Today

Today....

Outside my window: all is quiet with a gentle breeze and upper seventies already at 8:57 AM.


I am thinking: I really need to lose some pounds, not only to improve my appearance, but also to help with acid reflux and other health problems.



I am thankful for: a husband and family who love me, and a home to stay cool in during these hot days!

From the kitchen: not a lot going on there. We are eating out tonight. I had foot surgery on Friday, and I am trying to stay off of it as much as possible.

I am wearing: my pajamas...yes still!

I am creating: a system for storing my photos that will allow me to be MORE creative. It is the Library of Memories system by Stacy Julian. I am learning through a course by Big Picture Scrapbooking, called Photo Freedom. It will entail a lot of work, but it will be so worth it in the end.

I am going: to the doctor this afternoon for my post-op appointment. He is going to check that my foot is healing properly after my bunion/arthritis surgery on my big toe joint.

I am reading: 10 Lessons from a Former Fat Girl by Amy Parham. I am also reading material on the topic of "Boys and Literacy" for a class I am taking.

I am hoping: I can get this boot off and begin walking normally VERY soon!

I am hearing: Phineas and Ferb....while my 9 year old sits in front of the tv.

Around the house: Many projects begun and not finished: my class, which has taken me MONTHS to do; our dining room, again has taken months to finish the remodel; granite counter tops and tile backsplash not sealed, etc....

One of my favorite things: Feeling good and having a day to do whatever I want. Haven't felt that way in a while. I think that addressing my weight issues, mentioned above, will help take care of this.

A few plans for the rest of the week: Except for a couple of scheduled appointments, everything is kind of up in the air because of my foot. Ugh! Looking forward to better days ahead!

Picture for today:



I LOVE these guys of mine! Thank you, God!

Right Now

Taking this challenge from Lisa Bearnson to discuss what's happening right now!

Out of my window: Cloudy, grey skies, birds scratching in the leaves, and rain water weighing down the pool cover from all the icky weather we've had lately.

I am wearing: dark grey sweatpants and a light grey CKU-Orlando t-shirt, no make-up.

I am hearing: the hum of my refrigerator and the pecking of my fingers on the computer's keyboard.

I am thinking: about my friends going through such tough times...my friend, Margaret's baby diagnosed with Retinal Blastoma, my friend MC's mom who has 3 months to live, suffering with cancer; my messy scrapbook room, from months of neglect; missing my kids after having them home for two weeks...now it's their second day back at school.

I am creating: a photo-album scrapbook of our trip to the NC mountains; trying to keep up with Project 365 (more details to come on blog).

I am going: to pick up my kids from school later today. In the meantime, I'm going up to my scrapbook room to get cleaning and organizing...and hopefully some scrapping.

I am hoping: I get a lot done today, and that the new meds my allergist put me on help my sinuses and asthma; that my friend Margaret's baby recovers quickly from his surgery, and that MC's mom has minimal pain and maximum happy during her last days.

I am reading: Clean Eating Magazine.

Around the house: Breakfast dishes to clean up, laundry to do; major quiet with Ed at work and the boys at school.

One of my favorite things: Scrapbooking, of course. But there's also relaxing with a dish of vanilla ice cream topped with anything I want to put on it!

A few plans for the rest of the week: Clean the scrapbook room; take Matthew to OT and order his auditory therapy equipment; work on the checkbook and pay bills (Major YUCK!); watch Biggest Loser-couples; Plan our January crop; usual stuff like meal planning and prep, laundry, etc....

Now your turn. Let me know what's going on with you....RIGHT NOW!

Three Milestones

Yes, I realize I haven't really blogged much lately. Seems like things start getting busy in August. The boys reached milestones when starting school this year. Matthew started 1st grade, and Jonathan began middle school on the 18th. Where does the time go?

Jonathan did have to begin the school year with a cast on his arm, but he seemed to take it all in stride. He got it off Wednesday, the fourth day of school. WE were thrilled, and the x-ray showed that it healed well.

Last night, was another first. I hosted our monthly crop at church. But this time, we did a crop in conjunction with Big Picture Scrapbooking, and it was themed, "Big Wig Bash." We had a blast! Take a look at some of the photos from last night. Obviously, I didn't get much scrapbooking done, but I always love this fun girls' night together. Looking forward now to a quieter week....I hope.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my 44th birthday. Do I feel 44? Today I definitely do. I am so tired this morning, I mean afternoon. Anyway...my birthday has been really good. My hubby got me a new Cricut cartridge and got me a dozen red roses, a card, and doughnuts for breakfast! How cool is that? I also had a get together at my house last night for my scrapbooking friends. We had pizza and an ice cream cake. It was fun. These ladies are awesome, and I'm so blessed to have them in my life. Thanks Amy, MC, Brooke, Margaret, Sharon, and Lauri. Yall are the best! Above are some photos from my "party."

Oh....after rereading this post, I realize that PART of the reason I must be so tired is all the junk food I've had this weekend! (Doughnuts, pizza, cake...). Oh well...I'll try to do better today!

Wordy Wednesday

My older son is growing up (sniff, sniff). On Monday, Jonathan left for church camp and will be gone until Friday. Before he got in the van, I tried to say goodbye and get a kiss. Instead, I got a half-hearted hug and a "bye." I mean, come on....the other guys were watching! We also gave him a calling card so that he could call us. We've heard absolutely nothing! LOL! I really didn't think he'd call, but I could hope!
The summer is speeding along. I've already purchased Matthew's book bag for school. Normally, I don't buy a new one every year, especially if their old ones work just fine, but Matthew's has had a hole in it ever since the middle of kindergarten. He got a cool new Spiderman book bag with matching wallet to go with his Spiderman lunch box--all ready for first grade!
Other things on my mind:
1. I'm trying to implement Stacy Julian's Library of Memories method of organizing my photos and albums. I did something similar to hers with category drawers, but I never knew what to do with photos just printed nor with memorabilia. I'll let you know how it works out.
2. Looking forward to seeing my nephew and my nieces (from NY) around the 20th! (wish I could see my brother... BEFORE Thanksgiving!)
3. Matthew did soooo much better on his SIPT evaluation yesterday at OT. Still some issues with balance/coordination and other sensory problems, but soooooo much better than a year ago! Which means we're making steady progress! Thank you, Valerie!
4. Oh, and Matthew had a perfect dental check-up today!
5. Instead of blogging, I need to be working on balancing my checkbook and writing bills, but I think it will wait until tomorrow!
Sorry I have missed blogging for a few days...just got busy. Have a great week....or what's left of it!

A Baker's Dozen

Happy Wednesday to you! I mentioned in a previous post that I would tell you more about a class I'm taking. It's a lot of fun. During the first five days, we were told to gather items from our own scrapbook stash. We had to decorate an egg carton and fill each "egg" with stuff that the instructor specifically assigned. We also had to gather photos and place them in 13 envelopes, alas the name "A Baker's Dozen." Then on the sixth and following days, we were given a sketch and a layout assignment. I have really enjoyed the class. I have managed to stay caught up and get a lot of pictures scrapbooked. Here are some pages I've done lately. Click on each one to see a larger view. More later!

ten on Thursday

Ten Random Thoughts on Thursday

1. I get so tired of hearing people say that Father's Day isn't as big a holiday as Mother's Day. I'll sympathize when men start giving birth! LOL!

2. I am taking another class from Big Picture. (More on that to come.)

3. It's weird with the kids being out of school and not having to get out of the house as much.

4. All that will change next week when Matthew goes to OT camp (1 1/2 hours every day).

5. I never thought I'd see in my lifetime gas prices at $3.78 per gallon. GEEZ!

6. My older son just said for the first time this summer, "I'm bored."

7. I'm almost 44 years old, and I don't know what I want to be when I grow up. I know I'll be returning to work in the near future, but so much has changed that my stomach churns thinking about entering a high school classroom again. I would really love to do something different. If you happen to hear from God before I do about what that should be, let me know!

8. The worst thing about cooking to me is meal planning. I hate planning meals, buying the stuff and figuring out what we'll eat each night. I love to eat, nevertheless! LOL!

9. During the summer months, I spend probably hours all totalled picking up little plastic ends of ice pop sleeves! Geez! Find a trash can already!

10. My hairdresser retired a couple of weeks ago. Boo Hoo! I'm in desperate need of a new one...a good one. Know any?