Way past due!

I know I need to get an update up here! It has been another really busy week, with so much going on!! The big news in my scrapbook world is that I have been designing digital kits to be sold on ScrapVillage. The digi section is being launched this weekend during our virtual crop. Here are three sneak peeks of the sets I am going to have up, and there are more in the process. I started by making sets of some of my favorite texture things so I could have them to use... LOL Wish me luck... I am crossing my fingers that these go over well! Check back in the next couple of days because I have some freebies to give away as well. I need to get them loaded.






Things on the home front have been busy too. I don't have any great pics to share, but there are a couple of fun ones. Faith loves to use Beth as a real-life doll for dressing up. Beth found her flip-flops while we were moving things around, and Faith decided to dress her up in them using a Toga theme. You can't tell in the picture, but she even had blue eyeshadow and clips in her hair. My little Greek goddess... :0)
On Monday, Faith performed with her 3rd grade classmates in a school assembly. She has also signed up to be in a beauty pageant next month. Fun, fun, fun!
The big time consumer this week involved a lot of green paint. My mom, Bob, my aunt, and my great-uncle are coming to visit in a couple of weekends, and I wanted the house re-arranged and repainted before they got here. Todd and Beth had a blast prepping the kichen stairwell wall for me. I need to get some house after pictures taken. I painted the majority of the downstairs a lovely olive green (my mom is going to hate the color... LOL), and I am going to put a wash of brown wood stain over it to antique it a bit. The girls' rooms were also repainted to be pink and aqua. Last weekend the kids and I with the help of some of Jessica's friends got the furniture all re-arranged and everybody ended up switching rooms. Now I have to finish sorting everything and getting it all put away again, but we are all really happy with the changes we made.

Jack got to come home over the weekend. He is probably leaving again soon, but what a relief it was to see him walk in the door! We all missed him.

My dad is getting married next weekend, so I am flying back to Vegas on that Friday to be there for the wedding. I am really excited about getting to spend some time with my family, even if it is only a couple of days!

It is snowing outside right now. In fact, the kids were all sent home early from school today due to the snow. So I am going to go outside and take some pics of the kids playing in it, get some work done, and start on dinner. I promise to be back in the next day or so with the freebies! Talk at ya soon!

New Definitive Inspiration challenge

I just posted this week's DI challenge here at Scrap Village. Come play along!

This week's word is recycle. Feel free to share more than one photograpic inspiration if you feel so inclined!

re·cy·cle [ree-sahy-kuhl] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation verb, -cled, -cling, noun –verb (used with object) 1. to treat or process (used or waste materials) so as to make suitable for reuse: recycling paper to save trees. 2. to alter or adapt for new use without changing the essential form or nature of: The old factory is being recycled as a theater. 3. to use again in the original form or with minimal alteration: The governor recycled some speeches from his early days. 4. to cause to pass through a cycle again: to recycle laundry through a washing machine. –verb (used without object) 5. to pass through a cycle again; repeat a process from the beginning. 6. to undergo reuse or renewal; be subject to or suitable for further use, activity, etc.: The industry will recycle and become profitable once more. –noun 7. the act or process of recycling.

The morning view

I was wrong when I said that none of the big trees hang over the house... I forgot about the garden trees. Fortunately, the branches that have fallen on the house haven't caused damage, and none of them have knocked down the power line they are draping over. These are all just shots of different parts of the yard around the house. I won't let the kids play outside because you can still hear some of the branches cracking, and I can see where big branches are still getting ready to fall.


This is two of the puppies saying good morning to one of the neighbor horses across the street.
Icicles on the back deck.
One of the tree branches in mid-drip.
Bigger icicles on the storage shed
An inch of ice around some smaller branches
frozen apple and peach trees

My camera was straight for this shot, and there is no wind. The weight of the ice is pulling the tree down.
If we have any birds in our birdhouse, I hope they are cozy.
Another front yard tree in the process of coming down.
The big tree in the orchard. You can see some of the branches laying on the smaller roof in the bottom left corner.

We aren't going anywhere or doing anything today. The ice melting outside right now, but it is getting back into the 20s tonight, so we will see what happens.

Iced Over

It is dark outside, so the pictures aren't great, but this is what the trees and roads around here look like right now. These branches are actually in the process of falling off the tree in the front yard from the weight of the ice. We are fortunate enough to still have power, and I am hoping the worst of the storm is over so we don't lose it.
The rain and sleet is coming down too fast for me to get the camera to focus for this shot, but this is my ice tree in the back yard. I don't think any of our really huge trees are close enough to the house to have branches fall on it, and I moved the cars in the hopes that none of them get smashed. The truck is parked in a really wet part of the yard though, and appears to be sinking in the bogginess... if that boggy area freezes we may not be going anywhere at all until it all melts.. LOL
Jack and his crew had to leave Missouri until the storm passes, so they are in Oklahoma helping to get things running again for the homes hit there. They are going back up to Missouri in a couple of days, and we still aren't sure how long he will be gone. We're just crossing our fingers and saying our prayers that the roads are safe and he doesn't get hurt climbing up or down the poles. In the meantime, the kids and I are hunkering down and staying warm.

Chilly news

We have started a word-related photo challenge over at Scrap Village called Definitive Inspiration. This week's word is "chill," and this is my photo. The pond is frozen over, so the puppies are going crazy trying to figure out how to get into it to catch their daily turtle... LOL. I hope you'll come join the challenge.... it is a lot of fun.

Faith was petting Sammy yesterday, and he snuck a puppy kiss in... yuck... LOL

Jack's trip to Louisiana has been delayed a bit. Last night he found out that he was being sent to Missouri instead. The ice storm has done a lot of damage there, leaving power lines and other uilities down. We don't really know how long he will be gone. He thought it might just be through the weekend, but there is supposed to be another big winter storm moving in this weekend, so we will see what happens.

I am going to go get some soup going to slow-boil all day. It is the kind of day that calls for yummy home-made soup and hot cocoa! (17 degrees the last time I checked) Stay warm and safe everyone!

Healing

This is why I haven't been posting. My left hand is swollen in this shot, so you can just imagine what my right hand has felt like. I couldn't bend it, couldn't use any kind of pressure, and couldn't even stand to hold my camera with it... let alone type. Nothing was helping... in fact, the swelling has been going up my arm, and my entire forearm up until my elbow was just as swollen and rock hard. Ouch. I went yesterday and quit my job, which isn't how I would normally leave a job, but I could not do this to my hands and arms anymore. I need them for the career I really want. Plus, Jack is being sent to Louisiana to help rebuild lines in New Orleans, and I can't leave the kids alone all night. I need to clean this picture up a little more, but I just loved the way the girls looked sitting in their baskets and watching TV. Beth had been playing with Faith's hair. Beth looks so much like Faith did at her age... makes me feel nostalgic. I love all those curls, but Faith had them too and now they are nowhere to be seen!

I had to get out of town the other day, so on Friday I took Beth and Todd to surprise Jack and we all had lunch at the Olive Garden.... yuummmmmmmmyyyy! The kids were really good as we waited for Jack to get there... I love how Beth had her lips pursed as she colored! As we pulled into Springdale, Todd said, "Mom, we were driving in the middle of nowhere." "I know," I said, "that was a big stretch of empty land wasn't it?" "Yeah," he said, "but now we are in the middle of SOMEWHERE!" We had a lot of fun being "somewhere" that afternoon!





Between the cold weather delaying Jack, my needing to go to work Saturday night, and a general feeling of being tired in the house, Matt decided to not have a whole party. Instead, we had his cake and opened his presents in the afternoon, and I am taking him to the movies this week.


Part of the reason he was so tired Saturday is that he went to Homecoming on Friday and danced the night away. He wouldn't let me go to the dance to take pictures, but if you talk to him ask him about the Cotton-Eyed Joe... :0) He said he had a good time, even going stag.

This, in an expressions, sums up what Todd thinks of Justin Timberlake's newest release from his CD. I have to say, I agree with Todd... LOL

It was negative 6 this morning... brrrrr... our whole yard is frozen over. It is beautiful with all the crystalline effects, but I feel really badly for the people in neighboring counties who are out of power and suffering. Missouri has been declared a disaster area. School was cancelled today due to the cold and ice, so the kids and I are hanging out, keeping warm, and doing a lot of nothing so far. Jack has been out working in this extreme cold, and he comes home in the shape of a husband popsicle. We went and bought him a thermal jumpsuit the other day, and he found the boots he needs to keep his feet warm and dry. Hopefully, he is staying warm today!

I am working on a digital kit that will be up for sale in a couple of weeks. It is full of the grungy and eclectic stuff I love... can't wait to show it to you! I will be back soon!

Bundling Up

There is a winter storm moving in, and it is getting chilly up here in the Ozarks! There is supposed to be an ice storm by tomorrow night... brrrr

No pictures to share today, but I do have a couple of funny Todd stories.

Yesterday I woke up from a little nap, and heard a plaintiff "meow". Todd had "arrested" some of the cats. There were upside down laundry baskets in the living room, each covered with a blanket. Some had cats jailed in them, and the rest were there waiting for Todd to be able to cajole the smarter and faster cats into his trap. What made it even funnier is that it looked like a monster-sized version of dice under a cup... move them around and guess where the cat really is... LOL I would have taken pics, but he moved it all before I got upstairs to get my camera.

The day before I took him in for the next immunization shot he needed. He very clearly remembers the last trip to the Health Department, and he was not particularly eager to go visit the nurse again. "Mom... you guys go ahead and I will stay home. I PROMISE I won't open the door, won't get in the fridge, I won't go outside... in fact, I will sit right here and I won't do anyhting but watch TV." That didn't work. So he put on an extra shirt, and then loaded himself 100% in his thick padded jacket... front zipped, hood attached so tightly that all we could see were his eyes. "I am not taking it off" he said. Then we had to wait half an hour and he got way too hot and took it off... LOL. Then as we were sitting there and waiting he asked if I had ever had shots. I said yes, and he said, "Then you know how to do this, so you should get my shot for me." LOL... sorry buddy... but he gets credit for being so funny in his efforts to avoid the immunizations!

After the shots, I took him and Beth and Matt out to lunch at the new Italian deli here in town. Todd had chosen to not eat breakfast that morning. We ate our pizza, and then Todd pushed his plate away and said, "That was yummy... I am ready for my lunch now." I reminded him that we were eating lunch, and he said,"No... you are eating lunch, I just finished my breakfast and I am ready for lunch now." He thought a slice of their chocolate cake would be a good lunch... truth be told, it is good enough to be any meal you want it to be... LOL

If you are trying to get ahold of me, my cell phone is recharged with minutes. I still can't see my screen, so I can't look up numbers to call anybody I don't have memorized... :0)

We are having Matt's birthday party this weekend, and if all goes well I plan on sleeping all afternoon on Sunday while Jack is home. I am getting used to this schedule, and my hands are not AS swollen as they have been, but the thought of getting a night's worth of sleep all in one shot really appeals to me! :0) Enjoy your weekend, and stay warm!

They say it's his birthday!

Matt is 15 today. How did that happen so fast? It is so hard to believe that the baby who almost fit entirely in my hand (he was three weeks early and weighed 5lbs4oz) is now taller than me. He is so excited... he gets to get his learner's permit in a few months, he wants to go apply for a part time job, and he is getting pretty built with the weights routine he is doing. Where did my little boy go?? Happy birthday, Matt... love ya to pieces!


I love pictures like this... unstaged that just catch sweet moments. Jack looked out the window and saw Chet and Kyle playing in the new hole and just talking. They loved how big it was. (Jack and Matt got rid of the last two tree stumps in the front yard yesterday, bringing us one step closer to having our parking area complete.)


We had Kyle's birthday party Saturday night. He really did have fun... LOL... I know you can't tell by the photo though! Jack and I teamed up against Ed and Portia in Scrabble, which was fun! I haven't played Scrabble in years!


I haven't done much this week that requires using my hands. My right hand is really swollen from some of the equipment I use at work, so I haven't been online much or gotten much scrapping done. I did finish this page during an online digi crop last night. The credits are listed in my gallery at Scrap Village.

Some more pages

I have been digi scrapping here and there as I have had a chance. I thought I might actually get some Christmas picture done this year! The credits for all of these are in my gallery at ScrapVillage.

Happy Birthday Kyle!!

Today was Kyle's 7th birthday. He is getting so big so fast!! We are having his birthday party on Saturday, but his box from Gramma came today. He loved getting his own package!

Happy Birthday, Kyle... love ya!!

Happy New Year!!

We had a fun New Year's Eve! Portia and Ed and their kids made it over, and everyone spent the night playing various games. At any given point during the night somebody was stair sliding (even Ed gave it a go at one point), there were video games going, a Lego set being built, and then the teens and the adults sat down to play Monopoly.


The Monopoly game was absolutely hilarious. We had said it was Adult Monopoly... meaning we weren't going to have any little kids playing. Somehow, Tony was convinced that meant it was strip Monopoly, and he went out to his truck to put on extra layers of clothes... there was no way we could let that kind of naivete go. So we were teasing him and said that if he landed on somebody else's property they could choose whether you had to pay rent or take off some clothes. So we go several rounds, with everyone paying their rent, and Tony lands on one of Ed's properties. He tells Tony to lose his shirt, and because he was taking our teasing so seriously, Tony did. After we all lost it laughing for a bit, I told him to put his shirt back on and we finished playing the game. Jessica desperately wants me to post a picture of it here, but I don't need bare-chested teenagers on my blog... LOL
The game came down to Jack and I teaming up against Portia and Ed, and they slaughtered us. That Ed is one tough realty mogul, I tell ya!
We turned on the TV about ten till midnight to watch the countdown, and realized that we had missed it! They posted it live during NY time, which is an hour ahead of us. We did our own countdown, yelled Happy New Year, and drank our sparkling cider. Ed and Portia and Tony went home, all the kids that were spending the night went to sleep, and we crashed. We had a blast, though. I can't wait to have friends over to play games again. Portia and I were teasing Tony and told him he could come next week to play Adult Scrabble... where you have to do everything that gets spelled..... LOL... he has declined the invitation. Don't worry Tony... if that was the real rule I would be spelling "wash the dishes, scrub the floors, cook dinner, etc"

2006 was a big year for us... lots of major events and ups and downs. Here is my recap of some of my favorite moments, in no particular order. Here is to hoping that 2007 is wonderful for all of us!

Finding Jessica, and bringing her home.
The Moonlight Beach party with Kara, Ann, and Mette.
Seeing the Kahokian Mounds.
Potty Training Beth and celebrating the end of 14 years of diapers.
Moving to Arkansas and buying our first house.
Reconnecting with long lost friends and family.
Ice Skating
Putting on that manic Designer Dinner
Leo making me paper roses on my birthday
Movies with Johanna and Sheri
Watching Matt play football
Todd's "blackberry incident"
Seeing Beth so excied about Santa
Becoming friends with Kara
Seeing the Winchester Museum again with Katherine and Gayle.
Mom coming out to visit.