Yada, Yada, Yada and the answers to my Truths and Lies

Just another regular day around here. It looks like little J is getting his cold back...I hope it doesn't morph back into the RSV! Ugh! I just had to share another smiling Valentines photo too!

When I opened my email today, I laughed so hard. Yesterday, G was talking about going to the mall, because there were a couple of outfits I wanted at NY&CO that I wanted. I told him, that I didn't want to go yesterday, because I knew if we did, that I would end up getting an email coupon today. Well, lo and behold, what did appear in my inbox this morning...yep, you guessed it a coupon! I'm off to!!Costco tomorrow to see if they have any Ipod Nano's left and off to find an outfit or two! YAY!

A couple of sucky things that happened too... First, I went to Starbucks today, and forgot to use my gift card! LOL! Second, yesterday, I had gone into the beauty supply store to buy some hairspray, and eyed a bottle of nail polish I thought looked cute, so I treated myself. When I got home, I realized that I already had the same color! Whaaaa! No big deal, I'm thinking, I can just go in and exchange it...NOPE! I'm out $7.50 with a bottle of nail polish that I already had. It seems, that the beauty store cannot re-sell the nail polish after it's been sold and the vendor won't give them any credit for it. I guess I understand it, but it kind of sucks, I spend a ton of money in there every year, and have never returned anything, you would think they would throw me a bone. Oh well, I guess I won't be buying any nail polish there anymore...only at Nordstrom, where they will exchange it even if I use it and hate it. I think .Sephora will exchange it too. I check things out more carefully next time. I did email the company who manufactures the item, to see if they will do an exchange for me...so, we'll see.

DON'T FORGET! Dancing with the Stars is on tomorrow night! Keep voting for Jerry Rice & Anna Trebunskaya 800-VOTE4-09 (800-868-3409)!

Okay, okay....on with the truths and lies!

1. I have a tattoo of a heart on my hip. FALSE!
2. I wanted to join the Coast Guard when I graduated from High School. TRUE! My Grandfather was in the Coast Guard, and I always looked up to him!
3. Someone thought I was little J's nanny. TRUE! Who would think that little blond kid with curls was mine! Quite funny that someone would even ask though! Maybe they thought I was so good, that they were going to try to steal me!
4. I've seen Regis Philbin in concert. FALSE! I did see Willie Nelson though.
5. I used to work at Hot Dog on a Stick when I was in High School. FALSE! I'm a Burger King and Baskin & Robbins alum. Funny that G used to work at McDonalds!
6. After my first french kiss, I washed my mouth out with soap. TRUE! Damn that kiss was slobery! LOL
7. I've lived in Oklahoma. FALSE!
8. I love Korean Dramas. TRUE! Why doesn't Netflix carry them!
9 I danced on stage at the Kenny Chesney concert. FALSE...unfortunately!
10. I was an Army Reserve. FALSE! G laughed when I told him I put this up! LOL!

So, here are the results!
The correct answers were 2,3,6&8
Those with 1 correct were:
scrappingmomof3 (1,3,7,10)
rachel greig (1,4,5,8)
hillary (1,4,8,9)
kristy (1,3,5,7)

Those with 2 correct were:
burberrygirl (3,5,8,9)
nikki (1,2,6,9)
becky (2,3,5,6)
sylvia (2,3,5,6)

And the only two with the most answers correct, with a total of 3 were:
lara (2,5,6,8)
mandy (1,3,6,8)

I got something for Lara and Mandy!

Thanks for playing everyone, that was so fun!

Happy Valentines Day!!

Happy Valentines Day everyone!!! Today was such a beautiful day here! Actually, yesterday was quite nice as well. Just some warm sunny days to brighten my mood. I love the sunny warm weather! Today, the three of us went to Starbucks (yum!) to have a treat! G knows how much I love to sit out in the sun and enjoy a Frappacino. It doesn't even matter that he didn't order the one I really wanted either! I didn't tell him, and you'd better not either! Anyway, while he was inside ordering the drink, I decided to snap some photos of little J. I love how this one turned out! I can't wait to pick it up at Costco and scrap it! Wahooo! We also went to the new Chili's that opened up down the road from us. I am so happy that we have a Chili's so close now! We had a great lunch and little J enjoyed his first restaurant meal. Chicken and french fries! He also has a great love for their Broccoli Cheese soup....just like his Mommy! I think next time, I'm gonna have to order him his own bowl, because he probably ate half of mine! After lunch, G picked up the ingredients we needed so he could fix dinner for me, and then he stopped off at my favorite ice cream place and got a Valentine Ice Cream cake! YUMMMMMMYYY!!

I can't believe I was up so late last night! I didn't go to bed until 3am! I was working on the altered canvas I made for G for Valentines Day! I love how it turned out. I'll try to post it later as well as the inspiration that inspired it!

Soooo, the question that everyone I'm sure is asking...what did I get for Valentines Day......

I was spoiled!
I got a Starbucks gift card!
I get to go buy my Ipod Nano!
and...
I'm going shopping for a few new clothing items!
and....
I get to go to a Gotta Crop later this year!

I'm so lucky!! G is the best husband ever!

Speaking of how lucky I am.... I cannot recomend enough, the program Love and Respect by Emerson E. Eggerichs . I am so lucky that our church is doing the video program in our Adult Bible Fellowship class. I have gotten so much insight from the program and from classmates. What a journey! Every week I look forward to hearing and learning more!

First Things First.....and a Challenge!

YAY! Jerry Rice & Anna Trebunskaya are still in it for Dancing with the Stars!!!

I got this challenge from burberrygirl on 2peas:

List 10 things about you. 6 lies and 4 truth. We can try to guess which ones are true and which ones are not. You can reveal the truth after Saturday


So, I'm gonna list 10 things here, 4 will be true and 6 will be lies. Take your guesses and post them in the comment section. I'll post the 4 truths on Wednesday, February 15th! First poster with all 4 correct (Suzy your not eligible), will get a RAK from me! Have fun!!

1. I have a tattoo of a heart on my hip.
2. I wanted to join the Coast Guard when I graduated from High School.
3. Someone thought I was little J's nanny.
4. I've seen Regis Philbin in concert.
5. I used to work at Hot Dog on a Stick when I was in High School
6. After my first french kiss, I washed my mouth out with soap.
7. I've lived in Oklahoma.
8. I love Korean Dramas.
9 I danced on stage at the Kenny Chesney concert.
10. I was an Army Reserve.

RaNdOm

HOPE YOU VOTED! Jerry Rice & Anna Trebunskaya 800-VOTE4-09 (800-868-3409)

Thanks for all the well wishes about my post yesterday. I'm feeling much better about everything.

I wish I was headed for Torino, Italy for the Olympics. My parents are going to several of the skating events, including all of the finals. Wish I could go too. I just love Italy, I always feel so at home there. I think I need to take Italian lessons. Hmmmm....

Lonely....

I was reading another blog earlier, and the blogger talked about being lonely, even though she was surrounded by wonderful people. It really got me thinking about some discussions that G and I have been having lately.

With G's job, there is always the possibility, that if he wants to advance, or explore other career opportunities, that we would have to move. We've talked about this many times, and each time, I have told him, that I support him 100% in doing what he wants for his career. Afterall, it's because of his hard work, that I'm able to stay home with little J. He loves his job, and I want him to achieve everything he wants to within that career. I never want him to look back and say, I wish I had done this or tried that. With that being said, we've also talked about the fact that I really don't want to move. I love where we are. When he asks me why I love it here, it's really hard for me to say. I don't know why that is though. He knows, and has said it outloud, that I really only want to stay here, because of my friends. He also tries to reassure me, that if we do move, I will make new friends. While this is probably all true, it really got me to thinking about the whole situation.

There is a possibility, that G could get a job in another division, that would require us to move. The more I think about this, the lonelier I feel. I think it all goes back to when I was younger. My mother was somewhat of a loose cannon to put it nicely. We really don't have much of a relationship at this point in time, but that's a whole other topic. Anyway, when I was growing up, I had a lot of friends in school, but I didn't do a lot with them outside of school activities. I didn't want them anywhere near my mother. God knows what would have happened. Let's just say, she had issues, and kids are cruel. Just for the record, I'm not talking about just parent/child issues, these were serious issues. Anyway, so since I didn't do much with classmates outside of school activities, I think I really missed out on some close longterm reltationships. Well, as life has gone on here, since I left my crazy mother, and moved to be with my father and stepmother, I've really made some of the connections I felt I was missing in younger days. I've got friends that I met in college, that were with me through my crazy party days, friends that I have a history with. I've also made some really great friends through scrapbooking, that are very special to me, and also we have history and memories that are shared. I love having friends like that. New friends are always nice, but I love having friends that you've done and shared so many experiences with, people you can call in the middle of the night when your freaking out, people you tell your hubby to call when your in the hospital ready to have your baby, friends who your kid(s) will always call Auntie! Does this make sense to anyone but me?

Anyway, as I said, the more I think of the possibility of moving, the more lonely I feel. Hmm...I'm gonna have to ponder this a bit more.

Random Blog Challenge for Tuesday!

So, burberrygirl posted this random challenge on Two Peas

Name 5 of your favorite garden girls and why they are your favorites.

1. Mary Grace Abuzman: This girl is just so talented! Her work is amazing, and I'm lucky enough to know her IRL! Little J will know her as Auntie Grace! Her layouts are beautiful, creative, and often times thought provoking. Her photos say a million things, and then her layout says something you hadn't even thought of!

2. Lisa Brown Caveney: Another garden girl that I'm lucky enough to know and to have scrapped with! Actually, Lisa is one of the first scrappers I met when I started going to the The Garage. I love her clean lines, and her amazing photos! Her perfect handwriting and thoughtful journaling are great too!

3. Carrie Colbert: I've always been a big fan of Carrie's. I love how she uses bright colors and her layouts always convey tons of happiness.

4. Joy Uzarraga : I'm just always drawn to her layouts.

5. Mellette Berezoski : Another Garden Girl, that I always just look at her layouts and go WOW!

Doctor! Doctor! (the one down the street, and the one on the television!)

Little J had his checkup today after our bout with RSV. It's not quite over yet. He's still a bit wheezy, so they want him to continue his medication for another week. So, we go back to the doctor again next week. Thankfully, the doctor said he is no longer contagious, so we can venture out into the world if necessary. Thank goodness, because I'm sick of feeling like I can't go anywhere! Not that I really have anywhere I want to go right now, but just the thought that I can't kills me! Thanks for all the well wishes for his speedy recovery. As you can see here, he's back to his smiling self! He loves this little police car! He loves to just sit in it with his hands on the wheel. When we push him around the house in it, he just laughs and laughs! Unfortunately right now, all of his infectious laughs are followed by a few coughs too. My parents sent this to him for Christmas. This kid has more "rides" than I've had my entire life! He's got his police motorcycle, his police car, his scooter, and a horse!

Okay, so yesterday, I posted about who would have thought that I would get addicted to Dancing With the Stars. Well, today, I'm wondering how I got roped into The Bachelor? In all of the past seasons, I just have not gotten into them. I've only watched the last few, so I could be in on all the "water cooler" gossip at work. Well, since my work is now the previously mentioned Little J, and his bed time is well before this show airs, I had no intention of watching any of it. I got sucked in on day one! At first, I just turned it on to reminisce about the sights of Paris -I was just there in November- and I miss it immensely! But then.....The TV became like this vacuum cleaner attached to my forehead, it just kept sucking me in, until now I'm turning it on every single week! I'm so looking forward to the "Women Tell All" episode.

So, do you wonder who I might be "rooting" for? I'm almost afraid to say, because I really hate to admit that I am that invested in this show! Well, I guess since I've actually made an entry in my blog about the show, the secret is out that I'm invested. So, I'm actually rooting for Moana. I know none of the other ladies seem to like her, they all think she's faking, but I really don't. I also really like Sarah from Tennessee too, but I think that there is more chemistry between Moana and Travis. Oh well, now that I've thoroughly bored you with this...I'll say goodnight. See ya all tomorrow and I'll try not to talk about television shows. No promises though!

Who would'a thunk it?

I would have never thought that I would enjoy a show about ballroom dancing. I don't know how it happened, but I am addicted to Dancing With the Stars. Actually, I originally got addicted to Strictly Come Dancing while we were visitng my parents in Switzerland in November. I am really enjoying this show. I have always been a Survivor fan, and I didn't watch the first season of Dancing With the Stars, because I was already thoroughly engrossed in Survivor Guatamala. I was seriously rooting for Stephanie! Anyway, this season, I got addicted to Dancing With the Stars before the new Survivor Exile Island started. I did however, set up my DVR to record it. Unfortunately for me, something went wrong, and it's not on my DVR. Ugh...better go catch up before next week.

Well, back to the topic at hand... I would have never thought I would be addicted to this show. Heck, I'm even calling in and voting! Now, I know (especially if you've read this far into this post) your wondering, just who I'm voting for. Before I tell you, can I just say that Stacy Keibler makes me sick! That girl got in line for all the right body parts I'm telling you! I'd never heard of her before, but if a genie popped out of a lamp today and said it would grant me three wishes, one of them is gonna be to have her body! Anyway, back to who I'm voting for.....











Jerry Rice & Anna Trebunskaya 800-VOTE4-09 (800-868-3409). They are just so adorable!

A Good Nights Sleep!

Wow! Yesterday was such a rough day. Little J was running a temperature anywhere from 101 up to 103. We just could not get it to come down. He was finally acting sick too. Very cranky, and very lethargic. I was just so sick with worry all day long. At one point, I got so worried, that I called his Dr. office, and while waiting for them to call back, I put him in the bathtub to try to cool him off. As I was putting him in the bath tub, he really started squirming. Next thing I know, there goes my cell phone right into the bathtub with him. Yikes! Now, there is enough water in that phone to be a nice home for a goldfish! Finally his temperature came down. After a full day of tylenol, coughing, nebulizor treatments, and a new found love for Gatorade, it was finally time to put the little one to bed. He went to sleep so quickly (he was exhausted), and then woke up with a stuffy nose around midnight. Quickly fixed that with a little suction, took his temperature which was down to 98.9 degrees, and it was off to bed for me! YAY!

I woke up with quite a start at 7:30 AM! He slept peacefully through the night. I had completely expected to be up with him for a few more nebulizor treatments! What a great thing! I got a good nights rest, he was a happy camper this morning...and pretty much all day and while grandma watched him, G and I got out for an hour and went to Chili's for lunch! Yummy!

Little J seems to be on the mend, he's still wheezing a bit in the evenings, so we'll see what the weekend brings, but he's back to his good natured self, and that was half the battle. He sees the dr. again on Monday morning, unless his wheezing takes a turn for the worse.

Now, about that phone for my goldfish. Don't worry, those of you who know that the only way to reach me is on my cell....I got a new one today!

Meet my new phone!

My Little Trooper!

Today was the first full day of treatments for Little J. I just can't believe this little one! Every 4 hours, we get everything set up for his treatment, then I sit him on my lap, and this kid grabs the mouthpiece himself and puts it in his mouth. Then, shockingly, he sits there so patiently for the 10 minutes of treatment! He is such an angel! I'm so sad that he is so sick. It just breaks my heart, to hear him cough so harshly. They say that it is about a 2 to 3 day course in which it gets a bit worse and then better. I'm hoping that we are now on the upswing. Last night was really rough. We gave him his last treatment, and he went to bed fine. Since his doctor had said to give him the treatment every 4 hours as needed for coughing, we decided that we would let him sleep as long as possible, and give him a treatment during the night if he woke up for it. He slept until 4am. We gave him a treatment when he woke up coughing like crazy at this time. Afterwards, he was up and at 'em. He just wanted to play! DH got up and let me go back to sleep for a bit(so sweet!). Little J stayed awake until 10 am. Then he fell asleep on the sofa with Daddy. He slept for a good 2 hours in his "napping chair". After that, it was game on again! He played and was non stop happy, and we gave him his treatment every 4 hours. We'll see what this evening holds, but I must admit, that I'm worried. I have a feeling it's going to be a sleepless night for me. He's sleeping pretty soundly right now, he wakes up every so often to cough and seems to be falling back to sleep right away.....I'm really praying that he heals very soon.

By the way, I know I have a couple of tags and challenges to answer, and I promise I will get those done soon!

My Sick Little Munchkin!

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days. Things have been crazy around here, with the in-laws visiting. I'm not getting anything done! Little J started getting sick on Saturday and it's gotten progressively worse. Last night, he started wheezing a little bit, so I decided to take him to see the doctor today. My poor little one has RSV. They gave him a prednisone drink and a medicine you take with a nebulizor. We had to borrow one from the doctors office to continue the medicine for one week, and then they will check him again next week.

I must say, that I am so blessed to have such a content little one. Even though he's been sick, he is still just as playful and content as ever. When we give him the medicine with the nebulizor, he has to sit still for 10 minutes and breath in the medicine. This little guy just sits there and sucks it in. I'm gonna have to make sure to snap a photo of him taking his medicine to scrap. I was just thinking, that this is the first time, we've had to get a prescription filled for him, and leave it to my kid, to need a machine to use it! LOL

Anyway, thankfully, it is not contagious at this point, and hopefully he will get well quickly with no complications. We will gratefully take any prayers for a quick recovery you want to send up.

Calling out ULULANI!!

Okay Ms Ululani! I know your reading this! It was so good to see you the other night! I miss seeing you at crops! Come scrap more often! And, when your reading my blog, leave a comment every now and then! Smooches!

So, I have not updated in a few days. I really meant to last night, but G's parents came a day earlier than we expected. Things are really busy right now, and I'm not getting anything creative done.

What does it take to make a girl smile after having a bad day?

So, after having a bad day...well it wasn't horrible. It just didn't quite go as planned. It was just one of those days, where you have all these ideas of what you want to do and what you want to get done....and then nothing gets accomplished! So, on my last post entry, I just asked if a Frappacino was enough. While I was quite satisfied with things after my first sip, a lot of other things started making me smile. So, I don't know if the Frappacino did it all by itself, and that everything else was aligned properly because of it, or if it was the sum total of everything that did it. Anyway, these are the 6 things that made me smile today!

1. A Venti Peppermint Mocha Frappacino from Starbucks
2. Some scrapbooking shows on QVC.
3. A couple of new books to read found at Costco
4. A smile from G and little J.
5. A Black Cherry Vanilla Coke!
6. Some old pictures from the stash I found the other day! See above!

When you having a bad day...

Can a Frappacino fix it? I'll let you know later...until then, share my joy at my jackpot find below!

I hit the JACKPOT!

Many of you know, that I have been trying to clean up my scraproom, to get my creative mojo moving and producing! Well, tonight, while going through a box of photos, I found the above photo! This is a photo of my Grandfather and I! He passed away when I was 13, but I still have so many good memories of him. The one thing I don't have are lots of photos of him. So, this was a very special find for me. I hope this cleaning provides a few more jackpots as well!

Just a Happy Day at the Park!

G and I took little J to the park a couple of weeks ago, before the huge rainstorm hit...I mean like literally 2 hours before the huge rainstorm hit! We had such a fun family day! It's always fun to watch little J having a great time! So, since today was such a hectic day, I just wanted to look at this picture for a bit! See you soon!

Tagged with questions in fours!

I was tagged by Melissa!
Here we go!

Four Jobs You Have Had In Your Life:
1. Optical Manager at Costco
2. Lenscrafters
3. Baskin and Robbins (Yummy!)
4.

Four Movies You Would Watch Over and Over:-I have too many to count but here are a few
1. Memoirs of a Geisha
2. Come See the Paradise
3. Finding Nemo
4.

Four Places You Have Lived:
1. Oakland, CA
2. Sebastopol, CA
3. Fremont, CA
4. Castro Valley, CA

Four TV Shows You Like To Watch:
1. ER
2. Desperate Housewives
3. Law & Order SVU
4. CSI -Las Vegas

Four Places You Have Been On Vacation:
1. Cancun, Mexico
2. Venice, Italy
3. Switzerland
4. France

Four Websites You Visit Daily:
1. Two Peas
2. Bay Area Scrappers
3. Ebay
4. Barnes and Noble

Four Favorite Foods:
1. Pasta (spahgetti and raviolies are my main favorites)
2. Korean BBQ
3. Chinese Food
4. Does my daily stop at Starbucks count here?

Four Places I Would Rather Be Right Now:
1. Traveling all around Europe
2. At a Spa, getting all the best treatments!
3. At lottery headquarters picking up my millions of dollars in winnings! LOL
4. In my scraproom scrapping, instead of getting sucked in by the computer!

Four bloggers I am tagging:
1. Jen
2. Rebecca
3. MG
4. Lara

A Commitment to Faith

So, one of my New Year resolutions, was to go back to church. I have been struggling with this over the last year. G and I are both from different faith backgrounds. We are both Christian, but different. I was raised Catholic, and G was raised Protestant. Once we found out that little J was on his way, we made a family decision to find a "home" for ourselves. A place that we could go as a family, where everyone belonged. I had prayed about this decision for a long time. G had attended a "Night Of Honor" held by one of our local churches. It is an event that thanks all of our communities first responders for their dedication to the community. G had heard Pastor Robert Evans speak at this event, and was very impressed, and thought that I would enjoy hearing him as well. I have this crazy thing, where, when I go to church and hear a sermon, I feel there is a reason that God wanted me to hear it. I wonder and consider how I could possibly apply what was said to my life, and how it can make me better somehow. We found ourselves led to Redwood Chapel. After listening to Pastor Evans, I honestly felt he was telling me the things I needed to hear. I was engrossed in his sermons and his application of the bible, I would read the passages over and over and look over my notes constantly after church. Just before little J was born, I had called to make an appointment to meet with Pastor Evans to discuss some things that had bothered me for a long time. These were things that I have only talked to my husband about. I needed to release these things and wanted some guidance from an objective party. Well, little J made his appearance just a little earlier than we anticipated. Life got busy and we stopped going to church. I finally felt it was time to make the effort to attend again and did. Pastor Evans was no longer there. I felt deflated. Suddenly, I was feeling drawn back to the Catholic church.

Well, this last Sunday, I made the commitment to return to church. I wasn't sure which church until that morning. During the time I had been away, we had received notes from our bible study classmates. These were so uplifting, but I was still wondering if I was being drawn back because of the friendships or because that is where I need to be to praise, and to deepen my faith. I must also admit, that I was a bit embarassed being gone so long to just drop back in.

I have returned to Redwood Chapel. I am so thankful that I did. The first thing that I noticed when I returned, was the Year Verse for 2006:

"Walk in a manner worthy of the calling for which you have been called" Ephesians 4:1 NASB

I felt so blown away by this! It put so many questions in my head. Was I walking worthy for what I have been called to do? Was I walking worthy of all the blessings that have been bestowed upon me? After listening to the elder speak, I am full of so much joy at making sure that I am walking worthy! Another added bonus to returning is a new series being started in our Adult Bible Fellowship group. We are begining a study of this book:Love & Respect: The Love She Most Desires, the Respect He Desperately Needs By: Dr. Emerson Eggerichs
I think this is going to be an amazing journey! I can't wait to get my hands on the book and listen to the next installment from the DVD in class! As a side note, G and I are not having any troubles, but I think that this series will put a lot of things in perspective and keep the important things fresh in my head.

Now, back to scrappin'! Have a happy day!

I'm just a Scrapin' Fool!

Well, it looks like I'm making a valiant attempt to meet some of my New Years resolutions. I promised to scrap more, and it's only the 5th day of the 2006 and I've scrapped 3 pages. I have not spent any money on scrap supplies this year yet (I'm not counting photo developing or adhesive in my spending challenge). Most importantly though, I am using my stash! Here's to continued success! Ooops, I guess I should mention, that I resolved to give up soda, but that has proved to be a more daunting task that I had first anticipated. They came out with this new version of Coke, it is Black Cherry and Vanilla Coke. It is YUMMY! I had to try it, and now I just want more! Ugh!

Happy Wednesday!

It's officially the middle of the week! This week has been very busy, trying to get all the Christmas stuff down and put away. Just about everything is done, except changing out the Christmas dishes for the regular ones. Those can wait another day though, so I can scrap! I've got to go get some more adhesive though, I ran out the other day, and couldn't scrap yesterday. So, you know what I'll be doing later! Hope everyone has a great day!

Last and First!

Happy New Year everyone! I am so excited to begin another year, and hopefully this one will show me as many blessings as last year. I have several resolutions or goals for the new year, and one of them is to scrap more and use the stash I have. In trying to reach that goal, it only seems fair, that I share with you the last layout I did in 2005 "First Visit with Santa", and the first layout for 2006 "In Just One Year". Now for that list of things that I want to accomplish in 2006!


1. Scrap more! At least 100 layouts for the year!
2. Get back to my spending challenge! No new stuff until I do 10 layouts!
3. Go back to church. Just before little J was born, we started going to Redwood Chapel we felt really comfortable there and made a lot of friends. Once little J was born, time got out of control, and we just couldn't or didn't get there. I have been struggling with this a lot. I was almost embarassed to return. However, we received such a wonderful Christmas card and invitation to return from our friends in our bible study class, that I can't wait to return.
4. Read more! I usually read a bit everyday, but lately, I've been skipping days. It's such a relaxing time, that I need to make sure I do it!
5. Eat better! I really need to lose a few pounds...and then some! So, I've resolved, that starting tomorrow...no more Soda! I just can't drink the diet stuff, so these regular cokes, are getting to me. I think that I eat most other things in moderation, but I just can't put down the sodas. No More!
6. Go on more dates with my husband!
7. Get organized!
8. Work on little one #2!

Where in the heck!

*I just had to share another picture of little J!*
Where did I get all the sCRAP! When we came back from Europe last month, it was a mad dash to plan little J's birthday party, and get ready for Christmas. Needless to say, my scraproom has suffered and looked like a disaster area. So, this week has been a clean and organize week for me. My scraproom is now clean enough to do something in again. I did however find that I HAVE A TON OF STUFF! My first New Year's resolution will be to go back on my spending challenge. Things were going so well for awhile, and then it all just fell apart! As I was going through my stash, I found so many things that I really want to put on some pages. The only problem with that, is that now all these ideas are jumbled up in my head and I'm having trouble putting them on to paper.

So, here are just a few of my resolutions as far as this scraping habit goes:
1. Use my stash!
2. Be more frugal in my buying. I have actually made great improvements in this area over the last year. Thanks to Stacey and Rebecca.
3. Be more productive! No more kits, unless I have a plan to use them!
4. Purge! Be ready for the next garage sale and get some of this stuff that I know I will never use outta here!
5. Back to the spending challenge!!!

Merry Christmas!

Things have been so crazy busy around here, that I have not had much chance to update my blog lately. I love Christmas time so much, even with all the craziness of it. The Christmas shopping is just about done! I am always so last minute with the shopping, but (and I know this sounds weird), I love all the last minute running around! This Christmas will be very low key around here. Just the three of us and one of my sister-in-laws. I totally dig hanging out with her! G says it is crazy, how we are so much alike. It's really cool, that I feel like she is my sister, since I don't have any biologically speaking. Anyway, Something to look forward to, my SIL,
Rebecca and I went to see Memoirs of a Geisha. I'll tell you more about our fun another day! I wanted to share this adorable photo of little J smiling and wish you all a very Merry Christmas! See you soon!

I'm so lucky!

Okay, so yesterday was a day of venting. Today, I decided that there should be just happy talk! It is so amazing how fast little J is growing up. I was just looking at his photo with Santa compared to the one we had taken last year. WOW! What a huge difference! It really seems like I was just pregnant yesterday. The pictures here were taken in October, when we went for little J's first trip to the pumpkin patch. I love how the photos turned out! The only thing I wonder, is why, when I finally get to be in a photo with little J, and I like how I look, can't G take the photo when he's smiling? As you can see, I captured little J smiling with G! Oh well, I'm so lucky to have both of them.....I'm just happy :)

I just need to vent!

I am getting so frustrated right now. I joined a circle journal group back in March of 2004. We didn't start sending our journals out until April. Around May, I found out I was pregnant with little J, thus my lack of energy which got me behind in completing some of the circle journals in a timely fashion. So, I got behind. Well, by July I think, I was all caught up, and things were rolling. I had warned my fellow circle journalers that come December, it might take me a little longer to complete my journal assignment for that month, since little J was due to make his appearance. There was no problem. I think I was about 3 weeks late getting this journal out, and then things were back on track. Meanwhile, I was not the only one getting behind. People were going MIA left and right. So, in July, a few of us started getting antsy to find out the progress of the journals and started sending check-in emails. We still were not hearing from a few of our group members. Then, we finally get a post from one of the MIA journalers. She posts that she received my album back in December...(UM HELLO! It's July!) She says that she decided to hang on to it, because I was behind at the time, and she wanted to make sure I got things going again...(UM HELLO AGAIN! I let the group know I would be delivering a baby! Sorry I didn't take the CJ to the hospital and complete it in the labor room!) Anyway, I let the comment slide, because I knew she had some personal things that took her attention away from the group and she seemed to feel bad that she'd had it so long, and she was going to get it moving again in a couple of weeks. Well, here we are in December, and SHE STILL HAS IT! Along with 2 other journals. Now, I'm getting freaking mad! Now, one of the gals in the group, just wants her journal back, and wants to be done. While I completely understand this, it sucks, because she is an amazing artist, and I really wanted to see her work in my album! It sucks, because my album will not be complete, but this CJ holder will have everyone's work. Also, I finally posted to the group that I was upset about her comments back in July, but let it slide at the time, but now that my journal has been in her care for a year, I just had to vent a bit. It just sucks! Thankfully, I'm in a CJ with some other gals I know, and things are going great with that one. Thanks for reading my long rant! I promise something more fun and uplifting tomorrow!

Santa in Switzerland!!!

While we were in Switzerland, they started their annual Christmas market. What an amazing experience! In town, they have lots of little chalets set up, with people selling everything from food to handmade goods to even some stamp supplies. The stamp supplies were the closest thing I got to scrapbooking the entire time we were there! Wow, was I going through withdrawls! Anyway, back to the Christmas market. They also have Santa's office. You take this train ride, which is about 1 hour, up this mountain, and at the top is this long tunnel you walk through, and at the end, is this amazing view, with a small area to have a beverage, and Santa's office. This was so much fun! Everyone there was so nice, and Santa was not busy at that time at all, so he spent time chatting with us, and little J was just in awe. I realize at 1, he really doesn't get the whole Santa thing, but he was smiling the entire time Santa was holding him, and even when we put him back in the stroller, he was just staring and smiling at Santa. I am so thankful, that we went ahead and purchased the photos they were selling there, as my camera broke, and the photos I took of little J with Santa did not turn out at all. I love the little smile on his face! Priceless!!

WOW! What a crazy couple of weeks!

WOW! I can't believe that just over a week ago, I was still in Paris! Things around here have been non-stop since we arrived home on the November 30th. I can't even remember when I've had a moment to think! After a long flight home and a few escapades in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport, we put our feet on the San Francisco soil and we have not stopped since. When we got home, we had 4 days to prepare for little J's first birthday party. That was no easy task either. Since we left the house in a huge disaster, we had to clean house, order food, order the cake, go to the laundromat(more on this later), and get the house decorated. Whew, I'm tired just thinking about it again! The party was a great success, and thanks to all my friends who came! Little J has been having fun with all his new toys.

Yes, even after the great vacation, I had to come home and go back to the laundromat. We had a ton of laundry, and still no laundry room. But.......Big news flash here......AS OF SUNDAY, I WILL HAVE MY LAUNDRY ROOM BACK!!! ***Me doing the happy dance here*** We still have not settled with the freak who messed it all up, but we got the floor finished today! My brand new washer and dryer get moved back in tomorrow! WAHOOOOO!

So, anyway, it's good to be back! I owed a few of you some postcards, which I will send out...even though I'm back already, but I was thinking of you!! Things will really be back to normal, when DH finally goes back to work! AHHHH...the house to myself (and little J)!

PICTURES TO FOLLOW SOON!

In the line of duty.

While on vacation and checking in with our local news websites, we found this story about CHP officer Andy Stevens being shot and killed after a routine traffic stop. As many of you know, G is a CHP officer also, so when we hear of this happening, it really hits home. Our thoughts and prayers are with Officer Stevens family. I am so glad that law enforcement was able to catch the suspects without any further injuries or deaths. Say a prayer for all the officers out there who do their job to protect you everyday. Also say a thank you prayer for those who have made the ulitmate sacrifice.

It's a working vacation!

So, I have not updated since our bags were packed and we were off on our first adventure with little J. He is such a little trooper. After a few delays which resulted in 28 hours of travel, from leaving our doorstep to arriving at my parents home, little J is an amazing little kid. Not a peep out of this kid for the entire trip! People on the planes commented that they didn't even know there was a baby sitting with us! What a blessing!

The first week here has been a little rough. It took about 4 days to get little J adjusted to the time zone. Then, come to find out this kid is sprouting teeth right and left! He left the USA with 3 teeth, and I think he'll be coming home with at least 4 more! We've done a little sightseeing here in Switzerland, but mostly we've just hung out with my parents and gotten little J adjusted. We traveled to Italy this last weekend to a small town in the north called Romano Canavese. My parents used to live there when they were working in Italy. Their old landlords are now like family, so we had a wonderful full Italian dinner with them this last Saturday. It was the first time they met little J and we met Alesandro who is now 1 1/2. What a cute little kid with lots and lots and lots of energy. We had such a great time and it was wonderful to catch up with them! Little J is a bit under the weather now though, he has a little cold, and as I said he is growing teeth faster than his hair is growing......

More on our adventures later, and I will post some pictures when I can!

Just about ready to go!

Well, the bags are almost packed. G is doing the usual, "This seems like a lot of hassle" routine. He always gets that way around travel time. You know he's going to have a great time though, once it's all said and done. I can't wait to get traveling! I will say, that getting ready has been a bit more crazy, since we also have to get little J ready, and you never know what your gonna need. Hopefully I got everything! Keep your fingers crossed that he's as good traveling as he is every other day! I'll try my best to update you all while we are gone! I'm gonna miss you all, but I know I'll be having a great time too.
Take Care!

I got tagged by Island Girl!

Don't worry Jen, I'm not gonna tell you that you suck! :) So Jen has tagged me and asked me to take the 2x2 quiz. It kind of had perfect timing, since my brain is overloaded with all the things I must get done before yesterday. It's kind of funny and nice that some of our answers are the same. It's nice to know your not alone in some of the things you are thinking, wishing for or striving for. So, here you go Jen, the answers to my 2x2 quiz! Thanks for the challenge!

*2 names you go by
1. Laurie
2. Mommy :)
*2 parts of your heritage
1. Filipino
2. Dutch
*2 things that scare you
1. Something bad happening to G while working or to little J
2. My house catching fire
*2 of your everyday essentials
1. Starbucks-Summer= Java Chip Frappuccino w/peppermint Winter=Gingerbread Latte
2. A good book
*2 things you are wearing right now
1. pink t-shirt
2. jogging pants
*2 of your favorite bands or musical artists (at the moment)
1. Kenny Chesney
2. Gwen Stefani
*2 favorite songs (at the moment)
1. Come Clean by Hillary Duff
2. Collide by Howie Day
*2 things you want in a relationship (other than real love)
1. make me laugh
2. being true
*2 truths
1. I love to shop!
2. I watch way too much TV.
*2 physical things that appeal to you (in the opposite sex)
1. eyes
2. butt!
*2 of your favorite hobbies
1. Duh...scrapping.
2. reading
*2 things you want really badly
1. to be comfortable in my skin and feel accomplished
2. to be published
*2 places you want to go on vacation
1. Back to Venice and the Vatican in Italy
2. Hawaii -can you believe I've never been!
*2 things you want to do before you die
1. See little J grow up and have a family of his own.
2. Find a way to be stress free.
*2 ways that you are stereotypically a dude/chick
1. I own too many shoes.
2. I like to shop.
*2 things you are thinking about now
1. How am I ever going to get everything done before we leave for Europe.
2. I wanna do some scrapping!
*2 stores you shop at
1. New York & Company
2. Target
2 people i would like to see take this quiz
1. Krista
2. Lara

Little J got his first kiss from a girl today!

This week is getting so crazy, getting ready for our trip. J and I took a little time out to have some lunch with my friend Emelyn and her little one Jasmine. We had a nice relaxing lunch, some good chat, and lots of kiddie entertainment. Jasmine is so adorable! Even with Spaghetti all over her face! She just loved little J, and gave him cute little kisses, on his hand, his cheek and the back of his head. He of course was all full of smiles! So, little J got his first kiss from a girl, and the only sad thing is that I don't have pictures to scrap of it!

What a cute little Tigger!

So the little one's first Halloween has come and gone. I'm a little sad that it is over already. I'm pretty sure that G and I had more fun that Josh did. G had the house all decked out and ready for the Trick or Treaters. It looked really good, we got lots of complements on it. We decided that we were not going to actually take the little one out trick or treating, but instead just let him go with us to answer the door in his costume. We did take him to a couple of the older neighbors that we knew would enjoy seeing him earlier in the evening. He really enjoyed seeing all the kids come to the door. He especially liked the little babies. He loved this one little kid that came by that had a doggy costume on. This little kid was so cute, and kept making his costume bark. The little one would just crack up every time he heard this thing bark. By 7:30 though, he was done. He had been such a little trooper towards the end. We were just waiting for one of our neighbors to show up with their kid, and then we were calling it a night. All in all, this was one of the best Halloweens ever. I loved seeing all the kids in their costumes, and all the friendliness of the neighbors. Next year, we are taking him out to collect candy for sure though!

Thank you honey!

The last couple of days have been kinda crazy. Yesterday, I had to go to the Passport Agency to get my passport corrected, and what I thought would be a few hour trip, turned into an all day event. I was exhausted when the little one and I got home. I must say though, that while San Francisco isn't the most baby friendly town (meaning difficult to maneuver around a bit, very few places with entries wide enough for strollers, and very few places with changing tables), the people were amazingly helpful! I've never seen so many people help by opening doors, and especially the guy in line at the passport agency when it was time to pick up the passport. After being in town all day waiting for 3:30pm to arrive, the passports were finally ready at 4pm. They told everyone there (about 50 people) to line up. Since I had the stroller, I was going to wait until the end (I mean, how long could it take to hand out a passport). This very nice man at the front of the line, saw that the little one was a bit tired just rubbing his little eyes, told me to get in front of him! WOW! What a great gesture! Anyway back to the topic at hand. Then today, I woke up early, because the little one had an appointment with the pediatrician to get his last half of his flu shot. Well, we got all ready, went out to the car, got all loaded up, and.......nothing. The car would not start. UGGGGHHHHH! So there I am, unloading the car and heading back in the house to reschedule the appointment. I must admit though, it was nice to stay home all day.

Well, can I just say, that I have the best husband on the planet! Yesterday, after I got home, even though he had worked all day long and painted our laundry room, he took over caring for the little one, so I could have a much needed rest! Then today, after a long day at work, he came home and fixed my car up! So, I just want to say THANK YOU HONEY! I LOVE YOU!

The littlest things can inspire you.

I have been in a major rut lately. I don't know exactly what brought it on, but it has just been lingering. Finally today, I feel like the haze is lifting. I went to have coffee at Starbucks with my favorite aunt, who is also my godmother. We just sat and sipped our drinks (and you know mine was a mint mocha chip frappacino) and chatted for 2 hours. I really love spending time with her. She really inspires me with how when things are tough, she keeps going and going and going and going. Don't get me wrong, she's not superwoman (well, she is in some respects), it's just that even when we talk about the "little black clouds" she always has a positive attitude and just keeps plugging away to the positive outcome. The little one, of course was an angel, for the whole two hours. He chatted with us for a little bit and then took a nice long nap in his stroller. It was so relaxing to just hang out. I feel so relaxed now, and ready to complete all my tasks.

I also got some promising news today. My cousin was diagnosed with cancer a litle while back. Well last week, he completed his chemotherapy treatments. His tumor marker is down and his doctors are very optomistic. He goes in for a test at the end of the month that will reveal (notice I am saying it will) that all is well with him and he can get back to enjoying life again.

Well, that's it for now, I better go scrap while I'm feeling the inspiration!!!

Burned Out.

Ever have those days, when you just have so much to do, that you just want to hide in your bed and hope that someone else will do it? Things have been so super crazy the last 3 weeks, and they show no signs of slowing down. There was a time when I was used to this craziness, but those days are gone. Maybe I'm too old for the craziness? I never thought so before. Anyway, I really don't have much to blab about today, I'm off to bed!

Scrapbooking....Scrapbooking....

Do you ever:

*wonder why we must have all the newest stuff before it even hits the shelves?
*wonder why we just see a picture of some new scrapbook supply and know we have to have it before we even know how much it is?
*think that the whole notion of preserving the past or the memories has gone to the wayside with the majority of scrappers?
*wonder why some "scrappers" really seem to only be validated if they are published?
*get caught up in other peoples designs or styles and feel like you've lost your own?
*feel less than creative when you look around at your massive stash?
*feel less creative than those around you?

Okay, enough of that.....Krista commented on my last "Must Turn Away" post, that she was glad their were not links. Rene wondered why I stopped at 8. Well, that was only because I was lazy, so I have expanded my list and included links where possible. Now after you've browsed all the new pretty things I want, make sure to give me some sympathy for my little personal turmoil discussed at the end of this post!

1. The new Basic Grey Blitzen paper line.
2. KI's new Chill Out and Christams collection.
3. That new Making Memories Pink Tote set. Maybe I want the green though? hmmmm.
4. The Eiffel Tower stamps from Technique Tuesday.
5. ALL OF THE NEW FONTWERKS STUFF!!!
6. The new scrapworks tailord tags line. Examples are this and this.
7. The new notch tool from Basic Grey
8. The new tag tool from Making Memories.
9. The Hanging by a Thread stamps from Technique Tuesday.
10. The Infinte Wisdom stamps from Technique Tuesday.
11. The new Maya Roads ribbon and large chipboard shapes.
12. The new Cactus Pink line.
13. The new Lil' Davis line.
14. Might as well add the new Imagination Project items as well! Love all three!
Okay, I think that's enough for now. If I've enabled you in anyway, you can thank Rene and Krista for getting me to expand my list with links! LOL!

So, now for my little personal turmoil. Most of you who read my blog and know me IRL, know that we are heading to Europe soon to visit my family. Many of you know what a pain in the you know what (coughcough*ass*coughcough) getting the little ones passport was. Well, today in the mail, I received my shiney brand new passport. I had to both renew my passport and change my name. I don't know why, but I knew something was amiss the minute I opened the envelope. At first, I thought something was wrong with my application, because I originally only saw my expired cancelled passport and my marriage license enclosed. I dug deeper into the envelope and to my relief, found the new passport. I opened it up, and to my horror, my name was mis-spelled! Now, getting my passport has also become a pain-you know where! So, I call the passport agency, and get instructions from the clerk which includes filling out another form, taking new pictures, resending my old passport, my new wrong passport, my marriage license and where to mail it. I go online like she advised and retreived the proper form and filled it out. As I'm reading the small print, it says that it will take 4 to 6 weeks to re-issue the passport, but if I want it expedited, I have to pay another $60! Um...hello! I just paid you $60 to expedite it and it's wrong! So, I call back the call center and talk to another clerk, who then talks to a supervisor, and with great relief, I don't have to pay the $60 to expedite it. I do however have to trek over to San Francisco with all the necessary information. I'm hoping the little ones' comes tomorrow, so if there is a mistake on his, I can do them both at once. Okay, thanks for the sympathy, I feel better now!

Thoughts?

I was reading a Krista's blog yesterday, she was inspired to write down what her thoughts were as she was driving home from work. There is a link on her blog to what inspired her to do this. Anyway, I thought that it was a great idea, so even thought I don't drive to or from work, I decided to note the thoughts I was having while I was running around doing my errands today.

1.) What do I get G for his birthday tomorrow?
2.) Should I go to Stampers Warehouse today?
-A question I will chat about more tomorrow.
3.) Will G and his mother have an argument while she is here?
4.) When in the heck am I going to finish all the projects I have to get done?
5.) I really want a new pair of shoes.
6.) What else do I need to do to get ready for our trip?
7.) Less than 30 days until our long vacation!
8.) I need another massage soon!
9.) I need a haircut and a pedicure....SOON!
10.) Thanks to Krista, now I want an Ipod!
11.) I hope all is well with Jen and MG
12.) I miss scrapping with Rebecca!
13.) I hope all is well with Rene's move!
14.) Did you know it's going to cost us the same amount to send Yukon to the doggy hotel as it cost for our airfare to Europe (one persons ticket)?
15.) When do I get to scrap next?
16.) I hope ER is really good tonight!

Must turn away....Part 2!

Also known as Memory Trends! Yikes, there is so much stuff that I must have! Here is my list....

1. The new Basic Grey Blitzen Line.
2. KI's new Chill out and Christmas Collection.
3. That new Making Memories Pink Tote bag
4. The Paris Stamps from Technique Tuesday.
5. ALL OF THE NEW FONTWERKS STUFF!!!
6. The new scrapworks tailord tags line.
7. The new notch tool from Basic Grey
8. The new tag tool from Making Memories.
-----I'm stopping my list there, because it would be never ending, but I must have these things!!-----------

So much to do.....

All I can think about today, is my huge "To Do" list. Ever since we got our tickets to Europe, my mind has been racing, thinking of all the huge tasks I must get done to prepare for the trip, along with all the daily tasks I must complete for daily living. So today, I decided, that I'm going to put down my huge "To Do" list right here. It's about to be out there for all of you to share in my misery! Oh, by the way, this week, lucky me, I'm planning for G's birthday on Friday, and my MIL is coming to visit.....TOMORROW!

1. Get guest bathroom ready for company.
2. Laundry!
3. Quick dust/vacuum.
4. Finish G's present.
5. Finish gifts for those we are visiting in Europe.
6. Make list of things to pack for trip for everyone.
7. Make list of things we need to purchase before we leave on trip.
8. Find accomodations for Yukonbear.
9. Check on passports (due next week)
10. The Costco run.
11. Buy invitations for J's first birthday party.
12. Make guest list for J's first birthday party.
13. Send invitations out on the day we leave.
14. Take shoes for shoe repair.
15. Finish paperwork for the State Contractor's board.
16. Get information to order flooring for laundryroom from contractor.
.....and the list goes on.......

Must turn away!

Have you ever been watching a movie or a tv show, and just know they are gonna show you something you don't wanna see. So there you are, knowing what's going to happen, and knowing you don't wanna see it. You crouch down in your seat and cover your eyes and wait for someone to tell you it's over. Tell me, how do you do that with a book? I'm currently reading A Million Little Pieces by James Frey which is the current Oprah book club selection. I cannot beleive this book. It is so amazing! I'm only about one fourth of the way through it, and I am hooked. I have never read a book, that was so descriptive, so horrific, and yet so touching all at the same time. I have never read a book where I wanted to cover my eyes and ears until the moment passed, but knew that I had to know what was going on. If you have never read this book, I honestly recommend that you read it. This man goes through an amazing life changing process, and I can't wait to find out the rest of his story. The other thing that amazes me with this book, is that this man has gone through some horrific things (and like I said, I'm only 1/4 of the way through it), but there are so many kind gestures and emotional connections from people who are strangers with this man, and also he without realizing it reaches out to make emotional connections with others. The most touching thing, that I can't wait to find out more about, is that this man, cannot look into his own eyes. He apparently deeply knows, that his eyes are the windows to his soul, but he's afraid of what he might or maybe might not see.......

Definately more to come on this book.

When your having a sucky week....

and nothing seems to be going right, it's time to sit down and remind yourself of the things you have to be thankful for. When you make this list, life doesn't seem quite so sucky anymore. So tonight, I'm making a list of things I am thankful for.

1. My little one (see above), he is such an amazing kid! I am so lucky to get to see this smile everyday! I just love when he wakes up in the morning and I go into his room, he just has lots of smiles to share. What a great way to start any day!

2. My husband! This guy is just too good to be true! While I am a bit biased, he is handsome, sweet, kind, giving, and takes such great care of our family.

3. All of the things our family has been blessed with. We are very fortunate to have what we have.

4. Friends. I am so fortunate to have great friends! It's great to have great friends to share the good times and the bad times with.

5. Our great family!

6. My Mint Mocha Chip Frappacinos!

7. The joy of sharing!

8. The ability to read and get lost in a good book!

A Sucky Day....

What a sucky day today has been. I've been feeling a bit run-over lately, but today has been the worst. Last night, I spent about 4 hours trying to get our flight to Paris situated. Here is the quick version of my 4 hours of phone time. Before we made reservations for our flight, we called the airline, because we were unable to make arangements for the little one online. It only gave adult tickets. So, we called about having the little one as a lap infant on the flight. They told us to make the reservations online, and then call them to tell them we had a lap infant, and it would be about $100. So, we make our reservations and then I proceed to call the airline to add the little one. Well, the fair for him to ride on my lap is now $200. The airfair for G and I was only $380 each, so not that big of a savings. I get off the phone with them, and chat with my stepmom about it, and we decided that all would be more comfortable if we just book a seat for him for the additional $180. So, I call the airline back, and tell the service representative what I want to do, and she cancels his lap seat, and tells me to make his reservation online and then call them back to tell them it's an infant ticket, not an adult ticket, and all will be fine.....NOT! So, we make his reservation online, and I call in to change him to infant, and the next representative tells me that we shouldn't have done it that way. Yikes! So now, we do have 3 seats, and they are all together and hopefully it will be a pleasant flight, since it took me 4 hours to book. LOL

So, I finally get to sleep at 3am, and still have to be up by 7am, because we have a contractor finally fixing our laundry room! Yay for the fixing! Hopefully, today was the last time that I will have to spend 3 hours at the laundromat. We are still trying to get the little ones passport squared away, but I'm saving that long story for when it's finally sorted out and not stressing me out. It seems that this week, I have no energy and no desire to really do anything. Suddenly with everything going on this week, I am really uninspired. :(

A Very Productive Day.....

Today has been a very productive day around here. First, we have made our reservations to go to Europe!! Wahoooo!!! We are flying to Paris at the beginning of the November! We also have someone starting tomorrow to put our laundry room back together....FINALLY! The feud with the plumber is far from over, but we are working on that one. G and I went out to lunch today, and then headed for the Halloween store. The little one has his first costume. We tried it on him at the store, and everyone who saw it, thought he was so adorable! He is going to be Tigger, since he's such a bouncy kid! Won't that be a great photo opportunity for mommy!

Tomorrow starts the big run-a-round to get more stuff ready for our trip. I need to go pick up the little one's birth certificate-(it really sucks that you don't get a complimentary one when their born). Then we have to go get passport photos taken, since he needs his first one, and mine alas has expired. Tomorrow should be tons of fun! LOL

Are you ready for the new episode of Laguna Beach....I am! I have no idea why I am so hooked on this show though....maybe someday I will figure it out. I am going to scrap tonight too! I have completed a few projects towards my spending challenge! I completed 2 almost 3 circle journals, and I completed the card kit I got from QVC, so I am well on my way to the 10 projects! Enjoy the Hillary Duff video!

Time to relax.

Whoever thought that being a SAHM was all soap operas and bon bons should think again! I can't believe how much the days just run together and each day seems strangely the same. Don't get me wrong, I would not trade being at home with the little one for anything. I would still make the same choice to leave my job and be at home. I think that my biggest problem, is that I don't really want G to help me when he gets home from work. I feel like, he gets up early and goes out there to do his job so that I can have the luxury of staying home with the little one, so he should be able to relax when he gets home and not have to worry about the housework, the little one, or anything. It makes me so crazy, that I feel guilty when he does help....which is all the time. He always wants to feed the little one when he gets home, or he's vacuuming, or doing dishes, or something. When I tell him he doesn't have to do it, he tell me he does, because I need a break too. What a guy! Nonetheless, I still feel guilty and sometimes.....inadequate. Like, I should have had all that crap done, so it wasn't there for him to even do. I know this is crazy, but that's how I feel. Anyway, I'll have to give this some more thought, and figure out how to make myself, a) more productive so I get more done while G is at work. b) not feel so guilty when he does help. c) find a way to go to bed earlier -I'm such a night owl. d) find more time to scrap!

So, I figured out how to add a video, and this song always makes me think about a relaxing vacation....I thought I'd share!

Run out and get your Airborne today!

Everyone I know seems to be getting the sickies lately. In our house, both the little one and I have been suffering with lots of congestion. The only one who seems to have avoided the ickies is G. He's been taking his Airborne everyday. This stuff really works. I wish I had taken it, when I first noticed the little one getting the sniffles. So here is your PSA for the day. Go out and get your Airborne, and when you feel the slightest inkling of the ickies, take it! If your planning to travel on an airplane, or know your going to be cooped up with a large crowd where their might be people with the ickies, take it! You won't regret it!

So, what do you do when your horn starts going off at 5am?

Friday night, I'm all snug as a bug in my comfy bed with an icky headcold coming on. I took some medince and slept like a dream! At 5 am, I hear this noise, and can't quite place it. I was sitting up on the side of the bed, just listening. I was trying to figure out what it was. Was it a smoke alarm? Then G woke up, and asked me what that noise was. In a foggy haze, I said I didn't know, I was trying to figure it out. I got up and went towards the little ones room, but the noise faded as I got closer to his room. I went back to our room, and could still hear it, G told me to check the bathroom....so, I opened the bathroom door, and nothing. Then in dawned on us! It's a car horn. I open the garage door...nope, it's not my car. Now mind you, this wasn't a horn like someone was pressing the horn and going beep beep beep, this was beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep constantly. Well, both G and I go to the front door and look outside, and we don't see anyone, just hear this obnoxious horn blaring. We were trying to figure out which car it was, when I asked G, why a horn would be blaring like that with no one out there. That's when he freaked me out! He said, well, it could be some drunk passed out on their horn, or it could be someone is dead in their car! WHAAAAT? S0, we come back in the house, G puts on a pair of sweats and grabs the flashlight. He's going to investigate. Me, I grab the phone. I'm ready to call 911 when he figures out what it is. As I get to the door, G is coming back inside, and what do I see? One of our neighbors driving the offending car off horn blaring. So, G and I climb back into our warm cozy bed, which isn't quite as toasty as it was before. We get all nice and comfy, when.....the horn is back! I don't know what this guy thought when he was driving it off. Did he think, that as he drove (through the entire neighborhood, waking up even more people) that the horn would stop? I get up, to see what the heck he's doing now, and I see him walking around the car, looking all over the engine trying to figure out what to do. Finally! He figured it out! When your car horn starts blaring at 5 am, you don't drive the car off, you disconnect the battery! Just a little Public Service Announcement in case it ever happens to you!

A little more about my spending challenge.....

I've been thinking a lot lately about my lack of creativity, and my mound of supplies. I've also been thinking a lot about all the supplies that I am still wanting to buy. So, as I've said before, I've challenged myself to a spending freeze until I do 10 projects. Well, I already know that tomorrow, I am going to fall of the wagon. I'm headed for the the garage tomorrow to scrap my little heart out with some old friends and some new ones. I know once I get there, that there will be something that I just have to have. With this being said, I was catching up on my blog reading and went to read Jen's blog. She brought up my spending challenge, and found something on Kristina's blog who is the owner of 2 peas which was very insightful. Here is the blog from 2peas if your interested in reading the whole thing and her response to a comment someone made. I have thought about this so often, it seems like every week, there is some new latest and greatest product release. Something new that I am just salivating to get my hands on. I cannot for the life of me think of another industry that turns over it's new product so fast. It seems like every other industry has a "season change". For example, clothing, you know your going to get Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall. There doesn't though seem to be this same buzz about the newest stuff every season though. It seems more like every season we buy a few of the pieces being offered and move on. We're not banging on Macy's door, just yelling "I MUST HAVE ALL THE NEW CLOTHES YOU HAVE!" Eyeglasses, seem to have a season too, new styles tend to come out at the beginning of the year....just when your vision insurance has kicked in again and your ready for that new pair of glasses. It seems like this hobby of ours has continuous new seasons, every day, we are scoping our Target, Wal-Mart, Michaels, and especially our Local Scrapbook Stores, just wanting to be the first one to get all the new stuff. We can't just buy a few of the new things either, we all seem to be on the must have it all list! No wonder the LSS's can't survive. What kind of a cash flow must you have to always be ordering new stuff. With this type of industry, you certainly can't stock much inventory that will sit around for awhile. No wonder, there is never enough of all the new stuff. Not everyone is getting it, because the LSS can't take a chance on having too much leftover after the hype has passed. This is why people are making a killing on ebay! Since you can't find the item you want anymore at the LSS, you head over to ebay and get in a bidding war for the latest and greatest with your fellow scrapbooker. It just seems so crazy! There has got to be a way to slow this cycle down. I think the industry as a whole is going to have to figure something out.

So, back to my challenge. After reading Jen's blog, I certainly feel more inspired to use my stash. I'm sticking to my challenge, (even if I'm falling off the wagon tomorrow for a bit) but I'm adding a new twist. Not only am I going to have a spending freeze challenge (after my break tomorrow), but I'm giving myself 2 weeks to get 10 projects done. Goodness knows I have quite a few projects waiting for me to finish up, and plenty of sketches of layouts I've done to get made.

I am proud of myself though, I have not bought a scrapbook related item in 2 weeks! Thankfully, I did have a few items on order that were placed before the challenge, so I still had stuff coming in the mail! All of those have been received, so after tomorrow, it's cold turkey!
YIKES!!!!

$34.95!

Hey everyone! We're back from Vegas! What a whirlwind trip that was. I'll have to fill you all in on the fun of the trip after I get some of my pictures back. I just wanted to check in and share a little story from our trip.

So, it's Sunday night, our last night in Vegas. We are headed out to have a nice buffet dinner with two other couples. One of the couples and G and I decide to head over to the Rio casino early to watch a little bit of the Raider game (my poor Raiders). Anyway, we were supposed to meet two other couples at the buffet, but somehow we missed them and they started without us about 45 minutes before we got there. Since one of the guys called someone from the other group, they asked their waitress if she could hold a table a few tables away from theirs for us. They were a group of four and we were a group of six. Their waitress said no problem! So the six of us get in the plentiful buffet line, pay our $22.95 each, and wait in another plentiful line to be seated. As we get to the front, one of G's friend tells the hostess, who come to find out is also the manager, that our friends are seated over in that area, and the waitress was holding a table for us. She tells us, that if we want to sit in the same section as our friends, the dinner is going to cost us $34.95 more! Now mind you, we are not sitting at their table, we are not sitting right next to them, we are just asking to be in the same section! They tell us, that even if we are not at the same table or even next to each other, if we are seated in the same waitresses section, then we have to pay the extra gratuity! I couldn't believe this! I was flabbergasted! I guess the waitress had already warned our friends who were already there, that it might happen like that, but that she would talk to the seating hostess to try to accomodate us without the gratuity. So nice of her.....she was heading for a huge tip for being nice.

Now, I completely understand the concept of large parties at tables and then the wait person gets stiffed for having to work very hard to serve a large party. This however was a buffet......except for non-alcoholic drinks, I had to serve myself! Where's my tip? As G's friend R said, I fully expected that once I crossed the line to be seated, that the manager was going to grab me by my ankles and shake me out for any coins or money I might have left in my pockets! Okay, just a little vent, I promise something more substantial tomorrow!

Why do I even try?

I am so not good at no spending challenges. Now, that I have not been shopping for scrapbook supplies, my spending has just moved to the shoe spending category. I picked up these really cute BCBG shoes today. I'd been eyeing them on ebay for a few days, and when they were still under $40, I couldn't resist. Too bad they won't be here in time for my trip to Vegas.

Speaking of my no scrap spending challenge, how is everyone doing that decided to try? I'm not doing so well at it, I had ordered a sizzix die for the large album cover and insert, and paid for that today, so I'm not sure, that whether it counts or not, because I ordered it before I challenged myself. I'll let my fellow challengee's decide. Regardless, I'm still not doing so well at it, since I have not completed many projects. Getting ready for this trip, just has been a lot of work, so no time to scrap. I'm promising myself 4 hours tomorrow after G gets home from work.

The little one and I are going to take Rebecca to lunch tomorrow! I feel like I haven't seen her forever, and I know she's been crazy busy with work starting and with the boys and all their activities....especially that baseball.

Blog Challenge! 10 memories from my school years.

Wow! This is going to take me back. It's been so long since I've been in school! Let's see what I can come up with. These are definately not in any order of importance.

1. I remember in junior high, I was an 8th grade cheerleader. We were supposed to be at a tournament at the high school. I was the only one who showed up. I don't know how, but I was brave enough to sit with another group of cheerleaders from another school and cheer our team on!

2. I remember during my senior year of high school, I went to my first party with alcohol. (I have a strict Filipino father, so I didn't go much of anywhere unless my parents called and spoke to the adult who was going to be present) My friend bought me a 4 pack of wine coolers which I drank all of and would not share. I remember hiding in a closet when the sherrifs showed up. The sherriff who was also the coach for the boys basketball team (who knew me because I was a cheerleader still) recognized me and laughed and closed the door without getting my friends or I in trouble. I did get a lecture later and was told if he caught me again he was going to tell my parents.

3. I remember my friend Colin DeBre, who had to move under not so happy circumstances during our freshman year. I've missed her ever since....sure wish I could find her.

4. I remember being in the Sebastopol Apple Blossom queen competition with my friend Dawn Sirstad (wish I could find her too). We had so much fun doing all the events leading up to the crowning of the queen and the local parade and festival. I didn't win, but I was first runner-up, which was called the Apple Blossom princess....so you can call me princess! LOL

5. I remember my first crush that started in junior high school and carried through high school.

6. I remember being in a drama production where we lip synced to different music artists. I lip synced to Whitney Houston, and because I was such a good girl in school, one of my teachers asked me if I even knew what I was lip syncing about. (The song had something to do with sex).

7. I remember the first and last time I was a bully. I got into a fight with a girl who everyone picked on. I don't remember her last name, but I remember her first...Althea..if your out there, I'm sorry for being a bitch.

8. I remember the students we lost to drunk driving accidents.

9. I remember my favorite teacher...Mr. Miller. I still miss seeing him! During my senior year, I was a teachers assistant in his class for at least 3 periods of the day.

10. I remember my first french kiss. It happened after school, I was a freshman and he was a junior. It was near the gym and locker rooms, because he was going to football practice, and I was going to cross country running practice. It was the grossest thing ever, I had to wash my mouth out in the locker room right after.

I remember lots of friends! I remember wishing I could grow up and be an adult, but now that I am, I really miss those carefree fun days. If you know any of the following people, let me know, because they were my friends and since high school ended we have lost touch, and I miss them and would love to find them again.
Dawn Sirstad
Colin DeBre
Laura Pruitt
Brandy Lucas
Bob Geisinger
Josefina Villacana
and anyone else from El Molino H.S class of 1988

Cleaning out my closet!

Oh boy! I'm so lucky! I got to clean out my closet today! WAHOOOO! It was that time. I share the walk in closet with G, and he is a neat freak! Our closet looks so neat and tidy on one side, and like a bomb exploded on the other. Needless to say, it was time to clear the debris. I packed up all my lovely maternity wear with all of the little one's clothes that are too small. I hope I get to wear it again in the next 12 to 18 months. This made room for all the clothes that I have been able to start wearing again, not to mention some of the new stuff I've collected. Everything is finally hung up and folded and put in some sensible order again. I tried on shoes that I haven't been able to wear in ages, first, because 3 inch heels and pregnancy don't go together, second, because carrying around an infant and 3 inch heels don't go together, and third, because I've had no place to wear them for ages. I had to get this done, because I need to start thinking of what I'm going to take to Las Vegas. Oh my land! I didn't even realize just how much stuff I have! Don't tell G I said that though! I love the stuff in my closet, from my cute little outfits, my adorable little shoes, like these in the coffee color by BCBG! I wanna look cute and sassy while DH and I are getting some R&R in Vegas. Yeah right....I thought I was gonna get some rest.....

Turns out, I might be playing softball with the team! I think they might be better off with Caspar the friendly ghost playing instead of me! I can't even remember the last time I played softball! I know I remember that I can catch a ball, but I don't think I'll be hitting any home runs (at least not on the softball field *wink*wink*). I hope I can have a designated hitter, because they can just count me as a strike before I even walk up to the plate! I'm gonna be so embarassed!

I've already scoped out wear the nearest Starbucks is in relation to our hotel! I wish I had thought of that before I booked our hotel....

Blah.....

I'm just feeling blah this week. There is nothing exciting going on at all. I hope all this blah wears off before I head for Las Vegas. I think I'm just feeling blah, because, I feel so uncreative right now and I miss some of my friends who I haven't seen for awhile. I think I'm also feeling a bit nervous about leaving my little man while we are in Vegas. I know he will be very well cared for, one of my friends whom I admire beyond words is going to stay with him while we are gone. I am so grateful to my amazing friend for this too. It's just, that this will be the first time I'll be away from him for more than just a few hours. I know I'm gonna cry. I can't imagine a day without him! I know though, that this will be good for my relationship with my G though. Things are fine, but we need to spend a little time focused on each other and nurturing our relationship. We definately have not been alone since the little one was conceived! LOL So, I have a lot to be thankful to this friend for. I have to thank her for caring for my little man, the most precious gift I have, I have to thank her for being my friend, she is amazing, and I have to thank her when 30 years from now I'm still happily married, that she helped!

Nothing Exciting....

So it was a holiday weekend, and we didn't do anything exciting. I always thought I was the only one not doing anything exciting before today though.

I did get to sleep in a bit today, since G was off. He got up with the little one fore the morning feeding! YAY! When I did finally get up, I took a nice relaxing shower, and decided that a holiday would probably be a great day to go to the laundromat!! You all know the story about my new found love for the laundromat. I figured, it's a holiday, nobody else will be at the laundromat. I was so wrong. My original thought, that I would not have to fight for a washer or a dryer was so wrong. The place was PACKED! I guess I wasn't the only loser with no great plans for the holiday.

After I got back from the laundromat and relaxed a bit, I got a bug to do some more cleaning.....so, I cleaned out the refrigerator. As you can tell, I didn't have any glamorous plans, but I was very productive! :)

Anyway, still working on our trip to Sin City. Hopefully we have a babysitter for the little one, otherwise, I am flying to Portland to have my sister-in-law watch him for the weekend, or we are taking him with us. I'm so torn with this trip now. I really want to go and enjoy a fun and hopefull somewhat romantic weekend with G. We haven't had that since before the little one came. Also, it would be very dificult to do much in Sin City with a little one. On the otherhand, I haven't been away from my baby for more than a few hours since he arrived. I think I'm going to be a wreck!

I wanna be a kid again!

I was reading Rebecca's blog last night and about her son's little problem with lunch and it donned on me, that I wanna be a kid again! Kids have such a way with logic, that it works in any situation! I love his idea, that because the sandwich was smashed, it was smaller, thus not as filling! This would do wonders for my diet! So, in the spirit of kids, I'm making my list for why I wanna be a kid again! These are in no particular order of course!

1.) Smashed food = less food = less me in terms of fat!

2.) No worries about money...that's what parents are for!

3.) Teachers are much easier to deal with than bosses!

4.) If I don't clean the house, someone else will do it, and the only thing I'll get is grounded!

5.) I'd have someone to cook good meals for me again!

6.) Daddy....Will you take me shopping? Please?

7.) Taxes? What are taxes?

8.) Nothing bad can happen, I'm a kid and I'm invincible!

9.) Everything is going to turn out exactly like my dreams. If I want it, I'm gonna get it.

10.) Brand new clothes and shoes for every season! School shopping rocks!

Well, here I am back in reality, and now my job is to foster this love for being a kid in my little one. Maybe I can find a way to make him appreciate the worry free life of a kid! Wish me luck!

There sure are a lot of pots and kettles in this world!

Everyone has heard the phrase about the pot calling the kettle black right? While I was reading my favorite message board, I’ve seen this phrase and other similar ones thrown around left and right. It got me to thinking. There sure are a lot of pots and kettles out there. It really seems that in every aspect of our lives, there is a ton of finger pointing going on.

What really got me started on this was a post about people of a certain religion not following the golden rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. (Matthew 7:12) What really struck me is that this person is spouting off the golden rule, but I guess she forgot to read everything else in that chapter of the Bible. For example: Do not judge or you too will be judged? For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. (Matthew 7:1-5) Then in private, when I called her on that point, she came back with….yep, you guessed it, more finger pointing.

It is always someone else’s fault! I didn’t really mean to pull this one person out and use her as the example, but it is a prime example of what’s going on in the world today. Nobody wants to accept responsibility for anything. If someone loses their job, it was because their boss was an arse, or they didn’t treat them fairly, it’s never because they were not doing their job. If someone is ordering something and they wait until the last minute before they need it, it’s still the provider’s fault that they didn’t get it in time, forget the fact that the provider clearly told them it was x number of days and they were leaving in x minus five days.

This is clearly going on with the horrible hurricane Katrina efforts. Everyone is pointing a finger at someone else about all the chaos and human and animal devastation. It’s the Presidents fault for not getting help there more quickly. It’s the residents fault for not evacuating when they were told to. Back and forth, it’s not helping anything. Clearly there have been plenty of mistakes on both sides of the coin, but is it really the time for political posturing? Should the democrats and republicans be spending all this time pointing fingers at one another? I think that at this point everyone just needs to pull together and take care of the people and the animals. G might be heading down to NO to help with the cleanup and rescue. I’m not real overjoyed by this, but if he can help and they need to send him, then so be it. The thing that scares me the most is all the lawlessness going on. I am totally behind them for going into abandoned stores and taking food, clothing, blankets, and the things they need to survive, but HELLO, what are you going to do with that television or laptop computer? I know that people are in desperate times and want help immediately, but with the magnitude of issues and people who need attention, it’s going to take time.

Anyway, back to my original topic, I am by no means the perfect little angel, when it comes to this pot and kettle business. I am truly trying to recognize though when I do my own finger pointing and make sure I am taking responsibility for what is mine. So, sometimes, I’m the pot, sometimes I’m the kettle, and I’d just like to say to all you other pots and kettles…..Hello!

I'm failing miserably!

Okay, so a few days ago, I posted that I was challenging myself to a spending freeze. Can you say.....COMPLETE FAILURE! I must start over! Of course, that won't be to hard, as I have yet to complete anything. I have however been shopping. I just can't stop buying all the pretty scrap stuff! I had to go to Target, for some supplies for J, so what must I go look for? Yep, the Crazy Life line by Heidi Swapp. I didn't go to hog wild over this stuff. I got a frame kit, a couple of the plastic letter sets and some chipboard letters. The tapes were really cute, but Thursday is now spelled Thrusday. I also picked up some Making Memories letter stickers to match a paper set I already have. Then today, I placed an order for some of the new Daisy D's French Market papers and some Fontwerks stuff from Scrapgal. So......I'm starting over again. NO MORE BUYING until I do 10 projects!

Can I use the fact that I'm giving up soda as an excuse for losing my mind and shopping?

I don't know what has gotten into me lately, but I just have this huge desire to go shop wild! I've been craving a trip to Ikea , I want some more new shoes, I want some more new clothes, I want some cute new lacey things, and I wanna go make-up shopping too! I must fight this urge to shop!! I'm hoping to go and get a few new things before we head off to Vegas -if we end up going. Hopefully tomorrow, I will be able to print boldly across the top of my blog that I am in fact headed for SIN CITY! Not much sinning will be going on with a 9 month old in tow though.

I can't believe my little J is 9 months old today!!! Where is all the time going? I look at him in his crib and just can't believe how big he is getting!