~Yes, That's My Child Screaming!~

Lock 'em up!!!

2011-07-21T17:15:00.001-05:00

I am so ready for back to school time! As a teacher and mother I am pumped! Yesterday we had a teaching conference and they asked us to pick which cat picture described us--I picked Party Cat! I am ready to make learning fun.
I am in need of a lock for my storage area--you know so the kids don't play with my teacher stuff when they are supposed to be on a bathroom break or something. I saw these cute new locks from Master Lock.

Totally cute, so I think it will work!
The Master Lock facebook page is here...
http://www.facebook.com/masterlock
in case you wanna check out other colors/models.
Do you remember using a lock in middle school (back in my day it was junior high school) on your locker? The worst was when it would stick and the bell had already rung!!!!
The best advice I can give parents and students for surviving the school year is to make sure to make time for relaxation. Take time as a family to spend time playing board games, seeing a movie,etc...Since I am a teacher, I make sure to leave my school aka work at the building and put on my mommy hat at home. :)
So I am sending everyone happy back to school wishes!!! :)
P.S. I am entering a contest for a Master Lock back-to-school prize pack as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club. Wish me luck!!!

Living Outside the Box!

2010-08-19T17:02:00.006-05:00

We were recently sent a fun toy by Ebeanstalk!

It's called Connect-a-Straws.
My five year old son Harrison had a blast with them.
You can make cool things like...

glasses to wear!

flowers! :)

wheels/cars!

And so much more...like headbands, belts, buildings,etc. I like the toy because it encourages creativity and outside the box thinking!
With so many toys to choose from, it's hard to pick out the perfect ones for your children. Ebeanstalk wants to make sure they have the best toys around and they could really use your help. Head on over to ebeanstalk and tell them what your favorite baby toys and kids toys are! It's important to them to provide great toys by age and the only way they can make sure they have the right ones is to get feedback from moms like you and me!

Much needed update time!

2010-07-11T12:03:00.004-05:00

What time is it? Adventure time! (Love that show...)

This summer is flying by too fast for me! We celebrated the 4th in our tiny town--hopefully I'll post some pictures soon.

I have been working in my classroom and on professional development with co-workers.

Our garden is growing like crazy.

Ben and I celebrated our 7th anniversary. :)

Our cat Angry ran away when a window was left open and the screen fell out of it. :( It has been 3 days now.

(Here she is with her baby Glitz-he was born on Mother's Day 2008!)

I keep dreaming at night that I find her. I am keeping the hope alive in my ♥.

My goal today is to sort things in my office. My teacher files are a mess! Oh, and to go swimming today.

Okay so I started thinking about my Christmas shopping list (yes, I start in July!) I have lots of nieces and nephews and of course, my little Harrison to buy for. Ebeanstalk to the rescue! lol I love, love to peruse their site.

We would get toys from them when Harrison was a baby and they were always good quality, and developmentally appropriate.

~This is the wooden bus we got for Harrison from ebeanstalk.~

All their toys are chosen by child experts and come with an instruction card. This instruction card rocks because it tells you why the experts picked this toy, how you can play with your child using the toy and even how to extend the play with graduated play ideas.

Looking for toys for your kids can be overwhelming! Ebeanstalk wants to make your search as easy as possible, but they need your help. Head on over to their website and tell them what the safest baby toys are, the best toys for 1 year olds, and the most fun toys for 2 year olds. Tell them about toys you don't like too! There is no way for them to know what babies and kids like unless we tell them.

So now I am off to clean!

Spammers are gone!

2010-06-25T12:25:00.001-05:00

thank you debbie :)

♥Happiness♥

2010-06-24T11:05:00.003-05:00

So much has come to pass since my last post!!
I neglected my online diary aka this blog for a year almost because I started teaching Prek in two different locations. Getting back into the swing of things after being a stay-at-home mom for four years was tough! I had sold/donated some of my teaching stuff--never really sure if I would return. Then I did and I had to collect/make new stuff! So it was like having my first year all over again!!
And I got re-exposed to cooties so I was sick A LOT. :)
But I realized that A)I was born to teach. This is what God instilled in me. and B)I am flexible and strong for being able to manage two different locations (inside daycares--my public school does PreK now inside daycares) plus two different elementary schools (where I filled out paperwork, copied, laminated,etc).
I really think every teacher has a grade or two that is close to their heart ♥. For me it has always been Kindergarten. Always. And for some reason it seems to always be the most competitive grade to get hired in--I guess Kindergarten is in the hearts of many. :) Plus, here in Oklahoma there are so many budget cuts and so many teachers without jobs.
I am blessed to have been hired so very early in a different school, different district and having my sweet, sweet Kindergarten again. I am excited!!!!
I kept hearing, "When God closes one door he opens another." And honestly, I kind of was not sure if the door was locked or going to open lol. I am so blessed and I want to give readers/friends hugs. ~***~
So I am in the process of organizing my home office...going through my teaching stuff and also sorting scrapbook stuff. Honestly, scrapbooking and art have not been a huge priority in my life. But I have that yearning inside to still create! I am sure once I settle into this school year I will start again.

Speaking of creativity!! My online friend Debbie Chavers is having an art challenge!!! Woohoo!!!!

Check it out at http://aparkview.blogspot.com/

If you want to do it, you can have until the end of the month, June 30th. The deadline is going to be the 25th (starting after this month).That's all for now...gotta go work in my office some more. :) P.S. Anyone know how to get rid of my spammers in my comments sections?!?!?

Hello.

2010-05-06T02:33:00.002-05:00

Old friend. I've missed you!

Santa Be Sketchy!!!!

2009-12-31T12:52:00.002-06:00

http://www.sketchysantas.com/

Let it snow?!?

2009-12-25T05:16:00.005-06:00

Merry Christmas friends!
I wished for a white Christmas and my prayers were answered...and then some!
I have lived in Oklahoma my whole life. I remember a blizzard when I was 5. Twenty six years later, we have a major blizzard!!
The weather man on Wednesday night said it would be a blizzard warning. Everyone was like, "yeah right. we will be lucky to get snow."
My husband Ben kept saying it would all melt before Friday lol.
He was so wrong...
This morning there was the plink, plink of ice coming down.
We kicked our own butts for realizing we had no isomelt/salt in the house. We only had a 1/2 a cup of kitchen salt and a little bit of car de-icer. I was really worried about the treacherous sidewalk to our mailbox.
We tried to clear it. And then the snow started!
And it snowed all day until 9pm.
So we had plans to see my husband's family in Yukon to eat dinner and exchange gifts. Then my dh's mom calls at like 11am to say they were heading out to my sister-in-law's to do it early. We debated about whether to go or not...
Ben had made an emergency grocery store run (*cannot* run out of chocolate milk in this house!) up the street about two hours before and it was slick but no biggie.
At noon we start to take things to the car. The snow is about 4 inches at this point.
The wind was horrible!!
It was blowing snow so you would be blind and my face still has freezer burn from just walking to the car. They said on tv the wind was making it sub zero in areas.
Harrison has his snow bib and boots on and is bundled up. I had all my winter gear on except a hat.
We start walking to the car...Harrison's snow boot gets stuck in the snow and his sock gets covered with snow! So I go back in to grab a hat for me and new socks/boots for H. I also grab some bottled water bottles, wrapped rice krispy treats and two blankets out of concern.
We start driving down the road...not too bad...then once we get on a main street it is terrible!!! The wipers would get stuck to the windshield even with defrost on high. The snow was blinding. You could not see the car in front of you. If you rolled down your window in an attempt to see, the window would get stuck, snow would blow in your face and you still could not see anyway.
Ben was yelling at people because so many would drive by with no lights on. Some people had hazards flashing. Ambulances/fire department trucks would drive by. People were getting stranded. Some were trying to wait it out in parking lots.
It got bad fast.
I knew there was no way we could make it on the highway.
We got about 4 blocks away from the house and decided to turn around. Honestly, we should have never left the house!!
It took us like 45 minutes of an ordeal to get home!!!!
We saw a major accident and turned off to avoid seeing someone hurt/dead (help was already on the way--we could hear the sirens).
I saw people trying to walk in it!!
We argued in the car--Ben was like, "the best thing to do is leave the car and walk." I was like, "No, the only way to survive is stay in the car, crack a window a tiny bit to let CO out, and run the car on/off for heat." I was sooo thankful that I had nagged him into filling up the tank the night before!
Then we argued over bad grandma/good grandma because Ben's mom was so insistent we try to go to Yukon just to exchange gifts and I said my mom kept calling to tell me NOT to take her grand son out in it.
It got so bad I thought we would be stranded. I started crying about two blocks from our house. I was sooooo relieved when we pulled in our driveway!!!!
The wind made huge snow drifts! I went and measured some in our backyard and they were 1 1/2-3 feet!!!! What?!?!
So about 20 mins. after being home and drying my poor baby boy off, the phone rings. Ben's mom saying not to come out, and that they were home already and Ben's brother was stuck in his SUV about 9 blocks away from us. She wanted to know if Ben could pull him out. Ben starts out the door and I am like, "Dude...you need kitty litter, salt, bleach, a rope,etc". I think he was just in a rush to help his brother but he grabbed the stuff after I said that.
His brother called as Ben was pulling out the driveway to say he got unstuck. Thank God!!!!
I have been keeping up with the live feed from Channel 5 KOCO. There are people having to sleep in their cars tonight.
KOCO quotes--
"Stuck @ work for 24 hours! The sun better burn a hole in the ice and get me home!!! So tired!!! Can Rick or Rusty make this happen?"
"Tony McCarty from EMSA says they've been busy overnight taking care of folks who can't get to the hospital. Tony stresses not to call EMSA if you're stuck in the snow. EMSA is keeping busy right now with medical emergencies."
"I have heard about Fire Trucks being stuck and they are just leaving them."
"Please..anyone.. Husband never made it home yesterday and still no word...was traveling on 152 in Mustang..need any information thats available"
"Mark Opgrande reporting that lots of folks probably had to spend the night in their cars along I-35 in Norman."
They closed highways/turnpikes and declared it a state of emergency around 3pm. Snow finally stopped at 9pm.
This is sooo crazy and sad. I know this is going on in the North but think about it...it snows heavy there all the time so they are prepared/used to it---we are not.
So the lesson of the story is be careful what you wish for when it comes to white Christmases!!!
***Video and pics coming soon from the blizzard. Since I had my camera with me the one thing to keep my mind off us crashing/getting stuck was to take pics/vid.******

Massive posting ahead. Just saying.

2009-12-23T04:42:00.005-06:00

Merry Christmas luvs!

A whole month went by. Did you miss me? LOL
I got so busy with family stuff (my dad had some problems) and work stuff that my poor blog went neglected for a bit, but guess what?!? I have two weeks of no work for Christmas Break! Yay!!!

And I so needed it! Those kids, God Bless 'em, were driving me a little insane. Along with the demands and all the PAPERWORK that comes with the job. I teach at-risk kids so dealing with the parents can be tough,too. I really think next year will be a smoother year for me...
here's hoping!

So today I debated about getting a turtle! I saw one locally for free, and it was just so adorable. Then I realized it would live to be 100+ and get huge (this was like the big ones from the zoo). So I said no thanks to my turtle pet. I really worry I am trying to make my own house into a zoo!

I scored some free MegaBlocks for my classroom from freecycle. I love freecycle!!
Today I took H to McDonald's. He is on an Avatar toy kick and what can I say, I am an enabler...and I treated myself to a small hot chocolate. Never had one from McD's before. Oh my lambs!!! It was soooo good. I was licking the inside of the cup!

I got my hands on some Zhu Zhu pets (thank u Craigslist!) a few weeks back and now I am looking for some accessories for these guys. I would love to get a car and one of the exercise balls. I know the carrier/blanket would be a no go for H because I honestly could not see him using those. I feel a little naughty--like I feel lame for following the trend and being "one of those parents." BUT you know what?

I remember the Cabbage Patch Doll and when I unwrapped my PollyAnna. Still have her. *BEST FEELING IN THE WORLD*!!! So that is why I turn into sucker mom on a mad hunt for Zhu Zhu stuff.

Christmas came early for me...I got to see my gift ahead of time! LOL DH bought me a stunning necklace but was not sure on chain size so I got to peek at the pic of it online. I cannot wait to have it around my neck. I like shiny stuff!

So yesterday we made my favorite Christmas recipe...Christmas Wreaths. And then I ate a lot of them and got burned out on eating anymore. Which is good.
Here is the recipe:

Christmas Wreaths

1/2 cup butter
4 cups miniature marshmallows (or 40 large marshmallows)
1 teaspoon green food color
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups corn flakes
Red hot candies/m&m's (we use red icing)

In 2-quart saucepan melt butter and marshmallows over medium-low heat,stirring nonstop. Mix in food coloring, vanilla extracts, then corn flakes.
Drop by spoonfuls on waxed paper.Quickly with buttered fingers, shape into wreaths and decorate. We make dots with the icing and a bow out of icing or you could use m and m's/red hots.
Cool completely. Store in air tight container.

This is such a bad sign...when you are at work and you think all day long about reuniting with your favorite Mexican restaurant. Love. I am in love with a Mexican restaurant. Not just any fling, true love!

The view from the main entrance...

When I was a young girl my parents would take me to Laredo's. I had my high school graduation party on their patio. Tasted my first *real* Margarita there.
I really think they sprinkle their food with crack. This is my theory anyway. Amazing stuffed poblano peppers, real fat tortillas, real salsa, and the most amazing sour cream chicken enchiladas I ever had. A sopapilla the size of a baby's head.

Beauty.

Ben met my outer family members there when we got engaged. :)
We went there frequently (like every weekend) when we were newlyweds. We would eat on the patio on summer nights...sometimes while Edgar Cruz would strum his guitar.
We announced to my family our pregnancy there.
Then after having baby H we went a few times but taking care of a newborn leaves you little opportunity to get out and about.

Carved wood doors...

One day the worst thing happened...they closed. Not just closed, the building was gone!
I remember being so excited and pulling up to the empty parking lot. Crushed.
Fast forward a few months later...I see an elegant building with a huge dome from the highway...drive by and it says "future site of Laredo's". Could it be?? My prayers were answered? Was I hallucinating?!?

Yes, I took a photo of the bathroom...

I waited long. And hard. Finally they opened. Harrison--4 now--enjoyed it just as much as I did. He ordered the molten lava cake for dessert. Let me tell you...their dessert is like something Chuck Norris would make if he was a chef--pure perfection. I had the arroz con leche--a treat my mother no longer makes ("I ain't no cook! Eat a bag of potato chips.").

xxlovesxx

So I knew this past weekend we were going to eat there to meet my brother Aaron's girlfriend Dawn. All week I thought about the restaurant. I seriously envisioned the plates. It got me through my week!!!! And on Saturday when I was reunited with my restaurant I ate for like 4 maybe 5 people. I had two margaritas (heaven) and so want to try their Millionaire Mojito next time. We had guacamole made fresh by Felipe, our waiter (with flourish and pizazz) at the table.
So Laredo's I love you. Never,ever leave me again!
Oh yeah, and I totally approve of Dawn!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2009-11-15T14:15:00.005-06:00

Okay, forget Thanksgiving. Seriously,with my family all we do is eat to the point we can't move, and fight. I'm a Halloween straight to Christmas kinda girl. Christmas decorations up? Check! And even if people think I am looney oh well. I would rather stare at my glittering tree than some cornucopia horn on my table. :)
So I am in the mood for Christmas, how about you??
I have been hoarding Christmas ideas and inspirations everywhere!
My son and little brother are really into funky dolls.
Like this one I found at Things I've Made.

Love it!! I love to make dolls so this one goes on my to-do list for Christmas.
Look at these homemade travel mugs!

Harrison is totally going to make a set for his grandparents! Can you believe you can get these babies at Dollar Tree? I love how you can personalize them. I have tons of scrapbook stuff we could use on them,too.
I think it would be fun to decorate a bag like this,too:

Source
Look at these adorable Martha Stewart santa treat boxes! I think these would be really cute for the kids to make in my PreK class, and then we could fill with some candy. :)

Martha Stewart Crafts - Holiday - Treat Boxes - Santa

So what kinda Christmas-y crafting/decorating/shopping have you been up to? I would love to know.
Oh, and one of my favorite vintage arts-y sites is having an Artsgiving Sale!!!

Through Dec 1, get 50% off everything in Artella’s Vintage General Store…plus bonus Gift Certificates and a whole bundle of free artsy eBooks. Check it out, here!
P.S. I am so glad I still have blog readers and friends. Thank u all for the nice comments and support! :) Hugs!

Hi old friend

2009-11-10T19:07:00.002-06:00

Hey there! Long time no blog. Sorry to leave you in the lurch. To say I have been overwhelmed is an understatement. I got sick on my birthday and over Fall Break--the one time I planned to have some down time! Grrr! Then my baby Harrison came down with H1N1. UGH!
And I am really have trouble balancing work and life. I have never had to teach two different groups of 20 kids. That's a heckuva lot of report cards to fill out (they were due recently).
So I am not here to lay all my burdens on you.
I last scrapped in August (a layout about my H). I plan on picking up my scissors again soon. In the mean time I have been hanging out in the Tip Junkie Community to get some inspiration. I have also started work on a new card kit club for my friend Jen, called Scrappin Goodies. Links coming soon, luvs!

Thank you all for the well wishes for my birthday and for me to get well.
Thanksgiving Break is coming up and I plan to visit all my friend's blogs soon.

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

2009-10-16T19:44:00.002-05:00

It was Tina's birthday on Wedsnesday. She was sick and still sick. Luckily it is fall break and she gets the opportunity for much needed rest. She just wanted to update everyone and to let them know that she miss blogging. I will try to post in the future and give my first hand account of being a stay-at-home day. HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRETTY PRINCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ben

Missed.

2009-10-02T08:42:00.002-05:00

Can I just tell you how much I have missed my little online community of bloggers and friends? Seriously.
Work is um, work. I had to stay late until 9pm Tuesday and until 7pm Thursday--my day starts at 6am. And there have been so many adjustments. My husband is now stay-at-home dad. He is a much better housekeeper than I ever was! Harrison has had to adjust to mommy working full-time. Sometimes its hard when he is crying at the glass door as I leave the driveway. Sometimes I come home and he's asleep and I feel like bad mom for not being able to spend time with him that day.
My dog Keely has turned into super-stalker! He waits for me and whines at the door all day. When I come home and take my shower, he jumps in and sits.
It feels good to know I am missed.
It also feels good to be back on my feet and into the work force. I think for me personally it has made me a little more independent. I find myself doing so much more on my own whereas before I really always made Ben and Harrison go with me--like when we went to the store, etc. I know it isn't like that with everyone. But I was losing a bit of myself. This is something I had to work through for myself.
One thing I have learned is whether you are a working mom or stay-at-home mom, it does not matter because we are ALL working moms. Seriously, I have been on both sides of the coin now.

So I have 40 students in two different locations. This has been a learning experience! I have to make two sets of everything. I have been living in my car. My feet hate high heels after having baby. I had to buy new clothes and jewelry because I was so year one (behind the times). I eat in my car (sandwich is the easiest). I am losing a lot of weight because I move more (dancing in PreK) and also sometimes I don't have time to eat lunch. I am not losing weight where I want to (my boobies). LOL.

Harrison started soccer. Ben volunteered to be the coach because they could not find a coach.

I have the little boy who kind of wanders around the field. "Hey,look it's a mushroom!" or he picks up grass and throws it in the air to watch it fall.

I know he would listen better if dad was not the coach but he just thinks its fun time with dad. We have a great team of 7 kids. It is co-ed and non-competitive (no score-keeping). The parents are all really nice,too. Soccer started the same day as my first work day. Yeah, we found that out the night before. That was CRAZY!
Then I lost my voice in the classroom for a week. FUN.
Last weekend we took Harrison to the Orr Family Farm.

We do this every Fall. So much fun!

They have pony rides, train rides, hay ride to get your pumpkin from the patch,fishing, giant corn maze, man-made maze, gem mining, campfire, petting zoo, milking a cow, go carts, carousel, free fudge! We spent the whole three hours there. We did it all.

The most funnest thing of all was the addition of something called Jumping Pillows. It is like a giant plastic pillow with air underneath it. Way better than a trampoline! You feel like you are flying in space. Seriously you can jump so high. And all of us as a family were on it, jumping away. My husband turned into a four year old. He was bouncing and falling all over the place. He kept falling off the side of the pillow into the sand pit. LOL
We came home with a pound and a half of fudge. They have so many tasty varieties.
Harrison bought an old-fashioned pop rifle and some sprinkled-covered gummy bears.

We found some small rubies and emeralds while mining. We found tons of crystals. So pretty.
Ben has been really good about taking Harrison to do a daily activity during the day like the park, library, Chuck E Cheese, zoo, etc. He was supposed to write a blog post but he forgot his password.
Today is my day off! Normally I work Mon-Fri but I had to stay late for Parent Teacher conferences (yeah my second week in the classroom) to have Friday off. Yay! We are going to Day Out with Thomas today. I asked Harrison "What are you going to say to Sir Topham Hatt?" "Hello!"

Still standing!

2009-09-27T20:30:00.003-05:00

I am still alive and standing! I have 7 days of work behind me. Boy, PreK is another world, let me tell you!!!! And I really,really,really miss being at home. :(
Ben is going to step in as guest blogger and post tomorrow afternoon about how it is being the stay-at-home dad. :) Stay tuned,friends!

Okay students

2009-09-18T21:46:00.004-05:00

Raise your hand if you feel like this:

Seriously that is an exact replica of my face right now.
You may wonder why I disappeared from the blogosphere.
MAMA GOT A JOB!!
I got a full time job teaching (yes, again). I am teaching PreK for two different schools so I teach AM at one school and PM at another, Sadly, my craft room is feeling deprived. My son is having to deal with mommy no longer being home and daddy being home.
It has been a twisted week. I got hired Wednesday a few hours after interviewing, and was teaching Thursday morning. Insanity! LOL Not only that we got a phone call Wednesday night saying, "Hey, Harrison has soccer practice tomorrow night and we need you to coach." So my husband is the coach now. Chaos! On top of that, teacher has caught a nasty cold. I guess I have no defense against the classroom cooties since I have not taught in 4 years. Oh, and guess what else happened? Teacher got a flat tire today. And it has been raining all week and the kids have not had recess. Madness!!!
So now you know why I look like a loon. I am going to spend some time this week working in my 2 yes 2 different classrooms so my blog may grow a little weeds but I promise you wildflowers soon. Still thinking of my bloggy friends and readers.
P.S. A new giveaway I found out about. This one is for nursing moms:
http://mommycommunity.com/2009/09/17/is-breastfeeding-difficult/

And I found out All American Direct is having a good sale on lots of stuff like Toshiba and Mistubishi LCD HDtvs. Just go to
http://allamericandirect.com/?cid=400604
Save an additional 10% with the promo code--
the promo code is "SAVE10" and it is good until Sunday, the 20th.

The post that almost wasn't!

2009-09-11T17:45:00.003-05:00

We have been dealing with storms here lately and unfortunately, my electricity has been a flashin' so that is why I named this post appropriately: the post that almost wasn't!
I haven't been up to my usual blog stalking but I did manage to visit my friends at Roots and Wings. They made an adorable garland using a free template from Paper Crave.
Now, I am not much of a seamstress. And I have a short attention span. So it took me three days to make my Halloween garland but here it is:

Close-ups:

The template looks something like this (but without the paint)

Harrison wanted to feel a part of the project so I let him paint the patterns. :)
He also made his own Halloween decorations with me:

I love the pumpkin's unibrow!

We ran errands all day yesterday. I really hate it when we are stuck in the car all day but sometimes it happens. We were looking for Halloween decorations, some vintage cowboy shirts, vintage boots, and a new wallet for Ben. I know-an odd mix of things to look for! lol

We started out at the Rink. Our favorite antique store. There is a whole section of cowpoke stuff. We do live in Oklahoma so I guess that kind of stuff is easy to come by.
I scored some amazing vintage Wrangler shirts for Harrison. He put a Little Pony in the cart (for mommy, he said).

So it started clouding up. We stopped at Target and Party Galaxy. I feel like a real Target zombie. I step in that store, gush over the cuteness and new stuff, and totally forget what is on my list. Then I fill my shopping cart with future regrets...it's a fun game!

(cowboy statue)
End up near the stockyards. Old part of Oklahoma City. Real cowboys abound.

See? There is even a skull arch over the cobbled and bricked streets.
We head back home just as it starts pouring outside. It floods a little. The electricity goes in and out. Typical Oklahoma weather. I am still on the hunt for cowboy boots for boy's size 12!
Let's think about something positive...
I think we could use some Flickr inspiration today...

1. ~ DROPS ~, 2. "Our Colors", 3. can you see what i see?, 4. Bom dia* 6f /Good morning*Friday, 5. sweet little things of sweet little child., 6. glow, 7. John come home, 8. Cool Camper, 9. Crossroad, 10. To Smell, 11. My 'Happy Meal' Version...

I was tagged recently by my friend A Little Bit of Scrap. I love going to her blog for knitty inspiration and I love her honesty.
So here are the Rules:
1. Put the logo on your blog
2. Write 5 things you are passionate about apart from blogging
3. Tag 5 people on your list and let them know you tagged them

Five Things I Am Passionate About:
1. My family. My son, husband,brother and parents.
2. Scrapbooking. I am a true paper nerd.
3. Candles. I hoard scents.
4. Books. I read daily. Usually before bed but I am always reading something. I would often beg my parents to take me to the library when I was little. I am so glad they always encouraged my literacy efforts!
5.My pets. Keely got a princess hat the other day. :) I love snuggling with my menagerie of pets.

So who am I tagging?
YOU! Anyone who feels like playing along.
Happy Weekend!

Fall is on its way...

2009-09-08T16:42:00.001-05:00

I don't care if it is only September. I am in total pumpkin carving mood today. I loved loved loved last year's Halloween mascot, Domo, at Target. Sharing the vid...
:) tina

Winner winner chicken dinner!

2009-09-01T02:38:00.004-05:00

I don't want to know why when I woke up this morning my dog had one of my socks on his head...
I won some really cute bows from Sarah Viera aka With Cherries on Top. She had a giveaway on her blog and I was so happy when my name was picked. I was even happier when I opened the package and saw how very pretty and well-made the bows were. Love!

Thank you Sarah!
I have started reading the Charlaine Harris novels that the tv show True Blood is based on. I have found it is so much easier for me to get sleep now that I make an effort to read before bed.

I am halfway through novel 1. :)

So today I thought I would share a few blog links to other blogs I love to read...remember there are more on my sidebars as well. Click on names to go there.
Urban Craft

Blogging Moms Anonymous (love the honesty)

decor8

The Courteous Chihuahua

Angela's Adventures and Minor Mishaps

Dollar Store Crafts

The Girl's Loft

Roots and Wings, Co.

Scrappin' Madge

Girls Wear Blue,too!

Thrifty Decor Chick

Kaiya's Laughter Heals

There are so many more,too--just so many great blogs out there!
P.S. In case you are wondering what our hot dog cookies ended up looking like:

They look a little scary (hey,it's hard to make a hot dog shape!), but they tasted great.

New layout

2009-08-29T03:55:00.001-05:00

Ben took this photo of me outside in the garden. Hot day, pasty face. LOL So of course, I had to turn it into a scrapbook page! :)

Have a good weekend friends! :)

Mission accomplished!

2009-08-26T11:48:00.004-05:00

Have I mentioned how much I love this boy??
Today I attacked the office (yeah, I am always doing something to my house) and I fought the battle...the battle of all the stray game pieces. They are sorted, ziploc-ed and shelved. Mission impossible--accomplished.
I came to the realization today that every room in the house really belongs to my son. Like I can look in every room and see toys,books,etc. And while yes, I miss adult time and adult things, I am really happy and content when I see evidence of childhood around. Someday he's gonna grow up and this little nest will be empty. No more legos stuck to the bottom of my bare foot, no more (creepy?) electronic toys going off on their own at night, and worse, no more warmy, bear snuggles in the morning. Instead I will be making phone calls saying, "Why don't you ever call your mama?!?" So hug your little ones tight today. And if your little ones have left the nest call them and say, "Why don't you call your mama?!?" lol. Seriously, life moves too fast! Who is in agreement?
Enough of the Hallmark posting. Let's talk about something more on the light side. We have plans to make hot dog cookies today. Hot dog cookies!!!

Recipe and photo found here!
Basically you take a butter cookie recipe, dye some of it red and some hot dog bun color LOL. Then you shape it like hot dogs and bake! Gel icing--yellow and red--make great toppings. Click the link above for the detailed recipe.
I am not too sure our version will look much like the recipe...we had an incident two days ago where we attempted to make cake suckers. Ummmm...they turned out non-edible. Let's just say you *should* follow recipes and not try to substitute stuff. Which reminds me I need to go buy eggs. :)
Have a happy hump day!!!

House Redux!

2009-08-19T06:12:00.004-05:00

I have photos to share of our house re-do. Ummm...yeah I really did not think to take before photos but trust me, our house was borderline fugly. (Hint: If you look back through the archives you can probably see some of the house hot mess going on...) The living room carpet was only 3 years old but I had picked out forest green thinking it would hide stains. Three years later, I never want to see green carpet again! We tiled the living room, kitchen (yeah this is the like 4th kitchen floor we have changed in the 8 years I have owned it), and new bathroom tile. I like tile. Sooooo easy to clean ceramic tile with my steamer. So easy to wipe up spills. And so much better for our allergies.
Oh and I have to share my favorite quote with you!
"A good home must be made, not bought."
- Joyce Maynard
(as seen on Thrifty Decor Chick blog-thanks!)
So here we go...
Here's the tile:

bathroom:
We wanted the theme to be vintage and French. We wallpapered the wall and did a copper/gold treatment on it.

The outlets have stone plates.

This copper mirror was a wedding gift from my cousin Carlos. It actually inspired the wall treatment and fit in well with the theme.

French print

bathroom mirror edge

hook for hand towels

hook for large towels
We said goodbye to towel bars!!

The faucet. Love the bronze look!

Soap dispenser.

This is a decorative piece that sits on the sink vanity. I found it at Hobby Lobby and squealed (really!) because it matched the sink and my theme so well and it was on clearance!

Vanity/sink.

The bathroom trim. I stained it myself. :) We have it running on the top of the walls,too, and smaller ones on the edges.

TP holder. We put it vertically instead of horizontal.

Shower curtain with new bronze hooks. From Home Depot.

My lights. My love. :)

My favorite piece! The gold and copper fish soap dish. Made of glass.
Livingroom:

I love the trim!!! Seriously I love it chunky.

I am all about frames with no photos. I was really lucky my mom gave me these heavy,heavy brass frames from India. She had painted them white and they look great in my house now! I think I have about 20 of them. :)

The entry way to Harrison's room.

He has a new vinyl robot on his door from Michael's.

living room

Ceiling fan.

Front door. The cross above the door has a prayer blessing everyone who enters and leaves.

New red cover for leather cub chair.

This print has so much meaning for us. I bought it online from Red Velvet Art (my fave store!), and I gave it to Ben for Valentine's because he loves The Pixies and this is one of their lyrics. But I also have always nicknamed Harrison "La" because that is how he cried when he was a newborn. It sounded like "La a la..." So its cute that it says La La I Love You on the picture. Oh, and it totally fits our living room. Serendipity, I tell you!

Shabby chic key from Hobby Lobby.

Our new flatscreen. And yes, that is a wooden time out chair.

This armoire holds all our computer and printer stuff. It keeps the ugly stuff outta view.

New curtain rods, new valance and wood blinds.

These are vintage steel stars from some older building knocked down in OKC.
Kitchen:

This candlelabra is hanging by the dining table. We got it from ebay.

Custom pantry my husband Ben built. Yes, built.

It is floor to bottom and made of pine. I painted it French Chocolate. Love it!!!

Kinda blurry but this is our new kitchen window.
I love it soooo much!
So that's the deets on our home renovation. And my dog Kipper aka DJ Kipper approves!

Featured Friday-Sarah Miller

2009-08-14T17:02:00.006-05:00

Guess what time it is chickadees???

Featured Friday!!! Have you missed it like I have? I think its been a month or so...
Today we are going to look at Sarah Miller's unique and fun creations!

Sarah!
1.Tell us a little about yourself.

I’m a wife, mother of four grown great kids, and a grandmother. I’ve been an artist since as long as I remember. I’m almost six feet tall on a good day.

Thanksgiving card. Love it!
2.What inspires you?

What inspires me is everything. I know that sounds like a cop out, but I get really blessed by looking at nature, people, fabric, some artistic blogs and I loved Home Companion magazine, but it is not published anymore…bummer.

Way cute!!!

3.What advice would you give to a beginner?

Depends on what type of beginner. If this beginner is a creator, of any sort, they should practice, practice, practice. Hang out with other creative people. Inspiration flows like lava in a group of creative folks.

4.What is your favorite medium or tool to work with?

My favorite medium is watercolor, then fabric. I’m also a nut about paper-crafting.

Very spring-y!
5. How do you find time to create?

I have health issues so I actually block out times on my calendar, and if I’m having a bad health day I move the time to the next day.

Summer card :) I love how it unfolds!!

6.Where do you spend most of your time creating?

In my laundry room where my studio is located.

This card is so elegant for Mother's Day and I love the colors!
7.What got you started?

I’m from a long line of artists; all it took was a crayon.

I love how the ribbon is woven around the edges of this Thanksgiving card.
8.How would you describe your style?

Realistic

Stunning.

I really adore this yo-yo Christmas tree and want one myself!!!
9.What do you enjoy most about creating?

It is a stress reliever.

Adorable sunflower basket!

The inked edges are an awesome touch!
10.Where can we see more of your work?
You can see my artwork on www.stetlerarts.com and my paper-crafting art on http://stetlerarts.blogspot.com

Thank you Sarah!!! :) Much love!

Hey, Who Are You?

2009-08-12T15:38:00.006-05:00

It's meeeeee!!! I am back after a week off.
Sometimes a busy, tired mom just has to take a break,you know?
Our days of summer are dwindling...the pool toys have all deflated from bite marks (thanks,dogs) and the school supply lists are monopolizing the store aisles. And I am a little blue to tell you the truth. Don't get me wrong I adore Fall. Mmm...baking apples, crunching in leaf piles, and non-sweaty weather. But I hate saying bye to the lazy days (really lazy in my case) of summer!
Oh, behold!! Our first bounty (okay,not) from our garden...I give you Mr. Zucchini.

We planted late so that why we just now got our first veggie. I cannot wait for the tomatoes to turn red.
I did some creating during my hiatus...

card

Layout for my art journal...trying a new style for me...stepping outside of my box!

I made thank you cards for Harrison--80s style and I wanted something boyish.
Next on my plate? Harrison and I are going to make these:

I love finding inexpensive ideas here.
http://dollarstorecrafts.com/

A toy website called ebeanstalk has a group of child experts that help select great learning toys and toys for kids of all ages, from baby toys, toys for 1 year olds, toys for 2 year olds, etc. I received the Activity Bus from Plan Toys who makes green developmental toys and this is what I think of the toy:

Harrison loved it!

See? His dinosaurs love it as well...

Argh...it came with two brightly colored wood people.
It is from Plan Toys.
http://www.plantoysusa.com/
Why do we love it?
From their web site: "PlanToys practices the "Three R's" of green living: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Our manufacturing processes are designed to reduce waste and save energy. We reuse materials, and have introduced innovative methods to recycle paper and other products. We are always looking for new ways to improve and preserve our environment. "
We love their stuff because
A. They are green. (See above).
B. Wood toys are hardy (trust me my son is rough!), unique (hard to find in stores), and clean up easily (hello, baby wipes!).
C. I don't have to worry about lead paint or unusual un-pronounceable chemicals in my child's toy. He puts it in his mouth and I don't have to worry about calling Poison Control! (Seriously, I had to throw away toys during the lead recall a year ago or so).
D. I love the colors and variety.
E. Most important--pricing! I have seen their catalog and love the affordability. I would buy more toys from the catalog for sure.
So check it out. Christmas is just around the corner!(Yes, I have started my Christmas shopping).
Harrison got his first tattoo, btw. LOL

We have been hanging at the zoo and science museum lately. I am totally in love with the white peacock at the zoo! I wish she/he? could come home with me...oh I bet it's a he because the she's never get the pretty long feathers. Bummer.

P.S. This is what happens when 4 year olds get a hold of cameras...

Mentalcation

2009-08-04T03:13:00.005-05:00

I'm on a mentalcation for a few days. Be back to blog soon! Hugs!

Happy Sunday

2009-08-02T06:42:00.000-05:00

http://www.leapfrog.com/en/freebook/form.html

Free LeapFrog Board Book!Enjoy. :) 6-8 weeks to ship.