a whole lot of character

Photos of Trent & I with various Disney characters from our 2007 trip:


Supplies: Crystal Wilkerson's Inked Edges template #1; wallout paper from Tia Bennett's Comical JuniorPEA kit; Cloudy Day paper from Veronica Ponce's Cottage Bluff kit; Amienne & 2ps Old Type fonts.

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Weekend Beach Trip

I used a template to quickly scrap photos from a beach trip we took in 2004 with friends to celebrate Trent's 25th birthday:


Supplies: Letter Template #8 by Erica Hernandez; green patterned paper from Cherie Mask's Be Merry kit; Office Note Rip from Rhonna Farrer's Office Supply Mini Kit; Lined Kraft paper from Shannon Freeman's Back2School kit; Plain Cardboard paper from Miss Mint's Kindergarten Crafts kit; Palm Trees from Miss Mint's Tropical Popsicle kit; Amienne & Antique Type fonts.

After finishing the digital layout, I moved to my desk to work on a few cards. Chester was nice enough to share my chair with me. :)

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Fortune

While out buying paint last night for computer/scrap room, we stopped for dinner at the Panda Express. The paper lanterns in the dining area caught my eye immediately and I knew they would be a great addition to my Project 365 photos. I absolutely love how the shot came out.


At the end of the meal we both cracked into our fortune cookies. Mine was fairly generic (I can't even recall what it said now), but the look on Trent's face when he read his was priceless. I wish I had the camera out at that moment. Every once and a while, those fortunes hit home and this was definitely one of those times.

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Grand Canyon 1995

Digging through a box of photos last night, I found these shots of my dad & me at the Grand Canyon during a summer trip:


I wanted to keep the focus on the photos so I kept the design very simple.

Supplies: miscellaneous cardstock & foam stamp; Making Memories patterned paper, foam stamp, & definition sticker; Staz-On black stamp pad. Inspired by Two Peas Super Sketch #1.

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Nesting?

After church yesterday, we stopped by Home Depot to get paint chips as part of deciding on a color for the nursery/guest room. I've been a fan of their Freshaire paint since using it last summer in our master bath and in my sister & brother-in-law's living room. It has no VOC's = no smell = better for the environment and us. Particularly since I don't want to breathe in any extra fumes right now that might harm the baby.


The plan for the day - get the paint chips. Simple and easy enough, right? haha These things are never that simple in our home.

Backing up over a year ago ... Trent & I moved our treadmill out of the computer/scrap room and into the guest room. Now the treadmill needs to come back to make room for the crib and that needs to happen before painting the room. Ok, still not a big project. I assumed we would just stick it where it used to sit. Somehow this discussion turned into "how can we redesign the computer/scrap room layout." Wait. Wasn't the project the nursery/guest room? Uh huh. And now? Well, let's just say the closet in the computer/scrap room is almost completely empty and all the wire shelving has been ripped out.

A few friends pointed out to me on Facebook that I'm "nesting." Uh, oh. We have a lot of time left on our hands before the little one arrives. And there's still quite a few things on last year's list of possible house projects. Looks like 2009 will be anything but boring around here. And, of course, I'll share the details as the chaos ensues. ;)

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Floral Card

For Ter's week 4 Card Challenge - flowers:


Supplies: Yours Truly card; American Crafts patterned paper & ribbon; misc. flower; Autumn Leaves button; Making Memories stitches.

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Unexpected Work Day

Yesterday I found out that my help was needed at work on a big project that must be finished by end of day Monday. I took a couple of hours off during the afternoon for my massage appointment and headed back to work until 6pm. My coworker and I are meeting there in about an hour to make some more progress in the hopes Monday won't be as brutal. This led to an earlier than normal Friday night bedtime for me and the inspiration for yesterday's photo.


Although I'm disappointed at losing my day off, I realize that this is one of those necessary things with the current economy and, of course, I would want the help if it were my project.

Before I head out, I wanted to respond to a couple questions from yesterday about the Magic Bullet. Trent & I bought it a year ago with a gift card we received at Christmas. It was one of those "fun" type purchases we probably wouldn't normally make. I've been quite surprised though at how often we use it. Trent regularly makes smoothies and I, of course, have been enjoying my milkshakes recently. I've also used it to puree bananas to make banana bread and made iced coffee drinks. We own a blender & food processor as well, but the Bullet is so much easier to get out and clean due to it's smaller size and all of the parts are dishwasher safe. I have yet to find it as fast as the infomercial, but it definitely works and is fairly quick. We haven't regretted the purchase at all. My one suggestion if you do buy one - buy a plastic tub to stash all the parts in. There are a lot of parts and it's far easier to get to them all by pulling the tub out of the cabinet than having to dig around in there.

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Craving #3

Although, perhaps this is just an extension of my chocolate ice cream craving? My stomach was not playing nice yesterday morning and the one thing that sounded good (on a cold morning no less!) was a milkshake. Thankfully, I had a new container of chocolate ice cream in the freezer, plenty of milk (we just had a snowstorm and you have to have milk to survive these things LOL), and the Magic Bullet so I quickly whipped one up and took it with me to work.


Last night I had my weekly prenatal water aerobics class. I absolutely love going. It's a great workout and the other girls are so nice. I'm enjoying the opportunity to compare and learn things from them.

Today after work I'm starting the weekend off right - with a nice massage. My poor back and shoulders are so ready for it. Happy Friday!

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Goodies & a Strong Heartbeat

My sweet friend, Wanda, sent this box of adorable baby gifts. I have to agree with her - those little jeans are the cutest.


I had a quick check-up at the OB office yesterday. My weight is down again, but the doctor said I'm doing fine and she thinks I'm on track to gain a healthy amount as the pregnancy progresses. She checked the baby's heartbeat. It took a moment to find and, I admit, made me nervous for a second but there it was. Nice and strong at 145. :)

My only disappointment was learning that our next ultrasound may have been scheduled too early. The doctor said we might not be able to tell the sex at that point so I pushed it back a week to Feb 10th. Only 19 more days....but who's counting? ;)

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Snow Day

We had an unexpected snow day yesterday. I've found it's best never to assume anything about the weather around here until you actually see it and was quite surprised to wake up to a winter wonderland. Trent's company closed for the day and I opted to stay home as well since the roads were nasty and predicted to get worse as the day went on. I did venture outside early in the morning to snap a few photos of our "big" 4 inch snowfall:


Supplies: Whisper patterned paper from Veronica Ponce's Cottage Bluff kit; distressed photo frames from Kate Teague's Film Fun kit; snowflakes from Miss Mint's Winter Sparkle kit; Jenkins v2.0 and 2ps Old Type fonts.

Staying home gave us the opportunity to watch the inauguration including seeing President Obama take the oath of office. This isn't the best photo, but I couldn't think of a better one for yesterday than this historic event:

And we had time to see exactly what kind of mischief the cats get into during the day. After a few howls, hisses and chasing, I discovered Cali on the top of her cat tree with a clump of Chester's fur hanging from her mouth!

After taking the necessary photos for evidence, I checked Chester over to make sure he didn't have a giant bald spot. No worries. As bad as it looks, he was a-ok and the two were nice (or avoiding each other) the rest of the day.

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Favorite Spot

Both of our cats have certain spots in the house where they love to curl up. One of Cali's favorites is snuggling up with a stuffed toy cat in an old porch rocker in our bedroom. :)

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LoVe Card

I made this card yesterday for Ter's Card Challenge - to use a tag. I used an office supply store type metal rimmed tag from my stash for the "o" in the sentiment.


Supplies: Yours Truly card; American Crafts patterned paper; misc. black cardstock; Fiskars threading water punch; black stamp ink; Avery metal rimmed tag; Making Memories letter stickers & eyelet; QuicKutz heart die; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock. Inspired by Nov 10th of dw2008.

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Mini Getaway

I mentioned on Friday that Trent won a basketball prize pack for our alma mater. Part of that prize included a gift certificate to Sullivan's Steakhouse (which we are saving until my appetite picks up a bit) and a night's stay at the Sheraton Raleigh.

Our room Friday night on the 13th floor:

Yes, this hotel actually has a 13th floor so of course I took a photo for my own amusement. I'm accustomed to seeing "12, 14" on elevators and had a laugh when we were sent to the 13th floor. And room 1331 at that.


Yesterday morning we checked out and drove over to the arena to cheer on the Wolfpack as they defeated Ga Tech 76-71 in overtime.

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Pregnancy Brain

I think Trent is starting to believe me that this is indeed a real symptom. One website I found referred to it as "baby brain drain" which he found much more amusing. So, I apparently now have BDD. And, I too, wasn't quite sure what all the fuss was about until this week. Here are just a couple of examples...

I pack my lunch each work day. Lately that's been more like a days worth of snacks. :D At any rate, I was making a sandwich and went to slice it in half when I paused and looked at the knife. It was dirty. Why in the world was I using a dirty knife?? Seriously, that is the real thought I had and within seconds felt completely ridiculous. Um, the "dirty" part was the peanut butter on it from the sandwich I had just made. The sandwich I was about to cut. Oh my.

On Thursday I received an email from Walgreens regarding an order we had placed and noting it had been shipped. Say what? I literally felt panicked as I saw the associated amount. All I could remember was a recent photo order (which I picked up in store) and the cost was much, much cheaper. As I read the email the lightbulb went off over my head - oh, yeah, the humidifier we ordered 2 weeks ago. Then I checked the tracking. (Note, this was Thursday, the 15th.) I told Trent it left Ohio on Tuesday but we wouldn't have it for over a week. Guess the free shipping we got = slower than mud. He questioned me - since it was coming UPS why would it take so long. I said, well it says right here that it will be delivered the 16th. He just smiled and said "tomorrow." Oops!


And, yes, the package did in fact arrive yesterday. I think.... What day is it again? ;)

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Last Three Days in Photos

No creative time last night due to my water aerobics class. So, I thought I would share my latest Project 365 photos...

On Monday we learned that Trent won a NC State Basketball Experience. He picked up the prize the next day which included among its goodies tickets to tomorrow's game and a basketball autographed by the coach.

Wednesday the cold began to hit us with the first morning below freezing in a while. Although right now that temp looks like a heat wave to me as we're starting at 13 this morning. Brrr!

Last night we stopped by Baskin-Robbins after our gym workouts to take advantage of the "free ice cream with your gym card" offer. Yes, the temps were still below freezing, but it was free ice cream. And, along with cantaloupe, one of my cravings. LOL My only disappointment was no chocolate. I instead opted for vanilla and added my own Hershey's syrup at home. :D Trent chose Butter Almond Crunch.

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Around the World

I suppose I had Disney on the brain after yesterday's post. It inspired me to finish up another layout for our 2007 album:


Supplies: Dottedripped paper from Rhonna Farrer's Celebration kit; 2ps Crate font; Fit 2b Tied alpha by Tia Bennett; scan of Epcot park map.

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Disney Mini Album

I finally managed to finish and photograph the Disney trip album I first shared sneak peeks of in November. :)

Cover:

Intro page:

Full spread of Day 1:
I kept the same simple theme throughout the entire album. The rest of the photos are close-ups of the picture pages only.

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

Day 4:

Day 5:

Day 6:

Accommodations:

Supplies: 7gypsies Envelope Album & photo turn; Making Memories star eyelet, TinyAlpha stickers & puffy alphabet stickers; Creative Imaginations patterned paper; misc. patterned papers; American Crafts rub-on letters & ribbons; QuicKutz Studio & Metro fonts; Bazzill cardstock.

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Fun Mail

A couple of weeks ago I placed an order on Amazon for 2 items - a maternity swimsuit and a 2009 calendar. The orders were shipped separately. I received the swimsuit on Saturday and expected the calendar to arrive yesterday. When I came home, I instead found not one but two packages awaiting me. The surprise box was a gift my from cousin's wife - The Baby Book. I'm looking forward to reading it.

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Simplify

I stumbled across a good word for the year while taking photos yesterday - Simplify. I'm constantly on the go and trying to accomplish several projects at once. Slowly I'm learning to let go of some things and relax. Part of doing so is learning to simplify my life.


This weekend I took another small step in doing so - reworking the window over our kitchen sink. Shortly after we bought the house 6 years ago, I bought 3 matching terracotta & white pots to grow herbs in. Last year I replaced one with the lovely miniature rosebush Trent gave me for Valentine's Day. The other 2 slowly wilted away as I became distracted with other things. So, I have eliminated those altogether choosing to keep the rosebush and add two pieces of blue glass. It's so refreshing and relaxing to walk into the room and see the new look.

I also spent a little time scrapping thanks to inspiration from a lift challenge my friend, Terri, shared at Scrappin' Mojo. The goal was "to use 4 photos, scallop(s), journaling & either a tag, flower or sticker saying." I pulled a few of Trent's childhood photos to scrap for it. Here's my take:


Supplies: Miscellaneous tan cardstock & tag; Bazzill white cardstock & admiral scallop edged cardstock; Colorbok patterned paper; fiber from a 7gypsies album; Creative Imaginations brad; Making Memories stickers; Micron pen.

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Muffins & Creative Time

My first photo of the day yesterday - chocolate chip muffins straight out of the oven. Yum!


I spent a little creative time in my scraproom making Valentine's Day cards:

Supplies: Yours Truly card; EK Success & BoBunny patterned papers; Bazzill cardstock; QuicKutz embossing die; black stamp ink; red chalk.

And began putting the Project 365 photos into my album:

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Project 365 Organization

I've been thinking the last few days about what to do with my Project 365 photos. Looking around online had me fantasizing about what fun album I could create. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I need something simpler. I would really like to be able to keep up with this project and not let it overwhelm me or become a burden. And, of course, I'm already daydreaming about a baby album too.


I finally made a decision - I went shopping at Archiver's yesterday specifically to pick up We R Memory Keepers 12x12 photo sleeve pages. My scrapbook albums are arranged chronologically so I'll just add the photo pages as I need them between layouts. If I feel inspired to scrap a photo or two, I will. And if not, I will still have all of my photos in my album. Nice and simple.

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Cats & Water?

Wednesday the temperature outside was mid-60s. By yesterday morning that had changed dramatically and we were in the 30s. I found little Chester smartly curled up in a warm spot on the sofa with not one, but two blankets. :) Of course, he played the "I don't see you" and refused to look at me while I was snapping shots.


We finally made it back to the gym last night. I signed up to take a 12 week prenatal water aerobics class. It was a blast. The instructor was fun and kept us entertained. I came home exhausted, but definitely looking forward to the next one. Hopefully we'll get back in there this weekend so I can do a little treadmill time and work on building up my endurance. Amazing how quickly that all goes away after 2 months of skipping workouts. ;)

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Craving #2

I've been caught off guard this week by a sudden craving for cantaloupe. I like cantaloupe, but have never had the need to have it like I do this week. Monday I made a mid-morning run to a store near the office to pick some up. Yesterday I stopped on the way into work and bought 2 containers - 1 for yesterday and 1 for today. Yum.


I had a good, long conversation with my mom last night. She sounds like herself again which is wonderful. And, today she should finally be able to go home. It's going to be a great day! :)

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The Call

The best part of my day yesterday was a brief conversation in the morning with my mom.


It was the first time we had spoken since I left her house last Thursday. Just to hear her voice brought a lot of relief to me. Most uplifting was when she laughed at a few details I told her of the weekend and time with my siblings. It was a true sign that she is healing and getting better. An answer to many prayers.

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Monday in a Nutshell

* It was back to our normal routine. Hence the photo of my Starbucks bag packed with my lunch & water bottle.

* Shipped out my latest Etsy sale - a cute Dubble Bubble t-shirt bag.

* I broke "the news" at work to my boss. Everyone else will find out tomorrow except for the one coworker who happened to be there after hours.

* Went to the monthly ladies night dinner with the group from church.

* Received another positive update on my mom from my stepfather. Small improvements, but making strides.

* Got home around 9:30pm and my sweet husband surprised me with new windshield wiper blades and put them on the car. This is huge because I've fussed for months that I need some new ones (the old pair were smearing) but kept forgetting to buy any myself! Knowing that rain is in the forecast for the next 2 days, Trent wanted to be sure I could see. :)

* Fed the cats their canned food dinner (spoiled!).

* Posted my Project 365 photo to Flickr.

* Off to bed!

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Weekend Photos

I've fallen behind in sharing my Project 365 photos. Here are my weekend shots:

Saturday, I took Christopher to the gym. My membership hasn't gotten a lot of use in the last couple of months thanks to first trimester exhaustion. (Ok, and maybe a little laziness...but just a little.) I spent the majority of the time walking at a slow pace on the treadmill and then did a little upper body lifting. Have to prepare for that baby lifting. ;)


After we took Christopher to my sister's house and remade the guest bed with fresh sheets, I snapped this picture of the empty room. It's a little quiet here now with just the two of us again. But this room will become the nursery in the next few months and I'm sure it will fill up noise again. :)

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Update

I was very thankful to receive a positive update earlier tonight on my mom. While there were small improvements from Friday to Saturday, the changes in the last 24 hours were much bigger. There's even talk of discharging her from the hospital soon. My heart was definitely lifted higher. Thanks to so many of you for your sweet comments, prayers, emails & phone calls. All have meant a lot. :)

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Celebrate

Our friend, Kevin, is celebrating a birthday today. :) Here's the card I made for him inspired by Laura's Sketch 16 at 2 Sketches 4 You:


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Cosmo Cricket & We R Memory Keepers patterned papers; scrap cardstock; Staz-On black stamp pad; Studio G stamp; Making Memories glitter stickers.

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Difficult

For I will restore health unto you, and I will heal you of your wounds, saith the Lord.
Jeremiah 30:17

It's been a difficult couple of days waiting for word on how my mother is doing. My emotions have been all over the place. That's partly my normal personality and, I suppose, partly the pregnancy hormones now. I know regardless of where we are, it would be the same. Answers aren't coming any faster in one place than the other. And at least we might be bringing her some comfort and ease of mind knowing we are all safe. Not to mention that having 3 kids (even if we're adults) coming into the hospital room wouldn't help her get rest.

Again, please understand that I don't wish to explain in too much detail. Not sure Mom would like to see it all here when she's better. :) She is extremely sick, but thankfully has made some improvement from yesterday. We're all holding onto that and continuing to pray.


Tomorrow Trent & I are taking Christopher to my sister and brother-in-law's house. The 5 of us are just going to spend some time together which I think we all need at the moment.

Thank you for the good wishes and prayers sent. All are greatly appreciated.

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