great Monday!

;)

2006-10-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

I just checked the mail and Garrett is going to be super excited when he wakes up tomorrow! His invitations are in from Winkflash and they look great! I did learn that my monitor is not calibrated but I fiddled with it and it looks much better. Now I wonder about all my layouts and if the colors are a little wonky or not. Oh well! It will just add character.

Yesterday was a terrific Thursday! I took the boys to preschool and tried to get their pictures taken. Garrett cooperated and gave a great smile but Lance wanted nothing to do with it. Yes, he has hit THAT age. I will have to try again some other time. But after that Mom came over and we did a little girl shopping. The first time in 4 years! It was nice! She went with me to pick up the boys and they were excited to see her and Garrett told her all about his day. Lance was cranky and his teachers even mentioned that he was not himself. So we go on home and Lance is still cranky. Sugie left and I put in a movie for them. They were sitting on the floor when I went into my room to look at my new goodies and I hear Garrett say "Oh no! It's not working!" And I thought he meant the DVD messed up. So I turned it all off and sent them to the playroom. BUT later I tried the watch the news and the TV was not working at all!!! I left it alone for Billy to figure out. It turns out that Lance dumped water on/in the TV and screwed it up. (A little background- this is our 3rd TV in a year) It is halfway working today and hopefully it will be back to normal tomorrow. For now we moved the little 13 inch TV into the living room but I have to squint to see it.

And then Lance started acting worse. He was hacking and not eating and crying. This had been getting progressively worse since Wednesday. So I filled him up with Motrin and he slept most of the night. But this morning he would not eat or drink- and this boy loves his ju-ju. I called and got an appointment. This meant I would miss MOPS. So we scrambles around and got dressed and went up to the church and I ran around getting all my Moppetts stuff set up and speed out of there and to the doctor. Good thing I did because it looks like Lance has strep throat! We will get the results Monday but the doctor was pretty sure. Poor baby! Garrett and I have never had strep and Billy is sleeping so I can't ask him. I know some people are more susceptible to getting it and I am sad that Lance is one of them. Oh- and while we were there they got in their shipment of the flu shot for ages 3 and up so Garrett got a shot. He was not happy! But he was very brave and only cried for a minute. He was more interested in knowing what Band-Aid he was getting. And all that wore me out. But I still had to go to Target and get Lancer's medicine. So it has been a long day!

And it should be a great weekend for us. But I will leave that for next time- gotta save something for the next post! Have a wonderful weekend!

(I never thought I would see this day- SHARING!!!)

SHARING

2006-10-11T06:37:00.000-07:00

Nothing to say today- just a few layouts to share.

credits: Dani Mogstad's Dirty Boys kit and frayed edges from her Scrapper's Toolbox. Fonts are Amanda's Hand and Stamp Act

credits: papers, staples, lace and buttons from Jennifer Layden's Kaylee kit available at The Digi Shoppe, tags are from Michelle Coleman, fonts are pea Karen xoxo and kevin and amanda.

This one is now my favorite.

credits: Be Witched by Dani Mogstad available at www.designbydani.com (LOVE the mesh!) Felt hearts are from Dani's Fuzzy Felt (recolored)scallop frame from her Scrapper's Toolbox and the fonts are pea Jenny script and problem secretary

Have a blessed day!

I'M IT

2006-10-10T10:54:00.000-07:00

Well- it seems I was tagged by Kirsty. So here we go:

List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre,
whether or not they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but
they must be songs you’re really enjoying now.

1. You Never Let Go by Matt Redman
2. Ain't No Other Man by Christiana Aguilera
3. Crazy by Gnarls Barkley
4. Tim McGraw by Taylor Swift
5. My Savior My God by Aaron Shusts
6. The Long Way Around by The Dixie Chicks
7. My Kind Of Day On Padre by Larry Joe Taylor (10 points if you know this one!)

So now I tag anyone who is reading this and has not done this yet. I will be checking!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had a nice weekend and now we are recovering. For some reason none of us have been sleeping very good. We are all tired and cranky and are ready for the cooler weather to come. Well- I am.

Sunday we went to my in-laws church bazzarr. The boys had a good time. I think Garrett played the putting game about 28 times and Lance was happy as a clam eating his 7 lollipops. Garrett won stampers so we all had stamps going up and down our arms. Billy said that it has not changed since he went as a child. Oh- and Garrett won a liter of Big Red at the ring toss. Just what we need around here- caffinated children.

Yesterday was spent playing and picking up. The picking up never ends. And for some reason it never looks like I made any progress. It is time to put some toys up in storage and give some away. I should probably have a garage sale. Something to think about.

And today while Garrett was in school I did even more picking up. Lance was a good helper. I figured out how to get him to put stuff away. I put it in his wagon and he will put it up because he does not like to have anything in the wagon. It kinda makes him mad but it works! He put away the stuffed animals, books, cups and pacis for me. All in the right spot.

We (Garrett and I) decided to have his birthday party at Lunar Mini Golf. He is super excited about it! He want me to make the "intations" so he can give them to his friends asked him who he wanted to invite and he said "Mommy, Daddy, Garrett and Wance." That is as far as we got. I booked it for 10 little kiddos so he needs to decide soon. And I made the invitations last night and will share them soon. They are too cute and I am very proud of them.

That is all of my rambling for now. It is starting to thunder and lighting so I better get off the computer. But I can't leave without posting some kind of picture so here you go:

Oh and there is this:

Garrett busted his lip on the tile floor. Why? Because he was running around with his underwear on his head. I didn't teach him that.

INVASION

2006-10-06T14:36:00.000-07:00

We are being invaded by ants. They are everywhere! It gives me major heebie jeebies. They are moving into our bedroom, the living room and the playroom- basically the front of the house. And I don't know why. There is no food available for them. I guess they just want to join in the fun. But I've got their number! HA HA! I am smarter than them. I have a vacuum.

That is basically all that has been going on around here. Killing ants.

I did organize the playroom and the boy's bedroom yesterday. That felt good. Now I just need Lance to stop taking all the clothes out of the drawers.

And I think Lance has a black eye. This morning I was a little redness around his eyebrow and just thought it was a few mosquito bites. After nap I looked again and it is bluish. I have no clue as to what he did to it. He did wake up in the middle of the night and was stumbling around in the dark. That boy is tough and hardly ever cries when he is hurt. Garrett is a different story- VERY dramatic.

I only have one layout to show today. I have hit a slump. Plus LOST and Gray's Anatomy cut into my scrapping time. And 7th Heaven. And Studio 60- but I tape that one.

Credits: credits: Dani Mogstad's Sassy Pants kit (available at www.designbydani.com), binder clip from her Everyday Romance kit, stitching is by Gina Miller and the font is pea girly girls.

Have a great weekend!

NOISE

2006-10-04T20:41:00.000-07:00

You know that noise. The one that can only mean trouble? I have heard it many times in many different forms. The sound of the bathroom door in the middle of the night, the yelping of the dog, the hard thump when a head meets the floor and the sound of rain. But wait- why would it be raining IN my house?

The sound of an entire box of Fruity Pebbles dumped on the carpet sounds like a soft fall rain. And who is the mastermind behind all the noises in our household? Sweet sweet Lance. This boy had turned into a hand full.

And then there is this one:

He likes to take a shower now. Complete with shaving cream.

But when they are not into trouble they are pretty adorable. I caught them today singing into their echo microphones. Just having a grand time doing a little karaoke. Lance was even doing the movements to Head and Shoulders.

We went to the neighborhood park this morning and played. Garrett and I played and Lance ran. He lives to run. He made a few trips down the slide. And Garrett went exploring for flowers and pine cones.

I took some really good pictures but they are in RAW format and I have not edited them yet.

I did a few layouts and a card and can finally show them!

credits: Misty Mareda's Daylight Fading kit, scallop shapes from Dani Mogstad's Scrapper's Tool Box, stitching is from Gina Miller. Font is pea jenny script.

credits: everything is from Dani Mogstad- Fall Crush kit and Scrapper's Tool Box Creative Crops available at www.designbydani.com Inspiration also from Dani.

(I don't know why only half is showing up. I'll try fix it tomorrow.)

credits: Dani Mogstad's Stolen Kisses kit from her This Love Collection. Frayed edge is from her Scrapper's Tool Box shapes. Font is pea Olson. The song is from Kenny Chesney.

Well- I hear another noise. This is the one that keeps me up at night. Good night!

OH WHAT A THRILL

2006-10-03T06:33:00.000-07:00

Eight years ago Billy and I got married in the little chapel on the campus at Texas A&M. I really have no memories of the wedding except for Billy saying "I do." After the ceremony we had a few pictures taken under Albritton Bell Tower . Then it was onto the reception at the new Reed Arena- 3rd floor. It was the most gorgeous and magical day of my life.

My day started with a bridal brunch given by my grandmother and aunts. It was really nice but I had a hard time eating because I was so nervous. Everyone who attended told little stories about me growing up and I was in tears. It was so special. I had to leave my own party early to go get my hair done. I am at the salon with a massive amount of hot rollers on my head and under the dryer when Billy calls me to check on me. I will never forget that. So I leave the salon (with my veil attached) and drive to the chapel. I get dressed and do all the pre-wedding pictures and then it is time. I remember not being able to look at my dad as he walked me down the aisle because I knew it would make me cry. So I looked straight ahead at Billy and to this day I remember the look on his face when he saw me and the tears in the corner of his eyes. The rest is a blur until we said our vows.

The reception was great but also a blur. We left via the elevator (no bird seed!) and went back to the apartment to change. Our honeymoon was in Galveston for 2 nights and 2 days since we both had class on Tuesday!

And that is our wedding story. There are many details I did not include and some that are private but that is condensed version.

I would have to say that October 3, 1998 is the best day of my life. I was the start of the rest of my life. I would not be the woman or mother I am today without Billy. There have been many great days that have happened since then but eight years ago was the beginning of it all. There have been ups and sown throughout our marriage but not once did I ever doubt Billy's love for me. I can see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. I love the way we can't stand to be more than a day away from each other, how he calls me to check on me and just to hear my voice, how he goes out of his way to make me happy and how he knows my every need. You still give me chills Billy.

O what a thrill
O what a thrill
Stars in the sky
Stars stand still
O what a thrill

Happy anniversary!

BIG BOYS

2006-10-02T07:08:00.000-07:00

Lance had his 18 month check up Friday (I know it was a little late). I was interested to see what his height and weight were since he is slimming down and losing that baby chub :( I was really surprised when she told me his length- 34 inches! I did not believe her so I remeasured when I got home (using the same method) and he was 34 1/2 inches for me- he squirmed less for me. That puts him at the 95th percentile for his age. Wowzers! And his weight was 27 lbs. That is in the 50th percentile.

And of course Garrett had to be measured. He was around 42 inches tall (he wouldn't stop moving). He is on the 90th for height. And I have no idea what he weighs but I think it is 40 lbs.

No wonder why I can't find pants to fit them!

I have really slowed down in my scrapbooking. Lack of inspiration. I think having Lance sick and then me sick drained me. Plus the house suffered and it is driving me crazy. But have you ever tried to clean with a 19 month old and almost 4 year old? Their "help" usually turn into more cleaning.

Here are the pages I did get finished last week:

Credits HERE

The first one is Lance about a year ago-7 months. It was taken after his first haircut. What a difference a year makes!

Off to mop the floors! Have a great day!

TEN YEARS AGO

2006-09-29T19:01:00.000-07:00

I went on the first date with Billy. And it was free (for him) and he was guaranteed a kiss. But let me back up a bit- to 2 years earlier.

I went out with my college roommates and met up with a friend from high school. After the club closed we went back to her house along even more friends. Well- most of these friends were guys in the Aggie band. So I was just hanging out talking with some other friends from my high school and getting to know everyone there and where they were from. Two guys sitting near me said they were from East Bernard- which is 15 minutes from where I grew up. So we were comparing notes about who we knew from high school and kinda playing six degrees. Those two guys were Billy and his cousin who was visiting. AND BILLY DOES NOT REMEMBER THIS! And I am sure you can figure out why he does not remember.

Fast forward to 1996. I went to the football game that day in the hot sun with a nasty cold. Had a great time but was dead tired. I had promised my roommate that I would go to a party her boyfriend was having and made another promise to a friend (from the previous story) to stop by her house. I almost bailed on both. But I felt bad for my roommate and friend because when guys have parties there are usually a shortage of girls and I did not want them to be all alone. I met my roommate at the party and stayed for a while until a weirdo kept following me around. So I headed to the next party. Much nicer! I knew almost everyone there and was having a good time. A few guys around me wanted to play dominoes but were short one person and asked me to play. I sat down and we were introducing ourselves. Billy was telling me who he was and where he was from and I stopped him and told him that I already knew him. He did not remember! I still tease him about that! We had a good time talking and he walked me to my car.

The next week he called me and asked me to the football game but not to Midnight Yell (fellow Aggies will understand this and those that aren't Aggies- sorry). I thought this was weird because they both kinda go hand in hand. Then I started thinking that he already had a date to yell practice and she couldn't come to the game. But one of Billy's friend informed him he was an idiot for not inviting me to both (THANKS BOB!!!) and he called me back and asked me to yell also. And that was our first date! And it was free and he got to kiss me because that is the tradition at A&M to kiss when the lights go out at yell and after every touchdown during the game. And we know Billy will not break any Aggie traditions. We had a great time and it was the start of something big.

The last ten years have been the best of my life. And now you probably know more than you want to. I wanted to write this down for my boys. I want them to know that what they see now is the same as it was ten years ago. Our love has not changed, the fun we have together has not changed and the traditions have not changed. We still kiss after every touchdown. We have a great story and I want them to know it. Your life has already been planned for you. You just have to follow your heart.

IS IT NOVEMBER?

2006-09-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

Garrett asks this question about 387 times a day. He is sooooooo ready for his birthday. I have already received his wish list and the details of his party. He has it all planned. And he only has to wait 44 days for his party. We are having his party early since his actual birthday is right before Thanksgiving. So this is your Save The Date for all the aunts and uncles out there. November 11, 10 a.m. at Chuck E. Cheese.

The rest of the post is for my digi-scrapping friends so my family can stop reading. (Even though I know they won't)

And speaking of birthdays...

Dani is having a birthday bash Saturday morning (10 EST) you don't want to miss! There will be fun, prizes and that cute kit! It will be at www.yourfavoritepair.com in the chat room. If you want more information look HERE

Here are 2 layouts I did using it with birthday pictures. I plan on putting these in the baby books.

(dotty border is from Maddy's Smile by Dani Mogstad)

So I guess I will see you bright and early Saturday morning???

SICKIES

2006-09-27T07:32:00.000-07:00

We are all a bunch of sickies! Well- I don't think Billy is but I am sure it is coming. Lance has it pretty bad. I took him to the doctor Monday and got some medicine for his sinus infection. And now Garrett is very mopey and emotional which usually means he is getting sick. I have not felt that great the past few days but I hope I am now over it.

We got the Fisher-Price catalog in the mail and it is now property of Garrett. He walks around with it informing us of what he wants for his birthday (which isn't until late November) and Christmas. He has a pretty good list going. Most of it is Geo-Trax and Cars.

That is all I can think of to say today. Guess the cold medicines are kicking in because I am spaced out! So I will finish out this post with some more layouts.

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

CREDITS HERE

THE END OF SUMMER

2006-09-24T13:19:00.000-07:00

Our last summer beach trip for 2006. Good times, great memories and so sad it is over.

ALONE

2006-09-21T11:47:00.000-07:00

I went to WalMart alone. All alone. It felt very weird but wonderful! I was having a good day until I looked at the back seat and saw BEAR!!! I rushed to the church and dropped bear off all the while thinking that my poor little baby was with out his security blanket. Horrible mommy guilt right now!

Last night Garrett had AWANAS and he wore his vest for the first time. He was so proud! He knew all his memory verses and motto. I took a picture but it turned out bad. Sorry. Lance and Daddy stayed home this time.

Nothing else exciting to report. I am getting over a cold and just trying to keep up with the laundry and toys.

I will try to have something a little more entertaining next time. I do have a few layouts to show. Okay- I just realized I have a lot of layouts to show!!! I'll come back tomorrow and post the rest.

credits: everything is from Jennifer Layden's Autumn Solstice kit available at The Digi Shoppe. Fonts are mom's typewriter and bluecake

Journaling: Never a dull moment around here. You two always seem to be together- playing, fighting, spitting, making a mess or following each other around. And when Mommy pulls out the camera you turn into two little hams. On this night you were on the ottoman yelling “cheese” and “eeeze” so I would take a picture. And then came the silly faces! I hope that you will always be best of friends and the bond you have now will continue to grow.

credits: papers are from Jennifer Layden's Kristen kit available at The Digi Shoppe, stitching is from Jennifer Layden's Essential Elements and the font is pea Alisha

credits: Christy Lyle (green paper and blue plaid from Rugged One, blue cardstock and bow from Huckleberry Ice Cream with Angela Barton, pin from His Nursery with Robin Carlton, denim alpha, tag is from cardboard shapes-recolored, string is from Priceless Moments), stitching is from Gina Miller, Kraft paper is from Amanda Rockwell's Charlie kit and scallop edge is from Shabby Princess. Fonts are pea girly girls script and Chelt Press Trial

I love this picture of Garrett and his cousin Shelby walking together at the zoo.
Credits: papers from Gina Miller's Designers Studio Kit 10, ric rac and stitched border from Gina Miller's Fall Flower kit, X stitch is also Gina's and the heart is from Kimberly Giarrusso. Font is pea Olson.

I did a photo swap with Dani Mogstad and lifted Amandagale. I was super excited to scrap Lexi! She is a cutie!
credits: papers, ribbons, flowers and eyelets from Dani Mogstad's Sassy Pants, stitching from So Square stitching and the binder clip is from Everyday Romance. Font is pea xoxo from karen.
I found the quote at 2 peas from SassiAngel. It reads: What are you thinking? What do you see? What are you dreaming? What will you be?
Outside of the window there's so much to do. The world is just waiting for the wonder of you.
scraplifted this: http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=12732&cat=500&ppuser=288&sl=a

TOO MUCH FUN

2006-09-17T14:55:00.000-07:00

What a great Saturday we had! So great we all ended up feeling pretty yucky today! So let me give you the re-cap:

7:00 Lance wakes us all up
7:15 Daddy and the boys make breakfast and Lance proceeds to eat all the scrambled eggs
8:45 The guys leave to go get haircuts and I start getting dressed
10:45 Leave to go to the company picnic
12:30 Finally get there after a stop at Sonic for drinks and another stop to find the pacifier
12:45 Eat BBQ lunch and Popsicles
1:00 Ride the carousel, train, get snow cones and popcorn, play miniature golf and skee ball
2:00 Put Lance in the stroller to rest while Mommy plays bingo and Daddy and Garrett play more golf and hit the pinatas
3:45 Boys run around while we wait for the door prizes (we didn't win)
4:00 Ride the carousel and then run down the hill to catch the last train ride, take a look at the petting zoo and other animals they have there
4:30 Leave the picnic, stop at Sonic for supper and go home- EXHAUSTED!

But wait- that is not the end!

6:45 Boys get cleaned up and ready for bed
7:15 Garrett is sacked out and Lance is talking to himself
8:30 Mommy gets sick and goes to bed
12:00 Garrett wakes up and Billy finds him in the kitchen getting a drink and tells him he can sleep in our bed because "I not felling better" as Garrett puts it
1:45 Mommy moves to the couch because Garrett won't stop playing with her hair (doing this in his sleep)
2:00 Lance wakes up crying- find paci and all is better
2:15 Drunk neighbors come home and start fighting and slamming doors
3:00 Lance is still awake so I get him some warm milk
3:30 Mommy finally falls asleep
7:15 Lance wakes us all up

So we ended up not going to church and just laying around resting today. And I think it will be an early night for us all!

We had a great time yesterday and I got some pictures of the boys enjoying it all. Wanna see?

FRIDAY NIGHT

2006-09-15T19:06:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update tonight. Lots of playing and fun times this week! Even more fun tomorrow! We will be going to a family picnic for Billy's work. Should be great- there is a train there and I know that is what we will do the entire time. And it is now 9:00 and I am ready to go to bed. How sad!

COUSINS

2006-09-14T08:38:00.000-07:00

There is nothing sweeter than watching the three cousins together. How is it that they only see each other a few times each year but seem to be best of friends every time they are together? They just fall back into place- never missing a beat.

We went to the zoo yesterday with Grandma, Shelby and Deanna. It was a blast! Perfect weather, no crowds and happy kids! Garrett and Shelby were too cute holding hands all day and repeating everything to each other. And for some strange reason they were both very excited to see the giraffes and when we finally made our way over there they could have cared less! I think the animal they enjoyed the most were the monkeys. The monkeys were playing chase and Garrett thought it was the most hilarious thing ever! But the most memorable part of the day would have to be the splash area. My boys went wild!

Lance had it good! Hat on head, map in hand and Grandma pulling the wagon.

The three monkeys outside the World of Primates.

Lance in the splash pad at the Children's Zoo.

This is Lance knocking on the goat. He doesn't pet- he knocks.

On the carousel ride. I took the pictures since carousels make me sick.

TIRED

2006-09-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

I started my allergy medicine again and am super drowsy. I am determined not to get a sinus infection this fall! So hopefully after a few days my body will adjust and I will be back to normal.

We had a busy but great weekend! We went to the in-laws Saturday afternoon to see Shelby and Deanna (and Susie and Ann) and the boys had a blast! Lots of running and screaming little children. Well- it was only 3 but it sure did seem like more! I took a bunch of pictures but most are a blur because they never did stop moving.

After all that we took the boys to my parents, dropped them off and ran! Not really but we did leave them there. We had a seminar at church Sunday afternoon and I just did not want to leave Lance there all day. I knew it would be tough on him. So they got to have time with both sets of grandparents this weekend. And I got to sleep for more than 10 hours last night (I did go to bed at 9:00)

That is all I have to say. I am going to feed the boys and let them play with Daddy. I want to watch a few 9/11 remembrance programs on TV tonight. For some reason five years later is just as hard. Having children really does make you realize how precious life is. And to take every opportunity to hug, kiss and say I Love You.

credits: Christy Lyle's Campus Casual kit, paper tear is Kim Hill's and fonts are Problem Secretary and pea Alisha.

A NEW DO

2006-09-07T11:28:00.000-07:00

Today was Lancer's first day at MDO. He walked right in, grabbed his bear and started playing. Not even a little glance back at Mommy. Just about every other kid in the room was crying. I think all the crying kids confused him. I just hope the day goes well. Nap time is about the time when he will start missing me. Here are a few pictures from this morning. Did not get that many because Lance does not stand still!

And what did I do with my free time you ask? This:

Got my hair cut! Three and a half inches in the back and five in the front. And I have bangs.

Time to go pick up the boys!

DO YOU HAVE A MINUTE?

2006-09-05T11:22:00.001-07:00

Because this post could take some time to read! So much has been going on and of course I am going to tell you about it ALL!

***Labor Day Weekend***

We had a great time doing nothing! We went to the grocery store, played inside and outside, a lot of cleaning, and NO accidents! And I didn't not have to cook at all so that made my weekend perfect :)

Saturday Billy pulled out the Slip N Slide (or swim n slide as G calls it) and they had a blast!

Yesterday my parents came over and we swapped beds. Here is our new bed:

(not the greatest picture) Last night I slept SO good! It was like I was in my own bed. The only way I knew Billy was there was because I could hear him snoring.

And yesterday afternoon Billy was feeling restless so we packed up and went to Katy Mills. We went to look at the fish at Bass Pro but that only lasted about 5 minutes. Lance loved it- he was trying to say fish and would laugh when they came near. Billy actually wanted to venture out into the mall (SO not like him!) and we had a good time window shopping. We went pass Lunar Golf and Garrett put on his puppy dog eyes and said he wanted to play "night golf" and I couldn't resist. So he did one round of golf and had a blast! Lance just sat in the stroller and tried to figure the whole black light thing out.

***Mother's Day Out***

Today is the first day of MDO. Garrett was very excited to go. In fact, he walked right in and put his things away and NEVER looked back! I did not get a goodbye hug or kiss. Lance was VERY upset that he could not stay. He will have his turn Thursday. Before we left I took Garrett outside for a few pictures. I can not believe how big he looks and how adorable!

***Scrapbooking***

Garrett's class has an All About Me book with pages from all the students. These are his pages:

credits: Dani Mogstad's Fresh Air kit and font is SP You've Got Mail

This is a page of my favorite t-shirt:

credits: tags and paper tear from Kim Hill's Bits and Pieces, string from The This Love Collection- Everyday Romance by Dani Mogstad and the papers, stitching, threaded ribbons, alpha are from Dani Mogstad's Fresh Air kit. Fonts are Mother's Typewriter and pea Elizabeth.

I came across this picture when I was cleaning and had to scan it and use it! Garrett was around 3 months old.

credits: Credits: Misty Mareda's Daylight Fading paper and element packs. GORGEOUS! Tag string is from Christy Lyle's Priceless Moments Elemental Pack.

Here is the original:
I need to post this before I lose it all! Have a great day and check back Thursday for Lance's back to school pictures! If he will stand still long enough.

NOISE

2006-09-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

Constant noise. For some reason Garrett suddenly has a desire to talk constantly-mostly questions. Random stuff. Why did the baseball cross the road? Momma are you wearing pink? How old is Daddy? I have 2 eyes. C is for cookie. Is it time for snack? What are you doing? What are you doing next? That was over the span of 2 minutes.

And Lance blabs all day long also. Only most of his is unintelligible. And the boy loves to talk on the phone- real or not.

credits: Jennifer Layden's Brody kit available at www.thedigishoppe.com

Absolutely nothing is going on today. And I love it! I am about to go do my 2 mile workout video because it is too hot for me outside (yes Billy- I AM a wimp). And then plan on doing a little digital window shopping. And sometime this weekend we are going to tackle the kitchen and clean the pantry, drawers and cabinets out. I am sure we will have plenty of help with that.

And for my scrapping friends...

Check out this sale:

And I think she extended the sale. LOOK HERE

I love this kit and hope I can find a good Shelby picture to go with it! The embroidered alpha and little rainbow are too cute!

OK- Lance is asleep now. Time to put the tennis shoes on.