Scrap Blogging

I know scrapbooking has become a very "now" hobby, but I seriously do not have the time or funds to go and buy all the necessary things that you would even need to even start that kind of hobby. I have seen some high dollar scrap books and the time and effort that goes into them, I am completely amazed at the talent that I have seen.

But for those of us who enjoy scrapbooking but may not necessarily have the time, may I just introduce you to Scrapblog.com, it's a cool website where you can do online scrapbooks, there are all kinds of features and it's SOOOOO easy!

Here are a few I have worked on:

Bye-bye summer

Well it looks like we are winding down another summer, August is almost all but a memory and soon September will be here. This is when I start getting excited, because I love the fall, it is probably my most favorite season with spring coming in a very close second. There are so many things to look forward to: the cool crisp air, the spectacular fall foliage, football, marshmallow roast in the evening, drinking hot apple cider, decorating pumpkins, fall mums, sweatshirts, cuddling under a blanket on the couch and the anticipation of the holidays. We live in beautiful east TN and are at the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, you can see some wonderful vivid autumn colors in late Sept and through Oct. If you ask me there is nothing more fun then raking up a big ol' pile of leaves and then taking a dive right into them, makes you feel young again. The fall also is a busy time with birthdays in this household, we have four birthday in three month, one in Oct, two in late Nov and one at the beginning of Dec (the last three all within two weeks of each other), we will soon have a 16, 10, 3 and 1 yr old in the house.
Then there are the holidays, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year with a change in my work holiday schedule, we are hoping to be able to finally get to spend a holiday with my husband family. There is nothing like family getting together for Thanksgiving and all that wonderful food. This year if all of my husband family is able to make it (he has 2 brothers and a sister, along with their spouses and children) there will be a house full. This year will be a record breaker for grandchildren with three new grandchildren just within the last year alone, for a total of nine! I'm looking forward to this year.
So now that all the kids are back in school, they are slowly replacing the back-to-school aisle in Walmart and Target with Halloween decorations, and you can bet the Christmas decorations are not far behind!
Why was when we were kids, it took forever for Christmas to get here, but now that we are older it seems like it comes around every six months?

Can you tell who is who?

Twins two years apart!

Details

I love black and white photos, I think they capture something that color photos can not. This is our darling Sara.

Serenity

I'm sure all of you know what I am talking about, those mornings when you are the first to get up and everyone else in the house is asleep. When it is so quite you can hear the ticking of the clock in the background and the sun is starting to rise and the golden light fills the room and you have a few moment to devote to yourself without being selfish....ah, yes, this is serenity. It doesn't last for long, soon the house will be filled with children running about, someone asking where is ...?, whats for breakfast ?, are we going anywhere ?, etc... Sometimes its more then one person can handle, but I manage.
You see we have a family of six (including myself), so I don't expect things to go like I planned, there is always a curve in the road somewhere along the way. But I realize, despite those curves in the road, that I am lucky to have my family. I have four uniquely wonderful children, all with special qualities and smiles that could warm anyones day. I am lucky to be a mom.
But for those few quite moments on a day like today, I am enjoying my little bit of serenity.

Gummy Bears

Why in the world would I be writing about gummy bears, well you see this is the "thing" that we are using as a reward system for our 2.5 yr old son who is in the midst of potty training. It the one thing that he truely loves! So for being a big boy and going to the potty he is rewarded with two gummy bears. We started this this past Monday and the boy has taken to the potty chair like you would not believe. And let me say when he does pee in the potty, we have this little cheer session for a moment and give high five's, hugs, woohoos, praise and even a dance ever now and then, but the one thing he is set on are those "2 glorious gummy bears" for his performance. Today is Friday and after this week we are doing good, he has remained dry all day long and has even taken it on himself to go to potty on his own. He is even waking up from nap time and night time dry....maybe just maybe we have hit on something. This may not work for every child, but its working for ours. So lets hope that this is the beginning being a big boy and the end to diapers/ pull-ups as we know it.

You never know when

Well today in our community (Fountain City/ Knoxville, TN) about 10 miles from our house there was another school shooting (Central High School) that has rocked the news world. Two sixteen year old boys got into an altercation and one brought a gun with him and shot and killed the other boy. The news reports that this was not a random event and that it stemmed from an earlier incident, nonetheless there was a human life lost due to this random act of violence.
Scary to think the day you send your child off to school for what is to be a normal day and then something like this happens and your whole world changes immediately. This is not how you want a new school year to begin and you never expect something like this to happen in your area. But I guess we are not protected from the evil that is becoming ever so prevelent in our society. I pray for this family and their sudden loss of their sixteen year old son, I pray for our community and this school.
But it just brings me back to the title of my post for the day, you never know when what day may be your last. So take the time and tell those you love how much they mean to you!

A change in time

Isn't it amazing how much they change in just a years time! Our little princess is growing up. She has went from 7#6oz to 22# 13 oz and 19.25 in to 29.5 in.........Wow!

You ought to be in pictures......

This is a picture of Miss Sara Grace now, she is such a sweet little baby. All I can say is she is way different then the boys ever were, a little more high maintenence, a little more demanding, but oh so worth it. She has the biggest smile ever and can melt your heart in a second.

This is Mister Noah sporting a new black eye from doing something he was not suppose to do, but what can I say, if I told him once I told him a million times. He got this from falling off a step stool while watching Cars (his favorite Disney movie of all time), I think he hit the corner of his eye on the TV while rocking the stool back and forth.

In the scheme of things

Wow, I should be ashamed not getting on here more, but with 4 kiddos, a husband and working a full time job (well 32 hrs a week)...there seems to be little time to myself. And when I do have time to myself, sleep seems to be the more obvious choice or a pedicure (ahhh, haven't had one of those is awhile either!).
But I guess I should update the goings on around here:

1. The older two kids are back in school (thank goodness for that, I swear if they would let me vote for the year round school program I would do it in a heart beat. The kids get so bored so fast and then they get on your nerves, yes confessions of a terrible mother).
2. We have a new sitter for the two younger kiddos and they are loving her as are we.
3. Sara is now 8.5 months old, sitting, crawling, standing and finally got "2" teeth, all this happened within a week and a half. At this pace she will be walking soon and have a mouthful of teeth.
4. I had gallbladder surgery last Monday (8/11) and did really well, the best part was the 4-5 hour wait in the recovery room, I swear it was the best sleep I have had in three years. Then the next day the kids were at school and the little ones went to the sitter and I had the day all to myself to do nothing but recover and sleep. It was wonderful. Aside from the 4 new scars I have on my abdomen, all in all I feel pretty good.
5. We celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary, however we didn't get to do anything "special", had lunch together with the little ones and then we ate at Taco Bell for dinner that evening. Woohoo talk about your excitement. I keep telling my hubby that next year we deserve to go on a cruise for our anniversary, especially since we didn't even get a honeymoon.
6. We still have jobs, are doing well and everyone is healthy. So that by far is the best thing, praise be to God!

So now that everyone is updated, hopefully I can be a little more diligent about posting in the future, well that is my hope anyways.