Happy New Year!

I know... I'm so totally pathetic I'm on my blog three hours before midnight on New Year's Eve. Thing is, I've NEVER been a New Years (or 4th of July) person. I hate that these are the two holidays when people go out, get drunk, and act stupid. I sat and thought about it and I think I've gone out three New Year's in my entire adult life. I had a date one year (in my mid twenties); I watched Tim's band play at a party one year; and one year Tim and I spent at Disneyland. At midnight, we were standing on the bridge to Sleeping Beauty's castle watching the fireworks and listening to big band music. It was really cool because alcohol is prohibited and the park stays open until 2:00 AM. Actually, that was the year I was pregnant with Caitlin and didn't know it, yet. So, I guess it's been 18 years since my last New Years date. :-)

Today, Johanna and I went to Archivers to make some ornaments. No, not Christmas ornaments... VALENTINES ornaments. I have to say, they turned out SO CUTE! She did 90% of the work, too. I'll take a picture of them tomorrow when I have have some natural light. She really knocked my socks off at what a great job she did and we had great fun. Of course, I did not bring my camera. Bad, Karen, BAD!

Tonight, Miss Teen Thang is out at a sleepover. Miss J is chatting on the phone with her friend about Webkins. Tim is watching reruns of Smallville and I am here with you. Oh, what an exciting life we live. NOT. LOL That's okay, though, I'm living the dream.

Basic Grey has come out with a new line for Valentine's Day and it is FABU! I bought one of the paper packs to play with. It's muted off-pink and brown. Totally adorable and will work for males or females. That's what we used for Johanna's ornaments. I can hardly wait to have the pictures to go with it so I can dig in!!

Friday, it looks like I'm going to be scrapping with my pals who moved to Columbus. Ed and Linda will be coming down for the day. I can hardly wait! It's only been a few weeks, but it's just not the same without them. Don't get me wrong... Lori and I never met a stranger, but there's no one else like THESE scrapping buddies.

I can tell I'm kind of back in my groove. First, I didn't RACE to take the Christmas decorations down, like I have the last several years. I'll take everything down and put it away on Monday when the kids are back in school. Also, I was ahead of the game on Christmas shopping and now I have 3/4 of Johanna's Valentines finished. Not bad progress. I'll finish them for her on Friday and then I'll be home free for awhile. I'm starting my job hunt with extra energy next week, too, so I'm back in my groove just in time!!

I guess that's about it for now. No new pics or layouts, but I promise to have something to look at tomorrow. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Holiday Pages

I've finally found a little mojo (very little) to get a couple of pages done about the holidays. One is from Christmas Eve / the fourth night of Chanukah. The other is from Christmas morning. Still more pictures to scrap, but I'm not going to even think about getting all of them on one page. Besides, if I scrap them separately, I'll have some for each of the girl's books.


They're really simple, but I like them.

New Week = New Year

It is incredible that New Years is just a few days away. Tim is just finishing up five days off work. It has been a very relaxing five days for him, which he deserved. I will refocus my efforts to find a job beginning next week, too. I can't say I'm excited about that, but I've enjoyed my six months at home.

Caitlin shared this picture with me today. She spent last night and all day today with friends. I'm so happy when she does that, because she always comes back with great pictures to scrap. Her friend has quite the knack for creative photo editing. Actually, I really want to learn how to do some of these effects, myself.

I think that is so cool and can only imagine what I can do if I learn this. She said she'll teach me, but we'll see.

I hope you like the new look of the blog. I think it's a little easier on the eye and it's a little bit wider format. I'll play around with it some more to see if I can make it more interesting and interactive. I still have so much to learn.

Tomorrow is cleaning day so we'll be at home. Tuesday I think I am going to take Miss J scrapping. I really want to see Bedtime Stories, the new Adam Sandler / Disney movie, so I think we'll do that on Friday.

I guess that's about it for now. It's been quiet, so not much to tell. Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Past

Well, another Christmas has now come and gone. It was a good one. The girls were thrilled with their presents and we had a wonderful time with friends. I have a few pictures ready from the last couple of days that I'll post tonight. Not much to tell but that we are all happy and exhausted.

We celebrated the fourth night of Chanukah with Lori and Sam. We all had such a fun and relaxing evening together. A little pizza, lots of sweet treats, a few gifts and the evening, I think, was a success. I love the picture, below, of the lit menorah in front of our tree. I'm so happy that our friends celebrate the season with us!


Johanna got a new "Fur Real" friend this year. She has named her new [toy] puppy Otis, after my brother's blonde lab. It really is a cute toy! I responds to commands to lay down, give you his paw, and shake. Very cool.


Even the cat wanted to get in on the fun! :-)


We hope all of you are having a wonderful holiday season!!

Scrappy Give-away

There is an awesome scrappy give-away on the blog Life with Lou here: http://lifeaslou.blogsome.com/2008/12/20/christmas-mini-album-pages-6-7-plus-150-give-a-way/ . If you want a chance to win $150 worth of Cosmo Cricket goodies, hurry and get in on the fun!

Date Night

Wow. Tim and I actually had a date night last night. We couldn't remember the last time we did that. One thing I do know is that we've had the gift card we used last night for the dinner for about 15 months, so I know it's been longer than that. We had a really nice dinner at a very posh restaurant just down the road. It was really cozy and nice. We'll definitely have to start getting out together more often.

Today, my BFF and I are going scrapping while the kids are at school. Our last day of "freedom" before Christmas break, so we're going to make the most of it. Not sure I have very inspiring pictures to work with right now, but any time with Lori is time well-spent.

Last year, we went to Lori's house for Chanukkah. It was really special to be able to celebrate the fourth night with them. This year, they are coming here on Christmas Eve. We will have our Christmas Eve tradition of opening one gift each and eating some Christmas cookies, while Lori is going to bring a Menorah so we can celebrate lighting the candle for the third night of Chanukkah. I'm really excited about celebrating both holidays together. It is a great opportunity for her son and my girls to better appreciate each other's culture. I did a page about it last year (below).

Notice the candles on the separate card. That picture was taken through special 3-D glasses that make points of light look like a Jewish star. How COOL is that?! Tim took a picture of our Christmas tree through those glasses and it turned out really neat. I'm looking forward to getting a picture of the Menorah and our tree this year.

I have to run and get Johanna off to school now. Have a great day!

Happy Birthday, Hanna!!

I'd say that Hanna's birthday today was a big success. Tim and I woke her up this morning singing Happy Birthday by the side of her bed. The "Birthday Fairy" had left 50 balloons on her bedroom floor. This is our family tradition and I think the girls look forward to it as much as the gifts and cake. Next, Johanna and I picked-up her cake and drinks for her birthday party at school. I walked her in to her classroom. The kids are always so proud when their parents come to school for any reason.

When Tim brought Johanna home, she opened the rest of her gifts. Next, we went to dinner with our dear friends Lori and Sam, who gave her even more presents! When we got home, Hanna played with her new things until Caitlin got home, when we could finally have cake. Hanna played some more and then it was off to bed. I have to say, she was wound-up really tight! :-)

One of the gifts Lori and Sam gave her was a felt craft to make a hat, scarf, and purse. Hanna was so excited, she made the hat already! Here's a pic of her in it...


Her cake this year was the head of a snowman. A picture of that is below.

So, as you can see, it was a full and fun day. It's hard to believe that Christmas is only a week away! Where does the time go?

Here's hoping that most of your holiday "chores" are complete so you can enjoy a restful and fun season. Thanks for visiting!

Things that I love...

I am sitting here working on a mini book that will be a stocking stuffer for Miss C. It's late and it's quiet, so I'm just sitting here working and thinking. I was listening to Johanna breathing and thinking that it is one of my favorite times of day and definitely something that I love. She's a sound sleeper, but she will occasionally talk in her sleep. She does snore when she has a cold or her allergies are acting up. She makes cute noises sometimes when she's dreaming. Just a few of the things I notice when I'm sitting here in the middle of the night.

I love watching football on Sundays with my husband. Even if our team isn't doing so well (which is most of the time), I just love that we have a little block of time we set aside to sit and watch football together. The days and the weeks get so hectic, I really cherish those moments. We'll put out some salsa and chips and relax. The kids are in and out, but mostly it's just us.

I loved watching my baby play out in the first snow of the season. There was only about 3/4", but she was playing like it was a foot of snow! LOL There wasn't enough snow, of course, for the traditional [1/2] igloo, so she made a snow nest for the birds and put cracker crumbs in it. So cute! Here's my "little blue angel."

I'm going to do a post like this at least once a month. I think it's good to stop and think about the things we love most in our life. Often, for me anyway, it is the very simplest of things.

New subject... two of our dearest scrapping buddies are moving to Columbus today. We have scrapped with them almost every weekend since early spring this year. They are going to be closer to family and we certainly understand that, but boy are we going to miss them!!

At the scrapbook store yesterday we didn't spend a lot of time scrapping. Instead we did some crafty things. The main project involved some candles, a lot of glitter, a Cricut, and a heat gun. What a glittery mess I was when we finished! I am so happy with the end result, though. Below is a picture of two of the candles I made, which now reside proudly on my mantle.

Not something I'll be doing frequently, but when I want to create a really special look or personalized gift, this is a very cost-effective and fun way to go. BTW, I got this idea from Erin's blog on the Creating Keepsakes Web site. She provide a great tutorial on how to do this here: http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/content/view/18191/60/ .

Thanks for stopping by!

Nobody's home, so it must be Monday!

I am so losing track of the time! I know I'm way behind on my blog posts. I have been busy creating, though. I made four pages on Saturday, one yesterday, and two in my daily journal this weekend. Not too bad.

Last week, we did a photo shoot with the girls. I got the idea for the shot in one of the online galleries and thought it was just too STINKIN' CUTE (that was for Ed - lol). Below is the page I made with my favorite shots.

And Saturday, we got our first snow of the season. It was more annoying than beautiful but, of course, Miss J loved being out in it. Sunday, she made a snow angel in the yard. I can tell I'm going to have way too much fun with the flocking this winter. I titled the layout "Snow Angel" and flocked the word Angel. I used Super Glue to adhere the letters, so wherever I could see the glue, I put some flocking. I *LOVE* this effect!

I guess that's about it for now. I have a mound of laundry to fold that is, quite honestly, terrifying. So, I'd better get to it. I hope your day is wonderful!

Mission Accomplished

It's official -- I'm finished with the hardest part of the holidays. My shopping is complete and everything is wrapped! Now I can shop for fun (maybe), do lots of baking, scrapping, and visiting with friends. Yes!! I used to be able to get everything done by Thanksgiving, but I'll take December 2 any day.

This year, I went a little bit of a different direction with gift wrapping. I decided to get some plain brown paper (the kind they use for shipping) and then wrap the brown packages with beautiful ribbons. So, that's what I did! Johanna's ribbons are bright green and pink... like the bows on the tree, and Caitlin's are a very sophisticated color and pattern of peacock blues and gold. That will make it a lot easier to tell the packages apart on Christmas morning. Here's an example of a few of the packages amongst the mess this afternoon.

The best part is, FedEx gave me the brown paper for FREE!

I am also on schedule with my December Daily Journal -- days 1 & 2 are complete. Day 1 is about our tree and day 2 is about the gift wrapping today. Filling the pre-made book is proving to be pretty easy. Some adjustments, but nothing major. When I didn't have enough room for the photo I wanted and journaling about the tree, I printed the picture, journaled on the back of it and then laminated it with the Xyron Laminating Sheets -- SO quick and easy! I punched my holes and dropped it in as an additional page. Turned out great!

Completing my shopping and wrapping took up the bulk of my day. Tim brought home a little sushi tonight, which was a nice surprise and then we hunkered down to watch a movie. It was a really nice day.

Thanks for visiting!

Making a list, checking it twice...

I'm working through my "To Do" list little by little. The house is now decorated for the holidays. Today, I will also be wrapping the girls' presents. Another check. I've taken some pictures of the upstairs but the downstairs will have to come later (hopefully today).

I have decided that HGTV is costing me a lot of time and/or money. I can sit down to watch one show and want to try half the stuff I see them do -- stuff I could very well live without. A couple of the decorating ideas came from HGTV just this weekend.

Next on the list is wrapping presents... today. I'm going to use that as my entry for the December Daily journal. I'm so excited about starting that today!!

Then there are the less glamorous or fun things. I have laundry to do, a dishwasher to empty, and glass table tops that are screaming to be wiped down. Oh, the joys of being a SAHM.

Have a great day!!

Thanksgiving with Friends

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving with our friends this year. We went to my BFF's house. She had about 25 people over. It was an eclectic group. Her husband's family, her family, her friends and their families. Everyone had SUCH a good time!! The kids played video and TV games. The adults talked and laughed - a LOT. We all ate a LOT, too. The food was amazing -- I still don't think I've quite recovered from that meal. lol Here's a glimpse:

This night with friends made me feel so truly grateful for the extended family I have through my BFF and scrapbooking.

Check one off the Bucket List

I don't really have a "bucket list." I think it's depressing to tick off things you want to do or accomplish before you die. Eeew. Anyway, I did do something today, though, that I have never done before and that I never, EVER want to do again. I went to a store before they opened -- on BLACK FRIDAY. I never say "never," but never EVER again will I do THAT. The line was horrible. Many (but not all) of the people were mean. The lines at the registers were long. It is stupid, stupid, STUPID! So not worth it. I was curious. Now, I'm not. The good news is, though, that all of my Christmas shopping is finished. Yay me! I'm going to wrap everything when the girls are in school on Monday and then I'll REALLY be finished and I can enjoy the rest of the holiday season.

I made a new LO yesterday that just cracks me UP! I've had this picture since last spring but I was unable to scrap it until I came up with a title, which came to me in an instant yesterday. Once I had that, the whole thing came together in about an hour.

My next project will be a layout about the 2004 Tsunami in the Indian Ocean. The anniversary of that tragedy is the day after Christmas, so its been on my mind. I knew someone who was killed by the tsunami in Sri Lanka. I worked with her. The layout will actually be a combination historical and tribute page.

Right now, Tim is out buying a gigantic flat screen TV. I'm actually kind of excited about it. We are going to put it over the fireplace in the living room. It will be so nice to get rid of the old one that's been sitting on my cedar chest for WAY too long. When he gets home, we will go get our Christmas tree. Yay!! I'm going to give it several hours to warm up and for the branches to drop a little and then we'll get it decorated. Tonight is our Thanksgiving dinner at my BFF's house. I want to come home to a warmly lit tree and just relax.

My Favorite Weekend

This weekend is my favorite weekend of the year. I totally love the Thanksgiving meal, putting up the tree, and decorating the house. I think, this year, I'm going to do something I have never, ever done before. I am planning to be a participant in the ritual known as Black Friday. This may be a very misguided decision, but I'm determined to experience it once in my life. Rather than "misguided," I'll just think of it as checking something off my bucket list. Yep. That sounds better.

I joined a group that is making something called the December Daily journal. The basic idea is that we premake a book and then each day put [a] photo(s) and journaling in it. Theoretically, it should be easy because most of the work is already done. It's intended purpose is to document the days in December until Christmas day. Below are a few pictures of the book I put together. I *totally* love it!















There are so many great colors and textures in this book. I used flocking, glitter, gel pens, and stickles. I also decorated it with bling, those cute little puff balls, chalk, ribbon, transparencies, etc. The pages are both acrylic and blackboard (chipboard). There's a whole lotta eye candy going on in this book. Now I am so impatient to begin filling it up!

The book took pretty much the entire weekend to complete. Since then, I've scrapped two pages and made a couple of ornaments. I haven't had a chance to photograph them yet, but they are made out of acrylic and turned out really cute, I think.

Today, I think Miss J and I are going to scrap with my BFF. At least that's the plan.

The Holidays This Year

One of the reasons it's been so long since I last posted is because I am actually enjoying the holidays for the first time in what seems like forever. I have missed the kind of excitement I feel again this year. There are two things I might be able to attribute it to -- this being my 5-year post cancer anniversary and the fact that I am not stressed out at work. Whatever the reason, I am NOT taking it for granted for a single second.

I have my holiday shopping well underway. How much I actually have done would depend on your view point. If we're talking $$$, I'd have to say I'm 3/4 of the way done. If we're talking number of things to buy, I'd say about about 1/2 way there. Either way, not too bad.

This weekend I am going to finish my holiday cleaning so that next week we can decorate and get our tree up. I have made a few layouts this year of things from Christmas past. I'm not really fluent at scrapping events, so I'm always so proud when I pull it off and actually like the result. I'm scrapping tomorrow and I've prepared for so many projects / pages that I don't even know where to begin! One of the things I want to scrap is this very cool picture my nephew, Tom, sent us. He and his friend (shall we say) got onto the Universal Studios lot. They were on the back lot and ran across the old house from Leave It To Beaver (circa 1957 - 1963). So sad to see it in this disrepair, but isn't it COOL that he got to get his picture taken standing on the porch??

And the original:

I'm going to scrap these, frame the LO, and send it to my nephew for Christmas. I think he might get a kick out of that.

My BFF came up with a great idea last weekend and I can't wait to get started! This year, I'm going to put up our generic (albiet BEAUTIFUL) tree again. I was going to put up our traditional tree (with all the family ornaments), but I want to do this project, instead. Each and every ornament I own has a story behind it. I can tell someone where it came from and the meaning behind it. I know that if anything were to happen to me, all those stories and the meaning behind those treasures would be lost forever. So, I am going to tag every ornament with the associated origin and/or story. I have a box of jewelry tags I am going to put on them. Then, in the years going forward, we can have the new tradition of reading about the history of the ornaments as they go on the tree. People who come to visit can look at them, if they wish. And, hopefully, reading those tags will become a tradition for the girls' families some day, as well. I hope so. It's going to be a BIG job, but I'm really looking forward to it. Then, after the holidays, I think I am going to tackle their memory chests.

This week I won a contest on the Creating Keepsakes ( http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/index.php?option=com_groupjive&task=showgroup&groupid=741 ) web site. Amanda Probst is the Author of a great new book called "Month by Month Scrapbooking." She gave us a challenge each day last week that was in-line with how her book is set-up. I did three of the challenges and WON! One of the challenges was to scrap about stewardship (volunteering). Another was to scrap a LO with 11 photos on it. I combined these two challenges on the 2-page spread, below. The title is "Give Time." They are sending a box with all kinds of goodies in it, including a copy of Amanda's book. I can't WAIT! Looks like Christmas will be coming a little bit early for me this year.

I guess that catches me up pretty well. I'll be gone all day tomorrow, but back on Saturday -- I promise! (Yeah, right.)

November already? Nah... how can that be??

It seems impossible, but here we are... post Halloween and post election. Heck, I did most of my Christmas shopping for the girls yesterday! I even picked up a couple of things for the house to start getting it looking nice. I haven't been much in the mood for the holidays the last couple of years. This year, I'm a lot more relaxed and a lot happier. Maybe that's what accounts for the improved holiday spirit.

Fall Follies

We got the pumpkin carved last night. Johanna and I picked out the design and master carver, Tim, brought our alien to life. Little Miss J had a ton of fun with the pumpkin guts, too. It was a nice, slow-paced evening. I am SO looking forward to Halloween and, finally, choosing our next President. I am really ready for this administration to be done. Enough of the gloom and doom of politics. Here are a couple of pictures from last night.

Have a happy and safe Halloween!

I would have been here sooner but...

...the new fall shows are SO good. Okay, I'm only half serious.

Lots of teen angst and drama going on in the house tonight. Caitlin and the boyfriend (who has come to be known as "Ricco Suave' ") have officially broken up. I started out liking this one but changed my opinion around the time of her birthday. I'm truly relieved that he's out of the picture. Way too slick for my taste.

Anyway, my MIL sent me the funniest picture the other day, I just have to share it. I laughed until I cried. The caption said that a father had made a prom dress out of condoms. LOL It really is a work of art, isn't it? :-) Slays me every time.

Not much else going on around here. Miss J had a field trip this week. Miss C is studying her brains out. I think we're going to pull Johanna out of daycare starting week after next. The job market is looking bleak and we can save over $80 a week. Since she's only there one - two hours a day (and doesn't even get a meal), it really doesn't seem worth it. This way, we'll be able to spend more of the holidays together, too. I'm glad she's going to be here with me.

That's it for now. Thanks for visiting!

Time flies...

...when the kids are sick. Johanna and Caitlin were both home on Monday. I still had Miss C home yesterday, too. It seems like everything might be back to normal now, though.

We did go out to the pumpkin farm on Monday. Caitlin wasn't feeling that great, so I didn't take any pictures of her. Johanna was on the rebound so we did get a few of her. They were both a little grumpy, though, so we made it a really quick trip this year. Here is one really good photo we did manage to get.

We got our house decorated for Halloween, too. It turned out pretty good, I think. I just love Halloween! It is my favorite holiday of all.

Johanna actually did most of the decorating. She had definite ideas about how she wanted everything to look!

I wish my scrappin' mojo would come back. I'm at least going to put some page kits together today for this weekend. I've got the pictures above and a few others that are probably scrap-worthy. I'm going to bring some stuff for paper crafting, just in case.

I guess that's about it for now. Thanks for visiting!

Nothing New. Really.

Today was fairly uneventful. I had a headache this morning. It was the kind of headache only a nap could cure. Caitlin went to the Homecoming football game and a party tonight.

Johanna's school called this afternoon and I had to go pick her up. She is running a fever and sounds like she has a bubble in the back of her throat. I feel so bad for her. Under the circumstances, it doesn't look like we're going to make it to the pumpkin patch or my brother's house tomorrow. I am seriously bummed out, but what can we do? Hopefully she'll be better for the block party on Sunday. I sure hope so!

I went to the bank today and had to talk to the manager about something. Turns out, he had the same name as someone I went to high school with. He looked enough like him that I asked him if he had gone to that school. He said he gets that question all the time. Now, the guy I'm talking about asked me to his senior prom. I didn't go, but I was asked. I knew him and his sister very well. Turns out, the guy is making movies in Hollywood. Not huge movies by any means, but he's out there doing his thing. Kinda cool. I didn't know if the bank manager had his facts straight so I Googled the guy's name. Sure enough -- he's even in Wikipedia. :-)

I've got a couple of layout ideas, but I think my mojo is on vacation. I just can't seem to do anything with anything that has a picture. Post-It Note tablets -- yes. Layout -- no. I hate it when that happens. It's been a looooong time so maybe it deserves a break. Oh, I did make a card for a friend today. I rarely make cards and they're usually terrible, but this one turned out alright.

Since we didn't get out tonight, I thought I'd scrounge up a picture or two from the pumpkin farm last year. Have a great weekend and I'll try to pop in tomorrow.

A Busy Month!

Sometimes I think October is the busiest month of the year. Even in December, our weekends don't get filled up like this and the kids are off school for two weeks. Also, we don't have any sporting activities in December. Between school work, athletics, Halloween, end of summer-type parties, Tim's birthday, etc., there just isn't any time. How did I do all this when I worked full time??

I'm starting to get to work on some papercrafting ideas for Christmas / Holiday gifts. I've got one ore two ideas that I really like because they are quick, easy, and inexpensive to do but they look really nice.

I went to Michaels yesterday because I had a coupon. Oh, my gosh! How that place has changed! The store is now pretty much a scrapbooking store. The changes are amazing! It looks a lot nicer and they have the latest and greatest supplies, rather than the knock-offs and cast-offs. I was so impressed. Almost makes me want to apply to work there. LOL

This is going to be a GORGEOUS fall weekend. Not a cloud in the sky and hovering in the upper 70's. It really is the perfect weekend to be out and about. I'm hoping, since we got a little rain the other day, to get some good fall pictures. I got some cute Halloween decorations at Mike's yesterday, so we've got a little bit of a start. I really look forward to the pumpkin patch every year. We always get out pumpkins at the same farm each year and our trees from the same nursery every year. I guess if it's not broken, we shouldn't try to fix it. :-)

I don't really have any pictures for today, but I'll make up for it tomorrow. Thanks for visiting!

Wet Wednesday

We are getting some MUCH needed rain here today. The only problem is that people's brains turn to mush when they get behind the wheel of a car. Just taking Miss C to school this morning was a nightmare! I'm so happy we're getting some of the wet stuff, though, so I won't complain (too much). :)

I don't want to talk politics here too much and I will not get specific, but it has to be said... last nights debate was the most boring thing I've ever watched! I've never seen two people with that total lack of magnatism get as far as these two have. The VP debate was far more entertaining, at least.

Tim sent this to me last week. I can't help myself... I think it's hysterical. This is a redneck smoke alarm:

I'll probably pop back in later with some more. In the meantime, have a great Wednesday!

Monday, Monday.... la, la, la, la, la, la

I never thought the weeks would seem long when I'm not working, but they do. It's especially bad when I'm looking forward to the next weekend. Friday night we're going to the farm for our pumpkins. Saturday morning we're going to clean the house and decorate. Saturday afternoon/evening we're going to my brother's house for a bbq and bonfire. Sunday, we're having a block party and watching the Bengals play the Jets. So much to fit into the weekend! The weekdays, however, is homework, dentist appts, grocery shopping, post office, etc., etc.

I haven't submitted any of my scrap work for publication in a very long time -- two years, I think. I decided to submit for a call to Creating Keepsakes Magazine and they picked it up! It is a page about Caitlin golfing. It's a favorite, not only of mine, but also Tim and Caitlin. It will be out in their February issue.

Tim got his picture taken for work the other day. They'll use it for the newsletter, etc. I think it turned out really nice.

Last week, Johanna was the "Star Student" at school. This means she gets to clean the board, lead the lines to the lunchroom, help the teacher, etc. They also have a "getting to know you" portion. She wrote down some things on index cards to talk about and took in pictures. I decided to make the pictures into a little mini book that she could pass around. Below are some of the pages.

That's about it for now, I guess. Thanks for stopping by!