Glue and Popsicle Sticks

Totally Random Thoughts....

2012-01-28T12:08:00.003-05:00

I'm eating an apple while blogging on Colin's iPad.
I finally figured out my Pampered Chef can opener. Totally awesome btw, thanks You Tube.
I died a little on the inside when our high speed Internet wasn't working. If it wasn't for my Blackberry I may have totally lost it.
Just got home from the gym and the kids are with their grandparents and Matt is at work. I am so excited to take a shower in peace.
Going to purchase a new car seat today for Miss C, we have rewards dollars and Babies R Us has their trade in event going on.
I love saving money.
I am currently working on my Project Disney book. Each spread will be a summary of each of our past trips. I love that they will all be in one place and I will get see how our family and the park changes over the years.
It's really hard to type with just one finger while eating an apple.
Happy Saturday!

We Are...Because You Were

2012-01-22T12:48:00.001-05:00

How I Am Using Project Life....

2012-01-15T23:09:00.003-05:00

Yeah, I know.

If you read blogs or are on Pinterest. It's everywhere.

If not you can read about it here.

So I started thinking about this project 11/13/2009. This is the day that I decided to have a baby. I still have no idea what changed my mind that day I was driving to work, but I did, and that was the day our life changed.

So I started taking a picture everyday so I could document the process from infertility treatment to birth. I was so excited to keep track of every detail...and then I got pregnant and totally forgot how exhausting growing a person is. So I pretty much stopped everything related to memory keeping since I was just barely keeping my head above water. But now I am starting to feel little bits of my old self and I'm ready to tackle a project. (Or at least I think I am).

So I've decided to finish the album I started but also use it to catch up.
I have barely printed a photo in the last two years. TWO YEARS! Everything is kind of a blur from 2009 to now. One of the great aha moments of my life happened when I realized that I didn't have to try to take a photo for everyday or have a layout in this album for every week. Seriously this was a pretty life changing revelation for me. Yes, I know...I don't get out much.

So this album will cover weeks from 11/13/2009-January 2010. Then I got a little sketchy with taking photos and January-September 2010 will be months in review layouts. I am using We R Memory Keepers 4x6 page protectors for this project so months that I have 7+ photos get a 2 page spread, months with less than 7+ photos get one page. Again...LIFE CHANGING :-)

October it picks up again to weekly layouts since this is when Miss C was born and babies sleep so much at first and well I was excited and I took lots of photos. Yeah that didn't last long and once we get to January 2011 we are back to monthly highlights. This album will hold everything up until 2012. I plan on starting a new album and stick to the week in review approach.

I'm so stinking excited for this and I suddenly feel much for organized and less guilty about sleeping. And get this...I saw an idea to use this for frequent Disney trips and I was all like..."Hey that's us...we have 8 trips that are just waiting to be put somewhere." Again, LIFE CHANGING. Seriously.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-08T00:45:00.002-05:00

Yes, I realize that it is already seven days into January but this is the first chance that I have gotten to slow down all week. I am currently sorting through photos to attempt, again, to be successful with Project Life. If you haven't heard of it by now, you may be living under a rock, or you don't spend a great deal of time on the internet...good for you :-)

So for me this year, I purchased two styles of page protectors, (B and F) and a new We R Memory Keepers album that I was able to use a 50% off coupon. For everything else, I'm going to use what I have. I have so much stuff that has been collecting dust over the last year that it all seems like new product to me anyway. That's the one good thing of getting out of the whole publishing thing for awhile, the pressure to use the latest and greatest is gone. I can just use what I like regardless of when it was manufactured. Don't get me wrong, as soon as I can start fitting scrapbooking into my life again I will start submitting, but for now I am learning to appreciate the break.

Before I go, I just wanted to share a few photos of our Christmas holiday.

This is TJ, our very naughty elf. He is wearing the bow tie I made for Colin's Christmas concert. I originally volunteered to make 155 of them. Don't worry, I eventually came to my sleep deprived senses.

Reindeer Food and Teacher Gifts.

Eating our Gingerbread House.

Colin squeezing Miss C. too hard as usual.
I can't explain why his legs are in the air.

This is a weird face that Charlotte is making but it's the only one where she kept on her headband that I made her. I threw this together 5 minutes before we left for Christmas Eve dinner at my Mom's. Gotta love a glue gun and a cuttle bug.

Miss C. is starting to be much more aware of whatever Colin is doing and wants to sit right next to him or even on his lap. Keep in mind that Miss C. walks around like she owns the place so it is very possible that she thinks Colin is her toy, chair, servant etc but I still think it is cute.

Wi Fi Where Have You Been All My Life?

2011-12-29T22:15:00.002-05:00

As I sit on my couch soaking in all of the possibilities, I am in awe of technology. In just one day we have increased our online presence significantly with a new iPad and a Google TV. Santa was very good to us this year and we are truly blessed. It will take a little time for me to learn how to do everything I am used to doing on my regular computer but I hope to be able to blog more regularly. Because that, my friends, is the gift that keeps on giving :-).
So just a quick update while I learn to add photos to posts.
The kids are great although why any toddler should get 5-6 teeth at once is beyond me.
Miss C is running all over creation and wants nothing to do with being held and certainly does not require hand holding.
Colin has been enjoying his Christmas gifts even though he was really sweating the Santa stuff. He was sure the big guy was not coming to our house this year. Colin's doing well and being well, Colin. See previous sentence about being worried that Santa was not coming.
I have been trying to craft but it's been hard to make time. I'm hoping to start working on Miss C's newborn photos. Maybe that will get my butt in gear? It was around 18 months when I started scrapbooking for Colin so I only have a few more months, right?
Anywho that's a lot of words with no photos, I will post some Christmas photos soon. Promise.
I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

A Few Photos...

2011-10-24T23:22:00.002-04:00

Yeah, I'm a terrible blogger right now. It will get better...right?!?

SO over the last several months Colin has started first grade, Miss C has turned 1 and we visited Mickey and Jo Pa. See why it's been tough to blog, lol!

In the midst of everything I also need to make two costumes for Colin. One is a ninja as requested and the other is for All Saints Day for school.

Yeah, somehow I just think that things are going to get worse before they get better.

Have I mentioned that Miss C has started running?

Yep, totally going to get worse before it gets better :-)

Get the FREE Printables here, they are awesome.

Welcome....

2011-10-02T16:40:00.003-04:00

Seems only fitting that the first layout I completed is about Miss C's birth story.

This layout was completed with Vintage Vogue by College Press Studio for Pink Paislee.

On Saturday, Matt took the kids so I could spend some time cropping in the scrapbook store. It was great to just clear my head for a bit, spend some time away from the kids and just focus on something that makes me happy. I can't explain how much of a difference this makes. I'm so grateful for having the opportunity to have a little me time. I really didn't get that much done but at least I started. I'm thankful that I have been able to clean my room a bit and get reacquainted with my supplies.

The one benefit of not scrapbooking in over a year is that all of my supplies are new supplies, (well at least to me, lol!)

I have to admit that when I received these lovely supplies from Pink Paislee, I was just grinning from ear to ear when I opened this box. So maybe I should thank them for helping me find my mojo again. Thanks so much Miriam and College Press Studio for thinking of me. You really made my day!

Two Posts in the Same Week....

2011-10-02T11:47:00.003-04:00

What's even more surprising is that I scrapbooked yesterday.

Seriously, I hardly believe it either.

This is prompted the urge to clean my craft room. I forgot how much being creative gets my butt in gear. All of my laundry is sorted. Baskets that have been sitting upstairs since we left for the beach, in August, are put away and I even baked snacks for Colin.

It feels good to be me again.

So while I'm cleaning here are a few photos from the summer. Enjoy and I will be back with an actual layout. :-)

So Much to Catch Up On....

2011-09-28T08:40:00.003-04:00

But first I wanted to post about something that is very important to me. I first heard about milksharing in the news with angry mobs of people denouncing the practice and participating in the traditional mommy wars. I am always surprised at how hot buttons issues can bring out the best in people when they have a computer and internet access.

When I had Colin, I diligently got up each morning on maternity leave and pumped so I could have a large freezer stash ready and waiting for when I returned to work.

Then Colin got sick.

I had no idea what I had eaten the weeks prior and I had to assume that all of my milk was contaminated with milk and soy proteins. So I took everything out of the freezer, defrosted it and poured it down the drain. I cried and cried for all the time and effort lost, but also I now had no safety net. The only formulas that Colin could tolerate smelled of dog food and were extremely expensive. The type of formula he needed we couldn't buy in a store and we needed to get it at the pharmacy. Our insurance would not pay for this even though it was medically necessary.

Thankfully he could tolerate human milk.

So we continued our breastfeeding relationship on a restricted diet and he continued to grow and thrive. There were many a days that I was panicked since for well over his first year of life I was his ONLY source of nutrition. If I got sick or had a drop in my supply there weren't many other options that I could provide.

Oh how I wish I knew about milksharing then. I could have given that freezer stash to a needy mom. I could have found another mom who was on a restricted diet and gotten some milk from her.

Fast forward to me having Charlotte and being a little obsessive about building a freezer stash. Several 100 ounces later I no longer had room in either of my freezers and decided to give it away. As much as I worried about my insurance policy being gone in my freezer, it was never a problem. Charlotte always had enough milk with just a little extra in the freezer for an emergency. I never rebuilt my stash to that capacity again but as she turns 1 year old next week I realize that everything I pump now is a bonus. I am so grateful for that.

I realize that this isn't something that lots of people talk about. But we need to talk about it. This isn't about making people feel bad for choosing formula. It's about human milk being available but not accessible to everyone. I choose to breastfeed, I nurse in public, I milkshare. However, I also let my children play with plastic toys, watch TV, and eat at McDonald's. As parents we all make choices that are the best for our families, it's just so much easier when we know all the options that are available to us.

The End. :-)

Look, I'm Blogging!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-06-28T19:54:00.004-04:00

Yes I realize that it has been far too long since I shared anything here but life has been a major zoo here. And not a small town zoo either, think major wild life and exotic hard to find animals kind of zoo. Yep, it's been crazy.

Here's a brief run down of what we have been up to. I'm pretty sure my family will be looking for me soon.

I am officially working 40 hours a week. I am anticipating the few extra hours a week will totally kick my butt until I get used to it again.

We got all dressed up and went to a wedding.

We have been spending loads of time at the pool.

At Dutch Wonderland and Hershey Park. Poor Charlotte, we just drag her around wherever we are going. Luckily she travels well. Although by the look of this picture you think I told her we were about to go around the whole park again :-)

We have also been finding things to do inside. Again, poor Charlotte since it usually means we are sharing a chuckle at her expense.

Thankfully she doesn't seem to mind :-)

Hope your summer is off to a great start!

Disney in the City...

2011-04-27T20:22:00.002-04:00

We are back and just like I predicted, it really was all about the fashion, (and the allergen free food). We had a wonderful time and seriously cannot wait to go back. I think one of my favorite moments from the trip was on the way to the resort from the airport. We were watching the movie on the bus and they were playing that stupid memories begin commercial that makes me cry everytime I see it. I started to tear up and I looked over at Colin who was tearing up too! I said are you okay? He said, "I'm just so happy!"

That just makes my heart so happy.

Here are a few quick photos before I head off to bed. The red and white dress is the one I made and the cupcake photos are from Babycakes, the vegan bakery downtown.

It's All About the Fashion...

2011-04-16T19:17:00.003-04:00

As we start packing for Miss C's first trip to the mouse I have noticed one very interesting theme...I'm very concerned about what she is going to wear. :-)
I have always packed Colin's best summer duds on a trip where there are photo opportunities galore but never with as much gusto as I have with Miss C.

Miss C has 5 swimsuits...most of these have ruffles like this one.

She has three costumes, Tinkerbell, Minnie Mouse and Belle.

We have a pirate wig that I got for Colin that he wasn't too into but we nearly peed our pants when we put it on Miss C. If I have time I may make a peasant dress out of Muslin just for kicks.

I have cut out all the material for a few handmade dresses to take along as well as purchased her clothes for summer.

Now I have overpacked for her mostly out of concern that there will be blowouts. But now that I am thinking about it there may need to be costume changes just for the heck of it.

I can't wait to finally start taking pictures again :-)

Six and Six....

2011-04-13T22:31:00.002-04:00

And just like that I have a six year old and a six month old. I can't get over how quickly time is flying right now. Miss C is eating and Colin has matured so much in the last few months. His sense of humor is sarcastic and borderline inappropriate at the same time...I'm so proud. :-) I love seeing him take an interest in his little sister and it melts my heart everytime I hear him say, "I just love her so much!"

Miss C is something else. We just started feeding her about a week before she turned 6 months, mostly because I wanted her to try most of the things we will be eating on our upcoming trip and well she was basically wrestling me for my food.

I'm not even kidding.

You would think I was starving the poor girl. Ummm she is obviously getting enough to eat, lol!
She hasn't turned down anything that we have offered her and it has been weirdly liberating to offer her something without looking for a manager and tracking down all of the ingredients. We just hope and pray that she continues to tolerate everything in her diet.

And just because I was looking though my 4000 photos today realizing that I really need to back my files up and found this for your viewing pleasure. This seems like it was five minutes ago but it was from 2009. I can't believe all of his "babyness" is gone. He is a riot and this totally made me laugh. We have one of these for every super hero.

I'm Baaaack....Kind Of :-)

2011-03-28T21:39:00.004-04:00

It's been a whirlwind of a few weeks but nothing that a last minute to do list can't fix. We had Miss C. baptised this weekend and she needed a special dress to wear. This is Miss C. with her lovely Godmother Liz.

I used this pattern to make a simple blessing dress. It took me about 2 hours since it was a little late and I sewed one side backwards since I was getting tired. In my defense I did bake 5 dozen cupcakes this week since it was also Colin's birthday.

Here's the fam after the longest Baptism EVER.

Since both my kids are sleeping and I'm wiped I going to share these photos and hopefully come back soon with words and stuff. We only have a few weeks until our trip and I want to make at least one princess dress out of a knit material. Or maybe two or three.

Poor girl, she has no idea what she has gotten herself into.

This is Colin with his "baby" in our rented Boba. We rented a Boba to try it out and we loved it. We purchased ours on sale here. The owner Jill was a doll to work with and I just wished I had one of these with Colin. We chose this one since you can wear them until 45lbs and it has neat little foot straps to keep their hips where they are supposed to be. Very awesome.

I was going to share this one or the one where Miss C is eating Colin. Those are my favorite. But I think this will be my new facebook profile pic :-)

Okay that's it. I'm going to sleep, have a lovely day, week or month till I get a chance to say hello again!

Have I mentioned that I am ready for vacation?

Yep I'm 30....

2011-03-02T19:53:00.004-05:00

First of all thanks to everyone who sent me lovely messages and emails. If it wasn't for you I may have forgotten that it was my Birthday altogether. :-)

Things are so busy right now that it kind of snuck up on me. It's probably better that way...way less traumatic.

Anywho since I continue to get snarky...I mean friendly, reminders that I haven't posted photos here are a few that I can muster together in between getting ready for tomorrow.

Happy Wednesday!

So I HAD to Blog About This.....

2011-02-14T19:40:00.003-05:00

There is a Babycakes VEGAN bakery in Downtown Disney!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How did I not know about this??? Just goes to show that I have been away from the blogging world way too long when something like this slips through my radar.

So basically Colin can walk up to the counter and order ANYTHING!

He is going to freak. We had been thinking about going this Easter and well, finding out about this put us right over the edge.

How could we not go?

I cannot wait to walk up to the counter and let him pick whatever he wants...he has never had that many choices even in Disney. Donuts, cupcakes, cookies, and breads oh my! He knows about the trip but knows nothing about the bakery. We want it to be a surprise.

This is how Miss C feels about that....

Mommy feels the same way too.

Even though we had to think long and hard about it.

But watching your brother eat anything that he wants and you eating your brother it totally worth it.

If anyone needs me I will be cutting coupons and eating Ramen noodles.

Yeah...So I Went Back To Work...

2011-01-28T20:30:00.003-05:00

And my life has kind of turned into a zoo. My Christmas tree is still up in my living room, in all of it's brown glory, and it's starting to get difficult to tell the difference between the clean and dirty laundry. I have officially completed four weeks back at work and I have showered everyday AND Colin hasn't missed the bus to his new school.

Impressed?

Although you can't tell from my house that I am succeeding, I feel like I am SLOWLY finding a new normal.

Well, at least the kids are fed :-)

I'm Thinking About Making Something....

2010-12-22T09:14:00.002-05:00

But I have gifts to wrap.
Who am I kidding...I still have loads of shopping to do.
Laundry and packing.
And tons of things that need organized, which is why I'm looking forward to this.

I could use a little, okay a lot of help in finding things in my craftroom and with less time I NEED to know where things are.

Why is this important? Well there is something about completing a project that motivates me in all other areas of my life. Whether it's a scrapbook page or a sewing project, being able to look at something and say, "I made that," makes me feel like I could do anything.

I get that feeling looking at the kids but this feeling wears off quickly. And well, I can find a place for 100 layouts...100 kids, not so much.

So I will be tuning in since my friend Emilie is a crafty genius and I am sure I will learn something that will improve my quality of life. Seriously.

This Is How The Kids Felt Yesterday....

2010-12-20T05:31:00.003-05:00

About getting their photo taken with Santa.

Colin was all...that's not Santa in the mall, it's too close to Christmas and he should be making toys. Not to mention LOADS of questions about how the whole Santa thing works.

Miss C was not into her hat at first.

But then I told her how much accessories can distract from problem areas and she was all about it. Hmmm...

Well they both perked up and we got this.

Feels Like Forever Since I Posted...

2010-12-15T09:01:00.005-05:00

Probably because it has been. Things are a bit crazy right now as I prepare to go back to work and oh yeah...there's that whole Christmas thing. I knew that my leave would fly by with the extra stress of the holidays but I am trying to enjoy my last bit of time at home while getting that major list of things done that I totally thought I would start weeks ago.

Awesome. Miss C. already woke up from a 15 minute nap. Nice.

Wait maybe she's going back to sleep.

Nevermind.

Wait, maybe she is. Well I'll post the major things and the rest will have to wait.

This is how Colin came home from school one day last week. You would think he was having a pretty good time there. Well he's has been miserable and since I am in super duper protective mama bear mode...thanks hormones. I have been spending as much time in his classroom as I could while I was on leave.

I totally see why he is miserable. Everyone in that school is incredibly stressed. Very few smiling faces, the students are yelled at after they make a poor choice rather than helping them make good ones, the classroom is large and there is little to no extra help for the teacher. Colin is sinking faster than the Titanic at this point. And this is from a kid who likes to do worksheets for fun??? He can tell you what the score will be in a football game with various scenarios...if we get the field goal, the extra point and now he is learning about two point conversions. For him to not like school at this point there is something terribly wrong.

So we have made the decision to pull him out of public school and he will be starting in a private Catholic school after the holiday. Now both my husband and I attended Cathoilic school from K-12 grade so this isn't that far of a stretch. We had just felt that there were so many other opportunities in a public school and that it was good enough. The school he is going to is warm and caring with smaller classrooms, options to do advanced work and most importantly they spend time helping the children succeed instead of trying to corral too many students into the corner in the rush, rush, rush of the day. I really feel like this will be a better fit for our family. However there will be a lot of adjustments for us to make this transition, like uniforms and getting up early. Okay so maybe only two adjustments but they are BIG ones. Think of us if you get a chance. :-)

On a happier note Matt and I attended his annual Christmas party and I found a dress in less than 15 minutes, it was only 29.95 and it had a built in nursing top. I figure that it would be a good investment if I end up going anywhere fancy with the baby. I hound this at H and M which I had no idea had a maternity section.

Well I gotta run...I have loads to do and only a few weeks to do it. And looking at this picture I need to go to the gym. :-)

Miss C. In Action.....

2010-11-30T09:28:00.003-05:00

She is officially able to roll over at will. Well from her tummy at least. First roll was on Sunday night, (7 Weeks 3 Days), after returning from a trip to Dutch Wonderland. I guess hanging out in her car seat that whole time made her want to get a move on. I love how she does this like it's no big deal and how she cries until you put her back on her tummy.

We officially have another mover and shaker.

Updates and Baby Toes...

2010-11-24T12:45:00.002-05:00

Well after a week long lull of under the weatherness, I am finally starting to get a little caught up. It's weird how laundry is a clear indication of how well I am managing everything else in my life, if I'm on top of it...game on. If there are mountains of it well...it's every man for himself and good luck finding clean underwear. I'm just sayin'

Anywho I finally found a nursing bra that seems to fit and support like it should. I wore this last time in a different size and this time I felt like the smaller size was still a little too snug. Then I moved one of the hooks over and what do ya know...bliss.

And then I found out that it is discontinued. Nice. That's really awesome.

So I have phone calls into retailers trying to determine how many everyone has left so I can place an order. For whatever reason it seems that I am difficult to fit. I guess manufactures don't realize that gals who can feed large countries breastfeed too.

Okay that's enough about all of our underwear here's what everyone wants to see right?

Miss C. continues to do well, she is moody in the evening but so's the rest of the family so she fits right in :-)

The rose shirt is from Target and was a score at $3.50 She is still rocking all of her newborn clothes and has barely made a dent in any of her 0-3 stuff.

Well we are off to pick up Colin from his third early dismissal this month. Sometimes I think I should really reconsider my career choice. These schools may be on to something.

Embrace the Camera and Other Randoms...

2010-11-11T17:09:00.003-05:00

I had Matt snap this photo this afternoon in the middle of Colin playing Toy Story Mania on his Wii and Miss C having a nursing induced coma. This is our new normal.

Although today included a shower, going to the gym, and a parent teacher conference. So generally our new normal doesn't include this much kid free time but we will go with that for the sake of the picture :-)

Also since it Veterans Day I thought I would share a photo of my favorite one.

I finally took a photo of this image so I can make copies. My sister found a way to get copies of the originals and I look forward to ordering those, but for now at least I have this. This is my Dad back in the day and I have to say that he makes a very handsome solider. He served in WWII and Korea. I am very thankful for his service and for everyone else who has come before him and after him.

Wordless Wednesday...

2010-11-10T12:39:00.001-05:00

10/7/10 2:16ish AM

Guess Who Is One Month Old...

2010-11-04T10:37:00.003-04:00

Little Miss C!

I'm going to try really hard to do this every month. I have no idea what happened in Colin's first year unless it revolved around a doctor's visit or projectile vomiting. So here's hoping that this improves my memory!

(And just to be clear, I can't take credit for this idea. I've seen this on Susan Weinroth's blog).

At One Month...
-Does not like to be put down and is in a ring sling as I type this.
-Is nursing like a pro and I just pumped milk yesterday so I can leave the house for more than five minutes, (I mean Daddy can experience the special bond of feeding).
-Likes her bouncer but not either swing that we own.
-Is sleeping well at night and gave me a wonderful 6 hour stretch last night.
-Still sounds like a duck when she is awake.
-Helps me everyday to drop off and pick up her brother.
-Just today spit up a little on Colin.
-Seems to be doing well and is tolerating everything that I am eating...except for maybe the spicy chili that I made the other day :-)
-Is still wearing newborn clothes and some 0-3 months from Old Navy.
-Looks like a porcelain doll when she is asleep and a crazed diva when she is upset.
-Starting to look like her own person but still needs some more bows since she is often mistaken for a boy.
-Has way more hair then her brother had at this time...even though it's still very little.
-LOVES running water.

Also today is Thursday so I took a quick photo of where Charlotte has been spending a lot of her time.

Well it's raining here so I plan on staying in today and trying to catch up around the house to get ready for the weekend.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-11-03T17:03:00.001-04:00

Goodbye October...Hello November :-)
Photo taken at Swamp Fox Farms when my little man was in charge of hauling pumpkins.

Pray For Soy or Thank God For The Washing Machine...

2010-11-02T13:23:00.004-04:00

Either way we are praying today :-)

So the first title is because I have secretly exchanged Colin's Coconut Milk Yogurt for Soy Yogurt. I say secretly because if I told him it was Soy he wouldn't touch it..yay for food allergy awareness! Boo for food trials! Here is today's lunch...

A sunbutter and organic jelly sandwich on homemade bread, Triscuts, Carrots, PSU Pineapple Chunks, and a small serving of Silk Vanilla Yogurt. I threw in a treat from Trick or Treating and a juicebox and we have hit every food group. He had some soy last evening and didn't throw up, run to the bathroom or break out in hives. So if you are the praying kind please think of Colin as we try this since literally this would open a huge amount of eating out options for our little guy. Soy milk is everywhere now! So not only could he go to Dunkin he could also go to Starbucks :-)

Not to brag...but I will :-) I put this together today while breastfeeding Charlotte in a sling. So I totally felt all Earth Mothery today while actually accomplishing something. Which seems like a pretty big feat this week.

Hence the second title :-)

Charlotte LOVES running water. She is a bit demanding and desires to be held most of the day or in her car seat while running an errand. (Which I totally don't mind, my home on the other hand is requiring some attention) She is a pretty light sleeper so as soon as you put her down or come home she knows and is NOT happy about it. So I am thanking God today for having laundry all over my house because it gave me a few extra minutes between feedings since I sat Miss C. in her car seat in front of the machine. So if it wasn't for laundry I wouldn't be able to have lunch or blog today with both hands :-)

We did manage Trick or Treating which Colin enjoyed even though he gives most of it away to his parents but really, don't most kids do that anyway?

See no running water in the photo or a boob in her mouth. Miss C. Not happy.

I have no idea why it was so hard to find a newborn costume. I guess they figure that you should be a better parent and not take them outside at all. Hey, I read a study that is linking lack of Vitamin D exposure to Food Allergies. So uhh. We are outside a lot.

Here's Colin handing out candy. He said he actually liked this more anyway. As always he was a complete riot.

Gotta run, the machine stopped and she knows...

Embrace the Camera...

2010-10-28T20:24:00.002-04:00

Photo by Colin :-)

Wordless Wednesday (On Thursday).....

2010-10-28T20:22:00.001-04:00

A Couple of Photos...

2010-10-25T18:17:00.003-04:00

Hmmm...hard to believe that I got a photo of Little Miss C sleeping since she's been spending loads of time awake during the day. Good for getting rest at night, not so good for letting me play with my camera. Oh well, I'm blessed right now that she is sleeping at night, I'll take what I can get :-)

This one just cracks me up.

I have loads of photos to share once I upload them. Which I guess I could be doing now instead of blogging. Too bad time is up and my family found where I am hiding.

Don't they know I have awesome pumpkin patch photos to edit and post?

I've Been Wanting to Do This....

2010-10-21T18:24:00.003-04:00

I started reading Emily's blog ages ago and while the concept of taking more photos with your children isn't new...maybe I just needed a cute button to get me motivated. (I'm sure the 12 weeks off of work won't hurt either) So I can't promise that this is something that I will stick with once I go back to work but at least my kids will have a few extra photos of us together right?

Not to mention that maybe I will improve my ability to take mirror and/or self timer shots. But even though the focus is soft on this photo, it makes me happy to look at it.
And I'm pretty sure that's the most important point.

Wordless Wednesday...

2010-10-21T18:20:00.002-04:00

Yes, I know it's Thursday...well kind of. Maternity leave makes all of the days start to run together :-)

My Mother is CRAZY...

2010-10-18T18:30:00.003-04:00

Colin was a STAR today at school and needed a special snack. My Mom got up at 6AM to finish cupcake pops. Jeez!

Well at least I got to Hershey this weekend.

Thankfully she didn't ask me to do anything.

Hope you had a relaxing day :-)

A Photo From Last Weekend...

2010-10-16T13:41:00.001-04:00

Just to prove that she was there :-)

First Day At Home....

2010-10-15T11:04:00.003-04:00

Miss Charlotte is already one week old but has been going non stop since she came home. What can I say? That's how we roll! Or as Colin would say it, "welcome to the family!"

She was born early Thursday morning and we left the hospital Friday afternoon. We then went home and packed to head to Penn State. Only seemed right since her brother spent his first night in State College. We have to be fair right?

We hung out in Matt's parents condo while everyone else went to the game. We did venture to a tailgate at the end of the game to visit with a few friends and spent some time walking downtown. The weather was perfect and she was perfectly content walking around in her sling.

We stayed till Sunday and then came home and have been busy running errands, shopping and having photos taken. Matt went back to work today and this is the first day that I have been home alone with Charlotte. I'll be honest. I'm kind of loving it. We have a few hours till we pick her brother up from school and I'm looking forward to getting a little baking done and possibly some sewing.

Life is good right now, a little crazy with two kids but very, very good.

Thank you for all of the well wishes, our expanding family appreciates them very much!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-10-13T09:00:00.001-04:00

Charlotte Rose arrived 10/7/10 at 2:16AM.
Her brother thinks she is so cute he can't even look at the camera. :-)

At 39 Weeks....

2010-10-06T11:19:00.003-04:00

Wishing I was in Disney so I could pick up a pack of these...

It's a sickness...I know.

Realizing that maybe it was a little unrealistic to think that I could go into labor on my own...I mean I can't get pregnant without help why would I think labor would be any different???

WALKED my insane son to school this morning. Mostly because I am a sucker and I did say if he got up early enough we could walk. Did I mention that it was raining? Oh and that I had to walk home to get my CAR so I could go to work. Colin was happy as a duck in our development, (yes we have loads of ducks, and goats and sometimes a horse but that's a whole other post) hoping and skipping to school this AM. Yep, I'm a sucker.

Oh and it was about a mile or so and I'm still not in labor. On Sunday I RAN hoping that would get things going, oh and did the elliptical and played football when I got home.

Nothing.
*sigh* I really could be pregnant for awhile longer, I just want to avoid the induction and the IV's and the laying in bed and the whole medical intervention to begin with.

Sad that I will miss Homecoming Weekend at PSU this year. If I had her by today we were still going to go up but I'm thinking that we missed the boat and it's probably a bit irresponsible to go so close to my due date if I haven't had her.

As of today Charlotte's crib sheet is done and her bumper is 98% finished. I just have to add the ties and work on the crib skirt. I think I will finish that tonight. I just need to pick up some additional fabric that we ordered and I will start her Minnie Mouse quilt.

Having another ultrasound today and a non stress test. Hopefully it will be my last one, I've only had like 15 this pregnancy. Seems a bit excessive but at least I know she is doing well in there.

Well, wish me luck and hopefully little miss Charlotte will decide to make her grand entrance sooner rather than later. :-)

What I Am Working On Now...

2010-09-30T06:03:00.007-04:00

Charlotte's Crib

Colin's Quilt

There are a few solids thrown in there as well but I am thrilled to report that I actually completed Charlotte's crib sheet and it ACTUALLY fits. So since I can't sleep anyway since someone decided to drop and make me pretty uncomfortable, I figured I would start cutting the bumper batting and fabric.

Seriously, if it wasn't for all of this measuring and math I would be totally done the entire bedroom.

I Thought I Would Go Ahead And Share This....

2010-09-19T08:33:00.004-04:00

Since I am sorting her clothing and packing my bag.
Seriously, these next few weeks will fly by.
So glad that we FINALLY agreed on something.
Kind of. :-)

I picked Charlotte, Matt picked Rose and we smiled when we put them together.

Can't Start the Day Without Our Dunkin Donuts...

2010-09-09T00:01:00.000-04:00

Yep, that's Colin with his requested hot coffee from Dunkin. It's of course decaf. He already runs way too fast as it is. This has been our weekend tradition this summer, iced coffee for Mom and Dad and Colin chooses iced or hot depending on his mood. We order it black and return home to add sugar and rice milk. Probably not the best habit to start but it does crack me up when he walks around with his coffee cup. Just had to share this photo :-)

5 More Weeks To Go....

2010-09-08T00:01:00.000-04:00

I guess I should probably start making the kids bedding, or maybe get the baby stuff out of storage, or I don't know...decide on a name for this kiddo.

The clock is winding down. Here's hoping that I get at LEAST 5 more weeks of this pregnancy. I think I will actually miss my baby bump this time. I'm sure I will get over it but so far she's not bugging me nearly as much as her brother was at this point.

PSU Maternity Tee Shirt...

2010-09-07T00:01:00.001-04:00

I have never seen a maternity section at the "Big Blue on the Corner," so I decided to take matters into my own crafty little hands. I made a shirt for Disney but by the time I wanted to wear it at the parks it didn't fit since it was just a regular fitted tee shirt from A.C. Moore. So this time I actually purchased a moderately priced maternity tee and figured that if I ruined it...well I was screwed because no matter what I would be ticked about spending $11 on a tee shirt that I was planning on only wearing for one day. What can I say...I'm cheap like that, lol!

I really wanted to reverse applique PSU on my belly and found a few tutorials on the internet to point me in the right direction.

What you need...
Tee Shirt
Pretty Fabric (mine was a Pottery Barn napkin)
DMC Floss
Fusible Web or Temporary Fabric Adhesive
Soft'n Sheer Stabilizer
Cricut
Freezer Paper

Sorry there are no photos since I, of course, did this right before we left for the weekend while I was packing and well...I just didn't feet like it :-)

First I cut my letters out of freezer paper with my Cricut. I then ironed them onto my tee and then tried it on to make sure I liked the position. I then turned the shirt inside out to attach my fabric that would peek through under the letters.

Once everything was positioned correctly I attached an embroidery hoop to my tee with the stabilizer behind my pretty fabric. The stabilizer makes it easier to stitch on the knit fabric and will ultimately help the letters keep their shape after washing. I then outlined each letter with stitching. Once each letter was complete, I removed the freezer paper and then used very sharp scissors to cut away the knit fabric of my tee shirt. I then turned it inside out once again and cut away the excess fabric being careful to not cut through any of the stitches.

I was just pleased as punch with myself and my hubby couldn't figure out why I just wouldn't wear one of his shirts to the game. Duh, his shirts aren't nearly as cute.

PSU Weekend...

2010-09-06T22:03:00.002-04:00

(Colin and G Dad checking out the Blue Band at half time)

I was so thrilled to at least make it to one home game this season. Unfortunately we will probably miss homecoming this year since it is so close to my due date. Oh well, there's always next year!

Here's Colin posing in his game day gear. He really has become a super fan. I can't say enough how much I enjoy bringing Colin on campus and not only getting to show him everything that we used to do when we were students but also when we lived there.

While walking downtown I pointed out all of the apartment buildings and let him know that college students lived there. I explained that they get up in the morning, get their bookbags and then walk to class. Somehow I pointed how that they did this all without their parents. Colin said, "wait when I go to college you don't come too?!" I told him no and that when he goes to college that I would visit him lots but that he would move there by himself. Well, for the rest of the evening he had no interest in attending college unless I could come with him.

I gotta say that it made my heart melt to hear that. Although when I told him that he could go to bed whenever he wanted he quickly changed his tune. Now he CAN NOT WAIT to go to college.

Go figure.

How Many More School Lunches Do I Have to Pack?!

2010-09-01T21:41:00.003-04:00

I've thought about actually doing the math but I am pretty sure I would break down in tears. Packing a balanced and interesting lunch for a 5 year old who only has a few things that he can eat cold let alone things that he likes is just a bit overwhelming right now.

Now granted I'm sure that I am making this harder on myself than needed, but it's still pretty complicated.

I am however excited to have made a few purchases to make things a bit easier. We got a few new snack size containers for dressing and dip, and I found these packets...

Let me tell you, it's extremely difficult and messy to clean Sunbutter out of a tiny container after it has been in a lunch box all day. Yuck!
So even though it's nearly $7 for a box of 10 1oz servings, (and who knows how much to ship), I plan on placing an order soon just to avoid doing dishes.

In other exciting news we will soon have Minnie Mouse Bake Shop Chocolate Chip cookies to help us out during snack time. A girl needs to be able to grab at least one prepackaged snack on occasion, especially on soccer days.

These aren't our chocolate chip cookies but I couldn't find a picture of the 100 calorie snacks and well...looking at these makes me just as happy. It took ALOT of arm twisting and my stellar manipulating, I mean social work, skills to get Disney to agree to ship the cookies.

They generally don't ship food but especially don't ship chocolate because it's just so stinkin hot there. So they sent a merchandise runner into the parks to search for the cookies and then read the ingredients over the phone. They agreed to ship them to us as long as we realized that they could be a mess by the time they got here. I assured them that my son eats all kinds of things that I wouldn't be able to choke down and that in fact he has never met a carb that he doesn't like. So they are being air mailed to us and we should have them in a few days. Yay! So thanks Disney for not only making a cookie in a cute package that doesn't kill my kid but for also being willing to ship it to me.

Total Randomness...

2010-08-30T09:26:00.005-04:00

I am trying to get a bit organized before my, "photo shoot" for naked baby mama photos this afternoon so I figured...hey why not blog?

Except I surprisingly don't have too much to blog about.

I did make an extremely elaborate lunch for my food allergic Kindergartner. I should have taken a photo but we were already running behind because of said lunch. Colin likes when I make pot pie noodles for him which you can imagine involve milk and butter. With a little creativity, I can make these for him that they are safe but I fear there may be too many steps involved for lunch.

He has his thermos, (which he is able to open by himself), a paper plate to put his noodles on and a cracker topping to spread on the top. I seriously would love to be a fly on the wall to see how he handles this today. There are also grapes, a homemade chocolate chip cookie and carrots with Sunbutter to dip.

What is it about Kindergarten that makes me miss him more during the day?

Totally wishing I was here right about now. When I start dreaming about vacation I know that I am doing a bit too much. Can I tell you how stinkin' excited I am to take our little princess here?!

I should probably start making her princess gowns now so there will be done by the next time we are able to take a trip. Because seriously if didn't try to do something totally over the top insane, (like making a dress for her for every night of our trip, or making the kids bedding or making a maternity tee shirt for this weekend's PSU game), I wouldn't be me.

At least admitting that it is insane is the first step, or so I've been told.

Yay We Made It Through The Week!

2010-08-27T16:41:00.002-04:00

To say that this was a busy week would be a major understatement. We have ended Pre K, started soccer and had Kindergarten on Thursday and Friday.

Why do I have a feeling that I am only going to get busier from here?

I am 33 Weeks and 2 Days today and have really started to amp up my girly shopping when I have the opportunity! I mean, a little girl cannot have too many princess dresses.

So far things are going well for Colin at his new school. I'll be honest, it even more of a transition when your child comes with special instructions. So far he hasn't stopped breathing either day so I think we are on the right track. However I did find his Epi Pen still in his book bag rather than being in the nurses office. Well, I guess it's better there than in the water on the flume ride.

Gotta run my five year old is entirely too quiet so he either feel asleep or is sneaking candy. Both scenarios could need intervention.

Reason 6,256 That You Should Have Your Children Close Together....

2010-08-18T20:52:00.002-04:00

You can actually find additional furniture pieces that match your current child's set.

We are now returning dresser number two since again, the one in my house is NOT what we ordered.

SIGH....

I just want to wash and fold little clothes sometime BEFORE the baby comes.

We Need To Make Bread....

2010-08-16T00:37:00.003-04:00

This is my little guy helping me in the kitchen. He's actually becoming quite the baker. Now if I could just teach him how to sew....

And That My Friends Is How You Do Wacky Hair Day...

2010-08-11T21:03:00.001-04:00

Adding Mr. Cool Guy glasses and a stuffed penguin is optional.

2, Yes TWO, NEW Layouts....

2010-08-08T10:58:00.004-04:00

Trust me...I'm shocked as well. I can't get over how little time that I have had this pregnancy to make stuff or how unmotivated I have been. I will say that these took a little longer to complete than usual, which actually may have more to do with me not remembering where things are in my scraproom.

I just love this, lol! The pink, the butterflies...the pink! I do feel like it is just starting to sink in that we will be having a little princess/diva in our home soon and we just. can't. wait.

She is starting to accumulate quite a few little dresses and we found a lovely store in the Lancaster outlets that sells inexpensive yet well made little girl dresses and gowns. She may or may not be allowed to wear them anywhere that she likes. :-)

This one I actually completed last night and used a Studio Calico sketch as a starting point. I think that helped since I was able to complete this start to finish in one evening. I misted the chipboard and the word favorite in the title is from an older stamp set. The ticket stub is a Stamping Bella Stamp, these really are some of my favorite stamps. Great impression, little effort.

I used punches, Studio Calico fabrips and rubons for the rest of my embellishments.

As far as a quick Faust update...we are keeping insanely busy this summer between the amusement parks, work, the gym, and getting ready for our little girl, (who still does not have a name by the way). I am 30 Weeks and 4 Days today and have gained a total of 10 pounds so far. Yeah me! (Also the reason that we rescheduled the maternity photos...I just wasn't showing enough last week). Crossing our fingers that everything continues to go smoothly so I can avoid an induction, our little girl doesn't get too big and she stays put long enough for me to get to at least 1 Penn State game this season.

That's it for now...as always thanks for stopping by!

T Minus 13 Days....

2010-07-20T21:04:00.003-04:00

Until what I lovingly call, "naked baby mama photos." :-)

I have an upcoming appointment here to have maternity portraits taken and then following the birth of Miss Faust, family portraits. I'm excited, nervous and excited since I feel like I hardly ever have any decent photos of myself let alone of myself with bump.

So needless to say I have continued my 3-4 time a week gym habit. I am proud of myself for continuing the trend and feel like the photos (well mostly the airbrushing), will be my reward for making better choices this time around.
Matt thinks they are creepy but I think he will come around once he sees them.

Speaking of my bump I FINALLY found a few things that I am excited to wear to work. I went shopping at New York and Company...one of my favorite stores prepregnancy and scored a few dresses that will be stepping in as maternity tops. If I think of it in the mornings I will try to remember to take a few photos.

This is me at 26 Weeks 2 Days trying to take a photo in the mirror, lol!

And this is one of my new tops and my bump at 27 Weeks 6 Days.

Hopefully I will get time to scrapbook some bump photos soon.

My First Baby Faust Purchase...

2010-07-12T16:41:00.003-04:00

Seriously, wasn't this made for our family??

Or what about this?

I just got the hat since I just can't justify spending $32 on a baby's dress. But you better believe I will be the first in line when this goes on clearance. :-)

I found these at Gymboree which I have been told is the devil. And while I appreciate that the designers used Minnie Mouse dots on clothing fit to photograph next to the mouse herself, charging $32 is downright evil.

And these...

They are so cute that it's just wrong. Note to self...she is not a doll to play dress up with, she is not a doll to play dress up with....

Back from the Beach and Ready to Nest....

2010-07-05T09:52:00.002-04:00

Colin had a great time and I didn't hate it.

I see that as pretty significant progress :-)

I know have the next few Mondays off to tackle some major projects in my home to get ready for this little one to arrive. I seriously only have about 15 weeks left of this pregnancy. Hopefully it will sink it soon that I am having a baby. Even though she kicks me ALL THE TIME I somehow forget that there is a little person in there.

So if anyone wants to organize Tupperware let me know since I have SEVERAL positions available. Positions are available in other departments as well...closets, toys and bedding.

It's going to be a long 15 weeks.

I Can't Believe it Either...

2010-06-25T19:46:00.002-04:00

Not only did I finish a LO I also actually took a photo of it and posted it.

I have another College Press LO to take a photo of based on this challenge. I hope everyone gets a chance to play along since it's a great prize pack to win.

That's it for now...I'm in the process of claiming my scraproom back.

This may take awhile.

I Think I Found Bedding...

2010-06-16T11:18:00.002-04:00

This is the closest I have found to our color scheme. Our crib isn't black so I may add a different bed skirt in black to make everything work but I'm pretty happy with it. The room is already painted yellow so I only need bedding for Colin and we may be set, lol!

Things I NEED to Do...

2010-06-16T00:15:00.004-04:00

-I really need to take a baby bump pic. I'm 23 Weeks today.
-Actually decide on a name for our little Faust bean.
-Get to the gym this afternoon.
-Start purging Colin's clothes to make room for his sister's.
-Finish washing every towel we own...has it really been that long since I did laundry?
-Make something...anything...I'm seriously going crazy.

And try to soak in every last moment of it just being the three of us...since it feels like I'm going to blink and we will be a family of four. I still don't think it has completely sunk in.

Mickey and Minnie Bedroom

2010-06-04T00:01:00.000-04:00

So I have committed to the Mickey and Minnie Mouse theme for Colin and the Baby's room. Since there are very few products that fit my Mouse theme that aren't too cutesy, I plan on using a general red, black and yellow color scheme. Lucky for me, the bedroom is already painted Mickey Yellow :-)

When we were in Disney I searched the Art Galleries for an inexpensive print that I could use in the room as a focal point. Of course the one that I loved was $6500...not exactly in the budget.

So I did a search online and found that Amazon has loads of movie posters for sale and I plan to buy a few and frame them. Here are a couple of the options.

Classic/Vintage Mickey and Minnie are my favorites and having any of these in that room would make me incredibly happy. It will be like my own personal Disney fix on a daily basis. I can't wait to start putting everything together.

Hi Hope!

2010-06-02T22:16:00.004-04:00

So do you want to hear the funniest thing ever?

Okay so it's maybe not the funniest but it's pretty close.

So Colin has a few routines in town and he pretty much does the same thing week after week. Every Wednesday my Mom and Sam pick him up from school and he hits up one of his local hangouts, McDonalds, Tumble Town, Burger King, etc. One of those hang outs is the Dollar Store. And upon entering this store he is greeted like Norm in Cheers. He walks in, the cashier says, "Hi Colin," and Colin says, "Hi Hope" and runs to the toy section!?

When he orders at McDonald's a young girl always puts his Chicken Selects in his Happy Meal bag and when he walks into Subway the staff change their gloves and wash their hands.

I guess it's kind of silly but it warms my heart that folks recognize him and go out of their way to make him feel special.

And it just makes me laugh when he asks if Hope worked at the Dollar Store when I was a kid :-)

It's much better than when he asks if they even had Dollar Stores when I was a kid...you know when the dinosaurs were around.

Well My Internet Life Has Been Pretty Lame....

2010-05-28T22:42:00.003-04:00

It's been several weeks since I have dug through the mess of my scraproom to get anywhere near my computer. Sure, I have gotten the occasional internet fix from my Blackberry but it's been ages since I have spent any quality time surfing the internet.

Well I am here now and crossing my fingers that I start feeling like my old self soon. I did almost finish a layout so I think I am making some progress.

First things first...for those who don't know yet we are having a little girl! I think I am still in shock but she is doing quite well and we are extremely excited to meet her. We have NO NAMES for her yet, well Matt and Colin do but I don't. I haven't found anything that I am in love with yet but I am confident that we will agree on something.

I would have taken a picture of the ultrasound images but I kind of lost my memory card. I thought I would be all slick and print my photos without editing them so I can start putting them in albums and somehow misplaced it.

It has all of the Disney photos on it. Well, at least I printed them first.

Here are a few from our photo pass CD.

I made these shirts using my Cricut and Freezer Paper. There are loads of tutorials on the internet, just google "Freezer Paper Stencil."

This one you can see my baby bump a little better. I'm about 18 weeks in these photos.

And a Hershey Park photo for good measure....

Get it...good measure?! Ha, I kill me :-)

Well I'm off to purchase Silly Bandz since my son just asked me if we could go to "silly bandz.com" He was so cute I'm actually going to buy the stupid things.

Hope to be back soon with actual scrapbooking stuff and some sewing projects.

Here He/She Is......

2010-04-02T20:23:00.003-04:00

I think this may be the only time that people look at photos of other people's uterus's (or uteri?) and say awwwwwww :-)

I am 12 Weeks 2 Days today. I don't know if I can make it till the end of May till I find out what we are having.

I'm just a tad impatient.

And I want to know whether to put Mickey ears or a Minnie bow on the Disney shirt I will make for our trip....in 36 days!

And since it feels like forever since I scrapbooked. Here's a LO that I never shared here.

Enjoy the weather this weekend....it's 80 degrees and just wonderful here!

Finally....

2010-03-29T00:01:00.000-04:00

I found a few maternity items that I would actually look forward to purchasing. I had no idea that Ann Taylor had a maternity line.

Now we are getting somewhere :-)

Catching Up....

2010-03-28T17:11:00.002-04:00

You would think it would be easier to write a blog post the longer you are away from the computer. Not so...I actually have so much I could say that I actually really don't have a clue of where to start.

Colin's Party: Went totally awesome...we had loads of help of which we are very grateful and Colin had such a good time that he said, "thank you for paying for my party." My heart completely melted. For him to say thank you and realize how expensive he is at the same time...well that was just priceless :-) Even though this party hardly cost of anything I'll save that thank you for the next one.

Baby Faust: Well I have one more thing to forget to take with me somewhere. My One Touch Meter. I have Polycystic Ovaries and I'm insulin resistant...hence the trouble in getting pregnant, so as a precaution I essentially pretend to have Gestational Diabetes from day one. So I am counting carbs and testing my blood sugar four times a day. I'm being extremely well behaved so hopefully I can avoid taking insulin this time like I needed to with Colin. A girl can dream!

Maternity Clothes Shopping: Oh don't even get me started on this topic. Maternity clothes are such a racket! Motherhood Maternity is a monopoly of crap that they peddle in more than one department store. Seriously, I am having a tough time getting dressed every morning and cannot wait for my Gap Maternity order to arrive. I just wish there were more options that I could actually try on instead of having to order. Did I say that a girl can dream?

So if anyone has any tried a true stops on the Maternity Clothes wagon PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, let me know. Any great websites? My next quest will be looking for a swimsuit, OY!

Long Time No Blog :-)

2010-03-15T13:23:00.002-04:00

I can't get over how quickly time flies when you are sleeping.

I turned 29.

Matt turned the big 3-0.

And Colin will be 5 in a week and a half.

Hmmm, I wonder if I can pull off planning a birthday party in one week?

I have a feeling that I am about to find out :-)

Just reposting this layout that was seen in February's Scrapbook Trends.

Did anyone see the March/April issue of Creating Keepsakes? Colin has the cutest photo in it with some of his friends from school. It's in the Reader's Gallery section with an appropriate title considering how all of the kids are dressed, lol!

Well I gotta run, I have to work out, go to the grocery store and consume 30grams of carbs before dinner. Sounds like a piece of cake....however there will be no cake involved.

Yeah...So I Guess I Need Help to Get Through My Day....

2010-02-26T19:31:00.002-05:00

I ordered one of these today at lunch without really thinking that duh...it has caffeine in it.

I have been trying to be really good and avoid all of the things on the list that helps bake the healthiest baby possible.

So I have been EXHAUSTED!

It's amazing how long a caffeine buzz can last when you haven't had any for about 7 weeks.

Detox...it's not so pretty.

But right now I am trying to take advantage of the little "buzz" that I have left to scrapbook.

Yay!

It's 10PM and I'm Still Awake!

2010-02-15T22:03:00.003-05:00

Yay!

I doubt I will make it much longer but thought the moment deserved some celebrating!

Thank you sooooooooo much for all of your sweet comments!
I wish I could say that I have been way to busy to post because I have been filling my days with awesomeness but alas...I've been mostly asleep.
I don't remember being this tired when I was pregnant with Colin but I may have been too busy going to Denny's to eat way more than I should that maybe I just didn't notice.

To answer a few questions...yes we've told Colin.
He would like to name the baby Vegas.
We told him we would think about it. *cough...cough*
He is super excited and tells us that he knows that the baby is a girl.

Yes we plan on finding out...we are not patient people. :-)

And yep we had to do the same stuff (infertility) to get pregnant with this baby as we did to get pregnant with Colin. We are thrilled that it seemed much easier this time and we're extremely appreciative to have options.

We are due in October and I should hopefully be cute pregnant during our trip to Disney in May. (I have tons of ideas for really cute maternity Disney shirts)

And I did totally say that I was NEVER going to do this again. I figured that there was no way that I would make it through the treatment and definitely no way that I would make it through the first trimester sleepiness. Who would pick up my slack???

Well I guess they really mean it when they say NEVER SAY NEVER because it seems my mind was changed a few months ago and I have NO IDEA what changed it or why I changed it in the moment that I did. The only thing that I can think of is that this baby must have a special purpose on this Earth because someone was whispering, okay probably yelling, in my ear and I guess I finally was able to listen.

And Matt's not doing too bad of a job filling in for me while I nap :-)

And because no post is complete without a photo...

This went up on the Collage Press blog last week. I would've posted this sooner but please see earlier paragraph about me sleeping.

I used the way cute Label Memory Block Stamp from Scrapping Bella to shape my pattern paper around my photo. I just stamped the image on the side I didn't want to use and then cut it out. A great way to get a little more mileage out of your stamps!

Okay I'm officially wiped! If I owe you an email please know that I am working on it and hope to soon return to my get a million things done, hardly need any sleep, funny, witty, creative self soon!

So I Picked An Absolutely Wonderful Time To Be...

2010-02-06T12:10:00.003-05:00

If you tilt your head while you look at the computer screen you can almost see a line :-) This photo is from last weekend when Matt and I spent the entire time arguing whether or not there was a line in the 15 tests that I took.

Don't worry I have had it confirmed with bloodwork, (I of course was right)...just in time to get out of shoveling the 18 inches of snowed that is in our driveway.

Totally awesome perk by the way.

So I'm am snuggled up and warm praying that our fresh little Faust bean continues to stick :-)

And doing a little Disney fabric shopping for the nursery.

To say that we are thrilled and excited would be the understatement of the year.

So that's my news :-)

When In Doubt....

2010-02-03T13:19:00.003-05:00

Use a sketch!
I haven't had the energy to scrap in a few days so I packed my stuff and headed to my LSS in Hershey to spend a few hours with my paper and glue.

So I could limit what I took with me I decided that I would participate in the Sketch Challenge on the Studio Calico Blog. Armed with sketch in hand, I picked my photos and product and loaded up my mini van.

Didn't realize that I was that cool to drive a mini van huh?

Anyway here is the product of that session for your enjoyment as well as a little enabling :-)

To make my scallop circle embellishments I used this stamp from Scrapping Bella.

After stamping them onto cardstock I used my scallop circle punch to make cute little text blocks.

I'm not sure what the vanilla cardstock is all about but I LOVE the color combo!

That's it for now and I will be posting soon with HUGE, I mean REALLY HUGE news!

Feels Like Forever...

2010-01-30T17:32:00.005-05:00

Since I have shared something...

I used the sentiment from my new favorite typewriter stamp that you can see here.

Sorry about the image, it's out of focus, I'm tired...see below :-)

I been exhausted lately and can barely keep my eyes open past 9:30PM. Unfortunately, this is generally when I am the most productive so needless to say, I have a TON to do this weekend. I tried talking Colin into taking a nap so I could take a nap, but that so did not work.

Oh well.

I'm thinking about a scrapbook date at the Hershey Scrapbook store may be calling my name on Monday. If I start packing now I might be able to plan well enough to get a lot accomplished. We are staying in all weekend so I plan on finishing the 5 or so layouts that need journaling and photos.
Yeah, I have no idea why I do that.
Okay, I have a lull in the storm that is Colin so I am going to attempt to finish everything else. Wish me luck!

Plans for Tonight...

2010-01-22T21:37:00.003-05:00

This guy is at a sleepover...when did he get so big?

I had a date with my hubby :-)

Then a Pampered Chef party.

And now I have a VERY important date with my scrapbook room.

I'll be back soon with LOTS to share!

Answering A Few Emails....

2010-01-21T03:30:00.003-05:00

I have been getting a quite a few emails asking where I got the super cool stamps in my For Me layout below.

The stamps can be found here. Along with loads of other cool ones. I can't wait to get the button stamps on that page. Too cute!

I have also been asked how I got the days of the week seen on my Project 365 photos...which I am behind on by the way. I'm not letting it stress me out, as soon as I have a bit of free time I will use "filler pictures" for the days that I missed.

I used this tutorial to explain how to actually do something in Photoshop Elements.

I'm a fan of Cathy's style and easy to follow directions that make thinking about a digital page possible.

Not that I am actually going to do it but I can think about it.

If You Ever Wondered What I Would Take To A Deserted Island...

2010-01-16T07:59:00.004-05:00

The answer is posted here.

Very excited to have been asked to participate in this...it really is a great community.

I can't believe it's been almost a week since I posted. Well yes I can...I have been running like a crazy person so come lights out I'm out like a light too!

Anyway it's 8:00AM and I am planning to scrap a little before little man wakes up and starts to bug me...I mean ask to play.

I'm totally kidding by the way...kind of :-)

I seriously need to clean this place up...I can hardly see my scrap stuff which doesn't really work for me.

Oh and I guess I should mention that I will need to make another one of these.

We just started planning our next trip to see the Mouse. Would anyone be interested in Disney planning posts that discuss how and why we make the planning decisions that we do? I know a lot of folks are super overwhelmed by the whole process but once you know a little information, set realistic expectations and plan well...the trip really is a piece of cake.

And of course there is paper and glue involved, it just makes everything better.

And for those of you that are new here...we go to Disney so frequently because my son has multiple food allergies and Disney is awesome at making my family feel like everyone else for a week. So we make it a priority above almost everything else so that we can have that experience.

And the Mouse makes me happy too :-)

New LO....

2010-01-11T10:32:00.004-05:00

Love this to pieces...the stamps, the Studio Calico paper...the stamps :-)

The stamps can be found here.

I used the Scraplines Scallopy Border, Label Memory Block, Typewriter, Travel and Happiness stamps from Scrapping Bella stamped on the backside of the Bazzill cardstock. I really like the tone on tone effect of the Walnut Ink and the Vanilla cardstock.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Just Because....

2010-01-10T21:33:00.003-05:00

It's too cute not to share :-)

And because he was seriously worried that my shoes were faster than his...

Colin got new shoes too, (and because he got a card with money in the mail).

All day he has wanted to race me just to make sure his shoes are faster.

This kid cracks me up!

Baby's Got a New Pair of Shoes....

2010-01-09T12:21:00.003-05:00

I have never put this much thought or energy in purchasing a pair of shoes but I am so glad I did!

Did I mention that these are RUNNING shoes?

I am proud to say that I have RAN over 2 miles this last week.

I have been running about 1/2 mile each time I have been to the gym and last night I probably could have ran even more but I wanted to get home to my family.

My back and my heels feel great today.

Thank God for coupons so I could splurge on these babies.

However the best part was showing these to Colin...he was pretty impressed that my shoes were that cool.

Goals for 2010...

2010-01-07T04:54:00.003-05:00

I have been meaning to write this post for the past few days...somehow goals seem more accountable when you say them out loud! I have been busy working out the last couple of evenings so as soon as I get little man to bed I am in lala land too! So I am definitely adding "scrap early in the morning" to my list of goals for this year.

So here goes...
Eat Better
See the Mouse
Achieve Work/Life Balance
Scrapbook Faster
Submit More Often
Accessorize More
Make More Meals
Have a Baby
Find New Things to Bake
Project 365
Decorate My Home
Work Out
Learn to Shoot in Manual

Those are the biggies for this year..here's hoping for a blessed 2010 and that things can continue to go as well as they are right now :-)

And just because these are the cutest things EVER! These were made with the 5 in 1 Tasty Baker that Santa brought for Colin.
"How did Santa know I like Mickey Waffles so much?!"

I just finished another LO to share so check back for that one soon!

"Easy" Toffee Recipe...

2010-01-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

I found this recipe on Little Birdie Secrets and thought to myself..."Self, that looks pretty easy...you should try it."

So I got my ingredients together and after making the first batch...and pretty much eating all of it :-) I decided that this would be my Christmas treat for this year.

I brought this to work and everyone was telling me how awesome this was and well...it made me a little uncomfortable since I barely did anything. So I told everyone the recipe and several went home to try it.

Well apparently it's not as easy as I thought.

I had several people looking for me the next morning who either had gobs of stuff that wasn't edible or taffy.

So I promised to do a post with photos so here ya go!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-03T07:56:00.004-05:00

Okay so I know that was like three days ago but trust me...I have a good reason for not posting sooner. First I was working on this...

Is it weird that paper, glue and stamps can make me so happy?

I used the Scraplines Scallopy Borders Stamp and the Happiness Text Stamp from Scrapping Bella. If you look closely you can also see a new gadget that is also available in the shop. I FINALLY got the Tim Holtz tiny attacher! I was like a lot of other people who thought, "what's the big deal, it's a stapler?" Oh how I was so wrong! It's just perfect for attaching little things and it's super secure. Love. It.

The other reason I didn't get this posted yesterday was because Matt and I spent the day shopping till I dropped. Yep, I really dropped, I was sitting on the floor in Kohl's at 11PM because I just couldn't take it anymore. I have no idea why my husband takes WAY longer than me to make a decision while trying on clothes or why he can't tell when something looks awful. Boys are weird.

I seriously left him alone for an hour and he got completely off task and started looking at coats?! He needed pants.

We didn't get home till 12:30AM! That, was all him.

Geez.

Did I ever tell you that when I say something silly Colin says..."Geez lady?! What are you talking about?"

Speaking of being off task...I digress.

I do have a super introspective post planned but right now I want to look at all of the cute things I bought :-)

Next up...toffee in photos!

Christmas Canvas....

2009-12-31T00:01:00.000-05:00

This was a gift for my sister in law. Is it bad that I kind of wanted to keep it? I have been meaning to make a canvas for our home (since I really need to get on the ball and finish decorating), but it feels way better to give than to receive.

To make this I got my Iris box of scraps and pulled all of the vintage papers that I liked as well as a few red accents. I had found some vintage labels at a stamp show awhile back and hadn't really found a use for them...until now!

I cut my circles in various sizes and just started adding circles till I felt like it was done. Sorry that there isn't more of a science to it, I wanted it to feel a little random. I did place my red accents on purpose to make my visual triangle and added buttons to connect some of the circles and "ground" others.

That's it!

Seriously, it was a lot easier than I thought and I can't wait to make another!
I used regular acrylic paint as my base and I used Gloss Gel as my glue and sealer.

Milk/Egg Free Pioneer Woman Sheet Cake

2009-12-30T10:12:00.005-05:00

I wanted to post a few links and share with you some of the things that I made this year as gifts.

But first let's talk food. :-)
This is the sheet cake recipe and instructions.

While this is a great recipe, Colin wouldn't be able to eat it.
This is my version.

Milk and Egg Free Pioneer Woman Sheet Cake
2 Cups Flour
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
Mix Together

1/2 Cup Buttermilk (I use 1/2 Cup Rice Milk and add 1 Tablespoon Vinegar)
2 Eggs (3 Tablespoons Oil, 3 Tablespoons Water, 2 Teaspoon Baking Powder mixed together in a separate bowl till it fizzes. This is my general replacement for two eggs in any recipe)
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Mix this together in a separate bowl and then set aside. I just use a large measuring cup that I use for the "buttermilk" and then add everything to that.

2 Sticks Butter (fleishmanns is milk and soy free)
4 Tablespoons Cocoa
1 Cup Boiling Water
Melt Butter, add cocoa then mix. Add boiling water and then let bubble for about a minute.

Mix your flour mixture, buttermilk mixture and cocoa mixture together. Pour into a sheet pan and bake for 18-20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

While this is baking work on your frosting.

1 3/4 Sticks Butter (fleishmann's is milk and soy free)
4 Tablespoons Cocoa
6 Tablespoons Milk (I decreased this to about 3 Tablespoons Rice Milk and then added 3 Tablespoons Water since Rice Milk is really sweet)
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 Pound Confectioner's Sugar

MIX THIS REALLY WELL! Otherwise you have lumps of sugar.

Unless you like lumps of sugar :-)

As soon as your cake come out of the oven pour frosting over sheet cake and spread.

Once I get the hang of making this I have a feeling this will be my quickest cake and frosting recipe. I can do this in under 30 minutes from start to finish.

Seriously, this is the best little chocolate cake that I have ever made.

If you make this let me know what you think...and as always, if you have any questions let me know that too.

I will do my best to answer them in future posts, by email or in the comment section.

And don't worry, I also made some crafty gifts too that I will be sharing later today or tomorrow. :-)

Merry Christmas From Our Family to Yours...

2009-12-27T11:35:00.003-05:00

Photo Card downloaded from Becky Higgin's Website.

We are nearing the end of our Christmas weekend and plan to hit up Hershey Park today as well as a bit of shopping for me at the outlets.

And if I manage to wander into the scrapbook store I swear it will only be for a few minutes :-) As far as I am concerned, that is the perfect ending to a perfect weekend. Which included a date with my hubby to see the Princess and the Frog. (Who cares if we were the only adults without children there.) Very awesome movie by the way!

When I get home I will upload the photos of the gifts I made this year. I realize that this really isn't too helpful for Christmas, sorry about that. But it still may give you ideas for birthday or thank you gifts. Or just gifts to yourself since it is oh so yummy!

Also on the agenda...
Toffee Recipe with photos :-)
My Sheet Cake Recipe
Chili Mix Recipe and Template Links
And answering questions about the overlays I made in Photoshop for Project 365.

Oh and there may be a photo or two of my adorable son who was wearing a Mickey Santa hat with his Mickey sweater. However, for some reason I didn't get any family photos of us together. No worries, I plan on having a "reshoot" before taking our tree down.

I'll be back to share soon but until then, I hope everyone enjoys every last bit of this Holiday weekend.

Guess What Came Today....

2009-12-23T19:43:00.002-05:00

Three of these.

One for Mommy.
One for Daddy.
One for Colin.

And I got them on sale.

The Fausts are going to be all matchy matchy this holiday season.

I seriously can't wait :-)

Scrapping Bella Winner!

2009-12-21T13:48:00.003-05:00

I used random.org to choose a winner however you will just have to trust me since I'm not using my home computer to upload a screen shot.

The random number chosen was......41!

That means
apron girls said...
Your stuff is way too cute! Love those blocks and the Christmas To Do. Congrats on the Bella Babe.

December 20, 2009 1:51 AM

So Apron Girls please send me your contact info to kck182 at comcast dot net to claim your prize!

Again thanks so much for your sweet comments and playing along!

The Weather Outside is Frightful...

2009-12-19T11:03:00.003-05:00

But my productivity is sooooo delightful! :-)

Since I have loads to bake....

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

It's a blizzard here so it is PJ and movie day. Colin is thrilled. I however am not sitting on the couch watching TV, I am placing last minute gift orders and baking.

And ummm, updating my blog.

A girl's gotta have priorities!

Here's my December Collage Press LO. Note, I used the Joyride line with SUMMER PENN STATE PHOTOS! Now THAT'S versatility!

P.S. Thank you so much for all of your encouraging words and comments! I can't wait to get started with my Bella duties and I look forward to getting to know everyone better!

Project 365 Photos...(Photo Heavy)

2009-12-18T00:01:00.000-05:00

A few highlights from the past two weeks...

11/28: Started Christmas shopping...in NOVEMBER! That's pretty good for me :-)

11/29: Colin did a great job of giving away toys he no longer plays with. He donated them to "the little boys and girls who do not have any toys."

11/30: How cool is it that Colin's drawings are starting to look like people. Weird looking people but people nonetheless.

12/6: These two guys being very happy that I am home from my girls weekend to Christmas shop. Again...I'm getting a lot of this done EARLY!

12/9: *sigh* I just love this!

12/10: BEST SHEET CAKE EVER! I modified the version that I saw here. The one I made is Milk, Soy and Egg free baby!

12/13: We got our tree this weekend and every time I look at these ornaments they make me smile.

So I Am A Bella Babe!

2009-12-16T23:38:00.004-05:00

So I was contacted by the very fun and witty Emily, owner of Stamping Bella, to see if I was interested in designing for her new scrapbooking website, Scrapping Bella. It didn't take me long to say yes to playing with really cute stamps and a fun mix of products. However it did take me a little longer to email her my headshot and bio :-)

So checkout the blog here this week for the official announcement!

To say that I am excited, flattered, inspired, excited :-) would be the understatement of the year. However, I am most of all grateful for the opportunity!

And if you haven't had a chance to check out the website I would encourage you to do so now.

Go ahead, I'll wait :-)

Isn't it awesome?!

Okay that's it for now...I have some new LO's to share and loads of Project 365 photos to share that will shed some light on what the Faust clan has been up to over the last couple of weeks.

Excited? Me too!

The last two weeks have been a bit of a blur so I am anxious to see what we have been up to too!

Oh what the heck! Here's that LO that I was working on in this post where I realized that glue and toddlers don't mix.
You see that ribbon at the bottom of the photo? It's covering the big glue spot courtesy of Colin Faust.

In the end I did thank him for "helping me" with my scrapbooking.

The ribbon was a nice touch!

*ETA* Have you seen all this stuff?

The very generous Emily is providing my readers and new Bella friends a chance at winning all of this loot! So comment on this post to be entered for your chance to win!

Good Luck everyone!

Quick Update!

2009-12-15T08:36:00.002-05:00

I have HUGE scrappy news to share...well at least HUGE to me :-)

Not to make you wait on the edge of your seat but I am on my way to work and well....it will take me more than 30 seconds to post the story.

I didn't fall off the face of the earth I am just being super productive in the Christmas department!

So productive that I have gotten totally behind in my blog stalking ritual :-)

Never fear, I will be stalking your blogs shortly as well as sharing my news.

Now back to your regularly scheduled day :-)

Christmas Planning...

2009-12-08T15:57:00.002-05:00

I am thrilled to say that I have gotten most of my shopping already done.
Impressed?
Me too :-)

I am definitely a last minute type of gal so this change of pace feels a little weird but I like it!

I think that this planner has helped a lot and I love crossing things off of each list.

And just in case I forget how many days that there are left to Christmas I have this....

These were my design team projects for the Collage Press Blog. If you haven't had a chance to leave a message over there be sure to do it right now! They are giving away the entire Joyride line and it is seriously the best Christmas line ever!

I Should Be Packing...

2009-12-02T20:12:00.003-05:00

But I am doing a bit of laundry so that my family can have clean socks while I am gone...I'm so nice :-)

I have quite a few LO's to share but I'm not sure if I am able to share them here yet or not. I do know that my Joyride projects should be posted this week on the Collage Press Blog.

I am hoping that a bit of the Christmas spirit will rub off on me during my girls only, best place on earth, Christmas shopping trip this weekend.

Now if I can just get my stuff packed and a little sleep I will be set. :-)

Please send good thoughts my hubby's way since he will have our little monster to himself till I get back. Colin has "assured" me that he will not stay up late eating popcorn or candy. I will be thrilled as long as no one gets hurt and they each get some sleep.

And Colin brushes his teeth before going to bed.

Sometimes you just have to lower your standards.

All kidding aside, I'm sure everything will be fine and I know my hubby will do a great job!

New Layout

2009-11-29T14:50:00.002-05:00

Supplies: Cardstock: American Crafts, Bazzill. Pattern Paper: Cosmo Cricket and Basic Grey. Ribbon: Cosmo Cricket. Chipboard, Rub On and Mists: Maya Road. Chipboard Button: Jenni Bowlin. Brads: Target Dollar Spot. Fence Rub On: Martha Stewart. Stickers: Creative Imaginations.

I love that I was able to use up a few older items with newer paper. Love that!

2009-11-29T03:32:00.003-05:00

Just saying hi. I couldn't sleep so I decided to actually do something rather than toss and turn. I may regret that tomorrow but oh well.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is enjoying their weekend.

Thanks so much for the comments about the online photo sites and stories about the page protectors. I feel much less stressed since I can start putting the album together instead of having everything out and about. Slowly I am finding a system that works to take my photos, edit them and print them quickly. I am thrilled that I decided to do this since I know I am taking the time to take photos that I wouldn't normally take!

Well that's it for now...I plan on working on a few projects right now...hope to share soon!

Ham and Project 365...

2009-11-24T00:08:00.003-05:00

There she is! I got it done and even made some corn pudding too. I haven't had that in ages and since Colin was at school I figured it was safe to bake eggs in the house.

On another note, guess what happened?

I purchased We R Memory Keepers 4x6 page protectors to use in my American Crafts Modern Album. They didn't fit. So I figured that I needed a different album yet I'm cheap so I purchased a Pioneer D Ring album with a coupon. I got the album home, put in the page protectors...they don't fit. I figured "Great, now I have to purchase the expensive album." Just because I am a quick thinker, I brought along a page protector when I went to the store to purchase the expensive WRMK's Linen Album. I tried the protector and THEY DIDN'T FIT IN THERE EITHER!

So I called WRMK's and they explained that they were probably a bad batch and that I should return them. Well I purchased them in Hershey which is more than a hop, skip and a jump away. When I explained that it would be difficult to get there they told me that they could ship new ones if I covered the cost of shipping. The SHIPPING COST MORE THAN THE PAGE PROTECTORS!

That was the best that they could do. *sigh*

Needless to say I now have American Crafts 4x6 Page Protectors.

And I actually like them better.

Take that WRMK's!

So I Need A Ham In 11 Hours...

2009-11-20T02:42:00.003-05:00

So if you see me in the grocery store in my PJ's don't stare too long, okay? :-)

I'm actually not sure how I'm going to make this happen but no matter what I'm sure it will be nuts and adventurous. At least it keeps life interesting, right?

I do have a good reason for procrastination.

I have been trying to learn how to put two vertical photos on a 4x6 so I can use them in my Project 365 album. Once I get something like that in my head I don't let it go until I figure it out, on my own.

So I'm pretty sure I figured it out even thought there may be a better way.

I resized both photos to 2x3 and then moved them onto a blank 4x6 document in Photoshop. I used the grid feature and checked "snap to grid."

Even though everything was resized it still felt like I was stretching the photos and distorting their proportions.

(Although not so much in this photo, that tree is really that wonky and I made it a point to not waste time cropping and editing photos for this project. So even though those trees bother me a little side by side like that, I am letting it go. See, progress).

So I have been scrapbooking even though I haven't shared anything in awhile. I have 5LO's currently in progress, a few new LO's that I should be able to share soon, a project that will be posted on the Collage Press blog next week and oh yeah...that ham to bake.

Yeah...I don't know why I'm on the computer either.

Project 365...

2009-11-16T02:20:00.004-05:00

I officially started today but Friday is the day I decided to use as day #1.

Nevermind that the photo that I am showing you is from Saturday, lol! I love that little bit of paint on his face! We went to Color Me In and painted pottery all afternoon on Saturday. It was totally fun and inspiring!

Expensive, but inspiring!

I have spent most of last night and tonight researching and deciding how I wanted to do this. I ended up purchasing We R Memory Keepers 4x6 photo sleeves and started printing the free download from last year's Project 365. I'll see if I can find a link to share with all of you.

The 4x6 page protectors do not quite fit in the American Crafts D Ring album so I plan on using a coupon and purchasing a We R Memory Keeper album for this project.

I'm excited and a bit nervous by the whole process. I really want to keep up with it and have already enjoyed putting together the first page. I'm excited to have a photo from each day even if there was poor lighting or not everyone was looking.

This will be a great way to keep up with all of the stories I want to tell but struggle with finding the time to scrapbook an entire LO. I can really see this as being my "storage binders" like in the Library of Memories class. I really want to make a greater effort to print photos this year so that everyone can enjoy them, not just the ones that made it into the scrapbooks.

So for those of you who did this last year and are in the home stretch, any tips?
Has anyone else completed this without the kit?
Are you planning on buying this year's version of Project Life?

It Feels Good and Bad...

2009-11-15T06:23:00.004-05:00

To stay up all night.

I haven't done this in awhile and I'm sure I will end up paying for this while at Hershey Park this afternoon.

Oh well at least I got some things done.

I worked with the new Home Front Line and my Collage Press stuff.

I "think" I figured out my photo dilemma. I processed 381 photos, just resized and sharpened using the batch process tool in PSE. I then deleted all of those extra photos from my organizer and reorganized my folders. I uploaded a few sample images different places to compare. Hopefully I will know for sure next week.

I created our Christmas cards and finally figured out how to use the move tool in PSE.

While reorganizing files I realized that I had downloaded the Project 365 journaling cards thinking that maybe I would use them for something and completely forgot about them.

So yeah...I'm planning on doing Project 365 in 2010.

It's a good thing since I have a feeling it's going to be an interesting one.

I'm just sayin' :-)

I Need Photo Help ASAP...

2009-11-13T11:25:00.002-05:00

So I have enjoyed scrapbooking out of order, learning Photoshop Elements 3.0 and printing photos at home. One major downfall of that whole process is I have 3000 photos currently in my Photoshop organizer. I have asked Matt to backup my files for me for Christmas. That is really all that I want this year. I want someone else to research the "best way" and do it for me. (Don't panic, I do have most of these files on a thumb drive and photo CD's but I would like to have them be even more secure).

So in the mean time I would like to print all of these photos. Yep, all 3000. I then want to put them in albums. I've realized that I am the only one who gets to enjoy them as I look through my files deciding what I want to scrap.

So I need suggestions.
1. First I need to learn how to batch process my photos in PSE. I would like to at least sharpen all of these before printing and then if I reprint later to scrap I can adjust more if needed.
2. I need to learn how to save my files properly in PSE. I have noticed that some of my images saved at 200DPI. This of course resulted in grainy prints. When I hit "save as" I save as a jpeg using the highest option. I currently do not resize to 4x6 or anything so that I can print whatever size that I want in the future with the larger image.
3. I need suggestions of an online developer. I really would like my photos printed on professional paper. I have ordered from Shutterfly, Kodak and Kodax Pro and haven't been happy with any of them. I also realize that I may be having color issues related to how I am saving images.

So where do you get your photos printed? How do you save your photos and have you ever placed this large of an order somewhere?

I'm definitely going to do a small batch for comparison before doing the whole thing. If I place that large of an order and they are crap I will cry. Mostly because I have just wasted money, time, ink and paper.

So any info is greatly appreciated. :-)

Well It Finally Happened...

2009-11-09T00:01:00.000-05:00

After ages of leaving LO's in progress accessible to preschool hands, Colin finally decided that my LO needed "some help."

Colin: "Mommy where's the glue?"
Me: "I don't have any."
Colin: "Well what is this?" As he walks across the room and finds a tacky glue bottle.
Me: "It's glue but please don't use it, we are getting ready to leave."

We finish putting our shoes on and as we walk into the garage Colin says...

Colin: "So Mommy, what do you think of your scrapbooking? I made it special for you. I wanted to scrapbook with you so I made it special."

So I walk slowly over to my counter and see how special Colin made my almost finished LO. He glued a string of scrapper's floss to the photo with coordinating buttons.

GLUE. He used GLUE.

So I walked backed to the car and I didn't have the heart to tell him that I was tempted to ground him till college because he was so happy that he helped and that I liked it.

When I came home I removed the evidence and I may cover the spot of clear glue with an embellishment or possibly reprint the photo. Colin was upset that someone moved the buttons and I told him that the glue didn't hold it.

Colin: "Well I better get more glue."
Me: As shrieks of panic go through my body. "You know that would make a really nice necklace."

He is now happily making me a necklace that I WILL wear in exchange for him laying off of my LO's.

Who knew scrappers floss was so versatile?

Did I mention that this LO is due tomorrow morning?

Disney Planners

2009-11-08T18:28:00.003-05:00

This is last years planner. I used cardstock to write all of our important info that I would reference a lot during the week. Allergies, places to find special food, hours, reservations and height restrictions. I of course did this the night before so I used 4x6 laminating sheets to sandwich my cardstock and pattern paper to protect them from damage since they would be handled a ton.

Things that worked...
Everything was in one place.
It was easy to find in my bag.
It was cute.

Things that didn't...
The laminating sheets didn't make it through the whole week.
They didn't hold up to the rain.
Some of my handwriting was hard to read.

So here's the updated version...

I made it smaller, I did it ahead of time and I focused my information by day so it was easy to tell which parks were open late each day.

I included a list of Colin's allergies, (it's easier to hand this over then worry that I forget to say something), park hours, where we could get Colin's special food in each park and all of our reservation and confirmation numbers. I forgot to take a photo of the back where you can see a coordinating pattern paper. After printing these onto cardstock, adhering pattern paper, cutting to size and embellishing I took them to Staples and had them laminate it.

This worked much better.

And it was still cute. :-)

Seriously This Week Just Flew By...

2009-11-08T01:07:00.002-05:00

I realize that it was my first week back but still, are things really that crazy? It felt like as soon as I would get up and get going it was already time to start winding the day down and get ready for bed. It felt like it had been ages since I made something and I'm pretty sure it was starting to get to me, lol!

So I went to a little crop and my son's daycare today. I just brought a few things...still more than I needed, and worked on two LO's. When I came home and started putting things away I realized that my "do dads" had gotten a bit out of control. I have two bowls on my desk that I throw little embellishments in so I don't forget about them. Well, for the last few weeks I have been just dumping stuff in there and not actually using anything.

So they were a complete mess!

So I reorganized those which then led me to putting everything away from the crop. Then I realized that I had too many scraps in my scrap bag so I needed to sort that. And while I was thinking of that I realized that I hadn't organized my pattern paper in awhile or my cardstock....

So it's now 1AM and my room is much more organized and functional.

Unfortunately, I'm too tired to function in it!

So tomorrow friends...I shall have photos to share, some scrappy projects and random witty remarks to start this next week off right!

A Recent Share...

2009-11-04T13:57:00.004-05:00

I just added this to my gallery in the last few days and thought I would share it here too. The Past Due stamp is from Studio Calico, have I mentioned lately that they make my favorite stamps? Seriously, this LO came together really quickly...the ones I like the most always do for some reason. I have been keeping my eyes peeled for more of these brads that I used on this LO. I got them in the Target dollar spot over a year ago and never used them. I have no idea why I didn't because they are fab but who knows? Probably because I forgot that I had them. I really need to have a limited number of things on hand so I can remember everything that I have. I have been organizing and purging my space lately, definitely helps me remember what I have. I'm also thinking about moving some stuff upstairs. It's great to have a dedicated room but during the day it seems so far away. It would be nice to be able to create during an impromptu soccer game in the living room.

A girl's gotta multi task :-)

Especially considering the holidays are almost here and I just started thinking about the dress I will probably make for my husband's Christmas Party. Which is pretty impressive for me since I still have about a month to go. I thought about buying one but it is much for fun stressing Matt out that it won't be finished in time.

That's pretty good for me :-)

Disney Recap...

2009-11-02T00:01:00.000-05:00

Let me start this post by saying that this trip was exactly what I needed to recharge my batteries. Which is interesting since going to Disney pretty much depletes any existing energy while there. This trip was no exception. It was incredibly hot...(so much for mild weather), crowded and exhausting.
But oh so much fun!

We arrived on Sunday. I must say that taking a later flight and being organized helped a lot. We left without a hitch and didn't run into any speed bumps until later that evening when we were all excited and hungry. After our first little big kid meltdown we decided to skip the parks Sunday night and went swimming.
Yep, we swam until almost midnight! I kept telling Colin that this was crazy and that we should be sleeping. But we knew we were going to sleep in the next day and figured we might as well swim when we don't have to worry about getting burned.

On Monday we decided to hit up Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom...homemade shirts and all.

Doesn't he just look so relaxed?

We stayed at the Pop Century Resort which was definitely our favorite Value Resort. The transportation was great and we hardly waited very long for any of the park buses. We did spend some time checking out some other resorts while park hopping and I have to say the Animal Kingdom Lodge definitely has a few perks...

How about seeing one of these out of your window. I took this photo on the safari but when we stopped at the lodge to use the bathrooms we saw a few while waiting in the lobby. Now tell me that's not cool.

I did manage a few decent pictures in front of the castle but this is the only one that I have on my camera. I have a couple on our Photo Pass card and now will just stalk my email to see if they will send me a promo code for it to be cheaper. I just can't justify the expense when I have almost all of the same images on my camera.

I really wanted to write down all of the funny things that Colin said but for some reason I got too busy and forgot.

The few that I remember are...
"That's what I'm talking about, baby!"
"No Mommy you hold onto to those...we will need them to take another vacation!" (said in response to me asking him if he wanted to throw pennies in It's a Small World)
"I can't make my body settle down."
"You were lying, that ride was scary!"
"Mommy, I'm sooooo gonna dunk you under water!"

But the best was Colin ringing the bell on one of those bikes that you see on the boardwalk that seat 2-4 riders. Well we rented one at Disney's Boardwalk Resort and my stomach still hurts from laughing and the ab workout that I got while peddling. It's a good thing Colin was so good at his job because I am sure we would have run someone over. Not to mention that he was too cute for anyone to yell at him for making them get out of the way!

Other highlights...

We had two character breakfasts and I bribed Colin with race cars to take photos with the characters in Animal Kingdom. They were so cute since everyone was wearing their Halloween costumes.

We walked around Epcot during the Food and Wine Festival and had a snack during a Boys to Men concert.

Again, tell me that's not cool.

We rode the monorail 865 times and HAD to sit in the back of the bus each and every time that we rode it. Although we did better this trip in that he didn't have a complete meltdown when others were sitting in the back.

It feels like we did a ton but also feels like we hardly did anything. Oh well, it's not like we won't ever go back. As Colin says, "we can't throw our pennies in the water because we need to save them to take another vacation. I just looooove vacation!"

So I'm sure we will be saving pennies....and nickels, and dimes, and quarters and bills for awhile so we can all have a break to recharge our batteries and to see the mouse!

Now if I could just think of a witty phrase for our next set of tee shirts....