Thoughtful Friday...

"We all have dreams. In order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline and effort." -Jesse Owens

I forgot to explain the photo for Wordless Wednesday. That is my sister. Owen decided he wanted to take some "pischers" while we were there on Saturday. He's not able to hold the big camera (and I won't let him try!) so I held it up to his eye and worked the button. When I heard the chirp it makes when it's focused I took the picture. My sister was being the subject for Owen. The picture I posted was the first one he took. I thought it was a pretty good picture for his first one!

Owen just spent the last five minutes chasing Ludwig around the house yelling "get you". Which sounds more like "gitchoo" but I knew what he meant. Ludwig isn't Owen's biggest fan and I don't know why he won't just go downstairs away from Owen. But he just keeps running until I open the door so he can escape outside.

Today we are having lunch with The Girls to celebrate Lori's birthday which happens to be one the first day of school this year! Then we will be getting things ready for a couple day of camping. Hopefully it doesn't rain. I'm not a fan of camping, especially when it rains!

Random Thursday...

I thought I'd share this layout I did during my marathon scrapping two weeks ago. It was an impromptu family photo. Of course Owen looks great and Morgan and I had been working in the yard and were a mess! But I liked it anyway.

I've had a pretty good scrapping groove lately. Even though I've been tired and rather sluggish in every other aspect! I just keep puttering on whatever layout is sitting on my table. Owen has made a mess of my craft room floor but I've been keeping my main work table under control and that helps with my creative flow a lot!

Owen is painting right now at the kitchen table. I bought him some cheap watercolor paints a couple weeks ago and he's getting the hang of it. He uses a lot of water but I've learned to keep the table free of anything I don't want soaked!

I had some other thoughts to ramble about that came to me in the middle of the night while I was trying to go back to sleep after my bladder woke me up but now of course I can't remember what they were so I'll stop here!

Wordless Wednesday...

Fun at the Fair...

On Saturday we took Owen to the State Fair. The State Fair is a pretty big deal in Minnesota. 12 days of fun and food on a stick. Owen was excited about riding the bus and seeing some animals. We always begin our day by going through the Creative Activities building which includes all the entries of baked goods, canned goods and tapestry, jewelry and wood creations. It's one of my favorite stops. Then we go on to the education building. This year we got to see Marjorie Johnson. Marjorie is a big deal in MN because she's won over 2,000 blue ribbons for her state fair entries. This year she was promoting her cookbook (you can see it if you click her link) . We bought the cookbook and took a picture with her.

She has appeared on a bunch of TV shows including Jay Leno. She is a spit fire of a woman and so much fun to watch. Her book has a couple of chapters about her life and how she got started in the fair business. It's a good read as well as full of her blue ribbon recipes.

Owen also had a great time trying out all the John Deere tractors and seeing some sheep and horses. (Those photos another day).

Our visit wasn't too long because Morgan had to work the toastmasters booth from 3-6 and we were going to my mom's to celebrate her birthday, which is today! Happy Birthday Mom! Today we are going to the zoo with her!

Toot toot!!

So I'm not really a toot my own horn kind of person. But today I'm going to because I'm really excited about this! Remember these collages?? The ones I completed in November and submitted to be included in a book?? Well it's THIS BOOK, and yesterday I got a copy of it! With my artwork in it! With other artists artwork! And the essays written by the author. A REAL BOOK THAT YOU CAN BUY AT AMAZON!!! I was so excited! Fortunately Morgan was still up at midnight when I got home from Girl's Game Night and found the book on the table. It was addressed to me (the box) but Morgan had opened it anyway seeing how he doesn't get much good mail anyway and the mail he does get he doesn't open. Anyway, it was on the table and I thought, "what the heck is this??". And then I looked at the return address, which I didn't recognize, and then opened the box and there it was. THE BOOK WITH MY ARTWORK IN IT! On pages 161 and 163! And my name in the back with my blog address! It's been so long since I submitted them and I knew they were going to be in the book but I didn't know if both collages would be or where they would be so I as thrilled to get the book and see the collages and my name it. And it's a good book. At least so far, I've not read the entire thing yet, but many of the essays already. You can check it out at Amazon. So that's my toot for the year!

A busy weekend...

It was a busy weekend in our house! Friday I scrapped from 4:30pm-2am! It was a great time. I was very productive and could have worked for another 2 hours when we left. I always have bits and pieces of layouts to finish up at home and was able to do that on Sunday.

Saturday I spent recovering from being up till 2am and also tried to entertain Owen as best I could so Morgan could rest. He was not feeling well most of the weekend.

Sunday Owen spent the day at my Mom's house so Morgan and I could have some free time and celebrate our 7th Anniversary! We went to church, had lunch at Panera, each took a good nap, and then I scrapped while Morgan worked on the computer.

I finished up the layouts I did on Friday as well as completed this little one.

Layout & Review...

Here is the M&M layout I did of Owen's first time eating M&Ms. The journaling didn't come out too well in the picture but it basically says it was his first time eating M&Ms and he loved them. Now for a little review...

I love circles. Punches especially but I never seem to have the right punch when I need it. So I either have to cut it with my cricut or by hand. The cricut works great but frequently it doesn't cut in the increment that I need. And I hate cutting circles by hand because they are never perfect! I've tried the CM circles cutter but I'm just not capable of working it correctly! Even though I think it's a great too I find it confusing and difficult to use. Recently I saw the Martha Stewart Circle Cutter in a magazine and thought perhaps it would be easier. One day at Wal-Mart I saw it and decided to give it a try.

There are two pieces. The circle template and the handle with the blades. The template has an outer ring that stays still and grips the paper while the inner ring rotates for the cut. It moves very smoothly. The blade snaps in to the handle and then you put the blade into the slot of the increment you wish to cut. Then you rotate the handle to cut the circle applying a little pressure.

It cuts in increments of 1/16ths from 1" to 5 1/2".

It comes with 3 blades. Each has a little safety cover.

It does not come with a cutting mat. Which I didn't mind since I already have a couple of those. The one I got at Wal-Mart was $14.99. It is also sold at Michael's and Archiver's for $17.99. The one those two stores have is white.

Overall, I think it's a good product. Easy to use, durable, sharp blades and not too expensive.

Wordless Wednesday...

A dollars worth of fun...

Morgan found this little car for Owen yesterday at a garage sale. It was bargain priced at $1! Owen loves cars so it was a dollar well spent. Even if he only drove it once!

He's having a bit of a love/hate relationship with it right now though. The front wheels are a bit wonky and get stuck going sideways so this frustrates him. He gets out, closes the door and flips the car over to align the wheels properly! Then he flips it down and gets back in. He also gets irritated at the bumps in the sidewalk and driveway. He prefers a smooth ride! Today when my sister was here they were outside, Owen in the car, Naunee outside of the car, and Owen got stuck so Naunee asked if he wanted help. Instead of saying "K" or "yes" or "help" he gets out and runs into the house crying to me! So I had to go outside and "show" Naunee how to do it! Sheesh! He's definitely my kid!

Oh, and just to clarify, my agenda for the week is by no means busy. I posted it to show how not busy I am! The things I posted for each day are really the only pressing matters that need to be done and each takes only an hour or two. Except for scrapping on Friday. Which is of course, the highlight!

Oh Monday Morning...

Weekend recap:
Saturday am ran/walked for 40 min., lifted weights. Saturday pm went to my mom's for dinner.
Sunday am skated with Morgan and Owen (he rides) for an hour. Played at the park. Sunday pm went to Costco, played outside with Owen and his new car (purchased at a garage sale for $1!), watched some olympics and tried to get Owen to go to sleep for two hours! Success happened at 10pm.

On the agenda for this week:
Monday pm Work
Tuesday am Playdate with ECFE friends
Wednesday pm Work
Thursday pm Book club
Friday pm Scrapping with Lisa and BJ!

As you can see my days are rather boring. Right now Owen is screaming OUT OUT! to me because he's strapped himself in his booster chair. I'd love to leave him there but he makes such a fuss!

Gotta go!

Thoughtful Friday...

A little husband post...

I found this tag on Lee's blog yesterday and although she didn't tag me I thought I'd post it here anyway! For S & G as Morgan would say. (Which is shits & giggles)

What is his name? Morgan or Daddy (by Owen!) or a variety of nicknames we have for him.

How long have you been married? 7 years on August 17th

How long did you date? 1 1/2 years

How old is he? 34 1 year and 4 days younger than I am.

Who eats more? He does. He can out eat me any day. I joke that we can't afford to have another child because we won't be able to feed it.

Who said I love you first? I believe that was me. He was a little overwhelmed but eventually he realized I was right about us being meant for each other. He was a slow learner.

Who is taller? Morgan is. By about 8 inches.

Who sings better? I'm sure he does. But it wouldn't matter you wouldn't be able to hear me over his singing anyway. He loves to sing. LOUD! Even if he doesn't know all the words. He'll just make some up.

Who's temper is worse? Definitely mine. It takes a lot to get Morgan mad.

Who does the laundry? Me. I do it the right way.

Who pays the bills? I do. Morgan could probably do it now but when we met he was very absent minded about his finances.

Who cooks dinner? Mostly Morgan. He loves to cook. And eat. I don't love to cook. Just eat. But I can cook when I have to.

Who mows the lawn? Morgan. Although he did show me how to use the new lawn mower and I did one side of the yard all on my own. So I can do that too if I have to.

Who wears the pants in the family? We share them. No one should have the majority of the power in a relationship all the time.

Wordless Wednesday...

A funny story...

I've been reading the book The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, who recently passed away from pancreatic cancer. I read a little bit each night. The chapters are short and usually have a little lesson. Last night he made mention of Adonis. You may recall from Greek mythology that Adonis is a love interest of Aphrodite who is killed while hunting. Adonis was said to be very handsome.

Pausch's mention of Adonis reminded me of my first year teaching third grade. I have a motley crew of a class. One boy who was my height but definitely a young third grader. Several boys who spent a large portion of the day falling of their chairs. And not to be naughty. They were just that way. A couple nerdy, sweet, smart kids. And several named after their parents' favorite liquor. They were a bunch. It was not uncommon to start the year off with a group of children and end the year with more or less than I began with. Sometime during that year I got a new little boy whose name was Adonis. While he was a cute little boy he was very small and very thin. He always wore his little uniform pants tightly belted at his waist. His polo shirt tucked in and long sleeves even in the heat of May and June. He also had a tendency to whine, and cry, and tattle. And fart. Now don't get me wrong, I know in third grade kids do this. And they think it's funny. But little Adonis's farting was not funny. It cleared the room. Literally. It was as though by naming him Adonis his mother has cursed him to be the opposite of what one would consider an Adonis to be! While I tried hard to fight for equality for this little boy in the classroom, a teacher cannot make children like another child. And he made it difficult on himself everyday with his whining and crying about any little thing and of course the farting didn't help! He would visit with the school social worker who would try to help him develop some skills for the classroom and the playground but most of the time the kids who met with her just ended up playing games in her office.

As was often the case with new kids, Adonis was not back the nest year, so I've no idea what happened to him or how he turned out. I hope he grew to fit his name, if only a little, so he could survive the harshness of the real world. But the thing that sprang back to my mind when I read "Adonis" in the book was the farting! I hope he out grew that! But knowing boys, he probably grew to use it to his advantage!

Musings for Monday...

I have another quote to share this morning.

"If we did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves." -Thomas Edison.

This resonates with me for a number of reasons. I have always held myself to a high standard and although my mom always told me I should do the best I could I always wondered if I could have done better. I'm sure that's a thought that I share with many people. While we can look at each other and give praise and admire another person work or accomplishments and be happy for them we are seldom able to do that for ourselves. Our to-do lists are a mile long and behind that are things waiting to get on the list. I am constantly searching for ways to make the most of my time. One of the things that has been getting in my way of doing more is my own tired and exhausted body. Since Owen was born I've been taking very poor care of myself. I eat the wrong things, don't get much exercise, and don't sleep well. This has been going on for over 2 years now and I finally decided to go to the doctor.

We have a wonderful doctor. She listens and answers questions and then does something. She doesn't just say I have to live with it or get more exercise or try to eat better. While I've been trying to get more exercise and lose the weight I've gained it has been made difficult by the stress I feel as a SAHM. I don't sleep well and I worry about lots of irrational things and have frequent headaches. She listened kindly and then we talked about the poor sleep, my regular back pain, and a few other things and she thinks that all of this is a manifestation of the stress I experience day to day. She put me on some medication for my anxiety and worry, as a temporary measure to help me get out of my poor habits, she prescribed a sleep routine which includes relaxation yoga before bed and I am to go back in a month for a physical when we will address further what's going on with my body.

First, I don't like to go to the doctor. I have never found them to be all that helpful. Until this doctor. She genuinely wants to help and I've not experienced that with any other doctor. I don't like to have blood taken or get shots. I get all clammy and light headed and I'm just a big baby about it. But when I left on Friday I really felt like it was possible for me to feel better.

This past week I've been getting exercise everyday and eating better and drinking more water. I've cut way back on my sugar intake, which is huge for me. I am a bit of a sugar junkie and my body doesn't deal well with that. I've still been tired but I can't fix everything in one week. It's a process. So little by little I'm trying to do more of what I'm capable of.

The lost post...

I had been working on a post the other day and then didn't finish it up until yesterday so when I published it it got stuck way down where Wednesday's post was. So I tried to fix it so it would show up for today and it disappeared! So I will start over!

First, Sarah honored me with this award on Wednesday! Thank you Sarah! (Incidentally, Sarah saw my original post way down on Wednesday and can vouch for me!)
The rules for this award are:

1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link to the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you have nominated.

In no particular order, I nominate:

Noelia
Alli
Emily
Pete
Lily
Jody
Sandra

There! That didn't take nearly as long as it did the first time! And I remembered everyone I picked!

Now, for my Thoughtful Friday. I got the book The Creative Family by Amanda Blake Soule from the library yesterday. It was finally my turn on the really long wait list! Inside was this quote:

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. -Albert Einstein

I just really like that one.

Happy Friday!