Family Fun Night

Last night was our night for family fun. It's a new tradition that we are implementing. Every week we are going to take the kids to do something fun. Last night we went to Mr. Gatti's for dinner and games. So much fun! The kids loving going and we love seeing them have that much fun within a short time frame. :) However, last night was a little different than our normal trip to Mr. Gatti's. Why? Because we had the little one in tow too. :) A, as we will call her, is three weeks shy of turning 1! Can you believe that? Wowza!! Anyway, she's still a little young to get down and play the games with her older brother, S, and her older sister, M, so I carried her around. The older two played bumper cars and then moved on to the carousel. After the carousel they wanted to play these little basketball games. Cool! Whatever makes them happy! As they were standing there throwing the basketball into the little baskets; A, who is happily propped on my hip, is laughing in hysterics! Seriously, she laughs. Never like this though. She was loud and every time one of the kids threw the ball she started laughing all over again. I was laughing at her laughing. So much fun. It truly brings joy to a parents heart to hear their children's laughter. I can't wait to go back!!!

What family traditions do you have?

Until next time. . .

Let It Snow. . . Let It Snow. . . Let It Snow

Today we received our first snow of the year. What a feat for West Texas! Granted. . . It only snowed for about 5 minutes and absolutely nothing stuck to the ground. Does that count for snowing? Well. . . since I actually saw the flurries falling from the sky; I say it snowed. haha I've been keeping an eye on the radar and we have a better chance for snow overnight, so. . . I might just wake up to that pretty white stuff that just happens to sparkle like hundreds of millions little diamonds. Have I mentioned I love the snow? If not, I totally love the snow!! My love of snow comes from growing up North. So I am really hoping that tomorrow morning when I awaken that I awaken to the ground completely covered in the pretty white stuff. I really, really, really hope. Who knows I may just trudge outside in the snow with flip flops on just to get a couple pictures. Why would I even consider going outside in flip flops with snow on the ground? I'm crazy like that. :)

Project 365 Update ~

I am actually doing really well on taking and scrapping my project. I decided it was probably best that after I take my daily photo that I edit it, upload it, scrap, and journal it all in the same day. I think this will help prevent me from becoming overwhelmed at the end of the week since the majority of it will already be done. I am really looking forward to the end of the year when I have the opportunity to print my first scrapbook, ever. I've been scrapbooking digitally since 2008 and I have yet to get a book printed. I am bound and determined to get this one finished and printed. :)

Until next time. . .

What a Nightmare

Have you ever gotten to the point in a relationship/marriage to where you cannot sleep without your partner? Yep. I'm at that point. After 15 years of me and my husband being together I am unable to sleep without him beside me. The type of job he does requires him to be on call one week out of every month. He's on call this week. He was called out last night. He did not come home until 3:30 this afternoon. What time did I give up and attempt to go to sleep? 1:30 this morning. Was I successful? No, not until my sweet little boy woke up in the middle of the night and climbed into bed with me. That was at 2:30 this morning. Then the baby woke up at 7:30 this morning to eat. It was awful. I'm exhausted. I just want to curl up in his arms and sleep. . . and sleep. . . and sleep. While I know the hours are going to be good for our finances. . . I hate when he is called out and doesn't get to come home until the next day. At 8 this morning he had been up for officially 24 hours. At 10 last night he was called out. He got back to the yard at 6:30 this morning, but with him having to be at work at 7 there was no point in him coming home. It sucks. I'm venting. What I have to deal with occasionally is nothing compared to those men and women who are separated from their loved ones months or years on end because they are serving our country. It sucks to be away from the one you love. . . even if it's only for a night. I'll stop whining now.

And I just noticed that everything that happened was half-past-the-hour. :/ Probably just a coincidence.

Until next time. . .

Happy New Year

Today is officially the first day of a brand new year. I am so excited about the fresh start, new firsts, new beginnings. I decided last year I was no longer going to make resolutions. Instead I opt to use one word in which I will strive towards for the year. This year my word is forgiveness. Forgiveness to the people who have done wrong towards me. Forgiveness for the grudges I cannot seem to let go of. Forgiveness towards me because I hold myself to such high standards and I fail myself repeatedly. I am not perfect. I cannot do everything. I need to accept and forgive my failures and weaknesses. Forgiveness. It is such a powerful word. A simple word. A word that can fix many things. Forgiveness. What are striving to be better at this year?

Today I also started a new project. Project 365. I will strive to take a picture every day to document our lives. Once a week I will scrap a page and by the end of the year I will have my very first scrapbook to print. A book that me and my family will cherish forever. I am so excited about this project. I just hope I do not overwhelm myself and give up. I am sure I will become frustrated, but when I do I will walk away, breathe, and come back to it. Most of all I will forgive myself for becoming frustrated. :)

Happy New Year!

Until next time. . .

New Beginnings

This past year has been a hectic, but exciting ride. I've taken many pictures. Yet, I've failed to do much with them. My goal for the new year is to work on many scrapbooks from years past, including the kid's baby books. I have tons of pictures of them on Photobucket. Yet there they sit. Untouched. Not printed. Not in books. Not being showcased. I love my children. I regret the fact that I have yet to do their baby books. So my goal is to work on their baby books throughout the year and hopefully have them ready to print at the end of the year. I am also taking the plunge into P365. I know it is a lot for me to take on, but I think I can manage it if I stay focused and on task. I want to do this for my children. I want them to be able to look at them years down the road. I want them to cherish these as they are meant to be cherished. So, as the new year begins, I am also starting new. Focus. Attention to details. More time. Time with my family. Time with my hobby. Here is to new beginnings.

Until next time. . .

Recent scrappy-ness

Two posts in one day. . . who woulda thunk it?! Since my life is currently in go go mode I thought it would be nice to see some of the lovelies I have been able to create in my "me" time. Enjoy!

First up is the most recent layout. It's of our newest addition to the family who is now going on 9 months old! So hard to believe!! Isn't she a doll?!

Created using ~

Isn't She Lovely by Zoe Pearn

Summer Rain 1 Templates by Rainy Dayz Designs

Another one of our newest addition. I love how she is splashing the water. Bath time is so much fun!

Created using ~

Grins and Giggles by Bella Gypsy

Summer Rain 4 Templates by Rainy Dayz Designs

This one is of our youngest over the last 8 months. I can't believe how much they change.

Created using ~

It's All Good by Bella Gypsy

Rainy Day Guides for Everyday 4 by Rainy Dayz Designs

Tag (Baby Milestones) by SuzyQ Scraps

Green Alpha (Life Expressed Mega Alpha Stash) by SuzyQ Scraps

Until next time my dears. . . 

Back to regularly scheduled programming

Wowza! Life has been hectic to say the least! Three kids, college full-time, and normal, everyday duties. Who has time to blog? This is the busiest time of the year for me. We are in the midst of Birthday/Holiday Season around here and I decided that it is time to make some sort of downtime for me. Scrapping is my life, outside of my family. It allows me the creative outlet that I otherwise would not get. I am grateful for the chance to preserve my families memories. So I am taking time for myself. Who doesn't need time for themselves? You will randomly get to see some of my scrappy-ness, some of what our life is like on a daily basis, and just some random vents by me. Sit back and enjoy. Don't forget your snacks!

Totally Groovy

So we embarked on another adventure in creativity today. Today we decided to make our own "lava lamps". The kids were mesmerized by these. Of course they needed some help with adding the food coloring, oil, and water, but overall they had a blast. . . especially when they added the alka seltzer pieces. They don't light up, but I can definitely see my kids going back to add more alka seltzer often. You can find the original steps here, but after our first time making it we made a minor change on our second batch since my son wanted an Aqua color.

Here is what you need:

I seriously recommend bigger bottles than what I have, but I didn't have anything else on hand. 

We filled our bottles about 1/4 way with water and then added the food coloring. Shook the bottles to insure the colors were mixed well and then added the oil. :D

These are our final lava lamps. The girl decided she wanted a simple blue. Easy peasy.

The boy wanted a cool aqua color. 

I wonder what is on our agenda for tomorrow's craft time. . . 

Until next time. . . 

Finger Paint Fun

The boy is out of school for the summer, which means I have three kids home all day; luckily for me the baby  is still sleeping most of the time. This kids complain more often than not that they have nothing to do, so yesterday we decided to get a little crafty. It took like no time at all and the kids were at the table painting. Tons of fun and we didn't have any stains; probably only because I added the food coloring. LOL We got lucky and had everything on hand, but barely. :D

Here is what you will need:

1/2 cup cornstarch
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups cold water
food coloring

Here is what you need to do:

In a medium pan, mix all the ingredients together to make the finger paint. Cook over low heat 10 to 15 minutes. Keep stirring the finger paint mixture until it is smooth and thick. After the finger paint has thickened take the pan off the stove and let the mixture cool.

After cooling, divide the finger paint into storage containers depending on how many colors you would like. Add a few drops of food coloring to each container. Stir the coloring in to the paint to determine the shade of color. You're ready to finger paint! Cover tightly when storing.

The kids had tons of fun making these. They are now sitting in our hall closet until they want to paint some more, which will probably be today, but at least they'll be occupied. 

During their creative process...

The boy's masterpiece. . . 

The girl's masterpiece. . . 

You can find the recipe we used plus a couple of additional recipes right here. 

Until next time. . . 

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

I don't know about everyone else, but I seriously get tired of eating the same thing over and over again. So the other day I was goofing off online at Pinterest, love this site, and stumbled across a recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole. It sounded uber yummy, so I decided to make it for supper that evening. . . considering I had everything on hand. :D What can I say?! It was a huge success. Even my pickiest eater, my husband, loved it and went back for seconds. I never would have thought my non-Chicken eater would like a Chicken recipe that much. This is one recipe that is definitely going into our rotation. I would definitely recommend that you try this one today!

Only Human

This is my first post since deciding to take the focus off of my scrapbooking and focus on what I started this blog for in the first place; a place to share my inner thoughts, recipes, and the ins and outs of our daily lives. Trust me when I say I am pretty sure most of you who read this will agree with me.

I tend to get a little testy and defensive when I feel like I am constantly striving to live up to someone else's standards of what I should be. I never once said that I was perfect or am always chipper. In fact, the complete opposite is true. I am not the perfect Mom, or Wife, for that matter, but I strive to be the best I can. Life with 3 kids is HARD! Harder than I expected it would be. Don't get me wrong, I love my life and I wouldn't change it, even if I could. My son occasionally misses school for no reason, except he doesn't want to go. No big deal! So my kid doesn't have perfect attendance. So none of them behave perfectly when I think they should, especially in public. My kids are not in extracurricular activities. Not because I don't want them to be active and make friends outside of our neighborhood, or school, but because they've never asked. I don't want to force something upon them that they have never shown and interest in. I'm hard on my kids because I want the best for them and from them. What parent doesn't? I don't have the privilege of letting certain things slide because I don't have just one kid. I have 3! If I would let things go all the time I would be living in a nightmare.

So, my kids do not have perfect attendance. They misbehave. They are not perfect. I am not perfect. Why should I hold my children to higher expectations than I hold myself? I shouldn't. I don't.

I suppose all of my venting simple boils down to this. Don't pass judgement on someone if you know nothing about their lifestyle. Having one child is completely different than having two or more. Try to be a little more understanding about the stress someone else maybe feeling without adding the extra stress of making them feel guilty because they may not be looking forward to summer vacation, or Christmas break. It doesn't have anything to do with not loving your children. It has everything to do with listening to fighting and arguing more times than not.

Until next time. . .

Changing things up!

I know it's been forever since I have posted on here and for that I am truly sorry. Most of my posts relate to scrapbooking, but since I have recently given birth to our precious third child, and am limited in the amount of time I have to scrap I have decided to take my blog on a different route. I am going to focus more on our every day lives. I am also going to start posting recipes that we try and really like this way you all can enjoy them too. If you have a recipe that you and your family just love feel free to share it with me. My family and I will try just about anything, except seafood. :D I am looking forward to the upcoming changes and taking you all with me. :D

Tribute To Tyler

Hey everyone! I just wanted to pop in really quick and remind you of the amazing kit that was created to help a truly amazing family who is struggling with not only the loss of their precious baby, but financially as well. All of the proceeds from the sale of the kit will go directly to the family for whatever needs the see fit to fulfill. A Tribute to Tyler is a very cute and adorable little boy kit, but it is really versatile with the amount of elements provided. I used the kit to scrap a page of my children. This is one very special kit for a very special family who truly need your love and generosity this holiday season. Be sure to swing by Scrapable or Funky Playground to purchase this amazing kit! If you would like to read more about the Burdick family you may do so by visiting their CaringBridge site.

You get all of this for a small price tag of $10!

Here is my layout I made using Tribute to Tyler.

It's still available. . .

Hey everyone! I am truly sorry about my really short entry the other day. I have been extremely busy trying to prepare for Thanksgiving and failed to post all of the previews for the kit.

A Tribute to Tyler is still available at Scrapable and Funky Playground. It is truly an amazing kit and such a steal at only $10. There are over 100 papers and 100 elements. All of the proceeds go to Tyler's family to help them in their time of need. Tyler's Dad was let go from his employer while he was away taking care of his very ill son. Their story truly touched me to my core. It is devastating what they are having to endure this holiday season. You can read their story on their CaringBridge site.

Below you will find a preview of the full kit, the ad made from the contents of the kit, and a bonus alpha created by me. Remember all proceeds from the sale of the kit go to Tyler's family, who I am sure will greatly appreciate the help.

To download the free alpha click here. :D

Tribute to Tyler. . . and a small freebie.

A Tribute to Tyler was created in loving memory of little Tyler Burdick who has lost his angel wings, but continues to touch many hearts. 31 very generous designers have come together to create this amazing kit. There are over 100 papers and elements, 7 alphas, plus styles, templates and wordart. It is full of all things boy! Everything from cars, trucks, planes, robots, and dinosaurs. You get all of this for a very low price of $10. Yep, you read it right! $10!! Tribute to Tyler is available at Scrapable and Funky Playground.

This kit is truly a work of art and absolutely needs to be in everyone's scrapping arsenal. All proceeds from the sale of this kit will be donated to the Burdick family, for whatever needs they have. To read more about Tyler and the Burdick family's story please visit their CaringBridge site.

To download the alpha click here.

Thank you for everyone who contributed in making this such an amazing kit! You all have done something amazingly wonderful for this family!

Charity Collab

Hey everyone! I am so sorry it has been forever and a day since I have posted. Things around here have been extremely hectic with baby #3 on the way. Anyway, I wanted to share some news that is going around the digi-scrap community.

A little over a month ago I stumbled across a family who was facing devastating circumstances via a friends Facebook update. I personally do not know this family, but there story touched me so much, especially considering I am a parent myself. This family has three boys, one of which was diagnosed with Leukemia at the age of 4 months. He went into remission and then relapsed when he was 2. Sadly they lost their sweet boy not to long ago. The Father lost his job while being away to care for his son. So not only have they lost one of their children, they also have no income.

Since there story had touched me so, I asked a dear friend of mine if she would head up a charity collab kit for this family. My dear friend gladly accepted the challenge and has been working very hard to attract as many designers as she can to help with this very special kit. All the proceeds of this kit, minus fees, will be going to the family for whatever expenses or needs they have that still need to be met. A Tribute to Tyler will be hitting the digi-scrap stores hopefully this weekend.

I am asking for everyone's help in passing the word on this very special kit. It really is going to helps some wonderful people who are faced with the tragedy of losing a child. All help is greatly appreciated. If you would like to read more about their story, please feel free to visit their CaringBridge site.

Roller Coaster Ride

Today has been full of emotions. Sometimes I find it hard to put my feelings into words, but this time I am really going to try.

My younger sister has been fighting renal failure for several years. While I have no idea how hard and difficult this is for her, I can imagine. Knowing that you are fighting for your life can only be energy consuming. After several years of waiting and doing the necessary steps in order to prepare herself for the transplant, she has gotten "the call" twice. Both times something has happened that prevented her from getting her kidney. These blows keep tearing her down. Today, in the wee hours of the morning my husband woke me telling me that my sister was on her way to the hospital for her transplant. I wept. Not from sadness, but from relief, joy, and overwhelming feeling of gratitude towards God for giving her this precious gift. Just a few moments ago I received a phone call from my sister's friend informing me that the transplant has been postponed, yet again. The reasons are valid. The Dr. performing the transplant has concerns about some of her medical history and wants answers. Answers that, a previous hospital, should have provided before now. She now has some more testing that she needs to undergo. Testing that will hopefully reveal why her kidney's failed in the first place, as well as why her heart became so weak so quickly after her seizure.

I completely understand the reasons. That does not mean I am not heartbroken and devastated for her. She has been fighting for so long. I know that her transplant will happen when it is meant to happen. It is hard to not feel a sense of sorrow though. She has fought so hard and so long that one would think she wouldn't have to endure this any longer. Yet she continues to fight for her life and take the necessary steps to insure her future with everyone here who loves her. She is a fighter. I pray that God gives her the strength to get through this. I know this can't be easy for her. I know how hard it is on me. I can only imagine that it is 1000 times worse for her.

Sending my thoughts and prayers to her in her time of need. I love you sis!

Until next time. . .

Project ~ Happiness

Wow! These past weeks have zipped by me. Life has gotten extremely hectic and as usual I forget to update my blog.

This week for my Project Happiness post I am sharing one simple picture that speaks a ton of words. It is truly a testament to how much our lives are changing. I am excited about the upcoming changes.

We found out on Father's Day, so needless to say it was a rather interesting day here at the house. We had it confirmed on Monday and excitedly shared the news with all of our loved ones. I have never felt a mix of emotions like the ones I experienced on Father's Day. Our lives are about to take on a change we did not know was going to happen or not. Wow! What a blessing.

So what makes you happy?

Until next time. . .

Celebrate Misty's Birthday

Yep! You read it right. Misty aka Miss Mis Designs is turning 30~ish! To celebrate she has her store on sale for 30 percent off. Now would be the perfect time to head over to her store to stock up on those goodies you have been eye-ing!

Until next time. . .

Project ~ Happiness

Wow! I can hardly believe that it has been two weeks since my last post. Time has really gotten away from me. The last couple of weeks we have been extremely busy with the end of the year activities at my son's school. Speaking of school. . . I can't believe he graduated Pre-K this year. It is so hard to believe that it is summer vacation already! Yikes! This week for Project Happiness I thought I would share a very bitter sweet memory for me. . .

Shane's Diploma

With it being a very special day I decided to do something a little extra special for his class. This was in no way required. I just thought it was a really big milestone for these kids and they deserved something a little special.

Cougar Paw Cupcakes

Since the day was so special they put on a special performance for the parents. They worked so hard on their songs and dances. I was really proud of all of the students. Here they are sitting patiently as the parents arrived for the special day.

Graduating Class

We were really lucky to have teachers who really cared about all of their students. They were patient, loving, and kind. It really saddened me and the rest of the class to see the year end. While I know they are moving on to more wonderful teachers, it is hard to ignore the bond that is created between teacher and student. Shane loved each and every one of his teachers. He had three. His teacher and two para-assistants. I hope that bond will never be broken.

Shane, M, and his teachers.

It is clearly obvious that they each care about their students. We were extremely lucky to have such devoted teachers for our little boys first year in school. Thank you to all of the teachers out there who love their students unconditionally, but most of all for being teachers.

So, what makes you happy? Feel free to join in on the fun. Make your post and head on over to Leigh vs. Laundry's blog to link up with the rest of the gang.

Until next time. . .