Happy New Year!

15 minutes until the new year. We are spending it at home this year. Don't really know anyone here to spend it with and no one likes to drive to come see us.....and also Kent is sick. So anyway, today off and on I have been trying to clean out my office, organize, etc. Still have more to do.

I went to the grocery store today and was flipping through the magazines with the very good intent of not buying one. But then, as I was looking through the Paperkuts January 2006 issue, the name "Stacey George" caught my eye. I have a quote on page 72! They emailed me a while back asking me a few questions and I guess they decided to use something I said. Well, being that I have never seen my name in a nationally publicated magazine, I had to buy it. I'm supposed to get a "goody box" from them for my efforts.....guess we'll see.

In other exciting news, I think this body bugg thing is pretty cool. I have been using all of its features since Wednesday. It is very interesting to see what activities burn calories, etc. It appears a few trips up and down our stairs (somewhat steep) is good for me. I have also figured out this 1400 calorie diet thing. It is not as much of a stretch as I thought. Basically, I just need to eat reasonable amounts, not take seconds and avoid mindless snacking. All pretty common sense things, but good to see in black and white. It also means very few items from my most favorite food group.....sugar. The other thing it means is very little eating out....which of course I know and have wanted not to do as much of, but a 1-2 times a week that convenience is just too much of a pull. I think the key to the success of this will be planning ahead, weekly meal planning, etc. If the food is in the house it will be much easier to make =). Gee...aren't I smart?
Today was my experiment day. Can I not work out and still make my calorie burning goals? I will make it, but.....I did not sit too much today. Cleaned, grocery shopped. Didn't really sit and relax too much. Might just be easier to work out.

So....as I sit here with 2 minutes until midnight, I am contemplating my goals for the new year.
Lets see......
I would like to paint the walls in my house a color other than white.
I would like to get some furniture in my house =).
I would like to get curtains or some sort of window coverings on some of my windows {especially that lovely bathroom.....the baby blanket is still up!}
I would like to continue my exercise program and loose that pesky extra fat.
I would like to find a place for everything in my house....less clutter. Storage is good.
I would like to continue to do my scrapbooking thing....maybe get a few more published.
I'm sure there is more, but I can't think of them right now. So blessing in the new year to all! Good night!

A quick one

Just a quick one tonight. I had my personal training session today. Got my fat pinched, queezed, had to be weighed, photographed.....it was worse than going to the doctor. Got the body bugg uploaded and can now do that from home. The computer calcuates that I should be burning a little over 2000 calories per day and taking in 1460ish (!!!!) Yikes. Although, logging in my food today, I did accomplish the 1400 thing. Sitting here I am hungry....but oh well, I'm going to go to bed soon and then it won't matter....I'll just digest some of my fat while I'm sleeping. It was kind of disheartening after I got my fat pinched, when he announced the same % body fat that I had 4 months ago when I started exercising. So apparently, even though I have definitely gained muscle, I have not been successful in losing any fat. That sucks. I think this body bugg thing will be very good for me...good to see what happens if I eat a piece of cake, a ton of Mexican food, whatever. Make me think about if it is really worth it or not. So anyway, my goal remains the same...to lose my flab, all 15ish pounds of it. So.....stay tuned for next Wednesday when the body bugg saga continues.

The first picture is of Bella {new fuzzy pink shirt courtesy of Grandma Be} trying out her new karoke machine. She was singing jingle bells. Soon after this, Emma {in her new barbie princess dress} came over to help her out and an all out fight started as they were fighting over the microphone....and soon Jingle Bells turned into screaming, tugging, and pushing. The second photo is of Emma playing with her new kitchen (which can also be seen in the background of the first). It is from Target and is a pottery barn replica. Gotta love Target....cool stuff, much cheaper. Emma loves her kitchen.

I will start posting my layouts again soon...but I need to finish the design team stuff first. Did my second layout tonight.....I am REALLY struggling with this paper.....hope it turns out good enough =).




The other two pictures are of my Body Bugg . It is on my right arm, the major part is on my triceps. It is annoying, don't like having it on all the time. But since they are nice enough to let me try it, I will try to give it a fair shot. I have no idea how it works, other than it apparently measures 4 different parameters to come up with an estimate of how many calories I am burning. And according to the trainer, it is the most accurate thing outside of the lab. Tomorrow I have my first appointment with my trainer dude, we'll download the thing for the first time and see the bad news {I'm assuming}. It does make me stop and think about what I'm eating. We'll see. I'm excited though....looking forward to having someone make me work hard.

To my Frytown Friend, sorry about the UTI. I'm sure you might remember Bella had reflux and had several VCUGs....always harder when it is your own kid =(. I hope I get to see you when you come back, let me know if you have any time!

Back from Christmas

So here is a picture of my Emma being read to by my Grandma. When Bella was little she dubbed Grandma Big Grandma to differentiate her from my mom....and it has stuck. So now my grandparents are Big Grandma and Big Grandpa. Such a sweet woman. I kind of desaturated the photo a bit. I used it on my first layout for the design team I am a guest on this month at Rustic Artisans. I am really struggling with this paper. Having a hard time getting inspired....hopefully it will come to me in the next week as I have to get that done by then. I also got my stuff from Scrappy Giraffe. I think she did a great job of putting stuff together. The paper is great and the cardstock matches perfectly {that is my pet peave when the cardstock doesn't match anything---you know I'm a complete nutball when I have pet peaves about cardstock!}. Anyway....again if you haven't checked it out, do it!!!!!!!{aren't I a good salesperson?}

I was quite excited to see that I have new readers and that they commented!!! How happy that makes me. Yes, again I am showing my geakiness by getting excited over something like that, but for some reason it makes me happy to know that someone else besides my mother {and maybe a few others} enjoy this. Anyway....to answer a few questions in my comment section. About blogging.....very easy, fun, keeps friends and family up-to-date and is completely free through blogger. Check it out: Blogger . About scrapbooking. Great hobby. Stress reliever. No need to get overwhelmed by it. For you beginners {and anyone else} I would suggest the book The Big Picture and it's related website Big Picture . And though I failed to impress my sister-in-law this weekend with the book {she's tough....but breakable =) } I think it would be a great resource for someone who is considering taking scrapbooking up and needs some guidance on where to start. Again....am I showing my geekiness? And lastly, what is a scrapbook design team? It is a group of so-called designers {questionable title for myself I believe} that use the product given to them to create layouts/projects that make the product desirable to others who might be shopping for them. So for instance Paper Heart Studio is a manufacterer of scrapbook paper. She sends me product, I make stuff with it. I try to get published with it to show off her stuff, she can use it at tradeshows, etc. etc. The other team I am on, Scrappy Giraffe is a kit club. She collects papers and fun stuff from multiple manufacturers, coordinates it all, sends it out to subscribers. My job is to make stuff that is inspiring for the subscribers, etc. Long answer, huh?

Anyway....that is all for tonight. Have a good one.

The drum has arrived

So tonight we surprised the girls by letting them open their presents. Bella said it was the best surprise ever. The above photo shows Bella opening her new karoke machine. Her doll house is almost finished. She liked that a lot too. The plan is for Kent and her to finish it up next week. Emma finally got the drum she has been begging for. She was pretty excited. I will post more Christmas pictures next week. Going to my mom's house tomorrow for the weekend. Should be fun.

Well, as some know I have been exercising faithfully since August. Still not making the progress that I want to.....so today I broke down and got a personal trainer dude. Hopefully he is going to whip me into shape. For three months I am also going to do the Body Bugg . I get to do this part for free because I am cool. Acutally, it is not because I'm cool (shock), but because of my job, they think I might be some good free advertisement to venerable post-partum moms. Anyway, not sure I'm crazy about wearing this thing around my arm, but since it is free, I'll give it a whirl. Anyway, will post more about that later. That is all for tonight. Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas.

Loser

Alright....I'm such a loser. Instead of working on all the things that need to be done, I sit and play on the computer and make the lovely banner above. It is my first attempt at making such a thing. I think my next one will be even better =). Now...back to work.

Farewell!

....Well not for good. Probably for a lot of this week though. I have A LOT, A TON, THOUSANDS OF THINGS to do this week. I have to finish a few Christmas presents, Bella's dollhouse is far from finished {so VERY, VERY, VERY far}, I live in a pigsty that should be cleaned, I work full-time, etc, etc, etc. So just a warning....so you can prepare yourselves for the shock of not having my blog to read. But I will save up everything exciting and be back strong next week. Maybe, if I have an abundance of energy (ha!) I will post something this week....we'll just have to see. I'll aim for Wednesday....sound good?

Oh by the way, Memory Makers requested another page.....but it had already been taken by BHG. Never thought I'd have that problem =). Another thing to check out.... the kit at Scrappy Giraffe is up. This will ship the third Monday in January. Check it out! You even get some lip gloss with it. =)

Favorite Mama

Made this tonight. Seems like lately I'm going a little crazy with my stuff...but it is kind of fun. This was made out of tissue paper, lots of glue, some fancy post-it notes, etc. In person, I think it is kind of pretty. Can't get the full effect from scanning though. {By the way for you inquiring minds...that is a picture of Emma}

So tonight Emma was standing beside me, watching me glue {she loves glue} and she said out of the blue, "you're my favorite mama". Ahh....how cute. I think that is the first time she has verbalized any love towards me. Of course she hugs and kisses and all that stuff...but has never really said anything.

Okay.....so I remember trying to read Black Beauty when I was a kid, but I think I got bored and never got past the first chapter or so. Anyway, Bella is watching this movie tonight and it finishes and she comes in to talk to me and I can tell something is wrong...so I ask her what it was, was the movie good, etc. She then said it was the saddest movie ever. I asked her what happened and she bursts into tears....I guess Black Beauty's horse friend dies. No one ever told me a horse dies in this thing!?! I probably wouldn't have let her watch it if I had known, she is kind of sensitive to those things. She still gets teary eyed when we talk about the disappearance of Henry the nasty mean cat who was never nice to her. Anyway, she recoverd and drew pictures of horses the rest of the night.

Well, must go to bed. Have a good day.

This didn't scan so well...oh well. Some of the centers of the flowers have glitter in them, some of letters aren't showing up. Again...oh well.

Had to go back to work today. I'm really feeling a need for a vacation. Yesterday was so nice, really enjoyed not working. I sent most of my Christmas cards yesterday. Finished up all of my Christmas shopping. Nice to be done with that. Feeling kind of blah today....can you tell? Nothing exciting to talk about. Maybe tomorrow.

No Work for Me!

Here is a page I did tonight. It is kind of redo of a page I did shortly after Emma was born. There really is no comparison compared to that early page. The stuff I do now has changed so much. Much better now. Again this looks a little crooked....darn scanner.

So tomorrow (oops....guess it is tomorrow already) I am taking the whole day off. I have high hopes and grand aspirations for the day. But more than likely none of my goals with be accomplished. Probably, I'll run all my errands that I have been putting off, might work-out, eat some lunch, shop for a few yet to be bought Christmas presents and by that time my whole day of relaxing and having fun will be gone. Maybe I'll try....we'll see.

So silly me had the idea of buying Bella a doll house for Christmas {she has been asking for one for a long time---don't tell her}. So instead of just buying an ugly plastic one I had the brilliant idea to get one of those "real" doll houses. But....you have to put them together yourself. I bought one at the hobby lobby with my 40% off coupon. And holy crap.....that thing has like 50 lbs of wood to it, about a gazillion shingles, you have to paint it, etc, etc, etc. And of course since Kent and I are both procrastinaters....the box just got opened up yesterday. Hopefully, it will get done.

That is all for now....have a good day.

Another weekend gone

Here are my girlies enjoying the snow. Think this was last weekend when it was SOOOOOO cold out. Bella saw me with the camera and was doing her posing thing.

Didn't do too much this weekend. Can't really think of anything exciting to say. I did get another page request on Friday. This one was from Memory Makers magazine. So that was pretty cool. May issue I think. This one was of Emma so now she can be "famous" too.

That is all for now. I'll try to be more exciting tomorrow.

Nothing fun tonight

This picture was taken a few weeks ago. The girls always want to sleep together, but it never works out...they always goof off too much. So I don't let them even try anymore.

So we really didn't do anything fun tonight. I had to go to the grocery store after work and buy Betty food, she ran out last night. Got some Chinese food while we were there. Then came home and I dug out our newspaper from the driveway. It snowed today, not sure how much, but it seemed like there was at least 6 new inches on the driveway. Also shoveled it off a bit {no easy task...it is about 125 feet long and steep up hill}. Thought I should as the baby sitter is coming tomorrow and wanted her to be able to get up the driveway. We don't have a snowblower yet...who needs one with a 4WD? Then also due to babysitter pressure, I thought I should clean the house up a bit so she wouldn't turn me in to the health department for having a disgusting house. So it looks better. And that is my whole night. It kind of sucks. I hate it when all I do is work. Tomorrow we are going to a Christmas party for the clinic...exciting. I'm going for the free food. Bella is going to a friends house and Emma will hang out with the babysitter. Hope that goes well...she sometimes gets a little anxious without Bella. That is all for now--adios.

Magazines!

Allright....so I got some magazines in the mail today, also picked up one at the store....so I'm afraid to say that they are winning over the blogging tonight. Going to go get under my covers and read! I'm excited!

Random Thoughts

Okay, so I went a little crazy with this one tonight. I think it looks better in person. Oh well, it was fun while I was doing it.

Random thoughts from Emma's little mind, heard over the last week: Skunks don't wear underwear, that's why they stink. Skunks aren't big girls like me, skunks don't pee on the potty. Santa has a big bottom. My bottom is burping. Notice a common theme here? Also in other cute news, she wanted to go on a bike ride when we got home today. I declined due to the temperature of FOUR outside.

Why do I hate my cat so much? Is it because the other day I came downstairs and she was sitting on my open gym bag peeing on it? Is is because the only time she will get near Emma is at 3 am to wake her up? Is it because she is pacing the house like a crazy kitty right now wanting outside into the NEGATIVE FOUR weather? {hmmm....perhaps I should consider that}. Is it because she scrapes the side of her litter box for 5 minutes straight and never end up covering her deposit? I don't know, but she annoys the crap out of me.

In scrapbooking news, I had a page requested by Scrapbooks etc. I told Bella she was going to be famous {she is on the layout}. She couldn't stop giggling. She wondered if Grandma Cindy Lou would be able to see it in the magazine. I told her the whole world could and she giggled some more. Anyway, I'm kind of excited. I love Scrapbooks etc. Never thought they would want my stuff.

Kindergarten memories

Yeah....I know the black dots kind of ruin the whole thing, but I thought I better as some people might not appreciate their children on the internet. Anyway, this was Bella's kindergarten class. I set Bella loose with the camera at the end of the year party and she took almost all of the pictures herself (except of course the one she is in). I guess you can kind of get the idea.

Well, I'm afraid to say this as I might jinx the whole situation, but I believe I will call Emma officially potty trained. She refuses to wear pullups anymore, even at night {which didn't turn out so great last night}. She goes by herself without any prodding. She is always quite proud of her results, often calling multiple family members in to look.

I am going to host a stampin' up party {yes, I know, that is getting a bit social for me}. Hopefully, I will have a guest or two. Going to do it after the first of the year so people can get free stamps if they spend $50. Anyway, if anyone reading this would like to come, please let me know. That is all for tonight. Have a good one.

Emma and her crazy hair

Just a quick layout showcasing Emma's crazy hair. It took almost 2 years for her to have enough hair to do anything with.....including making it look goofy.

Well the new DT I'm on announced it's team. Check it out... Scrappy Giraffe . If anyone is looking for more scrapbooking supplies, looks like these kits are going to be large. First one should be pretty cool. There is a sneak peak on the site. I think she will start taking orders on Dec 15th.


So I finally got rid of my Idaho drivers license, after living here for almost a year. Being the geekoid that I am, I scanned it before going to the drivers license station...never know when you might need it?! =) I had my dorky I have braces smile in the picture....glad I don't have to do that anymore. My Iowa license was apparently still valid so I just had to pay $3 to get a new copy. The new Iowa license is very goofy looking. Has a pink banner, lots of swirlies, holographic stuff. Very odd looking. Anyway, I'm sure that was exciting wasn't it. Better go, have a good night.

Santa

So here are my girlies tonight. Thought they looked pretty cute. I get their picture taken every year with Santa. I like to go early and in the middle of the week so we don't have to wait. It's great...just walked right up to him. I have seen lines before that look at least an hour long...no way would I do that. Anyway, it was very cute. Emma was so excited. She was non-stop jabber with him. I heard her say she wanted a drum and a harmonica. I also heard her tell him to put them under the Christmas tree. She just kept talking and talking. Bella, on the other hand, was her usual quiet {in public} self and whispered what she wanted and posed for the camera the rest of the time. We had fun. That's all for now.

Nothing too exciting

Here is the layout I was too lazy to scan last night. It looks crooked here....much better in real life. I really don't have much to say tonight. I feel as if I'm getting ill. Haven't been sleeping as much as I should, too many sick kids spewing germs on me....think I better go rest. Have a good day.

A little bit of everything

So this is the Christmas tree. Not very exciting. It's not a matchy, matchy Christmas tree. Just a big conglomeration {is that a word?} of all sorts of things {most of which is hung at 3 feet or below thanks to the girls}. We have a teletubby, Blue from blue's clues, a dressed up Iowa corncob, a dressed up rifle shell to remind us of Idaho =) {thanks Tracy in ID!}, some antiquish ones from Kent's childhood {hee, hee}, basketball, a doctor lady, ballet shoes, a beenie baby duck, fancy glittery ones that Bella picked out, etc. etc. It is so fun to watch Emma with all of the Christmas stuff...it is all so new to her. She is so excited. She loves the lights on all the houses...she yells "look at that house" at every house we pass. She was quite excited to find out that Santa might bring her a present. She wants a drum and today she added a harmonica to her list. Don't know what her obsession with musical instruments is {she got a "tar" [guitar] for her potty training efforts which by the way is going wonderfully}.

Anyway, I made another layout tonight, but was just too lazy to scan it...what a pain in the butt. Maybe tomorrow. So instead I will do something else. Saw someone else who did this so I will add my list. So I made a list of 20 things I like to do. It is so easy for me to think of things I dislike....so I thought I should try to think positively and think of things I like. Here are the 1st 20 things that popped into my head.

20 things I like to do {some of which I don't get to do very often}. By me.
1. Reading magazines
2. Going to the beach
3. Scrapbooking (huh?)
4. Surfing the web
5. Shopping
6. Sleeping in {one of the ones I don't get to do}
7. Spending the day with my girls
8. Watching Letterman
9. Hiking
10. Lifting weights {did I just say that?}
11. Trying new recipes
12. Sitting in my yard {summer only}
13. Going to bookstores
14. Traveling {seeing new things minus the driving....I dislike that very much}
15. Blogging =)
16. Seeing new babies in the clinic
17. Gardening {pulling weeds is therapeutic...try it sometime}
18. Eating Mexican food
19. Taking pictures
20. Hanging out with family {even my sister}

There it is...pretty exciting huh? Have a good day.

Back to normal

This is Emma last February when she turned two. The colors are a little off on the scan, the pink isn't quite so dark in real life. The little book has pictures of all who were there and all of her gifts.

Well Bella and Kent came home this afternoon. That sure increases the noise factor here. Bella and Emma just pick on each other....causing squeals, screams, crying, etc. etc. It was actually kind of nice to have some quiet for a few days. Even though it was nice....it's better to have her home. We put up our Christmas tree tonight. The girls were super excited. Emma was very excited....since we didn't have a house last year, she probably doesn't remember the other time we had a tree {she wasn't quite one yet}. She was very good at hanging about 5 ornaments to a branch. Think they had fun.

Well that is all for now....have a good day.

Holiday synopsis

I'm back after a long holiday break. Aren't you excited? I was on call on Thanksgiving day and so it feels like I spent most of the day on the phone. Even had to call Mexico (!?!) for some patient to talk about non urgent issues. I found out the day before Thanksgiving that our pagers roam the whole state so I actually ended up going to my Grandma's house for lunch. Me and my Emma. Bella and Kent went to Lincoln to see his mom since it was our "turn" to go there. I can't believe it, but I think it had been since 2002 since I was last there for a holiday. So it was nice to see cousins, eat cheesy potatoes, and talk on the phone {largest portion of my day =( }. But I'm not complaining too much about the phone.....NEVER could have roamed 90 miles away from the hospital with my old job while on call. My job is pretty cush.

So Emma and I have just been hanging out together. She went to work with me on Friday {no baby sitter} which she seemed to like. She just roams around playing, hanging out at the front desk, trashing my office.....stuff like that. She is very cute....and tough, she has an ear infection, and other than one episode of crying on Thanksgiving day she has been in great spirits. She really misses "Bubba" {Bella}....keeps asking where she is, she even kindly picked out a piece of candy from her potty prize sack to give to Bella (and then ate it herself). Speaking of potty training....she is doing great....definitely making progress, even going #2 now. Yeah....diapers may be gone soon!

In scrapbooking news, I entered another design team contest and was one of three {I think}picked. This is a monthly club...so I will be getting supplies each and every month. Just trying to support my habit. Will post more about that when I know more details.

Well....Emma seems to be taking a very long nap, need to go check on her. Have a good day.

It worked.

(click to make larger)
So this is the layout I was trying to upload yesterday. Finally worked. It talks about our time over Christmas last year, traveling, living out of suitcases, filling our car more full with stuff with each stop. It will be fun to have a Christmas tree again. Although I always just hate putting the thing away after it is all over with. I think I will put it in the front room....the Christmas tree gets it own room....that should work. Emma should be excited, this will be her first year participating with putting on ornaments, etc. She keeps asking about Christmas....."Is it God's birthday today?" Me: "no, at Christmas" Her: In a very cute, amazed voice "ohhhhh, Christmas?". {Repeat this conversation almost everyday}.

I came across this blog awhile back called Ah yes Medical School . It cracks me up. Don't open it if you don't enjoy talking about blood, guts, and bodily functions. It seems like that's all I talk about all day {bodily functions anyway.....parents are very obsessed with the whole topic} so I'm kind of immune to the stuff. But anyway this guy is a third year med student and has apparently been blogging his way through it all. I've only read bits and pieces here and there, but the stuff he talks about is so universal, it's like reliving your whole experience {without the pain and suffering of course}. Anyway, I find it rather amusing.

Anyway, that is all for tonight. Have a good day.

It's Betty's day

Well, I tried to post a layout tonight, but it refused to upload it. So I give up. Instead you get to gaze on the beauty of Betty the crazy Idaho Cat. I believe it is her birthday. I can't remember. I know it is sometime this week.....maybe today, possibly tomorrow. I'm not a very good mom. She is turning 2...just like Emma. Betty has had quite a year. She traveled 1500 miles all freaked out in a Ford F250 diesel truck, she survived Big Grandma's basement for 3 weeks, she then lived at the old people's home for 6 weeks and finally freedom in our lovely wild yard. She made a trip to the vet for a infected foot and got "high" off of pain medicine. She continues to paw at the door like a complete idiot when she wants in or out. She likes to bring gifts to the front porch of moles and mice. She likes to bother the girls in the middle of the night. So anyway, that is Betty's life in brief over the past year. Happy Birthday kitty.

Speaking of Idaho....a year ago, I was frantically packing up our whole house {while working full time, being on call, momming full time, etc, etc}. We moved out over the Thanksgiving weekend and were "homeless" until mid February. Hard to believe that was already a year ago.......time flies. And what is so sad about the fact that we moved a year ago......still have a ton of boxes in the garage that haven't been unpacked. We have no pictures up in our house. I have two rooms painted, the rest of the house is stark glow in the dark white. I have one set of curtains up in my office and the bathroom still has it's baby blanket up as a curtain....the rest of the windows are naked. We have no furniture in the front room. Maybe someday.......perhaps I'll get motivated. We do have some grass in the yard now.....I guess that is progress.

In potty training news {I know....you all have been waiting so expectantly for this} I think we are making progress. I am definitely seeing her making an effort. Usually it is doing the "potty dance" jumping and running around saying "my can't pee in my underwear". Yesterday we even did the "poopy dance" and she actually did it in the toilet.

Bella is looking forward to Wednesday when Grandma Cindy Lou is coming to spend time at school. They are doing a play for the grandparents and she is super proud to know her lines without even looking.

Hawks win! Hawks win! {basketball....over #8 Kentucky}. Gotta like that. However....you can't get too excited as it is November and we always do very well every November. There is still plenty of time for half the team to quit, get arrested, play terrible, and end up 8-10 in the Big Ten and miss the NCAAs. {don't I have a positive attitude?} Play Texas tomorrow....think they are #2.

Have a good day.

I'm back

These are photos of Emma from summer 2004. She loves to draw just like her big sister.

Well the situation that I have been so upset about seems to be resolving itself. It unfortunately, is something I do not have ANY control over and it is not the way I would have wanted it, but I am not the boss. Guess the Big Guy upstairs has other plans.

That is all I can muster tonight. Have a good one.

Stress

I'm a bit {a lot} stressed about a certain situation in my life.....so any thoughts, prayers, "good vibes" anyone wants to send my way would be appreciated =). So that is all for tonight, going to go sit in my warm cozy bed and try to relax.

Gotta love the weather

So this is a view from my front porch tonight. A few days ago there were thunderstorms and tornadoes, prior to that it was sunny and 70 for many days. Tomorrow there is a high of 25 with 50 mph winds. Not really enjoying this too much.

Had a cute conversation tonight with Emma. We were eating supper when she started saying "owie". I asked her if she burnt herself. She said, "no, I ate myself". It made me giggle.

Anyway, I have absolutely nothing to say tonight other than I am looking forward to summer. How sad is that? Have a good night.

Reliving the past

Hard to believe...but this was almost 2 years ago. Time flies. My little Emma is soon going to be three {3 1/2 months}. She still LOVES to swing. Unfortunately, I hate it. Hate pushing the swing, hate standing there. I'm a bad mom =(.

Bella and I were looking at an old photo album from high school tonight. I don't think she realized that I had a life before she was born. She was quite impressed with my senior year banquet {prom like function} dress, thought it was very beautiful. If I remember correctly, I paid $15 dollars for it, tried to dye it black with Rit dye {it turned a dark blackish/purplish/gray}. I don't know that beautiful was a word for it. She was a little confused that I had a boyfriend named Noah and where was Daddy and why did I marry him instead? I think she was surprised to see pictures of me running, playing basketball, softball, etc. And she was very surprised to see Grandma with gray hair. Oh yes, someone requested a photo of my high school big hair. Gotta think about that one. It is pretty embarrassing so I'm going to hold off on that for now.

Anyway....I'm tired again. Gotta go sleep.

Not much going on.

This is a picture of Bella this fall in the middle of a soccer game. She just scored a goal....saw that I was taking a picture and stopped to pose. She has always loved the camera.

So we bought the "tar" (guitar) for Emma this weekend when she went #2 in the potty. Little good it did as about 2 hours later she decided to have an accident. I think the "tar" was a little premature and needs to go in the closet for awhile.

Well it seems that our abnormal weather is gone....after all those tornadoes came through yesterday...the wind and cold air came. Sure am going to miss those 70s. It was lovely while it was here....spring is sure a LONG way away though. That is all for tonight....have a good day.

I'm on call

I'm on call today. Lots of calls. Bella and I were just discussing how to clean goopy belly buttons of babies. She has been listening to me talk to parents. She has been scrapbooking while I am talking. We are actually posting one of her layouts {see below}. She thinks scrapbooking is super fun. The layout above is from her "graduation" from kindergarten. I always think of Mr. Incredible when I think about her graduation. In the movie he talks about how we keep coming up with ways to celebrate mediocrity {in regards to his kids "graduation"}. I kind of agree, but it was a fun day anyway. The layout below is my version of a photo taken of Bella at Club Libby Lu and then of course Bella's version.


Bella's first online scrapbook page. She has a few others she has made....maybe I'll post them every now and then.

Some cool news (if you are a scrapbook nerd)

This is the first page I have ever done about myself. Decided I should do that as my kids might like to see more about my life some day. I hate this photo {sorry mom, I know it's your favorite}. A larger than life color copy of this photo was in the entry to the clinic for months....it was terrible. I wasn't smiling very nicely because I still had those nasty braces on my teeth and didn't think I'd look very professional with all the metal shining in the picture. The little book talks about all the jobs I have had and how I finally got my first "real" job.

In other scrapbooking news, I opened my email tonight to some really cool news. A layout I submitted was accepted and is going to be published in a Creating Keepsakes "School Memories" book. This will be my first time ever published. Creating Keepsakes is kind of the "cool" scrapbook magazine, so that is why I called it kind of cool {if you are a big nerd like me}. It is a layout I'm not even that crazy about, but oh well.....they must have liked it enough. I think I even get paid for this =). I am unable to tell you which one, as then they might have to kill me.....so you'll have to wait until the book comes out {no clue when that is}.

I can't think of anything else to say right now.....have a good day!

Famous Bella

Bella is now famous. She entered a Halloween coloring contest and won her age group. Her picture was in the paper today (see above second row, middle). She is quite proud of herself. She won some movie passes. I thought it was only for school kids, so Emma didn't enter. Had she I'm sure she would have kicked Carter Phillip's butt in the 2 year old division =).

We are still working on potty training. Emma is doing pretty well and has been dry for the past few days. It is the going #2 that is the problem. She says, "she can't". She has her toy all picked out though when she finally decides to go. Number one on the list is a "tar" (guitar---would make grandpa and uncle B. proud), followed closely by a drum and lastly a Buzz Lightyear. We'll see what she chooses should it ever come about. In other cute Emma news, I bought a rotisserie chicken the other night and gave both her and Bella a leg from it. Emma was quite concerned about the "huge seed" (bone) in it. Guess she has never had chicken on the bone before.

I made a lovely homemade mac and cheese tonight. VERY bad for you, but VERY good. Maybe, I'll post it tomorrow for any mac and cheese lovers out there. Until then, I am tired and must go to bed. Adios.

A good weekend

We had a good weekend...nice and slow, no soccer, no obligations. My kind of weekend. The girls and I cleaned the upstairs on Saturday A.M. It took quite a bit longer than I anticipated. I had Bella pick up her room a few days prior to that and when I really looked a bit closer at it, realized that she had pretty much just shoved everything into whatever crevices she could find....under beds, dresser, bookcase. Oh well....guess that's how kids clean. Then we went to the mall area ate at one of our favorite restaurants (Z 'mariks--there is one in I.C. too), went to Best Buy to look for a computer game and then of course to Target. Can't go out and not go to Target.

I made the above layout the other night. This is the first one ever that has had me and Kent in it. Occasionally we make an appearance, but until now never the four of us all together. The scan is a little messed up, but you can get the picture. In other scrapbooking news, I entered another contest last week. I wasn't one of the three chosen, but I did get an "honorable mention". I have been asked to be a guest designer at their site for either Jan or Feb. Rustic Artisans is the name of the site. Will post more info when I know it.

Made a good recipe tonight for supper. It is a keeper. Sorry for you vegetarian readers out there, but it is a chicken dish =). It is from Cooking Light magazine.

Grilled Chicken and Roasted Red Pepper Sandwichs with Fontina Cheese
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 T Dijon mustard
2 tsp extravirgin olive oil
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
1/4 tsp dried thyme
5 garlic cloves, minced and divided
Cooking spray
1 cup vertically sliced onion
1 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 (7 oz) bottle roasted red bell peppers, drained and sliced
1 T red wine vinegar
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 (12 oz) loaf rosemary focaccia, cut in half horizontally
4 tsp low-fat mayonnaise
3 oz fontina cheese, thinly sliced

1. Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap, and pound to 3/4 inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin.
2. Combine juice, mustard, oil, marjoram, thyme, 1 garlic clove, and chicken in a large zip-top bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator 2 hours, turning occasionally.
3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add remaining 4 garlic cloves, onion, sugar, fennel, crushed red pepper, and salt, and saute 1 minute. Add roasted bell peppers; cook 5 minutes or until onions are tender, stirring frequently. Stir in vinegar and black pepper.
4. Prepare grill to medium-high heat.
5. Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes on each side or until done. Cool slightly; cut chicken into slices.
6. Spread cut sides of bread evenly with mayonnaise. Arrange cheese on bottom half of bread. Arrange chicken and pepper mixture over the cheese. Top with top half of bread; press slightly.
7. Place stuffed loaf on grill rack; grill 3 minutes on each side or until cheese melts. Cut into quarters. Yield: 4 servings 462 cal. 12.2 g fat

I made a few changes to it either because I forgot to buy the appropriate ingredients, couldn't find the called for ingredients, can't seem to read the directions appropriately and am just plain lazy. I used white-wine vinegar instead of red, asiago instead of fontina cheese, cayenne pepper instead of crushed (that's the one I misread) and was too lazy to walk outside and start the grill so I cooked everything on the stove top and then baked it in a 450 oven for about 5-10 minutes. It turned out well.

Have a wonderful day!

Something is very wrong with me

{Layout removed for publication}




I made this tonight. It was quite fun. I am rather fond of it. Used my Paper Heart Studio papers again. It is miss Emma when she was a few weeks old (before she became obese). Such a beautiful baby, such a beautiful girl now too =).

Well as you might have read in my title, there seems to be something terribly wrong with me. As some of you know I have been working out since August and have done 5 days per week each and every week. That's weird just by itself. But, I have been getting frustrated as I don't always have time to workout as much as I would like to. Because of that time issue, I tend to skimp on the cardio and mainly do the weights. I hate cardio....it hurts =). So because of my relative cardio neglect, I now have nice muscle that is covered with approximately the same amount of fat as before. So I do look better, but still am frustrated with the coating of fat. Anyway, for some reason, and I have no idea why, I got up a bit early today and actually did some stairs (run up, walk down) for about 10-15 minutes. How weird it that? I HATE, I repeat HATE getting up in the morning any earlier than I have to. Therefore....something must be wrong with me. That said....I'm tired from my excursion this morning, so I will say goodnight (probably not going to do it tomorrow either--need my rest).

Nice 1/2 day off

Here is one I made last night with my Paper Heart Studio paper. Emma is 4.5 months in the picture....thought she looked pretty cute!

This afternoon I actually had some adult conversation not related to snotty noses, fevers, constipation, bad behavior, vomiting or teething....just to name a few. It was kind of nice. Went with a friend out to eat at my favorite Mexican restaurant. Then I went to the scrapbook store (shocking I know!)....but the thing is in my stack of 3000 sheets of paper, I am lacking in plain white cardstock. So that was the purpose of my trip and I am proud to say that I did quite well, bought about 10 sheets of paper and a book.

Anyone know how to fix scratched up CDs and DVDs? I have too many around here, too many sticky fingers, too many years spent in the car being tossed around.

Have a wonderful day!

Play-doh in my belly

Here is a layout I made recently. Paper is from Paper Heart Studio. This is Bella in 2001 (about 2 3/4 years old) on the beach in Door County, WI. I printed the picture on textured cardstock....kind of gives it that dreamy look =).

The girls were looking at their scrapbooks tonight. Emma and I had a little conversation about one of the pages. We were looking at a picture of when I was pregnant with her. Me: "Look at mama's tummy, it's so big....what do you think is in there?" Emma (very seriously): "play-doh". Then she just kept flipping the page. It was kind of cute.

Really nothing else exciting to report. Sorry....maybe tomorrow.

Our Weekend

These photos are a bit backwards, wanted to show the Halloween costumes first and then all the goods....but oh well, not going to upload it again. For some reason trick-or-treating was tonight. Bella swayed slightly from her yearly princess costume for one called a "glamour witch" ---pretty much a princess, just not a pastel colored dress. Emma picked out a cheerleader outfit. She has no clue what a cheerleader is, but that is the outfit she wanted. Emma was SOOOOO excited to go trick-or-treating. When she first got dressed she just couldn't stop waving her pom-poms, saying "look at me, look at me, my have a costume, my a cheerleader" over and over again. And she was even more excited to get the candy. For awhile after every stop, she would say "look at me, my have lots of candy" followed by shaking of pom-poms and her cute little "obnoxious" laugh as she ran to the next house. Bella also was very excited of course, she was a little frustrated with Emma slowing her down. The weather was beautiful. It was about 60 degrees, very little wind. A perfect Halloween! And wow.....did we get a lot of candy or what?



We went to my lovely Mother's house this weekend. Had a wedding to go to. It was very nice. Very simple. It was really nice to go back to my church I grew up in. For the music in the wedding they just had the congregation sing traditional Mennonite hymns. For those that aren't familiar with that, these are sung acapella and in 4 part harmony. Very beautiful. We haven't been going to a Mennonite church here in DM and I've kind of missed it. Even though I like other types of singing as well, there is something very nice about the traditional stuff too. We sang my favorite too... #606. Anyway, after the wedding we visited my Grandparents. They always love seeing the girls. Took a bunch of pictures of them with the girls. Hoping sometime to make pages of their "big grandma and big grandpa" {as Bella so dubbed them at a young age....it stuck}.

Of course, when I go back to IC, need to visit the scrapbook store there. Reminisce is a great store {they make the paper by the same brand} better than anything we have in DM. I didn't even spend very much. I'm very proud of myself.

While at my mom's house, I went through a bunch of old memorabilia from childhood. I even found some scrapbooks I had made in elementary school and in high school. I didn't remember doing that. I found some great old pictures. Wow.....was my hair large. Gotta love those bangs that stick up about 5 inches in the air. Found some really funny ones of my dear friend Iago from all through high school.

Anyway better go...must get some sleep. Have a good day.

Cool chicks & can you help me with my house?

I found Emma roaming the house tonight looking all cool. {she has a sucker in her mouth} How cute is she? It really kind of reminded me of a photo I took of the supercool Bella back in 2001. I believe they are about the same age. What a bunch of goofs.
So for some reason, I was feeling the need to clean my house. Cleaned the lower level. Even mopped the floor. I impress myself! Anyway, took some pictures as it usually doesn't look as nice. My house is still so white and I really don't like it. We have really nice big trim, a nice fireplace, some crown molding here and there that is just disappearing into the vast whiteness. Anyone have any ideas? The three pictures below are actually one big room.....kitchen, dining area and family room. Any brilliant color ideas? Feel free to leave your opinion.




Again would like to thank all those who leave comments, I really do appreciate it. Thanks to Rita for the lovely complements...it made me smile (something I haven't done too much of today). To my dear friend Iago, even if you are unable to comment, it truly makes me happy you are reading my blog =). Have a lovely evening.

One of those days.

It is one of those days. I have no exciting pictures to post. Nothing worth telling. I am exhausted. Too many late nights. I think I will be going to bed early tonight. Unlucky for me I am on call. I'm sure someone will need to discuss something "emergent" at 3 AM. Usually that happens if you are already tired. I will try to do better tomorrow. Have a good day.

I've created a monster (a cute one though!)

I hope that this photo is not to obscene, but I thought it was very cute. I have created a potty training monster. I have been very lazy about potty training Emma, so today I thought I would try the pediatrician approved method of bribing your child into going on the toilet. It didn't work with Bella and I ended up doing the second pediatrician approved method (ha!-that's a whole other story) with her. But I thought Emma would really respond to my bribing her, or should I say a reward system, that sounds more politically correct. Anyway, I created a little goody bag which she immediately responded to after showing it to her. In fact this photo was taken on her 3rd potty trip in 5 minutes. She really likes that treat bag! She was getting a little upset here that she couldn't go. Anyway...we'll see if it works or not.

Yesterday was our last soccer game for which I am very thankful. I'm tired of it. Think Bella is too. Our last game was in Pella. It was freezing...that was the worst part. They lost (even though we don't keep score) about 27-1. Bella had the one goal. She has very brief periods of assertiveness and occasionally it pays off. For the trip to Pella, Emma took one of my paper trimmers with her and quietly cut a piece of paper into about a million strips. She loves to cut paper....whether by scissors or paper trimmer. On the way home, we stopped at a gas station and were waiting for Kent, when Emma started a little whining in the back seat..."mama, I need chocolate". It was kind of cute, a girl after my own heart.

I played with my new paper today, created one page. Not going to post it yet. I'm not sure what the rules are for stuff like that. Should find out soon. Now I only have about 300 more sheets to use =). {I think I cut into three}.

By the way, I've gotten a few more comments in the past few days from people other than my mother. Just wanted to let you all know how much I appreciate it and keep it up! And for you other people who are too shy (you know who you are)...I don't believe you and expect you to start commenting very soon. Anyway, thanks for reading. Oh, I guess I should respond to a few of the comments.....No, I don't have 6 extra hours in the day to do all I do, I just don't have a life outside of work and home. No, I don't watch too much T.V. I find it a waste of my good time and have been making a conscious effort to limit it since we moved back to Iowa. Except I do LOVE David Letterman and will watch that if I happen to be in bed at that time (and occasionally Access Hollywood after Dave---gotta keep up on celebrity gossip). Also note, that most of these posts are made after 11pm. I don't sleep as much as I should....but I'm a night owl...it's against all my beliefs to go to bed early, unless of course I'm sick. Well have a great day!

It came today!

It finally arrived, all 3/4 inches of it! This is all of my paper from Paper Heart Studio . Guess it's really true .

Everyday Things

This is going to be quick tonight due to the very very slow internet. Just wanted to post this picture of my sweet Emma. Took these all last night before bed time. Thought she looked pretty cute. I'm so happy tomorrow is Friday! Looking forward to the weekend!

Fall is here

Just some pictures of some of the colors from our yard. Definitely enjoying the trees here. Missed those a lot while we were gone.


Didn't do too much exciting today on my half day off. A man from Target called me today and they are going to try to remove the squiggly line on the pictures. That makes me happy. Should know by early next week if they will be successful. I guess I still love Target. Actually I tried to shop there today, but couldn't find any shirts for Emma....how wierd is that? I don't know what Bella wore at that age, but I can't seem to locate any of it, so I need to buy Emma some winter clothes. I ended up buying some tape, a magazine (shocker!!!!), and a CD by Green Day. Needed some new music to exercise to. I wrapped some Christmas presents for the girls. I'm almost done shopping for them. I hate Christmas crowds at the stores, so I'm trying to get it all over with. Gonna run......have a good evening!