Monday, July 30, 2007

it's gonna be hot again...

We've had so many hot days this summer...way more than normal...and today's going to be another one. We are, however, supposed to get some rain today and tomorrow - I'm excited for that.


I woke up early this morning and couldn't go back to sleep, so I decided to scrapbook. Imagine!! Anyway, since the weather is hot hot hot, I decided to make a page that's about something not hot. Do you remember Marge from last Winter? She only lasted for a couple of days...but now she has a memorial page that will last forever! lol

{ETA: Marge and herlayout had to go on a little vacation...but she'll be back in a few months...:o)}
Now I better get busy with regular Monday stuff -- laundry, floors, errands, etc. Let's hope the heat doesn't stifle the productivity!!

Friday, July 27, 2007

it's friday...

...since we did a lot of playing during the week, we don't have any fun plans for the weekend. I'm hoping to do a little bit of organizing and work on a few projects, but I don't have any pressing deadlines, so that's nice. Maybe if I'm really lucky Brad will get bitten by the painting bug and we can paint another wall or two in the basement!!

I took a little field trip to Provo today with my mom and the kids. I had a few projects picked up by Paper Trends magazine (my first published projects with them!) and since they are oversized and awkward, and since they are conveniently located right at the mouth of Provo Canyon, I just delivered them today, rather than mailing them. The offices seemed a bit empty - maybe lots of people were taking a long weekend...but I was able to meet a really nice gal named Paige and her cute little bird! It's always fun to get a little peek behind the scenes at places like this!

We also did a quick Target run (where we bought most of Meagan's school clothes and a few things for Josh) and a Costco run (where we picked up some photos, milk, and cleaning products). Unfortunately, my membership was up, so I had to pay for that too...so what should have been a "cheap" Costco trip turned into a "cheap + $100" trip. Oh well, it coulda been worse!

I also have a couple of scrapbook spreads I can share today -- I created them using a fun kit from Creating Keepsakes. They used one in their CHA booth, and the other I did just for me -- love their little 8x8 album kits!
Here's to a fun and relaxing weekend! :o)

Thursday, July 26, 2007

how did it get to be thursday already...



It's been a busy week! We celebrated the 24th of July (Pioneer Day here in Utah) at the lake. Actually, we celebrated at two different lakes. We headed to Jordanelle early in the morning on Tuesday. We played and played and had a great time (and we all got nice and sunburned...even though it was totally cloudy (notice the photo).
Then, the storm came in. I love a summer rain storm - it smelled soooooo good. We loaded up the wave runners and headed home. Brad and Rustin (my brother) did a little work on one of the wave runners, then the kids all took a little afternoon nap. I spent the afternoon working on a fun project for Making Memories. After the storm passed, we headed to Deer Creek for the evening. The train (HVRR) came down the tracks while we were out, so we zoomed across the lake with all four of our kiddos so we could get a better view and the kids could wave. We stayed on the lake until it was too dark to see. We missed the fireworks, but I still have to stay it was a great way to spend the holiday. Both of my brothers and their families were able to join us for at least some of the time (Rustin and Karli and their two kids were with us all day on Tueday...Tony and Daxen were able to join us Tuesday night). The kids (of all ages) all had a great time - we can't wait to go again!!

Okay, so I was doing a little blog reading this morning, and found this kind of fun thing on Britney's blog...so I thought I'd give it a try. She is right - it's kind of cool, kind of dumb, but still fun. Is it sad that this is the only photo I could find of myself within the last year? Meagan took it last month. :o) Anyway, here are my celebrity look alikes, lol:





And, just for fun, and since it's been a long time since I have shared any projects...

here's a little card I made last week:

Friday, July 20, 2007

a few quick things...

I just had a few fun things I wanted to share this morning before I head out to run some errands.

1. Guess what was delivered to my doorstep yesterday? This:

I was thrilled to have a few cards published in this special issue from Paper Crafts Magazine...and beyond thrilled when I was told that they were using not one, but TWO of my cards on the cover!! (the mother's day hat card, and the baby announcement card are mine.) I don't think the idea book is actually available yet (the website says it's still a preorder item), but I'm sure it will be right away!

2. Today is the first day of CHA...so I can finally share the two organizational products Making Memories is introducing that I am SO excited about. AND
I cannot wait for these to be available!! I know I need at least one of the carousels...and several of the desktop organizers - they will fit perfectly on top of my scrapboxes and I can keep the NEWEST product right at my fingertips -- oooh, it's like Christmas! :o) (I hear they will be ready to ship in September.)

3. Mr. Seth is getting to be an old pro at the potty thing -- we've even ventured outside the house in Thomas the Tank Engine Undies...and NO accidents! hooray!!

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

this week's ten...

1. Earlier this week, I got a little sneak peek of some organizational items Making Memories will be introducing later this week at CHA. I am SO excited about these items and I cannot wait until September when I can mine! I'll share pictures on Friday...when the show starts.
2. We took the boat out on Deer Creek last Saturday. [this is a picture off their website...I didn't take it...but isn't this a great shot with Mt. Timanogos in the background?]
Brad took the older kids and one of his friends early Saturday morning, then the whole family went out Saturday evening. We took a picnic, docked on the shore and walked around, fished, pulled the big kids on the tube. Seth and Zach both LOVED the boat -- Zach was almost too excited, and didn't want to sit down at all...he wanted to lean over the edge and watch the water. Yeah, he's just a little too brave for his own good.

3. My local scrapbook store had a huge sale last week. They moved into a new place that is a bit smaller, so they had to get rid of a lot of older inventory. They had a ton of stuff marked down 75%...then on Friday and Saturday, they had a "everything you can stuff into the bag for $25" sale. We arrived about 30 minutes after they opened, and while there was still some good stuff left, there were a lot of bigger ticket items that were gonzo. of course. Waiting in line for two hours to pay wasn't so much fun...but hey, a deal's a deal!

4. Zach is obsessed with taking walks around the neighborhood in his stroller. Every time we get home and get out of the van, he immediately high-tails it for his stroller and whines until we take him for a walk. Of course, when we get home, he whines to go again...

5. Zach has recently broadened his vocabulary. In addition to dad, mama, and baba...he can now tell you that a train says "choo choo." We're very proud. :o)
[Here he is on his cousin's little train - he makes a cute engineer, no?]

6. The kids are having lots of fun reading this summer. The library has a great summer reading program and we've already earned some fun prizes...including several ice cream cones from the Dairy Keen.

7. I received an e-mail today with a sneak peek into a new CK publication. I was excited to see my album featured in their online bonus features! Here's a link to the sneak-peek...and the pictures they posted of my album! When the book is released, I'll share more pics of my mini album - one of my favorites! The other sneak-peeks are really fun - I am very anxious to see this idea book!

8. Seth is my little potty training champ (see the other post from tonight).

9. Here's a quick picture of Seth with the orange bear he picked at the hospital last week -- and the cute little alien Meagan made and gave to him when he got home. 10. I think I'll end with nine...it's late...the dishwasher just beeped...

meet eli...

Eli is the result of a bribe. (I'm not ashamed to admit it.)
However, she is also the result of Seth's good work!

We've attempted (probably half-heartedly) potty training a couple of different times over the last several months, but none of the attempts met with lasting results (obviously). Early last week, we started another round, and Seth actually seemed okay to go along with things. He earned a couple of stickers for using his potty chart...but we were coming and going and busy and it's just too hard when there's no consistency. Seth had surgery again last week, so I knew that even though he had done fairly well early in the week, there was no way he would be using the potty chair Thursday or Friday, so we stopped. I knew that Monday would be the beginning...AGAIN...of the potty training era.

Our schedule for this week was pretty free, so it was be the perfect time to try again. Seth did AMAZINGLY well on Monday. He earned FIVE stickers on Monday - yes, you know what that means - FIVE times this little guy used his potty. And FIVE stickers just happens to be the going rate for little plastic elephants. So, after Meagan's piano lessons today, we headed to Target to buy the little elephant he's been wanting for a couple of weeks. He was thrilled with it -- and he's sleeping with it right now. :o)


He's used the potty about 20 times today -- he's so funny, he'll run in to the bathroom, dribble a little bit in the potty chair, wash up and ask for another sticker. I'm hoping once the newness wears off, he'll be able to wait more than 10 minutes between bathroom visits, but for now, I'm ecstatic about his fondness for the potty.


His next prize is a balloon. Yes, he wants a balloon -- and he also wants one for each of his siblings. Sweet kid, huh? We haven't specified a number of stickers required for the balloon...but at this rate, he'll have his entire chart filled up with 100 stickers before the end of the week. (And when I made the chart, I figured that he'd be completely potty trained by the time he had 100 stickers...I may have to rethink that one.) Anyway, that's how Eli came to live with us - and that's probably more than anyone ever wanted to know about our potty training experiences.


So, here's to hoping for a dry night and good times tomorrow...and maybe even a balloon or two!

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

tuesday, july 10th -- a real tuesday 10...

1. We're all healthy, finally. (knock on wood)
2. My little (25 year old) brother isn't so lucky -- he has CHICKEN POX! Can you believe that? He's pretty miserable...we're hoping he's able to get some rest tonight and some relief from the itching and pain.
3. We had a "faux 4th" on Saturday. Since we were sick and missed the real holiday, we went over to my parent's house on Saturday and finished off their fireworks. Seth loved them this year (last year he cried through them)...but Zach took over for Seth and didn't want to be anywhere near them. I remembered my camera, but didn't remember my tripod. The pictures aren't great - but I am still glad to have them.

4. Today was a good mail day -- two magazines came and the two idea books I bought from Laura arrived. I'm saving them for tomorrow...too much to do today AND it gives me something fun to look forward to! (By the way, it looks like she has a few idea books/magazines still available if you're interested...she'll give you a good deal! I think I might follow her lead and list a few of my loved idea books for sale on my blog...that, or e-bay, but the blog route seems a little bit easier. We'll see...)
5. Josh vacuumed out the van today -- and it wasn't even one of his two chores for the day. (The two chores he picked today were (1) sweep the kitchen and (2) mop the kitchen -- he did a great job with these as well!)
6. Meagan is ready for a new set of piano lesson books so we visited the local music store and purchased four new books and a metrinome -- quite a chunk of change, but it's so wonderful to hear how much she's learning. I wish I wouldn't have quit piano lessons before I learned enough to play well. Josh will be starting piano lessons in a couple of months too -- gotta love a guy who plays the piano!! :o)
7. I had some fun tonight creating some cards to submit to PaperCrafts. It seems that often I'm creating projects "on assignment" where I'm limited to certain products, colors, themes, etc. None of that tonight -- and I have to say that it was so relaxing and enjoyable. I didn't want to stop...
8. I also finished up a MM assignment -- again, it felt so good to CREATE!
9. Seth is finally showing a bit of interest in potty training. Okay, he's not. But Brad and I are determined that he is going to start showing some interest. now. Today he used the potty once. Unfortunately, he also used the back deck once and the kitchen floor once. Luckily, each of the aforementioned "uses" only consisted of #1! ;) He'll get it...hopefully soon. Plus, when he gets it all figured out, he gets to buy several Bob the Builder items he picked out on Amazon. No, I'm not above bribery!
10. It's after 2:00 am...and I am thinking I'd rather pull out some more scrapbook stuff and be creative than go to bed. Is that wrong???

Friday, July 06, 2007

go away flu...

...that's what we're chanting here in our house. It seems that each person who gets sick is worse and sick for longer than the person before. This is so not fun. Brad woke up in the early hours on Thursday morning ill - I guess it was his turn, everyone else has already had it. Meagan and Josh were both feeling much better by Thursday evening, and even ate some chicken noodle soup. I've washed all the bedding, disinfected the bathrooms (again) and doorknobs, and cleaned the carpets. I need to go out and buy new toothbrushes tomorrow (technically, I suppose I mean later today - since it's almost 2:00 am on Friday) - and hopefully this bug will be gone once and for all. We've all been sick enough to last us for a long, long time.


In other news, I saw a little sneak peek of a fun book I was able to contribute to. There were even a couple of little sneak-peeks of two of my projects. It looks like the book is still on pre-order...but the CK website says it's available July 2007. I am excited to see it in real life! I had so much fun working on the projects I submitted - I'll share more when the book is available.


Okay, Brad just left to go to work -- some crazy State job almost all the way to Evanston -- and I need to get a few projects finished up. Hopefully his stomach will stay calm and "collected" (ha!) since he absolutely had no choice about whether or not to go to work this morning. And I'm hoping after taking this short little blogging break, I'll be able to conjure up some creativity so I can finish some assignments and catch a little bit of sleep before the sun rises...or the kids...whichever happens first!

Thursday, July 05, 2007

ten lessons...

Ten lessons I’ve learned so far this week:
1. If one child gets the flu on Saturday night, it’s likely that more family members will get the flu sooner, rather than later.
2. Cleaning the toilet once a week is not enough. Since you never know when you might get the flu, and when you might be spending an exorbitant amount of time with your face in the toilet – you ultimately do not want it to occur on the day before the toilets were scheduled to be cleaned. From now on I will be scrubbing the toilets approximately 3-4 times per week (or perhaps EVERY day would be better).
3. The flu is wretched. period.
4. It’s amazing what a 10 year old and a 7 year old can do when their mom is flat on her back (or, as mentioned above, burying her face in the toilet). They were real troopers and helped a ton with the little guys – Meagan even came into my room several times to check on me and ask if I needed anything.
5. It’s funny how the minds of a 10 year old and a 7 year old can work. They might come up with some crazy ideas – laundry basket trains with babies as passengers, eating tons of popsicles, oh, and how about this, “Mom, can taking care of the babies count as our chores for today and tomorrow? It’s really hard, you know?”
6. I’m lucky to have a husband willing to make an early morning (pre-dawn even) trip to the grocery store for sprite and saltines before he heads out to work.
7. I’m also lucky to have a mom who is willing to drive Meagan to her piano lessons AND bring popsicles for the kids.
8. Yep, you guessed it, lucky again – this time for a sister who brought dinner for the family.
9. Missing the fireworks and 4th of July celebrations is a real bummer – we’ll have to do our celebrating next weekend.
10. As miserable as I was for 24 entire hours, I would rather do it four extra times myself than have to watch my sweet babies suffer with it. If anyone can figure out how to do that, please let me know. thanks.