Herman's Blog

Happy Easter!!!

2011-04-24T11:55:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I know. I haven't updated this thing in AGES.....and oh well....life has been so ungodly hectic I just literally have not found the time to sit down and blah-blah-blog about my life in gory detail......HOWEVER....since i would rather blog than clean my house....sit back and be prepared to get caught up on the Wonderful World of Herman (hmmm, that sounds like a brilliant reality TV show, no?)

In addition to the usual stuff going on: scouts, flute, choir, church, we've had a few major things happen the last couple months......and now, oh yeah.....it's ball season! Softball games start THIS WEEK (seems kinda early to me!), and tball and baseball will be starting up shortly. How I'm going to manage to be at 3 games at the same time is still up in the air, but I will do my best since I strive to be Supermom like that!

So let's start back where I left off with the blogging.....

Late February (sheesh, that's really bad, even for me).......Karl did the Polar Bear Plunge again for Special Olympics. This year he dressed up as Cousin Eddie from National Lampoon's Christmas vacation. You don't want to know the lengths we had to go to to get a cheetah-print speedo in his size......and I would argue there's a valid reason for that:

Alaina had her 10th birthday:

I cannot believe my baby girl is 10 years old. a whole DECADE has gone by and I swear it's just not possible. She wanted a Monster High coffin cake.....so that's what I made...and compared to some cakes I've tackled in the past, this one wasn't too bad! She loved it, of course. She and her friends were too much in a hurry to get to the pool anyways......

My girl scout troop went to a lock-in at the St. Louis Science Center.....what a FUN night! Such a great experience!

And our toop met the Mayor during national Girl Scout week:

We had a food drive:

And were honored by the City of Grafton for our contribution to the food pantry:

(yes, I love getting photo ops for my Girl Scout troop.....it's my goal to get us in the paper every week, bwahahahahahaha!)

And here's another one.......our troop made and sent origami Cranes to the Girl Scouts of Japan after the earthquake/tsunami:

And not to diss the boys.......Matthew's cub scout pack's Blue and Gold Banquet:

Karl was ordained to the office of Priest:

And Zach's preK class went bowling:

So that brings us up to April....

Horseback riding for my troop:

Alaina's final concert for the semseter in the Riverbend Chilren's Chorus. She had SUCH a fun time in the chorus.....we will totally be signing up again for this in the fall.....I'm tempted to join the adult chorus! :D

I took the Juniors of our troop to a Wildlife workshop at the Treehouse Wildlife Rescue Center:

Karl and I went to hear President Veazey's annual address at the Temple:

Zach's PreK class had an Easter egg hunt and party:

And today is, of course, Easter Sunday......so from our (yes, we are completely color-coordinated) family to yours:

Have a Blessed Easter.

Slide show

2011-02-25T08:16:00.001-08:00

just for fun, and since i can't seem to update the one on the side anymore.....I created this:

Day 26: Party of Five

2011-02-25T05:23:00.000-08:00

Day 26-Picture of your family

Being an amateur photographer, I always take a picture of the 5 of us every year for our Christmas card. This year, Karl got me a lighting kit for my birthday/Christmas present……so I didn’t have to borrow my sister-in-law’s stuff! Yay!

Zach was sick this day, so he wasn’t the smiley-happy guy I’d like him to have been, but oh well…….and no, we’re not wearing any shoes…..because I didn’t want to get the backdrop dirty! It was new, dernit!

Here we are......our little Herman party of 5!

Day 25: The Herman Shuffle!!!

2011-02-25T05:12:00.000-08:00

Day 25-Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs

YAY! I'm going to LOVE this assignment! I did this for a thing on Facebook a year or so ago.....I couldn't stop at 10 then, and I won't this time either, so kick back and prepare for a long post!

Here we go!

1. “Found out about you” – Gin Blossoms. I listened to this album relentlessly in college. Haven’t listened to the song in ages and actually didn’t realize it was on my iPod. Cool!

2. “Photograph” – Nickelback. Wow, I could write a whole post about that song. It darned near makes me cry every time I hear it, because I can so relate…..just reminiscing about your life and all that…..the older I get the more I ponder such things……mostly so I don’t forget, because my memory is cr@p!

3. “Soak up the Sun” – Cheryl Crow. MAN, does that sound GOOD right now! A warm beach, some sunshine…..yes please!

4. “I can be your friend” – Veggie Tales. LOL……I put all the Veggie Tales songs (most of them are Sunday School songs) into our iTunes library and onto Alaina’s iPod……and I guess they ended up on mine as well (can you tell how often I look at my library? Not often!). It’s a great song though…..it talks about accepting people that are different and how you can all be friends anyways. Cute song.

5. “Good Enough” – Sarah McLachlan. Oh yeah……I remember this one. I love her, and I remember singing this one many a time back in college…….I even remembered the harmonies just now. Yay me!

6. “Monster High Fright Song” – Monster High Soundtrack. Uhm, gag. Alaina is currently all into this Monster High fad. We were being cool parents and downloaded this song and set it up to be the ringtone on her phone. I’m already sick of it btw…..skipping ahead now….

7. “Better Days” – Goo Goo Dolls. Ooooh, another good one I haven’t listened to in forever. I even have the sheet music for this and can play it on the piano….well….until it gets to the difficult parts. :D lol……I was actually thinking at one time that it’d be a good solo for a friend of mine to do at church. Hmmm….I might have to revisit that idea.

8. “Nothin’ But a Good Time” – Poison. OH YEAH! I have this one on my running playlist now. Talk about your blasts from the past. Late 80’s-early 90’s……I was all about Poison. I’d still love to go to a Poison concert. One of my favorite bands of all time……..ah, memories of my BFF in junior high rocking this on the guitar and me doing the vocals…….*sigh*….good times, good times.

9. “The Power of Love” – Huey Lewis & the News. LOL……great song! I love Huey Lewis! What’s funny about this song is that it TOTALLY reminds me of my childhood. I downloaded this song to put in a slideshow I made for my brother Dean’s 40th birthday a couple years ago. Deano was a HUGE Huey fan, so I got to hear this song like 10 billion times, so it reminds me of him……him blasting it on his stereo…..mom yelling to turn it down……me (being the annoying little sister), trying to weasel into his room to sing along……him kicking me out…..and me singing along anyways since I could still hear it. Ah, good times!!!

10. “Where I Stood” – Missy Higgins. Not sure if this was a really popular song or not……I think it came out a couple years ago. The lyrics totally spoke to me though……I “get it”….been there….done that……I could sing this one and truly understand what she’s saying. I usually cry when I hear this song. I’m such a sap.
I’m having fun with this, so I’m gonna keep going!

11. “I Gotta Feeling” – Black Eyed Peas. Did you see their Super Bowl halftime show? The kids were totally digging the costumes that light up and changed colors! And then there was that clip on youtube of that college up in Canada that made the video to this....I always think of that when I hear this song. Fun song!

12. “Happy” – Sister Hazel. I don’t think this was even a single released by them. But it was one of my favorite songs on the album (Somewhere More Familiar, in case you care). One of my favorite song lyrics of all time is in this song: “I remember thinkin’: who’s content and who’s for rent”……not sure why that stuck with me all these years, but it just did. It’s a profound lyric really if you stop and ponder it (like I obviously have). Am I content? Can I be ‘bought’? am I after material gain and that’s why I’m not content? Interesting song though……give it a listen if you’ve never heard it before……it talks about why we’re happy and why we’re not……deep stuff man!

13. “The World I Know” – Collective Soul. I always loved the cello in this song. I love cellos. Any song that’s good some good strings in it, and I’m hooked. :D I wish I could play the cello……..maybe I’ll add that to my goals list!

14. “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” – They Might Be Giants. O.M.G I am laughing SO HARD right now…..the coworkers are giving me funny looks. This is great. I completely forgot about this song. I actually saw these guys in concert back in college. It was a blast! Such a goofy, funny song! I’ve got to move this to a playlist so I can actually hear it once in awhile (can you tell I never put my iPod on shuffle with the whole library? I have a couple playlists that I listen to and forget about all the other stuff! That’s a shame obviously, as I’m having fun with this ‘assignment’)

15. “Land of Confusion” – Genesis. Hmmm….. this is what happens when married people combine their libraries! I’m not a HUGE Genesis fan, and I can definitely say I didn’t put this on here. I just remember the video though, with all those puppets? Remember that? Hilarious. I’m going to have to go look it up on youtube now. Good song though…..great message. Phil Collins always looks like he’s in pain when he sings though…….why is that?

16. “Arrival to Earth” – Transformers soundtrack. Are we the only wierdos that download musical scores? Surely not. I like instrumentals. They’re frustrating in the fact that I can’t sing along when there’s no words…….but on the flip side, it’s a nice change of pace to be able to really sit back and LISTEN to the music vs. concentrating on the lyrics like I usually do.

17. “Take a Chance on Me” – ABBA. Okay, I’ll give the hubby this one. I like this one. Not one I put in the library, but I won’t begrudge him this one. Which reminds me……I need to get Mamma Mia on DVD! :D

18. “Before he Cheats” – Carrie Underwood. Ooooh. This is on my short-list of Karaoke songs. Without going into specifics or incriminating myself…….let’s just say that ‘someone I know’ did deflate a certain boyfriend’s tires when she caught him cheating on her. Smashing headlights and ripping upholstery would’ve equated to a stint in jail, and the guy wasn’t worth that whole vandalism rap. But deflating tires? It was cathartic…..for ‘her’. Sing it, sister! Amen.

19. “Daydream Believer” – The Monkees. WTH? How did this get in here? I didn’t even know karl liked this one. But it’s kinda funny. And I actually have a history with this song, amazingly enough. My first car was a 1977 Mercury Comet. And it had an 8-track player in it. (let me tell ya, back in 1991 when I inherited it……that was SO COOL. Not!) And the only 8-track we had was this song. Any idea how many times I listened to this song? When my only other source of music was the AM (no FM, mind you!) radio???? Oh yeah…….cheer up, sleepy Jean…….oh what can it mean……my girlfriends in high school were NOT amused. :D

20. “Safety Dance” – Men Without Hats. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Again, I’m laughing my arse off here. Why? Because I can’t hear this song without laughing hysterically. Back when we were dating, Karl and I would spend way too much money at Best Buy on CDs. Well…..one particular Saturday we were at Best Buy and Karl bought this 80’s compilation CD that had this song on it (Karl is a big 80’s music buff, in case you haven’t figured that out yet). I just rolled my eyes like I always did. Then that evening, we went to see a movie. A TERRIBLE movie, btw, but it had its funny moments. I should’ve known better since Pauly Shore was in it, kwim? Anyhoo….we went to go see “Bio Dome”. And there’s a scene in this awful theatrical mess where Pauly and whoever (I don’t remember) are in this Bio Dome and refuse to come out……so the ‘suits’ say “here, this will get them out” and they play this song….and of course Pauly and his sidekick just start dancing and such instead of going insane like a normal person would. I was laughing hysterically in the theater……..laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe. Karl had JUST BOUGHT THIS CD….and here’s this movie mocking it. I found it hysterical. Still do. Karl didn’t think that scene was nearly as funny as I did. *snicker* He still gets mad when I laugh and remind him of that movie. Lol…

5 more, and then I’ll shut up, I promise!

21. “Our Song” – Taylor Swift. Now, admittedly, I am not a country music fan (I abhor the sound of a steel guitar….it’s like nails on a chalkboard to me). But there are a handful of exceptions to my anti-country mantra. Taylor, Carrie, Shania, and Faith are basically those exceptions…..maybe a couple others that’ve slipped my mind, I dunno. Anyhoo…..I love Taylor. I think she’s a better songwriter than vocalist, but what do I know? she’s the one with the Grammys, not me! nobody’s paying to hear ME sing, now are they? :D Alaina LOVES her, and this is one of the first songs I remember Alaina memorizing in its entirety. I think she was like 6 or 7 at the time. Cuteness.

22. “Superman” – Five for Fighting. LOVE this one. I’m a total sucker for piano ballads. I actually have the music to this one and could play it once upon a time……I might just have to dust it off and give it another try one of these days!

23. “What is Love” – Haddaway. Uhm, all I can think of when I hear this song is ‘Night at the Roxbury’, and how my hubby would insist on doing the dance at every wedding reception we’d go. My apologies to every bride that got caught up in this song……..literally. (if you’ve seen the movie, you should know what I’m talking about there). I tried to stop it, but the idiocy cannot be contained. It is kinda funny to watch though…..I’m sure some home movies exist of the Herman brothers dancing to this song…….God help us all! Our children will never live it down.

24. “Break Away” – Kelly Clarkson. Wow. Almost darned autobiographical. Seriously. If I could write a song, I could’ve easily written this one. It’s like my life in 4 minutes. :D

25. “More” – Usher. My current fave song of the moment. I get in a mood where I’ll listen to a “new” song on repeat for a couple of days until I’m thoroughly sick of it. :D Good song for my running playlist actually…..most remember to move it there….

And an “extra”, because this one came on and I just HAVE to comment:

26. “Don’t Stop Believin’” – Glee cast. Yes, I paid money for this song. Alaina insisted. She LOVES this song. She can sing Rachel Berry’s part just as good as she does (not that I’m biased or anything). Amazingly, when I played the ORIGINAL Journey version of this song, Alaina didn’t care for it as much….said it wasn’t as “peppy” as the Glee version. To each generation their own, right? But still….can’t have enough Journey songs in our lives, can we? :D And I gotta admit, this is one of the best songs they’ve ever done on that show…….kinda barbershop quartet-ish with the background vocals, but it still rocks…..and of course Rachel steals the show, as always. :D sometimes Alaina will sing Rachel’s part and I’ll sing Finn’s part……sometime she’ll sing it all and I’ll just listen….sometimes she wants to do all that “da-da-da-da-da”ing in the background and I’ll rock out on lead. Do they have this song for Guitar Hero I wonder? We would totally kill this! :D

Funny how I have so many stories to go along with songs……I could probably do this for a couple hundred more songs, but that would probably get boring for anybody actually reading this…….i would enjoy it most thoroughly though! I’m a big music nut and have the uncanny ability to equate songs with my past…where I was when I heard such-and-such a song…….is anybody else like that? have a ‘musical memory’??

Day 24: What I've learned...

2011-02-25T05:09:00.001-08:00

Day 24-Something you've learned

Uhm…….I’ve learned a LOT of things in my 35 years. How to sum it up in one blog post…

I've learned to never underestimate the power of Prayer. So many times things have happened to me or a loved one that seemed insurmountable at the time....impossible to get through.....but after offering it up to God in prayer, we always come through it......maybe not the way WE want to, but we get through it nonetheless.

I’ve learned that it never hurts to plan ahead. I’m a planner. I’m of the mindset that you should “Plan for the worst and hope for the best” Most of the junk that has happened to us or people we know could’ve been prevented with better planning. Of course, I say that NOW…….hindsight and all that…

I’ve learned that time goes by way too fast. I can’t believe how big my kids are already. I look back at pictures of them from just a few months ago and they’ve already changed so much!

I've learned that I worry too much. I'm working on trying to do something about that, but it's way easier said than done!

I've learned that it's okay to not do everything 'just right'......sometimes ya gotta settle for "good enough" :D

i could go on all day......but I'm tired, so I won't. :D

Day 23: Vacay Time!

2011-02-25T04:32:00.000-08:00

Day 23: Your favorite vacation.

July 2008, 10 days in England/Ireland. By far my favorite vacation!

The trip to England/Ireland was our 10-year anniversary present to each other. Karl was leading an EF tour (student trip), so we had a guide, a tour bus….lots of high school and college kids to chaperone (and they babysat for us too!)…..it was a blast of a trip.

We flew into London and spent a couple days there touring the city….

then north into Oxford and Wales where we visited Oxford University, Shakespeare’s birthplace, a couple castles (actually, we went through so many castles on this trip, I had to google them when I got home to remember their names!).

Then we had a ferry ride to Dublin where we had a couple days there. We didn’t tour the Guinness factory….some of the kids did, but we went shopping instead….Guinness was consumed though…..I just won't admit how MUCH! Then we toured Ireland southward……more castles (kissing the Blarney stone!),

more amazing scenery,

The Cliffs of Moher....on a really really foggy day:

and we flew home from Shannon under the direction of Captain Matthew! That was SUCH a memorable moment: matthew took a wrong turn boarding the plane and ended up in the cockpit hanging out with the pilots! The captain asked me (who ran up there, camera in hand, to capture the moment of course!) if I thought Matthew could do the welcome greeting, so we practiced it with him a couple times and Matthew did the announcement to the flight saying what our flight time was, etc......and that Captain Matthew was in charge of the aircraft. It was the cutest thing EVER!

Awesome trip. Highly recommend it!

Here’s another of my favorite pics from the trip…….i had a grand total of about 5 seconds to get this shot…..we were ‘behind schedule’ on our tour and our guide was making us literally RUN here…..so it’s a miracle that this shot even turned out. But still….GORGEOUS. Torq falls, County Galway, Ireland:

I’m trying to talk Karl into organizing another EF tour so we can go someplace cool on the cheap again……he’s considering it…..anybody up for a Germany/Italy/Austria/Switzerland trip in the summer of 2013? :D Anyone?

Day 22: Makin' it up as I go along.....

2011-02-17T17:54:00.000-08:00

Day 22-What's in your makeup bag

Makeup. Duh! Well….since I have the uncanny ability to make an entire blog post out of a one-word answer, let me rephrase that. In my makeup bag there are TONS of cosmetic essentials, I’m telling you!

Let me preface this by saying this: I don’t really wear makeup. I don’t like how it feels on my face and I don’t have the foggiest idea what I’m doing when I put it on. So my morning face routine consists of me putting lots of moisturizer on, grumbling about my laugh-lines (crows’ feet, WRINKLES, whatever) and my clogged pores…..and then dealing with whatever child just yelled at me since those 15 seconds is all the time I’m allotted to myself for my beauty routine.

But back to my makeup bag: There’s foundation…..which I wear once a week, tops. For church, and that’s it. And I haven’t even been wearing it to church lately because my skin is SO DRY right now, when I put foundation on, it makes me look like a lizard. No joke. It’s gross. So I just haven’t been wearing it. Maybe I need to switch brands, I dunno. Makeup is not my forte. I should’ve put “learning how to correctly apply makeup” as one of my goals. I need someone to show me how. Seriously.

There’s blush (which I never wear, so I’m kinda stumped as to why I even have it….and am curious as to how old it must be), eye shadow (which again, I never wear except maybe those 2 times a year karl and I go out on a fancy date), eyeliner (which I DO wear……probably more often than anything else actually), mascara (again, rarely wear this because it gets in my eyes and bugs the bejesus out of me), moisturizer (which I use religiously yet still my cheeks are so dry they actually HURT at the moment), toner (which I haven’t been using since my skin is already so darned dry the thought of using toner right now seems ludicrous), some dental floss (which isn’t makeup, but it’s in the bag!), a tube of carmex (which I hate, so I’m not sure what that’s doing in there. I’m a Chapstick person. Karl’s the Carmex person), 3 tubes of lipstick (that I got free and they’ve basically remained untouched since lipstick is my least favorite makeup item. Even when I wear makeup I rarely wear lipstick. HATE the stuff….but for pictures and special occasions, I’ll put some on. Grudgingly.), and a travel-sized tube of toothpaste (half-used from my last overnight stay somewhere).

That was fascinating, wasn’t it? I hope you learned a lot about me…..and my lack of cosmetic skills.

Feel free to send me some makeup tips……or a gift certificate to Clinique. :D I’ll gladly accept either one!

Day 21: Again?

2011-02-17T17:51:00.000-08:00

Day 21-Picture of yourself

Wait a second! We did this on day 1, didn’t we? Have you forgotten what I look like already? Well….since I kind of cheated that first time around….here’s a slightly more flattering picture of me:

not the best picture ever, but then it's got me in it, so i can't expect much! :D Those lovely ladies on either side of me are my BFFs from high school, Gina and Courtney. We hadn't seen each other in YEARS (pathetic!), and when i was town over the weekend, we went out to dinner to catch up. It was so much fun. I will make sure that happens again sometime soon!

Interruption!

2011-02-12T19:30:00.000-08:00

I'm interrupting the blogging project to post some layouts!

It's been a long time since I've posted any of my layouts, so even though this seems like a bunch, it's not when you figure up how many weeks this covers! :D

Since I've got Disney on the brain lately (after recently finishing up making our dining reservations for our upcoming trip), I'm STILL trying to get our trip from almost 2 years ago scrapped. My goal is to get this March '09 trip scrapped before we go back in July. Fingers crossed! :D

One of our favorite rides, the Haunted Mansion:

And even though I already have many pictures of the castle......I always take more on every trip. You just can't resist!

The Tomorrowland Indy Speedway:

the WDW Railroad, using some of Haynay's disney-inspired stuff:

Alaina's birthday makeover at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique (she looks so much younger here!!!)

Zach's 'all about me' day at school:

The belated Pre-K Christmas play, where Zach was the Mouse:

Alaina/Matthew's class Christmas parties:

Alaina and her Character Plus award:

Hope, the rescued Bald Eagle we went to visit:

Snowmageddon:

More Snow: (this has been the LONGEST WINTER EVER!)

And in the midst of this winter, my Amaryllis bloomed:

our Pack Pinewood Derby:

Boy Scout awards dinner....don't I look ravishing in the official boy scout uniform?:

And that catches you up on everything I've scrapped so far this year. I'm still behind (I'm ALWAYS BEHIND!), but at least that gives me something to do in all those free hours I have. :D

Day 20: Don't call me Diane!!!

2011-02-12T02:12:00.000-08:00

Day 20-Nicknames

Today we're supposed to talk about our nicknames.

Diva. And that’s pronounced like “Dive-uh”…..not like “a Diva with an attitude” or something. ‘Cuz I’m definitely not that! The nickname originated because my little brother couldn’t say “Diana” when he was a toddler……it came out ‘Dive-uh’…..and it stuck. And it’ll stick with me forever. Only my family (and a handful of close family friends) calls me that though. Most of the time people will assume my name is Diane (since that’s more common than Diana) or that I actually WANT to be called Diane (I don’t. It’s actually a big pet peeve of mine to be called Diane. One of the fastest ways to get me mad is to intentionally call me Diane. grrrr). But to my knowledge, Diva is the only nickname I have. Well….except for: Mom, Mommy, Momma, Mother….MA!.......you get the idea. :D

Day 19: Something's Amiss.....

2011-02-11T02:22:00.000-08:00

Day 19-Something you miss

What an odd blogging topic! But whatever....I didn't make 'em up!

I miss having girlfriends to talk to. I don’t have anyone local I can pick up the phone and call and say, ‘hey, come over here and let’s have a margarita!’ I miss that. badly. I haven’t had a girlfriend to call since high school. Sad, but true.

Sometimes, I'll admit.....it gets pretty lonely....

Day 18: Regrets, I've had a few.....

2011-02-10T05:23:00.000-08:00

Ya know, I don’t have any MAJOR regrets. I can think of a ton of “little” regrets though.

I regret not auditioning for the school musicals back in high school. I just knew I’d never get picked, so I never even bothered to try out. What a stupid attitude. I'm probably trying to over-compensate for that by being 'overly encouraging' to Alaina. She has the talent (probably more so than I did), and I don't want her to have the same regret.....

I regret not being more confident. I was so shy, so unsure of myself, so afraid to fail……I think I held myself back more than anything. Bummer.

I regret not taking better care of my body when I was younger. I’m in better shape now at 35 than I was at 18, and that’s just wrong.

I regret ever attempting to be a blonde. It was NOT a pleasant experience. :D

I regret my bridesmaids’ dresses at our wedding. They seemed like a good idea at the time….but now? not so much. :D

I regret ever starting the habit of cracking my neck. It’s beyond the help of any chiropractor now!

I can't think of anything else earth-shattering......

Day 17: Looking forward....

2011-02-09T15:18:00.000-08:00

Day 17-Something you're looking forward to

Short-term: our family vacation this summer. I always need something like that to look forward to and countdown to. It makes me happy.

I’m having serious Disney withdrawals……any Dis-freak will understand. It’s been 13 months since I was at Disney World, and I’m feeling it. I’ve already got all of our dining reservations made for our trip this July. I’m working out a (semi-realistic) budget and we’re setting money aside to make the trip happen. The kids are ready to go back and eat at our favorite restaurants, trade pins, ride their favorite rides….and this summer, hopefully Zach will be tall enough to ride some of the stuff too!

Long-term: building a house (see day 16!), decorating it and moving in!

Just wanting a freebie....

2011-02-09T12:14:00.001-08:00

I get a chance to win free stuff for posting this so.....i'm posting this! :D

Day 16: The Diana Dream House

2011-02-09T06:56:00.000-08:00

Day 16: Your Dream House

I chuckled when I saw that topic.....I kept thinking of "Toy Story 3" and 'Ken's Dream House'......hehehehehehehe. Ken's one of my favorite characters in that movie. But I digress.....

A few years ago, we bought 5 acres of land to build our dream house on. Then “life” happened. I’m reminded of the montage in the movie “Up” where Carl keeps breaking the jar of money they were saving for that dream trip to pay for things they needed along the way. I became pregnant with Zach and I decided I wanted to take some time off work to stay home with (what I knew would be) my last baby. And seeing as how unpaid leaves are kind of hard on the budget (especially when you’re married to a teacher!)……….we sold the land and that’s what allowed me to stay home with Zach for the first 5 months of his life. I don’t regret that decision a bit. Those were some of the happiest months of my life. But the dream house went on the backburner.

Fast-forward to a couple years ago…….right in the middle of the housing slump……we put our house on the market because we found the most PERFECT HOUSE to buy…..we had an offer agreed on…..we just had to sell our house. And we never got a single offer…….and someone else came along and snatched that house out from underneath us. Rats.
We have most definitely outgrown our current home. We’re hoping that in a few years we’ll be able to build that dream house at last. That’s the plan anyways…….a lot will depend on things that’re beyond our control, but fingers are firmly crossed that will happen.

Way back when we bought that original acreage……we hired an architect to design a house for us. :D We don’t have the finished plans yet (we told her to shelve it until we were really ready to actually build since codes/etc change over the years, it might need to be updated and stuff), but it’s going to look something like this:

I like the Cape Cod/Victorian look. If I have any say in it whatsoever, our house won't resemble a cereal box in any way, shape, or form. Box houses bore me. Sure, they're easy to build, but they're so BORRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNG! :D

I’m going to tweak it a bit (I am like an architect's nightmare), and I’m thinking we’ll mess around with the dimensions and such (depending on building costs), but generally speaking, this is what we’re shooting for. And we plan on having a full basement too….preferably a walk-out, but that’ll depend on the lot we end up buying. Ah…….dreaming is fun…..

But since Karl and I have discussed this at length, we have a list of “must-haves” for the house:

4 bedrooms minimum (we’re leaning toward 5 actually, to have a guest bedroom for Nanny/PawPaw…but that 5th bedroom will likely be in the basement and will get added later probably.)

A huge kitchen with an island in the middle (I need counter-space!) that can double as an eating area

Master suite on the ground floor (Karl’s already worried about his knees) with a whirlpool tub

Fireplace (possibly 2...since this is my dream house and all, sure, what the heck!)

Mud room. This last week, tracking in snow all over the place….i’ve really wished we had a mud room where everybody could dump boots/coats/etc. Just having that little area to put backpacks/etc in would be so nice!

At least 3 bathrooms……karl’s rule of thumb is that there “should be a toilet for everybody”, so that would mean 5. I’m not too keen on cleaning that many bathrooms, but then I’m reminded that by the time we get to this house, the kids will be big enough to divide such tasks with……so I’m okay with that now.

Covered front porch. I want a porch swing where I can sit and sip iced tea in the summer. Aaaaaahhhh!

Just about everything else is negotiable, depending on $$$$$$ of course!
On the “would be nice” list:

I’ve always wanted a formal dining room, but the practical side of me screams that it’s utterly wasteful to have an entire room (not to mention thousands of dollars’ worth of furniture) that gets used a handful of times a year. So I’m truly torn on this one.

3-car garage. We’ll probably have it, as it seems most new house plans have them. Not sure how the kids are going to decide who gets that other garage slot though. :D

Dual laundry rooms. :D just so I don’t have to cart laundry up/down stairs, I’d like a washer/dryer (I’m thinking stackable) upstairs near the kids’ rooms in addition to the laundry room (on the ground floor or the basement or wherever it’s going to be). That way the kids can do their own laundry. Score!

A window seat and skylights. I always thought they were cool, but I also know they’re insanely expensive to build into a house. So we’ll see if that makes the cut!

That's about it for my dream house. Will what we actually end up with look anything like i've described? probably not! I'm a dreamer, sure.....but i'm also a realist. we may end up buying a house that's already built, who knows. but since the assignment was to describe your DREAM house......i had to think big! 'cuz who dreams small, right? :D

Day 15: Looking at the Good Book.....

2011-02-08T18:34:00.000-08:00

Day 15: Share your favorite Scripture.

I’ve got LOTS…...too many to narrow it down to just ONE......here’s a few:

Isaiah 41:13 “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

That verse has always given me comfort and been a long-time favorite of mine…….just knowing that as long as I’m doing the work of God that I’ll be okay. He’ll get me through whatever life may throw at me.

This is one of my favorites too:
Mark 12:47-50 – “And after this, Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury; and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she cast in two mites, which make a farthing. And Jesus called his disciples, and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they who have cast into the treasury; For all the rich did cast in of their abundance; but she, notwithstanding her want, did cast in all that she had; yea, even all her living.”

James 2:14-19 (and I’m using the New Living Translation here because I like how it reads better than good ol’ King James)
“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.” "You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?"

Another favorite passage:
John 15:1-11 - “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

II Nephi 6:59-64 “When they are learned, they think they are wise, and they hearken not to the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves; wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness, and it profits them not. And they shall perish. But to be learned is good, if they hearken to the counsels of God. But woe to the rich, who are rich as to the things of the world. For because they are rich, they despise the poor, and they persecute the meek, and their hearts are upon their treasures; wherefore their treasure is their god. And behold, their treasure shall perish with them also.”

(that one is kind of a wake-up call to what your priorities should be, don’t ya think?)

Here’s another good one:

Ether 5:6-7 “…..Faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.”

And from the Doctrine and Covenants……..I just love the meaning behind these:

D&C 161:1a – “Lift up your eye s and fix them on the place beyond the horizon to which you are sent. Journey in trust, assured that the great and marvelous work is for this time and for all time.”

D&C 161:3a- “Open your hearts and feel the yearning of your brothers and sisters who are lonely, despised, fearful, neglected, unloved. Reach out in understanding, clasp their hands, and invite all to share in the blessings of community created in the name of the One who suffered on behalf of all.”

D&C 161:7 – “The Spirit of the One you follow is the spirit of love and peace. That Spirit seeks to abide in the hearts of those who would embrace its call and live its message. The path will not always be easy, the choices will not always be clear, but the cause is sure and the Spirit will bear witness to the truth, and those who live the truth will know the hope and the joy of discipleship in the community of Christ.”

That’s enough bible study for one night, don’t you think? I have lots more favorites, (I didn’t realize how many favorites I actually had ‘till I sat down and thought about it!) and I tried to toss stuff out there a little less common than the 23rd Psalm (which I love) or John 3:16…..those are too easy, kwim? :D And I tried not to get too ‘preachy’, since that’s not the point!!!

So ponder all those and have a blessed night! :D

Day 14: Worth a thousand words....

2011-02-07T19:06:00.000-08:00

Day 14: Post a picture you love.

Lots of pictures I love, but this one was the first to come to my mind when I pondered what to post:

December, 2006. Our first family photo at Disney World. This is the first picture of the 5 of us together at the Magic Kingdom. Zach was just shy of 4 months old here, Matthew was 3, and Alaina was 5. And yep, we're wearing matching shirts! This was the first of many 'party of five' vacations to Disney!!!

Day 13: GOAL!!!!

2011-02-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

Day 13-Goals

OOOOOH, I’ve got LOTS of goals! Where to begin listing them is the question!

1. Lose those last 15 pounds. I’ve had a number in my head ever since my surgery that I really really wanted to see on the scale….and I’m 15 pounds away from that. I’d really like to get there. Will the world come to an end if I don’t? no. But it’d be nice nonetheless.

2. Get out of debt. Hahahahahahahaha. Okay, that’s totally NOT going to happen anytime soon, so let me rephrase: Get debt down to a more manageable level. There. That’ll work.

3. Run a ½ marathon. Since illness and Snowmageddon derailed my training plan considerably, I’m not too confident that I’ll be ready for the ½ marathon I planned to run in September….or even the one I planned to run in October. But I’m still going to try. I might end up walking part of it…which will p*ss me off greatly since my goal is to RUN the ENTIRE THING. So we’ll see.

4. Take a cake-decorating class. I like making cakes and decorating them, but I know a class would REALLY be helpful.

5. Take a photoshop class. To help my scrapbooking skills and just because I think I’d really enjoy it….

6. Take more pictures for the artistic aspect of it vs. the snapshot-to-document-what-the-kids-are-doing aspect of it.

7. Keep the house cleaner. Uhm, yeah….that’s probably not going to happen either……so let me rephrase: Get a cleaning lady! :D

8. Visit all 50 states. I’ve never counted up how many I’ve been to already. I guess I should do that. But I know there’s LOTS I haven’t been to. :D

9. Put all 3 kids through college and have THEM graduate without student loans. BIG DEAL for us. Karl and I both graduated with a MOUNTAIN of student loans between us. We don’t want that for our kids. I hope we can do this for them. We will definitely give it our best effort.

10. Learn a foreign language fluently. I can speak/understand Spanish pretty decently (enough to get by), but I’d like to learn German and/or Italian someday…….in all that free time I have.

11. Retire at 57 (if not sooner), and not because my health forces me to retire. At 57 I’ll have 30 years at the big B, so that’s the goal. I don’t want to work a day longer than I absolutely have to! :P

12. Finish some little home-improvement projects around the house this year that we said we were going to do last year but obviously didn’t do…..

13. Build a new home before we’re 40.

And I’m sure there’re more, I’m just not thinking of them at the moment……this list could go on for DAYS, kwim?

Day 12: What do I think.....

2011-02-06T10:34:00.000-08:00

Blogging assignment, Day 12-What you believe

I’m assuming this is a faith-based question. Well…….I believe that God is Love. :D Now, you can argue differing theology and scripture ‘till the cows come home, but in the end, I think we (those of us that believe in God, or a God-like being) all basically agree that God is Love.

Now, as for my personal denominational choice? I’m a member of the Community of Christ. Feel free to visit our site here: www.cofchrist.org Our church’s website says (and this sums it up as well as I could): “We proclaim Jesus Christ and promote communities of Joy, Hope, Love, and Peace”. So there ya go!

I believe we should live our lives seeking (and being beacons for) Joy, Hope, Love and Peace. I'm still working on how to actually DO that.....but I believe we should!

I believe that (as a parent), my greatest responsibility in raising my kids is teaching them about God.

I believe we should treat others with respect. God loves everyone and we should try to do the same. It’s not always easy, and I struggle with it as much as the next person…..but I think we really should try.

I believe in freedom. I don’t know what I would do had I not been born an American, with the freedoms we have here. I think everybody should be free to live their lives however they want. Why should it bother you or me what the guy down the street is doing? As long as he’s not breaking the law, let him do his thing, kwim?

I believe that you get what you give. But you shouldn’t give simply to ‘get’. Did that make sense? Maybe not. What I mean is that doing good in the world should be it’s own reward, vs. any accolades that might come your way for doing it. Along the same lines, I believe what goes around comes around…..selfish, narrow-minded people usually end up finding their lives in a pickle. Maybe that’s better described as Kharma?

I’m not one of these people that believes that if you don’t belong to “my church” or believe the same things I do, you’re going to H*ll. I think that’s a very narrow-minded view of the world and of God to think that way. Don’t put such limitations on God. :P And without going on a big rant, I’ll leave it at that.

Eh, there’s plenty of other things I could probably put on here….but those are the biggies I guess…..I can't think of anything else earth-shattering to list....

What other controversial topics could I weigh in on while I’m rambling? Abortion? Marijuana? The Death Penalty? Boxers or Briefs? Toilet paper over or under? I could go on for days blabbing……but I won’t. you’ll just have to sit and wonder my opinions :P

Day 11: Let's talk TV!

2011-02-05T12:56:00.000-08:00

Day 11-Favorite TV shows

Welcome to Day 11. Are you still with me or have you been bored into a coma? Remember, I didn’t make up the questions, I’m just playing along!

Easy blogging topic for today! Today we’re supposed to talk about our favorite TV shows.

Now, I’m not sure if I’m supposed to interpret that as our favorite TV shows of ALL-TIME (like when I was a kid?) or if they’re only talking about currently.

So…..my blog….my interpretation of the rules…….I’m gonna do both! Because I can.
When I was a kid……WAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY back in the mid 1980’s……..I lived for shows like these:

Little House on the Prairie. Good ol’ family TV at it’s finest. When I watched it, it was on after school as reruns.

Silver Spoons. Every girl my age had the biggest crush on Ricky Shroeder. Actually, he’s aged quite nicely and I can say I still kinda have a crush on him now!

The Cosby Show. They were just the coolest parents EVER. Weren’t they?

Punky Brewster. Didn’t we all want to be Punky? I know I did!

And of course, in high school/college, there was:

Beverly Hills, 90210. ah, memories! My high school experience wasn’t a THING like theirs, but eh, it was still fun television back in the day.

ER. I watched it until Dr. Ross left, and then I was done. My love for ER wasn’t enough of a draw to keep me there once George Clooney bailed. Sorry! :D

Friends. Of course. I still mourn this end of this show. Everybody had a ‘Friend’ that they were like, ya know? Me? I was totally Chandler. Neurotic, funny, lovable Chandler. One of these days I’ll own that series on DVD and relive it all. Christmas gift idea for anyone reading this……

Seinfeld. OMG, the ‘show about nothing’………was just darned funny. Reruns are still funny. I mourned the end of this show as well.

And this show has come and gone, but while it lasted, I will admit I was obsessed:

Battlestar Gallactica. Oh how I loved this show! It was gritty, edgy……frakkin’ awesome! :D I was in love with Apollo, and the hubby was in love with Six. Of course. What guy wasn’t?

And now……I’m into cool TV fare like:

GLEE!
I hope I don’t have to defend myself too hard here. It’s totally cheesy, I’ll admit. I just think it’s cute. My daughter and I watch this together, and it really impresses her that I know almost all the songs they sing (Journey? Uhm, hello!). Sue Sylvester is so un-PC it’s hilarious. She has some great dialogue. LOVE HER!

CSI
It makes sense, both of us being science-minded folks and all…..karl and I love CSI. I must confess though: I miss Grissom!

NCIS
Gibbs is awesome. I’m in love with Gibbs, and Karl is in love with Abby. So this show gets to stoke both of our crushes. It’s all good. Plus, more science-y stuff we love.

House
I love that guy. He has some of the BEST lines in television. You know what would be the holy grail of television for me? A House vs. Sue Sylvester episode. O.M.G. The insults would just be EPIC! I’m drooling at the thought of it. Dangit…….they’re both Fox shows…..please, TV Gods, make this happen!

Modern Family
It’s just funny. Hilariously funny. I can see myself in all the adults…….and in some of the kids too. And I think just about everyone can relate to the family dynamic hilarity on some level. It’s just a great show.

The Tudors
I’m finishing up Season 4 on DVD thanks to Netflix, so don’t ruin anything for me! Karl’s only comment about the show: “It’s good to be king!”…….and how! Besides, you know how I love me some Brits! And I must say, bravo for picking Henry Cavill for the next Superman movie. I am so there now!

Ni-hao, Ki-lan
Yeah, I know. This is a toddler’s show. But have you ever actually watched it? It’s cuteness. They learn about friendship….they sing little songs…..they learn how to say things in Chinese. Zach LOVES this show, so I get to at least hear it for a good hour every night. It’s cute. Bonus: she’s not a fraction as annoying as Dora the Explorer. :D

I don’t watch any reality TV anymore, just on principle. Too many reality shows….too many fame-mongers wanting their 15-minutes……I’ll stick to scripted TV, thankyouverymuch. So that pretty much eliminates the rest of the TV schedule, doesn’t it? :D with a video-game-obsessed son that monopolizes the TV just about every waking moment……..it’s all I can do to keep up with the shows I currently watch. God bless TiVo!

Day 10: Fear Not!

2011-02-05T07:28:00.000-08:00

Blogging assignment, Day 10-Something you're afraid of

There’s LOTS of things I’m afraid of actually: fires, drowning, suffocating…….i guess I’m scared of a gruesome death? :D I’m scared of getting sick and becoming disabled. I’m scared of getting an incurable disease. I’m scared of my KIDS getting an incurable disease. I'm scared of something happening to my kids (Karl's insured, lol!). Okay, I'm scared of something happening to Karl too. I’m scared of outliving my children. I’m scared of having to work forever because of not having enough money to retire on. I’m scared of being a burden on my children when I’m old.

So there’s lots of little things I’m scared of. But the big one I’m scared of? Not fulfilling my purpose.

Is that cryptic enough for ya? WTH does that mean? I dunno…I just am afraid of not doing whatever it is I’m supposed to be doing……whatever reason God put me where I am, I’m scared that I’m not doing whatever it is I’m supposed to be doing with my life. Which is an odd thing to fear because I’m not even sure WHAT that ‘thing I’m supposed to be doing’ actually IS. So I guess, in a nutshell, I’m afraid of the unknown? Uhm. Yeah. Weird blog post. I blame whoever made up these questions!

Day 9: My Friends

2011-02-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

Day 9 assignment: A Picture of your friends.

I’ve known these gals since I was 12. I just wish we lived closer to each other, but God bless Facebook for making it easier to stay in touch!

(this is Sue, Me, Kerri and Sarah)
We met at church camp as kids....kept in touch via letters all through high school and college.....and now our kids are going to camps together. It's perfect! Except that they all live in Kansas City. BAH!

And this gal trying to choke me? She’s my sister-in-law, Nicole. We write each other emails every day. She’s pretty cool……for an in-law. :P

the blonde next to Nicole is her BFF Emily.....so she's a friend by association. Hopefully she doesn't mind. :D

And that's it. I don't have a lot of friends. Will you be my friend? :D

Day 8: The Places I've Gone.....

2011-02-04T16:43:00.000-08:00

Day 8's assignment: A Place I've Traveled To

Just one? Seriously? That is SUCH an unfair thing to ask of me! Okay, I’ll pick just one. And since it was around this time of year when we went, I’ll pick here:

Paris, France. February 2007. Pretty cool Valentines’ Day present, huh? Gosh, it doesn’t seem like it was that long ago, but I guess it was!

Kick back in your chair………Here’s the story of this trip. Hubby was going to be leading a group of students on a trip to Europe in a few months……and the company that does said group tours (EF Tours, in case anyone cares) requires all their group leaders to have specific training. And where do they offer said training. Paris. Uhm, okay….twist our arms here! So his trip was free. Flight/hotel and a lot of the meals were taken care of. Oh darn.

Did I want to tag along? Uhm, DUH. It was the cheapest way we’d ever get to Paris, we knew that much for a fact!

All we had to pay for was my flight/food…..since I could just crash in his room for free. We went with a cheaper flight option than how Karl was flying, so we ended up on different airlines. That wasn’t a big deal, as I was traveling with the husband and daughter of the other group leader (who was on the same flight as Karl), so it’s not like I was abandoned and all alone, etc. But wouldn’t ya know it…….weather had to create problems for us.

Karl’s flight was supposed to leave St. Louis and fly to Chicago and then onto Paris. As he’s at the airport waiting, his flight to O’Hare gets cancelled because of weather in Chicago. But his flight from O’Hare to Paris is still on-time. Huh? Apparently there are different rules for canceling domestic vs. international flights…..and Karl’s 2-leg trip unluckily fell into both categories.

Sooooooooo………since he didn’t really want to miss his flight to Paris (next flight wasn’t until the next day), what were his options?

He drove to Chicago. In record time, I might add. He had 5 hours before his flight left for Paris when his flight to Chicago was cancelled. Normally, driving from St. Louis to Chicago easily takes 5 hours. I don’t know how he did it in 4. (for the record, Karl is NOT a leadfoot. That title in this family belongs to moi!) Not only did he and Rosie (the other leader) manage this feat, but they took along some complete stranger who was needing to catch the same flight. I still cringe at her riding in the backseat of our car amongst all the goldfish and kid-debris from under the carseats that nobody’s supposed to see. :P

While they’re dealing with this, I’m boarding my flight to Detroit (which was NOT cancelled). As I turned off my phone for take-off, all I knew was that Karl was somewhere on I-55 between St. Louis and Chicago. Either I’d see him in Paris that night……..or I wouldn’t. Not the best start to the getaway!

Anyhoo…….as Karl neared the airport in Chicago, he called his brothers Keith and Kurt to meet them and take our car since Karl didn’t have time to park it if he was going to make that flight. Karl’s from the Chicago burbs, and all his family still lives there. At this moment in time, it came in quite handy. Gold star for the inlaws!

My flight was great……it was my first trans-Atlantic flight and I was easily amused by the individual TV screens. Woohoo! When we got to Paris and I turned my phone back on, I had a text from Karl that they’d made their flight. Barely. So he was in the air, and that was good enough for me! Christina, Greg, and I did a little happy dance in the middle of Charles de Gaulle knowing that our other halves were on their way!

So when did we finally meet up with each other? LATER that night….MUCH later. Like into the wee hours of the morning.

Not being one to sit idle in a cool city, I wasted no time being all tour guide-y with my traveling companions. I had an itinerary I was sticking to (remember how I told you I like to plan out stuff in great detail. Yep. If you travel with me, you will be micromanaged. Best get used to it!) so we shook off the jet lag, hopped a train and got to our hotel……dropped off our stuff and set off to explore the city.
First up was a walking Da Vinci Code tour.

The movie had come out not too long before that, and I was obsessed with seeing some of the sights described in the book. And Greg/Christina happily played along. Like I gave them a choice. :D Anyhoo……that was a blast to do….we got to walk all over Paris (tiring, but very fun and informative!). It ended at the Louvre, which we didn’t have time to go into at the moment, but we planned to come back the next morning.

I was already passed out for the night when Karl arrived at the hotel. He finally made it to town! His silver lining was that even though he’d been delayed and stressed out (and now we had to deal with a car in Chicago we didn’t plan on being there), they’d been upgraded to business class……so he had to give me grief for being packed into coach while he flew across the atlantic in style. Whatever. I got there first!

The next couple of days were a blur…..karl/Rosie had a few meetings they had to go to, and while they were at those, the rest of us were off exploring.
We walked all over the place……

We went to the Louvre.

See this?

This is the Mona Lisa. You can't see them, but there's 4 burly dudes next to it yelling at people to not take pictures and then chasing them off if they tried.

See this?

This is my running shot of the Mona Lisa......that leather jacket on the right is my traveling buddy, Greg, running offense for me so I wouldn't get busted........bwahahahahahaha! I thumb my nose at your pesky french camera rules, Louvre!

We went to Versailles.

(The Hall of Mirrors. Sadly, I was not impressed)

The Grand Canal

(wish the fountain had been working, but after all, it WAS February)

We went to Notre Dame.

We went to the Red Light District to see the Moulin Rouge. Hehehe. Don’t you hate it when complete strangers step into your photos at the last second? I do. I really really do.

We did more sightseeing of stuff from the Da Vinci Code. And we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower of course (hubby is deathly afraid of heights, so that was an ordeal).

We went shopping for cute French clothes (which I still have and still wear…..oooh la la!) and ate LOTS AND LOTS of amazingly rich and good food. Yum!
So it was a quick trip, but I think we made the most of it for sure. I’d love to go back and have more time to see some things in the city we didn’t get to. Some day perhaps……..but until then, we’ll always have the memories.

Day 7: My favorite Movies

2011-02-03T19:36:00.000-08:00

No, I'm not caught up yet. I'm workin' on it!

For Day 7, I'm sharing some of my favorite movies with ya. Now, these are only SOME of them (the ones off the top of my head basically), because there are LOTS and LOTS of movies I really love......but anyways, here's a few:

I have my old standbys:

Ferris Buehler’s Day Off

This movie is a classic. I never get tired of it.

The BBC Mini-series of Pride and Prejudice. Mr. Darcy is the man. Nuff said.

Another BBC production of another Austen novel: Persuasion. Capt. Wentworth is totally swoon-worthy as well. Plus, for some reason, i just love the music in this movie.....

My favorite Disney movie of all time, Cinderella.

It’s just the best storyline of all time…..the girl that gets cr@pped on all her life….has everything go wrong it seems…….eventually ends up winning the prince and living happily ever after. Isn’t that what we all wish for? I know I did!

And here’s some newer favorites:

Pirates of the Caribbean

I've loved all of them, and can't wait for the next one to come out.....but the first is by far my favorite. Captain Jack Sparrow is an amazing character. Hilarious! And even with the nasty getup, he’s still mighty-fine to look at! And since it’s also one of our favorite rides at Disney World, that makes the movie even more fun for us.

Love Actually.

Have you figured out I’m kind of obsessed with British culture? Well, I am. I could totally live in London…..aside from them putting milk in their tea (not sure I could EVER get used to that), I love all things Brit. This is a great movie that just makes me smile every time I watch it. I tend to put this on when I’m wrapping Christmas presents. Not sure why, I just do.

The Proposal.

I was in love with Ryan Reynolds way back when he was on that tween show ‘Fifteen’ on Nickelodeon. I remember him from that…..he was adorable then and I had a huge tween crush on him then and he’s only gotten cuter over the years. *sigh* The movie is incredibly funny…he and Sandra Bullock (who I just LOVE) are great together, and Betty White is just awesome! Plus, I’ve been to Alaska and the scenery reminds me of that trip. Gorgeous!

Avatar

This was the first blu-ray we bought. We hadn’t seen the movie in the theaters (we were probably the only people that didn’t!), and it was just GORGEOUS. The effects, the sounds, the colors….everything was just spectacular. What an amazing movie. I’m kinda excited about the sequels coming out soon!

I’m sure there’s more movies that I love I’m just not thinking of them right now……..favorites like that sometimes just depend on your mood, kwim?

Day 6: Something that makes me happy

2011-02-03T18:31:00.000-08:00

I told you I was going to double-blog and catch myself up......stick with me, people!

Day 6. I'm supposed to share a picture of something that makes me happy.

This makes me happy:

Most of the time, that big tub of train track pieces and parts is scattered all across that freshly-swept floor. (yes, I swept the floor for a camera-phone picture. i don't want you all to know what slobs we really are!), and that big tub of trains is usually scattered all over the house as well.

But this. makes. me. happy. Why?

Because this assortment of toys symbolizes my kids. They're creative. They build something out of pieces of plastic. That's so cool. And inspiring.

Because this mess of plastic reminds me that I'm super-lucky to have my kids in my life. There are lots and lots of people out there that would give everything they have for one healthy child to mess up their living room with toys like this. I have 3.

So this makes me happy. I don't mind the mess of toys. Because sooner than I want it to happen, those toys won't be there for me to trip over in the night.

And I'll miss that.

So for now, it makes me happy.

Day 5: Recipes

2011-02-03T13:59:00.000-08:00

For Day 5, I was supposed to share some favorite recipes.

GAH! I’m not about to share super-secret family recipes! :P Actually, I don’t think any of my family’s recipes are secret. Rather……neither my mother nor I use recipes all that much when we cook!

Here’s one though…….get out your crock pot (since it’s still cold out and it seems I only use my crock pot in the winter)

Good Ol’ Pot Roast (with a little flair):
1 2lb-ish chuck roast
1 envelope of Onion Soup Mix
~ 1c Italian dressing (like I said, I don’t measure a thing, so I’m ballparking this)
Kitchen bouquet (~ 1 tablespoon)
Garlic powder (uhm……about a tablespoon? Gosh I really should measure huh?)
Italian seasoning (*sigh*…..heck if I know…just throw some in there….a couple good shakes!)
About 3-4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
About 4-5 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
About ½ onion, sliced into rings and then sliced in half…or just leave ‘em as rings…who cares!
Salt/pepper
2 c hot water (that I DO measure, hehehehehe)

Put the meat in the bottom of your crock pot. Dissolve the soup mix in the water and let it set while you toss everything else in there. I put the onions on top of the meat and then put the carrots/potatoes around the meat……..then pour the soup mixture over the meat…..dump in the dressing and add the spices….put the kitchen bouquet into the liquid (don’t put it on the meat or the veggies directly, just pour it down the side)…….add any remaining carrots/potatoes on top of the meat…..salt/pepper the whole thing…..make sure there’s at least an inch of liquid in the bottom of the crockpot…if there’s not, add some more water. Set the crockpot on low and go to work! :D

I usually let this sit for 11-12 hours and it always turns out well. When it’s done, you can make gravy out of the juices if you want. Love this pot roast…..the kids won’t eat it, but karl and I will eat it for days! :D

Pot roast was the “Sunday Dinner” when I was growing up, and I tend to make this for potlucks a lot (since the kids won’t eat it and all, I know my congregation will appreciate it!).

Another favorite recipe? Lemme think…….oh, there’s this:

Lemon Jello cake:

I love lemon stuff. This is lemon-flavored to the MAX.
1 lemon cake mix
1 box lemon Jello
2 c. powdered sugar
Lemon juice (drat……uhm…….it doesn’t take much….uhm……1/2 cup? I have no idea, just stick with me here)

Add the Jello to the cake mix and mix/bake the cake according to the directions (I recommend doing this as a 9x13 size) and let it cool for a few minutes (not completely, you want it to be slightly warm when you do this next part).

Once it’s cooler, poke it full of holes with a fork. Add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar until it’s pretty thin (thin enough to pour)….then pour that over the cake……..mix up some more powdered sugar/lemon juice if you want, I always ‘wing’ this part. you should end up with a nice glaze on the cake, and when it cools (or even before, I’ve been known to burn my tongue on this), you’ve got a big yummy cake of lemon-ness. Yum-o.

I’m not a good person to be sharing recipes since I’m so bad at measuring stuff……if any of this turns out badly……it’s your own darned fault, not mine! :P

Day 19: Something's Amiss.....

2011-02-01T01:00:00.000-08:00

Day 19-Something you miss

What an odd blogging topic! Like I said, I didn't pick 'em! This will be short and sweet though.

I miss having girlfriends to talk to. I don’t have anyone I can pick up the phone and call and say, ‘hey, come over here and let’s have a margarita!’ I miss that. badly. I haven’t had a girlfriend to call since high school. Sad, but true.

Sometimes it's very lonely. :(

Day 4: My Parents

2011-01-27T17:14:00.000-08:00

Yes, I realize I'm a week-ish late in posting this......so keep up, I'm going to be playing catch-up with the blog posts now! :D

Day 4's assignment was to blog about my parents. Here they are:

My parents’ names are Robert (Bob) and Joyce. Only people that really don’t know my dad actually call him Robert. He’s always been Bob.  They were both born, raised, and have lived their entire lives in the same small town where I grew up. (I’m hearing “small town” by John Mellancamp in my head right now). They’ll be married for 48 years this June.

Dad grew up on a farm, the middle child of 3. He was 7 when his father died of a heart attack at age 38. His mom raised him, his brother and his sister on welfare and what she could earn as a waitress, seamstress, housekeeper/cook, etc. In the mid 40’s, options weren’t all the abundant for a single mom with 3 kids, living out in the country, kwim? But she struggled through and that’s probably what made my dad the man he is now. My dad is a very proud, caring, stubborn dude. I see a lot of him in myself (and in my kids).

My mom also grew up on a farm, and her dad also died when she was very young (I think she was 7 as well). She was the youngest of 5 sisters. After her dad died, her mom sold their farm and they “moved to town”. She was the first in her family to go to high school. Back then, it was completely common for a girl to finish her formal education at 8th grade. So she got to do what her sisters and mother couldn’t.

My parents met at a funeral. Classy! But hey, in a small town….if you think about it….where else is there going to be that large of a gathering of people all in one place? :D One of my dad’s best friends had been killed in a car accident, and this person was also known to my mom’s family. So they met there, but were both dating other people at the time. They ended up on a double-date at some point after that and somehow ended up basically switching dates during the evening and the rest is history.

Their relationship survived my dad’s years in the Air Force (he got sent to Greenland.....is there any place more remote than that?) and the raising of 4 kids. When they were first married, my dad worked at the lumber yard in town, and my mom was a bank teller. When she became preggers with my oldest brother, she had to quit….since back in those days, you didn’t work “out” (that’s what she always says……she means “outside the home”) once you had kids. So from that point, she was basically a SAHM…..until the times changed and she went back to work part time after my little brother was in school.

I have 2 older brothers, I’m the 3rd child, and then I have a younger brother…..so I’m sure we kept my parents plenty busy when we were all home. We were kinda spaced-out in ages (my oldest brother is 14 years older than my younger brother), so it took awhile to get us all out of the house! Actually, my younger brother still lives at home, but that’s a whole other story! :P

Here’s me and my brothers….not only did I get the brains, but I obviously got the looks in the family too, LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!

For most of my childhood, I remember my dad as being a salesman for Sears. Pocket protector and all. I still have a soft spot in my heart for pocket protectors, nerdy as they are, because my dad always wore one, full of pens, to use to write up a sale for a customer…..seeing one of those things reminds me of my childhood. My dad was a good salesman….he’s the type of guy that could sell a fridge to an Eskimo. :D

My mom was always room mom at school functions…..she was my brownie leader…..all that kind of stuff. When my younger brother started kindergarten, she started doing some part-time work. She cooked for a daycare center. She was a receptionist for a doctor’s office….

My mom is a great cook. That has always been her talent. She loves nothing more than to cook a big meal for a big gathering of people. Potlucks and bake sales at church were always her time to shine. She also likes to crochet. She tried to teach me……I wasn’t very good at it. But I have a drawer-full of crocheted potholders in my kitchen thanks to her! She used to sew too, but doesn’t do that much anymore. Me? I can’t even sew patches on the kids’ scout uniforms. It’s pathetic.

My dad loves cars. Specifically Ford cars. :P Nothing would make him happier on any given day than to be dropped off at a Ford car lot so he could just walk up and down the rows of new cars….sticking his head under the hood and dreaming away a few hours. We’ve actually done this on more than one occasion (if we were going shopping or something that didn’t interest him…..he’d ask to just be dropped off to look at cars!) Just don’t tell him you like Chevys. He’ll go ballistic. :P Seriously. He will. Not sure where the fierce loyalty comes from, but you do NOT even THINK of driving a Chevrolet in our family. I accept this. So what do Karl and I drive? A Ford Fusion and a Ford Flex. Obviously! LOL……. My dad’s other great love: St. Louis Cardinals baseball. OMG……..don’t even attempt to talk to the guy if the Cards are playing. You will get no response. He’s fiercely loyal to his cars and his baseball. It’s so funny. My brothers will play devil’s advocate with him and start an argument just for the fun of it. I’ll admit, it is pretty entertaining to watch him fly off the handle defending his cars and his Cards. :P

Money was always tight, us being a family of 6, mostly guys……they eat a lot! Plus, with my dad being paid on commission, they never knew if this week we were going to have a Sunday roast, or if we were going to just be eating the potatoes! Gosh I like the stability of a known paycheck….it makes life so much easier! I sometimes wonder how they got by all those years, but they always did. I admire that in them.
When I was in 7th grade, my mom went back to school to be a cosmetologist. She still does hair for her friends on the weekends and for special occasions, but nothing like she used to. It’s more for the social aspect now. (my mother is a serious gossip! Actually, I’ve decided most hairdressers are!)

Dad’s heart problems and general bad health forced him into semi-retirement about 10 years ago…..and thanks to even more health problems (lung, knee, gall-bladder....) he’s been fully retired for the last couple of years. Both of my parents are basically retired now, living in the same small town.

The last few years have been especially hard on my parents, especially financially. I’m sure you’ve seen stories on CNN about senior citizens who were financially ruined because of medical bills and such. My parents fall into that category. They have very little to live on now, but are so darned proud they refuse to ask for help. I’m thankful that Karl and I have been able to help them as much as we have…..I just wish we could do more. My parents are good people, and they deserve better than the hand they’ve been dealt….but the same could be said for lots of other people, couldn’t it?

So anyways, that’s the cliff’s notes version of my parents’ story………

Day 3

2011-01-26T19:18:00.000-08:00

Day 3. I'd really like to skip this one in all honesty. :P

Today I'm supposed to talk about my first love. bah.

Do I REALLY have to talk about this one? Uhm. Okay then. If I must.
Ya know what? I’m not even going to glorify the guy by mentioning his name in public! I met what's-his-name my senior year of high school. Our first date was a blind date set up by my best friend and his best friend who were dating at the time. We dated all through my senior year……he was my date to my senior prom……we dated through my first year of college and broke up the following summer. I was definitely in love with the guy, but he wasn’t right for me….I just didn’t see it at the time. Oh yeah, and he cheated on me, hence the break-up instead of the engagement ring most people were expecting. That was kind of a deal-breaker for me! But everybody needs their first love experience…..young, naive, and foolish love. I don’t have any regrets (except that I didn’t break up with him sooner! Lol). That relationship taught me a lot about myself and a lot about what I wanted (and didn’t want!) from a future spouse. Five months after we broke up, I met my husband, who is NOTHING like what's-his-name, thankfully. And the rest is history.

Day 2: My blog???

2011-01-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

for Day 2, we're supposed to blog about: the meaning behind your blog name

Easy.

Five Hermans? Herman’s Blog? Aren’t those kinda self-explanatory? Well…….Our last name is Herman….and there are 5 of us in the family. Hence the name!
When I started this blog (April of 2008), it was before the glorious advent of Facebook (or more specifically, before I joined the masses on Facebook, so as far as I was concerned, it didn’t exist yet!), so my blog was how I stayed in touch with my friends….share pictures/etc of the kids……..so I wanted the blog to be about our family and not just me!

So that was today’s blogging item…..come back tomorrow for the next one!

Day 1: a little about me....

2011-01-24T06:37:00.000-08:00

so this is what's on the list for Day 1 of this 30-day blogging assignment:

Day 1: introduce yourself, include a recent picture, and 15 interesting facts about yourself.

Why hello there! My name is Diana. This is my blog (obviously).
This is the most recent picture of me I have……this is how I look 95% of the time! hehehehehehehe

that was taken Friday night at my son's Pinewood Derby race, btw....it was in an old store in the mall, so there were mirrors everywhere....it was a photography nightmare!

And now, here are 15 interesting facts about me (although the definition of “interesting” might be a big subjective)...

1. I was almost named Juanita. Thankfully, my mother put her foot down and insisted on Diana if their 3rd child (after 2 boys) was a girl. My mother SWEARS that Juanita was probably “the name of some senorita he (my father) met in the Air Force” (lol!) Therefore, Juanita went adios. And I’m okay with that!

2. I was seriously stumped as to what to choose as a major in college. There’s no way to say this without it sounding completely conceited……but I was “good” at everything in high school academically….so there wasn’t any ‘one thing’ that really stood out to entice me enough to consider it as a college major. Nor was I interested in any one subject enough to make it my life’s ambition. I majored in Engineering simply because my older brother made the remark that “girls can’t be engineers”…..and that p*ssed me off, because I’m a total feminist. I do rash things when I’m angry…..like picking college majors without much forethought. :P It seems to have worked out okay though. :D My bachelor’s degree is in Mechanical Engineering btw……any other engineering gals out there? We gotta stick together! :D

3. I have a serious lead foot. Maybe that’s not all that interesting, but it’s a true little factoid. I was asked awhile back how many speeding tickets I’ve had over the course of my driving years, and I couldn’t count them, but I’d guess the number is in the high teens or low 20’s. I don’t equate FAST driving with BAD driving. I like to exceed the speed limit, but I don’t drive stupid. There’s a difference. Needless to say, DH does all the driving when we’re together as he gets tired of paying lawyer fees and court supervision costs! I do know that I’ve managed to receive speeding tickets in about 5 different states! :P For the record, my dad was an amateur drag racer in the 60’s…….so I think it’s in my DNA!

4. I love to cook. If I thought I could make a comparable living being a caterer, I’d quit my job tomorrow and gladly cook all day long……..as long as I had someone else to clean up after me…

5. I hate to clean. Our house is a cluttered mess, and 99.95% of the time I just don’t care. The other .05% of the time is when we know company is coming and I feel the need to not be perceived as the slobs we truly are. Thankfully, for us slobs, we don’t get much unexpected company. When we do get the occasional unexpected guest…..I go hide. :P

6. I love to travel. Samantha Brown and Anthony Bourdain have the best jobs in the world. If I could figure out a way to get paid to travel the world and give my opinion of stuff, that would be Nirvana for me. My top 2 travel destinations right now are Hawaii and Austria. I got the Sound of Music on blu-ray for Christmas and it makes me want to visit Saltzburg SO BAD!!! Someday!!!

7. I love to read, but I’m also avoiding reading for awhile because I’m an “obsessive reader”. What’s that, you ask? I’m not the type of reader that can read a chapter or two of a book each night before bedtime. 1. I have a horrible short-term memory, so I won't remember stuff if I drag it out that long....and 2. If I get ‘hooked’ into a book, I'll refuse to put it down until it’s done! I can’t tell you how many late nights I’ve spent finishing various novels that I just couldn’t put down…..ignoring chores/children/hubby in the process. It’s kinda pathetic. So I’m taking a ‘reading break’ right now…..my e-reader is sitting there on the nightstand just mocking me though…..

8. I have huge feet, but I’m not that tall. Go figure. I’m 5’7”, but wear a size 11 shoe. Shouldn’t I be about 6 feet tall with feet that big? I think so. My feet are bigger than my husband’s. That’s so not cool.

9. I am a former fattie (that doesn’t sound very nice, but since I’m talking about myself, I can say what I want!). I had weight loss surgery in 2004 and have since lost 130 pounds. I now see the obesity epidemic in a completely different light. I’ve been there. I know how it feels to be that heavy and feel that hopeless. There are tons of people out there that have been able to lose weight without resorting to surgery like I did. Kudos to them. For me, surgery is what worked. And as my PSA on the subject, don’t EVER say that surgery is “the easy way out” or imply that someone who had surgery somehow “cheated”. Because I can say for a fact that it most definitely is NOT in any way “easy” or “cheating”. I worked my @ss off at the gym…….literally. Still do. Anybody that has been around me the last 6 years can attest to the fact that even with the help of a lap-band I have fought hard for every pound I’ve lost. Surgery isn’t a magic bullet. It’s a huge help, absolutely, but losing that much weight still requires a lot of work/willpower/gym-time. And I am darned proud of myself for coming this far....if you want to see my temper, make some crass remark about surgery being some sort of 'easy way out' and you will get an earful, i guarantee it..... *stepping off soapbox*

10. I love to sing. I’m a first soprano, so I have a pretty high-pitched voice. What’s funny is that people will call the house and when I answer, they’ll assume that I’m my daughter because of my voice. Lol…….but anyhoo…..I love to sing. I prefer the safety of a choir, but will do the occasional solo at church. I’m looking forward to singing duets with my daughter, who has a much better voice than I do and doesn’t have the stage fright that I do.

11. I’m a Disney World freak. I put the entire blame of that onto my sister-in-law. She started it! As children, neither my husband nor I ever got to visit the magical land of Mickey Mouse. So we are totally making up for lost time! We took our first trip in 2005 and have been at least once a year every year since! We’ve even made a couple trips to Disneyland out in California. We even bought a timeshare in Orlando to make the trip that much easier. I’m a planner, so part of the fun for me is planning out all our dining reservations and activities on a spreadsheet. Yes, I am a nerd like that.

12. Speaking of nerdiness: I was Valedictorian of my Junior-High graduating class……graduated 3rd in my high school class (would’ve been Salutatorian if #1 and #2 hadn’t been twins!)….and graduated with honors from college. I like to think of myself as a pretty intelligent person. I don’t always come off that way, but I really am pretty smart! :D

13. I am training for a 1/2 marathon. I started running (eh…..I wouldn’t call what I do RUNNING……I’ll call it JOGGING!) almost 2 years ago. At first I was simply trying to run a mile. Then I worked up to running a 5K (3.1 miles) for the Susan G. Komen race this past summer. Then I decided to just keep adding distance in the hopes that “someday” I’d be able to do something REALLY COOL like run a ½ marathon. I ran a 10K in October, and I’m signed up to run another 10K in May (I’m not one of these hard-core runners that runs outside year-round. I’m a wuss when it comes to extreme temperatures!) My goal is 13.1 miles. I’d LOVE to be able to race in the Princess 1/2 Marathon next February. I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to go simply because of the cost, but regardless of whether I actually get to go to that race, I’ll be ready for a local 1/2 marathon whenever one comes around! Right now I’m up to running about 7 miles at 12 minutes/mile. So I’m slow. And I don’t care. I’m just trying to get exercise while at the same time challenging myself to do something I've always assumed I couldn't. My goal is to prove myself wrong. :P

14. I am a horribly unhealthy eater. It’s a wonder I ever lost all that weight. I only like a few veggies…..and most of the time I don’t even BUY veggies because the hubby/kids don’t really eat them either and they’ll go bad before I ever get around to eating them all myself……so yeah, very unhealthy eater here. Bad example for my children, I know. I’m working on improving that a little at a time. I am a work in progress.

15. I am NOT a morning person. If I had my druthers, I’d stay up ‘til about 1 or 2AM and sleep ‘till about noon. But my job/commute requires me to get up each day at 5AM. So I’m perpetually grouchy about lack of sleep until the weekend when I get to sleep in. Then the cycle will repeat itself each Monday-Friday for the next 22 years until I’m eligible for retirement and can once again, sleep late like my body wants to!

So there’s 15 factoids about me….not sure how interesting they are…..it was kinda hard coming up with stuff that was even worth typing toward the end!

Until tomorrow......

Coming Soon: 30 days of ME!

2011-01-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

Woo! I know you can hardly contain yourselves......but starting Monday, I'm joining the bandwagon of a friend who is participating in this 30-day blogging project. I won't reveal what we'll be blogging about each day, because....well.....what would the fun in that be? Needless to say (hint in the title), the challenge is to blog about yourself. And for me, that's going to be a serious challenge. I don't really blog about myself. Like most moms, my life revolves around my children. So that's why I decided to add this project to my overflowing plate of 'stuff to do'. I think it'll be kinda fun. And for anybody out there reading that don't actually know me IRL, this will be a nice intro to get to know me!

So come back Monday for post #1 of 30! Right now we're off to the Pack 97 Pinewood Derby!

the last of 2010 layouts!

2011-01-20T10:10:00.000-08:00

not really having anything to blog about......i'll just post all the layouts that I finally finished for my 2010 book.....which is now at 150 pages and I can't afford to have printed yet! lol......oh well....once i DO get around to printing it, it'll be cool. I hope!

So here's the hodgepodge of layouts I finished up over the New Year's holiday and the last week or so......there's a bunch, so kick back!

The kids' Christmas photo shoot.....i couldn't NOT use the 'out-take' pictures...they were too darned funny!

A Disney LO.....this was done for a speed scrap a week or so ago....i like how it turned out...very futuristic! Can't believe that trip was so long ago already! I gotta get to work on finishing that 2009 trip! sheesh!

a Halloween layout:

the ultimate 7-year-old toothless grin:

Matthew/Zach's Thanksgiving programs at school:

First (of many thus far) snow days:

Sledding in our yard on Christmas day (yes, that's the dog going along for the ride!):

Our scout troops donating a fridge to the local food pantry:

the gift that keeps on giving.....Guitar Hero!

PreK trip to the Pumpkin Patch:

The Jungle Cruise at Disney:

Carving our jackolantern:

The kids visiting Santa:

Our family picture:

Halloween parties at school:

Girl Scout outing to the Nutcracker:

Girl Scout Christmas brunch (PLUG TIME! Haynay's kit Fun and Fancy)

Building our Gingerbread House:

Cub Scout food drive:

Cub Scout Christmas party:

Christmas:

Alaina's soccer season:

Dinner at American Girl Place in Chicago:

and lastly......my year-in-review page....this layout took SOOOOOO LONG TO DO! OMG! it's cute, but SHEESH! time-consuming!

Farewell, Twenty-Ten!

2010-12-31T12:53:00.000-08:00

2010 is quickly coming to a close. I suppose it's time for some thoughtful reflection on what this year has brought to our family....so here's the deep thoughts I've come up with in that regard:

2010 brought more video games to our household than I care to admit. The upside to this is that Matthew's now best buds with another boy who's similarly obsessed with gaming. oh boy.

2010 had Alaina becoming more confident in her abilities as a musician (flute/voice), but very unsure of herself in her schoolwork. My goal for 2011 is to help her feel more confident.

2010 started off with Zach sleeping with his momma, and thankfully ended with him sleeping elsewhere!

2010 started off with me not being able to run much farther than a couple miles. Now, I can run about 7 miles. I'm training for a half-marathon, if you can believe that! and all that running has helped me lose about 15 pounds over the course of the year...always a plus!

Our Christmas season was full of all the fun things everybody enjoys. I did lots of baking/candy-making/fattening-cooking......The kids enjoyed their presents.....Karl and I enjoyed our time off from work! we visited with my family and the inlaws and had good times all around.

so now a new year will soon be upon us, and I am pathetically far behind in my scrapping. It's sad. I'll admit it. I've never been this far behind before! What happened? LIFE! 3 kids, a house, a hubby, a job, dogs.....whatever. i've been busy! Plus, lately I've been kinda unmotivated to scrap (if you can believe such a thing!).

So I'll leave you with the last layouts I'll post for this year.....

Christmas kits from designers I was CT-ing for at the time (talk about being behind in the blogging, sheesh!). Chelle's Creations was my guest CT gig in the month of NOVEMBER, and she released a kit called "Holly Jolly Holiday" and this is what I scrapped with it....the entrance to the Magic Kingdom...all decorated for Christmas:

And Haynay's Christmas kit, "Fa La La" inspired me to scrap this:

(yes, they DO close the parks at Disney World...that's when you know it's CRAZY-CROWDED!)
Amazingly, this is the first New Year's we haven't spent at Disney in awhile.....I'm suffering some serious withdrawls here! :P

And this kit, from Haynay, "My Magical Place: Ship Ahoy", I scrapped this: Donald's Boat in Toontown at Disney.

That's all the plugs I've got....because I've been too much of a slacker to be a good CT member lately. My apologies. :D

SO here's the other stuff I've done though.....for your amusement.....in no particular order:

Zach and one of his many, many, MANY worms/"catterpitters" that he 'played with' this summer:

Zach's new Thomas bedding (bought in an effort to keep him in HIS bed at night....it worked BTW!)

Matthew, in his new Wolf uniform for Cub Scouts:

The SIU Homecoming game we went to this year.....go Salukis!

And random pictures from around the SIUC campus:

Picking out pumpkins at Eckert's:

My first 10K race, back in October (yay me! I'm still shocked I did it!)

Matthew's Soccer Season:

Matthew scoring 2 goals in a game!

So now you're all caught up with me! Have a great New Year everybody......here's to an amazing 2011!!!

The Happiest Season of All!!

2010-12-19T12:20:00.000-08:00

Hello cyberfriends in blogosphere! Greetings from the midst of candy-making, cookie-baking, present-wrapping, last-minute-shopping madness! But I just LOVE Christmas. I'll even take the cold weather for this week, because we've done the beach at Christmas and it just seemed "wrong". So a White Christmas would be fine with me.

Happy Holidays to all our friends and loved ones from our little family. I hope that 2010 was a great year for you and that 2011 will be even better.

XOXO, The Herman family

Like a Fine Wine, my friends......

2010-12-06T16:04:00.001-08:00

I only get better with age! :D At least that's what I'm telling myself today......this 35th (yikes!) anniversary of my entrance into the world....

I wanted to post lots of cool pictures of myself growing up....but alas, there really aren't any. Perhaps this is why I generally walk around with a camera around my neck....so that when MY kids are sitting at their blog (or whatever social medium they'll be using at that point in time) they won't have to lament the fact that there existed so few pictures of them when they were children. Anybody that knows me can attest that my kids will have NO problems finding pictures of themselves. :D

So anyhoo. Happy birthday to me. Looking at the few pictures I did manage to find on a whim......I honestly think I look better now than I did 10 years ago. Funny how that seems to be working for me!

so here's my life in pictures (kinda)

As a baby (love the hair, Mom, and GROOVY pants, Dean!)

toddler (where'd my curly hair go? *sigh*)

Glasses at age 4 (oh yay!)

another family picture, age 6 ish:

I'd guess I'm about 13 here? no dates on any of these old pictures of course...I'm guessing by bad hair styles:

This was 8th grade, I know that much:

Sweet 16-ish.......oh yeah......early 90's big hair:

Senior portrait:

Engagement Picture.....so I'd have been 21 here:

Wedding.....at 22 years old (gosh that seems YOUNG to me now!):

Fast-forwarding a few years......this was in '02, so I'd have been 26ish:

2003, Graduate School....preggers with Matthew, age 27:

2004, age 28:

2005.....subtract 100 pounds and you get this (my "victory dress", which I actually haven't really worn since, now that I think about it.....red's not really my color I don't think), 30th birthday:

2006, age 30

and yesterday.....35 years old:

so....I hope you got as good a laugh out of that as I did.......I'm just like a fine wine....getting better with age, right? :D RIGHT!

Happy Birthday to me!!!

Hello Holidays!

2010-11-28T12:03:00.000-08:00

The fridge is bursting with Thanksgiving leftovers......I'm mourning the end of a long weekend.....the family is all napping......the bank account is starting to feel the hurt of the holidays thanks to online shopping (lol), and I'm happy as a clam because I LOVE this time of year. LOVE IT!

Plus, my birthday is next week.....who doesn't like their own birthday after all? :D Although, I love to remind people that those of us with December birthdays totally get the shaft......not only did 90% of my birthday gifts come wrapped in Christmas paper when I was a kid (a huge pet peeve of mine now)....but I just KNEW.......that I was basically getting one less gift for Christmas. bah! I admire the people that celebrate their kids' December birthdays in June instead. BRAVO I say! But I digress....rant over.....for now anyways!

The holiday festivities started off with the kids' programs at school. Matthew was a Pilgrim AND an Indian. I'm still not sure why, but whatever. He said his lines, he did well....he didn't humiliate me by inserting the words "poop" or "terd" in his monologues, so I was happy. At his age, that's saying a lot!

Zach's PreK class had a feast, but since I was watching Matthew's program, I missed most of it. They even made their own butter....how cool are they!

We hosted Thanksgiving here at our house, as we've done for the last several years now. Too much food was cooked and consumed.....and is still in my fridge. I pondered for the 12th year in a row WHY I bother making cranberry sauce when maybe 2 teaspoonfulls of it actually gets eaten! :P because it's tradition, that's why! and I've been told I make an awesome green bean casserole......but I don't eat the stuff, so I'll have to take their word for it.....again, tradition!

So then I started pondering other traditions that my family has...... My father always says the blessing before the meal. He and Karl argued for about 30 seconds over who would say Grace, but we all knew that in the end he'd do it. Because it's TRADITION! :P Mom and I made way too much food. Again, TRADITION! Dean and Stacy were late getting here.....which has become a new tradition (one that irks me, but eh, during the holidays, you pick your battles, kwim?). The meal that took me roughly 3 days to prepare was consumed in about 20 minutes.....tradition! then once everyone was done eating, we all disappeared, leaving Karl to do the majority of the dishes.....tradition! then it was dozing in front of the TV and chatting......and then a fairly-new tradition.....the impromptu photo shoot.

my SIL stacy is a photographer.....i sometimes like to think I'm one too. :D we have the same camera and flashes, so we set up a backdrop and attempted (note I said ATTEMPTED) to take some pictures of our dog for our Christmas card this year. eh, it didn't work out so well, shockingly....dog didn't exactly cooperate!

Then she wanted me to take pictures of her, Dean, and their little foster baby, John. So I got to play photographer then.......the instant i noticed one of the external flashes wasn't going off, Stacy jumped up and raced behind the backdrop (where said flash was) and started screaming.....I go and look and start screaming.

My fancy external wireless flash.....had melted. O.M.G. for those of you out there with expensive photography equipment.....share my grief for a moment. I get the sniffles just thinking about it. Apparently those "hot lights" (hence the name, duh) get way hotter than either of us had anticipated, and having a flash too close to one of them results in disaster for anything made of plastic. *sniff*.....goodbye, nice external flash. Expensive boo-boo! So since it was my flash and stacy was the one that put it where it was....she took the blame and is buying me a new flash. I'm guessing that's my christmas gift from her! still.....that totally stinks. poor little melted flash. *sigh*

That was enough excitement for one evening.....once that drama had subsided, everybody started to leave......and thanksgiving was done.

Black Friday: We didn't participate this year, woohoo! Karl was disappointed I think, because he's a morning person, so getting up at 4AM and fighting mobs of angry women over a $3 crockpot I don't need is his idea of a good time. Me? I'd rather sleep 'till noon and go to Amazon.com and shop there. :D And this year, online sites were offering some of the same prices as the early-bird specials (at least on the stuff we wanted), so there really wasn't much need to get up and fight the mobs. fine by me!

Saturday and Sunday were fairly relaxing. We went out to run some errands and took the kids through the Way of Lights (drive-thru light display) after dinner (there's only so much leftover turkey/ham a person can realistically take, kwim?), and they loved it. it's beautiful! Highly recommend it if you're in the STL area!

and now the Holiday weekend is over and regular life is back in full swing.....which includes all the homework/activities we usually cram into a week! So with that I'm off to stop one child from stuffing another in a box. Yay for family fun!

Bloggin' 'cuz I'm bored....

2010-11-20T17:05:00.000-08:00

Here I am, blogging twice in the same month! That's like a new record for me! Actually, I'm kinda bored (sitting in the living room of my parents' house back in my hometown, with no control over the TV and a dead battery in my eReader, *gasp*), so you'll get to reap the benefits of my boredom, which will equate to some weird random ramblings and some layouts I've managed to get done since the last post. Yeah, I know you're psyched. Try to contain yourselves. :P

So anyhoo.....since the last blog post....what have I done? Uhm....uh.....hmmm.... yeah. My life is REAL exciting lately. So instead, I'll back up and share some stuff I HAVE done lately, I just failed to blog about because in all honesty.....I'm lazy. Yes. I am a lazy blogger. My apologies for this bit of truth. The reason is that most of the stuff I write about just isn't 'complete' without pictures. And now we get back to the lazy part......I hate resizing pictures to post on the blog. It's true. But since I'm bored, you get to reap the benefits! Again, contain yourselves.

So I'm going to do a belated trip report....Mine and Karl's trip to Washington DC almost a month ago. I love DC. Great city. We both had a great time. So sit back and check out all these pictures!

First thing we did when we got to DC was get some lunch! We just set off walking from our hotel toward the Capitol (since we had a tour that started at 1PM), and just happened to walk right past the Hard Rock Cafe:

We'd contacted our Congressman, Rep Shimkus, to arrange a tour of the US Capitol building. He wasn't there, of course, but his intern, Stephanie, gave us a great tour of the Capitol complex, complete with stops in the House Gallery and Senate Gallery (where no cameras are allowed...boo!)

So here we are:
Me in Rep. Shimkus' office......i just HAD to sit in his chair....mwahahaha!

Karl and I at the Capitol:

I like this little spot....in the Crypt of the Capitol (directly underneath the Rotunda) is this star in the floor, which is the intersection of the 4 quadrants of the city.

Did you know there's a subway underneath the Capitol building? Yeah, I didn't either! Stephanie said it was the shortest subway in the world. I'm not sure if she was kidding or not, but it definitely didn't go far....maybe a few hundred yards? I just found it kinda funny....goofy-looking little thing:

And here we are back at Rep Shimkus' office....Thanks for the tour, Stephanie!

After we finished with the capitol tour, we had to walk down the Mall to get back to our hotel, so we decided to check out one of the Smithsonians, so we ducked into the Air and Space Museum.
Me and the lunar lander:

And I found this hilarious.....I work for a certain aircraft manufacturer, and I was happy to see that they sponsored this kids' area in the Museum:

I just wish I'd taken a picture of the Omnimax theater, which was sponsored by our competitor! lol......

Anyhoo, I was thrilled to see this little piece of my past preserved for all posterity......ah, the good ol' days:

We stayed at the museum until it closed, then went to go get checked in at our hotel.
I was most perterbed to learn that our room had been given out to someone else! uhm, WTH? I was NOT happy.....but as we were heading upstairs to our "replacement room", Karl assured me it wasn't that big of a deal, that we'd gotten fair compensation for the whole 5 minutes of inconvenience it caused us. :P

Yeah, I'm okay with this. a SUITE! HELLO! nice 'replacement'!!

After we called the other teachers Karl was attending the conference with and had them stop by "Chateau Herman" so we could brag......we all went and grabbed some dinner at this great place in Chinatown. wahoo! Then we ended up in the bar of our hotel for some wine and dessert.....ahhh, nice! End of day 1 in DC.

Day 2 in DC......Karl left for his conference sessions.....I slept as late as I could without being a total sloth. :D And to counter-balance the sloth thing, I went for a jog. I wanted to jog around the Tidal Basin.....

Beautiful morning for a jog....great scenery.....I can see why so many people jog in this city.....amazing! I had a great time....didn't jog as far as I wanted to, but I definitely enjoyed it.

After the jog, I got showered/dressed and went downstairs to meet Jan. Jan's an 'online friend' of mine in the digital scrapbooking world. Yes, we have our own "world".....we're like a cult. :D lol.....anyhoo, we're friends on Facebook, and the last time Karl and I were in DC (last year), she said, 'hey, next time you're in town, let me know and we'll get together!'.....so I held her to that!

We had some tea at Starbucks (neither of us are even coffee drinkers, go figure!), then went to lunch at this pub across the street from my hotel. Then we went to the Art Museum....uhm, the National Portrait Gallery (the one with all the portraits of the presidents), and then there was the Norman Rockwell exhibit, where we both got busted for taking pictures. :D oops!

This was one of my favorite exhibits we saw though...the Preamble in license plates......darned cool.

Jan and I had a great afternoon getting to know each other, chatting about just about anything.......thanks for playing tour guide, Jan!

So here we are, ngneer98 and QuiltyMom:

After Jan had to take off, I still had some time to kill before Karl was done with his conference for the day, so I went to Madame Tussaud's wax museum. lol....boy did I have way too much fun in here:

hangin' out with the Prez and First Lady:

the Clintons:

and all I can say about this one is....YUM. hubba hubba....*sigh**swoon*

The next day, I slept so pathetically late, I didn't have time to do any exploring until Karl was done with his sessions and we met up for lunch. Then we had to scoot to our White House tour.

No cameras allowed on White House tours either, but thankfully, everybody had their phones with them:

After the tour (which I highly recommend....just send your congressman an email....they're quite happy to hook you up, especially in an election year, lol!)
we went to the Natural History Museum, while Karl's fellow teachers went to the American History Museum (which we went to the last time we were in DC)

The similarity is kinda creepy, don't ya think?

I'm putting this on my list for Santa.....Hope Diamond? yes, please!

And this has GOT to be the funniest thing ever.....they had this photo booth thing where you got your picture taken and they morphed it into a caveman. Neanderthal specifically. Karl's was just TOO perfect. Scary!

Mine just turned out stupid, so I refuse to post it. My blue eyes just didn't jive with that whole Neanderthal look. :P But Karl.....looked hilarious.

Once we were done with the museum, it was time to go get ready for our big fancy dinner. We like to have one super-nice meal when we go anywhere without the kiddies. We'd made rezzies at Ruth's Chris steakhouse. YUM.

I like an excuse to get dressed up:

Dinner.....YUM......and that martini was mighty tasty too....so was the 2nd one! :D

After dinner, we changed into more reasonable clothes for sightseeing and then went for a walk to the monuments. I'd never seen them at night, so I wanted to attempt some night pictures...and considering I had no tripod, I thought I did pretty well:

White House:

Washington Monument:

WWII Monument:

I liked this shot....Capitol in the far background.....pretty!

Lincoln Memorial

And this is my favorite shot of ol' Abe:

So that was it for that day.

On our last day in DC, I insisted on going to the Vietnam and Korean memorials again....we'd gone to them the night before, but they weren't lit up well enough for decent pictures, so I wanted a re-do!

Korean War Memorial:

And the Vietnam Memorial. This place was PACKED. And of all the monuments/memorials we went to in DC, this was the one where I really felt as if I were invading people's privacy by being there and taking random pictures.

Like this guy....I never even saw his face, but I could hear him weeping. I have no idea if he was mourning the loss of a friend, father, brother, or what......does it really matter? I was bawling watching this guy. I actually deleted the first couple of shots I took that had him in it because i felt like I was intruding on his private moment. But this one I kept, because I finally decided that THIS is what this memorial is about: honoring those we lost:

So whoever you are, I hope this visit brought you some comfort.

And then there was this older gentleman, who was wanting a rubbing of a name he couldn't reach on the wall. I heard the park ranger offer to get a ladder and do the rubbing FOR him, but this guy was adamant about doing it himself. I started crying. AGAIN.

And the last picture I took at the Wall....again, had some random stranger in it, but I love how it turned out, with the Washington Monument in the background:

Once we were done at the Vietnam Memorial, it was time to head back to the hotel, grab our stuff, and get to the airport to get home! So that was our trip to DC. I can't wait until we can take the kids. They need to see all of this!

So, now that I'm sniffling again, I'll get back to scrappin!

Alaina and Matthew's first day of school (yes, i'm THIS FAR BEHIND!)

Zach's 4th Birthday party:

And now for some plugs..... Chelle's 'hangin' alpha' and 'on the trail'

Chelle's new kit, 'Rub a Dub'......this is an OLD picture of Alaina as a baby...*sniff*, where do the years go??

And Haynay's 'Pile of Leaves' and 'Dates: Strips'.....of just how big my little girl has gotten....again, *SNIFF**SNIFF*

So that's it...this post is long enough, don't ya think? :P

The Blogging Blahs....

2010-11-08T18:38:00.000-08:00

Hello cyberspace, it's me again. I'm kinda bored with the blog, so I'm not sure how fun this post is going to be. I kind of wonder if anybody other than my husband and SIL are even reading it. I'm pretty sure nobody! And eh, that's okay. at least they can see my layouts this way! :D

So anyhoo, quick catchup on the ol' life. Soccer season is OVER! and now is that blessed time in between sports.......when soccer is done and baseball/softball is still far enough on the horizon I don't have to worry about cleats yet......this is a GREAT time of year for our family!

And because we don't like to be bored around this house.....I'm signing Alaina up for a children's choir that starts in January! lol......because with only 1 activity (flute lessons) to drive to all week long......I start to miss the inside of the family truckster! it's too much time to myself that I just can't handle......i'm not used to this freedom!!! It's madness......this sitting-at-home thing. So i had to put a stop to it. :D hahahahaahha.

But since choir doesn't start for another couple of months, I still have this blissful downtime to enjoy. life is good. I'm very proud of both Alaina and Matthew and how well they did on their soccer teams this year.

Speaking of that........I've got layouts of their team soccer pics! wahoo!

Both of these layouts were done with a kit by Chelle's Creations called "Kick It". I'm guest CT-ing for Chelle for this month, and I'm super excited because i just LOVE her stuff!!! I hope I don't get kicked off the team for downloading too much!

So here's Alaina and the Lady Dragons:

And Matthew and the Choppers:

And more layouts with Chelle's stuff (while I'm thinking about it):

with her DSD Grab Bag, which includes a kit called "Happy", I made these two:

With the kit "Jeepers Creepers", I made this:

Told ya I'm probably gonna get kicked off for 'over-scrapping' (if that's even possible!)

And for my poor, neglected other designer, Haynay.......I made this with her kit "A Pirate's Life" of the kids at Pirate's Lair at Disneyland last summer (gosh I really need to get this album done before the kids graduate!)

And this is with her template stack "Layers of Papers" of the kids with my Aunt Doris and Uncle Frank. They're such great people....I'm so glad we have them in our lives and the kids get to see them.

So that's me catching up with all the layouts I had to post. Wish there were more, as I'm sorely behind on my scrapping for the year! Darned job takes way too many scrapping hours away from me!!! :P

Coming and Going and Homecoming....

2010-10-10T17:00:00.000-07:00

so the last few weeks have been somewhat repetitive: soccer practice/games multiple nights/week and on Saturdays. It just seems I don't really ever get time to sit down at the ol' blog and type out a 'catch-up-with-my-life' thingy that often. I wonder if anybody's actually reading this anyways (besides myself and Karl, which is stupid because both of us already know this stuff! lol)

Anyhoo.....last weekend was the first cubscout campout of the school year. I could hardly contain my joy (insert sarcastic eyeroll here). I don't like camping. everybody that knows me knows this. I go to appease the hubby, who for some reason thinks it's the best thing ever. Me? I think the best thing ever starts with a reservation at a Hyatt, vs. a sleeping bag and a thin piece of nylon separating me from god-knows-what, but I digress...

Last friday night we had our campout. since it took until almost dark to get tents pitched and dinner made.....there wasn't much socializing going on until we were eating.......there was a lot of conversation amongst the parents of course.....and my favorite thing about camping: SMORES! yum. i'd be thrilled to get a little outdoor firepit, make smores on our deck...and forget teh whole camping thing completely. sounds like a plan!

so anyhoo....camping was going fine until as we were going to bed, I noticed that the door wouldn't zip shut on our tent. LOVELY. so the cubmaster and his family have no way to shut their blasted tent at the campout. WONDERFUL. so we improvised with a blanket. great fun. so between the blanket falling down, dogs barking in the night....and it being rather chilly.....i got a wonderful night's rest out in the middle of nature. not.

around 7AM, as everyone's waking up to greet the day, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.....it starts to rain. of course it does. so the tents came down in record time. and being the hard-core scouts we were.....breakfast was at the park restaurant! :D so that was our camping experience.

HOWEVER.....props to Cabella's for giving us a new tent to replace the one with the broken door. Now, am I in ANY hurry to try out the new tent? ABSOLUTELY.....NOT.

Last Sunday we took the kids to Eckert's to pick our pumpkins for the season....and they also had ponies (which they've always had), and a new addition this year: a camel. WTH? a CAMEL? in Grafton? I found it hilarious and informed Karl the kids HAD to ride that thing, just for the photo op. so they rode it, and they were laughing hysterically the entire time.

After the camel, they rode the less exciting ponies. And that was fairly uneventful until the pony Alaina was riding stopped and decided to drop a load. And I'm SO GLAD Matthew had a perfect view of it, because to a 7-year-old boy, there is NOTHING IN THE WORLD more entertaining than poop. I don't attempt to understand it anymore....I don't even try to correct it. I just accept it and hope he doesn't embarrass me too much in public. :P That was probably the highlight of his day. Eventually, we got our pumpkins and headed home.

This weekend, we took off on a roadtrip to our alma-mater: Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. SIU gets a bad rap continuously, and it really bugs me. EVERY college has kids that party. Does SIU have more kids that party than other colleges? I seriously doubt it. They just got a reputation for it decades ago and it just won't die. I was an engineering major, taking anywhere from 15-18 hour courseloads.....I didn't have TIME to party even if I wanted to. Karl was a Chemistry Education major, plus he worked about 3 different jobs.....neither of us really saw much of the party lifestyle of SIU. But whatever. I think any college can be a 'party school' if that's your intention. I went there to get an education. I got that.....and a husband too!

I haven't been to Homecoming since my sophomore year in school. Karl said he never even went since he was always working. So this was a day we were really looking forward to. We left with the kids early Saturday morning and got to Carbondale in time to hit the tailgate.....got some free lunch and then went to the game. Thanks to Gordon, an old family friend, for the free tickets!

We only stayed 'till halftime, but we had a great time....we all cheered on the Salukis......clapped along with the band....it was a blast.

After we left the game, we wandered around campus for awhile......reliving the glory days of college. the Engineering buildings were unlocked, so I got to go visit the ol' lecture hall and lounge that I spent so much time in. Neither of them had changed a bit! We showed the kids our dorms, the library, the student center.....we walked through the woods.......then we left campus and did some souvenir shopping! a couple of new alumni tshirts later and we were off to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants: Hunan. LOL! but really....best Hunan I've ever been to. Once dinner was over, it was time to head home. What a great day we had reliving some memories and sharing it with the kids. Alaina said she wants to go to college there. And I'd be perfectly content with that. Go Salukis!

Those're the highlights of the last couple weeks......now for all the layout posts I'm ridiculously behind on!

First up, even though my guest CT gig is long over, I still haven't posted my last layout! Using the 'Bugaboo' kit by Man in the Moon Designs, I made this layout of the Monster's Inc ride at California Adventure.....very cute ride, btw.

Karl and Matthew playing with their Erector set:

Matthew's baseball's team pool party:

And basically, I just had to memorialize this gawd-awful outfit:

Zach's PreK apple orchard field trip:

The Ponies from last weekend, using a kit of Haynay's called "Way Out West" and some new clipping masks:

And the Camel:

That's it for now.....I'm off to get ready to say goodbye to a weekend that was WAAAAAYYYYY too short!

Busy Fall is upon us!

2010-09-19T16:06:00.000-07:00

Ah, fall. You know that time of year when the leaves change, the weather gets crisp enough for the bugs to go away and for you to not break into a sweat the second you go outside? yeah. Funny, but halfway through September and we're still not there yet! LOL!! oh well....

Regardless of the weather, fall activities are in full swing for our family. There's scouts (cub scouts for Matthew, girl scouts for Alaina), there's music lessons (we're contemplating lessons for Matthew, but since he asked for the DRUMS, we're dragging our feet on that extracurricular!), and then, of course......there's SOCCER!

Ah soccer......hours for me of sitting in a lawn chair next to a field trying to keep track of 2/3 of my children while the other 1/3 plays. It's kinda stressful actually! But the kids enjoy it, so it's worth the hassle to me I suppose.

Matthew and Alaina are both on the same teams they were on last year. This is Matthew's 3rd year playing for the Choppers (their original sponsor was a Dentist, and after he quit sponsoring, they just kept the name, eh, whatever). And this is Alaina's 2nd year playing for the Lady Dragons!

After almost a month of practices, this past week was their first games. They both lost their first games. Nuts. Matthew's team has already played a 2nd game and they crushed the other team that time, so perhaps getting beat in that first game will serve as a little motivation? Either way, best of luck to both of them this season!

Here's a couple pics from Matthew's game yesterday:

Matthew played the best game he's EVER played yesterday.....he even had a couple scoring attempts (that were sadly blocked by the goalie). He's been promised a new game for the Wii if he gets a goal, so he's really trying!

But I think this picture says it all about how much he enjoys 1. me taking so many pictures, and 2. mine/Karl's 'sideline coaching' :P bwahahahahahaha

And then there's Zach, who keeps telling us that he's "five now" so he can play soccer too! Next year, little guy!

And then Alaina's first game:

I'm mostly just happy that this year Alaina's shirt says "HERMAN" instead of "HERMON" like it did last year. small victories! :D

So that's what my life has been filled with lately, for the most part......and for the next 6 weeks or so, that's what it's going to consist of: juggling soccer games. Happy fall! I go from getting sunburns on the sidelines to bringing blankets and hot chocolate to stay warm. Fall is funny that way!

And now, for scrappin'!!!

Here's the usual scene in our basement on a typical afternoon (yes, the clutter in the background is totally typical!) This is Matthew and his friend Austin, who lives a couple houses down the road:

Going back to our previous sport, baseball/softball.....I finally scrapped their sports portraits:
Alaina's team, the Strykers (gosh, that photographer did an AMAZING job, don't ya think? lol)

And Matthew's team, the Giants (again, that photog is AWESOME!)

The parade back in July that our girl scout troop walked in...it was about 115 degrees that day....blech!

Matthew's birthday party:

Zach's favorite toy: DIRT! At the kids' ballgames, he would get completely COVERED in that ballfield dirt.....what a mess he made of himself, but he had a lot of fun!

Oh, and in other news, I'm guest CT-ing this month for Man in the Moon Designs.....and here's a layout I did with one of her kits. And yes, I realize (thanks, Nicole!) that the date on this is wrong. I fixed it on the real copy, but didn't save another copy of the 'blog size'....so eh, whatever.... the kit is called "So Big".....total cuteness. this is my favorite picture of Alaina

Zach's first day of PreK this year, with Haynay's kit, "Back 2 Skool"

And a couple Disney layouts......one with Haynay's kit, "My Magical Place" of Alaina's Minnie outfit.....after an unfortunate accident with a leaky pen, Disney gave us vouchers for a new outfit for Alaina......we were so grateful!

Last layout....of the Finding Nemo ride at Epcot....one of our favorites!

So I guess that's it for now.....have a great week everybody!

Long Time no Blogging! :D

2010-09-01T16:25:00.001-07:00

Wow....Did I really only make one post in the entire month of August? wow, that's pretty sad. :D oh well.....I'm here to at least post some layouts I've done lately.

First up (I'm too lazy to go back and check, so if I've already posted this, oh well....my apologies!)

Layouts from our week at Church Camp:
a hodgepodge of candid shots:

The kids' classes that week:

Where we spent every afternoon:

Our family in our 'camp best'

My BFF's and all our kiddos:

And the picture of all the descendants of the original families that started the Brush Creek church:

Backing up to Memorial Day weekend....we went exploring at some local historical spots.....like the lock and dam and the Lewis and Clark Museum....both pretty cool!

Matthew's first baseball game this summer:

His ridiculous birthday present that Karl loves to ride more than he does:

The coolest birthday cake ever that I made for Matthew's birthday party:

and last layout to post.....this was from a speed scrap I hosted a few weeks ago.....these pictures just crack me up to no end.....what a mess! :D

So now I'm caught up on posting layouts.....hopefully soon I'll get back to blogging about my life!!

The kids are all back in school, so summer's officially over!

Alaina's in the 4th grade this year, my goodness I can't believe she's this old already!

here she is with her teacher, Mrs. Smith:

Matthew's in 2nd Grade this year:

his teacher is Mrs. Witt (notice how he's as far away from her as is possible while still being in the shot? girl cooties!):

And the kids have a new principal this year, Mrs. Bidlack:

Another school year has begun!

Zach just started his 2nd year of PreK this week! PreK started later than the rest of the classes. He started school on his 4th birthday!!!

his teacher, Mrs. Pohlman gave him a dinosaur:

Now, with it officially being fall, we're in the midst of soccer practice (games start soon too!), music lessons, and Scouts! Busy, Busy, Busy!!! I'm looking forward to the long weekend and hopefully a little rest and relaxation!

Magical Blog Train is chuggin' along....

2010-08-13T17:48:00.000-07:00

Hi there, travelers! Welcome to the Wizarding Magic collab kit blog train!! You are now in the wonderful, hot, muggy St. Louis area! I technically live out in the country, away from the city, but I work in St. Louis and it's very dear to my heart. I love this town!

Some fun facts about St. Louis:

*The Gateway arch (seen above in a night shot by yours truly) is the tallest manmade monument in the US at 630 feet. I've been up in it and the view is great!

*St. Louis is very proud of having hosted the 1904 World's Fair. Dr. Pepper, the ice cream cone, iced tea, hot dogs and hamburgers were all made popular there. YUM!

*St. Louis was the first US city to host the Olympic games....also in 1904. Busy year for the city!

*The Missouri Botanical Gardens, located downtown, is one of the top three botanical gardens in the WORLD! It's beautiful!

*The Muny is the nation's oldest and largest outdoor theatre, and is located in Forest Park. Right now they're performing Show Boat, and so far this summer they've performed The Sound of Music, Cats, Beauty and the Beast, and a couple others. And there's free seats available for the shows!

*Peanut butter was invented right here in St. Louis! Millions of elementary school children rejoice!

*And the bread slicer was invented in St. Louis too! Viola! The peanut butter sandwich is born!

*7-Up was invented in St. Louis....or for the over-21 crowd, this is also, of course, the home of Anheuser Busch! The Clydesdale horses are world-famous, and they're brought out on occasion at the Cardinals baseball games. You can also visit these amazing horses in person at Grant's Farm.

*St. Louis offers more FREE major visitor attractions than any city other than Washington DC. The Zoo, Art Museum, Science Center, Anheuser-Busch Brewery, Grant's Farm, and lots of other places in the city are all FREE to get into. It's kinda spoiled us locals! So for a fun, inexpensive vacation, bring the family to St. Louis!!

*And you can thank the Mayfair Hotel here in St. Louis for the custom of chocolates on your pillow! Apparently Cary Grant led his lady friend from the door of the hotel room to the bed pillow with a trail of chocolates. The hotel manager liked the idea so much that he began leaving chocolates on all the guest pillows, starting the custom. Ooh-la-la!

*And if you've seen the George Clooney movie, "Up in the Air", most of the airport scenes were filmed at our airport here (Lambert International), and a lot of the hotel scenes were filmed locally as well.

So now that you're full of St. Louis fun facts, back to your reason for landing here! You should have arrived here from Shannon's blog.....and after your quick stop here in Cardinal Nation, your next stop is Janine's blog. If you get lost along the way, you can always find the complete list of the train stops back at Haynay's blog.

So here's the kit we're celebrating:

I was so excited to see this collab come out. Our family just returned a few weeks ago from a trip to Universal Studios in Orlando to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter! I love the Harry Potter stories, and my kids are just now old enough to start reading them for themselves, so I get to enjoy them all over again! If you scroll to my previous blog post, you'll see a slideshow of some of the pictures I took while we were there. The place is absolutely amazing! I can't say enough good things about it....it's exactly how I pictured it....yes, we bought wands, and yes, Butterbeer is YUMMY!!!!! They did a terrific job bringing the scenes in the books to life. Needless to say, this kit is perfect for me!

Here's a couple layouts I've created so far with Wizarding Magic:

This one is of the Hogwarts Castle....I just can't get over how awesome it looks:

And these pictures are from our family trip to the UK a couple years ago.....I wasn't going to leave London without attempting to get through the barrier at Platform 9 3/4! And as you can see, the cart made it part way through the barrier, but our Muggle family didn't!

But that's okay, because we found the Hogwarts Express anyways:

And if the kit itself isn't awesome enough, you can get a TON of templates from all the teams involved in the collab....for FREE! My template is based off my Hogwarts layout above.

So my freebie for you is a brag book page. It's perfect for Halloween, so even if you're not a Harry Potter fan, you can use it for some spooky picture along the way. Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD HERE

And you can join Haynay this coming Monday night for a Wizarding chat!!

Thanks for stopping by! Your next stop is Janine's blog. Happy traveling!
Diana

WWOHP

2010-07-25T19:45:00.001-07:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Pluggin' right along

2010-07-25T18:45:00.001-07:00

I'll do my Potter trip report after this.....must do my CT plugs first! :D

First up, Haynay's latest kit: Love my Doll. Yes, I took a picture specifically for this layout. And I'm not ashamed of that, because I'd been meaning to do this anyways! Alaina got matching dresses for herself and her American Girl Doll for her birthday, and I wanted to make sure I got a picture of them in their matching outfits....so this kit was the perfect incentive....oh, and I used the Chronicling Life Alpha as well:

This next one uses a whole bunch of Haynay's stuff: School's Out for Summer Combo Pack, School's Out for Summer Word Art, School's Out for Summer Elementary Papers, and a I also used a template of Sya's from the Just Pictures set. Wow, that's gotta be a record for plugs with one layout! :P
Here's Alaina and Matthew's last day of school....now that it's almost time for them to go back!! :D

Here's the PreK graduation ceremony, that again Zach refused to sing at, but doesn't look cute? :D Using Sya's 'Just Pictures' template set again:

And that's it for the plugs...now for the plug-less stuff I've scrapped:

Alaina's Girl Scout bridging ceremony from Brownies to Juniors:

The PreK class nature hike, where it rained most of the day and we mostly "hiked" inside:

And Zach's last day of school, where they had lots of wading pools set up to splash in and bubbles to play with:

So that's all the scrappin I managed to get done on the road to/from Florida....not as much as I'd hoped....but oh well.....

Next up....the Potter trip report......Muggles prepare thyselves!

Vacation Crunch Time!!!

2010-07-11T15:16:00.000-07:00

Ah.....T-minus 5 days for our vacation and I am SOOOOOOO excited and ready! Bring on some dinners out, some afternoons by the pool, some roller-coasters, and a lot of souvenir-shopping!!! yay!!

So, what have we been up to? the end of ball season mostly....games for Matthew and Alaina......which are finally over! They both had fun and are already talking about being on the same teams again for next summer, so they must've liked the experience!

For the 4th of July, we went over to my brother Dean's house...the kids swam in the pool and we lit some firecrackers.....but ended up watching the "good stuff" their neighbors shot off instead! It was fun.....and I made homemade ice cream, and that always makes a get-together better!

This past week, I've been doing the single-mom thing....Karl's at Rolla (formerly the university of missouri at Rolla...now it's Missouri University of Science and Technology) for a training session for a class he'll be teaching in the fall (electronics/engineering schtuff), so he was gone all last week and will be gone all this week for that. being a single mom stinks! I never realize how much karl helps out around the house until he's not here! :D I miss having the laundry and dishes done for me, dernit! so anyways.....just the kids and moi at night at the moment.

This week will be crazy busy, which is why I'm posting now (and why this is a rather short, lame post). Tomorrow we've got a girl scout meeting....then Tuesday is the Jersey County Fair parade.....and our girl scout troop will be marching in it along with the other girl scouts from the area. I'm skipping the fair since I'd rather save our cash for our vacation!!!

Friday, as soon as Karl gets home from Rolla and as soon as I'm done with work for the day, we'll be loading up the car and heading to Orlando for the next week!

First stop: Wizarding World of Harry Potter! WOOOOOHOOOOOO! yeah, i know. I'm ridiculously exciting for this thing. I'm mostly excited for the candy store....eating all the treats that were described in the books: butterbeers, the candy......I'm going to be so sick...and probably gain 10 lbs, but i just don't care.....it's so cool! So we'll be at Universal Orlando for 4 days.....Sea World one day....the beach one day.....some other local stuff for a day....visiting friends a day.....and before ya know it, we'll be back home again!

So this week, i've got to get myself and the kids packed for vacation. We'll be staying at our timeshare we own in Orlando. This will actually be the first time we've stayed in it, so we're excited for that. And, it's the first time in a long time we've been in Florida during the summer....the last few times we've gone to Disney World, we've either gone in December over Christmas break, or over spring break. So it's gonna be hotter and muggier than what we're used to down there.....but ya know what I'm thinking? good excuse for MORE BUTTERBEER! :D lol!!! so i've got lots of "to-do" and "don't forget to pack this" lists going on right now!

And as for scrapping......a few things to plug.....I really haven't been scrapping all that much. I plan to scrap in the car on the way to Florida though, so that'll hopefully help catch me up a little bit. maybe?

First up, a bunch of plugs for Sya......

This was the retirement party for one of Karl's coworkers, Greg Gude. Tons of teachers all sitting in the same section at Busch Stadium.....keeping the beer guy quite busy....having a grand ol' time!

Using "triple threat set 5" by Sya's Blueprints:

Using "Collection 1" by Sya's Blueprints, I scrapped this page.....of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure I ran in St. Louis a few weeks ago. Gosh I was proud of myself! This was a big deal to me, and I'm so glad I did it.....I will definitely be there next year!

This one, using "Reloaded Vol 1" by Sya's Blueprints is of the Girl Scout mother/daughter brunch from way back in May! I really need to catch up with my scrapping!

And another one from way back in May....of me and the kids on Mother's Day....using
"The Chosen One: Set 5" by Sya's Blueprints

Last plug...this one's for Haynay.....she released a template set called "the Basics, set 3"....and I also used a combo pack of "Pebbles and Butterflies" and "A Stone's Throw" for this layout.......the day Alaina and I were at the mother/daughter brunch, Karl took Matthew/Zach and our little friend Max to a Pow Wow up north somewhere.

So other stuff I've scrapped.....there was the ONE decent picture that Alaina came back from Junior Camp with:

I'm still in shock over that....how can she possibly be MY CHILD.....coming home with ONE picture of camp? seriously? :P oh well......I guess she's taking after her dad in the photography dept.

Alaina's 3rd-grade class field trip to the Magic House in St. Louis...such a fun place:

Last layout to share....of Zach's PreK bike ride....he was so popular on this Thomas bike....all the little boys loved it! So he felt pretty special. And of course, the bike ride itself is always eventful!

So that's it for now......I'm off to clean up dinner stuff and get stuff laid out for tomorrow....and hopefully lay down for a bit since I woke up with a nasty headache today. bah.

Until next post....have a great one!!!

Ode to Brush Creek!

2010-06-26T14:05:00.000-07:00

Oh, beloved Brush Creek…..how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

Brush Creek is a quiet little campground, literally in the middle of nowhere (technically about a half-hour drive from civilization), where I spent the majority of every summer every year for as long as I can remember. I remember staying in a cabin with my family.....with nothing but one stupid little, barely-working oscillating fan to cool us in the middle of July.......I remember going to my first camp here without my parents at the age of 7 (you weren't supposed to go 'till you were 8, but I went a year early when my mom worked as a cook), and then going to my age-group camps for a week every year afterwards.....I remember volunteering as a CIT (counselor-in-training) and then later as a counselor for the younger kids' camps. All in all, during my junior-high and high-school years, I'd spend 5 or 6 weeks of the summer at Brush Creek. So it will always hold a special place in my heart. I have SO MANY fond, crazy memories of this place.....it's truly priceless to me.

We haven’t been able to stay for a full week of church camp reunion since Matthew was a baby, and this year, we decided that we’d put aside any grand travel plans and do just that. And I’m SO GLAD we did. We had an amazing time at Brush Creek. It was wonderful and so much fun to get to spend time with my childhood friends: Kerri, Sarah, and Sue……plus all their kids, who ran around wild with ours!

We put on our best ‘summer casual’ outfits for church services on Sunday:

The kids behaved themselves as well as they ever did during church, sitting with their friends instead of us….and God Bless overpriced electronic gadgets for keeping them quiet and occupied:

The kids went to classes every morning with kids their ages:

Then just about every afternoon we’d hit the pool:

And why yes, that IS a picture of me in a bathing suit…..and here I swore I would never allow such a thing to exist! But since it’s a cute picture of me, Kerri, and Sue….I’ll allow it to survive….this once. :D

This was a special reunion….the sesquicentennial (that’s 150th for those not familiar with such big words), so a little more stuff was planned for the week. The church historian was there for the week, and he organized a photo of those of us who are descendants of the original church members that started the Brush Creek congregation……and since my great-great-grandfather was one of those people, we were included in the group:

And since it IS my lineage, here’s a picture of our kids in front of the Caudle school house

Alaina spent the week running around with Kerri’s girls, Tatum and Tessa…..Matthew found some other little guys who had as much videogame knowledge as he did:

And Zach stuck pretty close to me…..although he did win the little kids’ tricycle race that they had:

Our 12th anniversary was Sunday, so our romantic anniversary dinner consisted of greasy cheeseburgers from the concession stand! (they WERE yummy though!)

During the week, Sister Emma Smith was worshiping with us……She never failed to remind the men (as they sat and drank their coffee each morning….Karl among them!) of the evils of strong drink……LOL……she was too funny:

And in her honor, we didn’t smile when we took pictures with her…..she said smiling was vanity, or something like that…..and I had SUCH a hard time with that…..I was cracking up!

She also didn’t approve of all the “devil gadgets” that everybody carried around with them:

I got to see some friends I hadn't seen in awhile like Josh, Jon, and Nathan:

(Jon and Nathan being the cheaters at Spades that Kerri and I demand a rematch from!)

Karl and I went to the young adult class, taught by Seventy Larry McGuire:

It was just nice hanging out together throughout the week:

We'd do a lot of socializing standing in line for meals:

Or in the back of the church where it wasn't very quiet:

Alaina and Tessa sang in the talent show:

And Karl "moved a mountain", aka Larry McGuire with 3 teenagers using only 2 fingers each.....and no, I won't tell you how the trick works, so quit asking me!

So it was an amazing week.....I'm glad we were able to go....I'm glad the kids had fun.....and it really warms my heart to see mine, Kerri, Sarah, and Sue's kids.....this 'next generation' of friends hang out together:

(even if they won't all hold still for a picture!)

and most importantly, I'm glad I got to reconnect with my dear friends:

Hopefully next year we can be there again for the week of fun, food (I ate WAY too much ice cream!) and fellowship with my dear church camp friends!!!

Quickie Scrap Recap!

2010-06-19T15:51:00.000-07:00

Only 4 layouts to post this time, so I'm just going to get this out of the way before I start the big camp recap:

First up.....after what seems like an eternity...Sya's back from her 'designing break' and has released a grab bag with 3 template packs inside it. Here's what I made with one of the templates from "The Chosen One (set 5)"

This is a picture of us at the kids' school sock hop way back in April (yes, I'm THAT far behind on my scrapping....it's quite aggravating to me!)

And Haynay's release from a couple weeks ago (bad blogger that I am and all, just now posting this!) is the June mini for her Chronicling Life series:

The kids' swimming over Memorial Day weekend:

The last 2 layouts I have to share don't have any plugs associated with them.....They're both from my/Karl's trip to Atlanta back in April....

While Karl was at his conference during the 1st day, I wandered down to the Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta to hang out there most of the afternoon....reading a book, people-watching....it was a great place to relax:

And then that night, we all got dressed up and went out to a nice dinner:

On the way back to the hotel, we walked through the Olympic park and decided to take some silly pictures with one of the statues there.....

so that's all the scrappin' I've got to share. pretty sad really.....I thought I'd get bored at camp and have time to scrap stuff.....and I totally didn't! I was on the go all day long into the wee hours of the morning. it was great! So once we settle back into our regular ol' lives I'll have to sit down and try to get some more scrappin' done!

Another blog post to come......a recap of our week at camp!

A worthwhile accomplishment!

2010-06-18T18:26:00.000-07:00

Before I do my camp report of our AMAZING and WONDERFUL week at Brush Creek that we just finished, I want to post a few pictures from the Race for the Cure, held last Saturday (June 12th) in St. Louis.

I was so excited to be a part of this event! I've been training for MONTHS to make sure I didn't embarrass myself too badly in public. And I'm quite proud of how well I did with the race itself. I ended up raising $675 for the Susan G. Komen organization, and I'm so thankful to everyone who donated to my run!

It was SUPER HOT and SUPER MUGGY that morning....figures! Ever tried to run when it's 88 degrees and extremely humid? yeah, I don't recommend it! :P

First up, when we got there was the survivors' procession, which will move anybody to tears...seeing all those pink shirts, knowing what that represents.....it makes me cry just thinking about it! I wish there were more pink shirts out there!

Next I had to get my race numbers....then find the spot for the team photo we were having taken. I am quite thankful that even though I'm not a huge fan of lime green.....it beats the old drab blue shirts they used to give us....so Go Team Boeing!

The best thing about this picture is that Boeing donated $100 for every employee that walked/ran in the race!

As soon as the picture was done, I ditched my green tshirt and headed over toward the start line to find my place....

Here I am, all ready to run!

Oh, and just for reference, this was the LARGEST EVER Komen race......over 71,000 people were downtown that day....and if I'm not mistaken, they were all ahead of me in line for the porta-potties! lol! ;)

You can barely tell it in this picture, but that street is wall-to-wall people...as far as you can see....

Anyhoo.....the race itself went quite well for me. I was one of only a handful of people that actual ran the entire thing. And I don't blame people for not being able to handle it...the heat/humidity combo was killer!

Thankfully, the St. Louis Fire Dept. was on hand to cool us off in a couple different places along the route.....

(I ran through the first one of these but then decided it probably wasn't the best idea since I had an ipod strapped to my arm and was carrying a phone too)

I never saw who was blowing all the bubbles at mile marker 2, but thanks....it was a nice surprise and kind of uplifting to run through this:

Once we turned the corner after mile marker 2, I could see the arch way off in the distance....and the crowd had thinned out considerably:

This is my "omg, am I there YET?" self-portrait:

And the finish line....a blessed thing to see:

And here's that semi-official picture of me at the finish line......I say 'semi' official because I had to call Karl and we had to find each other before he could actually TAKE this picture! :P

So that, in a nutshell, was my first-ever experience running a 5K race. I'm thrilled I was able to finish it (in a personal best time too, go figure!) without collapsing......and I'm happy to have raised as much as I possibly could have to help find a cure for breast cancer....so that next year there will be more pink shirts out there and less "I'm running in memory of" tags. I will gladly do this race again. It was an amazing event to be part of and I'm so glad I did it...for the cause it supports and for my own personal achievement of running a 5K.

See you next summer in muggy downtown St. Louis!!!

Hellooooooo Summer! (lots of pics!)

2010-05-25T15:41:00.000-07:00

Yep, HELLO SUMMER! We've gone from 50-degree weather a week ago, with the heat on in the house, to 90+ and the A/C on instead! Crazy weather in St. Louis...gotta love it!

So, I'm sure you've all been hanging on the edge of your seat wondering what we've been up to....so i'm trying to think of blog-worthy stuff to relate:

There was the Mother/Daughter Girl Scout brunch that Alaina and I and a few other girls/moms went to from our troop. It was a LOT of fun....Alaina really wanted to dress up for the event, and insisted that I dress up as well.....and the result was this:

(this was using Haynay's new kit: Good Times All Around)

While Alaina and I were glammin' it up with the Girl Scouts, Karl met up with his brother Ken at a Pow Wow in northern Illinois......and he took along our little friend Max as well:

Most annoying toy EVER......Max's parents were SO thankful Karl bought him this:

And it wouldn't be a week in May without a field trip for one of the kids....last week it was the PreK nature hike at Pere Marquette State Park. It was cold and rainy, and so they didn't actually hike at all! What they did instead was go to the visitor's center to look around at the displays there:

Then they watched a movie and listened to a presentation about mammals from the park ranger....then they walked over to a pavillion and made some smores (thankfully it had stopped raining by then). so we still had fun, even in the cold, yucky weather.

Now that it's 90 degrees out, it's hard to believe that I was wearing a sweatshirt and a jacket just last week! :P

this past Friday was our first experience at "the farm".....some friends of ours, the Kottens, just relocated to Philadelphia, and when they moved, they gifted us with their membership to the local community farm for this summer. SWEET! I was so excited. So Friday we showed up and picked up all our veggies for the week: bok choy, kale, lettuce, spinach, radishes, turnips, broccoli, strawberries, and all kinds of salad greens I've never seen before in my life (remember, I come from a family where the only green thing I usually saw was green beans....and those were cooked with bacon of course!). So I'm on the hunt for some recipes to use with all this healthy food!

Saturday was a retirement party for one of Karl's coworkers, Greg Gude. And to celebrate his 30+ years of teaching, a bunch of teachers/spouses got tickets and we all went to the Cardinals' game Saturday afternoon. It was a lot of fun, as games always are. It stinks that they lost and all, but we were hardly watching the game, we were so busy socializing with everybody else there!

Albert Pujols batting:

Karl and the honoree, Greg:

Former student and current Cardinals reliever, Kyle McClellan, hangin' out in the bullpen:

Then, once we gave up on the Cards', we headed to a pub down in the Soulard area of St. Louis for the actual party where they 'roasted' Greg and everyone consumed mass quantities of beverages and free food. :P

Uncle Dean and Auntie Stacy had the pleasure of all 3 Herman children Saturday night, so after we left the pub, Karl and I had the evening to ourselves. We went out for a nice, late dinner, then came home and watched a movie. it was wierd for us to not have the kids around!

Sunday was Alaina's Bridging ceremony for Girl Scouts......she bridged from Brownies to Juniors.....it was a cute little ceremony, if I do say so myself.

Here's our troop reciting the Girl Scout promise:

Alaina crossing the bridge from Brownies:

her fellow Juniors of our troop helping her switch vests....

And now she's a Junior Girl Scout! congrats, Alaina!

Here's our new troop....we started the school year with TWO girls.....look how much we've grown!

Monday night was the PreK graduation ceremony. Zach wasn't graduating, as he still has another year of PreK ahead of him. That would be IF there is a preK next year for him to even go to! So for that reason, this ceremony was especially emotional for the teachers, as Mrs. Young, the aide, is currently without a job thanks to our state's big ol' financial messola......and Mrs. Pohlman will be reassigned to another grade if there's no PreK for next year. They've been teaching PreK for 20 years. It'll be such a HUGE loss to the kids of this area if there's no PreK next fall. I cry just thinking about it......not just for Zach, but for all the other kids that could benefit from the program as much as he has. The progress he's made over this last year is just amazing.....I hate the thought of him not getting to go next year...having a year of no school and then going straight to kindergarten. stinks. it just stinks! **climbing down off soapbox**

So here's the pictures from graduation:

Zach refusing to sing any of the songs:

receiving his gift from his teacher:

our little returning PreK-er:

and with his teachers, Mrs. Pohlman and Mrs. Young:

Tuesday was the kids' last day of school......I ducked out of work for a couple hours to help "lifeguard" Zach's pool party:

And then there were bubbles to blow as well (i just LOVE this picture!):

Then I went to take some pictures of Alaina and Matthew enjoying the last day of school with their friends:

Saying goodbye to Mrs. Medford:

and Miss Beauchamp:

And it was also Award Day, and Matthew brought home three of them:
One for Character Plus Reliability:

And the others for being a Math Wiz and for being on the Honor Roll:

That's our smartie-pants Matthew!

So that catches ya up! Today was the first day of summer vacation for the kids and the last day of school for Karl.....tomorrow summer officially starts for the Herman family.....and the countdown is on for all those fun summer activities you know I've got planned! :D First up, wedding this weekend in Fairfield.....and then finding somebody with a pool for Memorial Day! Any volunteers? :P

And I guess I'll finish with the layouts I've done the last few days or so......

the PreK fishing field trip

misc. pics from our Atlanta trip:

Alaina's class Nature hike:

Alaina's first softball game:

and lastly, Matthew's class trip to the Zoo:

That's it for me for now...that's enough blogging to last me for awhile! :D Have a great holiday weekend everybody! Remember the sunscreen for all you fair-skinned folks like myself! :D

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2010-05-15T06:43:00.000-07:00

yes, I know. EVERYBODY else is busy too! but it seems that with the whole Facebook thing going on, the ol' blog tends to get neglected nowadays! :D ah well....here I am, a week-ish late.......didya miss me? If you're my FB friend, you basically know what's going on with me anyways. and if you're NOT my FB friend....why would you be reading my blog? are there people out there NOT on Facebook? **GASP** :P rambling aside......

The last couple of weeks have just been non-stop action around the Herman household.....softball games, practices, field trips....it's been pure insanity, as always. what would I do without the hectic schedule to keep me on my toes? I really don't know. I'm guessing I'd get more sleep, the house would be cleaner, and Subway would make a lot less money.....but where would the fun in that be? :P

We had an interesting storm last week......just got rain at our house, but apparently, just a couple miles north of us, there was inch-diameter hail! And then there was this:

And this was all on our way to a softball game......and in town it had barely rained either. Wierd storm! The Strykers totally wiped the field with their opponents once again....check out that most-serious batting stance:

So, lemme think what else we've done......There was Alaina's class field trip to the Magic House in St. Louis. i LOVE the magic house. it's one of the best children's museums I think I've ever been to. It's a blast. and they've just added a huge new wing, so it's twice the size it was the last time we were there.

There was this beanstalk that all the kids got to climb up 3 stories.....us parents were pretty tired by the time we followed them up the stairs! :D

Her hair was too long for this to work very well this time, but it's still funny:

she would've staying in this room blowing bubbles all day if I'd let her:

and another favorite.....the mock-TV station where she got to read the newscast for the day....cool!

The Magic House is awesome.......if you ever make it to the St. Louis area, I highly recommend spending the day there! :D

Then there're all the PreK events going on.....it's hard to keep up with all those field trips! Last week there was the PreK bike ride:
Zach and his Thomas bike:

getting ready to start the 'race'

And this week was the PreK fishing trip.....not too hard to pick which pictures to post from that, as karl only took TWO OF THEM. grrrrrrrr......sheesh.

And of course this past weekend was Mother's Day......I got a semi-cooperative picture of myself with the kids:

I'm a little bummed at present, because this morning I was supposed to be running in the PTA 5K at Karl's school......I've got my tshirt....i had my number ready to pin on....we wake up this morning and it's pouring down rain. boo! now, granted....they still had the run.....but uhm.....I'm not THAT hardcore that I'll go run 3 miles in 40-degree rain. my apologies to all the hard-core running enthusiasts that're probably mortified and disappointed at me pulling out of the race, but knowing MY luck.....i'd end up with pneumonia! plus, i didn't exactly want my kids standing out there in it to cheer me on....and they insisted on cheering mom on because they know how important this was to me. So oh well....no race today. Hopefully we'll have better weather next month for the Komen race.....and here's yet ANOTHER plug.....PLEASE DONATE TO MY RUN

And now, I'm off to go get dressed for the Mother/Daughter brunch our Girl Scout council is having. Alaina and I are having a "girls-only day" today....as Karl, Matthew, Zach, and our little friend Max have taken off on for some Native American Pow-Wow with Karl's brother Ken......so they'll be gone all day.

SOOOOO.......still haven't really been in the mood to scrap much, I'm ashamed to say. not sure what the problem is.....i've just been doing more reading lately than scrapping. What am I reading? Wuthering Heights. I'm ashamed to admit I'd never read it before. HOW i managed to get through all the schooling I did without being required to read that book is a mystery. And I just finished it. That thing is darned LONG! But anyways....now I can check that off the list. Heathcliff is nothing to my beloved Mr. Darcy though, that's for sure. still, an interesting book, and i can see why it's a literary classic. now, I get to move on to the umpteen other classic novels I never read and have now downloaded for free. woohoo!

tonight.....grand plans for our girls-only evening.....alaina wants steak n shake for dinner and then a movie. i'm guessing i'll be dragged to that 'how to train your dragon' thing that i have no desire to see. bah. oh well.....she'll love it!

Layouts......first up......a plug for Haynay.....her kit Mr. and Mrs. is obviously wedding-themed, and since I've been married awhile and didn't have anything wedding-ish to scrap, I did what I always do now......channeled the power of Facebook! And the result, courtesy of my friend Heather, and her fiance Scott:

Hope she likes it! I'm gonna frame it and give it to her as a wedding gift. :P

And speaking of gifts......Here's what I'm giving the kids' teachers for their end-of-year gifts this year....same concept:

First up, (using School's Out for Summer and it's add-on), For Mrs. Pohlman and Mrs. Young, Zach's teachers:

For Miss Beauchamp, Matthew's teacher, whose class nickname is the Busy Bees:

And for Mrs. Medford, Alaina's teacher.....the Mega Minds:

the final layouts from our trip to World Conference:
my friend Kerri's daughter Tatum's birthday party at the pool:

and the other misc. pictures I took over that weekend....of the services, and me and Karl with our church President:

i made this layout with another kit of Haynay's, "Chronicling Life: May"....it's to immortalize Zach's obsession with the Owl City song "Fireflies"....he LOVES this song....the instant we get in the car, he asks me to play it. "Play MY SONG!" he'll say......he's so cute....love it. and since i love the song too, i don't mind:

last layout to post....of Zach's preK field trip to the town library a few weeks ago...it was only the library, but those kids had a GREAT time!

and so I guess that's it for now.....

Happy Inter-National Scrapbooking Day! :D

2010-05-01T17:01:00.000-07:00

Why hello world!!! Dust off those PayPal accounts, because today is a day most important to those of us digiscrappin' fools of the world. It's International Scrapbooking Day! It started off as a "national holiday", but has obviously gone global!

So that's where I'll start......Haynay Designs has a grab bag she's releasing in honor of iNSD....although being totally honest, she's in Italy at the moment and probably couldn't care less! (lucky duck!) But anyhoo......Here's what I scrapped with her grab bag......and you can get it here....for a measly 4 bucks! totally worth it!
This is of my girl scout troop nature hike we went on a couple weeks ago....I'm so glad Heather made a kit to match my girls' sit-upons....wasn't that brilliant of her? :D

And that's really the only plug I have....so for the other scrapping I've done lately.....

There's some pictures from our trip to World Conference....of the Temple....I never get tired of taking pictures there:

And the kids at the Children's Peace Pavillion....they had SO much fun:

Two more from the cubscout campout a couple weeks ago.....most importantly, Zach's first fish:

And just some random pics from the campout overall.....and why YES, I DID take a picture of my youngest's nekkid arse peeing on a tree. He's 3....it's still considered cute and funny. :D

Now, for these next 2 layouts.....i hope you'll see the humor in this. Remember that game "telephone"?? Where someone would start off saying something usually lame like 'i like school', and by the end of the line, someone had murdered someone else or something similarly ridiculous. it was always good for a laugh. WELL....in digiscrap land, we have what are called "telephone challenges".......same concept. someone starts off with a layout...and they pass it on to someone else to 'scraplift' (ie, 'copy' per se).....and then by the end of the line, the first and last layouts look NOTHING alike. It's pretty funny.

So anyways....I've been participating in some telephone challenges over at MouseScrappers.com.

Here's one of them it was pretty funny.....
we somehow went from this (layout#1, out of 10)
here's the layout I was to scraplift (layout#8 in the line)
my contribution....of the HSM3 street party at Disney's Hollywood Studios:

It's just too funny to me how different these things get. Apparently we haven't changed since childhood! :D

Here's another telephone challenge I was involved in...
My layout for it:

And the last one
my contribution:

So in other news........This past week was Alaina's first softball game:

They were tied after 4 innings....it was freezing cold, getting dark (no lights on the field) and raining, so thankfully the coaches agreed to a tie. fine by us!

There was also a 3rd grade nature hike: 3 1/2 miles of it!

And the 1st grade trip to the zoo:

Then Wed afternoon, karl and i jetted down to Atlanta for a couple days. He went to a teacher's conference on Thursday and Friday.....I got a LOT of quality "ME TIME"....you know.....having more than 30 seconds to myself to do things I enjoy: I slept late....I scrapped....I read a book....I took a walk....I went for a jog....I had long lunches....I took lots of pictures.....it was a blast!

I hung out here most of the afternoon on Thursday....the centennial Olympic Park:

We went to a really nice dinner Thursday night with the other teachers and the one other wife (the other guys left their wives at home):

Then the instant we got off the plane yesterday, we rushed back home to go to the school sock hop with the kids.......we looked darned cool, huh?

We actually won the award (and $10!) for being the 'best dressed family'....woohoo us!

So that catches you up on us.....busy week has passed.....and another busy week coming up: more softball games, another field trip, and who knows what else will get thrown our way...but that's our crazy life! :D

oh where have I been??

2010-04-18T19:27:00.000-07:00

Where have I been? Right here, basically. sort of. well, not really! :P

Last weekend, the 5 of us, plus Nanny and PawPaw....set off for Independence, Missouri for our church's World Conference. It was a great weekend out there. Perfect weather! We left here early Saturday morning and got into the Kansas city area around lunchtime. Ate at one of our fave BBQ places, then headed down to the Temple complex.

We took the kids to the Children's Peace Pavillion. It's such a fun little place for kids to play and learn a lot of good principles like sharing, caring, peace, etc....I highly recommend it! We played there for over an hour and then my friend Kerri picked up Alaina to take her to her daughter Tatum's pool party. We were going to meet them all there later....

Karl and I had received an invitation in the mail to attend a 'young professionals' reception with the First Presidency of our church. VERY exciting for us....so of COURSE we accepted said invitation! :D We were totally psyched to be asked to attend.....it's not every day you get the opportunity to meet the church President/Prophet.....and we made sure to get a picture with President Veazey before we had to duck out early:

Then we changed back into some more casual clothes, went and picked up the boys (who were with my parents at the hotel) and headed to the pool party:

and for the record....I promised Sarah that I wouldn't post any pictures of her on Facebook....and I didn't! So I'll post them here.....here's my fave....of her thoughts on me taking such pictures:

but it was a super-fun party for the kids...they all had a BLAST! Happy Birthday, Tatum!!! After the party we went over to their house for some good ol' catching up with my friend Kerri, her hubby Dan, and a houseful of 3rd-grade girls having a sleepover! :D we had a glow-in-the-dark easter egg hunt, which was a huge hit with all the kids, and then they just ran around and played while we talked.

The next day, Sunday, we went to Communion services at the Auditorium. It always amazes me how they serve communion to thousands of people in like 15 minutes. It's orchestrated like a dance. one picture hardly does it justice. And to give credit to these people that chose to serve.......we walked through their practice on Saturday afternoon.....they put in the hours for this "routine"....well done ladies and gents! It was a great service....the kids were well-behaved and we even got compliments on how good they were during the service from the people sitting behind us. That's saying a lot! :D

I NEVER get tired of staring at the ceiling of the Temple sanctuary....it's just mesmerizing....

and here we all are....all dressed up at the Temple:

Sunday afternoon, after a yummy lunch at Cracker Barrel (a family fave), everybody but me and Zach ended up taking naps. I read a magazine and finished a book I was reading on my ereader (for those of you that haven't joined the e-book revolution....you'll become an addict if you do, i swear it! so cool!). Then we went for a quick fast-food dinner and back to the Auditorium for the main evening service.

It's always awesome to hear the prophet/president of the church give a sermon. This night was no exception. He said what needed to be said to those of us that were willing to hear it. I can only hope that those that may NOT have wanted to hear it, heard the message anyway! :D (cryptic enough for ya?) I'll just say that there are 'certain issues' our church (and every church really) is facing......and we're struggling as a group to come to terms with how we should proceed....there are those who think one way.....and those that think the opposite way. And we've been butting heads over said issues for YEARS.....it was nice to hear (however implied and cryptically) our president/prophet give his thoughts on the issues. He received a standing ovation for his words.....and I would've gladly stood and applauded as well, had Zach not dumped a bottle of water down my back! (didn't want that many people seeing my wet arse, kwim? LOL so i stayed seated!!!!)

We left for home early Monday morning....and back to work/school the rest of this week. We're DYING with allergies here......poor me and Alaina seem to have it worse than the guys.......I'm constantly popping allergy meds....she's up there with bloodshot eyes, sneezing/etc constantly.....I'm about ready to give her adult doses of stuff to see if it helps. I'll be glad when whatever is in the air has settled down!!! bah!!!! I love spring, but HATE all this junk in the air!

oooooh, exciting breaking news....hubby won an ebay auction for a remote control! yes, this is as pathetic as it sounds. Apparently, we (I suppose as the woman I share the brunt of this blame????? but since it's 2010 and all, I refuse to carry such burden solely) have lost the remote control to our TiVo satellite receiver in our family room. We've been looking for the darned thing for WEEKS now, and it never has turned up in the usual places that we usually find remote controls (toybox, couch cushions, etc)...... So finally.....we admitted defeat.....the kids have done SOMETHING to it (I will assume that it ended up in a trashcan somewhere and is now in the nearby landfill unbeknownst to us)....and caved in and decided to get a new one. ah well....such is life....we've had to spend way more than 10 bucks for dumber things than that before.....

so anyways...the rest of this week was just the usual....ball practice for alaina.....matthew's should be starting soon, then i'll REALLY be meeting myself coming/going to ballfields!

Friday night was the big cubscout family campout at Beaver Dam state park. Great park...beautiful lake and all....i just do NOT. LIKE. CAMPING. period. end of story. BAH! it's SOOOOOO much work, it just sucks the fun right out of it for me! you have to pack along soooo much crap.....what fun is that? and if you DON'T take along all that crap....then you're roughing it far beyond what is acceptable to persons like myself (yes, i like something to sleep on something besides the grass and i prefer something to cover myself with besides dried leaves.....shoot me for not being a true scout-type person!) I know there are people that spend every weekend in the semi-fair-weather months going camping, and kudos to them and all.....it's just not my idea of a good time for the most part. once a year, and i'm good. i've had my camping experience for 2010. moving on! so our car was completely loaded down with all that camping crap: the tent, the sleeping bags, the lawn chairs, the cooler, the lantern, the flashlights, the clothing, the food.....blah blah blah blah......oh yeah, and the kids and the 2 dogs. happy camping! :D

But compared to past camping experiences, this one was probably the best. We've had everything from emergency room visits (long story!) to flash floods (another long story) to loud drunken campers keeping us up ALL night (yep, another LONG story) on our camping trips....they've just always ended SOOOOOOO badly, i'd completely lost faith in the camping experience ever being anything but a disaster in the making. but this time it was pretty fun actually. my only complaint was that it got WAY colder than any of us thought it would. BAH on that! the boys has a blast though...we grilled burgers/dogs for dinner, made smores...they recieved some patches from their Cubmaster (karl), and had a pretty fun time.

Saturday, we got up and went to breakfast at the park restaurant (now THAT'S what i'm talking about! none of this eggs over an open fire crap!) and then went out on some rented boats fishing. fishing. yeah. my joy for fishing ranks right up there with camping in general. thank GOD for my iPod or i'd have gone completely insane those 2 1/2 hours watching karl trying to maneuver our boat around that lake. (for the record.....I took caneoing class like 10 years in a row....heck, i even TAUGHT caneoing class at camp.....and karl....doesn't know DIDDLY about how to maneuver a small boat. sorry dear.....hate to chip away at your manhood there, but you don't.) i kept all comments to myself though, as it was just easier that way. :D

we DID however, catch a fish....a teeny tiny little thing...but i'm glad we caught it, as Zach had never been fishing before, so this was his first experience....and since nobody believed us (since nobody else caught anything), I have the pictures (of course, did you expect anything less?) to prove it:

ate lunch at the restaurant again....and then packed up camp and dispersed to home. end o' camping experience. fine by me......

i spent the rest of saturday night in a fog.....I'll attribute it to taking too many allergy and pain pills too close together. I was just OUT of it. oops. Sunday, woke up with a serious headache (probably from the combination of the zyrtec/benedryl/sudafed/vicodin cocktail i had the night before?) and i basically slept right through what should've been our church services. oops. the rest of today has just been getting stuff back in order here after being gone last weekend and being gone and taking half the house with us for ONE NIGHT out in the wilderness. did LOTS of laundry....cleaned some stuff....exciting day really.

then this afternoon was the girls' turn. Nature hike for my girl scout troop at a different state park. Now THIS is how it's done....no camping.....no pitching tents and junk! we hiked up the cliffs for about an hour....made some smores and headed home. good enough for a hiking/nature badge for my troop!! :P bravo ladies! we did a nature scavenger hunt along the way, so it wasn't completely idle time....and I made the mistake of letting the oldest girl lead the way.....so instead of the lazy, out-of-shape-person's 1/2 mile hike I'd planned.......she picked the 1 1/2 mile jaunt straight up the side of the cliff! :D hahahahahahaha....you should've heard the parents griping (Karl the loudest of them all i might add!)....it was great. i love that trail personally, so i didn't object to her picking that one at all........it was a good workout at least!

and now here we are, ending another weekend....ready to start another week of work. oh yay fun.

and so now......what few scrapbook pages i have to post....

The kids dyeing Easter eggs:

Zach and Darcy....he insisted on taking Darcy for multiple rides in the back of his dump truck:

Easter Sunday.....I went through all the effort to orchestrate a big group photo at church, and then when it was all over, I found Matthew asleep on the playroom floor! How brilliant to not notice my own kid missing from a group photo? :P

And my only plug for this post...."Happy Birthday To You" by Haynay Designs....I also used her Chronicling Life Photo Clusters for this....Alaina's birthday dinner last year at one of our favorite Disney restaurants: Liberty Tree Tavern......can't believe that's been over a year ago now!

And another week goes by.....

2010-04-09T11:07:00.000-07:00

first up, CT plugs! Cuz that's just how I roll!

Haynay's new release today is a template pack, called 'the basics template 1'. I love templates....it helps me get stuff done SO much faster!

And what I scrapped with it....also using "Chronicling Life bundle" and "Chronicling Life Alpha"

My family is a bunch of storm junkies.....when I was a kid, my brothers and I would set up lawnchairs in the field next to our house and watch the storms roll in. Now that I think about that, sitting in metal chairs in an open field during thunderstorms was probably NOT the smartest thing to be doing, but we loved every second of it. And now that I'm a photo nut, my goal has become getting that perfect lightning shot......I've gotten a few good ones....but I'm still hoping to catch that perfect shot one of these days....

another layout from our Disney trip last year.....our favorite roller coaster, Expedition Everest!

and my only other layout to post is from Zach's preK easter party last week....

and that's all i've scrapped this week!

my parents have been here all week babysitting the kids, so i've had some help with the housework, laundry, and cooking. it's been nice! and tomorrow morning we're all leaving for Independence for World Conference. I can't wait to be at the Temple again....it feels like ages since I've been there! I'll get to see some old friends from camp....it'll be a fun weekend!

Sneaky Peeky!!!

2010-04-08T18:10:00.000-07:00

bad, bad blogger......

2010-04-01T19:17:00.000-07:00

well....this has been a pretty stinky week. without going into gory details, i'll just say it's been heartbreaking, disappointing, and frustrating. i've been very upset and depressed for most of the week, and it's taking a lot of (alcohol!) inward thinking to pull myself through it. *sigh*.....sometimes when your faith is tested, it's not as dramatic or cut-and-dried as it is in stories. sometimes, it's just one little thing building on another......in what seems to be an endless crapstorm raining down on you. so that you're sitting there thinking, 'okay....now what? a pox on my family? a bird crapping on my head?' it's just been a crummy week and i'm in a really bad mood because of it. 'nuff said.

so, because of all the 'schtuff' going on in reference to the above, i haven't even felt like scrapping much.....most of the stuff i have to post is from me not posting last weekend (hence the bad blogger reference). but i'll post the few pages I do have since I owe it to the designers I CT for and all.....

First up.....the kit i posted the sneak peek of (ages ago!) is Haynay's new Chronicling Life mini....for April. I also used her Primary Dot Alpha and the Chronicling Life Alpha (one of them anyways)..and Sya's new kit, '1,2,3,4, Go (2)'.....Alaina wanted these SO BAD...but she didn't get them! :P

and I don't think i ever posted this one......it's with a freebie of Haynay's called 'good times all around'....she gave out a mini kit and everybody that applied for her CT did a layout with it.....I guess she liked mine since she asked me to stay on her CT! This is of us at Disney (obviously) back in March '09 at the Toontown entrance

Haynay's kit 'playtime petshop', and Sya's '1,2,3,4..Go (2)' templates
....of Darcy's visit to Zach's PreK class...those kids LOVED having that puppy in their class!!

And I finally got around to scrapping Alaina's birthday party:

And Zach's PreK bowling trip last week:

And a couple weeks ago....my girl scout troop meeting the Mayor, where he signed a proclamation declaring that week national girl scout week. They were SO excited to meet our mayor!

another one with sya's new template pack (i think i've almost used them all already!)
of my favorite princess.....

And I did this page at a speed scrap over this past weekend.....thought it turned out pretty cute...and the pictures say it all....she was SO excited:

so that's all the pages i've got to post for now......it's going to be a busy weekend, preparing for easter with the family and such. i doubt i do much scrappin'! today, i went to Zach's preK easter party...they had an egg hunt and played on the playground (in this GORGEOUS weather we've been having all week!), and then had some yummy snacks. It was the cutest thing watching all those PreK kids trying to find their eggs.....they were supposed to only pick up the eggs that had their names on them....and given that most of them can't really read yet....it made it interesting! So I had a good afternoon with Zach! Karl and all the kids are off of school today and Monday.....so they'll be having lots of fun without me! :(

and that's it for now.....I'm taking my bad attitude and heading to bed!

Sneaky Peeky!!!

2010-03-23T19:15:00.001-07:00

I survived! (warning: lots of pics!)

2010-03-21T15:59:00.000-07:00

*sigh*....yes, it's been awhile since I sat down to write on the ol' blog. We've been BUSY....just not with stuff I'd consider "blogging-worthy" (if that makes any sense?)

This past Monday was Alaina's birthday! Our little girl is definitely not so little anymore! She's 9 now.....where do the years go?? Seriously!!!

So for her actual birthday, since Daddy was home all week on his spring break (lucky duck!), he took cookies and juice boxes to her class at school:

And that night, we told her we'd take her out to dinner wherever she wanted to go......and of course, OUR kid won't pick a McDonald's playland or anything like that. oh no. She picks Red Lobster! And what does she get there? Lobster! sheesh! expensive child!!!!

And while we decided to let her open her gift from us while we were there:
(I love catching that look of surprise in a picture....priceless!) We got her the new American Girl doll, Lanie......kinda close to her name.....or as close as we're ever going to find most likely!

(and FYI, that's a root beer bottle in front of the 9-year old!)

Tuesday and Wednesday, we spent shoveling dirt....oh the fun we had. not. The kids enjoyed themselves, since they got to ride in the empty tractor cart that Karl was using to haul those 3 tons of dirt to the back yard.

And the finished product.....we've never attempted a garden before, so wish us luck! Any good organic gardening tips, send them our way please!

And here's the latest with miss Darcy....she's taken to being more efficient at mealtimes:

on Thursday, Karl went to Zach's PreK class for the afternoon. Since Zach's dad was visiting, Zach got to hold the flag for the pledge.....look how excited he is!

"Now don't crowd the puppy, kids!" uhm, yeah....you can't even SEE the puppy! :P

A kiss for his best friend Darcy:

and then they passed her around the circle....thankfully, Darcy's used to being manhandled and "loved to death" at home, so this was no biggie:

So, Friday night came around, and it was time to create "the cake".....and I'll vent my frustration toward my SIL since this cake was her idea! :P Actually, it didn't turn out THAT BAD.....there was a slight problem with said "pool" LEAKING at one point, where drastic measures had to be taken (ie practically starting over at 10PM with me nearly in tears and frustrated beyond belief with the thing!)

The final product.....not the way I pictured it, but given what I went through with it, this was as good as it was gonna get!

Saturday was the big party day......Alaina wanted a pool party....so we had a luau at the pool for her party.....the kids had SO much fun!

The birthday girl in her "hula girl" glory, with some of her friends:

there's that kickin' cake again....darned thing nearly melted it was so hot in there!

Pool party time!

Zach didn't exactly wait for 'cake time'...

what a FUN BUNCH....sheesh.....look happy, Caudles!

Hula Buddha! This is "little big John"....Dean and Stacy's foster kid:

sing quick, before the cake melts! :P

Presents:
a dress for her new doll:

and a matching dress for her!

she was SOOOO excited for this...she's ALWAYS wanting to scrapbook with me!

So the swimmin' luau pool party was a ton of fun.......and no, i didn't get in the water. no thanks! And I'm not sure if you can see it in the pictures or not, but Alaina's got her first black eye.....she wasn't quite fast enough with the glove at softball practice on Thursday night....she doesn't want to play catcher anymore, btw!

Then after a family cookout at the house for dinner, there was a sleepover here for some of her friends......we had 6 girls sleeping in the basement last night.....or rather....we had 6 girls NOT SLEEPING in the basement last night while mean-ol'-mom continuously shushed them.....'till about 1AM when they all finally passed out! sheesh! And then we had a little brother of one of the girls staying over too for Matthew's company.....

Needless to say, I'm tired today....didn't get a nap.....and now I'm getting ready to make some plans for the week and attempt to reclaim the house from birthday festivities!

so, scrappin......I'm so behind on my plugs....bad Diana! So....this layout uses a bunch of stuff from Haynay: Chronicling Life Alpha, Playtime Petshop, Fancy Pants, and School's out for Summer. It was that disastrous night of rollerskating. I just liked the title.....i thought that was most clever and it makes me laugh every time i see it. :D

Another plug for Haynay.....her latest kit, "Tumble Time".....easy enough to get pictures for this one!

No plugs for this one, i just don't think i ever posted it.....the playground at our church camp, Brush Creek.....when we were home visiting the parentals a couple weeks ago, we took a drive out in the country (my parents love to do that), and to give the kids some time to burn off some energy, we stopped here and let them play:

More layouts from our trip to Disney over a year ago now (*sigh*...doesn't seem that long ago!)

and I haven't gotten a layout done yet, but Sya released a new template pack this week, called "1,2,3,4...Go set 2" Hopefully this week, with no party stuff going on, i'll get more scrappin done than i did this last week:

I guess that's it for now.....take care and have a great week everybody!!!

And they called it "Puppy Love"......

2010-03-07T15:37:00.000-08:00

And we have a new addition to our family this week.....after 5 anxious weeks of waiting....of having the kids ask me EVERY DAY if "today was the day"......we FINALLY brought home our new puppy.

I named her Darcy.....any Jane Austen fan will appreciate that, I think!

Isn't she the cutest little thing ever? and yes, the bug-eyed, lazy-eyed thing is normal for pug puppies! I've wanted a pug puppy forever, but they were always just way too expensive. Thanks to the wonders of Facebook, I got in touch with the cousin of a former classmate that was selling a litter really cheap! WOOHOO! So now Darcy is a part of the family.

So that's been the excitement of this week basically! Up until that point, it's just been the usual: work for us, school for the kids, blah blah blah. We took the kids to Petco Wednesday night and spent a small fortune on all kinds of puppy stuff....food, leash, collar, carrier, food dish, and lots of toys of course! The kids had a blast!

Friday we left for Fairfield for a multitude of reasons: 1. to visit my dad, who's still recovering from pneumonia (doing LOTS better though!), 2. to sell the rest of the nursery furniture that's been collecting dust in the garage, and 3. to pick up the puppy. Oh, and I also had a lunch of a sancho and a porkburger. Fairfield fine-dining fo' sho'!!!

Last night Karl and I took Alaina and Matthew rollerskating. It didn't go so well. I was laughing so hard......it's been about 10 years since I put on a pair of rollerskates myself, but i was still able to skate like i used to. I was thrilled. But this was the first time the kids had ever been on skates, and they were NOT very graceful. I kept singing, "butt on the ground, butt on the ground....you lookin' like a fool with your butt on the ground!" LOL! even karl wasn't too confident on the skates.....he never actually FELL.....but he did yell at a couple kids to "GET OUT OF MY WAY! I CAN'T STOP! I WILL CRUSH YOU!" :P LOL!!! so that adventure lasted all of about half an hour. Matthew and Alaina both gave up on skating....Karl claimed the skates hurt his feet.....so it was just me skating around my old home on the weekends (in junior high, i was on that rink every Friday/Saturday night!).....ah, memories!

And even though it's been a pretty uneventful week, for whatever reason, I haven't scrapped much. odd, huh? But I'll share the few pages I did manage to get done.

Last week's Nacho Plunge that Karl did:

and the brownie bowling outing that i missed because i was with Nacho...

and the last layout I've done for the week......of Princess Darcy herself (that's what Zach calls her)

And since I was a slacker and didn't manage a layout (if you're reading this, sorry Heather....I'll get around to it eventually!), Haynay released a new alpha to coordinate with the Jan/Feb/March mini kits....it's called "Chronicling Life First Quarter Alpha"

So I guess that's it for now......there's laundry to put away and we're in the middle of watching the new Star Trek movie for the 50th time (which I never get tired of, amazingly, and the kids love it!).....another weekend come and gone by way too fast!!

Takin' the Nacho Plunge

2010-02-28T18:04:00.001-08:00

First, gotta start off with this:

Karl single-handedly raised over $1800 for Special Olympics by doing the Polar Bear Plunge yesterday! I'm so proud of him! And, contrary to what he may say, he loved EVERY SECOND of the attention the ridiculous stunt got him!

Not only was he recognized at the Plunge itself for being the top individual earner, but video of him and his students taking the plunge was on the news last night! Priceless!

So, now that that excitement's over.....back to my regularly scheduled post. Today I woke up with a massive migraine. Today has, therefore, been mostly a blur of popping pain pills. And I'm still in pain, but at least I can sit upright. that's progress!

The rest of the week leading up to the weekend wasn't too eventful really. It was mostly filled with getting ready for the Plunge.....Karl had to order his red Speedo online because no stores we could find carried them in red (or in his size!). And then we had to order tights......and then we had a friend sew him a cape. I can cook and I can scrap.....but I can't sew to save my life, so I called in an expert and our friend Melissa did an EXCELLENT job making a Nacho Libre cape for Karl. It's way cool.....I can see Karl dressing up like some superhero for Halloween in the future just so he can use the cape again. Although I'll be totally honest: if i never see the Nacho outfit again I won't be too upset. :D

wow....now that I'm scrolling through them, I actually have way more layouts to post than I thought I did......interesting! yay for me!

The big scrapping news though, is that I finished our DC scrapbook, woohoo!!! It's always a relief of sorts to be "done" with a book......and this is going to be my first attempt at a 12x12 photobook from Shutterfly, so fingers crossed that it turns out okay! I already ordered it....since they're offering free shipping and all! :P

So here's the last few layouts from that book:

an exhibit at the Smithsonian of this house and all the families and stories that went along with it:

The history of money exhibit.....complete with the story of the '3-dollar bill'....my dad has said that phrase so many times, it was hilarious to learn the true story of it and to see one!

The history of transportation exhibit....trains, a couple old cars, etc......I wish Zach had been there to see these trains:

just some odds and ends shots....archie bunker's chair, dorothy's slippers.....

And the war exhibit....which karl enjoyed of course....definitely a guy thing!

And of course, the cover of the photobook itself:

So that's done and crossed off my scrappin-to-do list! Now, PLENTY of other stuff to scrap....I'm always behind, kwim??? and that's okay....it means I have a full life to document!

New releases this week.......first up, Haynay's new kit! She's been doing a monthly mini kit, and for March, obviously, the main color was green....so I had to use a B&W pic to make it work.......just a quick shot I got of the kids actually not killing each other......always nice! So this is "Chronicling Life: March mini", "Chronicling Life" (for the black/white accents), and "Chronicling Life: wordart"

Sya's new release this week was a kit collab with WM[squared] designs.....Sya usually doesn't make kits, so when she does, it's exciting for us on the CT! :P I love the colors....makes me keep hoping spring is right around the corner! The kit is called "Forever Treasured", and when I saw the wordart and flair in it, I knew I had to scrap this........I've got such a nice hubby that surprises me like this:

So CT plugs overwith.......I'll just post the rest of the stuff I've scrapped:

The District Pinewood Derby for Matthew's CubScout pack.....they gave him a hat and a display case for his car.....very nice! He didn't place very well, but he still had a blast racing with the other boys! It was a lot of fun for them!

A couple Disney trip layouts from back in March.....both from Animal Kingdom.....Expedition Everest is like THE best roller coaster....I never get tired of it and I ALWAYS scream...even though I've probably ridden it 10 times now! It's so awesome!

And this is a standard picture spot....in front of the Tree of Life:

The last 2 layouts to post are a 2-page spread of Zach's PreK playgroup this past week that I went to. Those are always fun.....us parents get to play with them and we all learn a thing or two! Zach and I had a great time!

And that basically catches you up on us. I'll hopefully have a layout next time to post of Karl's Nacho Plunge! :D And this week is ISAT testing at school, so Alaina is all nervous and completely freaked out about it. Such a shame, I think, that these kids are feeling so much pressure in the 3rd grade about how they perform on some mandated state test. I keep telling her to not worry about it....but I don't think she's hearing me! So for her sake, I hope it's not TOO stressful of a week for her with all of that. I'll be glad when Friday gets here so it's overwith (until next year I guess!).

My dad SHOULD be coming home from the hospital tomorrow. He'll still need a couple more weeks' worth of antibiotics intravenously, but since Medicare won't pay for home health (insert rant on Medicare here) Mom will get to drag him back and forth to the hospital every day so he can be hooked up to an IV there. what a pain in the arse. *sigh*......I'm just glad he's improving enough TO go home. For awhile there, he was very VERY sick. So those of you that knew about it and were thinking of him, thanks. And for those of you that didn't know.....please say a prayer for him now. :D

It's ALMOST spring....I think! :D temps warm enough for the kids to play outside for a little bit each day......no more snow on the ground, even in the ditches.....I'm ready for the spring rains, even though all the rain drives me nuts! I'm just ready for warmer temps! :D Bring it on!

So have a great week everybody! Catch ya later!

Sickies! Sickies! GO AWAY!

2010-02-24T12:29:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Germville, population: 5 Hermans! :D

Actually, so far (knock on wood), the sickie has just been little Zach. Poor kid. He woke up covered in puke Sunday morning, so he and I skipped church and stayed home. We basically cuddled on the couch and/or slept all day long. Monday I stayed home from work with him, as he was still running a fever.

Neither Alaina nor Matthew ever acted the way Zach does when he's sick. Take his temperature? GOOD LUCK! He will fight you to the death before he'll let a thermometer anywhere near his body. Take medicine? Again, GOOD LUCK! IF i can even get it into his mouth, 9 times out of 10 he'll spit it back out at me. lovely. So I'd rather not have him be the sick one actually!

By Monday afternoon he seemed to be doing better, but then the 'south end' kicked in, which forced me to cancel my girl scout meeting. But by bedtime, it seemed that even that part had run it's course. So we sent him to school yesterday (Tuesday) and he seemed fine.

Fast forward to today (wednesday)......I'm minding my own business at work, munching on leftover Valentines' Day candy I'd stolen from the kids when my cell phone rings. I KNEW that was not going to be a call I wanted to answer, because during the day, my phone never rings for a good reason. I knew it would either be 1. Karl with some crisis, 2. My Mom giving me bad news about my dad, or 3. "THE CALL" from the school nurse we've gotten I don't know how many times already this year.

It was the nurse. I expected it to be about either Alaina or Matthew...assuming one of them had gotten whatever bug it was that Zach had. But nope.....it was Zach himself, sick again. BAH. So after a quick call to Karl, he got a sub for his class at school, picked me up and we were on our way to pick up Zach.

And the little bugger is FINE. Tired, yes, because he didn't sleep well last night....crabby, yes....because he's tired. but SICK? no, not really from what I can tell. He says his belly hurts though, so he's probably not back to 100% yet, but I don't consider him SICK per se, kwim? But anyways, we're all home now, waiting on school to let out so I can pick up Alaina/Matthew at the sitter's.

So that's the excitement for today. What else has happened around here??? I got a call Monday while I was home with Zach from my mom telling me that my dad was in the hospital with pneumonia. bummer. He'd just gotten over pneumonia in one lung and gets it in the other one....the guy can't catch a break! So he's still in the hospital at Fairfield, taking fluids/antibiotics, and complaining loudly about the cr@ppy food. :P That's my dad! :D So hopefully in a few more days he'll beat the sickies as well.

And then there's the rest of us......you know how sometimes you wait for the other shoe to drop? That's me right now: wondering who's going to get it next! We don't really have time to be sick! We've got a jam-packed weekend ahead of us, dernit!

Saturday afternoon......my DH Karl......in his BRILLIANCE......volunteered to do the Polar Bear Plunge at Creve Couer Lake Park in St. Louis. If anybody's in town, it will be a spectacle to behold, trust me! :D

Not only did he volunteer to dive into 30-ish degree water.....but to spice things up and encourage more donations, he volunteered to dress up like Nacho Libre for the occasion:

but only IF he got $1,000 in donations.....and thanks to the help of lots of people wanting to encourage his public humiliation......he's well past the $1k mark!

He ordered a red Speedo swimsuit and blue tights for the occasion, and a friend is making him a cape......so he'll be ready with his costume. We have music to set the 'mood' as he makes his entrance......people are already begging for the video to be posted online.....which it will be! :D So that's our plan for saturday: Public Humiliation. But all for a good cause. Donate to Karl's Polar Bear Plunge for Special Olympics here:

http://www.somo.org/karlhermanpolarplunge

So ya see.....we can't get sick and miss all that!

If we get done in time (which I'm doubting we will), Alaina's brownie troop will be going bowling Saturday afternoon.....then a quiet night home watching the Olympics probably!

and since I'm blogging, I might as well post some layouts I've done since my last post:

With Sya's new kit, 'movie-spiration: take two', I scrapped these 2 layouts:
This one of Matthew's District Pinewood Derby race a couple weekends ago:

And an exhibit at the Smithsonian that was really cool:

These last two are from our March Disney trip (yep, still not done scrappin' that trip....LOTS left to do, trust me!)

This is a standard family picture from Animal Kingdom:

And another picture, in front of Expedition Everest....home of one of the best roller coasters around!!

So that's it for me for now.....I'm off to go console a little boy that's still whiny and clingy, even if he isn't really sick! Stay healthy!

Pages to Post! :D

2010-02-19T19:38:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to catch up on my scrappin'!!

First up, stuff for Haynay:

Pictures I took of the kids' snow day last week. They didn't last long out in the snow playing....they're wimps and got cold! :P
Using "Chronicling Life Photo Clusters", "Chronicling Life: January Mini" and "Snow Games"

And with another kit of Haynay's: "Simplicity", and "One for the Money v2" template, I scrapped this layout of Julia Child's kitchen at the Smithsonian in Washington DC:

Another layout from the Smithsonian, using Sya's new template pack, "Movie-spiration: Take Two"....of some electricity exhibit...I don't remember what half this stuff was, so Karl's going to have to help me with the journaling! I just took pictures of stuff he pointed out. :P

This was of the Presidents' exhibit at the Smithsonian:

Karl bailed on this exhibit....he wasn't too interested in the dishes and dresses of the First Ladies.....but I thought it was cool! :D

some misc. pictures from our tour of the Capitol building:

Statuary Hall in the Capitol....ALMOST done with my DC book, woohoo!!!

so that catches me up on the scrappin' I've done lately......as for our LIFE.....eh, not too much to report really.

Last weekend, Alaina went to her first softball practice at the batting cages in town. We were SO impressed with her.....she hit 60 mph fastballs! I'm not sure I could even do that, and she's 8! :P So woohoo for her....maybe she'll do okay in softball this summer after all! Her season starts in April, so we'll find out soon enough!

Zach is walking around singing the ABC song like crazy....it's so cute, I never get tired of it! He talks so much now....I love it! it's always so fun when you can have entire conversations with him. Last night, on his way home from class, Karl called and Zach wanted to talk to him on the phone.....he told his daddy all about his trains.....how he couldn't find a 'tunnel' to complete the train tracks....it was quite the crisis for a little boy! Thankfully mommy found the lost tunnel and all is well.

And that's about it for around here....perhaps I'll have something more exciting to relate next time!! my brother, dean, who thinks he's a meteorologist, is predicting the kids will get another snow day on Monday, so we'll see about that! :P

later gators!

Waitin' for the storm.....

2010-02-07T12:00:00.000-08:00

Ah, no more trip reports (for a few months anyways!), so it's just back to blogging about my regularly UN-scheduled life. yeah, i know...YAWN!

Oh, wait....my big accomplishment...DUH! I ran a 5k. Well, "RUN" is a pretty loose term in this respect. I didn't WALK it, that's for sure, but it was probably the slowest jog on human record. :D or darned close. But that's okay. it was my first time running that far, and I'm pretty proud of myself for even DOING it. The time doesn't matter to me at this point.....I'll get faster.....eventually....I hope! But for anybody that's lost a lot of weight like I have, being able to achieve something like that that you knew would NEVER have been possible BEFORE you lost all that weight........it's a big deal. a HUGE deal really. I couldn't even tell you how long it took me to run all those laps around the track. To me, the only thing that mattered was that I kept going......I didn't stop....I didn't give up....I made it. WOOHOO!

so anyways, this week has been more of the usual......school for the kids, homework.....WORK for us...blah blah blah. On Tuesday, I learned that Vicodin is not my friend. Or at least not that day it wasn't. I've taken it before, for EXTREMELY bad headaches, etc......and that's why I took it on Tuesday....for the combination of a bad sinus headache and a body that was screaming at me for making it run 3.1 miles the night before (I'm thinking the only part of me that didn't hurt that 'morning after' were my elbows and my eyelids). And that one little pill made me so pathetically sick it wasn't even funny. My world was spinning for several hours! Yeah, I wouldn't last too long as a drug addict, would I? :P I had Karl drop me off at home before we even picked up the kids after work so I could lay down. And I fell asleep....when I woke up, I'd discovered that he'd cancelled his class that night because I was so 'out of it' he didn't think I could handle (or SHOULD handle) the kids. So I took it easy and eventually felt better. Vicodin is not for sissies! :P

That was probably the most exciting thing that happened the whole week, it's been that uneventful around here.

So yeah, that was a pretty lame update about us, but we haven't really done much this week. While I"m running, Karl takes the kids into the pool at the rec center. Alaina and Matthew are both getting better at jumping off the diving boards....Alaina swims actual laps.....they're both getting decent at actually DIVING into the water....and then Zach has progressed leaps and bounds.....my little "TERRIFIED of the water" child was floating today on his back.....WOW! that was a HUGE deal!

And I really haven't even scrapped that much this week.....I was doing a lot of reading.....trying to work my way through some of the old classic books (that are free out on the internet and I can download to my e-reader), so I finished one of those...and read a couple trashy romance novels for fun. So I really haven't been in a scrapping mood this week.

So first off, Haynay's newest release: Chronicling Life Photo Clusters
I scrapped this one of Karl and his former students, Andrew and David, who are cadets at the Naval Academy:

And with Sya's new release: double trouble set 2 I scrapped last week's Pinewood Derby:

2 more layouts I've done......"the snake".......that Matthew found outside Le Cellier at Epcot on our March trip....of course he has to pull the tail...hopefully it wasn't poisonous....Karl's convinced it was.....I dunno.....

And this was one of the cutest moments of our trip...at the princess breakfast, all of the princesses gave Zach lots of kisses and left him covered in liptstick....it was the sweetest thing....and he thoroughly enjoyed it....the little cassanova that he is and all!

So that's it for me for now....we're off to my brother's house to consume mass quantities of junk food and probably not watch much of the Super Bowl! But Go Colts! (I don't really care, but since a beloved co-worker is a die-hard Colts fan, I'll root for them)

Have a great week everybody!!

Takin' the old folks to Disney, Last Day!

2010-01-31T15:57:00.000-08:00

Ah, the end of this trip report at last.....it feels like I've been doing this forever!

Sooooo.....the last day in the parks was New Years Day. And again, from past experience, I knew that if we got there anytime before....say....NOON (LOL!) nobody else would be in the parks! However, it was also pouring down rain, which wasn't going to be much fun for walking around Epcot!

But we headed toward Epcot anyways, determined to have some fun in the rain!

First thing we did was get a Fastpass for Soarin and then go get in line for Test Track. But since it was raining, they'd shut it down....so we were off to find something else to do. We headed toward Spaceship Earth.....and right as we got there it started to pour again, so being inside was nice!

It was funny to listen to my parents narrate to themselves through this ride:
At least they DID look at the camera:

my favorite scene....this poor tired monk:

Michelangelo.......my back hurts just looking at him....

Did I mention it was POURING? :D We were looking for someplace to eat lunch....but apparently most of the restaurants in the World Showcase don't open 'till noon, and it wasn't quite time yet. So we walked around in the rain while Karl and I were on our phones with Disney Dining seeing if there were any openings at any decent restaurants.....because the sandwiches I'd packed for lunch nobody really wanted. we were all cold and wet and wanted something HOT to eat!

So we mosied around the countries toward Mexico (since that pavilion is all indoors) hoping to get a meal there.....past Norway:

I really didn't take many pictures at Epcot, which is a shame, because I was really looking forward to our day at Epcot because of all the beautiful flowers they have there.....but I wasn't going to risk getting my camera wet!

So anyways...back to the lunch dilemma....the gal I was on the phone with said that if the park was as dead as I was saying it was (DEAD I'm telling you), there'd probably be some no-shows and to just walk up and take our chances. So that's what we decided to do......at Le Cellier!

Le Cellier is by far the best restaurant on Disney Property (well, that I've been to anyways), and my ultimate favorite. I tried every day for about 2 months to try and get a reservation for us to eat there on this trip and it was booked when I first called and there were never any cancellations. Nuts!

But we hoped for a little pixie dust and headed toward Canada anyways. And when we got there......we got a dose of a little Disney magic. Her name was Selina! I'll never forget her.....Selina from Vancouver! :D Anyhoo, I made it to the podium first and asked for a table for 7...she basically laughed and said no way....they weren't accepting walkups (which is what she'd just told the 3 people in front of me asking the exact same thing). HOWEVER.......this is why I keep Karl around:

He went to the podium after I walked away and pleaded with Selina......thankfully, my dad was looking pretty pathetic in his wheelchair covered in a poncho, half-asleep.....and I think she felt sorry enough for us, she got us a table after all! So again, YAY for Selina at Le Cellier!

One of these days, I'm going to take lots of pictures of the Victoria Gardens there...but since it'd just started raining again, I only had time for this quick pic before we ran inside to wait for our table:

beautiful though....the picture doesn't even do it justice. If you're ever at Epcot, by all means check it out!

So we waited MAYBE 5 minutes for our table.....and ended up having the best lunch of the entire trip:

Best steak EVER......and the cheddar soup.....OMG.....YUM. that's all there is to say: YUM!

So after the yummy lunch, we headed off to find something else indoors to do/see, and ended up using our fastpasses for Soarin':

the headed over to the 'Living with the Land' boat ride. I figured my parents would like this one.....it's very relaxing..... :D

Notice the 'hidden' Mickey?

Then, even though it'd stopped raining, my parents had kind of 'had it', so Karl suggested I take Alaina and Matthew to ride Test Track while everybody else waited in the car. So we were able to ride it twice with all the fastpasses we had:

The kids love this ride, I'm glad it quit raining long enough for us to ride it!!!

They insisted on this picture:

So that was the end of our rainy, cold day at Epcot....and our last day at Disney:

It was a very uneventful drive home from Florida. We left at 3:30AM on the 2nd and got to Fairfield sometime around 5PM I think? I dunno. A lot of that day is a blur because we were all do tired! We spent the night at mom/dad's since Karl had driven that entire way on just a couple hours' sleep (what a trooper!), and we finally made it home to Dow on Sunday afternoon. End of the big Disney Vacation with Nanny and PawPaw!

So final thoughts on the vacay: I'm so glad we were able to do this. My parents had a good time, and the kids had a lot of fun at Disney, like they always do. And this time they were able to 'show the ropes' to their grandparents and share some of their favorite vacation memories with them. That was the point. So a good vacation all-around. We came home broke (as always!) and tired (as always!) and had to go back to work the next day! :D

Back to the present.....this past week wasn't too terribly exciting. The kids all seem to have the beginnings of a cold....yay fun. They're all snotty, etc. always fun! We've spent most evenings this week getting ready for the Pinewood Derby for Matthew's Cubscout pack. It was Friday night. So we spent Monday and Wednesday and Thursday and even some time on Friday getting that car ready. It was just his pack that raced, and Matthew got 4th place. He didn't care....he was just mad there weren't any trophies yet! But Karl and I will be re-engineering the car to hopefully place better at the regional race in a couple weeks! But the boys all had a blast with it....yelling, cheering....they were so excited and had so much fun!

And I've been so lazy this weekend I haven't even downloaded the pictures off my camera yet of it! that's quite unlike me really!

But I have managed to get a decent amount of scrappin' done, so, here's what I've scrapped this week!

First up, plug for Sya....Her new kit is "A Different Kind of Love"....a valentines' day-ish kit.....but since this is the picture I had to scrap, I had to ditch the pinks and hearts and lovey stuff! :P

A couple more layouts from our March Disney trip (I'm going to be working pretty hard on getting this album done....it bugs me when it takes over a year to get an album done....and we're going to be hitting that point pretty soon!)

This is another of those 'photo ops' I always attempt to get the PERFECT picture with. But it never happens....because there's always some parent in front of me that won't move so i can get a straight-on shot....or somebody else's kid won't wait their turn and pushes my kids out of the way....or stupid stuff like that....so this is what I ended up with this time:

And this was just too funny to me....There're these little statues of Nemo and a bunch of the other characters from the film, and it's another great picture spot....but the instant Zach saw Nemo, he climbed up into the flowers (I"m thinking you're not supposed to do that!) and started giving him hugs and kisses....I finally did get a picture of Karl and the kids....but we had to wait awhile for Zach to get done giving Nemo lots of loveys!

The other 2 layouts from last weekend's trip to the Science Center:

And the rest of the layouts are all from our trip to DC back in November (again, also trying really hard to finish up this album too!)

The old Senate Chambers at the Capitol building:

Our trip to Annapolis to visit the US Naval Academy (and some former students of Karl's who are cadets there):

For the record....I hate crypts...HATE them.....but I couldn't exactly say, 'uhm, i'll wait outside guys!'......so here it is....the crypt of John Paul Jones:

Memorial Hall....is beautiful....sad that the purpose of it is to remember all the graduates who have died serving their country, but what a memorial it is:

This was a cool thing for Karl to see...being a Physics teacher and all....the place where they first calculated the speed of light....

We've had a pretty lazy weekend....didn't even leave the house yesterday! Today was church (Karl was speaking), and then Matthew had a birthday party in town, so I spent the 2 hours he was at that at the local library working on the above layouts and reading a book. It was nice to have some 'me' time alone away from everybody else! And we were supposed to go to the gym this afternoon, but eh......decided to watch some movies and catch up on TiVo instead!

So tomorrow it's back to work and the daily grind......until later!!!

Takin' the old folks to Disney, Day 4 and 5

2010-01-26T14:34:00.000-08:00

Ah yes, you thought I'd forgotten all about this trip report, didn't ya? no siree! And it's almost over actually, so kudos for hanging in there through all these long posts!

So anyways.....Day 4 of the trip was our "off day"....where we didn't go to any theme parks (yes, this was hard for me!) and just hung around the hotel. We slept late....I made everybody a big, fattening breakfast.....the kids played on the playground at the hotel:

We went to lunch at Planet Hollywood at Downtown Disney:

And the kids went swimming at the resort pool:

And that was the extent of our lazy 'day off'!!!!

So, back to actual theme park madness with Day 5!!!

This was also New Year's Eve.....and from past experience, I knew we wanted to avoid the Magic Kingdom because it would be wall-to-wall people.....and that later in the day, Epcot would get ridiculously crowded, as the different countries in the World Showcase celebrated their new years...

So instead, we headed to Animal Kingdom:

we had breakfast at Rainforest Cafe:

Then we went to the 'it's tough to be a bug' show.....the 'bug eyes' are always fun to wear:

Then we took Alaina on 'Primieval Whirl'.....I now understand why it's nicknamed 'primieval hurl'!!! LOTS of spinnig on that thing! :D

a quick stop in the boneyard play area for the kids to burn off some energy:

Then Karl and I took Alaina on Expedition Everest...

a little more photography fun for me:

some fun walking around:

Then we did the safari ride. We haven't done this ride in a really long time, and I forgot how ridiculously bumpy it is...makes picture-taking pretty difficult! I think I smashed my camera into my nose more than once! But I managed a few cool pictures:

And then after lunch, we went to see Finding Nemo: the Musical. Again, we haven't seen this in a really long time either, because the line is always ridiculously long....but this time I planned ahead....we booked a semi-expensive lunch, but included in that were guaranteed seats.....and then with PawPaw's wheelchair, we ended up right down in the front again.

This is an AMAZING show....the musical talent of these performers is exceptional, and the set design and costuming is just unbelievable.....I took so many pictures, it was really hard for me to narrow it down to just a few to post, but here's some of the best ones:

And since it's one of his favorite movies, I couldn't resist bringing Nemo home for Zach:

With that, we left the park....we were all actually kinda tired, and I knew my parents were tired, so we headed back to the condo to ring in the new year quietly.

Our original New Year's Eve plans had been to meet up with a friend of Karl's, but they'd called a couple days earlier saying they had the flu, so there went that idea! So we were left with no plans for New Year's Eve! There were no dining reservations to be had, of course, it being the busiest week of the year......but Mom offered to watch the kids if Karl and I wanted to try and get a table somewhere by ourselves.

So we set off and ended up having our New Year's Eve dinner at Kobe Steakhouse....happy 2010!!

And now, for some layouts I've done in the last week-ish:

Friday, Haynay released the cutest little winter kit, called "Snow Games".....but sadly, I didn't have any snow pictures to actually scrap, so I did what anybody in the 'now' would do....I went on Facebook and pleaded for some pictures of OTHER people's kids!

And what I got was this.....how perfect is it?

One from our March trip to Disney:

From our DC Trip

And of the boys riding their new bikes the other day:

And this past weekend, we took our kids and our little Brownie troop to the Science Center.....and one of the many things we did was go to the Planetarium to see a star show:

That's all I've scrapped for now....hopefully this weekend I can get some more scrappin' done! But I'm beat and I'm thinking heading to bed sounds like a good idea at the moment!!!

Takin' the old folks to Disney, Day 3

2010-01-17T18:51:00.000-08:00

We started the day with an early breakfast at Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort. We've eaten dinner here before, but since my dad's a big fan of breakfast, I booked the breakfast instead.

The people ahead of me in line somehow got the photographer to take a picture of their group with their own camera (they take a picture of you, then if you want it, it's like $35), and so since she got them to do it, I asked. The photog wasn't HAPPY, but she did it, so yay for that!

The food was yummy, and of course the characters came around for pictures:

My dad was actually still chewing in this photo....he didn't seem to be too keen on having his biscuits and gravy interrupted by characters!

With the early breakfast, we got into the parks before most other people, which allowed me to take some cool pictures like this:

we always try to pull the sword from the stone....we've yet to succeed, but we always try!

next up was a ride on Dumbo.....I can't believe my mom rode this, as scared of heights as she is!

Then the teacups.....always a fun time!

Then we moved on to a ride we knew PawPaw would enjoy: the Tomorrowland Speedway!

Zach was the only one that wanted to ride the carousel, but he had a great time!

While Zach was riding the horsies, I took some pictures of some nearby flowers:

Nanny and PawPaw seemed to enjoy Mickey's Philharmagic:

Then we rode Peter Pan again:

At lunch, this little guy hung out near out table, eating the Cheezits PawPaw and Zach fed him:

I love this picture!!

And then for the afternoon, we headed over to Epcot:

First up was Soarin'

Nanny and PawPaw both LOVED Soarin'......which I didn't expect.....we love it, but with Mom's fear of heights, I didn't expect her to like it much....but I'm glad she did!!

Dinner was at Biergarten, in Germany:

Then since we'd gotten a really early start, we went to bed early! So that was the end of Day 3!

So with that recap, I'll move on to all my scrapbook pages I need to post!

First up, with Sya's new template pack, 'Mix and Match 3', I scrapped these two layouts of our trip to Washington DC:

Our tour of the White House....I had to steal the pictures from Flickr since cameras weren't allowed.....the picture of us was a quick shot with my phone (hence the crummy quality!):

And our tour of the Capitol:

This one uses Mix & Match 2 by Sya:

And a couple layouts of Arlington National Cemetery:

And here's one from our March trip to Disney World, that I entered in the mousescrappers.com challenge this week:

And this one is my first layout of this trip....these pictures of my parents riding this kiddie coaster were just too irresistible to not scrap immediately! I used Haynay's kit "Thoroughly Amused" and "Chronicling Life Journal Biggie":

And yesterday, we took the kids to see a bald eagle up close at the Visitor's Center in Alton....Matthew and Zach weren't exactly cooperative for pictures!

So that catches you up on the scrapping I've done lately!

Life around here has been pretty quiet the last week. We joined the gym at the little college down the road (it's closer than driving to town!), so we've gone there a couple times to take the kids swimming while I jog. I'm sore as can be, as I haven't done any jogging in several months! And obviously, I'm not as young as I used to be, so more stuff hurts....and it hurts longer! :P

And for those of you that read the Wayne County Press, you can look forward to seeing a letter from us, as I just sent it in yesterday. Woohoo! But if you got our Christmas card, you've basically already seen it. But so many people actually mention my letter to the Press, that I figured it wouldn't hurt to send one in...especially when the Press sent me an email to remind me!!! :P

Tomorrow Karl and the kids are off school, and I"m taking the day off for a doctor's appt., so we're all sleeping in! Then we're going to our friends, the Loftus's, for dinner and some competitive Wii playing! It should be a fun evening! Then it'll be back to work on Tuesday for a 4-day week. YAY for that.

So have a great week everybody!