Ahhhh....

When I was younger and dreamed of having a family of my own, that dream was a lot like our afternoon today. The boys and I had an hour long water gun fight in our big backyard. Lots of fun, squeals, and giggles for sure! When hubby got home from work, we ambushed him with the water guns as he entered the backyard. Then, he grilled pork chops out on the grill while the kids played nicely together. After a wonderful supper consisting of juicy grilled porkchops, garlic mashed potatoes, green beans, and sweet tea, we all went walking around our neighborhood and up a big scenic hill (a favorite family spot of ours). When we got back home, Evan drew with sidewalk chalk on the back patio, I sat in the porch swing and rocked, Aaron put on a puppet show for our entertainment, and Van played guitar. Then, we came in as it was getting dark, and while the boys got a bath...I scrapped a page! :) Just a very nice afternoon. Makes my heart smile.

Memoirs of an Ex-Kindergartner

Yesterday was bittersweet. Evan's last official day of Kindergarten. Man, this year went by SO fast! It seems like just a few weeks ago we were taking him in for the first time..the nervous yet excited look on his face...his eyes still puffy from sleep...new supplies and clothes. That wasn't really a whole school year ago, was it?

Well, it's safe to say that he thoroughly enjoyed his Kindergarten year. He had an amazing, precious teacher and had no trouble at all adapting to a school schedule. He gave 100% in everything he did and made excellent grades in everything. We heard from his principal yesterday that he qualified for the Gifted & Talented program as a kindergartner...something they usually don't even test for until 2nd grade! Wow, talk about making a mama and a daddy PROUD!

I sat down with him the day before his last day of Kindergarten and conducted an "interview" with him. This is how it went:

Q: What was your favorite subject to learn?
A: Math and computer

Q: What will you miss the most about Kindergarten?
A: Mrs. Cyprian and my classmates

Q: What was your favorite party this year?
A: Fall Festival and the Christmas party

Q: Who was your best friend in your class:
A: Isaac Duran

Q: What was your favorite thing to do in P.E.?
A: Friday Fun Day - whenever you get to choose what you want to do.

Q: What food from the cafeteria was the best?
A: Fruit salad, hot dogs, pizza, corn dogs, chilimac

Q: What food from the cafeteria was the worst?
A: Fish sticks and Buckaroo Burgers didn't really have a taste.

Q: Did you ever get scared at school this year?
A: Yes, when we had Mrs. Mauldin for a substitute and I really didn't want to get in trouble.

Q: What was your favorite book, either one you checked out from the library or one that was read to you, this year?
A: "Chester's Way" by Kevin Henkes

Q: What's it about?
A: It's about whenever there were two little boys, Chester and Wilson, and they liked all the same things and did everything together. Then one day, a girl moved in named Lilly. She said, "I am the Queen and I like everything." They didn't think they would like her because she had her own way of doing things. She never went anywhere without a water gun in her pocket. She never left the house without tying her shoes. Whenever she was on one side of the street, Chester and Wilson would go to the other side. She always wore disguises so no one would know who she was, and she disguised her voice on the phone. One day, they asked her if she wanted to play with them. She said, "No, I'm too busy right now." One time, they had a sleepover and had toast and jam. Chester and Wilson made a little person out of their toast, but Lilly said, "Boring!" She had her own way of doing that too. She got some cookie cutters and cut her toast in those shapes.

One day when Chester and Wilson were riding their bikes, some other boys started being bullies to them and popping wheelies. Then all of a sudden out of the bushes, a big cat with a water gun jumped out and squirted the bullies. The cat was really Lilly in a disguise! They decided to be good friends then.

At the end of the story, a boy named Victor moved into their neighborhood. Lilly, Chester, and Wilson hid and watched Victor chase butterflies and wondered if they would be friends with him too.

Q: Are you excited about starting 1st grade next year?
A: Yes. I'll be ready to see my friends again.

Summertime is Here.....

And here's the proof! Aaron got a little blow up whale pool for his birthday, so we decided to fill it up yesterday and try it out. The neighbor kids heard us outside and quickly rushed over in their swimsuits. LOL The kids had a blast playing in the new pool (even though they already busted a hole in the slide part) and playing with the new bubble machine! Make sure your speakers are on! :)

Make a Smilebox postcard

A Couple More Layouts...

Just a couple of layouts I did from Sketch #20 and Sketch #21 from 52 sketches...52 weeks. The "Oh, That Smile!" layout is another one I did using my awesome May kit from SD4U. :)

American Idol Fans

Okay, so maybe I wasn't a die-hard Kris Allen fan...Danny Gokey was my favorite from day 1....but this video made me love Kris a whole lot more!

Aaron's 3rd Birthday

Tomorrow (Sunday) is Aaron's actual birthday, but we celebrated today by having a party for him at the Abilene Zoo. Several friends and family members showed up and blessed our little guy on this special day. As soon as we got there, we found out that the zoo had accidentally double-booked the rented pavilion that we had already paid for weeks before, so we had to have his party in an indoor building overlooking the lake at the zoo. We were the ones who got an air conditioned room with a great view while the other party sat outside in the hot, humid, sticky air. Darn.

We enjoyed cake, animal crackers, and fruit. Aaron is totally into puppets right now...and when I say totally....I mean T-O-T-A-L-L-Y. Well, it just so happened that this nice air conditioned room we were in had a huge tub FULL of animal puppets. OH, that was all worth it right there. I honestly didn't know how we'd get away from the zoo today without having to bring every one of those puppets with us, but thankfully...Aaron was distracted enough with the gazillion puppets he got as gifts, and we were able to entice him to leave the building and get in the car without throwing a fit. Score!

After eating cake, opening presents, and several mini puppet show performances by Aaron, we then went to look at all the animals. This zoo is pretty small, but there is a nice selection to view. Aaron loved the giraffes and the rhinoceros, since his EE (Van's mom) bought him a rhino shirt to wear to his party. He kept looking at the rhino and saying, "Look whino! You on my shirt!" :) Then, one of the rhinos....I kid you not...dug a hole with his back feet and then proceeded to..umm....how do I say this....proceeded to "digest" his food into the hole, and then covered it all up by kicking the dirt back into the hole with his back feet. Just like a cat in a liter box, I swear. I had no idea rhinos covered up their own poop! See, quite an educational trip....

Also, this was first day EVER that Aaron didn't have a nap. See, we thought he'd be good and fall asleep in the car on the drive there, like he always does. No luck. He refused to go to sleep today, so we had no choice but to let him stay awake for his party. I gotta say, he surprised me. He did really good...I could tell he was tired, but he was a trooper and held in there and enjoyed himself all day. Of course, as soon as we got in the car to come home, he crashed. Totally zonked out. I had to wake him up so that he could eat supper, but he's in bed now and is snoozing away. One tired little boy!

As I kissed him goodnight tonight, I just had to stop and stare at him for a while and remember some of the things that happened on this very night, 3 years ago. I remember calling Van to tell him that my water broke, and then we headed to the hospital. I remember the excitement that came along with finally knowing that he was almost here, but I also remember all the worries that came along with that. With Evan, I had to have a C-section and had a very difficult birthing experience with him that took me a while to get over emotionally. I tried to have Aaron naturally, and things went REALLY well for quite a while....but I ended up having to have a C-section with him too. I remember my first words when I saw him: "Wow, he's a butterball!" I was drugged up on anesthesia, but I remember my doctor holding up that perfectly round little boy for me to see...he was so pink and new....so chubby and perfectly healthy. I am so thankful for my healthy boys. I just looked at him tonight and thought: " Wow, this is the last night he will be a 2-year-old.....when he wakes up tomorrow, he will be a 3-year-old, and the 2's will be all over with......forever." Kinda sad, but pretty exciting too as he advances into an older age where he is learning and comprehending so much. Bittersweet.

Wow, this post is a lot longer than I had intended, so without further ado...here are some pictures from Aaron's party today:

Make a Smilebox slideshow

My New Ride

After looking on the internet for a good deal on a trade-in for our Pacifica, we found this cute Toyota 4Runner in Carrollton, TX. I've always wanted a 4Runner, and when I found out that this one had 3rd row seating in it, I wanted it for sure! We loaded up the boys and drove to 2 hours away to pick this up on Friday night. I love the way it drives, and there's tons of room in it...I'm lovin' it so far! :)

Great Kit Club!

Hubby bought me a kit club membership to a great monthly scrapbooking kit club called Scrapbook Deals 4 U. I have LOVED getting a new kit in the mail from them for the past 2 months! These kits are loaded with goodies, and I love the fact that everything is all coordinated for me. I don't have to do anything but pull out the products and put the pages together!

The April kit was Spring themed. I was able to get these 3 layouts done with the one kit, and I still have plenty left over for another layout or 2:


For May, I received the "Free Bird" kit and just loved it! I have created these 2 layouts, plus 2 others that I can't reveal yet because they are for Design Teams.....and I still have enough stuff left to do even more pages!



So...if you're looking for a kit club that gives you a lot of bang for your scrapbooking buck...check out Scrapbook Deals 4 U! They have a great message board, blog, and online gallery too. :)

Mini Pages

So for our Texas get-together with my friends from Have Your Way With Paper in just 18 days (!!!!!!!!), we decided to all make a mini 6x6 scrapbook page to exchange with each other. We will all come home with a mini album full of pages created by each lady attending the gathering. Neat, huh? So here are the pages I created. I haven't done 6x6 pages in soooo long!

Creating from the Heart Giveaway

Want to win all this?
~ 1 pkg. Doodlebug Chunky Glitter Assortment (19.99)
~ 1 Zig Zag Stitch Edge & Emboss Punch by EK Success (14.99)
~ 1 pkg Flora Doodles by Petaloo (4.29)
~ 1 pkg. Doodlebug Jeweled Brads ~ Sugar Cones (3.99)
~ 1 set of Nestabilities Dies ~ Labels 3 (24.99)
Check out Melissa's blog for all the details.
http://keepsakesbymelissa.blogspot.com/2009/05/altered-tins-and-another-giveaway.html

Haven't Posted in a While...

Nothing exciting happening, really....just life in general. Yesterday we all loaded up and headed out of town to *attempt* to trade in our car and get something else. No luck. We've decided to put our car up for sale by owner, so if any of you need a Chrysler Pacifica, let me know! :)

Let's see...Aaron's 3rd birthday is coming up faster than I can imagine! I cannot BELIEVE he is going to be 3 years old! Two is still a baby...but three.....well three is just big boy status. *sniff sniff He's going to have his bday at the Abilene Zoo this year. Mainly just family members attending, maybe a couple of friends, but it's going to be a lot of fun and he is so excited. He's so totally into puppets right now. Every year at Christmastime, Van brings in these two puppeteer guys that do a Christmas puppet/marionette show for all the kids. Well, Aaron has always loved this but has REALLY...and I mean REALLY...been loving puppets here lately. So when I ordered his birthday supplies from Oriental Trading, I couldn't resist buying a dozen animal hand puppets for him. I thought since his bday was at the zoo, that would be a cute gift to go with the "theme" anyway. Well, this morning I just couldn't help myself. I gave him one of the puppets. You should have seen his face light up!!! He squealed and giggled and just couldn't wait to put it on his little hand. It was a little chicken puppet, whom he has affectionately named "Mr. Chicky." hehehe, so cute! He's going to be so surprised when he gets to open up 11 more of those hand puppets for his birthday! (if I can keep them a secret until then)

Evan is still going strong in school. I cannot believe this school year is almost over already! He has loved Kindergarten, and I know that having a GREAT teacher has had a lot to do with that. He has thoroughly enjoyed it. I will have a first grader the next time school starts up.....that's right...a FIRST GRADER!!!!! With Kindergarten has come something I'm not so used to dealing with. You see, he's always been a pretty normal eater...eating a few meals a day, maybe a snack or two. But since he has started school, he has been eating everything in sight!! I keep asking him if he is eating his lunch at school, and he insists that he is, but I usually have to fix him two snacks when he gets home from school because the first one is never enough. He has been having seconds on almost every meal too. He's a growing boy, for sure! He's still skinny as a rail...but getting SO tall!

Other than that, Van and I are staying super busy with work, parenting, and church. Always something going on, it seems. I'm glad today is Friday....looking forward to the weekend of having no specific plans. :) Have a good one!

To All The Mamas

Happy Mother's Day!!!!!!!!

My Mother's Day started off GREAT. I awoke to the sounds of pots and pans banging around in the kitchen as my husband tried to prepare my breakfast, followed by the giggles and whispers of two little boys trying to stay quiet for me to "sleep in" a bit. Aaron, being almost 3 years old, doesn't quite grasp the concept of "quiet" yet. He would spontaneously burst into song or speak in that one volume that all toddlers seem to have.

Once they realized I was awake, they brought me coffee (just the perfect amount of cream and sugar, honey, thank you!), triple berry muffins, and presents. Van and Aaron got me a very sweet card and a new cell phone with a new texting plan! Yay, I can finally join the world of texting! :) Evan made me a whole ton of stuff at school. A beautiful handprints poem, a laminated picture of his silhouette, a flower pot and flower, a gorgeous card that I know he spent a lot of time on, and a "certificate of appreciation."

And one more thing...2 beaded necklaces; one purple and one green. Why, you may ask? Well, he proceeded to tell me that his teacher had a treasure chest full of necklaces, and each kid got to pick out two. Most of them picked out what colors they liked and wanted for themselves. Evan, knowing my two favorite colors, picked out green and purple just for me. Isn't that the sweetest?!

I gave them each a hug and a kiss, and I told my boys, "Thank you for making me a mommy"...to which Evan replied, "Well, GOD is the one who made you a mommy." :) How true that is, and how thankful I am that He made me a mommy!

Here is a picture of my goodies:


After a wonderful church service and lunch out with my family, I am now home. I was thinking this morning as I was getting ready for church just how important mothers are. I have been so blessed to have several amazing ladies in my life. It's sad to think what it would be like without them. So many moms feel "overlooked"....like what they do isn't all that important. Let me tell you...that is NOT true. Moms, you have the most important job in the world! You are important...you make a difference...and blessed is the home where the mother is the heartbeat of the family! This is for you:

-For every night you've spent up with a sick child or calming the fears of a child who had a bad dream and is scared....thank you, for you have shown that child the nurturing, safety, and comfort that can only come from a mama.

-For every scraped knee or boo-boo you've kissed to "make it all better"....thank you, for you have healed not only an owie, but the very heart of a child.

-For every load of laundry you've done and every piece of clothing you've ironed...thank you, for you have made your child beautifully presentable and gave them the self-confidence to feel better about themselves and know that they are well cared for.

-For every meal you've cooked, whether it be a 5-course gourmet meal or simply heating up frozen chicken nuggets and a can of corn...thank you, for you have nourished the body of a child.

-For every book you've read or story you've told, even when you don't think they are paying attention...thank you, for you have enriched your child's vocabulary and given them a thirst for knowledge.

-For every prayer you've said for them or with them...thank you, for you have taught them right by bringing them up to love God and believing that He hears you, and you have covered them with the protection that only our Lord can give.

-For every tear you've wiped from their eyes...thank you, for you have shown and taught compassion.

-For every birthday party you have given...thank you, for you have given them joy and childhood memories that they will never forget.

-For every school function or extracurricular activity you have attended...thank you, for you have shown your child that you care enough about him to be involved his life.

-For every board game or outside activity you've played with your child...thank you, for you have given them incredible joy and have taught them to stay young, have fun, and enjoy the little things in life.

-For every snotty nose you've ever wiped, for every dirty diaper you've ever changed, for every incident of spit up or vomit that you've had to endure, and for every cup of spilled juice you've cleaned up...thank you, for you have shown what unconditional love is really all about.

Happy Mother's Day...you are important, you are appreciated, and you are loved!

27 Days!!!!!!!

I cannot believe it's only 27 days until I get to meet my online friends from Have Your Way With Paper in person for the first time!!!!! I am seriously so stoked about this! Most of us have "known" each other for several years now....we all share the same love for scrapbooking, obviously, but it has become so much more than that. These ladies have been prayer warriors, inspiring artists, a shoulder to lean on, scrapbook sale enablers, advice givers, encouragement to get through the day, and so much more. We've laughed together (oh so many times!), cried together, shared our joys, sorrows, exciting news, and devastating heartaches with each other. Whether it be the welcoming of a new baby into the family or the loss of someone close....we can all count on each other to be there even when we just need an ear to listen.

The excitement we all feel to know that in 27 days, we will get to actually hug each others' necks and speak to each other in person...well, it's just indescribable! I am soooooo soooo excited! Not only do we get to meet up and spend the weekend together, but we get to go scrappy shopping together at The Great American Scrapbook Convention. Talk about F-U-N!

So Roe, Lisa, Paula, Jenn, Trisha, Ticia, and Krissy......put your party pants on! I will see you in 27 days!!!!!

Migraines, Messes, and Mexican Food

I've always heard of people getting severe headaches whenever the weather changes or fronts move in. I've always thought that was just a saying. But now, unfortunately, I'm thinking there's some truth to it. Ever since I had Aaron, I've been getting what I consider to be "migraines" off and on every now and then. There's no real rhythm to them...nothing I can figure out that might be a "trigger"....the only thing I've noticed is that I seem to get them whenever the weather goes from being really warm to suddenly cloudy and rainy. Barometric pressure headache? Tension headache? Migraine? I don't know. All I know is it stinks. My doctor gave me some samples of a migraine medication to take...but it doesn't help at all. I had a really bad one on Monday...it lasted longer than any other one I've had. It was terrible...pain, dizziness, nausea, the whole works. Mom ended up bringing me some medication for nausea, and that helped me finally be able to lie down and go to sleep for about an hour. Please keep me in your prayers...I want these headaches to STOP.

In other news, Evan had a little fiesta in his class yesterday. Yesterday, as you know, was Cinco de Mayo, and his teacher let them bring some nachos, bean dip, and salsa for snack time. They also got to make little noisemaker/maraca type things as a craft. He had a lot of fun! :)

Evan had another T-ball game last night too. It started lightning really bad right before the game, which was pretty scary. Yeah...being stuck in a METAL dugout with a bunch of squealing 5 and 6-year-olds while it's thundering and raining....not fun. They got to play in the rain for a bit, which they didn't seem to mind at all. What is it with boys and messes?

After the game, Trisha's family and mine went out to eat Mexican food at a local restaurant. It was Cinco de Mayo, after all. Actually, any day is a good day for Mexican food in my opinion!

In other news, Aaron's 3rd birthday is coming up at the end of this month! I can't believe it...THREE already?!?! Wow. We've got to get the party planning underway....still not sure what we're going to do yet. Other than that, just the usual going on around here really. Nothing too exciting. Hope you all have a beautiful day!

WINNER of my NSD Cake Challenge!

Who doesn't love cake?! I loved seeing your yummy creations to celebrate National Scrapbooking Day! From brownies to chocolate to lemon....oh my goodness, my mouth is just watering looking at all those pictures! I hope you enjoyed this fun challenge, and I hope your cakes tasted as good as they looked! :)

And now, for the winner........

All names were put into a hat for a drawing....


And a piece of paper was picked.....



Rita and Lisa!!!! Congrats, girls! Thanks for taking the challenge, and I hope you enjoy your new stamp set! Check out their super cute, super yummy creation:

Sketch #18 is up!

There's a new sketch up at 52 sketches...52 weeks! I just loved this sketch! I love doing multi-photo layouts, so this was a great sketch for me. Here is the prize you could win, followed by the fabulous sketch!:


And here is the layout I did for the Design Team:



I hope you'll take the time to use this sketch and upload your layout to the gallery...and who knows, you could be the winner of that fabulous kit! :)

How Was Your National Scrapbooking Day?

Mine was pretty good! I got three 12x12 layouts done, four 8x8 "about me" layouts done, and one card done. Not too bad! I hung out at scrapbook.com all day yesterday, participating in their challenges and drawings...didn't win anything, but it was fun! I'll be picking a winner for my NSD cake challenge later this afternoon...several of my friends at HYWWP participated, and there are lots of yummy cakes being enjoyed! Thank you all for participating!

Speaking of HYWWP, I will posting an "Element" challenge over on the NSD Happenings forum sometime today and every Sunday for the month of May, so stay tuned! May is a very exciting month on the message board, so please join the board today to take part in all the fun! :)

Thank you also for everyone who participated in our "Sweet Celebration" blog hop! I received many sweet comments, and it was so fun getting new followers and reading all the new comments.

I'm on my way out the door for church...be back soon!

NSD Sweet Celebration Blog Hop!

Hey everyone! Who's up for some sweet blog hoppin'? I am stop #2 for the "Sweet Celebration" Blog Hop in honor of National Scrapbooking Day. This hop started on my sister's blog and will end up on her blog too. Want to participate and have a chance at a "sweet" prize?

All you have to do is leave me a comment to this post and then move on to blog #3: Erin's Blog While you're here, be sure and check out my National Scrapbooking Day Challenge (scroll down)!

Once you hop to all the blogs and leave a comment at each one, you will end back up at Trisha's blog. Post a comment to her telling her that you finished the hop, and your name will be put into a drawing for a cute prize! Have fun, and happy hopping!