dreaming in {digital}

Documenting A Week In My Life: Saturday

2008-09-27T20:00:00.007-05:00

I started this project that Ali Edwards posted on her blog (check it out here). It just sounds like a really cool idea. I decided to start today, because if I wait until Monday, it will never get done. Not to mention, this is a good week for me- lots of going and doing, so my life won't look like all I ever do is sit on my computer and eat.

So- here's the pared down version of today's pictures.

My morning coffee. I really like how this picture turned out, with the out of focus candles in the background. I'm using an actual ceramic coffee cup today- something unusual, because I'm usually getting up and going in the morning so I put my morning coffee in the Casey's Classic Coffee travel mug. Coffee is flavored with International Delight's Pumpkin Pie Spice cream (which, I'm told, does not compare to Starbuck's Pumpkin Spice lattes, but honestly- I don't care, I love it, anyway).
While I'm drinking my wonderfully tasty Pumpkin Pie Spice flavored coffee, I head over to the couch, where I have my trusty laptop. I checked email, message boards, and played my current game addiction, Tropic 2 while I drank my coffee and ignored the whining coming from the bedroom (boys were up late last night, they were crabby).

After that, I forgot my camera inside. *blush* My parents showed up and we did some yard work- my grass is mowed, the boys and I worked on some weeding, and we checked on our pumpkins, which I did remember to take pictures of.
While we were weeding, we found this cute little baby pumpkin (which, of course, won't make it to full grown pumpkin adulthood. But that's ok, as long as the baby pumpkin gets big enough to look somewhat pumpkin like, I'll be able to use it for decorating). But isn't it cute? We found other baby pumpkins, but they were much smaller than this one.

This is our pumpkin. The first pumpkin that I've ever grown (ever). I love doing it, pumpkins are easy, and next year, I'm planting soon after the last frost, so that we have a better chance at having multiple full grown pumpkins. This picture is now my blog header.

So after yard work and weeding, Mom and Dad went to mow my sister's grass, and I went inside to wash some dishes.
And do some laundry.

Then, Mom came back and we went over to her house, but I forgot the camera. Again. I came back, took Dyl to his friend's birthday party, but forgot the camera. Again. So I apparently have no problem documenting the boring stuff, but can't seem to remember to document the fun stuff. *sigh*
After taking Dyl out to Mom's to spend the night with his brothers, I decided to neaten up my command center. It was bugging me, all those papers hanging around, the school's calendar magnet hidden, etc. Now this is much better (but come Monday afternoon, it will be all torn up again).
And finally... dinner for one. Cheesy Dee Yas, as Dylan calls them. I didn't see much point in cooking a full meal when it's just me, and I've been craving these since yesterday. Tomorrow, I'll have a much healthier meal, I promise.

So now I'm pretty much done for the night. I'm planning on spending the night on my computer, doing pretty much nothing else.

My dad just called, and Dylan lost his first tooth, at my parents' house. And I wasn't there to see it (or photograph it). Wah!

Fall Fun

2008-09-21T19:19:00.002-05:00

This weekend was Harvest Days. Craft fair, fried foods, carnival, and a parade (why is it when I make these little lists, I always want to end them with an 'oh my'?).

Last year, Evan rode the four wheeler kiddie ride over and over and over again, with a few breaks to go down the slide in between. This year, he graduated to bigger and faster rides (while taking breaks on the kiddie rides).
He rode the Tilt-A-Whirl, the bumper cars, and the swings. And, of course, the slide.
The Cub Scouts had a float, and Dylan and I rode the float today. We had fun riding on the float, even though we did miss most of the parade. The boys made a campfire, and a giant smore (the white thing by the flag). They pretended to roast marshmallows, and a couple boys passed out candy to the people watching the parade.

Grandma, Grandpa and Cody watched from the sidelines, and waved when they saw us.

I didn't see anything that I really had to have at the craft fair, except the cutest handmade wooden drying rack that would look simply awesome in my bathroom. It was $75, and I didn't have the money. The booth that had it has just some of the best woodworking things that I've ever seen, and I am determined to actually buy something next year (I say this every single year). Next year, if he has the drying rack, I'm buying it. Really, I mean it.

The boys got some cheap toys, and they won inflatables at the carnival, and Rosie got a wubba (I've been looking for one- she absolutely loves it), and I got three new italian charms for my bracelet. We ate a lot of fried foods, and did a lot of walking, and I'm trying to figure out how walking can possibly cause my shoulders to hurt.

The boys don't have school tomorrow, which is a good thing. They need a day to relax after this weekend's festivities. And then on Tuesday, I'll get my day to relax from this weekend's festivities.

Sharing My Education

2008-08-24T22:12:00.002-05:00

This section is titled: Fun With Feminine Hygiene Products.

Yesterday, Mike, mil and I took Cody to get a suit. We took mil's car, and on the way home, Cody found something in the back seat. He's bored (he's a boy, and shopping isn't fun when what you get is a stuffy old suit), and he starts talking about this 'tiny pillow' that he found in the back seat. He's going on about this 'tiny pillow', and how comfortable it is, and he is wondering who needs such a 'tiny pillow'.

Mike is curious about it, so he asks to see the 'tiny pillow'. Yep- you guessed it. The 'tiny pillow' is a maxi pad still in it's wrapper (we think it fell out of sil's purse the last time she was in the car). Mil, Mike and I are laughing hysterically at this 'tiny pillow'. Cody, being 8 and a boy, doesn't quite know what 'tiny pillows' are used for. But he knows when someone finds something funny, and he knows how to milk it. So for the rest of the ride home, he would pipe up with 'tiny pillow' (my personal favorite was his Ralph Wiggum voice saying 'I like my tiny pillow').

Did you know that if you soak a clean, unused tampon in water that it can stick to the ceiling, with the cord hanging down? Yeah, my boys tried it. It worked. They also learned that soaking tp in water makes it sticky, too. You can just imagine what the ceiling in my bathroom looked like (and the panic I was in when I realized what happened to my brand new box of tampons and the last roll of tp at the worst possible time).

This section is titled: It's the little things.

Sil is getting married on Saturday. Mil is doing a lot of the planning, and she's asked if my boys can help hand things out before the wedding (programs, bubbles, and bells). I told Dylan that he was going to help hand out the bubbles at sil's wedding, and his eyes just lit up. He's so excited about it- but not because he's helping at the wedding. Oh no, not my son. He's excited because there will be bubbles at the wedding, and he gets his own little bottle of them.

This section is titled: Now that is how you apologize.

The boys got in trouble tonight. Dylan apologized eventually (we had to remind him), and that was fine. Evan has to do things on his own- it's just the way that he is. So when we told him that he could come out and apologize, he chose to stay in his room and pout a little longer.

A little while later, I spot a blanket creeping across the floor. It looked like a little inchworm. Mike and I knew who it was beneath the blanket, and just looked at each other and agreed (silently), to not acknowledge it until he acknowledged us. So- the blanket crept along the floor, with Evan peeking out every few inches or so. He gets almost all the way across the living room, and ends up at Mike's feet. We're still waiting to see what he does, and not acknowledging him. After awhile, he starts singing. Yes- *singing*. He hums, and sings some more, and Mike then goes and removes the blanket, and there's Evan, all smiles and giggles, saying 'sorry, Daddy.'

Picture Monday

2008-08-18T12:30:00.005-05:00

I finally uploaded every picture that was on my camera from the month of July (yeah, it was a lot). So, as I'm looking through them, I decided to post some of my favorites.

This is a horse that lives near my parents' house. It's kinda neat to see the variety of animals that end up on their property- we've seen deer, geese, ducks, a donkey, muskrats, etc.

You have to be prepared. The wagon is loaded with toys, he's wearing his life jacket, and he's got his sippy cup.

And no, there wasn't a pot of gold at the end of this rainbow. We checked.

Poor baby. :( There are stitches under that (I'll spare you the details). This is what happens when you fall hand first into a glass lantern.

Can you think of a better way to eat corn?

Evan wants to know why Grandma buys corndogs when she grows them fresh on the farm.

The one and only time that Uncle Bill will let Cody drive his speed boat...

He may only be 8, but he knows what the girls like.

Who are you, and what have you done with Cody?

Whack-A-Cat.

Come back, she just wants to play!

Her first boat ride, and she had to make sure that I was following along behind. That, or she's trying to find her goose friends.

Rock, Paper, Gun...

2008-07-19T12:02:00.003-05:00

We've learned something recently. You don't want to compete against Evan, because he's very competitive. The first clue was when he learned to play Rock, Paper, Scissors. We all know how it goes- rock breaks scissors, scissors cut paper, and paper covers rock.

Evan, that beautiful, lovable boy of mine, comes up with something rather ingenious. Evan is playing rock paper scissors with Grandma. Grandma throws paper... and Evan throws gun. What beats gun? We've all stopped playing rock paper scissors with him, because we just can't beat gun...

One day, while we're in the car, the boys are being kinda loud (I think that China could hear them), and Mike and I teach them how to play the Quiet Game. We all know this one, too. It's the game people use to get kids to be quiet. Ya know, a nice way of saying 'You're bugging me.' Cody and Dylan invented Pause, which pretty much defeats the entire purpose of the Quiet Game.

But we're driving along, Mike and I are talking, Cody and Dylan are pausing and talking, when it hits us. Evan has not said one single word the entire drive. Not one. Mike looks back at him, and he's just staring at us. He was really serious about this game, and it wasn't until we stopped the car that we could get him to talk (which was to ask, of course, what his prize was). He's adapted his game strategy since then. Now he makes faces at his brothers in order to get them to laugh and therefore lose.

It's not just these games that we learn as kids that he's good at. He's also good at video games and such. It's funny to watch him tell people what they need to do in order to beat Lego Star Wars.

And in case you are wondering, rocket launcher blows up gun.

Their Horns Hold Their Halos Up

2008-06-05T10:36:00.006-05:00

I made a new desktop last night. I'm pretty happy with it.

I love how it turned out. I'm loving the real element thing that the community has going on now. I'm thinking that I need to try it, and I'm getting better with extracting. I've even found a way around my hatred of the extraction tool- quick mask mode. So much easier to use and clean up.

I took some nice pictures of the boys not too long ago. I really like how they turned out, and am planning on printing and framing them.

This is now one of my favorite pictures of Cody. I caught him in the act of looking up, flipping his shaggy hair out of his eyes, just before he put his helmet on and hopped on his four wheeler.

And this one of Dylan looks almost professional. I cloned the grass to hide the road that was behind him.

And, finally, this one of Evan that was taken when he was riding the stone boxer at mil's house. I want a better one though, but when I tried to get a better picture of him, one that looked good, I got a funky, over done, GQ--ish, muscle man type pose. *sigh* He's going to be the clown of the family.

Mike leaves on Saturday for New Mexico, so in between cleaning my house (which I'm determined to finish this week), I'm washing laundry, and calmly ignoring the fact that he will be out of state for five days. I'm looking forward to not having to push him to get him to stop snoring long enough for me to fall asleep, and I'm looking forward to not having to set the alarm for five days, but I'm not looking forward to sleeping alone for five days.

He's taking the camera, which bugs me a bit, because it means that this shutterbug will not have a camera. I will have his car, which will be great. I'll be free! Saturday, I'm going grocery shopping, and spending as much time as possible at Mom's. If I can get the house cleaned this week, I'm going to take Jeremiah for a night.

I want to keep him overnight a few times before sis moves to Texas, because the boys have been begging for a sleepover. I'm going to get junk food, we'll watch some Disney movies, put Jeremiah to bed, and then play Guitar Hero with the boys for awhile.

Elephants And Boxers And Dancing Like Nobody Is Watching

2008-05-22T09:47:00.006-05:00

Yesterday was Dylan's kindergarten spring music program. They had a zoo theme, since they are going to the zoo tomorrow (and Dylan is so excited about it).

This isn't the best picture, even after I played with it. I seriously hate taking pictures in the gym, the lighting is just terrible. Isn't he cute? He made the elephant mask in art class, and it turned out great.

After the program, we went back to his classroom for treats and to see his journal and the story that he wrote about his favorite cartoon (he chose Spongebob, of course).

Today, they are staying for lunch, to practice for next year. I feel for the teachers, though, because they have both AM and PM kids this morning (but at least they get the afternoon off, which they're probably going to enjoy).

Mother's Day weekend, we went to mil's for a cook out. They have this boxer statue in the backyard, and my kids view these statues as things to ride on. I snapped some picture of Evan riding the boxer, and they turned out great.

He was having fun on that dog.

I'm working on the slideshow for Dylan's birthday party, and I'm thinking that I should get some DVD-Rs and burn it and give it to the grandparents. I'm almost done with the pictures (need to add the elephant one), and then I'm going to add some video. I know that I'll add some of the ones from yesterday, but there's also a video of him dancing a few months ago, and I think that I have some of him on the four wheeler, as well.

I'm also thinking that these might become a birthday tradition.

And just because I think it's absolutely hilarious, this is one of the videos that will be on the DVD.

I'm Such A Girl

2008-05-16T09:24:00.002-05:00

Today was a first for me.

Today, I got to buy bait. For the other girly girls out there, bait is worms. Slimy, squirmy, wiggly, worms. Worms in dirt. Worms in dirt in a small plastic container that is now sitting in my fridge.

So yes, friendly reader, I have a container of dirt and worms in my fridge.

Tomorrow is Cody's Cub Scout fishing derby. He got a new pole for the derby, new tackle, and a new water bottle. I'm planning on taking my book (Duma Key by Stephen King) and my camp chair and just relaxing while he fishes. The only fly in the ointment was Cody telling me that he doesn't know how to get fish off a hook (even though I know that he does), so I'm going to camp near a father and son team, and send him over to ask the dad to help, because Mommy does not touch fish.

See? I'm such a girl.

Tomorrow is also Dylan's 6th birthday, and he's not going to be home all day. He's going to the Cubs game, and looking forward to it so much. He's done nothing but talk about it since Cody went for his birthday. He's getting a tent. He wants a play house, but I'm not keen on spending a lot of money for something that he'll outgrow fairly quickly, so we opted for a tent. It will be a nice sized 'playhouse' for him, but we can pack it up and put it away and use it for actual camping later on. He's also getting Guitar Hero III for the Xbox 360. We chose this game for him, because he got this guitar for Christmas and he's pretty much carried it around the house on a regular basis. He's going to be the musical one, I can just tell.

Caves and Captain Underpants

2008-05-03T13:25:00.004-05:00

Cody has always been fascinated with 'building' things like forts and houses. When we had a couch with removable cushions, he would remove all of the cushions and build his little house out of them. He's done this since he was about 3 or 4, and always got the biggest kick out of it. Today, my mom came to pick up the boys to take them to her house. This morning, Cody built a cave out of his bed sheets, his shelves, and his bunk bed. Pretty darn creative, and what's more, as long as he cleans his room once a week, I don't give a damn about it because I can simply shut his bedroom door and be done with it.

My mom, who was an only child and raised two girls, saw his cave this morning. She wanted to know why he was doing it, and why I didn't bother to stop it. It never occurred to me to stop his cave making. I find it kinda cute, and frankly, if I had bunk beds as a child, I might have done the same thing (except that mine wouldn't have been a cave, but a pretend canopy bed. I've always wanted a canopy bed).

Cody has always struggled with reading. He has told me that he hates it, he doesn't see the point when Mom can read to him, etc. A few weeks ago, I came across a Captain Underpants book, and decided that Cody and I can read it together. We read one chapter together, and then Cody decided that reading wasn't so bad, and continued reading it, on his own. He told me the other day that he just can't believe that he's read 3 chapter books now. He owns 4 Captain Underpants books and one Super Diaper Baby book (a spin off of Captain Underpants) now, and he loves them. He enjoys reading now, and I've even caught him reading his reading book to his brothers.

I love that he now enjoys reading. Dylan does, too. I'm hoping that Evan will enjoy reading, and that he'll be just as easy as Dylan when it comes to reading.

I bought some nice work out capris today. I've decided that I'm going to do more walking now that it's spring. I'm also going to pick up some good athletic shoes. I love my crocs, but I want something else for walking. I have some free time in the mornings for a few more weeks, and this summer, I figure that the boys and I can walk to the school to play on the playground for awhile. I need to get out more. I toyed with the idea of joining Weight Watchers, but I don't think that I have the discipline for WW. So this summer, I am determined to lose some of this weight.

And now I'm off to go do some cleaning before Mike gets home from work.

A New Decade

2008-04-25T16:20:00.002-05:00

Today is my birthday. My 30th birthday. Tonight, I'm having cheesecake (the boys will each get a small piece, and then I'll have the rest all to myself. It's my birthday, and I'm allowed), tomorrow we're having dinner at my parents, and I get to sleep alone tonight because dh has to be at work at 4am tomorrow morning. *sigh*

He did take me out to eat on Tuesday. We went to red lobster, where I had coconut shrimp (my favorite). The boys are behaving, which is the best birthday present that I could have, and other than some simple laundry and washing dishes, I am taking the day off from housework. I'm allowed, it's my birthday.

Looking back at how things have changed in the last 10 years has been enlightening.

At 20, I wasn't married and I had no children. Today, at 30, I have been married for 8 years, and have three wonderful sons. I discovered digital scrapbooking, rediscovered crochet, and taught myself to knit. I started the decade living in my parents' house, then lived in two apartments and am now back in the same house that I started the decade in. I've owned 7 different cars and 4 computers.

It's amazing just how much can change in so short a time. I'm looking forward to the next 10 years, to see what changes life brings to me. I'm hoping that we'll be able to buy a house, some place nice, with plenty of room for three growing boys. I'm hoping for more vacations, at least one to someplace warm and tropical, and at least one to someplace fun for the kids. I'm hoping to lose weight and look great in a bathing suit (preferably before we go some place warm and tropical for vacation). I would like to go on a cruise, just me and Mike.

The Great {Dead} Possum Battle of 2008

2008-04-15T23:35:00.004-05:00

]This is the most disgusting thing ever, and I'm simply dumbfounded by it.

A couple Saturdays ago, I went to the store. In the middle of the alley was this large, furry dead possum. It was big. I made a mental note to call the village hall on Monday (closed on saturday and sunday) to let them know and get someone out here to take care of it.

That Monday morning, I noticed that the possum was gone. Or so I thought. Tuesday, while driving by one of the driveways on the alley, I saw the dead possum in the driveway. Um, ok. I didn't think anything of it, except to shake my head, because now that it was on private property, the town won't do anything about it.

A week goes by. The possum is getting pretty disgusting. I make a point of turning my head away so that I don't see it.

Yesterday morning, I turn my head, and what do I see? Dead possum, THE dead possum, in this other neighbor's driveway. It is barely recognizable as a possum anymore. Ew.

My kitchen window looks down the alley, so while I'm washing dishes, I'm also watching who is coming and going, lol. Today, I watch the guy with the possum in his driveway come home, pull into his driveway, go into his garage, grab a shovel, and then toss the barely recognizable (and still very dead) possum across the alley.

Seriously? Would it have been so hard to just call the village hall in the first place?

I have to admit that part of me is laughing. These people are arguing over a dead possum. *sigh*

I have a new kit coming out this week. Here's a quick, up close and personal peek at it:

It has glitter, acrylic, and rusted elements. It debuts on Thursday, I'll post then with the full size image.

Opening Day

2008-04-01T08:52:00.008-05:00

Guess what Cody got for his birthday. Tickets for the Cubs opening day game!

He had a blast. The weather may not have been the best, but they were able to while away the rain delays by standing in line for the bathroom.
His uncle bought him the ticket for his birthday. We had bought him a Cubs hat already, so the two gifts went together.

Outside Wrigley, he had his picture taken with this guy. Mike told me what he's called, but I can't remember... Too bad it's still too early in the season for the ivy to actually have leaves on it.

They also dedicated a statue to Ernie Banks yesterday. They went early enough so that they could be there for the dedication, even though I don't think Cody understood just who Ernie Banks was or why he now has his very own statue. Banks also threw out the first pitch, and led the 7th inning stretch. Along with Banks, there were other Cubs legends there, including Cody's grandpa's favorite player, Ron Santo, Ferguson Jenkins and Billy Williams. Hank Aaron was also there.

It was a good game, even though the Cubs did lose in the 10th inning.

All in all, it was a good day for Cody. He came home with Rich Hill's autograph, a package of baseball cards (all Cubs, of course), a mini bat, a fleece Cubs blanket, and a Derrek Lee jersey. He got to miss school, and he can't wait to go to another game.

He's 8!

2008-03-29T09:32:00.002-05:00

Today is Cody's birthday, and my blog readers get the present! Enjoy! Click here to go directly to my products. I'm sorry, but the kit that I used to make the coupon is not available for sale until April 3rd, but aren't you lucky- the coupon is good until April 5th.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T21:45:00.004-05:00

Mike asked me today what I plan on doing with three dozen colorful hard boiled eggs. I think that the answer is simple. Tomorrow, I'll go to the grocery store, get some mayo, some mustard, and some dill and make egg salad. I love egg salad. Especially on toast or Ritz. Yummy!

The boy had a ball coloring eggs. Cody took his time and was the last one to finish. Dylan tried to take his time, but the excitement was too much for him. Evan didn't even bother to take his time, he just went for it. I remember taking my time, mixing colors, getting creative. Not my boys, oh no. Only one color, per egg... until I showed them how to use the crayon to their advantage, how to make two and three color eggs, etc.

Dylan is the luckiest kid alive, I swear. Friday morning, I took the boys to Casey's to get donuts for breakfast. It was the first day of spring break, I thought it would be a nice thing for a lazy day. While there, we signed up for an easter basket raffle that they were having that day. Then, I promptly forgot all about it.

Around 2pm that afternoon, I'm cleaning, Cody is at Grandma's house, Dylan and Evan are playing, when the phone rings. The caller id says Casey's Takeout. Um, ok. I answered, and they ask for Dylan. I'm thinking 'why is Casey's calling for Dylan? Maybe this is a wrong number or something...' It still hadn't dawned on me that it was the raffle. I'm sure that the woman on the other end thought that I was a tad rude, because I had my leary, 'what do you want with my 5 year old?' tone of voice going. Then she says that magic words: 'easter basket raffle'. Yay! My tone changed, she gave me some information, and then we headed over to pick up his prize. His basket was one of those prefilled ones that you get from the dollar store or walmart. He won the sports themed one, which had a basketball and water bottle in it (this is why I don't buy the prefilled ones- I can spend less money and fill a basket with more/better stuff. but it's not bad to win one, ya know?).

So, there he is, hugging his prize. He insisted on taking the basket everywhere with him, including to the town easter egg hunt, but he decided that his basket handle was too big and he needed to use something smaller, so that he could move easier to get the eggs.

I call him lucky, because he helped Dad win a trophy at a car show, and when he goes fishing, the fish just come running and he always catches bunches of them.

Bunnies And Shots And Billy Bob Teeth

2008-03-20T11:10:00.005-05:00

Evan and Dylan got shots yesterday. We're playing catch up, so Evan needed four and Dylan needed three. Dylan did great, until his last shot, and then he cried, which set Evan off. Poor Evan, he screamed through all of his. Dylan went back to school when we were done, but Evan missed school entirely, which he cried over. Cody's hit the point where he's starting to not want to go to school, but school is still fun for Evan and Dylan.

Evan's pre-k class has a class bunny named LuLu. LuLu is a boy bunny. They named LuLu before they knew what gender he was, hence the girly name. Today, Evan came home with a framed Easter picture of him and LuLu. His blue eyes just pop in this picture, which makes me wonder what camera his teacher has (note to self: ask the next time I see her). There's also a picture of Evan in this week's paper from the pre-k boot camp (family night, where the kids got to play and have fun). He's riding a bike, and just looks so happy in the picture.

And I posted about this in my last post, but I have pictures of Cody's latest gap. Last year, when all he wanted to do was lose teeth, he lost two. Now, he has four gaps in his mouth, which makes him look pretty funny.

He handed me his tooth and told me that I owed him money. I think that is what bothers me about this whole 'knowing the truth' thing. It's not that he knows, its that he gets a kick out of knowing while I just want him to go on believing in the tooth fairy and santa claus and the easter bunny. Plus, now that he knows the truth about one, will he still believe in the others? Am I going to have to include my 7 year old in hiding the easter eggs this year or am I going to have to include an eight year old in wrapping the santa presents?

So, my resolve to complete my current projects is going great so far. I started with the Noro socks, and while I've added new patterns to my queue at Ravelry, I have not started anything new. I've added a few inches to the leg of my Noro socks, and once I reach where the stripe pattern in the yarn repeats, it will be done and I can start the second sock. I'm hoping to have them done by Cody's birthday, but if I'm going to think realistically here, I'm such a slow knitter that it could be May before I finish them.

I Have A Confession To Make

2008-03-18T18:52:00.002-05:00

I am a serial projecter starter (or would that be habitual project abandoner?).

I was just trying to figure out how many knit projects I've finished since I taught myself to knit back in November. Since then, I have finished...

a pair of socks
an iPod cozy
a rolled brim hat for me
a cabled hat for me
and a hat for my niece.

So, five knit items, total. Right now I have two pairs of socks, a hat for Mike, that scrubby, and an apron on the needles. I spent some time tonight looking at more sock patterns, and filling my queue with more patterns at Ravelry.

It's not just knitting, either. I spent some time this afternoon reorganizing my scrap stuff. I had about 10 kit folders in my designer folder, and when I moved the stuff that I'm not really feeling right now, I was left with one kit (the one that I previewed last week). It's sad when your 'incomplete, might never be complete' folder has more folders than your 'completed and uploaded' folder.

About the only thing that I can finish is a layout, lol.

So, I have decided that I'm going to finish what I have in progress, or at least do something with the papers that I've made for those kits that I haven't finished. I giving myself until April 25th (my birthday) to finish or frog the knit projects that I have going. I resolve to not start something new (even when my Smooshy yarn gets here) until I have finished my Noro and Trekking socks.

As for the scrap stuff, I'm thinking that I should just package that stuff up and make a new freebie. I'm not releasing anything this week (too lazy today), but look for it next week. Oh, and be sure to stop by and visit on the 29th, because I have a nice, big surprise.

Cody lost another tooth last night. He no longer believes in the tooth fairy, which is kinda depressing. Two lost teeth ago, I screwed up. Big time. He lost the tooth, showed it to me, put it up, and then hid it, when I wasn't looking. I did the unthinkable.

I forgot. The next morning, he was in tears. When I asked him why, he told me that the tooth fairy, who used to leave dollar bills folded into various shapes, left him a PENNY. Apparently, when he hid the tooth, he hid it near a penny without realizing it. He was so broken up and depressed over it, I just had to tell him the truth. As soon as he heard that the tooth fairy was really mommy and daddy, he perked right up. But we have a deal. He will continue to get money for his lost teeth, because to stop now could ruin it for his brothers. But now, he is in on the secret and has fun with it.

And so far, he's been good about keeping it a secret.

The boys start spring break on Friday. Is it sad that I'm looking forward to their week long break because it means that I get to sleep in? I've been so tired lately, and right now, it's only a quarter after 7 and I'm ready to head for bed. And before anyone says it, NO I'm not pregnant, lol. This is entirely my fault, I'm tired because I can't seem to get into bed before midnight lately (which you think would be easy, since I'm so freaking tired all the time!). I'm hoping to get my sleep schedule turned around this week. It was nice at the beginning of the year, when I could get up at 6am and could take my time getting the boys ready for school in the morning.

Picture Day!

2008-03-15T21:58:00.009-05:00

Getting pictures off the camera and onto my laptop is a chore (only because I have to open up my laptop/knitting/carryall bag and dig out the cords. So, when I went to get pictures off the camera, I got a bunch. Pictures of Evan's pre-k boot camp, pictures of the lunar eclipse (they didn't turn out), pictures of the 4 wheeler with a car battery attached (some questions are better left unanswered), and some pictures from today.

Like this picture, taken earlier this week (I think it was Monday or Tuesday).

Or the picture on the right, taken today. (Yep, that's Rosie. She's turning into a little butterball, although it's hard to tell from this angle.)

Uploading my pictures this was does have it's advantages, though. There's always a surprise in there. It's almost like Christmas, in a way.

In case you couldn't tell, we had snow today. We also lost power for about a half hour, forty five minutes, which is funny, because we'll get 10 inches of snow and not lose power, and then get this little dusting that melted two hours later and lose power. Cody and Mike went bowling with Cub Scouts this afternoon, and then the boys and I went to the abelskiver supper at the church with my mom. I look forward to this supper every year.

Which leads to my doh! moment of the day. We find our seats in the fellowship hall (otherwise known as 'that big room downstairs where we hold church dinners'), and I proceed to pour myself a nice cup of coffee. There are two bowls sitting in front of me, one with sugar and one with what I thought was powdered creamer. I stirred my coffee while chatting with an old sunday school teacher of mine, took a sip of my coffee, and omg,it was horribly SALTY. I didn't put cream in my coffee, I put SALT in. Blech. I have since decided that at church dinners from now on, I will drink my coffee without cream (or salt).

The reason that I was pulling pictures from the camera was because I wanted to update my projects on Ravelry. Since I had to frog my first Noro sock, I wanted to put up a picture of what the new one looks like, and I've started a new, quick project: a dish scrubbie out of ugly sock yarn.

I really like how the Noro sock is turning out, but the stitch pattern is starting to get a little boring, hence the need for quickie projects like the scrubbie to kill time. I try to knit 2-3 rows on the sock a day, but it's still slow going.

The scrubbie is about half done, I should be able to finish the knitting and get it sewn up tomorrow. The pattern calls for a heavier weight yarn, so I'm playing with this right now. I think that I might have to make the next one a bit wider.

And, finally, a funny picture of Monkey, my insistent kitty.

He thinks that he's an outdoor cat. He's not. He tries to act like one, but his wimpiness shows through. He's actually climbed up my screen door in this picture, and he's about halfway up. Remember those Garfield suction cup dolls that people used to have in their cars back in the 80s? Yeah, that's my cat. Only he's hanging on my door.

Why is he hanging on my door? Because doofus ran outside when he shouldn't have, decided that it was too cold for his wimpy butt, and was begging to be let back in. Yeah- not before Mama got her camera, though.

Chicks With Sticks And Other Assorted Goodies

2008-03-12T22:15:00.008-05:00

I haven't been around in wow, almost a year. Sorry about that. I've been trying to think over everything that I've done in the last year, and why is it that I know that I've been busy, but nothing important is coming to mind? Which leads me to...

Life, Among Other Things

Let's see, in a nutshell, the hubs has been promoted, the youngest started preschool, the middle one started kindergarten, and the oldest has discovered the wonders of XBOX and TONY HAWK. In fact, if I would let him, he would probably change his name to Tony Hawk Jr.

Mike's computer crashed multiple times, I lost everything once, and now I have my very own laptop that he's not allowed to touch.

My sister is moving to Texas, which means that my nephew is going to grow up with an adorable Texan accent. And he's going to think that his Aunt T has a funny Chicago accent (although I don't say 'da bears', lol).

My New Found Love

I taught myself to knit. Which is what I've been doing obsessively for the last few months. Right now, I'm working on a pair of socks using Noro yarn and an apron using some cheap yarn that I bought awhile back. I'm dying to finish the socks, because I need those needles in order to work on yet another pair that I've already purchased the yarn for. *sigh*

Digital Scrapbooking Stuff

And now, a preview of my latest kit...

I love how this kit turned out. To tell the truth, it shouldn't even be a kit, lol. I started out with this idea for a journaling box element pack, designed some papers to use for the journaling blocks, loved them, and just went on from there. I haven't had a lot of luck with designing kits lately, and have been sticking to what I like best (papers and elements sold separately).

This kit will be released tomorrow, 3/13, over at TDC.

*Edited 3/14: The kit has been released, and it can be found here!

What's even funnier about this whole kit thing is that I have yet another kit in the works, this one inspired by one of Cody's... oops, I mean Tony Hawk Jr's latest obsessions. I can't show you all of it, mostly because all of it doesn't exist yet, but I can give you a little taste of the kit...

Just a little preview, don't want to give away too much... In case you haven't figured it out, these are close ups of the five patterned papers that will be included in the kit. So far, there's those papers, plus six solids. And a lot of ideas, lol.

I've been working on layouts, too. I'm loving the realistic scanned look right now, and I'm always on the look out for designers with great stuff, because I'm terrible at extracting. Not to mention, I hate it with a passion. Especially since my Wacom died and I'm using a touchpad on my laptop right now.

I did make a score while cleaning out my dad's office awhile back. A few years back, my grandfather had issues with printers. He bought this all in one printer, and couldn't get it to work. He had thrown out the box, and couldn't return it, so bought a new one. I found it in a corner in my dad's office, and brought it home. It's really old, and I'm not even sure if I can find ink for it, but- the scanner works. With Vista, even. Not good enough for scanning items, but it works great for scanning doodles and such.

Tales From The Trenches

Also known as: What Fun Boys Can Be.

Cody was home 'sick' today (silly rule about being fever free for 24 hours before they'll allow him back in school), and he was bored. This afternoon, when I went to pick Dylan up from school, he decided to have a little fun. I came home to find a package, addressed to me, from an online yarn shop. First, I thought 'but that yarn came last week, and I haven't ordered anything else since then...' Then, I thought 'maybe they messed up, and sent me more yarn.' (I will admit to getting my hopes up on this one, even if it meant my having to pay for the mis-sent yarn.) Then I opened the package...

Inside, nestled among packing peanuts, was a Nerf dart gun.

Then it hit me. That box didn't come in the mail today, it came last week, holding the yarn that I had ordered. Yarn that was protected during shipping by packing peanuts. I'm a packrat when it comes to boxes. Love them, you never know when you might need on. So when this box first arrived, I placed it on a shelf in my kitchen, and forgot about it. Cody found it today, packed his brother's dart gun in it, taped it up, and set it on the front porch.

I'll admit that I was a bit disappointed, but then I realized what it really meant. Cody knows that I love it when a package arrives at our house, and he decided that I needed some cheering up. But ya know what?

He should have rethought that dart gun idea, because Mommy is a crack shot with the dart gun.

Mr Know It All

2007-03-13T18:58:00.000-05:00

They torn down the old gas station at the end of our street last week. The DQ owners had bought the land and the gas station, and are putting a brand new DQ there in the coming months. I haven't decided if this is a good thing. Our current DQ (which is right next door to where the new one will be) is an old building, no drive thru, you have to go in and order, etc. The hassle is what keeps me from living there.

The new building will be bigger, and have a drive thru. A drive thru. I can feel my hips growing bigger from all the Moolattes and Blizzards that I see in the near future.

There was a story in the paper about the new DQ. I drove by the old DQ and the gas station, to show my boys what they were doing. Cody, Mr Know It All himself, told me that he already knew about it. I asked him how- he said that he 'read it in the paper.' You have to understand that Cody struggles with reading. So I, being the wonderful mommy that I am, praised him. I told him that he'll have to read me the story out of the paper when we get home.

He immediately did what he does when he doesn't want me to know that he doesn't know the answer or can't do something: he said 'Why don't you read it to me?' This was the first sign of Know It All Syndrome.

Fast forward to Friday. It's Fun Night, and Cody and I had a deal- he could only go if he got a B on his spelling test. His friend, M, comes to the door and asks if he's going to Fun Night (which he's not, because the teacher didn't hand out the tests and while I can always make up for his B, if he got an F, there's nothing that I can do that is the same as missing out on Fun Night at school). While M is there, he asks about Cody's birthday party. I tell them that M is invited, but it's a surprise as to where we're going for his party. Cody grins and says 'I know where we're going.' I ask him where, and he says 'I know, but do you know?'

Doesn't matter what it is you are trying to tell him (or not trying to tell him), he knows all about it already. It's frustrating, really. I've just started to shrug my shoulders and tell him 'whatever', because to say anything else just opens the conversation up for an argument. I can just see it now:

A grown, 28 year old woman, standing with her hands on hips, in front of her six year old son, who is looking up at her in defiance. The argument goes something like this: 'Do.' 'Do not.' 'Do.' 'Do NOT.' Until someone says 'you're a poopoo head doodie face'.

Snow In My Shoe, Broken Shovels, And How Much I Love Snow

2007-02-14T11:55:00.000-06:00

I love snow. Really, I do. I love it more now that I don't work, but still- I love snow.

I woke up yesterday morning to see that they had canceled school (woohoo!), and we spent the day inside, enjoying each other's company (which we probably would have enjoyed a lot more, had the boys not been sick all weekend and stuck inside). We watched the snow blow, and Cody and I laughed when we realized that we couldn't open our front door.

This morning- no more snow, but all the snow from yesterday's blizzard was still there. No school again, but at least we'll be able to get outside today (yay- no more cabin fever!).

I sent Mike to the store (hey- if you drink the last can of pop, you better replace it), and he had to dig his car out. I stood there and watched (I consider it my wifely duty to 'supervise' (read: tease the heck out of him)). I threw a snowball at him, and before he could throw one back at me, I ran.

I ran directly into a drift that came up almost to my knees (no joke). I had snow in my boot (not a comfortable feeling). Mike missed, so I suppose the snow in my boot is worth it, but still- there's snow in my shoe.

Shortly after that, the shovel broke. There was just too much snow for our shovel, and it died in protest. Mike is going to buy another one while he's out.

I took Rosie out this morning, and lost her in a snow drift. Normally, she loves snow. If it's warm enough (she doesn't like cold), she'll play in the snow. I figured that she'd be out there, playing her little heart out today. But, nope. She tried to play, but once it was over her head, she stuck to where the wind had blown the snow almost all the way to the grass.

Christmas Trees Or A Trip To Menards With A Group Of Males

2006-12-17T12:02:00.000-06:00

Mike decided that this year, we'd get a 'real' Christmas tree. I had always had artificial ones before, so this is something completely new for me. I had hoped to get our tree up the weekend after Thanksgiving- but that didn't happen because of a death in the family. I had hoped for the following weekend, but because of that death in the family, I ended up snowed in in Oklahoma. I again hoped for the weekend after that, but we decided to wait (I don't remember why at the moment).

So- finally, FINALLY, we were headed to Menards to get our Christmas tree. I don't know if Menards is a national chain or not (is it?), but just in case- it's a home improvement/hardware store. A new one opened up not far from here in October. This place is huge. It's like man heaven. Or maybe man hell, because I saw the fence that I want, and light fixtures that are to die for, and closet organizers (I could use a couple of those), and Christmas decorations (they have a giant inflatable peppermint arch! Dylan shouted 'I want that!' when he saw it and it was all I could do to remember that I'm an adult woman and screaming 'ME TOO!' in the middle of a store is unbecoming).

So. We walk into Menards and the boys' jaws just drop. Oh, I can just see the little gears working in their little heads! Cody- the child whose first real word was 'LIGHT!', which was repeated over and over and over, either with finger pointed towards the light or hands flipping the switch off and on- he spotted the lights first. Dylan saw the inflatables, and Evan pointed out all the gloves on display. For them- Menards is a little boy's idea of heaven.

Mike's reaction was pretty much the same, which doesn't really surprise me.

We head off for the Garden Center (after I steer Mike in the right direction, he was drawn to the lights like a moth to a flame, I swear), I made Mike stop when I realized that we had lost one of our members (to the gloves, of all things). On the way, we passed the toys (had to steer the boys away from those), saw more inflatables, steered Mike away from the timers (for his fish tank, so that he doesn't have to reach down and flip a switch to turn the light on), noticed the sheer abundance of chocolate at the register (ya know, for the husbands to give to their wives when they spend too much money at Menards), and looked at the stuff used for shelving (I'm female- don't ask me what it's called because I don't know), and finally- we reached the Garden Center.

Those doors opened, and the boys were in heaven. Trees! Christmas trees! Everywhere! We looked at them all, felt the needles, decided that we want the biggest one, even if it won't fit in our house and we have to cut the top off, no, we want that one, with the brown needles (yeah, I vetoed that one quickly), oh, look, if you shake the branches just right on this one the needles fall off (another veto), and so on. We looked at them all, Dylan voting for the ones with the netting still on, Cody wanting the biggest one, and Evan nearly speechless by all the trees. Finally, we narrowed it down to two white pine trees. We had the boys vote- Cody picked one, Dylan picked the other, and Evan was the tiebreaker.

At which point we realized that we needed a tree skirt and lights, so we went back into the store. When we reached the automatic door leading into the store, Dylan threw his arms out and said 'Open Says Me!' That was the end of them being cute- and the beginning of them being little terrors.

It was like a free for all! I do not recommend going to Menards when the estrogen is outnumbered by the testosterone 5 to 1. Our $13 Christmas tree ended up costing us a whooping $90. We had the tree skirt, the lights (3 sets of LED lights, which apparently are all the rage among 27 year old men), two ornaments (those were my fault- they're for Cody's teachers), a handsaw (because I don't let my husband near a hardware store often enough for him to have a handsaw already, even though I'm pretty sure that there's one in the garage that belongs to my dad), and a timer (for the fishtank).

We got home, got the tree up, and now when you walk by, my living room smells pine fresh.

Post Halloween Candy Hangover

2006-11-01T08:35:00.000-06:00

We went, we got candy, we survived.

And now comes the real fun of Halloween- the arguing with Mommy over how much candy they can have on a daily basis. Oh joy.

I have a ton of candy- leftovers, as well as what the boys brought home. When I can get a minute alone, without the candy monsters, I'm going to get a picture of what is left of their haul.

I'm one of those moms that encourage the candy feast on Halloween night- because after that, the candy is being put up and they'll only get a few pieces a day, for as long as they remember we have it. And, of course, Mommy has been dipping into the treats (although, to be fair, the boys were more than willing to share the chocolate and the orange and black peanut butter things with me).

I tried to keep Cody's costume as gore-free as possible (but you have to have a little gore, he was a zombie, ya know). We saw some cute costumes last night- one little girl was a cowgirl, complete with horse (her legs were the horse's back legs), we saw some cats, some witches, a Dumbo, a really cool alien costume, and lots of vampires and ninjas.

We saw some cool pumpkins, as well. I didn't take my camera, otherwise I would have gotten a picture- but this one house had turned their pumpkins into black cats. They painted the pumpkins black, and glued felt cat ears to the tops. I am so doing that one next year. I also have an idea for headstones for the front yard- a house down the street just made theirs, and I'm pretty sure that I have some plywood in the garage that I can use to make headstones next year.

Today, I'm taking down our decorations and throwing our pumpkins away. I don't have any Thanksgiving stuff (although I might have some out in the garage), but I'm not going to look for that stuff until this weekend, and besides- whatever I have are indoor decorations. It looks like my house will be holiday decoration free until after Thanksgiving, when I can start putting out our Christmas stuff.

Fright Night

2006-10-31T09:56:00.000-06:00

(credits for the above picture: paint brushes by VBrush, swirly brushes by Truly Sara, banner by Jan Crowley, font is Porcelain)

Our pumpkins are carved, our costumes are done, I've got my bat tattoo on (see above), we have candy to hand out tonight (if we are home long enough to get any trick or treaters).

And wouldn't you know it- the time is just crawling by. I'm horrible about this- I love Halloween. It's such a fun night. And- to make it even better- this is the first year that I actually have a child wearing a truly scary costume.

My oldest is going as a zombie. We had fun making his costume yesterday- lots of dirt (because he just crawled out of the grave), lots of blood, we got to destroy a perfectly good shirt (I bought a cheap one for this).

Evan is going as Superman. No surprise there- he's still really into superheroes.

Dylan is going at Clark Kent- or, in his words, 'Superman's pahpa'.

Cody and I were looking at his make up for tonight. I told him that he'd have peeling skin and that he'd look really cool. I forget how literal he can be- he just looked at me with these huge eyes and said 'But I don't want you to peel my skin off.' Um, dude, it's all make up and it won't hurt you a bit.

We've all been sick and now we all have colds. And of course this is one of those weeks where Dylan and Evan can't stand each other and are fighting constantly, and over the silliest little things. Yesterday- they are argued over a MOUSEPAD! If they argue tonight, I'm cutting trick or treating short because I'm not dragging two whiny ~~brats~~ angels through the neighborhood tonight.

Loose Teeth, Birthday Butts, And He's Three!

2006-10-10T08:26:00.000-05:00

Last night, while I was sitting on the couch, watching 'my shows', working a Suduko puzzle, and half listening to the kids' talk in the dining room, Cody shouted 'OW!'

There I was, thinking 'oh great, one of his brothers has hurt him and now he's going to come and tell me allll about it.' Well- he did come and tell me all about it, but the 'ow' didn't mean 'one of my brothers punched/pushed/kicked/bit/all of the above me', it was 'ow, my tooth is loose!' Cody's so excited- this is his very first loose tooth. It wasn't long before he showed up at my side again and showed me that another tooth was loose (I'm not sure if it's really loose or just loose because the actual loose tooth has given it some wiggle room, so we'll see).

I told Cody that if it falls out when I'm not around he needs to keep it. And Dylan, the four year old who doesn't go to school and hasn't lost any teeth, pipes up with 'Yeah, for the tooth fairy!' Cody's eyes glowed- I think that he just thought the fact that he had a lost tooth was amazingly cool enough, add in the excitement of actually losing that tooth, along with the promise of money from the tooth fairy and it became just The Coolest Thing Evah.

He thought that he'd lose the tooth last night- I had to tell him that sometimes it takes days for loose teeth to fall out and that he might have to wait awhile.

Evan has learned a new song- Happy Birthday. Yesterday, I overheard him singing Happy Birthday to Cody's butt, of all things.

Speaking of birthdays- today is Evan's Birthday. He's three years old today. The past few weeks we have talked about birthdays and how much fun they are. Today, he's wearing his new sweatshirt from Aunt Jess and his Birthday Boy ribbon. It's so hard to believe that he's actually three- the last three years have just flown right by. We're having cake tonight, but other than that, I don't really have much planned for today, except a quiet day at home.

Tagged by Justine- twice, in fact, lol!

I'm going to do the music one first, just because it's easier to narrow that list down than it is to narrow down the weird things about me or my pets.

Wings of a Butterfly by HIM
Sweet Sacrifice by Evanescence
Lips of an Angel by Hinder
Next Contestant by Nickelback
Control by Puddle of Mudd
Paint It Black by Rolling Stones
Ball and Biscuit by White Stripes

And now for the five weird things about me or my pets.

My cat, Monkey, is a blanket licker. Cats have ways to comfort themselves, just like people, and Monkey's way of comforting himself is to lick the nearest blanket.
I can't eat macaroni and cheese made by someone else. I have to make it, because I don't follow the directions on the box correctly and nobody else has been able to get my secret way of making mac and cheese right. Oh- and I won't eat any mac and cheese unless it uses the powdered cheese.
I'm obsessive over hanging underwear on the clothesline. You don't do it unless you have three lines. Underwear is hung on the middle line, with sheets and blankets hung on the outside lines. I've been tempted to go and change where people hang their underwear on their clothesline because it bugs me so much (not that I would ever want to touch some stranger's underwear, that's just, ew).
I only eat the pink and yellow Starburst.
I eat raw hot dogs (and didn't know that this was weird until my sil said something about it).

I can't think of anyone to tag, so- if you read this, consider yourself tagged. :D

Grasshoppers, Soccer, And The Playground

2006-09-30T18:38:00.000-05:00

I haven't been around much lately. It seems like I've been on the go constantly, but when I look back at what I've done these last few weeks, it doesn't look like much.

So- today I'm sharing pictures. All but the first one were taken today. The first one was taken a few days ago- I'm sharing it because I think it's really cool.

This little guy lives in our backyard. He spends time sitting on our back fence (there was a pink blanket sitting on it when I took this picture), and he's been chased by Rosie. I love the contrast between the pink and the green in this picture and I'm loving the detail that I managed to get with my camera. Can I just tell you that it's so nice to have a really nice digital camera?

Now- for today's activities. Today Cody played his second game of soccer this season. We're back to where we were last fall- he doesn't want to run and play the game with the other kids. I have a ton of action shots of the other kids on his team, and him just moping along in the background. The thing is- he really likes soccer and really likes to play soccer. He's just too shy to actually play the game on the field. So- we're going to work on that.

I call this one 'Dazed.' Sometimes I wonder about my son... This one was taken right after this one...

I love this picture, however. I think it turned out great, and you can't tell that I was all the way across the field from him when it was taken. It also doesn't look like a soccer picture.

Sometimes, you just don't want to hear what they're saying... I'm not sure what she was saying, but I thought that this was hilarious, especially since Cody doesn't like girls (and apparently, this little girl has a crush on Cody).

He spent the entire game playing defense (can't imagine why....). He was even goalie during one quarter...

Yep- he spent most of his time as goalie inspecting the net.

After soccer, we played on the playground for awhile, which is where I got this shot of Dylan:

He surprised me with this one (because I'm not sure that I would have let him do it if I had caught him doing it in the first place).

He Said What?!?!

2006-09-15T10:32:00.000-05:00

Be warned- there will be graphic language in this post. I'm sorry about that, but it's part of the story.

I picked Cody up from school yesterday like I do every Thursday. He gets in the car, and I asked if he had his spelling test back. He said 'You're not going to be happy with me.' So- I look in the bag, thinking that he failed his spelling test, while telling him that I'm not going to be mad if he got a bad grade, we'll just have to study harder. Sure enough- he did fail his spelling test (poor kid). But- that wasn't what he was talking about.

Yesterday, my normall sweet, somewhat angelic little heathen said 'fucker' in school.

Yes- you read that right. My six year old son said the f-word. I made him talk to Mike about it (because he certainly has never heard me say that word). Mike told Cody that he needed to think up a punishment for himself and he had six minutes to do it. Cody chose to give up the computer for a week. Mike added that he couldn't go to the carnival one day this weekend.

Evan's birthday is coming up. We've been talking about his birthday party and what he wants. While the boys were eating supper yesterday, Cody and Dylan started telling Evan what he should do for his birthday party. Cody wants a chocolate cake- but Evan's original vote was for a pumpkin cake. Dylan thinks that Evan needs to have a Spongebob birthday party- but Evan originally wanted a superhero birthday party. I finally had to tell the two of them that if they talk Evan out of whatever it is that he wants for his birthday party that I'm letting him plan their next birthdays (that shut them up, lol).

The First And Second Days of First Grade

2006-08-22T08:28:00.000-05:00

Cody started school yesterday. His school has what they call a 'clap in' every year. On the first day, they line the halls with parents and teachers and everyone claps and cheers as the students walk to their classrooms. It's supposed to make them feel good about learning, I think that they just enjoy being cheered and applauded (at least, the first and second graders do, when this becomes boring, I don't know). It fits with the local parent mentality, but I'll get to that in a moment.

While doing this clap in, and the subsequent picture taking a few minutes later, I noticed something. You could tell the scrapbooker mom from the regular mom.

The regular mom- one or two pictures, taken in one or two places.

The scrapbooker mom- these are the moms that are saying 'ok, let's take a picture of you hanging up your backpack, let's take a picture of you sharpening your pencil, let's take a picture of you glaring at Mommy because you realized that you are the only child whose mother is still in the room and the teacher is waiting to start class....'

Growing up, I knew that the kids in this town were a little on the snobbish side. You get used to it, and figure that things will even out as you get older. Nope- wrong. What happens is that those kids I grew up with became the type of parents that I can not stand. And I had to deal with them today.

Our school has a circle drive, which is the only place where students can be picked up and dropped off (except for the bus riders). It's a huge pain in the read end to pick up or drop off students because it's very narrow and there aren't enough parking spots. Drop offs are hell. Literally. Because these parents, who believe that their children poop gold nuggets, can not let that precious child walk more than ten feet to the door. So- they sit and block traffic while they wait for one of the three prime drop off spots to open up. And then they nose in, take the spot, even though their mini van or SUV does not fit in that spot. Which means that they are still blocking traffic, and when it's time to leave, they can either a- back up into the passing lane or b- wait for the person ahead to pull out.

I droppped Cody off at 8 this morning. I didn't get home until 820. I live a half mile from the school. It took me twenty minutes to get out of the drive because people don't want to make their child walk. Tomorrow, I'm parking on the other side of the three prime spots to drop him off, at least then, when they're blocking traffic waiting for those spots to open, I'll be able to just get out and leave.

Yeah , Not Happening

2006-08-04T08:13:00.000-05:00

I'm fickle that way. I love how Wordpress logs the IP addresses of commenters, but the few that comment on my blog are all really nice. I don't need to know that information, so- I'm staying here. :D

Besides, it would mean having to change my blog addy with every site that has it and that just ain't happening.

In other news- I will be away from my computer on Monday. My sister is having a baby! And I get to babysit! And yes, I'm excited! They're inducing, so yes, I know that she's having the baby on Monday (or Tuesday- but I don't want to scare her with 24 hour labor... not that I even know what that feels like...). Really, if her labor and delivery is anything like Cody's (and we can hope), then this baby will arrive that evening. Otherwise, I might have to have a little talk with him.

Be warned- I'm a proud aunt with a digital camera. Expect pictures.

Moving....

2006-07-29T18:50:00.000-05:00

Not sure if this will be a permanent move or not, so don't update your address books or bloglines just yet.

At the moment, you can find dreaming in {digital} by clicking here: di{d}. I moved all of my old posts over there, but they are still available here, for now.

Ick

2006-07-14T02:20:00.000-05:00

I've been spoiled these last six years.

Growing up, we didn't have central air. I remember nights of being unable to sleep and coming out to the living room to sleep, because we did, at least, have one monster of a window unit in there. When I moved out in 99, we still didn't have central air, but we did have an a/c in the bedroom. When we moved in 01, we had central air in our apartment. So nice. Cool, no matter where you were.

Then, we moved back into the house where I grew up. Still no central air. No shower, either. They are on our list of things to do around here. So that is why I'm up at 230 in the morning. It's freaking hot in the bedroom and I can't sleep on the couch because two of my boys are there already (smart kids, I tell ya).

We got a new camera a couple days ago. I'm so happy! This one is much better than our last one. It's not a digital SLR, like I really want, but for now- I'm happy with it.

For being so tired, and I'm actually in a pretty good mood. I ordered a pair of purple Crocs over the weekend- those should be here sometime in the next few days, Cody's scooter is en route to Chicago and we'll most likely have it this weekend, and he's well on his way to earning a snorkel like his cousin has, which means- he's picking up after himself. And I have a new designer sample in the TDC boutique:

So- stop by, check it out, and if you are so inclined- maybe buy one (or both) of the two new kits that were also released today, by me. :D

Dylan is a very interesting child. I laugh at him- sometimes, he's just hilarious. When he had his birthday back in May, he insisted that he was 2. He didn't want to be 4, he wanted to be 2. No amount of correcting helped- he was 2, and there was no changing that. Until today.

Enter Cody, who believes that it is the job of every older brother to torment the younger ones. Today, he was tormenting Dylan because Dylan is only 4, and 6 is better than 4. I had to sit down and talk to Dylan and explain why 4 is better than any other age.

4 is better than any other age because- you only need one hand to tell people how old you are. Cody, the resident six year old, needs two hands. Four year olds can pedal bikes. Four year olds use the potty. Four year olds get to go to car shows with Grandpa. Four year olds get to drive the Power Wheels. And four is a very good age because Dylan is FOUR.

He ran with it. He is no longer 2- he's now FOUR. I'm so happy. I no longer have to correct him when someone asks how old he is!

Of course, now that I've written that, he'll revert back to being 2 permanently. Some day, this will be a funny and embarassing story for me to tell his future wife and kids. Some day.

And with that- I think that I'm going to try to go back to sleep. I'll point the fan directly at me and see how that works.

My Lessons For The Week

2006-07-08T17:12:00.000-05:00

First up- I finally got around to starting the photo blog. Yay me! It took my three days, but I finally found my memory stick (on the laundry room floor, of all places). Lesson learned: If your camera has no internal memory and therefore will not work without a memory stick, do not leave the camera within reach of your kids. Or just buy a camera with an internal memory.

Let's back up a few days. We had fun on Tuesday. We ate a lot, and we played a lot. We took the boys to see the fireworks that night. Dylan and Cody spent more time playing on the school's playground equipment than they did watching the fireworks, but that's ok. Evan, on the other hand, is terrified of fireworks. TERRIFIED. He spent the entire show with his head pressed up against my boob and his hands covering his ears. He didn't cry, but he refused to sit anywhere that wasn't Mommy's Lap. Lesson learned: Don't wear a white shirt around kids who are terrified of fireworks and who also have chocolate on their hands. Also- chocolate is a bitch to get out of white shirts.

On Wednesday, I fell. Hard. I slipped on a wet floor and landed on a tote. My back hurt, all day long. I had a hard time sleeping, because it hurt every time that I rolled over onto my right side. I woke up Thursday morning with a huge bruise on my right side from it. When I woke up Friday morning, that bruise was a dark red, almost black. It's still a dark red, and I keep telling myself that it's getting lighter. I think it's wishful thinking, though. Lesson learned: Crocs have no traction whatsoever on wet floors.

Yesterday, the cable guy came to replace our DVR. Yay! Now we are able to record two shows at once! And create series recordings! No more having to double check how long Lost is on, and miss the last five minutes of the show because I goofed! Lesson learned: The cable guy will make you wait all day long just to spite you, and they still won't have everything that you asked for ready. I think that they get a kick out of this...

This morning: After waiting all day for the cable guy to show up yesterday, I figured that it would be afternoon before he showed up with our new cable modem today. Yeah- it was 9am when he knocked on our door. NINE in the MORNING. Luckily, I was dressed, and I had just gotten the kids dressed. The desk hadn't been cleaned off, so it was still a mess from last night. Lesson learned: It costs $100 for the cable guy to come in, unhook your old modem, and hook up your new modem. Can we say RIP OFF? We could have done this ourselves!

Travels In A Small Town

2006-07-04T09:27:00.000-05:00

I'm starting something new today- a photo blog. I'm attempting two things with this. Number one- to get in the habit of taking my camera everywhere and Number Two- to see how I like Wordpress. I may decide to move this blog over there, but for now- I'll just test drive it.

No pictures yet (I still need to take some today, lol), but the camera has brand new batteries and is already in my purse, ready to go. But you can check the blog out, if you want: Travels In A Small Town.

Ugh. It's going to be a LONG day. Seriously- LOOOOOOOONG. I'm looking forward to it, mostly because the boys have been up since 630 this morning and they've been WHINING and ARGUING the entire time.

Come on dryer, hurry up. I want to get these kids out of the house before they drive me insane...

So Easy, My Two Year Old Can Do It!

2006-06-30T00:02:00.000-05:00

Ok, I'm seriously cracking up here. Linky poo. Read the directions. Oh, wait, they're short enough that I can post them here...

THEN follow our simple steps:

PLACE wiener in bread. Add 1 Tbsp. sauce and toppings.

Ah, the joys of simplicity. Or maybe that's joys of stupidity... (Thanks to Mimi Smartypants for pointing me in this direction. Hey, look at that! This blog addiction thing is good for something!)

I got a new Dover book in the mail this week. Not bad, except that I don't want to do anything but create papers with it and that's just not good.

I don't watch a lot of TV (ok, so I do- but I record it all and watch it on my own time, says she of the almost but not quite full DVR). I love good drama. Combine the two, and I'm in heaven (it's why I like Big Brother and Survivor- TV + Drama = Happiness). So when Veggieville starts buzzing with the Star Jones dramarama this week, I'm floored. There's drama? On daytime TV? That doesn't require watching soaps and Springer? I'm soooo there! So, like any good drama chaser, I break out my trusty Google, and find a video. I'm all excited, break out the pop corn and diet dr pepper, put my feet up, start the video....

And am instantly bored to tears, which happens right before I yak from the syrupy fake wishy washy 'It's been wonderful, the show's going in a new direction, I love you guys' crap. I was hoping for some patented Barbara Can of Whoop Ass action going on (you know that she has some serious Drama Queen potential, right there).

So- here I sit, my TV drama cravings going unsatisfied for at least another week (Big Brother starts next week- can't wait to see who made it in).

Where Has He Been?

2006-06-22T02:48:00.000-05:00

The other day Mike comes up to me and says 'You have a blog?' I turn and look at him as if he has three heads and say 'Where the hell have you been for the last year?'

I know that I've mentioned it to him. I'm pretty sure that I told him that I had one, or mentioned it in passing, or something. He told me that he found out from his mom. I laughed at that one- Mike is the king of selective hearing, and he most likely selectively didn't hear 'I changed my blog template today' or 'I put an ad up on my blog for the CT call' or 'Let me finish this blog entry before....'

So- yeah. I'm thinking that he just doesn't pay attention to me or something...

So- I got paid and I bought those neato swirly brushes from 2peas on Tuesday. Oh my gosh, I love them! They're great! I'm horrible at making really cool chunky swirlies, so I have to rely on other people's really cool chunky swirlies.

Then- I hit Scrap Artist's sale. Picked up Carriage House and Redemption and Element Essentials by Iron Orchid Designs and Fresh Start Tool Kit by Dianne Rigdon (for the to die for gotta get my grubby little paws on it brush that she uses in her previews). Then I hit Jen Wilson and bought some element packs (don't ask me to remember their names- I didn't look, lol!). I spent the afternoon creating two new layouts with my schtuff. *So happy*

Look- I already use that to die for brush by Dianne.

I didn't know IOD before I lost my internet. What a nice little surprise to come back to. Really awesome papers, and I'm loving the Element Essentials pack thingy that I got today. But... for some odd reason, I keep getting their name wrong in my head. I don't say Iron Orchid, I say Iron Orchard. I'm kinda glad that I don't normally type out Iron Orchid Designs, because let's face it, it would be rather embarassing to type what my mind insists on saying. Orchid, Orchid, Orchid.

Oh- something else that I love about this layout. The title. I had bought this font awhile back and hadn't really played with it. The font is LHF Boston Truckstyle. And I just went to their site and saw a font that I really really really really really want to own and alas- it won't be available until July. *pout* So- while I'm waiting for English Rose, I'm going to oogle the fonts there. Like this one: Sarah Script. Would look good in chipboard... Or Sophia Script (a nice alternate for Susie's Hand on layouts). I love Letterhead fonts- so worth the money. But then again, I am a font addict. *big cheesy grin*

In my best Conan OBrien voice (I'm probably spelling his name wrong, but oh well): I'm agonna go to hell when I die. (unfortunately I can't do the amazing bouncing hair thing the same way that he does...)

Since I know that my mother in law reads this (Hi Vicky), I know that the next time that I see her, I'll be a dead woman. But- I don't care. I got a kick out of this layout. And, to be fair, she knew that I took her picture and knew that there was a possibility of this happening, so I'm not totally to blame here.

And with that- I say good night. It's so freaking hot in the bedroom and Mike is like a furnace that I had to get out of that room and sit in air conditioning for awhile. Hopefully I'm tired enough now that I'll get to sleep. So- I'm going to go point the fan directly at my side of the bed and try to fall asleep.

Tooting My Own Horn

2006-06-16T14:21:00.000-05:00

I don't feel like working on any kits, but I can't keep Photoshop closed. So- I've been catching up on my scrapbooking. It's such a relief to be able to do something that I don't have to be perfect at. And, ok, I'll admit it- I'm still doing what I can to save my pen.

I love this picture of Cody and his brothers.

Yet another one, this one is about Cody's soccer coach.

Another neat picture that I like a lot- Dylan eating his ice cream. I really like how this layout turned out, with the cicle and the strips of paper.

Not my favorite, but I really like how the star turned out. When I saw the pictures a couple months ago, I couldn't help but laugh out loud at them. The best pictures of Cody really aren't the best pictures- but they are hilarious!

And- one about me. I laugh at the books in this picture- Elie Wiesel, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Janet Finch, and others share my nightstand. Yep- my taste in books is broad.

And look at those papers- love them! I went on a shopping spree last weekend. It's funny, really. I went in looking for one paper pack. Saw that she was having a sale and stocked up.

I'm loving the way that freestyle looks, but find that it's hard for me to use doodles all that often. That's what I'm working out right now. I have this cute idea for a layout that involves tons of flowers, but I can't seem to get it right. ARGH! Driving me nuts!

Veggieville has added a ton of new garden girls and I'm so excited to see what this means for the digital board there! I wonder if this means that we'll get more kits (or a wider variety of them). Oh- and speaking of Veggieville, can I just say that it sucks being broke? Check these out:

and...
Both of these have ended up in my Wish List. I'm thinking that with some cute swirly doodles like these I might actually be able to doodle more on my pages. Only a few more days until I get paid and you bet that I'm buying these cute brushes. Oh- and some others, because I love Rhonna's brushes. They're doodle-y without being 'doodle-y' (does that make any sense at all?).

I've probably bored you all to death by now. Mike has said that we might not be keeping another kitty besides Pumpkin, but we'll see about that. He asked me today which cat I'm taking out to my parents' tomorrow. I didn't know that I was taking a cat to my parents' tomorrow. It looks like Moo is moving tomorrow (that is- if I feel like taking a cat with me).

Pumpkin is definitely my kitty. I can't sit on the couch without him cuddling up to me. He comes to bed with me and cuddles next to me before I fall asleep and he begins his nightly prowls.

The Indianapolis 500 Was Held In My House Last Night

2006-06-11T08:57:00.000-05:00

But before I get to that, I am going to address the chameleon. Yes- we have a chameleon. His (her? not about to figure out how to check that one out) name is Frankie and he's now back in his cage. Not happily, but he's there. I really have no problem holding or touching him, but he wasn't too happy with me when I found him the day after he escaped. Most likely because I was putting him back in his cage.

Now- on to the races. Mike has almost decided that we'll be keeping another kitten, as well as Pumpkin. This one is an almost all black cat (he has a teeny tiny white bib and his belly is white), and his name is Monkey. Mike won't let me name him Pie so that I can have a Pumpkin and a Pie, but oh well. Monkey is a good kitty name, too.

Anyway- there's also Moo (black and white) and Creamsicle (orange and white tabby). All boys. They sleep all day long, and then come evening, they start wrestling practice. It's funny to watch. I've seen Monkey stand up on his hind legs and actually leap into the air to land on top of one of the other two cats. I've seen Pumpkin, Creamsicle and Monkey wrestle each other... at the same time.

From wrestling practice, we move on to hide and seek. All but one will hide and as the one not hiding walks by these hiding places, he gets attacked by the ones hiding- or, if he's lucky, he'll see them before they see him and he'll attack.

From hide and seek, it's on to the Indianapolis 500, held in my very own house. They start in my bedroom, on my bed, jump off the bed, run out the door, go down the hallway, into the living room, jump on the couch, jump off the couch, go down the hallway, back to my room and up on my bed. And repeat. And repeat. And repeat. If I didn't shut my door at night, they'd do this all night long.

I am becoming a crazy cat lady. I talk to the cats, get a huge kick out of them following me all around the house, and in the evenings, when I'm sitting on the couch watching tv, I usually have two on my lap, one at my shoulder, and one next to me on the couch.

My computer hasn't been fixed yet, I'm hoping for sometime in the next week or so. I miss my keyboard- the keys don't stick.

Just Because Jess Said So...

2006-06-05T14:58:00.000-05:00

Apparently, I'm not updating enough for my sister, Jess. So- here's her update (even though she knows everything that has been happening around here).

Pumpkin is going to be one spoiled kitty. I went to Wal-Mart today and bought him a couple of catnip fish toys. He's also an attention hog- and definitely a mommy's kitty. I walk by- he will wake from a deep sleep and meow until I stop and scratch him behind his ears (he loves that).

My computer died. Nothing big- just needs a new motherboard and I didn't lose anything. Of course this happens right before I discover a new toy that I absolutely positively MUST HAVE. A wireless Wacom.

I need to replace my pen nib, and was looking at Wacom's website when I saw the Graphire 4 Bluetooth. Larger than what I already have (Graphire 2 4x5, the Bluetooth is 6x8), plus I'll be able to put my foot up and use it like a sketchbook- on my lap.

I just looked in our chameleon's cage and... he's missing! Ack! The last time that he got out, I saw him wandering on the desk and was able to grab him and put him away pretty quickly. Today- I didn't see him, and I just looked all over the dining room, and he's no where to be seen. Wonderful. Now I'm going to have to keep a look out for him. He'll probably freak me out in the bathroom or run over my foot or something.

But- back to my pen. It's funny. I was just noticing that I'm almost worn the nib down to the point of uselessness. I showed Mike and he said 'Well, I guess you do use your tablet.' Well, duh. So now I'm thinking that I can just simply make do with my pen, only use it when I need it, and once I have the money for the new tablet saved up, I'll buy a new one.

Mike wants me to get a better motherboard- to basically use this as an excuse to completely upgrade my computer. I'm not interested in that right now- I'd like to save my money until I can afford to buy a new laptop instead of worrying about upgrading everything.

Houston, We Have A Name

2006-05-28T09:03:00.000-05:00

Yes, we do! But let's back up for a moment.

A few days ago, Mike told me that he was going to let my keep my kitty. Sil had originally named him Oliver- but I don't care for Oliver. I tried Ollie (yeah- not working), Monty (cute, but not really 'him'), Bonzai (too close to Bonsai Kitten- that site that had kitties in glass jars). This morning, I was reading a thread at Veggieville on kitty names, and came across...

Pumpkin! It's perfect! Yay! Yay! Yay!

Today, we are headed out to my parents' house for a cookout and bonfire. I've been looking forward to this for the last week, just a nice relaxing day at my parents' place. I'm bringing Rosie- this should be interesting! My parents are putting their dogs in a pen for the day, so it should be ok, but the last time that I took Rosie out there, Wilson terrorized her.

It could be a long day- my kids are already acting up.

Delightfully Sinful

2006-05-23T08:41:00.000-05:00

I made a healthy supper last night- chicken cilantro and cucumber wraps. With fresh cucumber (I love fresh cucumber). Very good, and- amazingly- very filling. Then I went and ruined my nice healthy supper with these.

S'mores Dessert Squares from the Kraft website. Holy cow are they good! My dad will love this recipe. He believes that the only way to eat pudding is with Nilla Wafers. I agree (my mom thinks that we're both nuts). The toasted marshmallows, imho, are the best part of this dessert. I'm going to be making this for the Memorial Day cook out at my parents' place- two batches of it, because it didn't last long in our house.

Yesterday was a long, busy day for me. We went grocery shopping, and stocked up. It feels good to actually have food in this house again! Then- Mike took Cody and Dylan to the fish store to buy new fish for his fish tank. Now we have the 'I'm obnoxious' fish from Finding Nemo and a Snowflake Eel to go with the clownfish and gromma and starfish that we already have. Finally- Dylan and I took Rosie out to my parents' place to meet the dogs and see how they get along, as well as to do some laundry.

Yeah, it didn't go over too well. Poor Rosie- she's terrified of Wilson. They weren't hurting her, just barking at her and it scared her. Not sure if I'll bring her out on Sunday or not. Dad's building a pen for Asia and Pepper, and Wilson will be in the house, so I might just bring her out, anyway. Rosie will have to be tied up (I don't want her catching a scent and taking off).

We bought Dylan new shoes yesterday. We are now on our third pair of the exact same Thomas the Train shoes. He's so cute- he wore his shoes to bed, then slept with them beside him. As soon as he woke up this morning, he put them on.

There was something else that I was going to say, but I've only had one cup of coffee this morning and am still a little fuzzy. Oh, yeah- tomorrow is Cody's last day of school! Today is the End of Year party for the kindergarten classes, and Cody's looking forward to it. He's looking forward to summer, too. I'm looking forward to summer. I'm weird like that, I guess.

Cows, Train Whistles, And Birthday Party Strip Teases

2006-05-20T16:26:00.000-05:00

Today started with a first.

My kids were dressed and ready to go before anyone arrived at our house. Because of this, we arrived at the restaurant a half hour early. But hey- that's ok. While we waited, we saw a cow in front of a nearby grocery store. Yes- a cow. Or rather, a woman dressed as a cow. Now- my mom loves cows. She collects them, moos at them, just all around loves cows. If it's cow print or has a cow on it somewhere, she has it. So you can imagine what we thought when we saw the woman dressed as a cow- we need to get Mom's picture taken with her.

She was raising money for the VFW (ya know, those poppy flowers), but the point is- she's dressed like a cow. Mom doesn't want her picture taken with the cow, but she wanted the kids to get their pictures taken with said cow. Except... the kids didn't want to do it unless Mom and Aunt Jess did as well.

So- we now have this picture of everyone with a cow (except me and my dad).

When it's time for his party, we go inside and the kids are in awe. There's a train set! There's a train going around the top of the room! Let's chase the train and see where it goes! Look! Video games! Let's play! Give me money, Grandpa! Look that the food! Look! There's a train on the counter! It has food on it! Look! They're getting their food on a train! Cool!

We get settled into the party room- and the kids don't want to stay in there. They want to play games, look at the trains, and eat. We order, sit down, and wait. The kids each got a free cup and a wooden train whistle. Imagine that- five train whistles. FIVE. All blowing at once. Luckily, every kid gets a free train whistle (regular customers get plastic- apparently, when you're spending so much on a birthday party, you get the wooden ones), so my kids really weren't bothering anyone. But still- five train whistles, going at the same time.

So- the kids ate. And they got a kick out of the train delivering their food. We decided to go and open presents next, and wait on the ice cream. Just easier that way. We get everyone inside the tiny little room (which was really the only bad part about this), and we start opening gifts. He gets pull back cars from the movie Cars, a glider that is longer than he is tall, a Thomas the Train bean bag chair (which, of course, he had to sit in while he opened the rest of his presents), Spongebob underwear (he was EXCITED about this), die cast cars from the movie Cars, a tackle box for his die cast cars, a Cars playset, a Spiderman inflatable tent, a bike, and a cool outfit with matching hat.

Dylan opens the bag with the outfit in it, and gets excited (I know that this is the last year that he'll be excited about getting clothes for his birthday). He then starts unbuttoning his shirt and tells me that he wants to wear his new shirt. Yep- my four year old son did a strip tease in the middle of his birthday party. Luckily, it was only the shirt and hat that he wanted to wear.

I got some cute pictures- but I think that my camera is on it's last leg. Even with the flash, the autofocus doesn't want to work all that well on it. So- I'm saving my pennies to get a new camera, all by myself.

I really like this one of Dylan with my dad, taken right before we opened presents. He's so happy to be wearing his conductor's hat and having his party at a train themed place.

Midnight

2006-05-17T00:02:00.000-05:00

I'm contemplating a quiet house. I can hear the fish tank bubbling behind me, the hum of my computer, the buzzer on the dryer as it stops, Mike's occassional cough as he browses websites. The boys are sleeping, and I'm sitting here contemplating.

Four years ago, on this very night, I was packing my bag for the hospital. We had to get up early- I was being induced at 7 that morning. Dylan Thomas entered the world at 504pm, weighing 6lbs, 4oz. Today- he's a thriving four year old.

So- I've collected and interesting bunch of Dylan stories that I'm going to share.

First up- The Infamous Printer Story And How Dylan Got Locked In The Car Three Years Later. Yeah, that's an old blog of mine. And yes, I still deal with printer jokes on a regular basis.

Dylan has a slight speech delay. I'm the one that has to translate for him, because unless you've spent a lot of time around him, you can't understand a word that he's saying. Last Christmas, Mike made buckeyes- these really good peanut butter and chocolate candies that will add ten pounds just by looking at them. While Mike was making them, Dylan asked me if he was making 'buh heads'. I thought that it was funny- Dylan wanted to know if Daddy was making butt heads. So I sent him in there to ask Mike. He asked Mike. Mike told him that he was. So now- we have butt heads at Christmas and not buckeyes.

This is a new one- on Saturday, I was out at my parents', washing clothes. Mom and I are sitting at the table, talking. Dylan comes over to get some cookies from me. Dad walks into the room, leans down and says 'Tell Grandma that you're a boy and you pee standing up.' Dylan giggles, looks at me, looks at Grandpa, looks at Grandma. I tell him to go ahead and say it. He giggles some more and gets this evil look in his eye. I should have known what was coming, but I didn't.
Dylan looks at Grandma and says 'Grandpa says I a boy and he's a duh ass.' Translation: 'Grandpa says that I'm a boy and that he's a dumb ass.' I about fall out of my chair laughing, my mom- who didn't understand what he says 'you are? That's great!' I continue to laugh hysterically. Dad puffs out his chest and says 'Yes, you're a big boy and you pee standing up!' I'm still laughing. My parents are looking at me funny. It took me a few minutes, but finally, I was able to spit out, between giggles, that he did not say that. They ask what he said- and I told them that he called Dad a dumb ass. (in my best Conan voice: I'm gonna go to hell when I die). Yeah, great mommy moment there, especially when I had a hard time keeping from laughing when I tried to explain to him that we don't call our grandparents dumb asses.

Shortly after Dylan finally potty trained, my parents installed a new toilet in our bathroom. Dylan now swears up and down that this is HIS POTTY and he got is because he's a big boy. I hadn't heard much about it being his potty for a few weeks, until the other night. Mike's friend Ed had stopped by, and Dylan decided that he just had to show Ed his new potty. I'm watching TV in the living room, and hear from the bathroom: 'See! My potty!' 'Cool!' 'Wanna see me pee in it?' 'Uh, no, dude, you can pee by yourself.' Poor Ed.

Life with Dylan is pretty interesting. It can be trying at times (his favorite phrase lately is 'I no like you, Mommy' and usually comes when I tell him that he can't have a sucker, or he has to go to bed), but it's worth it when he decides that he needs a hug and a kiss. I take them while I can get them.

Check Out TDC Today!

2006-05-13T08:09:00.000-05:00

Stop by TDC today for a sale, chats, crops, games, a Treasure Hunt, and Prizes!

Hope to see you there!

Announcing....

2006-05-02T23:03:00.000-05:00

The newest members of my creative team!

*Drumroll*

Carla G.

Dorothy M.

Johanna B.

Justine H.

Marie D.

Traci B.

The decision wasn't easy- and I ended up taking six instead of the intended five. Thank you to all who applied- and congrats to the six that made it!

Seven Stitches And One Helluva Black Eye

2006-05-02T10:30:00.000-05:00

Kindergarten brawl over the water fountain? Nope. What happens when you tackle a porcupine? Guess again. What happens when you smart mouth your mother? Ok, now that one was a little harsh, and NO it did not happen.

This is what happens when you add slip on wet floors at a fish store. You get seven stitches and one helluva black eye.

I knew- KNEW- that Cody was accident prone. The kid is just like me, in that aspect. I'm starting to understand why my mother didn't want to take me places when I was his age- she was afraid that someone would call DCFS on her.

I spent yesterday evening in a panic- I wanted to be there, but knew that it was ridiculous for me to even drive to the hospital (forty minutes away), when I knew that all that I would do is make him nervous. He did great- told them that it didn't hurt, even when they were putting the stitches in. He's just like his father- things like this don't bother him. Although I'm still trying to figure out the child that screams 'it's broken!' when he scrapes his knee, yet wasn't bothered by them putting stitches on his face (near his eye, no less).

But- he's fine. I'm keeping him home from school today, just because he had a hard day yesterday. Tomorrow, he'll go to school and then to Wal*mart with Aunt Sam. What is bothering him is two things- first, he wants to know why Daddy couldn't take Dylan with him to the pet store and second, he's upset that he might not get to play in his first soccer game on Saturday (we're still going). I told him that he's lucky. When I was his age, I stepped on a piece of glass and ended up with something like six stitches in the bottom of my foot. I couldn't walk, couldn't go to school, had to crawl to the bathroom. I spent a week on the couch, watching TV. I didn't bother to tell him that scars add character and it's quite possible that some girl is going to swoon over his scar (hey, I still think that Mike's scar on his eyebrow is sexy).

Other than that- things are ok. The Ultimate Digi Scrapper contest started last night. I have one layout done, but am working on another. I know that I can only submit one, but I'm going to go with the best out of the two. I couldn't choose between two pictures- so I'm doing them both. 370 some odd people signed up for this. Over 170 will be eliminated after the first round, leaving an even 200. I'm hoping that I'm one of those two hundred. Screw the challenge aspect- I want to win!

Pot, Meet Kettle

2006-04-30T22:00:00.000-05:00

Let me introduce you to two of the men in my life.

First- there's my dad. I love my dad, I really do. But he has horrible follow through. It's an on going joke that when he says he'll do something, he means a week (or more) later. I know this. I understand this. I lived with that man for twenty years and am used to it.

Then- there's Mike. I love Mike, I really do. But he's about a reliable when it comes to following through on what he says he'll as my dad is. Mike is also easily distracted, which is why his family has gotten into the habit of telling us that something starts an hour before it actually does.

Remember my post from Thursday about being Supermom? Remember how Supermom was supposed to be learning how to put up drywall yesterday? Did I mention that it was my dad who was supposed to be helping me out with that? Yeah- I'm sure that you can see where this is going.

Saturday morning, I talked to my mom and she said that Dad wouldn't be able to do it because- and I quote- 'he's dragging today'. I was told that he'd do it today. I shrugged it off- I had a feeling that he would say something like that.

Mike came home last night and asked about it. I told him that it wasn't done. Mike got upset! Not pissed off upset, but huffy 'figures' upset. It was all that I could do to NOT laugh my ass off at him. I mean, hello?!? If Mike had, oh, I don't know, put the drywall up back in October, LIKE HE SHOULD HAVE, we wouldn't be sitting here in May with three very large sheets of drywall in the hallway. I can't wait for him to get home tonight, because he's going to say something about them being there still. *rolling my eyes in advance*

I have decided that I really don't like my wireless connection right now. It's driving me absolutely insane. I've spent most of the day trying to upload something that needs to be in the store tonight so that it can be in the boutique on Thursday and my damn connection keeps timing out on me. All because my wireless connection is acting screwy today. It's better now, at least I'm up to 37% uploaded instead of the one or two percent that it was timing out on earlier.

I'm tired. And I'm boring today. I want to go to sleep but can't until this freakin frackin file uploads. Is it possible to choke a computer?

Just Call Me Supermom.

2006-04-27T21:48:00.000-05:00

Between the hours of 930am and 6pm, I was home for only about 15-20 minutes at any one time. Between those stops at home, I have been:

to the local grocery store three times.
to Wal*Mart.
to the local laundromat.
to Cody's school twice.
to my parents' house twice.
to the lumberyard.

Not necessarily in that order. It was more like laundromat, grocery store, grocery store, school, Wal*mart, school, my parents' house, the lumberyard, my parents' house, grocery store.

And even with all that, my kitchen still got cleaned. Oh- and let's not forget that for some odd reason, my normally independent two year old needed his mommy to the point that he screamed (and yes, I do mean SCREAMED) NO!!!! to his Aunt Sam and ran straight for me when he somehow hurt himself.

How does Supermom do it? Really simple, actually. I got my trusty sidekick, Dad, The Boy Wonder, to clean the kitchen for me. He also helped load the truck with the drywall. And on Saturday, Supermom is going to learn how to hang drywall.

Of course, Dad The Boy Wonder still has issues cleaning (how is it even possible that I have more work when he's done cleaning than I did before he started? How?), but the point is- he did clean something today.

Now, if only I could get Rosie The Wonder Puppy to quit jumped our fence, I'd be very happy.

Happy Birthday!

2006-04-25T10:47:00.000-05:00

To me, that is. And to celebrate my birthday- I'm having a sale at TDC, and posting this little freebie here:

It's only available as a freebie for a few hours. I'll be killing the links in three hours- so, get the freebie now, while you can.

*Download Removed- thank you for stopping by! The Beach Bum paper pack, kit, and element pack will be available at TDC next week!*

Do I even need to say it? Please don't share this- as after I've removed the download link, I will be uploading it to TDC and the only way to get this kit will be to buy it after next week.

So- on to other, more important stuff. It's my birthday! And it was almost ruined by my dick of a husband (ooo- did I just say that?). I'm sorry that I'm not psychic and didn't KNOW that the dog pooped in the laundry room. The only time that I was in the laundry room this morning was when I let Rosie out and back in. Instead of calmly asking for the paper towels in order to clean it up, he proceeded to yell about how disgusting it was. Gee, ya think? Of course it's disgusting! It's dog poop! And it wasn't just that he was yelling- it's that he was yelling at me about it. As if I didn't let Rosie out this morning (which I did- but it was raining outside and Rosie has this thing about rain- she doesn't like it). So it was a not so wonderful start. I've just decided that the best thing to do would be to ignore him and get on with my day.

Which is exactly what it is- MY DAY. I'm making an apple cake with caramel sauce this afternoon- yummy. It's been a good birthday (minus the part about Mike freaking out of over dog poop). I got a iPod Nano from Mike, a bread machine and an electric skillet from my parents. And yes, I'm happy with my gifts. I asked my mom for one or the other, and she bought them both (I love my mom). I've decided that I'm only doing the bare minimum around here- no housework on my birthday (except what needs to be done- funny how people are so picky about clean underwear!).

I've been reading some good books lately. I read The Da Vinci Code over the weekend (good book), and then read The sacrifice by Barbara Lewis in two days, and am now reading The Prodigal (also by Lewis). I'm loving this series, and am kinda sad that once I've read The Prodigal, I'll only have one more book to read. My mom and I are reading them- she buys the books, reads them, then shares them with me. The series starts with The Covenant, then there's The Betrayal, then The sacrifice, The Prodigal, and The Revelation. The series is about an Amish family, set the late forties/early fifties. It's all that I can do to keep from curling up in bed and reading The Prodigal in one day (which is what I did with The Betrayal).

Otherwise- that's it. Enjoy your free kit, and happy birthday to me!

*Edited* I should have taken the link down a half hour ago, but decided to leave it up for another few hours because at least one person was having problems downloading. The link will be removed at 5pm Central. :)

I Don't Scrap Anymore

2006-04-23T11:40:00.000-05:00

I spend just as much time on my computer as I did before, I check out the galleries, visit TDC and Veggieville as often as I did before, I'm constantly changing the batteries in my camera, my hard drive is going to burst if I add just one more kit to my collection, Photoshop is always open, but I don't scrap anymore.

I'm obsessed with glitter, rhinestones, colors. I adore ribbons, worship at the First Church of Wacom, look at fashion magazines not for the clothes, but the patterns and colors of the clothes. I subscribe to Memory Makers, and flip through each new magazine the first time looking for digital layouts, and buy any magazine issue with the word 'Digital' in the title. But I don't scrap anymore.

My husband doesn't understand it. When he asks to see my recent layouts, he's confused. If I'm spending all this time on the computer, then I should be productive and have created a multitude of layouts. But I don't scrap anymore.

I giggle when I see something new. I take mental notes. I subscribe to sites where I can learn how to do things better. But I don't scrap anymore.

I have fallen into a trap, and can't get out. I'm always on the look out for interesting patterns, colors, textures. I'm always looking for the new, the unique, the different. The thing is- I don't want to get out of this trap. I'm happy being stuck here, even if I don't scrap anymore.

I'm a designer and I don't scrap anymore.

Introductions All Around

2006-04-21T10:36:00.000-05:00

We have a guest today at our house. He loves zippers, zebras, and zinnias. He can be found in Zurich, and loves to zap things.

He is...

The letter Z! Cody's class has met all of their 'letter friends' at school, and today is their party celebrating the fact that they have met all twenty six letters of the alphabet. All the kids are dressing up as their favorite letter friends- Cody chose 'Z' because Z has a lot of zippers.

Now- I don't sew. What you don't see in this picture is the many safety pins that is holding the felt and zippers on his shirt. Cody helped me design the shirt- he chose where all the zippers went and I pinned them on. He's excited- as is the rest of his class. They've been talking all week about what letters they were going to be- he told me yesterday that his friends are going to be R, N, and D.

I'm kicking myself right now. Tomorrow, my parents are having a cook out for my birthday. A couple weeks ago, my mil asked me if we had any plans for this weekend. At the time, we didn't. So I told her that yes, she could take Cody for the weekend so that they could take him to the zoo with his cousin Matthew. I completely and totally forgot about it. So when my mom said that she was cooking out this weekend, I told her 'great!'

Oops. This is only a problem because of my neice. It's hard for her- with her sister being special needs, and my younger two being too young to have the same interests as Jessie, the only person that she really plays with is Cody. So now I'm kicking myself for not remembering that Cody was going with my mil. Ugh, ugh, ugh. I feel horrible about this. Note to self: write everything down as soon as you hear about it.

I need to get my butt in gear today and clean my house. At the very least, I need to get my kitchen clean. And I have to do laundry today. And my laundry has to be done before five, because that is when mil will be here to pick up Cody. Oh- and let's not forget that I have complete a kit today, so that I can upload it by Sunday and won't be home tomorrow. Oh- and on top of all this, I promised the boys that I'd let them play outside in the sandbox this afternoon. Mom bought four bags of sand for them, and it's killing them that they haven't been out in the sandbox to play in it (well- Evan has been, but only because he was the only one home at the time).

He Did What?!?

2006-04-19T20:39:00.000-05:00

I spent this afternoon cleaning up the fenced in part of our yard. I finally tossed all the junk that was back there (not including the boys' toys) that has been needing to go out with the trash for who knows how long. The good news is- the couch is finally (FINALLY) going away! Yay!

The tossing of the junk didn't take all that long. What took a long time was replacing all the bricks that the boys had somehow managed to pull up and move around the back yard. Years ago, my father had laid old bricks down to make a sort of patio back there. That's where the bricks came from- and today, that is where they returned. I'm not quite done yet- there's still some bricks that need to be replaced, and toys that need to be organized, but it feels good to actually be able to walk on my patio without tripping over something.

There is a tote sitting outside because my beautiful, wonderful, absolutely adorable child that I was praising for his potty training prowess did a very disgusting smelly thing with it.

For the last week or so, every time that I walked down the hallway, I was assaulted with the stench of urine. I blamed it on Rosie- and would put her in her crate if I happened to see a puddle on the floor. Then- today, while cleaning my hallway, I was putting toys in the totes that I keep in the hallway for that purpose. I filled up one tote, moved on to the next, filled that one, and moved on to the next. I went to put some toys inside it... and oh... Oh. My. God. I found where the stench was coming from.

The tote was nearly empty- it was holding hot wheels cars, legos, things about that size. They were swimming- yes, SWIMMING- in pee. Yuck. I picked the tote up and took it outside- tomorrow, the toys are going in the trash and I'm washing the tote out with bleach. It will now be their outdoor toy box. I go back inside, and continue to pick up toys. I then pick up a stuffed animal and it's soaked. I didn't even have to move it closer to my face to know what it was soaked in. Yuck, yuck, yuck. It went out in the trash. I had to go through the other totes to see if I put in anything that had pee on it- and also to see if there was pee in any of them. I found the toys (not many), took them outside to be taken care of, and proceeded to mop my hallway floor. Twice.

I asked Cody about it- he knows nothing. I asked Dylan about it- and my wonderful, beautiful, absolutely adorable child told me that he did it.

At least he was honest about it. When I asked him why, he calmly told me that he couldn't turn on the light in the bathroom, so he peed in the hallway. Oh my. I pointed out to him that at any time, he can ask Mommy or Daddy or Cody and we'd turn the light on for him. Let's hope that this is the last of my Hallway As A Bathroom episodes until it's Evan's turn to potty train. As for Rosie- she got extra cuddle time tonight and some of her favorite treats because I feel so bad that I blamed her for the puddles when it wasn't her at all (or at least, not all of them).

I'm trying to work on new kits- I really need to get my butt in gear, but lately- I've been too busy outside or trying to keep up with the mess inside or just wanting to sit and vegetate. Oh- and a new book doesn't help. I'm finally reading the Da Vinci Code. It's good- not what I expected, and it took a few chapters for me to get into it, but I like it.

I changed my template today, simply because I wanted to. I wanted a three column template and found one. Yeah, it's plain, but I can deal with that- for now. I still need to tweak it (I'm not liking the large font thing that's going on here), but it will work for now.

Lightbulb Moment

2006-04-18T13:50:00.000-05:00

I get these lightbulb moments every once in awhile- I think that most people do. It's where you see something and *lightbulb* you realize something important that you should have known all along.

I walked Cody to school today. Nothing out of the ordinary, it's a nice day, I like walking, and besides- I don't have a car or any other way to get him to school (stupid gas prices forcing the school to cut back on the bus riders, grumble, grumble). So- we walk. Cody whines about it, I attempt to ignore him. For awhile, we raced on the way home. He almost always won (hey- it's hard to run when you're pushing a tandem stroller with two kids in it). Today- we walked. I said my typical goodbye ('Goodbye, love you, have fun, and for heaven's sake- please be good!'), and I turned that stroller around and headed home.

On the way, I just happened to glance down at my shadow. I studied it, looked up, attempted to ignore it. Couldn't do it- I had to look down. I stared. I stopped the stroller (not caring that people were driving by and most likely staring at me staring at my shadow), continued to look. Then it hit me.

My butt shadow is as wide as my stroller (which isn't one of those little itty bitty lightweight strollers, nor is it a side by side double stroller- my butt isn't that big, yet). It hit me again.

I. Am. Fat.

When I got home, I checked myself out in the mirror. I'm wearing my cute 3/4 sleeve button up white top, my Old Navy jeans, and my cute pink, blue and white striped slides. I check out my neck- hint of a double chin (not good). I look at the top half of my body- a little wider than I'd like to be (not good). I look at my butt.

I shouldn't have looked at my butt. No. Wait. If I hadn't have looked at my butt, that lightbulb moment would have been ignored and forgotten and I'd have gone on living my life the way that I have been living it.

I'm not liking my butt right now. I'm liking how my legs feel after walking just over a mile (I won't be liking how they feel later tonight, after walking 2.4 miles, but that is a necessary evil).

I realized today that I've been ignoring the problem. I've been pretending that I'm ok with the way that I look, when I'm not. I'm fat. I don't want to be fat. I don't want to pretend that I carry the weight well (when I know that I most definitely do NOT). I don't want to have to buy my Old Navy jeans off eBay or online. I want to be able to walk into any store at the mall and know that they have my size.

So- today I start. Healthy foods. Balanced meals. No more of this junk food. I'm limiting the amount of pop that I drink to two cans a day. More walking. More running with the boys instead of watching them run. We'll take more walks (poor Cody), be more active.

I'm starting small- with baby steps. Up for this week- healthy meals.

Egg Hunts, iPods, and Airbrushing

2006-04-16T17:20:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, my parents and I took the boys to the local easter egg hunt at the local park. I hate going to this- have for years. Growing up, I hated it simply because it was highly unlikely that I would ever find an egg. Back then, I blamed the other kids- I thought them to be selfish, uncaring, and- most of all- unfair.

Now that I'm a parent and taking my kids to these things, I realize that it's not the kids that were being selfish, uncaring, and unfair.

It was the parents. It's amazing the number of parents who stand at the sidelines, or follow their kids around, pointing out all the eggs. Or how many people walk the grounds before the egg hunt, scoping for eggs and informing their children where to look. My younger two, they had a ball. They got two eggs each. But my oldest is disenchanted with the large town egg hunt already. It's frustrating for him, and I'm wondering how long before we won't go, at all.

Did I ever tell you that my father knows the Easter Bunny? Yep- he does. He used to travel a lot when my sister and I were little, and he used to say that he knew Santa Claus. I expanded it to where he knew the Easter Bunny, and told my boys last night that the Easter Bunny was planning a big surprise out at Grandma and Grandpa's. After Cody got home from church, we discovered that the surprise was an egg hunt! The boys had a ball- and Cody got so many eggs that we had to ask him to slow down so that Evan and Dylan had a chance to get some.

I got my iPod yesterday. I'm so happy. *Joys* Really not much more to it than that, just wanted to say... I got my iPod yesterday.

I needed to get a picture of myself with my mom today. I didn't tell her why or anything like that- just had Cody take a picture of the two of us. When I told her- she glared at me and asked me why I didn't give her any warning, she would have changed her shirt, brushed her hair, yadda yadda yadda. I just looked at her and told her 'that is what Photoshop is for.' Her eyes lit up- and she asked me if I would airbrush her, lol! So that's what I'm doing, right now. I'm 'fixing' us. Not that I think that we needed it, but because I had Cody take the picture. Let's just say that Cody's hand isn't all that steady and while we're recognizable, we're also too blurry. I'm having fun while doing it. We did get a great picture of the two of us- and I think that is the one that I'm going to use for this thing that we need it for.

Creative Team Call!

2006-04-14T22:27:00.000-05:00

I'm looking to add five people to my creative team. The object of my creative team is to promote my kits by creating layouts and posting in galleries around the web.

Team requirements are simple. Team members will receive 2-8 kits a month (depending on how productive I am that month), FREE. They will be required to post two layouts total to the Digi Chick gallery, and then send me the link to the gallery post, via email. Team members may create as many layouts as they wish and post where they wish, after posting the two layouts to the Digi Chick gallery. Please note that my creative team members will NOT be part of The Digi Chick staff.

If you are interested, and think that you have what it takes, please send me an email at mydnyghtwhyspers@mchsi.com with the following information:

Your name and email address
Tell me about yourself- anything that you want me to know (no one will be judged on this- I just want to get to know people better).
If you are a Digi Chick member, your Digi Chick screen name
A sample layout, no smaller than 600px wide, using one of my kits. Don't have one yet? You may use my free sample mini kit, Denim Dreams, found in TDC's boutique.
A link to the online gallery that you post to the most.
Answer these questions: Why do you want to be on my creative team? Who or what is your favorite subject matter for layouts and why?

Please note that piracy will not be tolerated. I reserve the right to ask team members to leave should I find out that they are sharing my kits without my permission. If this is something that you can not do, please do not apply for my team.

Application deadline is Friday April 28^th 2006. Team members will be chosen and notified by May 1^st 2006, with a formal announcement on my blog made between May 3^rd and May 5^th. If you have any questions- please don't hesitate to ask.

Ventarama

2006-04-14T11:46:00.000-05:00

I love Rosie, I really do. I love Mike, I really do.

Growing up, we had a dog that loved to run. He'd take any chance he could get to get out of my parents' fence or off his chain (before we had the fence- and no, he didn't spend all day on his chain), and he'd just run. He loved to feel the wind in his hair, to meet other dogs, to 'see the world' (or at least our town). I remember having to chase him and look for him in all sorts of weather- freezing cold, rain, boiling heat. Ugh- not fun. I told myself that as much as I loved Arly, I didn't want a runner when I grew up and got a dog.

What did we get? Rosie the Runner. I adore her- she's really cute and playful and generally a good dog. But- damn. I hate chasing her when she gets out. Last night, I told him to be careful to not let Rosie out of the fence. He claimed that she didn't get out with him there- she 'knew' that she couldn't do that. Guess what she did.

She got out. She didn't get far, Mike bent down and picked her up and handed her to me, but I still laughed at him. This morning- he claimed that he didn't know that she was in the fence and accidentally let her out- again. This time, he wasn't able to grab her and she ran. What did he do? He came back inside and told me that I had to go get her.

I grabbed a treat and her leash and went looking, while Mike got into his car to go to work. I'm walking, asking Rosie if she wants a treat, and she keeps looking at me and running away. I turn around to go grab her leash and the kids and put them in the stroller, because Mike is leaving and I'm not about to leave the kids home alone while I'm out chasing after the dog. He stops, gets out, crouches down, and says 'come here Rosie' and she comes to him.

If it was going to be so freaking easy for him in the first place, then why the hell couldn't he have done that when she got out? Oh- and to make matters worse, he scolds her! NO! You don't do that! Then she'll figure out 'I got out, I'm going to get in trouble, I'm not going to him'. UGH!

My house is a disaster- but it looks like rain today, so I'm probably going to be able to actually get something done. To look at my house, you wouldn't believe that two days ago, it was clean!

Last night, I learned something new about Rosie. She's a wimp about storms. We got the tail end of a really nasty storm last night. We had the thunder and lightening, and some of the wind. I was sitting on the couch, watching Survivor and CSI (recorded). When it would thunder, Rosie would lift her head and look at me- making sure that I was still there, I think. Then she'd go back to sleep. When there was on particularly loud clap of thunder- I found myself with a 20 ball of furry energy in my lap. Rosie had jumped up and ran for me- and when she figured out that it wasn't happening again, she climbed up on the back of the couch, and cuddled up against my neck. I laughed at her- apparently, she didn't want to seem like a wimp, but she also didn't want to go far from me.

And now I get to go clean my living room. *Joys*

I'm Going For It...

2006-04-14T00:53:00.000-05:00

I have bad luck with contests. I think it's the whole deadline thing. That- or it could have something to do with my 'I'm not going to spam for votes' thing. I tried it once and felt so... dirty.

Anyway- I'm entering a contest just for the fun of it. Hey- it means that I'm going to be challenged in some shape or form and I'll get to have fun. The contest is The Ultimate Digi-Scrapper. I'll admit that I'm liking the prize options here. They said the magic 'c' word- CASH.

Seriously though, as much as I'd like to win and be considered the Ultimate Digi-Scrapper, I'm not doing it for the prizes or the recognition. It's the challenge of it. We need more large contests like these- ones that make us think outside the box.

Since yesterday was such a nice day, we spent some time outside in the front yard. The boys 'helped' me with some yard work. I've decided that I'm no longer going to buy them toys. I'll just get each of them their own barrel of dirt. All three had a ball digging holes and burying toys and cars in this old barrel full of dirt that sits in our front yard. I'd like to plant something in it- but heck, they probably wouldn't be able to keep their hands out of it long enough for something to actually grow there.

My tulips are coming up. They have buds on them and will soon be blooming. I have huge gaps that need to be filled in- that's my goal for this year, to get more tulip bulbs planted so that instead of having a tulip here and a tulip there I have a nice row of them lining the planter in the front yard.

I'm looking for things to plant inside the planter. There's a lilac bush and two other bushes (can't remember what they are- will have to ask my mom) in there already and I'd like some nice ground cover and maybe a few other types of flowers. Rocking chairs are a must have for our front porch- I'd like to be able to sit out there on summer evenings.

No sign of my iPod or purse yet, so I am still stalking the mailman. Mike got his new monitor and mouse today, so he's now done stalking Mr Mailman. It will be nice when I don't have to race him to get to the mail first anymore.

Beautiful Day

2006-04-12T11:25:00.000-05:00

I'm loving this. It's bright and sunny, and 70 degrees outside right now. All of my windows are open, I'm wearing capris and sandals, and I'm planning on doing some yard work this afternoon.

I noticed last week that my tulips are up. Not blooming, yet, but the leaves are up and it's very noticable that there are tulips coming up. I love spring. I love looking out my dining room window and seeing budding leaves on the lilac bush planted tere, or the bright yellow new leaves on the bush in front of the picture window in the living room. Because it has been so nice out, I haven't wanted to stay inside and do anything. But I have to- I have to get my house cleaned before I even consider going out to do anything in the yard.

I have one new kit releasing tomorrow- Looking Back. This has to be one of my favorite kits to make so far.

I really need to work on more kits- but it's been so nice outside! If I'm going to make my goal for this month, I need to get my butt in gear and get something done.

My birthday is this month. I want to do something for it- but not sure what. I've considered a sale- but not sure if that's what I want to do just yet. But- speaking of my birthday, guess what my sexy, amazingly handsome, simply wonderful husband bought me for my birthday? A 4gig iPod Nano!

Yes- I'm getting an iPod for my birthday! Woohoo! He surprised me with it- he needed to new mouse for his computer (his cordless optical mouse went for a swim in a five gallon bucket of saltwater last week- don't ask), and he said 'here, I ordered these today' while handing me the invoices. I looked at the top one- a new mouse, plus a new monitor for his computer. Okay, thanks for telling me. Then I looked at the second page.

It was an invoice for the iPod. I looked at him, and said 'you ordered an iPod?' I figured that it was for his drive to work- he could plug it in to his car stereo. He said 'no, that's for you.' I jumped up and kissed him, and did my 'happy happy joy joy' dance. Now I have two to four weeks of stalking the UPS guy until it gets here. Yay!

What Do You Do When The Operator Won't Listen?

2006-04-08T19:06:00.000-05:00

911.

My mother and I were talking about this today. We teach our children their address, their phone number, to find a policeman or store employee when they get lost, and to call 911 if something happens. We teach them to trust that the 911 operator is going to take them seriously, that the operator will hold their hand by staying on the phone, talking to them, until the police arrive.

But how do we combat this? What do we teach our children to do, should the 911 operator NOT believe them?

I'm angry at the operator. I'm upset for this little boy. He's the same age- THE SAME AGE- as my oldest son. This little boy's faith in the system has been shaken. Will he ever trust 911 again? I don't know. But I can't imagine that he'll forget the day that he watched his mother die while a voice on the phone told him that if he didn't stop playing pranks they'd call the cops on him.

Phones are interesting pieces of equipment. From the time that a child is born, they learn that the phone is something that takes the attention of their parents from them. They watch their parents answer the phone, and usually- they watch the happiness and joy spread across their parents' faces when they are talking. When they're older, they learn that if you push numbers, you can call someone else- even Grandma! Is it no wonder that kids are fascinated- and that it's entirely possible that they could easily dial 911 on the phone, on accident? It happens- sometimes, it's a mistake. Other times, it's a prank.

911 operators should never- NEVER- think that a five year old child calling to say that their mother just fell and that she's not getting up is purposely pranking them. Doesn't matter how old the child in question is- they should never ignore calls that might be pranks.

Because there's always the chance that it's not a prank.

Starting now, I'll be teaching my child the direct number of our police department. Just in case.

Mommy Moments

2006-04-07T10:57:00.000-05:00

This morning- I had a proud Mommy Moment.

It actually started last night. Dylan has still been wearing pull ups at night, as a 'just in case'. I usually put him in a pull up around 8pm, and he falls asleep shortly after.

Last night- I told him that it was time to put his pull up on, and he told me that he was going to use the potty, even though he was wearing a pull up. And he did. Twice (then he fell asleep).

I woke up this morning, and Dylan's first words to me were: 'Mommy, I nee unner wear.' (translation: Mommy, I need underwear.)

After the shock wore off, I went looking for clean underwear for him. I was so proud of him! No arguing! No fighting with me about this! No insistance that he's still little!

Yay! Yay! Yay!

So- that's the story of my proud Mommy Moment. Want to hear the story of my not so proud Mommy Moment?

Cody and Dylan got into an arguement this morning (ok- so they get into quite a few every morning). This morning's arguement was over cars or something. I'm at my computer, drinking my morning coffee, half listening to what is going on in the living room, when I hear

'I'm going to hit you!' Uh oh. Mommy radar goes off, and I go to the living room to see what's up. I told Cody that he is not allowed to hit his brothers- that he needs to find some other way of dealing with them. Cody claims that Dylan threw something at him. I explain that unless both they both tell me the truth, I can't punish for what I didn't see happen. Since I got two stories at once- I told them that the only punishment that I can give is to separate them- Cody at one end of the room, Dylan at the other.

I go to get Evan some milk. Mommy radar goes off when I hear Dylan screaming in the living room. I look in- I ask him what happened- he said 'Cody hurt me'. I told Cody that Dylan doesn't lie about being hurt, and I want to know what he did to hurt him. Cody threw something at him (most likely because I didn't do anything to hurt Dylan when he hurt Cody). So I told Cody that he is not allowed to hurt his brother, and I told Dylan that he is not allowed to hurt his brother.

I go back to pouring Evan his milk, and go grab a pair of socks for Mike (because the man can't dress himself in the morning- what on earth did he do before I married him???). Dylan brings his cup to the gate in the doorway of the kitchen and tells me, matter of factly, that Cody is no longer his brother and that he'd like some milk, please.

Poor kid. I tried explaining to him that he will always have his brothers- but he kept insisting that no, Cody is no longer his brother, because he says so.

*Sigh* Boys.

Pirates Have Rights Too!

2006-04-06T13:14:00.000-05:00

I'm willing to actually believe that, provided that said pirate is Johnny Depp as Captain Sparrow (such a hottie all dirtied up as a pirate- yummy).

But when it comes to stealing my stuff? No- I'm sorry, but you don't have any rights. Check this out: Scrap-Fanatics.

DO THE FACT THAT PAID DIGI COPS ARE HARRASSING EVERY SINGLE SCRAP MEMBER IN YAHOO OVER FREE KITS! THIS IS FREE KITS PEOPLE NOT PAID KITS.ALL OWNERS HAVE DONE THERE BEST TO FILTER OUT BUT ITS NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR THESE HARRASSING PEOPLE.

Oh, yippie. I'm a digi cop. Where's my badge? Not only am I a digi cop, I'm harassing these poor people. Owners filtering out? No. That's not good enough. Because all that they filter out are the kits of the people who complain to them- everything else is still 'fair game'.

THEY ALSO DONT WANT PSPERS TO MAKE SCRAPTAGS WITH ANY SCRAP EVEN IF THEY BUY THEIR KITS!! WHO ARE THEY TO TELL WHAT WE DO WITH OUT SCRAP KITS IF WE BUY IT...ITS OURS ISNT IT?

No- when you buy artwork, it isn't yours. This includes digital kits. If you want to make and hand out tags, then you need to get a commercial license. A commercial license will allow you to make your tags and hand them out in peace. Tags for personal use- ok. Tags for everyone else: not okay without a commercial license.

Oh- and read the terms. By reading them, you'd save yourselves a lot of time and quite possibly your groups. And the digi cops wouldn't have to 'harass' you for doing illegal stuff, in the first place.

THEY TOLD ME THAT THE FREE KITS ARE NOT FREE THEY ARE TO LURE PEOPLE INTO THEIR SITE TO BUY SOMETHING..WHA SOLICITORS WHAT CON ARTISTS..THEY ALL SHOULD BE BOYCOTTED THEY ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE ONLY OUT FOR MONEY. THEY DONT CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT MAKING MONEY. AND HALF THERE CREATIONS ARE NO GOOD. THE ONLY REASON WHY THEY ARE GETTIN CUSTOMERS BECAUSE THE CUSTOMERS DONT KNOW THERE ARE ACTUALLY FREE SITES OUT THERE WHERE THEY CAN GET THE BEST KITS.

Yep- you caught us. We only give out free stuff to lure people to our sites. Boycott all you want- at least if you are boycotting, you're not sharing my stuff.

Oh- and if our stuff is 'no good', then why the hell are you sharing it??? This, I don't understand. You are willing to do something illegal for stuff that YOU DON'T EVEN LIKE? Mind boggling.

Can you share these free sites with the 'best' kits, please? I'd like to see where I'm going wrong. Maybe I'll just point my customers in their direction, because obviously my stuff is crap that isn't worthy of being pirated. (In case you can't tell, I'm being sarcastic.)

THERE ARE BETTER MORE TALENTED DIGI SCRAP DESIGNERS WHO DO THIS FOR THE PASSION FOR THE ENJOYMENT OF OTHERS THEY ARE NOT MONEY HUNGRY PEOPLE THEY WANT EVERYONE TO ENJOY WHAT THEY CREATE.

Digital design is my passion. I sell my designs because I'm a stay at home mom, and I'd feel guilty spending some of the money that my husband makes on the things that I really love- things that are related to my passion. Money hungry? Nope- not even close. I just want to make enough money to spend it on other kits, fonts, and computer hardware. That's it.

Someone who is passionate about this hobby is someone who is willing to take the time to learn how to do things, to learn how to make themselves better at it, is willing to take criticism. Got a problem with my designs? Bring it on!

READ MORE HERE
http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&thread_id=1687357

Go ahead. Read it.

I MYSELF AN BOYCOTTING ALL PAID SITES FOR THIS REASON

Yippie!

THEY ARE SENDING SPYS INTO YAHOO GROUPS "ENTRAMPING" PEOPLE TO DO SOMETHING WRONG SO THEY CAN RUN AND REPORT YOU. ISNT THAT ILLEGAL? ISNT HARRASSMENT ILLEGAL??
SOMETHING MUST BE DONE WITH THESE MONEY HUNGRY LYING PEOPLE..DONT GET SUCKED UP INTO THEIR OWN GLOREY AND DONT LET THEM SUCK UP YOUR MONEY EATHER!

Entrapment (no 'm', 'tramping' is a word, 'entramping' is not) is something that only a law enforcement official can do, and it only applies if the law enforcement officer has made you do something that you didn't want to do. Ask a lawyer- I'll wait.

Oh- and something else. GLORY. No 'e'. EITHER. The 'a' is an 'i'. You can spell harassment, but you can't spell something as simple as 'glory'?

Here are some links for you: Yahoo's Copyright Policy. Quoted from the policy:

It is Yahoo!’s policy, in appropriate circumstances and at its discretion, to disable and/or terminate the accounts of users who may infringe or repeatedly infringe the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of Yahoo! and/or others.

(which basically means- continue to share my kits and I have the legal right to shut you down).
and from Yahoo's Terms Of Service:

upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any Content that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights ("Rights") of any party;

(like it or not, even free kits are copyrighted to the individual who created them. And since Yahoo's policy is to delete the accounts of copyright violaters, I still have the legal right to shut you down.)
And from my TOU, included in EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MY KITS, free or not:

You may not offer any Tracey Lee/The DigiChick.com graphics on any website for download, send them through a list such as a news or Yahoo group or include them in
any graphics collection either on the internet or otherwise.

In other words- go ahead and contact your lawyer, attempt to file harassment charges against me. Think you'll win? Think again. You don't have a legal leg to stand on. Face it- what you are doing is ILLEGAL. Sue me? Try it. Let's see how fast I sue you for copyright infringment.

In other words: do not fuck with me.

Credits: The crazy posts come from the Scrap-Fanatic Yahoo Group home page. Anyone can read it there- I did not right it (I'm not insane, I swear). The pieces from Yahoo's copyright policy and terms of service comes from Yahoo. The last quote comes directly from my own terms of use, which is included in every single kit that I make.

Taboo

2006-04-05T13:23:00.000-05:00

I have the hardest time mixing and matching kits. I've never considered myself a perfectionist, but I have trouble with this.

The alphas are mixed and matched- taken from kits created by Holly McCaig, Shabby Princess, Jan Crowley, and Christie Putz (I'm hoping that I'm not forgetting anyone). I wanted a mix and match feel because, well- look at my bulletin board. It's not neat, it's not perfect, things overlap, things are hidden, it's just a collection of things that I've deemed 'bulletin board worthy'.

I've always wanted a bulletin board. I've wanted some place where I can post things that I need- like the note from Cody's soccer coach, explaining when the games are and what we're doing about practices.

Anyway- I'm looking at this layout and I'm just not entirely happy with it. It feels all mixed up to me- yet when I look at layouts that mix and match kits created by someone else, they look great. It's almost as if my mind is telling me that this is taboo- you can't mix and match things (even though I know that you can).

It's a beautiful day here. Sunny and bright, and I'm sitting inside on my computer. There's something wrong with this picture. This afternoon, I'm going to send the boys outside to play and I think that I'll take my pad of paper and camera and sit and watch them. Maybe I'll get some ideas for a new kit.

Did I tell you that I'm blocked? I'm thinking that part of it is because I've ordered a new Dover book and I'm stalking the mailman waiting for it. I got an email stating that it should be there anytime between today and Saturday- I'm hoping for today. The other part is that it's been so nice outside, and I want to just go outside and play with the boys.

On the potty training front- we're down to 20 minutes of temper tantrum before he finally gives in and puts his underwear on.

Dylan is now telling me that he's 'rich' because he has a 'dollar'. Yesterday, I got in the mail one of those 'sign up for American Express' deals. Inside it- there was a magnet in the shape of an American Express card. Dylan's calling this his 'dollar'. He's been carrying it all over the house, and gets upset when he loses it. He's so cute. Note to self: get pictures of him with his 'dollar'.

Yesterday, I took the kids to the park. The one closest to us is just a small part- a swingset, merry go round, and jungle gym. Nothing big, nothing fancy. My only problem with this park is that the slide is very high up. I have no problems letting Cody and Dylan go up and down the slide- but it makes me nervous because slides are Evan's favorite part of the park. He wants to climb up the ladder, and I'm terrified that he'll fall off. I let him climb up it once- and he got up there and went down the slide face first on his belly. It was scary! For me! He cried because his face ended up in the rocks (he wasn't hurt), but then he wanted to do it again. We had to compromise and I would set him on the slide about halfway up and let him go down it.

Entitlement

2006-04-04T17:12:00.000-05:00

I have this thing about people with entitlement issues.

I just don't like them. {Snip}

Ya know what? It's not worth it. I had this nice long post all written up and ready to go all about the issues that have been floating around a certain site with 'cherry' in the name and just decided to delete it. *Poof!* Not gonna go there, I'm moving on.

So- I'm going to talk about good stuff today. What I am going to talk about is my three year old and why he is entitled to hugs and kisses and Dum Dums and a trip to the park and a trip to a car show with Grandpa in a few weeks.

We've been potty training for the last week. It's. Been. Hell. He's so much like me, it's not even funny. I'm stubborn- he's about ten times worse. Oy vey. Yesterday, I finally figured out that it is a- pointless to argue with a three year old and b- pointless to give in to their demands. So- yesterday morning, I told him that I absolutely will not put a pull up on him. He has a choice- either wear underwear or go naked, but either way- he'll be using that potty.

He screamed. He stomped. He demanded. He did all that for THIRTY MINUTES. Finally- the screaming, stomping and demanding changed.

He wanted to wear underwear. So- we wore underwear. He used the potty all day long yesterday, only having one accident. He even pooped in the potty- without being asked! Yay Dylan!

So he's entitled to hugs and kisses, Dum Dums, a trip to the park, and a trip to a car show with Grandpa. Of course, we're not out of the woods yet- this morning we went through the same deal with the pull up versus underwear thing, but this time- he only screamed for 25 minutes. I'm still having him wear pull ups at night- I don't think he's ready for night training just yet.

The Satisfaction Of A New Find

2006-04-03T16:28:00.000-05:00

It's almost as good as walking into your favorite shoe store only to find out that they are having a half off, buy one get one sale. It sends shivers up your spine, and your clicking finger gets itchy and you just have to have whatever it is that you find.

I had one of those moments this morning. And lucky for me- it's a freebie. The Casual Collection by Christie.

I got lucky on this one. Sometimes, I get that feeling only to find out that there was a reason that the item was free in the first place. Not this morning! I drooled, I downloaded, I opened, and I'm happy. And now I'm going to be a Christie stalker.

Speaking of freebies- there's been even more talk around the boards about them. Now- it seems to be a piracy thing. Lots of good suggestions floating around on what to do about it- as well as many saying that maybe the freebies should stop. I don't see that happening. Too many generous personalities involved in this hobby. I really think that the only solution to this problem is for designers to think through their motives when it comes to freebies. My motives won't be the same as everybody else's motives.

The reason that keeps popping up is customer appreciation- we want to give back to the customers that support us or read our blogs or whatever. I think that there are other options that work just as well- coupon codes, free gift with purchase, etc. Another one being tossed around- customers want to sample our work. I like this one- and for this reason, will have at least one freebie available at TDC. But I don't see a need in changing it all that often, simply because it's just a sample of my work. Another option- a designer recently gave out a free sample that was basically one paper from each kit available on a CD. I like this idea. It's free, but it's not a full kit (or even a mini kit).

As for the piracy issues that keep coming up- it seems that the pirates who keep sharing our free kits do so because hey, it's free, therefore- it's not illegal. Wrong. If the TOU says 'no sharing', then you shouldn't be sharing it- end of discussion. I'm also loving reading about blacklists- apparently some designers are being blacklisted because they are standing up and protecting their work. Hey- if we have to be blacklisted in order to get people to stop sharing, that's fine with me.

Maybe We're A Little Too Sensitive...

2006-04-01T18:33:00.000-06:00

One reason that I love digital scrapbooking is the wonderful community. There are so many message boards, so many galleries, and I have yet to see a digital scrapbooker slam paper scrapbooking- in any way.

Things have changed in the three and a half years that I've been involved in this community. Message boards that were once predominantly paper are adding digital teams, galleries, tutorials. Paper scrappers are turning to digital scrapbookers for help answering questions. Threads slamming digital scrapbooking have pretty much disappeared (I'm sure that they still pop up from time to time, but I don't see them).

Today- A Cherry On Top published their April Newsletter. In that newsletter, there's this commentary on digital scrapbooking. I saw the link at 2Peas, and went to check it out.

I laughed. Seriously- this is a funny article. I began reading the comments- both at ACOT and at 2Peas and began to wonder something for myself.

Why are we so sensitive about this? It's a funny article. It's written by a paper scrapper who doesn't quite 'get it', but it's not written to be mean. It's her being honest about her feelings. She doesn't want to try digital scrapbooking (and hopefully nobody is forcing her), and she lists her reasons (in a hilarious manner) as to why she wants to stick to being a paste eater.

The comments. Oh boy, the comments. Now I'm wondering if maybe I should take a second look at that article- maybe I'm missing some underlying current of hostility of something. I re-read it. Three times. I laugh each time.

Nope- not seeing the hostility.

Now I'm left wondering if maybe we're a little too sensitive? Maybe we've seen too many people bash this hobby that we can't allow anyone to poke a little fun at themselves for not understanding it- or not even wanting to understand it. We need to poke fun at ourselves. We need to say 'ok, life isn't all that serious, and it really doesn't matter whether I'm a pixel pusher, a paste eater, biscraptual, or- heaven forbid- I don't scrap at all! *Gasp!*'

Yes- there are misconceptions about digital scrapbooking. Number one: you can be either a pixel pusher or a paste eater, you can't do both. *Buzzer noise, because I don't know how to write it* Wrong. You can be biscraptual. Being bi might mean that some layouts are paper, some are digital. Or it might be some sort of combination between the two, where each layout is part digital, part paper.

Another misconception: Digital scrapbookers don't print their layouts. *Buzzer noise again* Wrong, yet again. One of the beautiful things about being a pixel pusher is that my layouts can either sit on my hard drive, be burned to CD, or be printed and put in an album.

And I need to go clean my house really quick because apparently Mike is inviting people over. *Sigh*

Those Crazy Kids

2006-04-01T10:46:00.000-06:00

When my dad shows up, my kids go crazy. They start off by yelling 'Pahpaw!' and one of them always runs to me to say 'Pahpaw here!' It's a given.

This morning, I'm sitting at my computer, debating on just how difficult it would be to get up and get another cup of coffee (there are some mornings where I seriously consider setting the coffee maker up on my desk- it would be so much easier), when I hear the familiar rumble of some kid's car going down the alley. I think nothing of it- there are plenty of kids who think that 'loud muffler' means 'hot rod', and one of them drives up and down the alley at least four times a day. Then my kids start yelling 'Pahpaw!'

It then dawns on me. I have Dad's car- his regular car. I stand up. I look out the kitchen window. I see his El Camino. I start to giggle- because I realized that the loud muffler that went by my window was not the property of some seventeen year old kid with a mistaken concept of 'cool'- but my 48 year old father driving his baby. He was here to get his GPS out of his other car so that he can test his El Camino's guages (yeah- I don't quite get it either, it's just best to smile and nod and say 'cool' every so often).

I'm going out to my parents' house this afternoon to do some laundry. Apparently there's something wrong with the motor, and Mike needs to replace it. There's no telling when this will happen. The washing machine still washes- but it doesn't like the spin cycle. It's ok for washing small things- but I really, really, REALLY need to wash blankets today. I was actually hoping to get something done around the house this afternoon, but I don't see it happening. Oh- and I'd like to actually scrap something today, but again- I don't see it happening. Ugh.

Searches, What Did You Do With Your Two Front Teeth?, and Kitties

2006-03-31T00:50:00.000-06:00

I sometimes forget that I have my Statcounter on this site. Oh- I know that it's there (because I check it to see where I'm at, visitor wise), but I forget that I can go to the site and see where people are coming from. Lots of posts from the message boards that I frequent (there are many peas who visit- seems like all I do is post to a thread and I get at least one hit, lol), some from other blogs where I'm linked, but my absolute favorites are the searches.

Currently on the list of 'Someone Searched For This And Found Me' are:

Digital Dream Girls. Do I even want to know what this person was looking for? Probably not...
I'll Be Dreaming Of You Tonight. A song, I think.
Cabana Boy Pictures. Ya know, I talk about Juan the Cabana Boy once...
Kelly Clarkson Song With The Word Meemaw. Odd- I mention Kelly Clarkson and Meemaw, but I didn't think that I did it in the same post...
Stretchy Watch Bands. If I hadn't have mentioned watches in a recent post, I'm pretty sure that I'd have been having a WTF moment with that one...
Digital Scrapbook Gifts/Freebies. Two different searches, but these searches pretty much mean that people who are interested in my hobby are finding my blog, which means that it should be relatively easy for other people interested in the hobby to find it.

Val wanted people to post this on their blogs- so here goes. Two Front Teeth For Sale. The proceeds are for a good cause- a church is fundraisin for a mission trip to Bangladesh. And- if you aren't interested in buying a child's front teeth (although, you have to admit, it's kinda cute), there's Val's A Tiny Seed kit over at The Digi Chick. So- two front teeth or a really cool kit (which is on my TO BUY list, by the way).

What else was I going to ramble about? Oh yeah- kitties! I am cat sitting this weekend. Sil went to visit her uncle, and I'm taking care of her cats. Yay me! I had Tangerine (formerly known as Oliver) out for a few hours this evening while I watched my shows. At one point, Tangerine is sitting on my lap, watching the ceiling fan go around (so cute!), and he spent some time playing with my fingers and chewing on my shirt. Mike came into the living room and said that I must really like that cat... I'm taking that as a sign that I'm wearing him down on the cat issue. I don't think that Mike would be happy to know that I've named this cat- something about attachment and how I might actually cry if he doesn't let me keep this totally adorable kitty.

I added a slide show of my recent layouts. I think that it's pretty sad that my recent layouts go back to November. *Sigh* I really need to do more layouts. Maybe this weekend...

Portrait of a Six Year Old

2006-03-30T14:49:00.000-06:00

I should have done this yesterday, but everyone was sick yesterday and I just didn't feel like it. I haven't taken pictures of him (note to self: do that today) so that I can make a layout.

Anyway- yesterday was Cody's 6th birthday. I can't believe that he's six! He's a kindergartener now, he loves to play computer games (he even got a monster truck game of his own for his birthday), he's even starting to read and do simple math (addition and subtraction- which he calls 'plussing' and 'minusing'). He's silly, and popular (why didn't anyone tell me that popularity starts in kindergarten???), and 'hates' girls.

This week is a week of milestones. Besides Cody's birthday, Dylan has finally decided, with the help of 'suckers', that he's ready to potty train. He's used it a few times between last night and today, and tells me that tomorrow he'll wear actual underwear. Because Dylan has decided this- Evan has also decided that he's going to potty train. I'm not sure if it's just because he's ready or if it's because he sees that Dylan gets a Dum Dum every time he uses the potty.

I'm so excited- even having just one kid in pull ups will be so much easier on me (and my pocketbook).

I Just Want To Scream...

2006-03-28T14:55:00.000-06:00

I'm just going to cut to the chase.

QUIT SHARING MY KITS.

It's not cute or funny or nice and it doesn't help me out- AT ALL. I'm not greedy, and yes- I am a bitch. But then, I think that anyone would be a bitch (or a son of one, depending on gender) if they found out that someone was deliberately stealing from them. This hobby has never- NEVER- been about money for me. NEV-ER. I love doing it, I love making things and seeing what people do with them. The reason that I sell is because I think that if I were just doing this for free that I wouldn't take the initiative to grow and become better in my designing (and I cringe to look at my early designs).

If you can't stop simply because the LAW says that you should, then maybe you should look at the people behind the designs. You're not stealing from a big faceless corporate entity- you are stealing from me and other designers like me. We aren't corporate. We're wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, neices, aunts, grandmothers, neighbors, friends, the woman standing behind you in the check out line, the woman walking her children to the local park. WE ARE PEOPLE. Look at me and tell me again that it's ok to steal from me. Go ahead.

Ok- deep breath (this would have been a longer post if I had posted it a couple hours earlier- I was seething because someone- yet again- was sharing a kit of mine). How about some pictures of some cute animals?

Disclaimer: I removed the bag from Rosie's head as soon as I snapped this picture. If I hadn't have had my camera handy (like literally sitting right on top of my monitor), I wouldn't have taken the picture. Rosie's health and safety is important to us.

The story behind the picture: My mother sends my children home with junk food all the time. This was taken Saturday night, after my mom sent my kids home with two bags of chips (at least it wasn't candy this time). My three bottom less pits emptied that bag in seconds (I put the other one up for the next day), and dropped it on the floor (typical). I didn't think anything of it- it was an empty chip bag, and the boys were in bed, and I'd walk through the house picking up dirty clothes, coats, shoes, toys and garbage before heading to bed for the night. I should have thought harder about that...

I heard this weird rustling coming from the living room. I figured that Rosie must have found the chips- and I told her to drop it and leave it alone. I heard more rustling, looked into the living room, and saw this: Rosie with her head stuck in the potato chip bag. I laughed, grabbed the camera, and took this picture before taking the bag from her head and throwing it away (after a good cuddle).

I WANT HIM. Seriously- I'm determined to get this cat. This is one of Buffy's kittens, named Oliver (for now). He's so adorable and soft and lovable and loves to cuddle... Plus- he's not afraid of Rosie and pretty much allows her to sniff him with this typical cat-ish attitude of 'I don't care as long as you don't hurt me'.

This is MY CAT. MINE. Nobody else's- MINE. And I must have him. My birthday is next month, and I'm trying to talk Mike into letting me keep him. My arguement is simple- I didn't want the fish tank or the lizard, but we have them anyway. I'm not asking him to clean up after the cat or anything like that. He doesn't ask me to clean the fish tank or the lizard cage, and I wouldn't ask him to clean out the litter box.

I want him so much. Lately, he's been my computer companion- I bring him out and he cuddles on my lap while I'm working on the computer.

My Mailman May Pass My House In Peace Now...

2006-03-27T20:22:00.000-06:00

As happy as I am to have my watch- I have to say that I'm a little disappointed that I didn't have to stalk my mailman for too long. I mean- where's the fun in that? I ordered the watch on Friday, and got the watch today. Ok, ok- so it's rare that you find an awesome seller like this, who actually sends things as soon as they get payment (instead of waiting 3-4 days). I was just happy to have found a seller with perfect feedback (amazing how the stores had worse feedback than this independent seller! Went into my favorite sellers list immediately).

So- last night, I was checking out my blog links. Found one link that needed editing (Holly's blog), and changed it. Then I went to check her blog out and kinda got stuck there. She had posted a link (since removed) where someone was sharing kits illegally. I found one of my kits from POTH DSS over there and was ticked. Most of the stuff was free- but my kit wasn't (it was cheap though). It was actually pretty cool to see how quickly this got around. It went from one site to another, until it seemed like the entire world of designers was buzzing with the news. This morning when I woke up, I had an email from Holly saying that she had removed everything (she did). Yay!

Oh. Oh- now THIS is good. I went to the store to get pull ups and pop a couple hours ago. I came home with pull ups and Diet Berries and Cream Dr Pepper. I love the Diet Cherry Vanilla, but had to try this when I saw it (I love cream soda almost as much as I love the Diet Cherry Vanilla). Oh yeah- another addiction for me, lol!

So- it's 9pm, I'm sitting here wearing my cute purple watch, drinking my Diet Berries and Cream Dr Pepper, and currently ignoring Photoshop, where I'm working on a new kit. Oh- and I'm sick (I hate being sick), worse than I was yesterday. I'm tired, and ready for bed, but can't go yet because I have laundry to finish.

Sick.

2006-03-26T16:58:00.000-06:00

I hate being sick. I'm not *that* sick, but my throat is scratchy and that is enough for me.

Now Evan. Evan on the other hand is sick. The poor kid just hasn't been himself at all today. He's sitting in the living room watching cartoons (and he never sits still). *Sigh*

So- with two kids at Grandma's house and one parked on the couch, I've actually had to time to scrap today!

Check out the arrows in this layout. They are my new favorite thing. It's a font called 'You Are Here' and it's available at 2peas.

Credits: Memory Paper Pack and Accent Pack by Holly McCaig, 'O' from Sweet Serenity by Shabby Princess and fonts are 2peas You Are Here and CBX-labelmaker.

I'm loving Cody's face lately (most of the time, lol). He's been so expressive!

Credits: Mechanical Things kit by Heather Roselli, fonts are 2Peas DW Stamped and Axis Combo.

I haven't posted this one to any galleries yet. Truthfully- I'm not sure that I really like this one and will probably rework it in a few days.

Credits: Courage and Strength kit by Mindy Terasawa, and I can't remember what fonts I used on this (sad, I know).

I've been on a buying spree this weekend. I've bought the kits you see here (except for Mechanical Things, I bought that one last week) and a watch off eBay. I need a watch- and I found a cute one that I really like (just nobody tell me that it's crap, even if it is, ok? I'd rather not deal with that insecurity at the moment).

This is my watch. My purple watch that I'm stalking the mailman for (nevermind that I just bought it on Friday night). I'm picky about watches. I hate (I mean absolutely loathe) leather bands that buckle. They cause my wrists to sweat, which makes the leather look icky. I don't like the metal stretchy bands (the links can pinch and leave welts), nor do I like the metal ones with the clasps (somehow, I manage to break the clasps). My favorite watch, that cost me $5 and that I wore for years until the battery (finally) died on it was a bangle style- easy to wear, my wrists didn't sweat, and it didn't pinch. They had all these pretty colors (I also like the one that the seller called 'Tee', which was a brownish color), but then I saw this. I love purple. It's my favorite color (have I said that I before? I think so...). The first thing that I told my mother yesterday was that I had bought a purple watch and it is mine, do you hear me? MINE. All MINE.

I Survived!

2006-03-25T18:49:00.000-06:00

Yes- I survived the birthday party.

The day started off headed for disaster- I woke up at 930! Since I needed to get to the farm by 1030, that left me with an hour to get myself and three kids dressed, as well as getting the car loaded. Ack- panic! But- we were dressed and the car loaded by 1030, which meant that I was only running 10 minutes late.

When we got there, my father (who is worse than a kid at Christmas, I swear) decided that before I had the car unpacked, before I had even started decorating, before the other guests had arrived... he was going to give Cody his birthday present from Grandma and Grandpa. I had to run to get in the garage (I knew what he was giving him and how he was going to do it), and my mother (who doesn't move very fast) had to hurry up and get in. We managed to do it (barely).

Dad gave Cody the garage door opener and told him that it was his present from him- meaning allowing him to open the garage door with the remote (Cody gets a kick out of this and always wants to push the button). Cody pushed the button... the garage door began to open...

Behind Door Number One- There's Gravedigger! Or a smaller, Power Wheels version of Gravedigger, at any rate.

Of course, we had to check Gravedigger out before we even got in.

The very first thing that he had to do once he actually sat in it was play with the buttons. It has music, the headlights are red (and do cool things), plus- the key is a skull.

For some odd reason, I didn't get any pictures of the decorating that I did. I had purple and green tableclothes, purple, green and black streamers, purple and green balloons, purple and green plates, cups, and silver ware... I'm just ecstatic because I never thought that I'd ever have a purple birthday party for my kids (and purple is my favorite color).

The kids arrived at noon (except for Jessie and Jasmine, they were there before we were). Cody took his friends from school out to see his Gravedigger, and I have pictures of all three of them riding it. They got cold quickly, and all three came inside to play. They ended up in Dad's office, where he has a projection television and watching Star Wars (or rather- Star Wars was playing while they wrestled on the floor). We had 9 kids, total- Jasmine (9), Jessie (8), Cody, his friends (both 6), Matthew (5- soon to be 6), Amanda (soon to be 4), Dylan (soon to be 4) and Evan (2). The kids played and watched movies and had fun. We had hot dogs and hamburgers for lunch, and then ate cake and ice cream.

Cody picked out a monster truck cake for his party. This cake was huge! We have over half of the cake left! We'll be eating cake for a week, lol.

Then came presents... And more presents... And more presents... Cody came home with- a cool 'cut away' style book on cars, two pop up playsets (that he's been asking for ever since he saw the commercial for them), three new outfits (he's wearing one in the picture), a tee ball set, a new baseball glove and baseball, the Gravedigger, a snap together model car, a remote control motorcycle, a remote control boat, some cool educational science experiment type toys from his Aunt Sue, a kite, a Leap Frog globe, and some coloring books (and I'm probably missing some things- oh well).

I have one more picture to share, and it's just because it's an awesome picture.

This was taken when they were outside playing with the remote control boat. Cody was very nice about sharing- he let everyone have a turn with the boat.

All in all- today was a good day. I'm tired, really need to clean my house, but I think that I'm going to put that off until tomorrow. At least I don't have to worry about school this week (Cody is off school for spring break), I'll be able to work non-stop at cleaning this house until it shines.

Tickled

2006-03-23T22:25:00.000-06:00

Yep- that's me. I'm tickled.

Check out this picture:
My five (almost six) year old son took this. And yes, that's me. It's been cropped (by me), and I turned it black and white- but otherwise, it's all him. I think that he has talent (but then what do I know? I'm just his mother, lol!).

It's birthday party week here at the Lee house. Today was Cody's classroom party and Saturday we're having the big party at my parents' place. I'm finding it hard to believe that he's going to be six next week!

He's off school next week, and I think Mike is going to take him to the Field Museum on one of his days off. I think that he'd love to see the dinosaur bones- especially the T-Rex in the lobby. I won't be able to go (as interesting as it will be, I don't think that the younger two are quite ready for the Field Museum), which sucks because I love the Field Museum. I'm just thinking of all the inspiration that I could get there.

Cody is going to be completely spoiled for his birthday. We got him a new outfit (tshirt and jeans from Old Navy), a Leap Frog globe, one of those Matchbox Pop Up Playsets, Mike picked out some rockets for him to play with (ok- so those are more for Daddy to play with- but since when has Mike listened to me???), a computer game and something else that I'm forgetting... My parents bought him a Gravedigger Power Wheels toy- he's going to get the biggest kick out of that.

I'm so exhausted right now. I need to go finish laundry and then head to bed- I have to get up early in the morning and I'm just not looking forward to it.

Oh- forgot to add this. This is Buffy, my sister in law's cat. I had to share this picture, because this cat has the best 'go to hell' look that I've ever seen on a cat. Besides-I love her coloring (her entire body is like that- black, with orange, brown and white- very pretty).

How Much Do You Know About Me?

2006-03-21T16:10:00.000-06:00

I got this in an email and thought that it would be an interesting addition to my blog:

How well do you know me?? For instance, did you know. . .

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Pit Clerk at a casino

2. Wal*Mart cashier
3. For a couple summers I worked on the bottle line at a plant that bottled corn oil.
4. Greek editor of my college yearbook

Four movies I would watch over and over:
1. Robin Hood Prince of Thieves
2. Mr Holland's Opus
3. Serenity

4. Harry Potter- any of them

Four places I have lived:
1. Morris Il
2. Dwight Il
3. Macomb Il
4. i've only lived in three places, lol!

Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. CSI- pick one, I love them all
2. Desperate Housewives
3. Grey's Anatomy
4. Lost

Four places I have been on vacation:
1. Oklahoma
2. St Louis
3. Orlando Florida
4. Cedar Lake Indiana

Four web sites I visit daily:
1. The Digi Chick
2. 2Peas aka Veggieville (term of endearment, not a slam)

3. Girls Interrupted (private group, can't link)

4. Promos4DigiScrappers

Four of my favorite foods/restaurants:
1. Taco Bell (the ceasar chicken wrap is delicious)
2. KFC (extra crispy, with a huge helping of their cole slaw)
3. TGI Fridays (the jack daniels ribs are yummy)
4. Geo's Pizza (their BBQ chicken pizza is TO DIE FOR)

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Sleeping

2. someplace warm

3. Playing with boys

4. on a beach, drinking margaritas that were served by a hot young cabana boy named 'Juan'

Four fun ways I enjoy my time:
1. playing with my boys
2. watching tv

3. spending time at my parents' farm
4. Shopping

I Hurt

2006-03-20T23:13:00.000-06:00

I don't understand.

I went grocery shopping this afternoon at Wal*Mart (found a really cute shirt while I was there). Then I came home, put away the groceries, and vegged out on the computer until later. Then- Mike and I went to the fish store (I want a hermit crab when he gets his reef tank- don't want the little crabby cutie to become fish food for his carnivores). Then- we went to Toys R Us (bought some stuff for Cody's upcoming birthday- the child is SPOILED ROTTEN). Then- Barnes and Noble (bought Designing Scrapbooks 2 and three books for Cody- again, SPOILED ROTTEN). Then we went to Old Navy. Cody got two pairs of jeans and a shirt (do I need to repeat it?). Mike got two pairs of pants. Then it was to Famous Footwear where Mike bought new shoes (and I resisted the absolutely downright adorable mules that were on sale and in my size. Why? Why?).

All that shopping. And my feet and back hurt. Go figure.

I don't really have anything to say right now. Not even a comment on the sales thread at 2Peas. I'm tired and ready to go to bed. Although I might try washing some of Mike's clothes tonight- just to make sure that he has clean socks for tomorrow and to make sure that my washing machine really is fixed.

'Real' Scrapbooking?

2006-03-19T14:17:00.000-06:00

There's a thread at Veggieville asking if people prefer 'real' scrapbooking or digital scrapbooking (and no, I'm not going to link it because it appears completely innocent and it's just a question).

Some of the answers are rather interesting, as to what 'real' scrapbooking is. My personal favorite is the one that says that to a digital scrapbook, digital scrapbooking is real. Um- does that mean that paper scrapbooking isn't real to me? It gave me a giggle.

What is the point of scrapbooking? An interesting question. For some- it's to record memories and showcase them in a beautiful way. For others- it's an artistic endeavour, something to feed the creative monster in all of us (much like the people who knit hats, sweaters, blankets and scarves, and no- I have no problem with people like that, considering that I crocheted four scarves this winter because I felt like it). Am I missing another reason? I don't think so (and I hope that someone will enlighten me and yes this is me fishing for comments).

So if we take these two reasons- recording memories and something crafty/artsy to do- we should be able to figure out what is 'real' and what isn't 'real'.

But wait. There are so many different forms of art. Look at art museums, galleries, online, heck- go to your local high school's art fair and check out the pieces. You have paintings, ceramics, photography, sculptures, and- in some art museums and galleries- movies. Look at the paintings. Some are watercolor, some are acrylic, some are oils. Some are painted on wood, some on canvas, some on matte board. Some are teeny tiny, others are very large. The brush strokes might be short and thin, long and thick, millions upon millions of dots, swirly and loose, straight and tight, or even just paint splatters. The subject matter varies- from religious pieces, to portraits, to melting clocks, to Campbell's Soup cans. No style is better than the other. In the end, you have the same thing: a painting. Size, style, subject matter, the paint that it's painted with, what it is painted on- it's all personal preference.

The same goes for scrapbooking. Those that choose paper over digital aren't any better than those who choose digital over paper. Those who choose a shabby look aren't any better than those who choose a CM look. Those who buy the latest and greatest aren't any better than those who could care less. What matters is that in the end- they're all layouts. Digital or paper- it's all real to me.

Of Mice and Mommies

2006-03-18T07:37:00.000-06:00

I made a new layout last night. I don't have any pictures for this one, and I don't think that I'm the best at making no picture layouts, but I needed to scrap this story. The story behind this is actually hilarious- now that it's been almost two months since it happened.

We live in a house that gets field mice. I'm okay with that- as long as they aren't in my food or crawling where they shouldn't be. It was a Saturday night. Everyone was in bed except me. I'm in my pajamas (stretchy black pants and a sweatshirt- amazing how good your memory is when it comes to stuff like this), playing a game on my computer. The dining room light is off, so the only light in the room is coming from my computer screen.

I feel something small and furry at my feet. 'Go away, Rosie, you were just outside.' (Rosie is our beagle puppy.) I brush her away from my feet- but the small furry something doesn't leave. Then it dawns on me. Rosie is in her crate for the night.

Uh oh (more accurately, I think the words that crossed my mind were 'Oh shit').

The small furry something is much, much smaller than a dog. And it was crawling up my pant leg.

I go to use my hand to brush it off... and I realize that I'm feeling tiny claws (btw- it doesn't hurt when a mouse climbs up your leg) and a furry belly with no pant inbetween it and my skin. (Can you say 'another oh shit moment'? I knew you could!) The mouse is INSIDE my pants and almost to my knees!

I don't think that I've ever, ever, EVER flown out of my chair that fast. I jumped up, kicked my leg, and brushed the mouse off with my hands. It goes flying across the room (I can still picture the furry little belly and glimpse of tail that I saw by the light of my computer screen as it flew through the air) and scurries off (I can only assume- I didn't actually see it scurry, but I wasn't able to find a mouse laying around later). I'm screaming, and doing my 'gross, disgusting, ew' dance, hopping around the dining room shivering. My husband (here's where my brave strong man comes in) walks to the doorway to the living room to ask what's wrong.

Let's pause for a second and explain the layout of my house. The rooms are not all that interesting, shape wise- all of them are either squares of rectangles (except for the hallway, which is L shaped). It goes dining room, living room, hallway. I'm in the dining room. He's in the hallway. There's a dark living room between us.

So- he's in the hallway, standing as far as he can possibly get from me and still be able to see me. Now- I'm screaming. You'd think that if your wife is screaming, that you'd come running to make sure that she wasn't hurt of something. My father- who tends to be on the lazy side- even ran to help my mom when she fell through our ceiling (and she wasn't hurt bad!). My husband? Coward. Complete and total coward who had the balls to LAUGH at me when I told him that a mouse just ran up my pant leg. Oh, and he made some off hand remark about spiders (I don't like spiders or anything having to do with spiders, even dusty cobwebs because how do I know that spiders don't reuse webs? Huh?).

So. Recap. Mouse up pant leg, I scream, do my heeby jeeby dance, mouse flying across room, husband laughing at me. My mom bought me some traps, and I would set them out at night (I have three kids and a dog- all of them are very curious, leaving traps out during the day isn't a good idea). I caught the mouse two days later, and then my dance was a triumphant 'I am the mouse catcher! Hear me roar! Woe to any mouse that crawls up my pant leg!' dance. But wait- it gets better.

I spot the trap when I first wake up. There's a mouse in it (dead, of course). I tell Mike that I caught the mouse, and he does a disappearing act. Turns out- he doesn't like dead mice. He hides. I have to actually tell my children to not touch it (I could see their little fingers reaching for the tail and quite frankly, I'd rather not see my two year swinging the mouse around by it's tail, m'kay?) while I go and get my dustpan and broom. The entire time, I'm thinking that I don't like dead things and that I'm glad that I traded my mom one of those plastic pads for under desk chairs for her dustpan (which is the kind that is on a long handle).

I can laugh about this now- but when it happened, it wasn't funny at all.

Kit credits: Hip Cat kit by Jan Crowley, Fonts: Autograph Script and Times New Roman

Couches And Fish Tanks And Tape Measures, Whee!

2006-03-17T19:38:00.000-06:00

What is it with my couch? Oh- I forgot to mention this one. Couches. Our marriage can be traced by the couches that we've owned. Back in 1999, when we first moved in together, we had this horribly ugly couch- it was this hideous red velour-like fabric with gold embroidered swirlies all over it. Mike loved that couch. Why? No clue- it was just a hideously ugly couch. Not too comfortable, either (although that could just be me remembering trying to get off that thing when I was nine months pregnant with Cody). When we moved in- he 'accidentally' knocked one of the legs off the couch. I think that he did it on purpose- because, ya know, it's hilarious to watch a pregnant woman roll herself off the couch.

Not long after Cody was born, and not long before we moved, we got rid of that couch in favor of another hideously ugly (although slightly more comfortable) couch. We went from the 70s to the 80s with a 'lovely' beige couch with gray, silver, and black 'swooshes' all over it. I still have the pillows from that thing (at least one- and it's sitting by the back door, ready to head for the trash). Did I have a say in the new couch? No. In fact, I think it was more along the lines of 'Hey, can you get the door, honey? I've got a couch.' Yeah. Thoughtful, isn't he?

Eight or nine months after we moved out of that apartment, Mike began talking about futons. He wanted a futon. He needed to have futon. I glared at him. I mean- I really did. I was starting to get the idea that he has absolutely NO TASTE in couches, whatsoever. My thoughts were ignored. *I* wanted a fake leather couch. Why? Simple. We have boys. A fake leather couch means that a- if they spill, I don't have to run for paper towels so that it's cleaned up before it's soaked into the fabric and b- I could care less if the fake leather is ruined by said spills. Oh- and it needed to be dark, like a dark brown. Did he listen? Nope- he ignored me and went out and bought a $100 futon.

It broke when he was putting it together. The entire time that we had that thing, it was duct taped into a couch position. Oh- and the cover? Hideous. But we were still in the 80s- it was green swirly swooshes on a beige background. Yep- ugly. More like patio furniture than living room furniture. But we lived with that couch for over two years. I took my chance to get rid of it when we moved- the frame is at my parents and I had Mike toss the couch part (it was trashed).

My parents gave us a couch when we moved in. Lo and behold! A fake leather couch! Woohoo! There were problems (the leather was cracked in places), but hey- I have three boys, and the cracked cushions gave me a new use for our crib sheets. Mike started talking new couches. A sectional.

Wait. Something else that you need to know. I'm living in the house where I grew up. Years and years ago, my parents tried a sectional in the living room. It. Will. Not. Fit. trust me on this one- sectionals don't work in our living room. I explained this to Mike. His response? 'Yes it will, this is different.' Yeah. Right. You can see where I'm going with this, right?

He surprised me one day by coming home and saying that he bought the couch. What the hell? I eyeballed him and asked him what couch, how much did it cost, and did he even think to, oh, I don't know, SHOW IT TO HIS WIFE FIRST? Nope- hadn't crossed his mind. Apparently, measuring didn't, either. He explained that it would stick out maybe (*Snort*) a few inches into the dining room doorway. Ok, whatever.

He brought the couch home. He got it inside the house. He got it set up. It stuck out TWO FREAKING FEET into the dining room doorway. I eyeballed him and said 'Tape measures. Wonderful inventions. Maybe next time you could use one?' I don't mind the couch. It's comfortable, but darn it, it is next to impossible to clean under it or behind it because I have no room in the living room in which to move the pieces around.

So. Here I sit, the unfortunate owner of a couch that does not fit in my living room. I do have to give him credit- he chose one that matches the room (well, sorta. The couch is brown, but there's purple in the swirly flower thingys on the throw pillows).

When we got our tax return, he told me that he was going to get himself a fish tank. Now, to me 'fish tank' means something that is small enough to fit inside a room. The one that he's getting? It's an entire ecosystem in and of itself. It's big, ok? Really big. He starts showing me how tall it will be and how wide and how long and I stop him and say 'Look at the couch. Look at it. You said that it would only stick out a little bit. It's blocking half of the doorway to the dining room. Do you REALLY think that I'm going to take your word on just how tall/big/wide this thing is?' Oh- and I told him that i'm going to be going with him to the fish store with a tape measure and getting the measurements, myself (because, obviously, I can't trust him to do anything. What's even funnier is that he is a salesman and TELLS his customers to measure to make sure that they have room for whatever it is that they're buying.).

Yeah, I'm bitter about this. I like ROOM. I like to be able to move around without bumping into things that just don't fit.

But what I started to talk about was the boys' fascination with using our couch as their own private jungle gym. Did I mention that our current couch comes with an ottoman? It does. The 'ottoman' is more 'coffee table with padding', but still. They jump off the back of it, climb it, turn it into a house, and so on. Every morning, I walk through our living room and pick up six blankets, fold them, and return them to the boys' room because for some odd reason, the boys need two blankets a piece when they're building their 'forts' or 'houses' or whatever. Then- I get the pillows. They're all over the floor.

The biggest drawback to having a sectional is that it is insanely easy for the boys to push it out of place. It drives me nuts. I'm sure that the neighbors think that I'm this crazy lady because all that they see is most likely me standing in the window, yelling. I'm usually telling the boys, in no uncertain terms, that if I catch them using my couch as a jungle gym again, I'm going to lock them in their rooms (like I would really do that- fire hazard, ya know. Oh, and they'd be pounding the walls and making even more noise than they do now).

I need to update my template, but I'm too lazy to do that right now. Maybe later.

Procrastination

2006-03-14T21:26:00.000-06:00

I've been putting this off all day long, knowing that I needed to post it.

In a nutshell- I'm back among the land of the living after a very (very) long hiatus. Forced, of course. We've been without internet since November, which is why I kinda just disappeared there (and yes, I know that I still owe my creative team kits and an email- I'll get to that tomorrow, and ladies- be prepared. Seven new kits that you get to play with).

So. Here I am. I have a headache (I. Need. Sleep.) and I can't do anything about it until I finish the ad that I'm working on. What's been going on in my boring life these past few months? Let's see...

December- Christmas, holidays, presents.
January- um, uh... some stuff that I'm completely blanking on right now.
February- my sister announced that she's pregnant! And my sister in law moved in.
March- tax return, cable turned back on, new clothes, new books (Wicked and The Second Summer Of The Sisterhood).

There. Now you are all caught up and I can get on to other things.

Tomorrow is our test run for first grade. His PM kindergarten class is meeting in the morning, so my poor sleep deprived self is going to have to finish my ad and then haul my butt into bed so that I can be sure that I'll be up before he needs to be to school.

I've been completely accident prone the last few days. The day before yesterday, I kicked the laundry room door, on accident, and hurt my toe and screwed up my ankle. So yesterday, I hobbled around all day (made for an interesting day). Then today, I managed to get my thumb caught in this weird tool thingy of Mike's. Oh- and let's not forget that I have a huge bruise on my thigh because a bottle of green apple scented Mr Clean fell off the shelves over the toilet in our bathroom.

There's so much more that I wanted to say, but damn if this headache of mine is making it hard to think. Urgh. I'll try this again in a couple of days when I think that I might actually have my groove back (because right now, I'm too enthralled with the internet to think correctly. You'd think that I'd never have owned a computer before with the way that I'm acting, lol).

Happy Thanksgiving!

2005-11-24T23:29:00.000-06:00

I'm feeling better today- although right now, I'm exhausted. It's been a really long day, and I have to wait until the washing machine is done before I can go to bed (gotta make sure that Mike has clean socks for tomorrow. Man, is he picky or what?).

I made a green bean casserole and crab rangoon this morning before heading over to my parents. We stuffed ourselves silly with turkey, ham, the stuff that I made, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, olives, stuffing- all the traditional Thanksgiving food. The boys played, Mom and I talked, Mike and Dad talked, we had fun.

After that, we headed over to the inlaws for dinner (or rather, rolled ourselves over there- we were that stuffed). More turkey, pumpkin pie, sweet potatoes, corn, stuffing, etc, etc, etc. I'm a beach ball! Look at me roll!

But- there's more. You see, when we got there, MIL had a little scavenger hunt planned for the boys. First up- they had to find a bag of clothes that were in her room, give them to Daddy, and have him put them in the car. Once he did that- then they could have their next clue.

Aunt Sam helped them read the next clue, which was to get 'magic quarters' from three people in the room (Grandpa Thomas, Grandma Thomas, and Aunt Sam). Then- they had to put the 'magic quarters' in the piggy bank in Grandma Vicky's room.

Where they found- another clue.

This clue led them to the closet in the living room, which led them to get their coats on.

From there, they were told to get a message from Aunt Sue's cell phone.

They were told to go out to the shed, and they would get their surprise out there. We all head outside and out back, in the shed we find...

Something behind the door...

Rosie!

Rosie is our Christmas puppy (that we got on Thanksgiving). She's a pedigree beagle- and such a cute little dog. Her full name is Triple Lee's Irish Rose. Dylan's decided that she is HIS DOGGIE and nobody can tell him any different. The boys love her- and she loves them. They played together a lot- running up and down the hallway, chasing each other.

We're home now- and she does not like riding in cars. Oh boy, does she HATE riding in cars! She whined, barked, and paced up and down in her little crate the entire ride home. She was perfectly fine once we stopped the car and let her out- she explored the house, and now she's back in her crate, sleeping.

She's really the sweetest dog- even if she is a bit... frisky. But that's ok- it means that she'll be able to keep up with the boys.

The Day That All Shoppers Dread: Black Friday

2005-11-23T22:06:00.000-06:00

It's coming.

That wonderful and horrible day- Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving, where every single store is having a sale. Wake up early! Hit the stores! Get those gifts! Buy! Buy! Buy! Spend! Spend! Spend!

Or- you could do the smart thing. Avoid those crowds. Sleep in. Sit in front of your computer in your cozy pajamas, with a cup of coffee in front of you. And head right on over to The Digi Chick for their Black Friday sale. Save 25-50% on the kits that you need to complete gift albums, holiday cards, or just stock up on new kits that delight your senses and flatter your pictures.

All of my kits will be 50% off. All of them.

Click the picture for a large view of the ad. And don't forget- Friday only, 50% off ALL kits created by me, Tracey Lee.

**If this entry sounds odd or weird or just plain silly, don't mind me- I'm sick. Blame the icky bug that has me down, and not me. I swear- I'll be back to myself soon enough.**

The Incredible Invisible Virgin Mary

2005-11-22T09:04:00.000-06:00

About 13 years or so ago, I asked my grandmother for a Precious Moments nativity. My grandmother had the hardest time finding one- I mean, a REALLY hard time finding it. It took her about 3 years to find one. I was so excited when I opened the box. I love this nativity- and for years, had it displayed year round. I boxed it up earlier this year, because we were moving. I wrapped each piece in newspaper, put them on the top of the box, and put the box in my parents' garage.

Sunday, I went to get the tree and ornaments out of the garage. The tree was easy to reach- right there, in front. I couldn't reach the ornaments- they were buried in the back of the garage- so I left them there, and figured that I'd ask Mike to help me get them out yesterday. While I was in the garage, I found a box of yarn, and the box that I had put my nativity in earlier this year. I got those boxes inside, and began unpacking them.

I found shepherds. Joseph. The baby Jesus. My sister's flute (why it was in the box of yarn, I have no idea). A really cute crocheted shawl. Lots of pretty yarn.

No Virgin Mary.

So I have a few theories here.

Someone broke into our garage, found just that box, opened it up, removed Mary, closed the box and restacked it neatly.
Mary is now invisible.
I have another box of Christmas stuff buried in the garage somewhere.

Number one is unlikely- there are two sets of expensive golf clubs in the garage, a propane heater, lawn mower, etc, and someone stole my Virgin Mary? Number 3 is believable- but why would I pack Mary in another box and the rest of the nativity in that one? Number 2- well, I doubt that she's invisible.

Normally, this wouldn't bother me. Any other set, and I'd just replace her. But not this set. Remember me saying that it took my grandmother 3 YEARS to find it? Well- I haven't been able to find the rest of the set since then. I want the angels and the wisemen, but haven't been able to find them anywhere. And I've looked. I think that my set has been retired- which means that I have a snowball's chance in hell of finding affordable pieces for it.

I want to get a new nativity- because I have three boys, and if a miracle does happen and I do find the rest of the pieces to my set, I don't want them to get broken. I have three boys- and I can just see them getting wild, throwing a ball in the house (not allowed- but they don't always listen), and knocking the pieces over and quite possibly off my curio cabinet. Yeah- not good. The one that I really like is the Willow Tree nativity.

It's pretty.

It's cool.

It's also wood.

I'm so tempted to wrap my house in bubblewrap.

Swamp Water

2005-11-20T09:38:00.000-06:00

Swamp water. Just the sound of it conjures up images of dark green smelly water with something funky and slimy growing on top.

And this is what my son said that the hollandaise sauce that I made last night was made out of.

First of all- the nearest water that could even remotely be called 'swamp water' is 20 miles away. Since I have no car, and Mike was at work- I'm pretty sure that I didn't get an 'swamp water' with which to make my hollandaise sauce yesterday.

Second- my hollandaise sauce was *yellow*, not green.

Cody's imagination is huge. And wild. And just a teeny tiny bit out there. He believes that one of Rudolph's jobs is to light Santa's way IN the house. He believes that tortellini are belly buttons. He believes that turkeys are chickens, and no amount of us correcting him will change his story.

He's also stubborn. I think that's where the 'swamp water' thing came from. And the thing is- he's not a picky eater. Never has been. This child ate horseradish sauce on his fries at eighteen months. He ate jalopenos at 2. Put it on his plate- and he'll eat it.

Except for my hollandaise sauce. A few weeks ago, Mike was making something with garlic. (BTW- Mike thinks that there are only two food groups: spicy hot and garlic. Since I don't like spicy hot, he tends to make a lot of stuff with garlic. He gave Cody a little tiny piece of raw garlic. Cody decided that he didn't like that- and refused, and I mean REFUSED, to eat anything with garlic in it. Including garlic bread (which he previously loved). Earlier this week, I made belly buttons (tortellini) with a garlic alfredo sauce. He ate the belly buttons, because he didn't know that the sauce had garlic in it (and I didn't tell him). An hour later, he walks up to me, garlic bread in hand, and says 'Ya know what, Mommy? I like this.' 'Really? It's garlic bread, ya know.' 'Yeah, I know.' And he just walks off, eating it.

I don't know what changed his mind- probably watching Dylan scarf down FOUR pieces of garlic bread and realizing that he was missing out on something. Whatever it was, it worked. He's back to eating garlic bread (but he still won't touch raw garlic. Frankly, I don't blame him).

So- I think that the whole 'swamp water' hollandaise sauce thing is him being stubborn. He feels that he has to have something that he just doesn't like. So he picked the one thing that he did not recognize at last night's meal- and decided that he didn't like it. Now, I won't confess to being the world's best cook. I'm better at baking, and I'm told that I make a mean mac and cheese (out of a box). But I was damn proud of that sauce. When Mike made it last month, his sauce was too thick, even a little bit lumpy (don't tell him that I said that- he takes his cooking seriously, and somewhere I have black mail pictures of him holding a pan of burnt belly buttons). It was good- but not perfect. Now- my hollandaise sauce was perfect. Thick, but not too thick. No lumps. *Sigh* At least I liked it.

Thanksgiving is this week. Tomorrow, I'm heading to Walmart to pick up the stuff that I need to make crab rangoon and green bean casserole. I'm also going to be picking up my christmas stuff from my parents' house, and getting a new crochet hooking (since I still can't seem to find mine). I think that we might also have to get dog food. Now that will be interesting! How to buy dog food without the kids finding out that I'm buying dog food. Because we will get the dog on Thursday.

Oh- gotta remember batteries. I need pictures of the kids' faces when they see Rosie and realize that she is their dog.

Still In The Mood

2005-11-19T07:49:00.000-06:00

I'm tempted to call my parents and have them bring my christmas decorations by. I forgot- they aren't in our garage, they are in my van, which is currently sitting in my parents' driveway.

*Sigh* But I did manage to complete a christmas layout yesterday. The pictures were taken last christmas- amazing how fast kids grow! In the pictures, Evan still looks like a baby- now he looks like a child.

I used a kit that I just finished making for this layout. I'm uploading it as I write this, and it will be available later this week. The kit is titled 'Gingerbread Christmas'. Now that I think about it, this could be why I'm in such a Christmas-y mood lately. Hmm...

So- last night, we made cookies. The gingerbread cookies didn't turn out like they should (probably because I couldn't find any cookie cutters. The sugar cookies turned out perfect. The kids had a ball, loved helping make the cookies, and were covered in flour from head to toe by the time that they were done. Cody got creative with the chocolate chips.

This is me, in chocolate and cinnamon chips. Notice the ponytail. And boobs. Yes- my five year old son made sure to remember that Mommy has boobs. Of course, this is the child who draws nipples on all of his people drawings before putting clothes on them.

He also got creative with Santa yesterday. Lately, Santa seems to be the conversation topic of choice for our walk home from school. Yesterday's Santa related topic: How Will Santa Get In Our House Without A Fireplace?

This is what we came up with: He'll have to use one of the doors, but not the front door, because then we'll hear him come inside. Cody decided that in order to 'make sure' that Santa uses the back door, we'll have to stay up and wait for him on Christmas Eve. I told him that won't work, because Santa won't show up until he's asleep. We compromised- we'll leave the front door locked and unlock the back door.

That led us to another conversation: Does Rudolph's Nose Really Glow? I'm not sure on this- I told Cody that I'm sure that some reindeer have red noses, but I don't know if it really glows or if it's just shiny. Cody thought about it- and he's decided that Rudolph's nose does, indeed, glow. And Rudolph goes in the houses with Santa, in order to light his way around, because it's dark inside houses at night.

I think that Cody might be a writer when he grows up. He's got the imagination of one, that's for sure.

Ha! Christmas Music!

2005-11-18T11:28:00.000-06:00

See? Changed the video today. As sad as I am to see JD Fortune go (man, is he HOT or what?), I'm a little bit happier to have Christmas music.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

2005-11-18T10:13:00.000-06:00

I'm in a baking mood. It always happens right around this time of year. Something about the holiday season that just puts me in the mood to bake cookies. Lots of cookies.

I made peanut butter cookies a couple days ago and did something that I've never done before. I forgot the vanilla. Luckily 'no vanilla' is much better than 'too much vanilla'. At least they were still edible. Last night, I decided that I wanted to make some gingerbread cookies. But we didn't have any butter.

Damn. I went to the store this morning to get butter. While there- I noticed that they're playing Christmas music. John Lennon was playing (So This Is Christmas), and I joked with the cashier that it was a little early for Christmas music.

I wonder if she realized my true feelings? I'm am so totally ready for the holiday season. I love Christmas music. I'm tempted to break out my Mannheim Steamroller CD and listen to it today. I'm actually considering getting my Christmas decorations out. I know that my husband would kill me- KILL ME- if I put the decorations up too early. Right now, I'm to be content with the nesting dolls that his aunt bought us last Christmas. It's hard, I tell you- HARD.

So I'm going to satiate this desire to decorate for Christmas already with a good festive round of baking cookies. I'm going to make a couple batches of gingerbread cookies today. This weekend, I plan on baking a couple batches of sugar cookies.

Oh- and I'll break out the Mannheim Steamroller CD, as well as those old CDs of 'once famous pop artists singing christmas music from the 80s'. This is the Christmas music that I grew up with. My mom listened to pop/rock music, and she had all of those CDs. Man, I wish I knew what they were called. They had some funky little guy dancing on the covers and a new one came out every year. I think that they still make them, only it's just not the same with Britney Spears and Christina Aguilara. I want the cheesy 80s Christmas musis. I want The Pointer Sisters! And Bon Jovi! And Madonna! Pre-Bobby Brown Whitney Huston!

*Sigh*

I love Christmas. The whole season is so warm and cozy. The colors are beautiful- blue and silver, red and green, lots of gold. Candle light, spiced scents, peppermint.

I will be putting the tree up before Christmas. In less than a week, we'll become the parents of one very fiesty little beagle puppy named Irish Rose (Rosie, for short). This should be interesting.

The End Of The First Year

2005-11-16T10:40:00.000-06:00

Five days ago, I passed my one year anniversary of being a SAHM. Today, while reading at another site, someone posted this want ad.

Let me just say that I'm jealous. Because number one- there's no way in hell my husband would allow me to hire a sitter for three days a week just so that I could have a 'break', especially if I'm going to be home. And number two- this guy is getting a break. An almost guaranteed break.

I woke up this morning to snow. Yes- snow. It's not sticking, it's just flying around out there- but still. It's snow. Yesterday, it's in the 50s all day, the day before I think we actually hit 70. Today? It's 30.

In the year since I became a SAHM, I have rediscovered childhood loves. Like snow. No longer is snow something that I worry about- no longer do I dread winter, because 'snow' means 'idiot drivers in SUVs who think that just because they have four wheel drive that everyone else on the road does as well.' Now- snow is something fun. It's for playing. It changes the world into this magical place. I even find myself a little bit sad this morning- because the snow isn't sticking. No watching the world turn into this magical white wonderland- just snow flying around, being blown by the wind.

Another childhood love- rainy days. Instead of rushing around, trying to find my umbrella, worrying about parking in the muddy spot in the driveway (and taking along a second pair of shoes), making sure that I have enough time to dry once I get to work... I can sit on the couch, all cozy like, with a cup of coffee and a good book.

Another childhood love- the after school snack. When I worked, the snack was 'on the go', as I drove the boys to their grandmother's house. They ate it in the car, instead of at the dining room table. The talk after school was more along the lines of 'be good for your grandmother' and 'don't lose your socks, you know that your father always forgets to grab them when he picks you up.' Now, we can sit and chat. After school snack isn't rushed- it's us, chatting about what happened at school, what happened at home, what we're having for supper.

This year has seen so many changes. My fil has moved out (hallelujah). We've moved into an actual house. My grandfather passed away. I've discovered that I'm pretty resourceful when it comes to keeping three boys busy. Cody is learning to read. Evan is one smart cookie- he already knows his shapes. I've discovered that I really enjoy doing laundry. Oh- and I love watching Corneil and Bernie.

Sharing...

2005-11-15T19:11:00.000-06:00

It's been awhile since I've shared what I've been working on. I won't share my two latest uploads until they hit the store on Thursday, but I can share the two kits that I uploaded last week.

First up- Rainy Day. Yeah, not exactly 'seasonal', but a little appropriate for what is going on here today (rain, rain, and more rain). I think that I'm moving away from paisleys. Not that I don't like them, just that everyone and their mother is using them now. I'm really proud of those paper flowers. I think that they look neat. :)

Also new- Snowy Fields. Funny- my latest uploads are weather related, lol! This is what I wish we had- I love snow. Especially now that I'm not working. I can just sit at home, all cozy like, and watch the snow fall.

I'm also loving glass/acrylic elements right now. They're so fun to make- plus, they look neat on paper. I'm also sketching more for my kits. The floral bouquet brush/overlay and paper in the Snowy Fields kit was hand drawn by me- it has a sketch feel to it. ((And yes, I know- flowers and snow don't exactly go together.))

Last week was a blue week- this week is a pink week. I'm holding off on creating christmasy kits until after Thanksgiving (even though I'm dying to get to work on them). Both of these kits are available at The Digi Chick.

Have You Seen This?

2005-11-14T10:16:00.000-06:00

Best and Brightest

How cool is that? I'm planning on entering- already have assignment one done, and am working on assignment two. That's a hard one for me- as much as I love to manipulate photos, I've found myself staying away from it with my scrapping (other than changing color photos to black and white). I have an idea for this, but am currently looking for a kit to use with it.

Assignment three is going to be fun- all those fun little things that digital scrappers like to do in one assignment.

Did you see the inspiration for assignment five? Wow. Just- wow. I love the pieces that they've chosen for this and it's going to be so freaking hard to choose which one I want to do.

I've toyed around with the idea of entering HOF and other things like that before. But the thought of having to print everything and get it all ready has been keeping me from entering. I really think that this one is right up my alley, so to speak.

Other non scrapping related stuff:

Cody told me the other day that when he's in first grade, he'll be able to drive. Poor kid- he looked so forlorn when I told him that no, he won't be driving when he's six- he'll have to wait another ten years before that happens.

Cody didn't believe me when I told him that Santa does go shopping. He told me (all smug like) that the elves made all the toys. My response? The elves do make most of the toys, but come November, they are usually behind, because there are soooo many good little boys and girls in the world that they just can't keep up. So- Santa has to go shopping. But whenever he goes, he's always surrounded by kids telling him what they want. It's why we see Santa in stores and shopping malls at Christmas time- he's not there to find out what the kids want, he's there to shop for gifts. Now- just wait. Cody will ask Santa if he's there to buy gifts when we take the kids to see him.

He's growing up so fast. He loves to help me make the beds. Which is a good thing, because I need his help. With two sets of bunk beds, they aren't easy to make. So- he helps. He gets up on the top bunk and helps straighten the blankets and sheets out. He asks me every morning if I'm ready to make the beds. I just wish he'd ask me every day if he could pick up his toys...

I found yet another use for Photoshop. Evan is such a smart kid- he knows his shapes. When I'm working, and he wants to sit on my lap, I'll open up a new image and using the shape tool, draw shapes. We can spend hours pointing out the different shapes. Stars, circles and squares- he knows them all. Makes working rather interesting- he'll stand there beside me, shouting 'tar, mommy! mommy! tar!' Or 'kurkle! kurkle!' (translation: tar=star, kurkle=circle)

It's now November 14th- it's been two weeks since Halloween. And Dylan is still wearing his Spongebob costume. I woke up this morning to one child in a pair of jeans (Cody), one in a pull up (Evan), and one wearing a pull up and his Spongebob costume.

Random thought- my house smells like apples. Yummy! I bought a candle from an online company a few months ago, and they sent some sample break apart tarts for me to try. I burned the candle a long time ago (it was yummy, too), and while cleaning off my desk yesterday, I came across the tarts. Yesterday- the house smelled Creme de le Creme (yummy- but the scent didn't travel as well as the apples), today- baked apple crisp. I must- MUST- buy more of these tarts. And a warmer. Right now, they're in an old saucepan on the stove. But still- yummy.

Who Defines Art?

2005-11-13T08:46:00.000-06:00

In high school, my art teacher used to tell us a story about the artist Duchamp. During an open call for art work way back in 1917, Duchamp sent in 'Fountain'. 'Fountain' was actually a urinal.

Yep- a urinal. I think that he signed it using a fake name. Either way- the gallery thought that it was trash, not 'art', and threw it away. A piece of art- gone. Because someone decided that urinals are not art.

My teacher used it to explain that just because *we* don't like something, does not mean it's not art. There is a lot of artwork that I can appreciate- but frankly, it's not my style. I love Monet's work- I love the colors, the fact that he didn't use black, the way that he would paint the same scene, over and over again, playing with the light. Years ago, I saw the Monet exhibit at The Art Institute of Chicago- breathtaking. I think that I sat in front of the Waterlilies paintings the longest.

But- there are just some artists that I really don't gravitate towards. The surrealists- not exactly my style. The interactive art pieces that just leave me wondering 'what the?' That's not to say that I don't consider them art- they just aren't my style.

I love art. I love to look at it, and I love to make it. I'm crafty- to me, that's art. I love to paint, to photograph things, to draw, to sketch, to manipulate photos... In high school, I had my art teacher take digital photos of myself for me to play around with. I cloned my nose over my eyes, cloned my mouth over my eyes, and just had fun. Those pieces hung in the school's art show that year- my mother said it was 'disturbing' (and what, a two headed cat trying to break into two cats isn't disturbing? (I sculpted that one sophomore year)).

You can't claim that something isn't art because you don't understand it or you don't think the medium is acceptable. Digital art is still art. Digital scrapbooking is still scrapbooking. Artists try to stretch the boundaries of art all the time. Look at Monet- he actually went so far as to completely and totally eliminate a color from his palette. Look at his later works- there is no black. Look at Duchamp. He took something that is merely 'everyday', turned it on it's side (or was it upside down? Can't remember anymore and am too lazy to look it up). It's art- but it is art that was thrown away by the gallery that he sent it to.

It doesn't matter what other people think of digital scrapbooking. As long as you are happy, and you consider it art, then that is what it will be.

Art.

Hell Yeah, I'm Greedy

2005-11-11T10:11:00.000-06:00

Apparently, because I'm a designer, I'm greedy.

If enjoying creating new kits makes me greedy, then hell yeah- I'm greedy.

If kicking the biggest kick out of seeing what someone else does with my designs makes me greedy, then hell yeah- I'm greedy.

If making less than minimum wage makes me greedy, then hell yeah- I'm greedy.

What I find oddly amusing about this whole thing is that I don't think most designers are greedy. Sure- there are a few that might be, but most of them- especially those that are considered 'hot' right now- aren't. If designers were truly greedy, the average kit price would be a lot more than $4-7. Many designers are UNDERPAID.

What prompted this? Someone (who shall not be named) informing her little 'club' that she's not wrong for giving away designers' kits for free... because designers are 'greedy'. It's a Robin Hood complex... except that designers aren't rich.

Most customers are completely innocent- they just have no idea that this type of sharing happens or that it's illegal to share someone else's kits this way. So- for those of you who happen to join Yahoo or Google or MSN groups, or forums for sharing, here's some things that you need to know.

Beware ANYTHING that says 'Snag.' This means that the person sharing it snagged it from someone else. Chances are- they are sharing something that they shouldn't be sharing. Designers do not care if someone snagged it from someone else- ignorance isn't a reason, it's an excuse.
Most designers put their intials or full name in their file names. If you see someone sharing something that doesn't include their own initials or name, chances are- they aren't supposed to be sharing it.
Download freebies only from reputable sites and groups, like stores, SBB, DSP, RAKScraps, and ComputerElements2 mailing list at Yahoo etc. Often, the stuff being shared there is stuff that was made by the person sharing it. This is the ONLY way that sharing should be done- period.

Before you share anything- ask yourself how you would feel if the tables were turned. This isn't a game.

PIRACY IS ILLEGAL.

Hilarious!

2005-11-09T07:27:00.000-06:00

This thread at 2Peas gave me a giggle this morning. Most of us have had someone criticize our hobby- doesn't matter if you are digital or paper. My new favorite line of all time comes from that thread: "If you are so danged devoted to surgical-grade preservation of photos, then why in the name of all that is holy do you persist in chopping your precious, precious pictures into such ugly-ass shapes?"

Yep, hilarious stuff. No, I don't use my own handwriting on my layouts (would like to, but I'm still working on writing with my tablet. I'm practicing by doodling- check out my new profile pic. She started off as a doodle). I don't think that is what is important, anyway. I have a recipe box, with handwritten recipes. When I'm gone, my family will have that to remember my handwriting. Or my address book. Or my handwritten journals.

What's important is our reason for scrapping- whether that reason is to preserve memories or as a crative outlet or simply because we have folders of pictures that we need to do something with. Who cares if you hand write your journaling or use everything including the kitchen sink or create your own elements in Photoshop?

Gah, I'm tired right now. I was going somewhere with this... I think that my point is it doesn't matter HOW you scrapbook. Because HOW you scrapbook is going to tell the people looking at them after you are gone a hell of a lot more than WHAT you scrapbooked about will. Think about it. Looking at my layouts, someone who did not know me might assume that I enjoy working on the computer, that I'm creative, that I love my family, that I have a sense of humor, etc, etc, etc. I don't think that we should do things just because someone else told us to, because they think it's 'better'. If you like gluing pictures to construction paper, doodling cute little flowers in Crayola markers, and sneezing stickers all over the place, then go for it. Ignore those who laugh and point and say 'sticker sneeze!'. Just like I ignore those who look at my layouts and say that I'm missing out on the tactile feeling of scrapping. Trust me- I'm not.

The Day Has Finally Arrived!

2005-11-03T19:01:00.000-06:00

Check it out! My first kits are up! This is so exciting!

Don't forget that this coming Saturday the new designers at TDC are hosting an event. There's a free kit, plenty of challenges, and a chat. Stop by and meet some of the new designers!

In other news- I'm sick. I blame my three year old for this. He was sick yesterday, and now I'm sick. Ugh. That's the price that I pay for spending yesterday cuddling him when he needed it the most. Luckily, it's not a stomach bug. But I don't really feel like doing anything. Except sitting on my butt, doing nothing.

Blah.

Boo!

2005-10-31T21:13:00.000-06:00

Happy Halloween!

God- how I love love love LOVE Halloween. The costumes. The spooky stuff. The candy. Oh yeah- chocolate, chocolate, and more CHOCOLATE.

I did take my little goblins out trick or treating tonight, and they had a blast.
First up, we have Lord Vader himself. Cody is going through a Star Wars phase. Or rather- a Dark Side phase. He actually told me the other day that he only likes the Star Wars with Darth Vader in it. He saw a Darth Vader sleeping bag online and said 'Oh man, oh man, oh man- I have to have that!' So, of course, a Vader costume was a must this year.

His friends thought that it was the coolest costume- and they even asked where his light saber was (at home- the whole 'no weapons at school' rule, ya know). The light saber lights up, so we made him carry it while trick or treating. That's the only problem with the all black costume- it's so hard to see him, especially since he kept taking off and running for the next house.

I'm kinda surprised- it rained here, so we only did two blocks instead of our usual three or four, and Cody didn't complain when we said that it was time to head back. He did complain when I made him put his candy away for the night, however.

Ah- Clifford. I love Clifford. Clifford is cute. Clifford is big. Clifford is red. I'm not all that fond of the hat on this costume, but we dealt with it. Out of all three, Evan seemed to have the most fun of all.

I also realized that I just might be raising a spoiled brat. That little light bulb lit up right around the fourth house, when Evan screamed at his brother. I think it was his 'get out of my way, road hog' scream, but I can't be positive. His 'get out of my way' scream sounds a lot like his 'I'm so happy, I could just die' scream.

It didn't take Evan long to catch on to the whole Halloween concept. He had it all figured out before we even left home. Well- sorta. He knew that if you said trick or treat, you get candy. He walked around the house repeating 'tih tee'. It was the only time that he said it all night- after that, it was more along the lines of 'Candy!' and 'Mine!'

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea... Dylan has been my problem child. Oh- not tonight. Tonight, he was good. He didn't yell or scream, he didn't wander a mile up ahead, he stayed with us and remembered to say 'thank you' when we left.

But the weeks before Halloween? He wanted to be a ghost. Insisted on it. Had me make him a ghost costume and everything. The week before Halloween, he comes up to me and says (all determined like) 'I no wan be ghost.' *Sigh* I had to find him another costume to wear.

I tried Mickey Mouse. No go. He wanted to be Clifford. He insisted on it, no matter how many time I told him that he wouldn't fit the costume. While packing up at the apartment, I came across Cody's old Spongebob costume. Well- part of it. There are some black shoe covers somewhere, but I couldn't find those (nevermind that I've been washing the darn things every two weeks for the past two freaking years even though they haven't been worn since 2003). I only had the Spongebob top, which is enough to satisfy a three year old.

After we found Spongebob, he got into it. I mean- he really got into it. We have a stuffed Gary doll, and Dylan's been attached to him for the past two weeks. Dylan told me that Gary was going to be a pumpkin for halloween and he was going to be Spongebob. I'm glad that it was raining today and I could get away with telling him that Gary doesn't like water, otherwise I probably would have spent today trying to find something orange so that I could make Gary a pumpkin costume (the things that we'll do for our children).

Pumpkin Guts!

2005-10-30T18:41:00.000-06:00

Yes! I just spent the last hour elbow deep in pumpkin guts! Well- ok, so I wasn't exactly 'elbow deep', luckily- my boys enjoy getting their hands all dirty like that. Cody and Evan were elbow deep in pumpkin guts- me? I was watching from the sidelines, camera in hand.
We had fun while doing it though, and that's the important part. Now, Cody wants me to roast him some of the seeds (blech- I don't like roasted pumpkin seeds). I will, once Evan goes to bed (in about ten minutes- thank God for small favors).

Oh- and yes, the pumpkin was painted before we carved it. so it has sunglasses on oneside and a carved out spider on the other. I'd have carved an unpainted pumpkin, but there's a problem when you wait until the day before halloween to buy your pumpkins.

The store sells out of them. Sooo- this is the only pumpkin that we'll have this year, which is fine by me, because guess who has to take the rotting things to the garbage? Yeah. Me.

And it's supposed to rain some time tomorrow, and I'd rather just deal with one small pumpkin than three water logged, rotting ones. And yes, I realize that I could avoid all this if I tossed the darn things the day after Halloween, but then again- anyone who mentions that obviously doesn't live with three little boys who think that Halloween is just the best holiday, EVER (outside of Christmas, of course).

Oh- and chances are, you won't have to face Darth Vader and his light saber, either.

Fall From My Window

2005-10-29T17:41:00.000-05:00

When we moved, we went from a 'townhouse' (read: apartment with a superiority complex) with only a set of sliding doors in the living room (NO windows) to a house with this huge picture window in the living room. I love this window! Especially what I can see when I look out it.

This is the view out my window, as of Friday afternoon. What I want to do is take pictures of the view every month, so that I have this entire year of pictures.

I love fall. The colors are gorgeous, the weather is perfect, and there's just something about the smell of burning leaves. Now- if Yankee Candle would come out with a burning leaves scent, I'd be all over that candle. And yes, I know that I'm weird.

Today was Cody's last day of soccer for the season. We got his team picture today and he got a medal (they all did) and a token for a free treat from Dairy Queen.

Dylan keeps changing his mind about his halloween costume. First, he wanted to be a ghost. So- I made him a ghost costume. Now- he's decided that he doesn't want to be a ghost, and instead- he's now going to be Spongebob (thank God Cody was Spongebob a couple years ago and we still have the costume). He's at that age where he attaches himself to things. Right now, he's attached to a long sleeve tee shirt with a mummy on it that my mom bought him, his plastic pumpkin bucket, and his Gary doll (Spongebob's pet snail). Oh- and in his plastic pumpkin bucket?

His Spongebob costume. How he managed to fit it in there, I do not know. But it's there.

Announcing The Creative Team!

2005-10-28T16:44:00.000-05:00

It was a hard decision to make- as everyone who applied was talented. But- I could only choose four ladies, and went with these four:

Ays

Becky

Jennifer

Misty

These ladies are awesome and I'm so happy to have them on my team!

Celebrate Our Debut At The Digi Chick!

2005-10-26T08:42:00.000-05:00

This is going to be fun! A free collabortive kit, a chat, lots of challenges! I hope to see you all there!

For more info- check this thread out!

Oh, My Aching Back!

2005-10-24T22:04:00.000-05:00

I hurt all over. Today, we finished moving our stuff out of the apartment. In three hours- I cleaned and packed five rooms and three closets. Luckily (for me, anyway), Mike and his friend Ed loaded up the trailer. I'm not even upset about it. We've been in the new house for over a month (we've been putting off moving out of the apartment completely), so *this* is home and the apartment is just the place where we used to live.

I spent the morning working on a new kit that I'm hoping to have available for my debut at The Digi Chick. Oh, I'm so excited! This new kit- which will be titled "My Favorite Things"- is going to be sooo awesome! It has my favorite color (purple), my favorite patterns (dots, circles, paisleys, florals, stripes and argyle), and some of my favorite elements... Once I decide what those are. Definitely ribbon. Probably some rick rack, I'm even considering putting some brushes in. (And if you are looking for a preview- you'll just have to wait! As my five year old says, 'Nah, nah, neh, boo boo').

Oh! And before I forget, I have to tell you all about a conversation between Mike, my three year old, Dylan, and me.

Me, to Mike: I'm tired, my back hurts, my feet hurt, and this is the first thing that I've eaten today. So, I'm sorry if I'm a little cranky.
Dylan, to anyone in general: I cranky!
Me: I know, Dylly boy, I know.

Aside from all that, the only bad thing that happened today is that I lost the stone from the opal ring that my parents' bought me for my 21st birthday. I'm heartbroken over that- I haven't taken that ring off (except during the third trimester of each of my pregnancies) for over six years. My pinky finger feels naked without it. *Sigh*

Little Goalies, Lasagna, and Lost Balls. Or, A Recap of My Saturday

2005-10-22T18:53:00.000-05:00

Ah- Saturdays. They used to be such lazy days.

Then- my son started soccer, and the face of Saturday changed forever. This morning, we were up early because Cody had soccer team pictures and a game today. Wonder of wonders- he actually PLAYED today! And wouldn't you know it, Mike decided that today would be the perfect day to sleep in and skip the game.

We arrived at the same time that Cody's friend did. This is the friend who plays on the green team (Cody is on the orange team), and since the orange and green teams always play each other, they are always together. Which is good. What isn't good is that Cody and his friend tend to hang at the back of the pack, talking. Today, however, Cody just got out there and played. He was running, he even kicked the ball once! He was also cheering his team on, yelling 'Kick the ball, Dan!' and 'Go for it!' He was so cute. Today, they tried it with goalies. First, he tried to be goalie for the other team, then- when he was goalie for his team- he sat, and walked around, and sat some more... Luckily, when the ball was headed for him, he stood and watched the ball at least.

After soccer, we headed to my parents' house for lunch. Lasagna! With garlic bread! An afternoon of chatting with my mom, while the boys and my neices watched Robots and played outside. It was fun- until we were getting ready to leave. Cody had brought his soccer ball with him, and while we were getting things ready to go... we couldn't find his ball. Uh oh. It's just the perfect size for my parents' three dogs to play with. We searched all around the yard. We looked in the manure spreader (decorative), wagon (also decorative), sleigh (yep- you guessed it, decorative). We looked in the fort part of the swingset, every toy box, in the shed, in the garage, inside all five cars, in the power wheels pick up truck that they were driving around earlier, in all three boats, in the house, under the porch, under the ramp, under the dock, in both fire pits, and under all three picnic tables. Then- we grabbed my mom's binoculars and started searching the far side of the pond. No ball. We looked for over an hour! And, just as my mom said that she'd keep her eye out for it, and that we should get going, I spotted the ball.

It was inside an old walker that belonged to my boys' when they were babies and that my parents still had. It was on the porch (where we looked), in plain sight. AND WE MISSED IT. (and, for the record, we did ask Cody and his cousin what they did with the ball and they couldn't remember.)

I should probably scrap this, but right now- I'm too darn tired.

Creative team update: I've received some emails from a few ladies. Thanks so much! Keep them coming! For more information, click here.

Creative Team Call!

2005-10-21T08:37:00.000-05:00

I'm looking for four people to promote my kits by creating layouts and posting in galleries around the web.

Starting in November, my kits will be available at TheDigiChick.com. I want as much exposure as I can get- so I'm looking for a few good layout designers to help me out.

Team requirements are simple. Team members will receive two kits a month, FREE. They will be required to post one layout per kit (2 layouts total) to the Digi Chick gallery, and then send me the link to the gallery post, via email. Team members may create as many layout as they wish and post where they wish, after posting the two layouts to the Digi Chick gallery. Please note that my creative team members will NOT be part of The Digi Chick staff.

If you are interested, and think that you have what it takes, please send me an email at mommymonster@gmail.com with the following information:

Your name and email address
If you are a Digi Chick member, your Digi Chick screen name
A sample layout, no smaller than 600px wide, using my free sample from The Digi Chick: Blue Eyes.
A link to your online gallery (preferrably the one that you use the most).
Why are you interested in joining my creative team?

I want to get the team going as soon as possible- application deadline is Wednesday, October 26th, with me making the announcement on my blog (hopefully) on Friday, October 28th. Hope to hear from you soon!

Sister Rights

2005-10-20T21:15:00.000-05:00

Being a sister, I should have dibs on any good information that happens in my sister's life, right? Especially if she were to, oh, I don't know, meet any members of any famous bands like, oh, let's just go with RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE!

My *lovely* sis met the lead guitarist from Rage Against The Machine. Did I hear this from her? NOPE! I heard it from our mother. I mean, sheesh! I told HER when I met Disturbed, she could at least have said 'Hey, dear sister of mine, guess who I met today?' But, oh no!

I really need to have a chat with that girl. I have sister rights to this information. Now I'm wondering just how, exactly, she met him. Looks like I'll be waiting up for her to get home from work so that I can grill her.