So Much Fun

at CHA!
Here are a few photos....


Julie and I at dinner - we went to a pizza place


Me at the booth - the theme was turquoise and white


What we did all day - We directed the make & Takes. Here's Ursula showing several store owners how to assemble cute fabric paper purses. Isn't our booth adorable?


Us in our matching skirts... left to right: Ursula, Brenda, Christine, me, and Salvina


Brenda caught us off-guard while joking around in the booth. Ursula, Kathy (the owner), Christine (the head of the scrapbooking division), and me


Ursula and me at dinner with members of the Two Peas in a Bucket Pub Board


At the Pubster dinner with fellow CK Honorable Mention winners


Hanging out in a friend's suite late one night - drank a few too many Mike's Hard drinks and severely paid for it the following morning... LOL
On the floor in front: Laurie, Miley, and Renee
Second row: Jessie, Erica, Jeniece, Shannon (standing in back), Sara, Alison (posing), Rachel, and Kelly


The trip was all a blur - we stayed up far too late every night and got up far too early every morning. There were so many people to meet, see, visit, and contact, and so little time. I made several great contacts... nothing set in stone, but a couple of good things going on career-wise for me, I think! Still looking for the right company to turn my ideas into a product line, but I have solid leads!

I came home to a million and six dealines, so I am pretty buried. Hopefully I can come up for air soon.....
It's all good, though :)

Off to Chicago!

Going to CHA - should be a grand time. :)

I still have to finish packing, organizing my portfolio stuff, and putting together the things I have made (and still have yet to make) as samples for Michael Miller Memories. Believe it or not, I am actually ahead of schedule for where I thought I would be, though... so that is good ;).

Looking forward to reading some Harry Potter on the plane... but once I land it will be go go go go go go go go go till Sunday night. Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!

Logo

How rad is this? I used the scanned pendant and made a logo.
I think this should be on my new business cards... :)

Dude.

My sister Liane is so rad. Here's why...


The small one is a pendant made of solid silver. The large copper one is a business card holder. They are so freaking rad I can hardly STAND it! I was trying to come up with a cool "signature" - or some sort of logo that I can put on my pages and my sketches were surprisingly similar to these! It's crazy how we are so on the same wavelength. Anyway, this is by far the coolest, most special thing I received for my birthday... so I *had* to share :)

The big three-oh

I am THIRTY today! I can't believe it. I am out of my twenties and officially an ADULT now. Anything stupid that I do now cannot be attributed to "my crazy twenties" and just has to be my own fault... HA!!

I am, surprisingly, not traumatized by this change. I am at a good point in my life - I am happily married with two gorgeous kids and a nice home, I feel like my artistic career is taking off, and I am happy with who I am right now. Life is good!!

We're heading up to the mountains today for a family birthday party... the kids are gonna have a great time, and I just love the cool, refreshing mountain air. Rick, the kids, and I are going up a little early to grab a good spot, and I am taking my Harry Potter book. Hopefully I will actually get to READ it a little today ;).

The kids got me a postal scale for my birthday... LOL... really I wanted it! Now I don't have to lug them down to the post office when mailing my packages to the various magazines. I can just weigh them at home and print postage from USPS.com, and leave them for the mail lady to pick up. Wheeee!

And speaking of magazines, good stuff in the works for me... can't wait to share with you all the stuff I have been working on!!!

If I were a knitter,

I would *so* be going to Martha's Poncho Show!!

Pray

for London.

Just for the sake of creating

Thought I needed a little reminder that I was, indeed, an artist. So I made a little painting for myself. Journaling reads: Then she decides it's time to just do it - there's nothing to be afraid of. It's just paint - the brush moves along the canvas with fluid motion and soon it has a mind of its own. And she realizes, yet again, that this is truly what she loves. The hours speed by and yet time has stopped. When you do what you love, nothing else matters, until the sun rises beyond the window panes and with the sun comes the stirring of children and so the paint must be put away until another day. Sooner next time. I PROMISE.

you know what today needs?

More cowbell.

creative juices

were flowing about this time last night. Liane was over and we were scrapooking. I was helping her create a gift for her friend Anna, who is getting married next month. We made Anna a really great little album as well as an address book. It was Liane's first time scrapping, but she totally fell into the groove so quickly. I love her creative mind - she totally gets me. We think so much alike. It is very cool. We were in such a rhythm last night we didn't stop scrapping until 3:30 a.m. - yes you read that correctly! It was CRAZY!!! She ended up staying over and sleeping on the couch cause I didn't want her driving home at such a freaky hour. Then this morning when we both got up, we finished the projects, made a card, and even decorated a gift bag. Anna's gift ROCKS the house. I can't wait to hear how she reacts to it. I know she's gonna completely love it more than anything. She has to - cause I love it so much!

We went to Papa & Mama Lali's for a family get together for the 4th. Fun and games - we did a water balloon toss with the kids. Riley loved making the balloons pop. We swam in the pool (of course) and Violet had a great time pretending that Shark Boy and Lava Girl were there, too. Rick and I orchestrated a little "treasure hunt" for the kids, too... Violet had to first find the treasure map, and then she and Riley followed it all over the yard until they found the spot in the ground with the "X" on it - and that is where Violet dug up the buried treasure - glow bracelets to wear while we watched fireworks! Dad barbecued burgers for dinner, mom made and apple pie from apples that grew in the backyard, and we all enjoyed watching the fireworks from the end of the cul-de-sac. It was a perfect end to a super holiday weekend. The only thing better would have been if Tinty, Luke, and Carl were here to spend it with us ;)

p.s. happy belated anniversary, Tinty & Luke! The first (and toughest!) year is behind you!! All good stuff from here on out! Wheeeeeeee!

Wants

1. More hours in the day so I can read Harry Potter
2. This book: Living Out Loud
3. For my ideas that are stewing in my brain to spill out in a creatively genius way
4. A chance to write a book
5. More hours in the day so I can write a book
6. To move to Portland
7. To know whether a move to Portland is really the right thing to do
8. For decisions to be easy
9. That cool glass melting beadmaking torch kit from Aardvark
10. More hours in the day so I can make beads
11. This book too
12. Patience. And can I have that now, please??

Deadlines

All sorts of projects going on...
Finished my Memory Makers projects. Whew. Those were a weight off my shoulders.
Need to package them & mail them.
Need to work on CHA stuff for Michael Miller.
Need to scan/print my portfolio layouts so I can bring something SMALL to share and not my big ole binder.
Need to get my design ideas in a presentable way.
Need (NEED) to fold laundry from the 8 loads I did when we came back from vacation. They are currently in baskets for each person... but they are getting pretty wrinkly that way. LOL
Need to work on more layouts for Memory Makers Masters Book. I have completed 4 of the 17 I need to do. Lots more to work on.
Need to re-read the Harry Potter books so that I can be ready for Book 6, which comes out in less than 3 weeks. Just gotta keep plugging away.
Need to work on Riley's swimming skills... he's finally hit a breakthrough and loves going underwater now. We have to start really focusing on perfecting his kicking skills and his ability to get himself to the side of the pool safely when he goes in. Liane's been a great teacher so far.
Oh and still need to lose 25 pounds ;)

5 years ago

yesterday, I gave birth to my first child - a daughter. After struggling with an ectopic pregnancy and unexplained infertility, my dream of becoming a mother had finally come true.

And through all the
smiling
crying
nursing
barfing
cooing
pooping
cuddling
late nights
crawling
standing
walking
talking
running
climbing
playing
napping
teething
bathing
learning
sharing
growing
maturing
that has happened in the last five years of *my* life,
I am so thankful.

Happy birthday, Violet :)

A Lady Azusa Story

When I was a little girl, my grandmother Abu would tell me stories of the most beautiful mermaid in the ocean named Lady Azusa. I loved those stories so much, and I so miss them. Abu is 82 years old right now, and she doesn't tell her stories anymore. But tonight at dinnertime, I believe that Abu somehow shared her spirit with me. I do not know where this story came from, other than straight from the heart of Abu. So thank you, dear Abu, for sharing your gift with me. I will use it wisely, and I will carry on your tradition.

Lady Azusa's Message

Once there was a beautiful little girl named Violet. She was visiting the beach with her family. One night, as the moon was full in the sky above, she took a walk along the beach. She saw a lot of shells, and some of them sparkled a little bit in the moonlight. Just then, a few steps ahead of her, she saw a shell that shone and sparkled like nothing she had ever seen. Violet picked it up and a few sparkles fell from the shell.

She knew this shell was special – even magical – and she held it to her ear. At first, all she could hear was the whooooosh of the ocean. But then suddenly, Violet heard something else – a quiet voice that whispered to her,

“Hello! This is a special shell that has been sent to you from Lady Azusa, Queen of all the Sea. She would like you to come right to this spot on the beach tomorrow morning at sunrise, and there will be a special messenger waiting to take you to see the Queen.”

Violet’s eyes widened, for she knew that this was a very special message that she must heed. She ran back to her house as fast as her little feet could carry her, in the door and up the steps to the bedroom where her daddy was sleeping.

“Daddy!” she cried, “I just got a message from Lady Azusa! She told me I had to meet her tomorrow morning at sunrise on the beach!”

Violet’s daddy was a bit skeptical, because although he had heard stories of Lady Azusa, he didn’t know she really existed. But he agreed to take her to the shore the following morning, and they set their alarm for very early so they could be there at sunrise.

The next morning as Violet and her daddy walked hand in hand to the beach, they came upon a strange sight. There, right in the spot where Violet found the sparkly seashell, a dolphin – with a crown on his head – waited to greet them in the water right where the ocean met the sand.

“You must be girl who received Lady Azusa’s message,” said the Dolphin with a very regal voice. “I am here to take you to meet her.”

Violet looked at her daddy and back at the dolphin. Her daddy nodded at her and said she could go. “I’ll wait for you here, sweetie,” he told her.

Violet stepped up to the dolphin, which looked long and low at her down his snout and said, “Can you breeeeeeeeathe underwater, young lady?”

“No,” Violet replied with a concerned look on her face.

“Then place my crown upon your head, and you will be able to breathe underwater so that you may visit with The Queen.” Violet picked up the crown. It sparkled as soon as she touched it, and as she put it on her head it glowed a soft purple. “Now climb onto my back and we will swim through the sea and the waves to her castle.”

Violet carefully climbed onto the back of the dolphin and held onto his dorsal fin. He turned toward the sea and flipped his tail and into the waves they went. He dove down, down, down into the salty ocean. Violet was afraid at first… she had been holding her breath and needed to breathe soon – would the crown really work? Could she really breathe underwater? She knew she couldn’t hold on any longer – she had to take a breath – she opened her mouth and GULPED! And she could breathe!! Under the water! She looked around with a huge grin as they passed coral gardens and schools of fish and kelp beds as they went deeper and deeper in the sea. The deeper they went, the more sparkly the water became. It shimmered and glowed all around them.

Violet and the dolphin rounded a rocky corner and suddenly she saw the most beautiful sight ever – Lady Azusa’s castle. It rose up from the sandy bottom of the ocean with blue-violet spires that glimmered like jewels. The dolphin let Violet off his back right at the door of the castle. She swam up to the huge door and pulled the sapphire blue knocker out from it. The knock was a loud, hollow sound that echoed in the castle.

The castle door opened slowly, and at first Violet didn’t see anyone there. Then she looked down and saw a little red crab. It was Sebastian, the crab from The Little Mermaid! “Lady Azusa is expecting you,” he said with a smile. “Follow me.” With those words, Sebastian skittered along the floor of the castle to The Queen’s reception room as Violet followed close behind.

As they entered the beautiful hall adorned with sea flowers of all kinds, Violet caught a glimpse of the most beautiful lady she had ever seen in her life. Lady Azusa had a long pink tail that shimmered as it moved through the water. Her hair was long and golden and wavy and it moved as the current moved around her. She had big, beautiful eyes and a lovely smile. “Violet!” she cried. “Thank you so much for coming to see me! I am so very happy to see you!” and she swam over to Violet and gave her a big, long hug.

Lady Azusa took Violet by the hand and showed her to a fluffy flower chair. They sat together and Lady Azusa smiled as she spoke. “Violet… I am so glad you got my message on the beach. I was hoping you would find it! Do you know why I asked you to come down here to meet me?”

“No,” said Violet as she shook her head.

“I asked you to meet me because I have a very important task for you. Do you think you can help me?” Lady Azusa asked Violet.

“Of course!” Violet said enthusiastically.

“Well, Violet, I don’t know if you noticed – but the ocean has been getting very dirty. People are leaving their trash on the beach and they are dropping it off their boats into the water. This trash is hurting the fish and dolphins, and it is making the ocean unclean and unsafe for all of us. I am asking you – dear Violet – to help me by picking up any trash you see when you are walking along the beach. If you did this, it could be the start of something very special for all of us, both on land and in the sea. We could once again have clean, sparkling water for all of us. The beaches wouldn’t be cluttered with trash from visitors, and it would be a safe place for you to play and make sand castles. We want to keep everything clean and beautiful, the way God made it. Do you think you can be my helper and clean up the beach for me?”

Violet said she would. And she would tell all her friends and family to do the same.

“Thank you, sweet child,” Lady Azusa said. “And I have a gift for you. It is a Mussel Shell Amulet, and it will remind you of what I told you. The back side is rough and dirty – just like the ocean and beach will look if no one takes care of it. But if you turn it over, it is smooth and shiny, like the sparking water of the sea. This will remind you that if everyone does their part to take care of our world, we will all have a sparkly, shiny place to live.” Violet humbly accepted her gift from Lady Azusa, who placed it around her neck.

“I do not want to keep you from your daddy too long, but please join me for a little Mermaid Tea before you have to return to land,” said The Queen, and Violet of course said she would. They dined and snacked for a short while, and then Violet knew she must go. With another hug, Lady Azusa bid her new friend Violet farewell.

Violet climbed onto the dolphin and they swam back to the surface together. When they broke through the water, she saw her daddy waiting for her on the shore. Violet took the crown from her head and placed it back on the dolphin’s head. “Thank you for my wonderful ride, Sir Dolphin. I shall never forget it!” she told him, and waved as he returned to the water.

Violet ran toward her daddy and showed him her gift from Lady Azusa. The necklace sparkled even more out in the sun. She told her daddy how she now has a task when she is on the beach. If she ever sees trash, she is to pick it up and put it in the trash bins, so that the oceans and the beaches are clean and sparkly for people, mermaids, and all the creatures of the sea.

And with that, the two of them walked along the shore, picking up things to put in the trash cans, so that Lady Azusa’s dream of a beautiful shore would come true.

The end.
Copyright 2005
By Jessie Baldwin

Leaving in a few hours

for a much-needed family vacation to the beach and Disneyland! Can't wait to come back and tell you all about it.

Today Melinda and Luke arrived and we had a little open house/party for them at Mom & Dad's. Even Matt got to come over and hang out for awhile! I was pretty excited about that, since I was completely convinced that he hated us.

Anyway, we'll be back on the 26th. Talk to you all then!!! :)

I found the perfect Father's Day gift!!

Just think... sitting out front of your trailer in this puppy while cleaning and cocking your guns and spitting your chew into the old coffee can... I can see it now... LOL

Happy Birthday, Rick!

32 Years....woooooooooooo!
We had a great time at Spring Mountain Ranch last night watching Seussical. No cake for Rick, though. His request was "brownies... made by Liane." :)

Just made plans

for our 10th anniversary trip.

No, it's not to Europe, like we originally planned a few years ago.
No, it's not to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, like we planned a few months ago.
And, though we really wish we could go there, it's also not to New Zealand.

For our tenth anniversary, we will be revisiting our honeymoon destination - San Francisco, CA. And it will be so much fun! We will be staying at the McKnight's house and traveling by BART into town. And on Sunday, we will be seeing WICKED at the Orpheum Theatre! It will be perfect - relatively inexpensive (no hotel costs), relaxing (no kids - woooo!), and romantic (who doesn't love the San Francisco skyline?).

So - you could say we ARE going on a second honeymoon! How fun for us! :)

Bob & Tiffany... the engagement

Have I mentioned yet how great it is that Bob had the waitress take pictures of the whole thing? I am just so dang happy ;). Here are a couple of great ones :)


"Tiff, will you marry me?"


"YES!"


The ring fits beautifully :)


Aren't they cute?

Bob did it!!

He & Tiff are engaged. They called and shared the news. Tiff said it was like in a movie. They even got photos!! (Go BOB!!) After ordering their dinner, Bob excused himself to go to the restroom... but really it was to secretly talk to the waitress into coming over to take photos of the process. So after his "potty break," he sat down with Tiff. When the waitress came back to ask if everything was okay, Bob suggested that they get a photo of them on their date. Waitress gets the camera, the two of them pose arm in arm and Bob says, "Wait - this isn't right..." and turns to Tiff, gets down on one knee, and asks her to marry him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She cried and said yes and everyone around them clapped and cheered! They kissed and hugged and they have a TON of great photos of the engagement. She was so cute telling me the story, too... she was COMPLETELY caught off guard, and has been floating on air ever since. They couldn't even eat their dinner, they were both so giddy. I can't wait to see the pics (Tiff said they got a LOT of great ones). They are coming over for dinner tomorrow - I am gonna see if I can download the photos and put a few up here :)

There she is again!

Right on the FRONT PAGE of the Memory Makers website! :)

Photos

of the kids...


Riley playing outside


Violet at graduation


Violet being... Violet ;)

ONE

Together.

Check it out HERE.
Imagine if for a moment we dropped our pretenses and political ideologies, and instead banded together to make a difference. Imagine the impact. Looks like a few people are already thinking about it. This could be big.

Thanks, Ali, for the link.

Three more days...

till Rick's brother Bob proposes to Tiffany. (ooooh don't tell!!)
I am trying to figure out how I can sneak onto the balcony at Mon Ami Gabi and hide amongst the topiaries to take candid shots of the moment when he asks her to marry him. He's so cute. He's been calling me a few times to ask about stuff... what kind of ring to get her... where would be a good place to propose... I can't wait to hear the story. I wish I could see it too :)

THis commercial is just rad

Talk Talk

Saw it while browsing through Design*Sponge.

Enjoy!!

More Summer Reading...

I recently finished a book called A Dedication by John Zaiss. Excellent, inspiring read for anyone who has been a student or a teacher, been a teenager or has teenagers. It's a story of frendship and redemption and overcoming tragedy. Just wonderful. Cried for hours. Apparently I need a cry once in awhile.

Check it out at Amazon, read all the reviews, and get it if you wish. You will be glad you did.

Alicia's Story

Alicia is a dear friend of Stephanie DeJarnett, Val's red-headed step child ;), and she is going through cancer right now.

Read her story. It's a 7-part feature, running in the San Francisco Chronicle all this week.
http://www.sfgate.com/alicia/

If you get a chance, read the comments, too. Very inspiring. I have been crying for the last half hour.

Changed my settings

So if you aren't on blogger you can still post a comment! Apparently there are a few of you out there! Please stop in and say hi! I'd love to know who's out there reading my ramblings! :)

Argh. Sam's Club Photo.

Don't get me wrong. I have always loved Sam's Club 1 hour photo. I have used it since before Violet was born. I have had at least one roll developed there every week for the past 5 years. That's THOUSANDS of dollars on prints, reprints, enlargements, and film.

And they've always been great. I've had a couple of minor mishaps here and there, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

Until now.

I am mad. And not just angry. But a little crazy, too.
(Don't worry, Tint. They didn't lose your negatives.)

I have been working on my sister's wedding album. I've already finished a smaller, 40 page, 9x9 album of photos from the wedding and reception, but I wanted to do a formal album for her, too. Like Mom has... with all the 8x10s of the best shots from the day. I picked out 26 great photos. I took the STACK of negatives, all clearly marked, to Sam's on Friday, and told them to give me 8x12s of all of them. (I do this cause I didn't want THEM deciding where I wanted my 8x10s cropped. It's just easier to get the 8x12 and crop it myself, and it's the same price) The manager wasn't there, just one of the worker ladies. But they all know me and they know what I expect of them. No problem, they'll be done by 6 p.m. YAY!

Valerie picked them up for me and paid for them. 55 bucks.

I saw Val on Saturday and she gave me my photos. I opened up the package. I notice a couple of dust specks on the first couple - great. I'll need to get those re-done. Then a photo of them was backward - like the lady put the negative in the machine wrong. I was starting to get annoyed. THEN I GOT PISSED. The photo of the two of them at the waterfall was COVERED in dust specks - like all across their faces!! Gimme a break! You would have failed photo 101 for that! And that was when I turned to the family photos at the bottom of the stack. ALL 6 OF THEM had a pair of huge scratch lines running the length of the negatives - across the people's faces and bodies. This was not a dust speck. This was total negligence on behalf of the lady who ran the negatives through the machine. She did NOT make sure it was clean and free of debris before she sent the negatives through and she damaged them.

(Melinda, don't panic. This *can* be fixed with a little help of a REAL photo finisher - whom we know - and some photoshop techniques. I promise!!)

So my plans of working on the album at Saturday's all day crop were thwarted.

I called Verna, the assistant manager, right away. She first apologized for not doing the negatives herself. Then she tried to tell me it wasn't the machine at all, that it might have been my negatives... I told her that it was most definitely the machine. We had the negatives processed by our PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER at Ritz Camera. They were fine till we had them run through the machines here.

So here's what I think happened. I know I used the negatives in question as my example to her for what I needed done. So they were likely on the top of the stack. She started ruining them through and printing the photos, probably getting through the first 6 before the prints started coming out. When she stopped to check on the prints, she noticed the scratches and realized her mistake. By now it was too late, but she cleaned the machine and tried to reprint them anyway - to no avail. Then she pulled out the next negative strip (the one with Melinda and Luke) and was so concerned about the cleaning of the machine that she didn't bother to blow off the negative which is why it ended up covered in dust specks. Finally, she started on the next roll and vowed to get it right... cleaning the machine, but in doing so likely got specks of crap on her gloves so when she handled the negatives, even though she cleaned them, they ended up with specks on different spots of the photo. As these photos came out, since the specks weren't obvious (on people's faces), she breathed a sigh of relief and kept on printing, thinking that what she was doing was fine, and hoping (for some odd reason) that I wouldn't notice what she did. She was trying to get these done quickly for me, and she got careless.

This is why I think this happened:

1. I know their policy of cleaning the machine, because I have dealt with scratched negatives in the past.
2. When I confronted her today, she was VERY defensive - overly defensive - saying it wasn't possible for the negatives to be scratched because she followed all the procedures.
3. When I showed her that it was clearly a problem with that roll and those specific strips, she had no clear answer for me.
4. Like I mentioned before - It is likely she got careless because I asked her to do them in 6 hours instead of overnight.
5. I didn't wait for the manager to just do it. I trusted this clerk, and she's not the brightest bulb in the bunch.

I returned the photos (all of them) and got my money back. I will be speaking to the photo manager and Sam's Club general manager on Wednesday (they are off until then), and I will be requesting that Sam's Club pay for the photo finishing fees it will take to restore the damaged negatives from this roll. I will also get the other photos printed at a photo finishing lab so that I know that they will be handled correctly, although I won't make Sam's pay for that (unless the specks were actually damage and not just dust particles). I don't want to get anyone fired, or anything like that. But I *do* want to be sure that they find out what is causing their machine to scratch negatives (which only happens when I ask them to reprint 8x12s). But I think I am totally justified in making Sam's Club pay to fix the ones that were ruined by their machine and their negligence.

Preschool Graduation

Violet graduated from preschool last week... their little ceremony was so hysterically cute. They sang little songs (and Violet of course put in her own dance moves). The kids wore little paper mortarboard caps and went up to the podium to receive their little "diplomas" and tell the group what they wanted to be when they grew up.

Some kids said they wanted to be firefighters. Or police officers. Or artists. Or Engineers.

Not Violet.
She wants to be a CHEERLEADER when she grows up.
Nice. LOL

At least, on the scale of "what these 4 and 5 year olds want to be," she was a little higher than her classmate who declared he wanted to be "a lion named Simba."

Rick got one

this morning... he knew he had hit it, but it tried to fly away. Didn't get far though... we found him lying in the middle of the street a few minutes later. Rick went out and disposed of him like a good little hunter.

And still the birds watch us.... with those eyes..... those beady little orange eyes............

They are becoming more aware of what we do when we are out there. As soon as I cock the gun, they are flying away. With Rick all they have to do is *see* him and they take off. Maybe all I need to take care of the problem is a cardboard cutout of Rick. I'll just stick it on the rooftop. It will look simply lovely!! ;)

Bird Hunting

So, I have taken up bird hunting. Got myself a bb gun and an endless supply of $%#&! pigeons on my rooftop. Including a mama with babies. GREAT. Rick's been shooting them the last few days, but this afternoon was my turn. They were taunting me... daring me to shoot. With a little coaching over the phone from Rick (how in the heck do I work a pellet gun, anyway??), I aimed, shot, and (I think) got one. There was a puff of feathers that rained down, but it flew away, so I thought I might have missed. Later on, though, I did miss... no feathers... just a bird flying away, probably sticking its little tongue out at me. I'll get 'em, though. Just you wait.

Should I feel remorse for trying to kill the little rats with wings? Maybe. But I don't. I am obviously heartless. That or fed up with the bird crap on my house, car, and driveway. As long as I never have to wring any pigeon necks, I'll be fine.

CKU

So I was at CKU last weekend.... WOW! What a great time. If you are an avid scrapbooker, or aspire to be, I definitely recommend it!! I was part of a "dorm," which was very fun. It was a group of us who got together and signed up as a group with a theme, costume, and "cheer." Our theme was "Prisoners from Tracy's PENitentiary." Tracy is Tracy White, editor of Creating Keepsakes magazine and author of The Journaler's Handbook. Our "crimes" were bad journaling and other silly things. We were rough. We were tough. And we were hysterical.

From the rap song we composed to the tune of "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (which we performed on stage and WON the competition), to our costumes, table decorations, and overall bad-ass-ness, we were the coolest group at CKU. We made a name for ourselves. And the best part was that all of us were from different places. We didn't really know each other before the event, but we are such close friends now. I love that.

Here are the lyrics to the song... in case you were wondering.... ;)

Prisoners at Tracy's Pen
{sung to the tune of "Fresh Prince of Bel Air"}

Now this is a story all about how
Our scrappin got flipped turned upside down
And I'd like to take a minute so that you know when
I'll tell you how I become a prisoner at Tracy’s Pen

With tons of photos I was born and raised
In my scraproom is where I spent most of my days
Chillin' out cuttin’ pastin’ all cool
And usin’ my square punch outside of the school

When a couple of guys saw my books and did shout,
“How do I know what all this stuff is about?”
I wasn’t journaling and you know that wasn’t right-
I got jailed in the big house of Tracy White!

With Alana, Suzi, Amy, Allison and Jessie,
Hall of Famers Leah and also Kim Kesti
This was gonna be tough working day after day
Learning journaling techniques it’s all work & no play

My first class... yo, this is tough!
My writing style certainly ain’t up to snuff
Is this what scrapping’s supposed to be like?
Hmmm... this might be all right!

Tracy made us cry with her incredible words
We realized journaling isn’t just for nerds
I’ve just got to say that Tracy White rocks
My pages are now full of journaling blocks

Well we all paid our dues and when we came out
We had to keep in touch with so much to write about
So we banded together and made a mini book
About what we learned here-yeah it was off da hook

I whistled for a cab and when it got here
The license plate said Scrap and it had dice in the mirror
If anything I was like could this be true?
And so I just said it, “Yo homes to CKU!”

I pulled into Anaheim 'bout 7 or later
and I yelled to the cabbie-gimme my Navigator!
At CKU Masters I’m here tonight
thanks to the chicks from the Pen and our own Tracy White!

{adapted by Jessie “Birdie” Baldwin}


Here's the run-down of my classes I took... all were excellent and all provided me with some great creativity jump-starts. I am so stoked to get back in my atudio and CREATE. Isn't that what it's all about??

FavorArt Things with Sara Tumpane: OMG I had a FABULOUS time. We played with all sorts of artistic media - some old, some new - but it was so fun because there was no pressure to create "something" with it. Instead it was a very hands on - try this yourself - type of class. Really this was very much what I wanted because I would rather do this than spend an entire 90 minute class making a layout I likely wouldn't use. I was so happy to use stuff I had always meant to try but didn't want to spend the money on the product if I wasn't sure about it. AWESOME prizes and giveaways too. I went home with the new sponge stamps *and* the plastic letters.... SO GREAT!!

Artistic Effects with Tracy White: GREat class. Tracy is such a wonderful teacher. She really does an excellent job of drawing you in and giving all sorts of great inspiration. And the layout we created was very cute and had lots of room for personal "interpretation" of the project, so I felt like I could make something that was totally my own. And Tracy is just so cute. She gave away as a prize a whole set of these new CK books that inspired the class. Very nice.

Rustic Recipe Book with Teresa Collins: LOVED this project. Great one and another that gave me seriously tons of freedom to alter at will. Made a gorgeous bound recipe book that i will be giving as a bridal shower gift. It was that good!! Teresa was so cute and sweet and loved encouraging us to be creative. She gave away great prizes, too!

Expressions on Canvas with Tim Holtz: By far and away the most amazing class I took at CKU. In 2 hours I used at least 5 new techniques and created a double spread canvas work of art that is my favorite piece I have ever made. We used inks, beeswax, collage techniques, painting techniques, layering, multimedia..... incredible. Tim is so encouraging and fun. I won a GREAT prize and I also got super great goodies.... paints, glazes, inks, glass tiles, etc etc etc etc..... very cool.

Here's my canvas:

It's a 2 piece, hinged 8x8 piece that stands alone. Obviously looks better in person, but this will do for now! Tim loved this project so much he even emailed me on 2Ps to tell me so. Talk about cool.

Colorful Memories with Tim Holtz: Another great class, but the title is a bit deceiving. The project, a tag book, is very cool - but not very colorful at all. Shabby and distressed, using ephemera and photo tinting techniques. Several fun ways to use inks again, but I was expecting something more colorful (hopefully using the adirondack paints) but it was still excellent and Tim was very entertaining. More great giveaways (everything we used was ours to keep at the end of class!!)

Are We There Yet with Karen Foster instructors (can't remember their names): OH MAN!!! This project ROCKED!!! I loved everything about it. Very fast paced but we did a TON of stuff. Very little room for changing up the projects, but I didn't care. The whole concept (creating a travel book for your kids that includes games & ideas for enduring a road/plane trip) was so flipping fun it didn't matter. Lots of amazing giveaways too!! More than I could imagine!!

This was my first CKU and I was not disappointed AT ALL. Like I said, it's a great time of fun, friendship, and learning. If you go into it with an open mind and the desire to learn, you will come out of it recharged adn ready to be creative!

From the mouths of babes...

Violet:
"Brothers.... they can be SO MUCH WORK."

"Mom, when's 'Brother's Day?'"

Riley, after I handed him a plate of cantaloupe:
"I no like can-a-pope, Mommy."

Hey Tisra

Found this site and thought of you... cool hand-dyed yarns made by a friend of mine in the scrapping community. This is her family business. Very cool.
http://needmoreyarn.com/

What kind of American English do you speak?

My Linguistic Profile:

75% General American English

20% Yankee

5% Upper Midwestern

0% Dixie

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Take this test and post your results! :)

evidence

of my son's eating habits...

In case that link didn't work for you...

Here's what my new camera looks like:


It's the Canon Digital Rebel XT - 8.0 megapixel SLR.
This thing is so rad!!

I *heart* the UPS man

I get so excited about hearing the UPS man coming down the street. Kind of as excited as teh kids get about the trash men. When I hear the squeal of his brakes as he comes around the corner, I get giddy with anticipation, hoping that he will stop by my house with a package. If he does, it's usually stuff from Memory Makers or ome of the other magazines. But not today. Today I was awaiting my Canon Rebel XT... and when I heard the UPS man knock at my door with the box, I could barely contain myself and make it all the way to the kichen counter without opening the box.

This camera is so rad.
Seriously, it rocks. Just the little bit I have playing with it has been great. Tomorrow will be the test... I'll take it with me when the kids go play and try and get some action shots. :)


On another note, Riley got a hold of the hot dogs - still in plastic - in the fridge, and gnawed a chunk right out of them. This boy and his eating habits... he eats right through the plastic with everything: string cheese, hotdogs, fruit snacks, raw ground beef (that one was gross), and now the hot dogs. Really... if he'd just ask us, we'd give him the food. But this is his way of doing it on his own.

Good thing I had my digital camera... got some great shots of him with the 'dogs.

Feeding my addiction

So the most recent Albertson's ad has a coupon for a free tall Starbuck's drink. It came out on Saturday and is valid till Thursday of this week. I decided to treat myself to an iced mocha (don't worry Mom, it was nonfat...) on Mother's Day morning. I went into Albertson's and they had a sign up: The Espresso machine is down. :::sigh::: I didn't get my coffee. That evening as Rick and I were painting the bedroom furniture, I thought a coffee would be a great little pick-me-up (and, heck, it was FREE), so I went to the Albertson's off Ann Road, about 2 miles away. It was 8:30 p.m. and I walked in the door and the Starbuck's stand was already closed. I couldn't believe it!! The one by my house is open till at least 9 p.m.!

Monday I tried again... and the espresso machine was still down at the Albertson's by my house. FINE. No coffee.

Last night was my scrap night. I like to pull late-nighters (I seem to do my best work after 1 a.m.), so a coffee was definitely on the menu. Valerie and I headed out at 8 p.m. and went straight to the Ann Road Albertson's. As we walked in, the light was still on! Hallelujah!!! We went up to the counter and the girls behind it said, "Oh, sorry! We just closed at 8:00! We just forgot to turn off the light!" Grrrrrrrrrr. "But if you want, you can go to the one off Craig Road (one more mile south) because they are open till 9!"

FINE. I wanted my dang free coffee!!!

Val and I drove to the Craig Road Albertson's, but as we walked in, it didn't look good. The light was off. But I asked the guy behind the counter anyway. He pointed me to the sign on the counter that says they close at 8. GREAT.

We decided to just pay for a freaking coffee at the stand-alone Starbuck's in the same shopping center (why there needs to be a stand alone AND one in Albertson's in the *same* shopping center baffles me). We pulled up to the front and got out of the car... the counter light was on, but the table lights were off. Maybe they were trying to conserve energy. I walked to the door and tried to open it... but it was LOCKED! LOCKED!!! At 8:30 p.m.!! Where were we, Utah???

By this time I was reeeeeeeeeeally frustrated. Of course there are those that would argue that maybe God didn't want me to have that coffee. And then there's me. I saw it as a challenge - how far would I have to go to get my stinkin COFFEE?!?!!!?

We went to the stand-alone Starbuck's by my house. It was open till 9, that I knew. My heart leapt when I was ACTUALLY ABLE TO OPEN THE DOOR!! And there were PEOPLE inside, working!! AND THE LIGHT WAS ON!!! I was going to FINALLY get my stinkin COFFEE!!

I walked up to the counter and told them my sad, sad story. They laughed. They cried. They made our coffee. For free :)

Soccer Superstar!

Violet is on a soccer team of 4 and 5 year olds. The Fireballs. They are so cute in their little soccer outfits. She is a great little player out on the field and tries really hard. The only problem? Our team has no skills. We had yet to even score a goal - all season - until Saturday.

We arrived as the game was starting (bad mom, I know, but really... our son has reached the Terrible Twos with a vengeance and there was major meltdown happening at our house right when we were supposed to leave), and Violet sat the bench for the first couple of minutes, watching the team play. Then Coach Patty called her on the field. She went RIGHT OUT THERE and started KICKING THE BALL! HARD!! She was playing GREAT defense and even working with her teammates to pass the ball to them.

If you've ever watched 4 year olds play soccer, it's hysterical. They are all just a little amoeba roaming the field, following the ball, and every once in awhile someone will have a breakaway and you just pray that it's your team and that they are heading in the right direction when it happens. Because what they do is run. And kick. And they do not stop. Sometimes (usually) they run faster than they kick. Sometimes they keep kicking and running right off the field and, well, keep going. And they never, ever hear the ref blow the whistle. Of course it could be worse. There's always the couple of kids who are playing with the grass, looking for ladybugs. THERE'S A GAME HAPPENING right around them, and they have crouched down in the MIDDLE OF THE FIELD to rescue the precious little beetle from being trampled.

So anyway, we were on the field and the opposing team (undefeated, by the way) had already scored a goal, but by some miraculous feat the Fireballs were surrounding the other team's goal and closing in - just when we thought we would lose it, Violet got the ball, broke away from the group, and KICKED IT INTO THE GOAL!!!!!!! The entire sideline ERUPTED in cheers for our team and the whistle blew for the end of the first quarter.

We were elated!! The game was tied, and VIOLET SCORED THE FIRST GOAL EVER FOR THE FIREBALLS!!!! All the moms and dads and teammates congratulated her. We were so excited and proud and thrilled.

The second and third quarter were tough - both teams tried to score, but the goalies played excellent defense. Right at the end of third quarter, the opposing team got a goal. It was now 1-2. Coach Patty yelled to the team as the fourth quarter began, "First person to get a goal on our team gets a quarter!!" Violet must have heard that one, because the Fireballs took off running... right down to the goal where Violet passed it to Kaden, who kicked it into the net! We were tied, and Violet got the assist!!! YEAH!!!!! The sidelines, again, erupted. What were the chances that the team who hasn't won a game yet would score their first goal of the season with the team that was undefeated in the league?? Well the game wasn't over yet...

The kids ran hard... the other team almost scored another goal on us, but Tristan was masterfully defending the goal. He got the ball and threw it - HARD - toward the Fireballs. Ryan kicked it downfield and got tangled up in the ball and lost it... but Jesse was right behind him. He pulled it away again - but this time the other team was there to get the ball back. It was a tangle of legs and feel and a ball somewhere in there, when Violet pulled away fro the group with the ball - just 15 feet from the goal... ten feet, and a HUGE KICK RIGHT THROUGH THE GOALIE'S LEGS!!! It was pandemonium on the sidelines! Coach Patty was screaming, moms and dads were cheering, the team was high-fiving, and Violet was jumping up and down, hands in the air, celebrating the thrill of victory.

What a game.

And afterward, a blue and red Slurpee for the best soccer kicker the Fireballs have ever known. :)

If you are bored

Here are a few blogs to visit...

Threadbared.com
I could not stop laughing. It's now one of my favorite blogs. (warning - a bit of grown-up language)

design*sponge
Loving all her finds. She updates several times a day with all sorts of cool home decor discoveries.

Zach Braff
Cause he has a blog. ;)

She did it!

After months of trying, it finally clicked for Violet and she blew her first bubble with Bubble Yum original flavor gum! She practiced and practiced in front of her mirror, trying to get the gum just right, when FINALLY, after about half an hour, she got it! She's not consistent, but she can produce a bubble now. What a cutie ;)

I'll post pictures when I get them developed!

My Scrap Room

Here's where I do all my creating...


From the doorway


Rick's corner (or what he has till I kick him right out)


TV corner - the large wardrobe holds albums, paints, and other supplies


My computer area - I used those giant clothespins as a sort of valance. I may hang stuff from them, just haven't figured out *what*, yet.


My main work areas - I go from the computer desk to the work desk constantly


I have miscellaneous supplies organized in the labeled boxes (adhesives, colored pens, tools, cardmaking supplies, stamp supplies, etc)


My work desk - where all the creating takes place


My inspiration - the studio sign I created one night to remind me I am an artist first. Hangs over my work area. The knob on the bottom right holds little hanging signs like "the artist is IN" or "QUIET - artist at work"


My first, and so far, most favorite, purchase from IKEA - these buckets hold my creating essentials. Left to right, pencils/pens, scissors/cutters, adhesives, tools


Stamp storage - I got this from Wal-Mart for 9 bucks. I love it. Especially that it is red. My letter stamps are arranged alphabetically, with miscellaneous patterns and extras in the larger drawers in the bottom.


My paper is stored vertically in the Cropper Hopper holders. I love this system. Takes up very little room and the papers don't get dusty. Everything is arranged by manufacturer. The black boxes have embellishments organized by manufacturer.


A full view of that shelving unit that holds my papers. Would you believe I have an entire shelf worth that needs to go on the bottom? I just haven't loaded them in the holders yet. I have so much paper.


The tackle box on top holds metal embellishments and other small things. This is great for everything that just doesn't fit anywhere else. The IRIS carts below hold paper scraps, sorted by color, and other flat embellishments... letter stickers, rubons, quotes & definitions, vellum & transparencies, etc.


The messy closet... the last place I need to organize before this room is perfect. I'll probably never get to it. hahaha

And now that I have stalled long enough, time to get to work...

my dog

is on probation, according to the paperwork I received from the Association.
I think when you capitalize Association it makes it seem much more threatening. Like the Illuminati.
Anyway, our "violation has been put on hold" and if we get another call on our dog WITHIN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS, we will be automatically fined. GREAT.

I am going to fight this, yet again. I made freaking PEACE with the neighbor!! It's ONE neighbor that hates the dog!!! If he hates him so much, he should just call animal control and let THEM deal with it, not the Association!

::::sigh:::::

baby gumball

Violet and Riley love searching our neighborhood for little yellow air gun pellets left over after a neighbor has finished shooting the pigeons that plague our homes. They are usually in the rocks or the gutters. Violet has a few of the bb gun balls in her collection, and yesterday Riley found one and was carrying it around everywhere, putting it in his belly button, hiding it under the table, and generally having a great time with it. He took it in the car, but dropped it when he was in his seat. He kept asking me over and over, "where's my baby gumball?" and I was, of course, puzzled. When I figured out he was referring to the little yellow pellet, I told him, "Honey, you know that's not gum, right?" and he said, "I know! It's a baby gumball!"

And then it hit me.
Not baby gumball.
BB gun ball.

hahahahahahahahaha

Old Friend

Eric Fadely is in town this week and we got to have dinner with him on Monday night. We went to Mimi's Cafe and had a lovely dinner (tho' the "Arnold Palmers" the guys drank were little more than weak tea with a lot of lemon water and really not worth drinking... of course they kept getting refills and kept drinking them... hmmm). But the food was great and the sitting around the table, reminiscing with an old friend was lots of fun. The guys laughed and joked about how "musicals DO happen in real life!" and how much better their lives are since having kids. We discussed the houseing prices and I am tempted to move to Tennessee now (I am still thirsty)... After dinner we decided to go to the brand new Cold Stone Creamery that just opened in the same shopping center... only when we walked over there we found out it really *hadn't* opened yet. So we headed back to the house instead and talked a bit more... then Riley had a huge poop in his diaper and that was Eric's cue to leave... I hope he made it back to his hotel okay... :)

Cinderella

Mama Lali had a great idea the other day... she thought it would be lovely if four generations of princesses went to see a princess show in the theatre. So last week, Abu, Mama Lali, Violet and I went to the Summerlin Performing Arts Center and saw Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. It was a lovely evening! First was dinner at Tenaya Creek Brewery (food was "eh...," although the calamari was yummy), and then we went to the show.

The show was very well done. The set was amazing - it totally reminded me of one of those kiddie Disneyland rides (like Alice in Wonderland) - bright, fluorescent colors, curved lines, every shape exaggerated & silly. This extended to the costumes of the stepmother & stepsisters. AND OH MY WORD were the stepsisters not COMPLETELY hilarious!! Maybe it was because they were both MEN! They were certainly ugly...

The funniest part of the show was when Abu turned to me about halfway through the show and said, "one of the stepsisters is BLACK!" LOL

At the end of the show, Violet, who was completely mesmerised by the Fairy Godmother's magic, talked to her for awhile about it... and the Fairy Godmother gave Violet her email address so that she could find out just how she did one of her tricks. It was so cute, and Violet was beaming that *she* had the FAIRY GODMOTHER'S EMAIL!!

Here are a few pictures from the show...


Violet and Mommy


Four Generations... waiting for the show to start


Jessie & her wicked stepsisters... ;)


Mama Lali and Evil Stepmother (Melinda - this is Leslie Fotheringham!)


Violet with Cinderella (Kelly Fotheringham) and Prince Charming


Abu and Fairy Godmother


Violet getting Fairy Godmother's autograph


Fairy Godmother telling Violet to email her

Just for fun...

I painted this at artpad.
Then I did this one.

So much fun. You should try it. ;)

potty training...

Riley has been doing *kinda* well with it. It depends on the day, LOL.

He had been doing really well with pooping on the potty lately, but today wasn't a great day. First he comes up to me... "Mommy, I do pee" and I watch the wetness form on the front of his shorts and on the floor. Huh??? So I check in his pants (because he *was* wearing a pull up) only to find he had pulled his little riley OUT of the underpants. So he's kind of getting the hang of it... kind of... I just need to get him closer to the potty and teach him to pull down his pants completely. We changed him into a new pull up and I told him to tell me when he needs to go potty.

Not ten minutes later he came up to me, "Mommy, I do poop." But I could already smell it was too late. So as I changed him we talked about pooping in the potty.

Does poop go in your diaper?
"no."
Does poop go on the floor?
"no."
Does poop go on the carpet?
"no."
Where does poop go, Riley?
"outside!"

O-kay. Not quite grasping it just yet.

Words heard from my mouth today...

"Riley, DON'T lick the dog!"

I tried to warn him, but he wouldn't listen. He wanted to lick Barabbas. Maybe because Barabbas was licking him. I don't know. I finally gave in...

and, yes, Riley got a tongue-full of Rabbas hair.

ewwww.

fun fun fun, fun for everyone...

I just signed up for the Disney Movie Club - I needed to replace a few of our DVDs that got ruined (Riley was trying to pry Monster's Inc out of the case and BROKE IT IN HALF), and there were a few we wanted to add to our collection. I figure, we'll get our 8 Disney DVDs for about $90 and then I'll cancel the membership. I had one of those music club memberships in college and added some great tunes to my collection back then, and it was a pretty decent deal. This one is, too.

We are trying to plan our summer - Disneyland or the beach? Disneyland or the beach?? Both have their merits... both are waaaaaay fun. Trying to coordinate it all with the fam right now. It's crazy - staying at the Disneyland Resorts is sooooooo freaking expensive. The same nights and park deals are about half the cost at other hotels that are really not that much farther away. Just wondering if convenience is worth staying there, or if the Hilton or Marriott Suites a block away is the way to go... Of course I have never had the luxury of staying at one of the Disneyland Resort Hotels... and I guess they *are* amazing... but to the tune of $4000 for a family vacation??? Yikes!

Didn't want to forget this...

Mom sent this to me in an email. I decided it was a good reminder for me.

On Being Mom
by Anna Quindlen

If not for the photographs, I might have a hard time believing they ever existed. The pensive infant with the swipe of dark bangs and the blackbutton eyes of a Raggedy Andy doll. The placid baby with the yellow ringlets and the high piping voice. The sturdy toddler with the lower lip that curled into an apostrophe above her chin. ALL MY BABIES are gone now. I say this not in sorrow but in disbelief. I take great satisfaction in what I have today: three almost-adults, two
taller than I am, one closing in fast. Three people who read the same books I do and have learned not to be afraid of disagreeing with me in their opinion of them, who sometimes tell vulgar jokes that make me laugh until I choke and cry, who need razor blades and shower gel and privacy, who want to keep their doors closed more than I like.

Who, miraculously, go to the bathroom, zip up their jackets and move food from plate to mouth all by themselves. Like the trick soap I bought for the bathroom with a rubber ducky at its center, the baby is buried deep within each, barely discernible except through the unreliable haze of the past. Everything in all the books I once pored over is finished for me now. Penelope Leach., T. Berry Brazelton., Dr. Spock. The ones on sibling rivalry and sleeping through the night and early-childhood education, all grown obsolete. Along with Goodnight Moon and Where the Wild Things Are, they are battered, spotted, well used. But I suspect that if you flipped the pages dust would rise like memories.

What those books taught me, finally, and what the women on the playground taught me, and the well-meaning relations --what they taught me, was that they couldn't really teach me very much at all. Raising children is presented at first as a true-false test, then becomes multiple choice, until finally, far along, you realize that it is an endless essay. No one knows anything. One child responds well to positive reinforcement, another can be managed only with a stern voice and a timeout. One child is toilet trained at 3, his sibling at 2. When my first child was born, parents were told to put baby to bed on his belly so that he would not choke on his own spit- up. By the time my last arrived, babies were put down on their backs because of research on sudden infant death syndrome. To a new parent this ever-shifting certainty is terrifying, and then soothing.

Eventually you must learn to trust yourself. Eventually the research will follow. I remember 15 years ago poring over one of Dr. Brazelton's wonderful books on child development, in which he describes three different sorts of infants: average, quiet, and active. I was looking for a sub-quiet codicil for an 18-month-old who did not walk. Was there something wrong with his fat little legs? Was there something wrong with his tiny little mind? Was he developmentally delayed, physically challenged? Was I insane? Last year he went to China. Next year he goes to college. He can talk just fine. He can walk, too.

Every part of raising children is humbling, too. Believe me, mistakes were made. They have all been enshrined in the, "Remember-When-Mom-Did Hall of Fame." The outbursts, the temper tantrums, the bad language, mine, not theirs. The times the baby fell off the bed. The times I arrived late for preschool pickup. The nightmare sleepover. The horrible summer camp. The day when the youngest came barreling out of the classroom with a 98 on her geography test, and I responded, What did you get wrong? (She insisted I include that.) The time I ordered food at the McDonald's drive-through speaker and then drove away without picking it up from the window. (They all insisted I include that.) I did not allow them to watch the Simpsons for the
first two seasons. What was I thinking? But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.

Even today I'm not sure what worked and what didn't, what was me and what was simply life. When they were very small, I suppose I thought someday they would become who they were because of what I'd done. Now I suspect they simply grew into their true selves because they demanded in a thousand ways that I back off and let them be.

The books said to be relaxed and I was often tense, matter-of-fact and I was sometimes over the top. And look how it all turned out. I wound up with the three people I like best in the world, who have done more than anyone to excavate my essential humanity.

That's what the books never told me. I was bound and determined to learn from the experts. It just took me a while to figure out who the experts were....

In the middle of Panda Express last night,

while I was getting us food, Violet turned to her daddy and asked,

"Daddy, how can I ask Jesus into my heart?"
And her daddy told her, you just pray.

So Violet knelt down on the floor of Panda Express, put her hands together, and prayed while her dad held her hands and her brother helped me pick out the orange chicken, "Jesus, come live in my heart and be with me forever. Thank you for dying for me and saving me from my sins. I love you. In Jesus' name, Amen."

And you know what, He did. Right there in the middle of Panda Express while I payed for our dinner.

Isn't God amazing?

Chuck

Why does my son feel the need to *CHUCK* everything???
WHY WHY WHY WHY?!??!

Down the stairs...
Across the room...
From the bathtub...
Into the bathtub...
Out of his crib...

It is NEVERENDING. The discipline, the talks, the spanks. And still he chucks.

He's lucky he's so dang cute ;)

My trip to Mesa

I seem to be a traveling MACHINE lately! Just last weekend I drove to Mesa, AZ with my pal Valerie to teach at the CK Convention for Michael Miller Memories. My classes were abysmally small (although a hit with those that attended!!), and I was frustrated at the lack of enthusiasm for the fabric paper product. I came to find out, however, that it wasn't for lack of enthusiasm... they had not properly listed our class until *AFTER* pre-registration closed. So the only attendees of the classes were through word of mouth at the convention. And they did not show our project sample to prospective attendees (not sure why either, because we had sent them one). We did, however, have a "make & take" table in the event's main hallway. This is where I spent most of my convention time, and it's also where we generated a ton of buzz about the product. Loads of people went straight from the make & take into the vendor faire and bought some paper, so the show was a success. Valerie stuck by my side through nearly all of it, even though she didn't have to, and had a great time playing teacher along with me. I enjoyed her company... made it much more fun. She's a natural.

Something really cool... I have an online friend, Suzy Gross, that owns a store in the Phoenix metropolitan area... it's brand new, called "Annalis Scraptique." Such a cool store... loads of the newest, latest, most exciting stuff lined her shelves, and the whole setup is very funky and fun... all old bookcases and tabletops and buckets and relaly unique store fixtures. Makes you want to explore the whole place and touch everything. My favorite part is the workshop/class area with long wooden tables surrounded by wooden chairs from Ikea. Only they are not plain... each one of them has been painted/decoupaged/altered/collaged/made into a work of art by some of the coolest, funkiest scrapbook artists out there. And when I was there, Suzy asked me if I would do a chair for her studio too!!! I was thrilled at the opportunity. And so I returned home with a chair in the back of the car and all sorts of great ideas already forming in my head.

On the five hour drive back, Val & I listened to the soundtrack for The Last Five Years and now I am dying to see the show. I've got tons & tons of deadlines, including finishing the cover layout for the July/August Memory Makers, so I have got to get going... again...

Oh and then the next day...

We slept in, played scrabble and ate lunch at Johnny Rockets while just below us on the street Sandra Bullock was getting her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, visited IKEA for the first time (OH DEAR LORD I AM IN LOVE WITH THAT PLACE!! We were in there for FIVE HOURS!!!), went to the Santa Monica Pier and got our pictures taken at one of those silly photo booths...

then we rode the ferris wheel, had dinner at Mariasol Restaurant on the ocean, visited the Promenade (and didn't spend NEARLY enough time there), got a Starbuck's Coffee and mixed our own CDs at Hear Music - where you can choose from a quarter of a million songs to create your own custom CD (with a jacket/name/playlist you design yourself). Or if you just want to sit there and listen to music while you drink your coffee you can. And if you see a CD you want to buy but you aren't sure if it has the songs you want, you can scan it and then listen to it right there. Awesometastic.

We left LA a little after 9 p.m. and stayed awake by giving everyone we could think of "IKEA names" like Glorm and Klak and Overklig. It was faaaaaaar too silly in the car for us. What a great trip. :)

Star Search

So it all started when Melissa and I stopped in Taco Bell Wednesday afternoon. There, in line in front of us, was Jennifer Love Hewitt. Mel did not believe me, but we eventually said hi to her. She was very sweet & gracious. And for those interested, ordered two Mexican Pizzas and about fifty mild sauces :).

We had a couple hours to kill before going to see the tonight show, so we went to see if we could get into any of the studios around the area. All of them were heavily guarded by security, but we tried anyway. We tried Warner Records but my sly little "can I please use your restroom, please???" trick didn't work with the guys at the front desk. Dang that tight security! Sheesh!!

THEN we went to see Jay Leno.



Our seats were AMAZING. Front row, right on the fifty yard line. He was DOING HIS MONOLOGUE five feet from us. Very cool. Just before the show he came out, warmed up the audience, and even posed for pictures with us (we were not allowed to bring in cameras, but one of his producers snapped this shot with a Polaroid!). When Mel & I came on stage, he asked if we were her for a cleavage convention. And he wasn't directing that comment toward Melissa!! NICE! LOL!! Melissa also ended up dancing onstage as part of some audience-entertainment thing... and won an Official Tonight Show with Jay Leno Tank Top!

Kevin Bacon was Jay's first guest... and during the commercial break, he smiled and winked at me. He was very friendly, and not at all creepy like I thought he would be.

The other two guests were Kim Raver and Amos Lee.

SUCH great fun to watch a show in production. Afterward, we drove around and tried to get into other studios, but no luck. We did see Zach Braff driving his Porsche down Olive Street after leaving Touchstone Studios, but couldn't catch him. So we headed back to the hotel to figure out what we were going to do that night.

When we pulled in to the valet parking area at our hotel , the bellman asked if we were there for the premiere. "Of what?" we asked. "Miss Congeniality 2," he replied. We told him no, and thought we could walk down to Grauman's (a block away) and see if we could up our star count for the day.

It was CROWDED. People were mobbed everywhere. Limos were lined up and famous people were spilling out all over the red carpet. And we could get NOWHERE NEAR IT. The hoards of fans were kept at bay by dividers, and security was everywhere. We tried to go across the street, then around to the opposite side, and still saw no one. I told Mel we should have come over in a limo. They would have let us right in. Just as we were giving up to go back to the hotel, one of the WB Studio guys came over and asked if we were together and if we would like to see the movie tonight, cause he had a couple of extra tickets.

I had already seen the movie at a sneak preview with Rick on Monday night in Las Vegas. And it wasn't all that great. In fact, Rick summed it up best with this review:

"It was the best sequel I have seen since "Speed 2!"

So I wasn't too excited about seeing the film, but it was obvious this WB guy chose Mel and I cause we were cute (cause there were plenty of un-cute people around us at the time). And Mel hadn't seen the movie, so we accepted. And it gave us another chance to hang with the stars.

Oh, and did I mention free soda and popcorn? Yep.

So the movie sucked just as bad the second time, but it was cool that we were in there watching it with Sandra Bullock and Regina King and William Shatner and that funny smiley dude from Drew Carey and the rest of the cast (and, actually, Melissa was technically in the movie as an extra, so really we deserved to be there, cause she is in one scene!).

After the movie, we said hi to William Shatner who was really creepy looking up close and I think pretty terrified of us. In the lobby I spotted a few of the other actors in the film, and then Mel and I both saw ROB REINER! Mel shook his hand and we both said hi and how much we admired him and wished we weren't so geeky when we met famous people cause we would have discussed with him that The Princess Bride is our favoritest movie that ever was made.

We were *THIS CLOSE* to sneaking our way into the Premiere Party when we chickened out at the last second (had we just walked in with the crowd we would have been fine, but we got skeeeeeeeeered).

We decided to instead go back downstairs and get something to eat (and it was now 10 p.m.) and then on our way downstairs we saw Jerry from ER and tried to talk to him for a bit, but it was pretty obvious he was terrified of us too. Our "be cool when we see famous people" schtick was obviously not working. :p

As we had dinner at CPK , we reflected on our great day. And it was indeed great. And then the waitress asked if we were 21 when we ordered our drinks.
Life is good. :)

Off to L.A.

Melissa and I are taking a "girls trip" to Los Angeles. We are going to see a taping of Jay Leno on Wednesday afternoon and then do the whole tourist thing. It's gonna be awesometastic. We are also going to search for Zach Braff and do our best to find him, possibly on the set of Scrubs. Not totally sure how we are going to pull off our little escapade, but if Jessie Baldwin wants to do something, she usually finds a way. ;)

I'll be back Thursday evening. Rick gets to play Mr. Mom (his favorite role) that day... the kids will love it. And I will love sleeping in on Thursday morning!

You put the lime in the Coke...

I have a new favorite way to drink my Coke. With Lime.
Yummmmmmmmmmmmy.

So I was happy about that. My week was starting off very well.
I am getting my hair and eyebrows done this afternoon, so I will be cute for my trip to LA with my friend Melissa. We are going to try and get on Leno on Thursday. She has a "connection" there that supposedly has tickets for us... we'll see... :)

Oh, and Lanna from CK called me with an Honorable Mention nod. Looks like they don't hate me after all. I'm not supposed to share this with anyone just yet, so don't tell. I think the winners get announced in a couple of weeks. But, yeah, that did put a bigger smile on my face. :)

Won't you be my neighbor?

I don't know if I have mentioned the neighborhood association saga yet. We have a beautiful, gorgeous neighborhood of wonderfully, friendly people. The kids play in the park behind our house or ride bikes in the road out front. In the evenings (especially this time of year!) everyone is out on their front porches, chatting and catching up. Everyone loves to play catch with our dog Barabbas, trying to see how far they can throw the ball before he catches it. Everyone enjoys each other's company. That is, everyone except the couple that lives on the corner right across the street from us.

They are weird.
They are in their early 30s, so they aren't crotchety old people. They have lived there as long as we have. No kids, no pets. When they come home from work, they pull their car into their garage and close the garage door before they get out of the car. The only time I see them outside of their house is when they check their mail, and they do NOT say hello. Especially the wife. She won't even make eye contact. They are very weird. The husband has talked to us a couple of times - once when we were working on our front yard landscaping, and another time when we were at the mailbox he said hi. That was about it. And I think it's cause I said "hi" first.

So last November I get a letter from the neighborhood association that our dog is "running loose and defecating in the common area." Our dog goes nowhere without us, and if he poops, we get a baggie and clean it up right away.

I called and asked for proof that it was my dog and they said all they had was an anonymous phone call from a neighbor a few days earlier.

The following month, we got another letter. This time it was a violation notice. The "anonymous neighbor" has complained again. I fought it with the association and said without proof and photo evidence, I will not acknowledge it. They dropped the issue.

Well, on the 10th of the month, the kids and I (as we always do) went to check mail with Barabbas. On our way back, Barabbas laid down on the neighbor's grass, waiting for us to cross the street. At that exact moment, our neighbor came out of her house, on the phone with the association, complaining about the dog. Did she even bother to acknowledge ME, who was standing right there???? NOPE.

The following Tuesday I got a letter... another violation notice and now I must appear before the Board because of continuing complaints.

Um, hello! This is the SAME NEIGHBOR EVERY TIME!!! It's not "continuing complaints..." it's ONE PERSON blaming his dying grass on MY DOG.

*** I should add that the dying grass in his yard was a result of him fertilizing it with winter fertilizer in the spring and therefore burning his grass, resulting in him needing to replace it all ***

I was FUMING. So I took the rest of the week to collect myself, got a pretty flowering plant, and brought it over to him, offering a peace offering and asking if there's anything I can do to repair our neighbor-to-neighbor relationship. He admitted that there was poop on his front yard and he reported it, and that it may not have come from my dog (nice). I told him that if he ever finds poop in his yard that I will personally remove it, if it's from my dog or not. He also told me that his landscaper told him that dog urine caused all his grass to die. Funny, that dog urine is high in nitrogen - just like the fertilizer he used. So was it dog urine? I doubt it. Unless a herd of dogs had been pissing all over his grass - and NO ONE ELSE'S. But he did thank me for coming over, and I reiterated that I would be more than willing to clean up any mess from my dog I saw... and that I would do my best to keep Barabbas off his yard when we went to get the mail. He seemed fine with that.

We'll see how many months it takes for him to change his mind.

And I *still* have to appear before the Board next month. Great.

Measuring

My self worth with a contest...
I've got to stop doing that.
I know it's not right. I know I am a good scrapbooker. Yet when I heard that all the Hall of Fame winners have been called, I was (and still am, frankly) upset.

I look at my work. It's awesome. Not a single layout in my whole entry bugs me. They are all fantastic. I love what I did. I kicked my art up several notches. I feel like I am at the top of the heap. Everyone who saw my layouts said the same thing.
"These are amazing!"
"Your best ever! I can't believe how great these are!"
"You're a shoe-in!"
And I believed them.
Were they just being nice? Trying to make me feel good? Trying to butter me up? I don't get it.

This contest is considered, in the scrapbooking community, the pinnacle of a scrapper's career. Once you make Hall of Fame, you have arrived. Manufacturers come to your door wanting you to do stuff for them and get paid. People send you places. You get book deals. You get serious recognition. That's why I wanted it. I knew the opportunities that awaited the winners of the contest. I wanted to be one of them. I reeeeeeeally wanted it.

I will be fine in a few days. But for now I need to be pissy about this.

oh and can I just say

that the whole pinky-toe side of my foot is bruised? It's pretty grody looking. I can't wear ANY shoes... only my flip flops. Thank goodness for Rainbow sandals. ;)

for those of you wondering...

how my son got on the counter in the first place, he was brushing his teeth - he gets on the counter and straddles the sink. the only problem was that his toothbrush was put into the toothbrush holder upside down, and when he tried to pull it out, it wouldn't come right out. so he pulled harder. and i think you know the physics of what happened next.

My morning. (I am not making this up!!)

Today is the start of "call week" where Lisa from Creating Keepsakes magazine calls the winners of the Hall of Fame contest. I will be a nutcase every time the phone rings. I will also be checking the messageboards and email constantly for any sign of the calls having started. The winners cannot reveal who they are, so if anyone gets called they need to announce it online anonymously so that their identiry isn't revealed until the announcement day in May. I decided I needed to prepare for the week, so I cleaned the house really well last night and have already planned out the week's worth of dinners. I checked my email this morning... nothing (of course). That's okay... the week has only just begun.

I *needed* to take a shower. I was funky.
The kids can fend for themselves for two minutes.
I get into the shower.
My hair is nicely lathered with shampoo.
All of a sudden, Violet comes running in.
"MOMMY!! RILEY FELL OFF THE COUNTER!!!"What?!?!!?I turn off the shower, look around for my towel (WHERE IS IT??!?!), can't find it, jump out, and as I jump out of the shower, my pinky toe stays in for a second.
Now I am naked, wet, dripping, with a pinky toe that is sticking straight out to the right. That can't be good.
So I hop, naked, wet, dripping, with shampoo getting into my eye to the kids bathroom, where Riley is on the floor crying.
Violet described to me what happened. He was sitting on the counter and fell backwards - did a complete back flip and landed on his butt on the floor.
No bumps, all his extremities seem to work...
I ask Violet for the flashlight and she brings it in. His eyes are fine. WHEW.
Oh yeah.
I am still naked, dripping, shampoo in my eyes, and hopping on my broken toe that *REEEEEEALLY* hurts.
And all I can think is how funny it would be if Lisa called me *RIGHT NOW.*
But she didn't.
Whew.

updating.

liane is in town. we saw hitch. it was hilarious. i found a kindergarten for violet. riley is potty training still. he has green poop. not sure why. rick has been working crazy long hours. i have been scrapping. the play room is organized. the system of bins is working. i am in a bible study/mom's group that is great. the kids love it. i love it. it's good. i made the best tortilla soup last night. i have lost five pounds. i know this cause i broke down and bought a scale last week. liane is irritated cause i am not blogging more. i promise i will do better. really. i promise.

back on track...

or at least back ;)

I finished and sent my Hall of Fame entry with nary a moment to spare. It arrived safe & well on Thursday at the CK offices. One less thing off my plate. Next was preparing for Atlanta. I got to break in Rick's new luggage set... and it worked perfectly!! The big rollie-bag for clothes & stuff, the medium rollie-bag for scrap supplies and the little shoulder bag for my carry-on stuff. I packed several books to read on my down-time and lots of cute & sassy clothes (many thanks to e-Lan).

My flight for Atlanta left on Thursday at noon-ish... we dropped off Violet at class & Riley at gymnastics (with Miss Valerie) while Mr. Jim drove me to the airport. I was so excited about the plane flight... direct to Atlanta... and it even was showing a MOVIE!!! "Ladder 49" - one I haven't seen yet! I rented the little cheap headphones for $2 so I could see it. On the flight I had an ENTIRE ROW OF SEATS ALL TO MYSELF!! It was AWESOME! By then I was exhausted and decided to stretch out... just for a minute.... and slept the entire way there. I woke up just before the plane made it to Atlanta.... oops! So much for the movie!

The temperature when the plane landed (at 8 p.m.) was 27 degrees....eeeeeeeeeeeee...... I was ffffffffreeeeeeeeezing!! At baggage claim, my bags were the *LAST* ones off the plane. Everyone had gotten their stuff and left and I was standing at an empty carousel, freaking out a little, when the bags popped up right over the side. WHEW!! Took the shuttle to the hotel to meet my roommate, Ursula, whom I have known online for a long time, and also designed for Michael Miller Memories.

The Hyatt was nice - not amazingly swanky, but not bad either. I think I was expecting nicer... but it was actually decent. All our food expenses, etc. were picked up by the company, so we enjoyed some decent meals at local restaurants. Friday we went to a place called "Ted's Montana Grill" which was excellent. Saturday was "Mary Mac's Tea Room" and lots of Southern comfort food. Sunday we attended an awards dinner and the food was awards-dinner-esque. Decent but obviously catered for the masses. Monday was our staff meeting and an EXCELLENT catered meal at the hotel. That one was awesome.

The week was nonstop. We'd get up at 6:30 a.m. and not go to bed till 1:00 a.m. every night! The show was usually 8-5 or 8-6 a.m., but there were all sorts of events after the show we were attending, from meetings to dinners to meeting friends... and, well, you can imagine, I never cracked open my books once. I had a great time getting to know the other Memory Makers Masters, as well as many other people I had never actually met in real life. At the booth I wore pink & green polka dotted jammies and did product demos and make & takes. It was all the talk of the show. :) Everyone wanted my jammies!

Monday I walked the show floor with a fellow Master, Samantha, and the two fo us made some connections. Sam was offered a product line deal from a MAJOR company. There are a couple of companies really interested in seeing what kinds of product line I can design for them (WOW!!) and then another company owner was discussing with us the pros and cons of designing for another company or owning your own and being in control. Either way it's a big decision to make. I wish I knew the right thing to do!! I have a lot of work ahead of me.. I need to get myself going to pitching my product ideas if that's the way I want to go. Otherwise I need to be developing my line and starting a company... lots to think about! aahhhhhhhhhhh

Even thoughI missed my family tons, the week went by tooo darn fast, and before I knew it I was heading on a plane back to Vegas. Once again I had a row all to myself and once again I fell asleep, missing the movie.. this time "Friday Night Lights."

It's good to be home... now will someone help me unpack??!

everything & stuff

I know I am a procrastinator. Always have been. It's like a sickness. I swear the muse will never hit me before 10 p.m. So, naturally, because my trip to Atlanta for the CHA convention is less than a week away, I am faced with a MOUNTAIN of deadlines, projects, and just general *STUFF* that I reeeeeeally need to finish. Good news is that no matter how much I have to do, somehow I end up getting it done.

The problem?

Since having kids, my impeccably timed Muse/procrastination gene is now not allowing me enough time to get things done. At least that is how I feel. Don't get me wrong, it will still get done. But I am guaranteed to have some sort of meltdown between now & then. Oh wait... I think that's always happened too... *sigh*

So here I am, procrastinating again by blogging instead of doing my journaling on the computer. This is what I am supposed to do with my precious computer time that comes few & far between with the kids. I usually have about 15 minuted in the morning, another 30 minutes midday, and then after Rick gets home in the evening I can have a block of computer time while he entertains them for awhile.

My business cards arrived in the mail yesterday!! They are gorgeous. (I have blurred my address & phone number for security reasons)

I designed the background myself :)

I still need to create my portfolio & resume, work on a circle journal that I am exchanging with the other Memory Makers Masters, and decorate my name badge holder. Oh and I decided last week to officially enter the Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame (HOF) contest... I have been toying with the idea but had decided not to enter because it's too much stress and too much headache... especially right before the show (entries are due in-house on Feb 11th). Then last week three awesome ideas came into my head and I figured out a really unique texture technique as well... and all of a sudden my hat is in the ring. What's a little more stress in my life? Somehow I think I subconsiously live for the pressure. Really I just can't let a big competition go by without entering. I can't win it if I'm not in it!!

For the next several days I will be surviving on Starbuck's coffee to keep me awake into the wee hours. Should be an interesting ride! I can't wait to see what happens at the end.... ;)

Oh and major thanks to my awesome husband Rick for getting me the amazing HP Photosmart 8450 printer. At least I won't have to worry about printing my photos & layouts at Sam's Club... I can do it all at home... at 3 a.m!

Update on the kids (since I guess you guys want to know about that too...) ~
Riley's talking in complete unintelligible (except by me) sentences. It's hysterical. He also repeats EVERYTHING his big sister is doing/saying. Gymnastics is sooo much fun. He can now do the "bear" and the "table" and all the stretching exercises. He's learned how to dismount off different apparatus with a "stick and finish" move that is soooo cute. Potty training is taking a back burner as yucky poopses the last couple of days has led to a mean case of diaper rash. Violet is really into "reading" things and has about 10 sight words that she can identify regularly (aside from hers and our names). It's so exciting. She'll be actually reading in no time, I am sure of it. I am most proud of this cause I haven't been pushing her to read... this is all on her own timetable.

Alright... computer time is nearly over and I *have* to get this journaling printed out for my HOF entry...