Happy Birthday E!

Wow, here's the second birthday post in our family in as many weeks! We didn't really plan to have the boys during the same month, it just sort of happened that way. I've liked it so far, the first time around, because E doesn't have to get too jealous that it's W's birthday -- he knows is is just around the corner...

Well, what can I say? Having E certainly changed my life! I can hardly remember life without him. He's an amazing little boy -- so smart, so funny, so loving (when he wants to be). I had a fairly easy birth with him, and was really excited to start our family.


E has many talents, including telling jokes (ones he hears and ones that he makes up, which tend to be my favorite, haha), reading, writing, digging, creating 'inventions' (which remind me of my little brother thomas), and being a great helper to me. He is fast to do a favors for me when I ask him, and he loves to play outside. He's got lots and lots of energy, which is a blessing and a curse! He certainly keeps me on my toes.



The best part is being able to watch E as an older brother. While he gets annoyed at his little 'shadow' every now and then, he plays with him a lot and is always quick to share a snack, give a hug, and hold his hand. It's great to get to see.




We love you, E! Happy Birthday! :)

It's HERE!

Hey all, I just wanted to inform you that my new photography eBook titled "Let There Be Light: Basic Tips for Understanding and Using Light in Your Digital Photography" is now available in the Scrap Girls Boutique!

This is the eBook format of the class I taught at the Scrap Girls convention this past October. I put a lot of effort and work into it, and I'm pleased with the way it turned out. It's all about the different types of lighting that there are in photography, how and when to use them, and even a bonus section about lighting objects for creating digital scrapbook embellishments!

So go check it out, tell your friends and your mom, or even your postman. You never know who may be on the lookout for a good and easy read about lighting!

Random Things

Well, I dropped the ball and didn't post something about my Dad on his birthday, which was on Tuesday. In my defense, I was sick all day yesterday, when I had planned to post something, but it still would have been late.

So, boo.

In any case, my sister wrote a really glowing tribute to my dad over on her blog. You can read it if you're so inclined. And I would just say DITTO to everything she said. Except that my dad doesn't call me Emmie. But everything else works for me too. :D

Also, I have a new layout completed for my class. The assignment was to scrap about something people wouldn't necessarily know about you. This one was hard for me because I think most people who know me, know most things about me. I think I'm pretty transparent. But then I remembered that most people in my adult life may not know about an injury I had when I was younger that basically made me lose the sight in my right eye. You can read all about it in the journaling....







Journaling:

"One thing you wouldn’t necessarily know about me by looking at me is the fact that I can barely see out of my right eye. When I was about 11 years old, I was working at my parents’ bakery, and someone knocked a Rickey Lime Soda Snapple bottle off of a high counter and it exploded onto the ground. A small piece of glass shot straight into my right eye, shattering my lens and tearing a large whole into my cornea. It didn’t hurt very much, it just felt weird. My dad was there that night, and he drove home to pick up my mom, and they took me to the emergency room.

After that, it was all about surgeries and recovery and a replacement lens.

The accident left me with only a small amount of vision out of that eye - I can’t read or see distinct, sharp lines at all.

But the amazing part is how awesome the human body is! I can still use my peripheral vision, and my left eye has literally “picked up the slack” and has taken over for the loss. So much so that I don’t even notice it anymore. (Unless, of course, I’m asked what is something that people don’t normally know about me, haha.)"

The photos are just from my computer, so they're not great quality, but I used what I had to work with. :)

The layout uses: ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Pulled Stitches
From The Desk Of Collection Biggie
From The Desk Of Embellishment Mini 1 - Frames
Molly Milkshakes Collection
ScrapSimple Tools - Scripts: Supply Tracker 11101
ScrapSimple Tools - Scripts: File Save 2 11101


Oh, and one more thing -- anyone wondering how my discipline is going? This week it took a big hit. I started the week off lazy, then got sick all day yesterday (food poisoning, methinks) and now I've got lots to catch up on. And just to keep it real, by the time you read this post, the dishes that have been sitting in the sink for 3 or 4 days (seriously!!) will be done. Guaranteed.

PS: I love my husband. He's very diligent and hard-working and I'm just glad that we're together. This weekend I told him that I just needed a little break from the kids for a while, and so he watched the kids while I went to a fabric store all by myself and got to peruse and mull over samples and not feel rushed in the slightest. It was heaven, I tell you.

So thanks, babe, for all you do for me. You are appreciated. :)

What I Have Learned

Here's another layout from my class. The assignment was to scrap about a lesson you've learned recently. And I figured I've learned a lot about myself in the past few months (year, really), so I decided to scrap about that.

This layout is really simple because I wanted the journaling to stand out. And the photos don't really make sense with it, but I don't really care because I like them and I wanted to use them, haha.

PS: They're all taken with E's Fisher Price camera we got for Christmas, so the quality is terrible. But I love them anyway. :)

Journaling: "I have learned:

that i don't want to live on a budget and really watch my spending.
BUT I WILL.
that i don't want to do the dishes every single day.
BUT I WILL.
that i don't want to get sucked into watching american idol.
BUT I WILL.
that i don't want to get on the elliptical and work out.
BUT I WILL.
that i don't want to get out of my warm bed for a waking child.
BUT I WILL.
that i don't want to be a pseudo-single mom while the hubby works too hard.
BUT I WILL.

that some days i don't want to be tried and tested and challenged in order to show my strength as a woman, a mother, and a wife. BUT I WILL."

Supplies used: Splash Of Color Collection, Rollicking Collection, So Basically Collection Mini, ScrapSimple Tools - Scripts: Supply Tracker 11101, ScrapSimple Tools Scripts: File Save 2 11101, and ScrapSimple Tools - Actions: Magnetic Poetry 5001.

I was just looking through some old pictures for a project and I came across a series of these.



I cannot begin to tell you how happy it makes me to look at them.

I get just a little sad that we've grown up so fast -- all three of us older girls are married and having families, my younger brother is off doing his own growing up on a mission for our church, Angie is dating and driving, and little Jeff is certainly no baby anymore!

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I miss this time period a little bit. And looking at this picture makes me happy to remember it. Brings me so much joy. :)

Now Playing in my iTunes library

What is my current favorite song, you ask?

Oh, what's that, you say? You didn't ask? Well too bad, I can't hear you, I'm singing my favorite song...



And yes, I know, it's on the New Moon soundtrack. That's okay with me because I just really like the song. Ignore the video if you must, but listen to the song!

It's calming to me somehow....

There Once Was a Man From Nantuckett....

Just kidding. :)

But I did write a limerick today for the class I'm taking over at Scrap Girls. Our assignment was to scrap about a typical day and so after watching an episode of "Electric Company" on PBS and learning about limericks, I had an itch to write one. And darn it all, I think it turned out pretty good! One could say that I'm proud of myself even. Ha.

So here's the layout -- I have taken on the challenge of doing two-pagers for this class so that I'll have a full album when I'm done. So I'll show you the full spread, then the two sides so you can see the details close up.

Here's the poem:

"At six I should jump out of bed
At seven I roll out instead
Wipe the sleep from my eyes
And try to arise
As I plan out the day that’s ahead.

Get breakfast prepared for the kid
Find the shoes and the socks that were hid
Get them dressed on the stair
Try to do my own hair
And remember with the keys what I did.

Driving to the doctor who’s far
Staying dry safe and warm in the car
It’s time for W’s shot
In his little leg spot
He’s so brave -- he’s my sweet superstar.

Naptime comes ‘round in a hurry
The time of the day that I scurry
Do as much as I can
In a two hour span
About what I don’t do? I can’t worry.

It is time for a lunch that is good
Though my stinker is picky with food
Try a sandwich of jelly
That’s good for his belly
Oh the challenges of this Motherhood!

Dinner’s here before I can blink
Let the kids watch TV while I think
As I try to prepare
Baby’s in the high chair
And I reach for my favorite soft drink.

Then hubby gets home pretty late
Some days not ‘til seven or eight
Long is his commute
He spends all day en route
Lots of patience he must demonstrate.

Going to bed now is sweet
Reading our book is complete
The kids close their eyes
And I do likewise
For tomorrow it all will repeat!"


I'm sure you moms (and some dads) out there can relate!


What would your limerick say about your daily life?


This layout uses Little Birdy Collection, Just Be You Collection Biggie, Sweet Whispers Collection, Dynamic Brush Set: Fancy Glitter 6401, Assemble Your Own: Alpha Strings Biggie - White, ScrapSimple Tools - Scripts: Supply Tracker 11101, ScrapSimple Tools - Scripts: File Save 2 11101, Scrap Simple Tools - Actions: Magnetic Poetry 5001, Extra - Tape Embellishment, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Watercolor 4901 - Biggie, Assemble Your Own: Spiral Bound, and Life's Canvas Collection Biggie.

I miss my girls...

Nobody makes me laugh like my mom and sisters.










Case in point:

I miss you girls!! Wish we could see each other more often. Love you! :D

Happy Birthday W!!

Exactly one year ago today, at 2:23 pm, we brought our sweet little W into our family. It was such a great experience -- going through the whole process of labor again and the anticipation of it all, followed by that instant love that just knocks you off your feet. He was so cute, with that thick mop of dark hair and long, long fingers. I was so lucky to have a smooth birth, for which I'm very grateful.

West has brought a lovely spirit to our home, and has joined the family effortlessly. E loves being a big brother -- helping to get diapers when I need them or making W laugh when he's fallen down. And although we're now working on the whole 'sharing' thing, he mostly loves playing with his little buddy.



Now that W is 1, he's walking like a pro, saying "Mama" and "Baba" (which means his bottle), and he loves to do anything E does. He loves being chased around the house and climbs up on top of anything he can.

He has such a sweet disposition (unless he's teething, which he currently is), and is just generally a happy boy. We're so glad to have him in our family!



Happy 1st Birthday, W!!

For your viewing pleasure...

E should be the one trying out for American Idol! ;)