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I am on my way to Jacksonville tomorrow. I will be seeing alot of the East coast this month! I am hoping to take in some of the historical sights this weekend, and I will probably meet up with a couple of Peas from the message boards. I have to go get the rest of my stuff packed. It is a good thing I always have the last minute to get things finished!
Someday I will have time to figure out the best way to photograph or scan the jewelry I have been making, but for now this is about as good as it gets. I made both of these this weekend. The one on the left was inspired by a necklace I saw in Beadwork Magazine. I made the butterfly necklace using the same stringing concept, and then created some earrings to match. I ran out of those yummy pink beads, or I would have made a bracelet to go with it. 
Look what came this weekend! I got my copy of the Pages By Design book. I saw it last weekend, but it is always nice to have your own copy! I have six layouts in there, but my favorite is "Bowling Ball Boobs on page 77.
I did it! I grew a whole tomato! In fact, I grew two and one more is growing! I hope this is a sign that I have turned my black thumb green. In fact, all of my salsa plants are doing well! The only thing I planted that died was one of my strawberry plants. Hopefully, the rest of the plants will follow suit, and we will soon have piles and piles of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, strawberries, and cantelope. For now, though, I am so tickled RED to have fresh yummy home-grown tomatoes from my own little container garden!
We had a fun Memorial Day weekend. My boss came to town and was staying in her time share condo. She had reserved a second set of rooms for family who didn't make it, so she asked if we would like to come down and stay in the room and enjoy the condo. We had SO MUCH FUN! We spent most of the time in the pool and playing table hockey and billiards in the game room. Beth didn't like being in the water much, but she did like hanging out on the patio with me and playing with her dad's shades.
Here are Beth, Kyle, Faith, and Todd playing in the huge jacuzzi tub that was in our room. When we got there Friday afternoon, most of the kids weren't feeling all that well, so we took it easy all afternoon and let them get better. They had a blast playing in that tub, and Kyle kept asking me if he could move into the condo permanently!
I love this photo. It isn't really a good photo technically, but it touches my heart. Beth climbed up in the chair next to Todd and cuddled right into his arm. He was busy watching the TV, and absentmindedly began kissing the top of her head. It was a sweet moment to watch, and I was glad I had my camera close by.
The photo on the left is of our friend John. He came over on Friday to help Jack install the AC unit in my scrapping room. Faith has met John before, but she didn't remember him. The second photo with her is a shot of her flirting with John. It was hilarious to listen to.
Faith: What's your name?
John: John
F: My name is Faith.
Is that your motorcycle outside?
J: yes
F: Does it go really fast?
J: Yes it does.
F: Wowwwwww... Did you ride it all the way here?
J: Yep, all the way from my house.
F: Where do you live?
J: In Henderson
F: Oh. How old are you?
J: I am 29
F: Oh (sadly) I am only 7
The layout is much prettier than it scans. Purples never scan very well, and it seems to throw all the colors off when I use it. In real life, though, it is really bright and fun!
Journaling reads:
I was just browsing some websites this morning, and I found this blog entry. I find these dolls to be pretty creepy, but I had to laugh at the "is this the next scrapbooking?" comment. My vote... no!
Reborn dolls - creepy or the next scrapbooking? - Blogging Baby - www.blogging
This week's Meme Challenge, posted on Two Peas, is to name your top ten favorite 80's songs, add a photo, and list your crushes from the 80's. I must say, everytime I remember that 80's music is now considered "classic" it makes me feel old... sooo old. And I am not old. If I can find a picture to add in the next day or so I will.
Anyway... here is my songlist, and if I did it right it should even link you to the lyrics if you should be interested in checking them out. Know what? Bon Jovi is still one of my all time favorite bands.
The Heart of Rock & Roll - Huey Lewis & the News
Red Red Wine - UB40
Jack and Diane - John Cougar
Hurts So Good - John Cougar
When I See You Smile - Bad English
Eternal Flame - The Bangles
We Didn't Start the Fire - Billy Joel
I Love Rock-n-Roll - Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Never Say Goodbye - Bon Jovi
Don't Worry, Be Happy - Bobby McFerrin
And I have to add this one here because it brings back such fond memories. My brother's name is Jesse, and our friends and I would sing this song to him allll the time. He hated it... LOL... it was bad enough that there had to be a song with his name in it, but it was even worse that they used the girl version of his name.. hahaha
Jessie's Girl - Rick Springfield
My earliest crush was John Schneider... I loooooovvvveeeed The Dukes of Hazzard. I had his record, and would play it over and over and over. My longest lasting, and most intense crushes, were on Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. It truly broke my heart when Jon got married, and it somehow felt like a betrayal that he came here to Vegas for the wedding. I think all three of them are still gorgeous.
I put this layout together yesterday afternoon using the Pages by Design system. I have to get some more of the blue letters to finish the word "recital", and I need to find out the names of the two girls on the bottom, but I still enjoyed making it. These are girls from the bookclub that we are a part of, and the photos are from the poetry recital I mentioned earlier.
I had a sore throat while I was in NH, and after I got home it developed into a full head cold with accompanying cough. Yuck. I had wonderful plans for my days off. I had lots of pages to get scrapped, places to take the kids, things to do. I have spent them sniffling and coughing instead. Today I am feeling better, though, and can maybe get some things caught up.
It is going to be a busy weekend. I am taking the kids on two field trips this week. We are going to the fire department on Friday, and to a grand opening of an Equestrian Park on Saturday.
If Jack is home Saturday afternoon, I am surprising Kyle with his own trip to the Harley store. I am picking up an album made from a harley license plate when I go to NC in a couple of weeks, and I have some papers and embellishments for it already. Now we have to take the pictures. I am excited to go just because I know how ecstatic he is going to be.
The highlight for me was to see the Paul Revere House and The Old North Church where his lanterns were hung to so he could warn the minutemen of the coming of the British. The church is still used to hold services, and I didn't want to disturb the meeting, so I didn't go inside. I did get to explore the Paul Revere house, though, which is where I found the lanterns to photograph. The photo of me in a doorway is in front of The Paul Revere House house. Behind the house and the church is the Paul Revere Mall, where there are plaques dedicated to patriots and veterans of almost every war the Americans have been involved in. For somebody like me, who loves history and feels connected to the stories of the past, standing in the spots where the history happened is soul stirring. Next year I want to return and see the birthplace of Franklin, the Boston Massacre Site, and all of the rest of The Freedom Trail that we did not get to visit.
Copps Hills is a burying ground that houses the remains of several noted Patriots. We stood in reverence as we read some of the stones, and caught little glimpses of the lives of the people who lived through the Revolutionary War.
Gayle and I went into Boston to see some sights on Sunday. This has been a goal of mine for a long time. There is such a rich history in Boston, and I wanted to explore it all. We only had a couple of hours, but we were able to take in several sites. Next year we plan to dedicate a whole day to exploring the Freedom Trail. We started by finding the Boston Tea Party ship. It was very sad to see that somebody has apparently set fire to the set, and it is closed until further notice. There was still something stirring about standing on the dock and knowing that this is where the Americans first made an overt stand against the British.
We meant to go to Maine and see the lighthouses on Friday. Sadly, I misread the directions somehow, and we ended up a half a mile from the border and didn't get to see any lighthouses. We did stop in this little town, and it was lovely. This church was established in 1671, and then rebuilt on the same site in 1837. The architecture everywhere we went was simply stunning. We also found a little bead store in this town, and I was in my own little heaven.
I am home from Manchester, and I had a wonderful time! After a quick set-up on Thursday, we headed to the Hamptons for a "vacation." We visited the beach, drove through the neighborhoods looking at the beautiful homes, and ate dinner on the boardwalk.
I need to get ready to fly out again in the morning, but I couldn't resist scrapping the freckle photos today. I created a sketch using the Pages by Design template system, and then based the layout upon it. The journaling reads: You are so handsome, Chet. I fell in love with
your blue eyes the minute you were born, and I love seeing the way your different features look so good together. I must admit, though, that your freckles are nearest and dearest to my heart. I love the way they splatter across your nose. You could have inherited anything
from me...eye color, hair color, skin tone,
blood type...I am glad you got my freckles.
Chet is just so stop-your-heart handsome.I love this photo because it really shows off his freckles. You probably won' t be able to see them too well online, though.
One of my co-workers has a little boy who was tentatively diagnosed with leukemia while we were in Austin. If you could say some prayers for Ashton and his family, I would appreciate it. I know the success rates for curing childhood leukemia are very high, but it is still a very difficult journey to endure.
It has been a good week for me as far as publication goes. I was asked to create a page for an article PaperKuts is doing on the Pages by Design system, and then Angie emailed me back and asked me to send in the baptism album as well for a seperate issue. I am so glad that they want to publish that album. Chet is really excited.
I heard that the Chatterbox book won't be released until July, so I am trying to be patient as I wait to get my album back and my copy of that book. At least I will be at the trade show the book is being released at, so maybe I will get to see it then. I think I have decided on a theme to enter that contest again this year, but I am sure I will still be up all night at the last minute putting it together to get it mailed before the deadline... LOL.
I have to pack and go catch my plane now. Be back in a few days!
Tomorrow I am flying out to Austin to teach. I told my friend Gayle that she and I should go line dancing while we are there, and she just laughed. I haven't been dancing in years!
I needed to pick up some groceries before I left for Michigan last week. The kids all love apples, but Todd decided he really loved them last Tuesday. After I put the bag in the cart, he picked them up and announced that those were his "apple babies." As we finished shopping and made our way to the register, he cradled his apple babies and sang the rock-a-bye lullaby to them. If you look at the second photo closely, you can even see how he was patting them to comfort them. So my question is, should I be enthralled with the idea that my son is showing signs of being a tender daddy, or should I be worried that he says he can't wait to eat his babies???
This photo was taken before Faith applied the fourth or fifth layer of make-up to her face today. I didn't have to take her out in public, so I let her play with it all afternoon. She loved the experience. The boys had other opinions. The older ones told her it looked "hideous", and when Todd turned around and saw her walk in a room he said "Ew!" I just laughed. Later she asked me if she looked like anybody famous, and I cheerfully told her she looked just like a famous clown. We all giggled at that. I think I had just as much fun watching her enjoy playing in her tray of play make-up as she did applying it.
I have finally figured out how to include links in this blog. I wanted to add Chet's baptism album here, but there are too many pages. Here is the link, though, if you would like to see it in my 2 Peas gallery.
baptism album
There is a challenge on the Two Peas
1. I stuck a toy screw in my ear and had to have a doctor remove it.
2. When I was two, I left my house in the middle of the night to walk to Circle K to get candy. I got lost on the way home. A man found me, took me to an elderly lady's house, who then fed me cookies and called the police. The police officer drove me around the neighborhood (it was now about 6 am) while I tried to figure out which house was mine. My parents woke up, found me gone, and launched an immediate search for me. My dad was driving down the street while I was in the cop car, and when I saw him I ducked... LOL.
3.I once drank an entire gallon of water in about two minutes just so I didn't have to share it with my brother. Yeah... he was the one suffering!
4. I was at my dad's house once, and decided to ride down a haphazard half-pint ramp in a shopping cart. The cart went tumbling, I went rolling along with it, and I still have the scars by my eye as a memento.
5. I remember trying to jump halfway off my bed, and then jump back on it before I landed on the ground. Duh.. gravity!
6. My brother and I once found a little boy in a sewing store who couldn't find his mom. We hid him while we tried to figure out how we could convince our mom to let us keep him.
7. I walked into a bathroom at my mom's office while a senator was using it. Now, he should have had the door locked, but it still ended up being my fault... LOL
8. I didn't want to tell my dad that he was dropping me off for my first job a couple of hours early (I thought I was early at least... I had mixed up my schedule) I left and went to a store to blow some time. When I showed up to work my parents, the cops, my bosses, and all of my friends were there trying to organize a search for me. Surprisingly, I didn't get fired! However, the cute guy I had just met at the store never did call me for a date after my dad and the cops finished questioning him.
9. I was sliding down some snow on a garbage bag, and managed to slam into the only tree on the hill. I was ambulanced to the hospital and treated for shock.
10. I cut my own hair when I was five. That was bad enough, but then my mom took me to a BARBER to have it fixed... yikes! (see photo above)
This is a busy travel month for me. I am leaving for Novi, MI tomorrow. Friday will be mine and Jack's ten year wedding anniversary. If you see him while I am gone remind him how lucky he is to be married to me... LOL
Daycamp came to an end on Friday. Chet wasn't able to participate in all of the physical activities, but he really enjoyed the long jump. He jumped 5 feet 7 inches. I was thrilled to get the shot of him in the air, even if it is a bit blurry. The second photo is of him and his friends Quintin and Chad. They were all born within weeks of each other, and went to nursery and Sunday school classes together for several years before Chad moved. It was a happy surprise when our den was combined with Chad's den this week, and the three got to hang out together through the whole daycamp experience.
OKay, all personal bias aside, I think Beth is one of the funniest babies ever born. The other night the kids taught her how to race. She gets down on her knees and sing songs, "Ready, set, GO!" Then while the kids go speeding off, she scrambles to her feet and tries to catch up with them. Don't you just love the way her little fists are clenched in fierce concentration?
I was able to scrap a layout last night. I used Photoshop to turn the photos black and white, and then tint the letters so they would show up really well. I entered this in a couple of magazine calls for pages, so we will see if it gets picked up.
