I decided to try a few contests

I haven't done any MF contests/challenges lately so at the 11th hour I decided to give two from my favorite companies a try. The cards are for the Miss Fancy Pants blog card challenge, and the layout is for the May Scenic Route challenge using Die Cuts. It would be awesome to be one of the lucky selected to win, but I am really pleased with how each of these projects turned out so it's a win no matter what. ;)

It's been a pretty quiet day. I hung out with Molly and her kittens for awhile, Meghan and I hit Goodwill and Value Village and picked up a few things, and I scrapped a bit.

This is really cool! Ashlyn's best friend just moved down the street from us. The girls played together this afternoon and her mother invited Ashlyn to go to the play "Annie" with them at Spokane Community College since she had an extra ticket. How sweet is that? She just called and is taking them out to dinner to top the night off. I am anxious to hear all about it. This is a huge step for Ashlyn... she's really shy and she doesn't like to stray far from home. I am really happy that she is blossoming and more eager to try new things. My little girl is growing up. *sniff*

I hope you're having a great weekend!

cards and kittens :)

The kittens are doing so well! They are getting bigger and it's so fun to watch them constantly squirm around and climb over each other to keep warm. They are so darn cute and it's going to be so hard to send them off to new homes, but there is still plenty of time before that happens.

On to scrappy stuff. "u make me smile" card (I think I have used this sentiment on 3 cards recently... time to retire it) is for Sketch This 52. As always, the other girls totally rocked it!!!

As soon as I saw this sketch I knew which papers I was going to use. I love it when that happens. The "Merry Christmas" card is for the Di Hickman May #4 sketch. The fabulous girls did a super job on their cards... it's so fun to see them each week.

the kittens are here!!!

Yahoo! Molly's kittens have arrived!!! And they are so darn cute, in an ugly-cute kind of way. ;) their tiny bodies create such huge mews! The short story, she had her first today at 12:10AM and her last at 4-ish. She had 6 of them, but sadly kitten #4 was born stillborn. She wanted me there the entire time and I rubbed her belly which seemed to help her along. Each of the kids got to watch her give birth and they were amazed! It was pretty interesting. Icky but miraculous and I feel lucky that she wanted me to be a part of this with her. She's such a good mommy! She worked so hard and had a long 2 days. She surprised us all with how well she's doing.

We buried the dead kitty in the front yard by the cats mint plant. It was sad, and Ashlyn was distraught, but it's a good lesson in nature and thankfulness. Molly has 5 healthy babies to take care of and to be honest, she didn't pay the dead one any mind after I removed it and tried to revive it. I'll admit, I shed a tear. It was sad.

OK, I know this may sound odd, but Ashlyn was the first one to ask if she could hold and touch the dead kitten, so I let her. I figured why not, they could take a good look at something that they'll more than likely not want to (or even have the opportunity to) ever again. Her and Skye spent a long time examining all the little details like the teeth, paws, claws, eyes, ears, etc. They were fascinated and spent a long time looking it over. They were even smiling. I think they were happy just to be able to hold one of them since they are going to have to wait to do so with the others.

The pics aren't all that great, but it's a huge challenge to take a picture of 5 black kittens squirming all around a furry black momma cat. There will be plenty more in the near future!

I got my June CMK kit today!!! I plan to play tomorrow, but it's all going to depend on Miss Molly. :)

May My Acrylic Album project

wow! Two posts in one day... I just couldn't wait until tomorrow to upload my May project for My Acrylic Album which I just wrapped up. :) I decided to try something different and made a series of plaques with an inspirational quote on each one. I used the Cascading Rectangle Acrylic Album for this project and it was so fun to create with all the different sizes! I love how each one is so different but would still look good grouped together. I am not sure how or where I am going to display them, but I'll find a spot soon.

I am so happy that my Lilac's (as well as so many others) are in bloom. It smells heavenly outdoors especially when the wind carries the sweet smell. It does tend to be a bit overwhelming at times, but it doesn't last long so I enjoy it while I can. It's one of the many little things that I have learned to look forward to each Spring. Do you have something special you look forward to in the Spring?

Thanks for taking a peek and I hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! :)

it's Thursday!

Happy Thursday! It's already been a busy morning around here. Skye had an ortho appt. to put the rest of her brackets on. She's already had her braces on for a year, it's so hard to believe! Now that her teeth are starting to co-operate, things might go a bit smoother.
Nathan came to pick up his truck. Since we are no longer Nathan's guardians Kenny was able to have the truck transferred out of his name into Nathan's yesterday. The plan was for Nathan to pick it up Saturday, but Nathan called this morning telling us he was on his way to get it. A bit rude of him and it was a good thing Kenny was home or there would have been a problem because I wouldn't have been able to help him. Kenny thinks that Nathan is just playing games again and told people he was worried that now that it's in his name we would "do something" to it. Whatever. SO glad it's out of our hair and yard now. He has nothing left here, so he has no reason to come around. So far he's doing wonderfully on his own... *snort*... he's dropped school and nearly lost his job. WOW, so impressive. Life is not easy and he's really going to have some hard lessons. Hopefully he will learn and move forward and not play the "woe is me" card like he's so fond of doing.
Just thinking about him boils my blood, so enough!

How about something fun, like a card for Di's sketch this week. I pulled out some old Fancy Pants Designs paper for this one, but it was the paper that came to mind. I love what the other girls have done this week, well every week. ;) Be sure to check their cards out.

And THIS is even more fun!!! SO excited about this!

Grey's is on tonight, sadly it's the end of the season. It seems like it just started and *poof* it's over. Now we've gotta wait several months for things to pick up again. That's OK though, it gives us something to look forward to.

SketchThis! 51

Hello! :) Today was a nice break from the heat. It rained all day and we had a major drop in temperatures (25'), but it was refreshing and everything is a gorgeous rich green. Spring is such a wonderful time of year. I just love to see everything begin to bloom and fill out.

Here's my card for the SketchThis! sketch 51. I forgot to send mine in last night. Oops! The ever-so talented team just rocked this! If you want some serious eye candy, be sure to check out their layouts and cards on the blog!

a new week and some Scrap-Diner Kit projects

Happy Monday! It's a new week and life is good! Today is going to be the last hot day we'll have for awhile. We're going to have a 25'+ temp drop tomorrow, so I plan to get out and enjoy the last of the beautiful weather by reading a bit and finish planting the flowers.

We had a nice weekend. Saturday we went to some more thrift stores. We got some great deals. We got some pizza's from Papa Murphy's and chilled downstairs where it was nice and cool. Yesterday I took the girls to the Y first thing in the morning so they could swim for a few hours. I read a bit and caught up on some scrappy mags and watched them swim. When we got home Skye and Ashlyn played in the sprinkler out front and Kara and I vegged in the backyard and read. I finished my book yesterday. Yay! It seems like it took me forever to read it, even though i really enjoyed it. Kenny sat and played Mario Kart on the Wii for a few hours and ran through every course in the 50cc circuit. He completed them all and was disappointed when the credits rolled. *giggle* Now he's going to move onto the next circuit.

Emily seems to be doing OK. She's got some tough work ahead of her, but she'll do it!

Here are all the projects I created with the May 'For The Birds' Kit over at Scrap-Diner. This was such a fun kit to work with! Check it out here. Sher has excellent customer service and super quick shipping!

I hope you have a super week! :)

Thank goodness it's Friday!

Oh what a week this has been. From Nathan leaving home to a huge scare yesterday with my 13 yo step-daughter Emily. Some of you may know this, but for those who don't, here's the short version.
My dh got a phone call yesterday early afternoon from his ex telling him that Emily tried to kill herself. She had OD'd at school, was unresponsive and having seizures and was been taken by ambulance to the ER. he called me in tears and I had such a hard time absorbing it. THANK the GOOD LORD that she is OK!!! I have never felt so small and helpless and scared in my life. She took a slew of Claritin D and an excess of her asthma medicine. Not sure why, and I am not even sure she understands why. She was sent home and had an appt. today to get a brain scan, which was normal. She will visit a phsychologist sometime next week. She called me and told me that they are probably going to start her on some medication for hallucinations because she says that she hears voices in her head and they tell her to do mean things to herself. She's been cutting for over a year now and apparently that's not being addressed in the manner it should. *sigh* I can't judge, I am not there. I can only make assumptions based on what I hear from Emily.
We are now just trying to figure out what we can do to help her if anything. This is a tough situation to face and although the solution seems simple, it's not. There are so many layers to this and time and patience and love are the key. I just pray that she will never, ever do something like this again. I can't imagine life without her. I can't imagine how she feels.
The thing that struck me the most was that life goes on. Amidst all this turmoil we were facing, the phone was still ringing, the TV was still blaring, and people were outside living. Not dying inside like we were. It was hard to sit around and wait so we did just that... went on with our lives. I took the girls to Target then to Once Upon A Child. As if nothing had happened. I just couldn't sit around and wait and let my mind think the worst. Each of us does this daily. Horrible things happen all around us all the time. We have to move on even if it seems so wrong. It's right. It's vital for survival. It's weird.

So, it's been a mentally draining week to say the least. I just want a nice normal relaxing weekend. I bought a bunch of flowers today and planted about half of them. The rest I'll get to tomorrow or Sunday, not sure yet.

Moving onto scrappy stuff... I will just keep rambling if I don't. The card is for this weeks sketch over at Di's blog. This is a great sketch with such a simple design that can be used in so many ways.

The layouts I just made for fun. :) I had some mojo. yay!

Have a wonderful weekend! We are going to be in the low 90's again tomorrow and close to that on Sunday. It's going to be a hot one!

some scrappy stuff

first of all, thank you each of you for your prayers and thoughts and kind words. The truly mean so much. We packed all his belongings and that gave us a bit of closure. Our house be become the home it was in no time!

Onto the ever important scrappy stuff. :) Here's is my card for the Sketch This! blog this week (somehow my email didn't make it to her which is why my card isn't on the blog). It's an extra special one this week since it's Janelle's 50th sketch! *clapping* In celebration of this awesome milestone, there are some special prizes this week, so go check out the deets here. We'd love to have you play along, the more the merrier!

The layout is using one of the May kits from Scrap-Diner. "For The Birds" is the name of this bright and fun kit that will be available for purchase on May 15th, along with 2 additional kits. I'll be able to share the remainder of my projects on the 18th and I cannot wait! It's always hard to hold things back, especially when I love how they turned out!

I have managed to successfully catch the cold Skye and Ashlyn had. My nose has become a dripping and stuffy mess as the day has progressed and I look like Rudolph. I have been sneezing non-stop and have had to do the 'stop and cross' several times today. (You mom's should know what I mean. *giggle*) I hope I feel better tomorrow and not worse. I would like to get to water aerobics since I missed Monday and I have several errands to run that I haven't been able to with Skye being home ill.
Have a good one!

a big change in our house

I am really not sure where to begin and this may be a random rambling post today. My emotions are mixed about this.
Nathan has decided to leave our home and it wasn't on good terms. It's been a battle since he moved in with us almost a year ago... some things improved, but so many have just gotten worse. For the past two months it's been horrible. All our trust and everything we thought to be true was shattered time and time again by the hurtful lies and betrayal Nathan continued to bestow upon us. We didn't have to take him in. But we did. He's not biologically ours. But we loved him just the same. We disrupted the peace in our house and traded it for chaos. His negativity and carelessness spread like cancer through the house. We tried our best to support him through this time. But we didn't complain. We watched him self-destruct. But we couldn't stop him. We tried to guide him in the right path. But he continued to stray. We tried to get him through high school and were so close. But he decided to throw it all away. We put up with things that we swore we'd never put up with. We were used and abused. Let me tell you, that's the worst feeling in the world. To take it from someone who you owe nothing to makes it even that much harder. He's burning bridges faster than they can be built and someday all of this is going to catch up with him. I don't wish ill of him, I hope he can find his way. However he took a part of my soul and ripped it to shreds and I am not sure I can recover from that. I carry a lot of animosity toward him and I pray that I find the strength within me to let it go. He has crushed my husband who gave him everything. Endless love and endless hours of trying to get inside his head to help him find himself. Selfless love and time that one cannot get back. My husbands health suffered. The relationship between him and the girls suffered. Our relationship suffered.
I could go on and on but I won't. This last year has been a wasted effort, but at least we know in our hearts, deep down, that we gave everything we had. Time and time again. Now it's up to him to find his way and I have a feeling it's going to be a very dark time for him. If you are the praying kind, please send prayers up for him. His angels are going to be working overtime.

I will leave you with this quote I stumbled on today. How true this is. Give your kids and extra hug and kiss tonight because they grow up way too fast.

"How true Daddy's words were when he said: all children must look after their own upbringing. Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands. "
Anne Frank

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope all you mom's out there had a blessed Mother's Day! I spent today doing a little of this and a little of that. I woke up to some wonderful handmade gifts from Ashlyn and Skylar, which truly is my favorite part of this special day. I don't need anything else to make my heart happy. :) Meghan gave me a Vanilla and Amber diffuser and the house smells lovely. Kara said her card is on the computer at school and I will get it tomorrow. lol! She ran out of money to print it out.
Ashlyn isn't feeling well today and I am a bit rundown myself. We laid on the sofa and took a nap together and then watched the rest of Mary Poppins. That's such a cute movie.

Here's my card for Di's sketch this week. Not my favorite card, but I struggled with the sketch for some odd reason. Oh well, they can't all be masterpieces. ;)

I did manage to have a great scrapping spree this weekend! I busted out the kit for my May GDT spot over at Scrap-Diner. I was really stressing this kit too. Nothing was falling into place and I was getting myself stressed about it. I am pleased with the end result and will be able to share this week. Today I worked on 3 cards and am caught up on commitments for the first time in a while. My mind has been cluttered and it's taken a toll on my creativity. Yesterday came a turning point and I was able to just relax and let things flow. I really needed it.

Some fun things that happened this week:
Skylar moved up to Flying Fish in swimming lessons (the 2nd highest class) and Ashlyn moved up to Fish (just below Flying Fish). Ashlyn is now in the "big pool" and swims laps for lessons. She wanted to join the Swim team this time but the session was full. I am not sure if they offer a Summer Program for it or not, but she'll get to do the next time. It's an hour twice a week of swimming laps and working on strokes. Her endurance is building and she sure does love to swim. Skye prefers to splash around in the 4 ft. section on the smaller pool while Ashlyn can be found diving and hanging out in the deep end of the big pool. They are so alike, yet so different.

Yesterday Skye marched with her school Drill Team in the Junior Lilac Parade. I was really hoping to have been able to see her on TV, but they didn't have news coverage. Huge bummer. She had a blast though and I can see her smile in my mind.

I hope your week is fabulous! I have high hopes for a good one here! :)

a card

Happy Wednesday! It's pretty gloomy around here, but it's not too bad. It is a perfect day to stay in and read a good book which is on my to do list for today (even if I only get a few minutes in). I started Baker Towers by Jennifer Haigh a few days ago and I am enjoying the story even though I am not that far into it. I read Mrs. Kimble awhile back and I really like how she writes.

Here is my card for the Sketch This #49. I have been hoarding my Creative Cafe stuff, but I really need to start using it more. I just adore these products!

Today is the last day of swimming lessons for Skye and Ashlyn in this session. The next round begins on Monday and I am still waiting for the girls to decide if they want to do swim team or continue with lessons. Either way it will be at the same time, so it really doesn't matter. Swim team is an hour long while lessons are only 30 minutes. Ashlyn is an excellent swimmer, but she needs to build her stamina before she can move up to Fish which is frustrating for her.

There's a new feature on the Scrap-Diner blog. Each Tuesday Kim is going to post a question from the book "Ever Wonder - ask questions and live into the answers". The goal is to get you thinking and journaling your answers. There are so many ways that this can be useful in scrapping. I've not seen this book, but I think I am going to have to pick a copy up. Head on over and join the conversation.

more CMK kit projects and a toot!

I feel like I fall off the face of the earth for a few days each week. It's amazing how doing a lot of nothing consumes so much time! *giggle*

I lost my scrappy mojo for several days, however I think it's back, or at least I can only hope it is. I have a lot of clutter in my brain which is affecting my concentration, but I think that has been taken care of, at least for now. Parenting teenagers is so hard at times, especially those who just don't get it. *sigh* All one can do is try and pray for the best.

Here are two more projects I created with the gorgeous 'Raspberry Limeade' kit from CMK. There are still several available for purchase here. (sorry about the blurry photo of the full mirror, I just couldn't get a clear image for anything.)

I am honored to have been asked to be a "Kitten" for the month of May over at Scrap-Diner! I get to work with one of Sher's awesome kits! I love this site and this is such a fun surprise for me! :)

Speaking of kittens... our cat Molly is expecting. I have mixed feelings about this. First and foremost I feel like an irresponsible pet owner because we haven't gotten around to having her spayed yet. The other cats have all been spayed or neutered, but with my surgery and everything else we just kept putting it off. She is a stray that my dh found along the side of the road when she was 3-4 weeks old. She was so sick and we didn't think she was going to make it, but she did and I am so thankful! She's not the friendliest cat, but she sure i s a sweetheart when she wants to be. My biggest fear is that she's going to die or isn't going to accept the kittens. The kids are excited, but I am really stressed about this. I know it's too late to change things and I shouldn't beat myself up for this, but there are so many unwanted animals out there and I am just adding to that. :(

I hope your week is off to a great start!