i've been tagged

okay so i was tagged several days ago. sorry i really did try to post this 2x, but i think blogger was having problems so i lost it. so i just had the time this morning to rewrite my answers now saved in word!

thanks michelle for the tag!

IF YOU COULD BUILD A HOUSE ANYWHERE, WHERE WOULD IT BE?
i would probably stay here in the valley and build a huge cabin somewhere up north to visit during the summer and weekends!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ARTICLE OF CLOTHING?
pj’s or comfy jeans

FAVORITE PHYSICAL FEATURE OF THE OPPOSITE SEX?
nice strong arms!

WHAT'S THE LAST CD YOU BOUGHT?
it’s been awhile, but it was bon jovi.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO BE?
with close friends or family. I love to just relax and have a good time with lots of laughs!

WHERE'S YOUR LEAST FAVORITE PLACE TO BE?
maybe not my least favorite, yet still annoying is in the small room at the drs. Office. I would rather wait in the lobby until they’re ready.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO BE MASSAGED?
neck, shoulders, and feet! Love massages

STRONG IN MIND OR STRONG IN BODY?
depends on the day, sometimes neither.

WHAT TIME DO YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING?
during school: 6ish, weekends and summer as late as possible

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE KITCHEN APPLIANCE?
well when it’s cooking it’s my hubby! He is the best cook! He just has this thing called a job that keeps him busy, but it’s a huge treat for us when he cooks!

WHAT MAKES YOU REALLY ANGRY?
rude and inconsiderate people. Or as aliya would say, “that’s woood”

IF YOU COULD PLAY AN INSTRUMENT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
always wanted to play the drums. And learn how to do the cool tricks with the drum sticks!

FAVORITE COLOR?
hard question since I love color! It depends on what it’s for. Lately I’ve been loving brown with anything else!

WHICH DO YOU PREFER, SPORTS CAR OR SUV?
both. Suv for family time and sports car with a convertible for the me time

DO YOU BELIEVE IN AN AFTERLIFE?
Yes, absolutley

FAVORITE CHILDREN'S BOOK?
I love the amelia bedelia books and if you give a moose a muffin and others by that same author. I love the silly books and so do my kiddos

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SEASON?
for the weather I love the winters here in az. For the wonderful flowers I love the spring here.

WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE HOUSEHOLD CHORE?
cleaning the toilets, but who wouldn’t love a cleaning lady?

IF YOU COULD HAVE ONE SUPER POWER, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
ok this might sound weird, but I’m a huge people person. So I think it would be fun to read others minds and to be able to shrink to be the fly on the wall hearing interesting stories! I know crazy.

IF YOU HAVE A TATTOO - WHAT IS IT AND WHERE IS IT?
nope and I never will. I hate anything to do with pain or that resembles a needle! Confession though, I love to watch miami ink! My hubby thinks I’m weird, but they do amazing drawings and I just love to watch them work.

CAN YOU JUGGLE?
you mean multi task? Some days I can.

THE ONE PERSON FROM YOUR PAST YOU WISH YOU COULD GO BACK AND TALK TO?
I would love to meet my grandma on my biological dads side. I didn’t know her and would love to spend a day with her.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE DAY?
the day where everything just falls into place, the kids are getting along, no arguing or bickering, or whining. You no those miracle days that are far and few in between.

WHAT'S IN THE TRUNK OF YOUR CAR?
clothes and a comforter that need to be returned.

WHICH DO YOU PREFER, SUSHI OR HAMBURGER?
I do like sushi, but you can’t beat a juicey cheeseburger with everything on it, minus the onion!

WHO DO YOU TAG NEXT?
i'm going to tag sherry and kerry.

challenge #5 and #6

Day 5:**Color exercise: Experiment with color...the feelings each color evokes.You can do whatever you want...just explore color!

okay so i love exploring color! so i went through some old magazines and picked out some color combinations that i want to try. i put them in my idea binder. then i did a layout with some paper that i wouldn't normaly pick. the color combination is different for me.

i don't have my scanner set up so i had to take a picture of this. sorry the colors look much better in real life! this is a picture of my mom and dad i was lucky to get this past easter.

Day 6.**10 Minute exercise: (throw all caution to the wind; don’t over analyze; let yourself be free & just create art. After 10 min. stop. & be happy with what you’ve created. You may want to try this a few times to get yourself loose & free)
I know. I know. I've heard it before, 'But, I'm a slow scrapper.' That's the point.Not about getting faster, but about trying something different. Trying something that you don't normally do.Pushing yourself....(not to the point that you don't enjoy it, but to the point that you just GO!)
When I say 'throw all caution to the wind', I mean it. You may or may not want to post this one...it's ok.Just take 10 min. today (which is good, because it's usually family day, huh?) and create. Just create.

okay so this one was really hard for me since it takes me more than 10 min. to actually pick out the paper i want to use. that's part of the reason i went with the heidi swapp tapes! also this layout is actually a 9x9. that made it easier for me to complete the challenge. i think it actually took me like 12 min. hey whatever that's a new record for me!

okay todays challenge is about journaling. i've got the journaling part done. now i just need to do the layout. i'll try and post it tomorrow.

challenge #3

Day 3....
**Inspiration exercise: take sketches/ideas from your sketchbook/idea/inspiration book & incorporate them into your page (you'll need to have a running sketchbook of ideas/inspiration~ if you don't, START ONE!!!! & grab something for inspiration: a piece of art, an advertisement, a home décor item, etc.)


so my sister and i were shopping at pier 1 on thursday. i mentioned to her what a cute pillow this was and how cute it would be on a layout. so then i see rhonna's challenge i knew exactly what i would use as inspiration. i'm glad because it gave that little extra push to get it done instead of just saying ya that would be cute.
i'm still not sure what i'm going to do about a title. it may just stay this way. i just wanted to post it so i can move on to the next challenge. thanks for looking.

another creative challenge

okay so this is todays challenge. it's to use something repetative. i decided to use clothes tags from some of the kids new school clothes. i've been wanting to do this for awhile so it gave me a chance to get it done! i also decided to use just chatterbox scraps and silver brads to try and tie it all together. the collage style is another style i love. it's just hard for me to make it look good. yet i had fun with it so that's all that matters! 

rhonna farrer creative challenges

okay so i was reading rhonnas blog the other day. she's having one creative challenge a day. so i decided to give it a go in the middle of everything else!

challenge #1 was to do so something you've never done before and challenge #2 was to listen to your favorite music.

so this morning i thought hey i've been working hard this week i'm gonna work on this. so i cranked up one of my survivor cd's and gave it a whirl. for the never done before part i decided i wanted to use sequins. (the small flowers) i've been wanting to try these so now was a good time. also i was thinking i never scrap in the morning so that's another. and for those of you that know me i love lots of things on my pages so i tried to keep this one really simple. i love the work that kerry does so i thought i would go out of my comfort zone and go simple.

sorry about the color i wasn't able to scan it. also this is a 9x9 layout. lately i'm loving those smaller sizes!

operation binki: success

yep the binki has been gone for 3 weeks today!!!! can i tell you how excited i am! wow i can't believe it! aliya even tells people about her binki party. it was hard for the first few days and then gradually got easier. by the end of the first week we were home free. i can now only hope she doesn't discover one somewhere hiding!

so i thought i would post some of the pics. of her binki party since i never did that!



we got a few pics of aliya cutting them up and kissing them goodbye.













she decided this was something she wanted to do before she put them in the bag she decorated.

















she then threw them away and said good-bye.








earlier during the day she picked out cupcakes and moo cows (ice cream sandwhiches)

real life...

we were just chatting on the forum over at devine memories a few weeks ago about blogs. someone mentioned that it seems like you always read about how good life is and how great things are. most everyone agreed that it was a bit depressing sometimes because you are having problems in your life and then it seems like it's rosey for everyone else. we all know that's not the case. it's just really hard to keep that perspective at times. i've heard somewhere, that you never know what goes on behind closed doors. i've also heard that if we all put our problems in a huge pile to pick from, we would all go back for our own. isn't that the truth! i know i think many times why do i have to deal with all this? yet then you talk to someone or see someone that has problems you are grateful you don't have.

now to the point of this post. i thought i would post the real feelings of things going on. so if you don't want to read on then just skip it!

the past few weeks i keep telling myself okay it's really time to get on track. i really want to accomplish so much. so i need to really get in gear. there just are a lot of things i'm wanting to do. things that are along improving my life style and hopefully my families. these things would include: eating healthier, eating out less, excercising, daily prayer, daily scripture reading, cleaning and reorganizing and the list could go on! so do you just ever feel so overwhelmed with all you want to do and you feel like you'll never accomplish it all and at any minute you just might drown? well sometimes that happens to me. i do really well with a few of the things and then something else slacks off and they kinda take turns being priorities. and to top it off lately i just have no motivation. i seem to look at everything and make mental notes of all the things that i want to change or do! (am i overwhelming you yet?) i really sometimes wish i could have a magic wand, or even 3 wishes would work at this point! okay okay i know it starts to sound like poor me and how depressing and who wants to read about this crap! i know! so i won't bore you with anymore. i just know in my heart and mind that i need to do the basics first, the things that truely are important to me. then the rest of the things will fall into place! for me these things are my prayers, scripture reading, and my gratitude journal! so tomorrow is another day, a new begining. so i will start out fresh and try not to become overwhelmed. i will try and remember the things that i truely am grateful for. some of those things would include: all my family, my friends, my beliefs, my talents, freedom, and the opportunity to learn and be inspired from so many people. i know that the things we go through are for a reason and they make us stronger. yet sometimes we get so involved in things that we forget to step back and look at the whole picture.

so i'm really glad that i sat down to write some of these feelings. it really helped me to work through things as i was typing them. i think i have a better perspective on things and i'm gonna keep pushing along!

artwork

well today i had two little artists in my house! this first picture is of my own daughters work. lovely isn't it? well it would be better if it was actually done on paper and not her bed sheet! we had a nice long chat about this. no markers, except at the table. we'll see how this goes.


this next picture is our new art gallery. i have a wall at the top of my stairs that i haven't hung anything on yet. as jenna and aliya were
coloring their pictures they decided they wanted to hang them on the wall. so they went to town making pictures to hang. it was like a little race to see who could get the next one up. so these will be up for awhile as a happy little reminder of two cute little artists. 

midweek inspiration

okay so it's wed. and the week is half over. so i found a few things to post for humor and inspiration.
first i found this quote:

The dictionary is the only place where success comes before work. Mark Twain

i was also looking for something funny. i found these statements you know your
a redneck when:
my husband loves these. so when i found some it reminded me of him.

You think the stock market has a fence around it.
You've ever used a toilet seat as a picture frame.
The Home Shopping Channel operator recognizes your voice.
You think a subdivision is part of a math problem.
There is a gun rack on your bicycle.
The antenna on your truck is a danger to low flying airplanes.
You have a rag for a gas cap (on a car that does run).
You need an estimate from your barber before you get a haircut
Taking your wife on a cruise means circling the Dairy Queen

last for the scrappers that visit my blog why don't you try a new color combination that you haven't used before. you can find these in many places. just pick up a magazine or surf the net a bit. in fashion, home decor, you name it there are tons of color combinations out there. try one and let me know. i'll post a link back to your layout.

enjoy the rest of your week!

kelsey's 12 of 12

kelsey had fun doing this last month so when she realized why i was taking pics of breakfast she went and grabbed her camera. she was unloading the dishwasher and already had it unloaded. she decided to put some of the stuff back in so she could get her shot. since she's at school i just went thru and picked my favorites. it may change when she actually scraps them.
1. unloading dishwasher
2. making her cousin a birthday card
3. had to take a bag of garbage to the big can.
4. breakfast is ready.
5. i saw her doing a little photo shoot with aliya
6. this is one of many self-portraits she did.
7. her sat. chore of cleaning a bathroom.
8. helping blow balloons.
9. lunch time.
10 & 11 tv time before bed
12. not sure why she took this one, it's not the doorway to her room.
she had lots of fun with this. i love doing this and then also seeing what she's comes up with.

12 of 12

okay so i finally got my 12 of 12 posted. now i just have to work on getting it scrapped. yet i still need to finish last months. i will hopefully get that done soon.

1. breakfast consisting of pancakes and eggs. my kids would rather have this than cereal any day.
2. my mom and sister setting up for my nieces first birthday. she doesn't actually turn one until sept., but they are moving back to utah this weekend. so we celebrated it early.
3. this is my sister supervising her daughter in opening presents.
4. this is my nephew, he had a balloon on every single finger kinda like olives. thanks to the creative thoughts of my brother(his dad)
5. birthday cake
6. my sister decorated with polka dots. so she painted the table cloth with them. thanks again to my brother my niece and nephew are being entertained.
7, 8, 9. after presents and cake we all went swimming.
10. some tv time before bed.
11. craig preparing his church lesson
12. kameron finally is cooperating on having his pic. taken.
okay so i forgot to crop the collage i did so it repeated the first line.

this was a fun day and we will miss my sister and her family. i'm already looking forward to the visits!

follow the leader...

okay michelle and i have our class on sat. august 19th at devine memories. this is our follow the leader class. this month we are focusing on fun painting techniques. michelle will be teaching one layout and i will be teaching another. we will also have other kits ready to purchase that same day. this is a small snippet of my layout. i used a lot of paint on this layout, but the actual techinique i'll be teaching you isn't in this photo. if you want to see the full thing it will be on display at the store. hope to see you there! 

current thoughts...

okay so i was thinking i wanted to have some things written down about what's going on. so i thought oh good i'll put it on my blog so i can print it off later for journaling purposes. so i can't promise you that these will be too much fun to read unless your curious about what's going on my way. if so then great, if not come back in a few days and i'll have something new!

*aliya just turned 3 and is wanting to save money to buy things. currently on her list is: a barbie, m&m's, pens, and markers. (note to self: continue explaining that 75 cents won't buy all these at once)

*tomorrow is august 12th. don't forget 12 of 12. take pictures of your everyday life and post 12 of them and then make a layout with them. (note to self: finish last months layout)

*aliya's asking to go back to dance. (note to self: answer to my question on if she would want to continue this year)

*remember that i always feel better after i work out.(note to self: print this in big letters and hang up)

*just mopped the floors and loving the smell of pine-sol.(note to self: don't panic tomorrow when all those people are over and your floor is dirty.)

*craigs been on antibiotics for a week and has another appointment today. hopefully they can give him something to get better!(note to self: make sure i tell him how much i appreciate all he does.

*friday night is fast approaching.(note to self: check the movie listing so we can have a date night.)

*kelsey is growing up too fast! i don't want to let her out of the house to go to school. she's matured to quickly.(note to self: don't let her dress cute or do her hair maybe noone will pay attention to her.)

*kelsey is loving all her new school clothes, especially her new brown vans.(note to self: continue taking pics. of the outfits they are a reminder of the 80's)

*kameron is loving football. he's practicing to play lineman.(note to self: remember this when he asks for his 3rd or 4th helping of dinner)

*kameron had a dr.'s appt. and has grown 2 1/2 inches and gained 20lbs. since last september. he's growing up too fast!(note to self: don't be too shocked when i have to buy him new clothes or shoes in december)

*one of kamerons electives this year is rotc. as a mom i was hoping he wouldn't enjoy it. (looking into the future) to my dismay he loves it! i'm glad he's enjoying his classes. and he'll be in heaven in this class. for 2 months they will study the history of ww1. kameron loves war history so he'll feel right at home. this class should be an "a".(note to self: if he loves it then it will all work out)

*sad knowing my sister is moving away next week. sometimes we take for granted when our family is so close to us and it doesn't hit until they are actually moving.(note to self: have her set up a blog before she leaves.)

*at the scrapbook store yesterday and aliya picked up some embellishments. she said look mom these are sooo cute. i said yes they are. she then said oh mom it's a miracle. i had to ask her what she said. sure enough she was saying that it's a miracle. not sure what she was talking about, but she thinks those embellishments were pretty and that it was a miracle. she was definately excited. (note to self: aliya spends too much time in the scrapbook store)

*aliya is now a pro at stamping and inking. she also knows how to use my paper cutter now and that is currently her favorite thing to use. (note to self: aliya sees me scrap too much)

okay i'm off to finish up some class samples have a wonderful day and take time to enjoy those small things in life!

they walk among us...

i just recieved this in an email and thought you might get a little laugh over it!


They Walk Among Us...
I couldn't find my luggage at the airport baggage area. So I went to the lost luggage office and told the woman there that my bags never showed up. She smiled and told me not to worry because she was a trained professional and I was in good hands. "Now," she asked me, "has your plane arrived yet? " . . .
They Walk Among Us!
=========
Some guy bought a new fridge for his house. To get rid of his old, still working fridge, he put it in his front yard and hung a sign on it saying: "Free to good home. You want it, you take it". For three days the fridge sat there without even one person looking twice at it. He eventually decided that people were too un-trusting of this deal. It looked to good to be true, so he changed the sign to read: "Fridge for sale $50". The next day someone stole it. Caution ...
They Walk Among Us
=================
While looking at a house, my brother asked the real estate agent which direction was north because, he explained, he didn't want the sun waking him up every morning.
She asked, "Does the sun rise in the North?"
When my brother explained that the sun rises in the East, and has for sometime, she shook her head and said, "Oh, I don't keep up with that stuff."
They Walk Among Us!
==========
I used to work in technical support for a 24/7 call center. One day I got a call from an individual who asked what hours the call center was open.
I told him, "The number you dialed is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week."
He responded, "Is that Eastern or Pacific time?"
Wanting to end the call quickly, I said, "Uh, Pacific" . . . . . .
They Walk Among Us!
==========
My colleague and I were eating our lunch in our cafeteria, when we overheard one of the administrative assistants talking about the sunburn she got on her weekend drive to the shore. She drove down in a convertible, but "didn't think she'd get sunburned because the car was moving". . .
They Walk Among Us!
==========
My sister has a lifesaving tool in her car it's designed to cut through a seat belt if she gets trapped. She keeps it in the trunk . . . .
They Walk Among Us!
==========
My friends and I were on a beer run and noticed that the cases were discounted 10%. Since it was a big party, we bought 2 cases. The cashier multiplied 2 times 10% and gave us a 20% discount.
They Walk Among Us!
==========
I was hanging out with a friend when we saw a woman with a nose ring attached to an earring by a chain. My friend said, "Wouldn't the chain rip out every time she turned her head?" I explained that a person's nose and ear remain the same distance apart no matter which way the head is turned
They Walk Among Us!
=========
While working at a Pizza Parlor I observed a man ordering a small pizza to go. He appeared to be alone and the cook asked him if he would like it cut into 4 pieces or 6.
He thought about it for some time before responding. "Just cut it into 4 pieces; I don't think I'm hungry enough to eat 6 pieces.
They Walk Among Us!
=========
They walk among us, and what's scarey is that they reproduce!--------and I'll add, they vote too. AWV

add a bit of humor to your day.

okay i was blog hopping and found this on someones blog and thought i needed to share it with everyone. it's about 6 min. long, but it's very funny. many of the songs bring back lots of memories. enjoy it i know i did!

Evolution of Dance

take a deep breath

oh my goodness first off i can't believe it's august already. i'm still trying to get used to being in july. so this means it's the countdown for back to school. officially the kiddos go back to school next wednesday. it's kinda a bittersweet moment. it's been so nice having the older kids at home to help out around the house and babysit for me. yet on the other hand i found this comic that describes the other side of the coin. sorry i couldn't figure out how to put it on the blog. so kameron has an all day orientation today at the school and monday he starts football practice. so it already feels like we're getting back into somewhat of a normal routine. i just think that it will take us all a week or so to adapt to the new schedule. especially the early morning part.

so we had a binki part for aliya on monday night. yep i know it sounds odd. it just came to me on sunday. she's been so attatched to her binki lately. she used to just need it at night for bed. but then when she got mad or upset with something she would want her binki to comfort her.

so i came up with the binki party. we went shopping and she picked out some cute fuzzy green material for a blanket that i quickly sewed up. i also picked up a few small things i thought she could replace her binki with. we got her some small ponies, a soft mickey mouse, and a pillow case that we all drew on for her. she also picked out an outfit, a crown, pink cupcakes, and as she would call them "moo cows" also known as ice cream sandwiches. so we gathered up all the binkis we could find, only 8. i had her decorate a white gift bag. then she took one binki at a time and sucked on it one last time and gave it a kiss(something she decided on) and i had her cut the plastic part off and then she put them in the sack. we had family over and everyone cheered for her and made a big deal. she then got to go outside with the step stool and put them in the garbage. we then sang to her with her candles and cupcakes. we just made up new words to the tune of happy birthday. she loved it. so i really thought this would work. yet when bedtime came it was a different story. she wanted those binkis. she cried and wanted me to fix them. then she told me to get new ones. well it was a long time before falling to sleep. then for 2 nights in a row she would join us in bed half way thru the night. she's done so much better though. last night she stayed in her own bed. it's just taking some time to fall asleep. other than that i think we are binkiless(if that's a word) i'll have to post pics. after i get them downloaded. so that's probably the top of the news at our house this week. now i just need to get caught up on my stuff. everyone enjoy those last no school day moments!