Hello!

Just popped in to add a few pictures from Halloween last night! We had a very busy night, but it was really fun for the girls. I loved seeing all the family and getting to visit with everyone!

Here is Ari helping me make ghost cupcakes for Kylie's class.

Ari slowly opening her present at Grandma and Grandpa's and lining the candy up. :)

Here's my little supergirl!!!

Kylie asked me, "When I go fast, does my cape go up?"

One of my favorite parts of Halloween- Joe- our neighbor who always dresses up and plays spooky music with his blinking light. So funny!

Some quick thoughts...

We finally got to go to church tonight! With everyone being sick, we haven't been in a while. It was so good, and I feel all refreshed again. I get so excited after being there. Tonight, we had a lady from Thailand there. She talked a little at the end of the service. She is part of Garden of Hope. This organization rescues little girls and women who have been forced or sold into prostitution in Thailand. They introduce them to Jesus who can give them unconditional love. Garden of Hope pays the girl's debt to free them, and then they train them so that they will have a way to support their families. I just can't imagine how a little girl can ever go through all those horrible things! Here is the website for Garden of Hope if you are interested in praying for these people who are helping them. http://www.justfoodinc.org/ Here is a website that tells a little more about this problem in Burma and Thailand. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/january/16.29.html Also, I got this great quote in an email from my aunt.

Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

I just love that! How true! Here are a couple new LOs for you. This one uses stuff from Gina Huff at weedsandwildflowers.com

This one is for a challenge at Vera Lim Designs.

These are some from the Fiesta Weekend at scrapartist.com

This was for the avatar challenge that weekend. I had a lot of fun with this one! I am Juan Valdez. This was for the recipe challenge. We like these. I have lots of great Mexican recipies now because they did a recipe swap. Now, I just have to actually motivate myself to make one! :)

I made this one for fun with some new stuff from catscrap.com.

Lots of Love! Angela :)

meet the sweetest guy in the world...

...It's my Jas! It has been another week of sickies-this time Kylie mostly. Poor thing has had a fever since last Friday, and she even threw up last night because she was coughing so hard. Ari has been feeling bad off and on too. Yesterday, Jas came home and told me that he had rented 2 movies for us and asked his mom and dad to keep the girls tonight so that we could go on a date! He said he felt bad for me because I hadn't gotten out much. He also went to Walmart to get Kylie some pop for her stomach and two little Transformers (robots the girls call them) to cheer them up. What an awesome guy!

Here is a layout that I made using a collab kit from Funky Playground. I mostly used Gina Marie Huff's papers and elements.

This is another page that I made using a kit from Danielle Young called Everyday Blessings. I love the name that she chose because it made me think about the little things that I should be more thankful for. Her kit will be released at Oscraps soon.

Have a happy day!!!

Hi Everybody!

Well, I feel like I'm walking on a cloud today! I am so happy and excited. But, unfortunately, I can't share why just yet! And, no, I am not pregnant for any grandparents that might be reading this!!!! :) I thought I would post another page that I did over the weekend. This is with Lisa Warren's Good Morning Lucille Kit. I just love the whimsical feel of her stuff!

New page

Hi! Well, we're all feeling better! Yeah!!! :) I got to volunteer yesterday at Kylie's school, and it was sooo much fun to play teacher again! I loved meeting some of the kids in her class and seeing their little personalities! I could have stayed there all day! This is the month of birthdays- Jas' dad, my mom and dad, and lots of kids in Kylie's class! I'm making potatoes and desert to go along with Jas' awsome steaks (way better than a restaurant!!!) for mom and dad tonight. Mom and dad got to go to Kylie's school today for lunch with her. They won't be here for Grandparent's Day next week. I'm sure Kylie's loving it. Well, here's a new page with some stuff I love from the-lilypad.com Have a happy day! :)

Ari ate supper!

Ari's temperature was normal all day and she finally ate tonight! Thank you for all of you who prayed for her. Here is another page that I did about my little family.

New Page

This is another page for the girl's Christmas gift. I am trying to make them an ABC book using Bible verses that I really like. It's been a while since I've worked on it.

Just a quick note...

Well, I am trying to decorate a bit, and I fixed up the blog title a little today. I can't figure out how to center it; so, I'm just pretending that it is in the right spot. :) But... it's not really working to try to talk myself into believing that. Oh, well. All the cute little buttons and borders and circles are from my friend Lisa at Little Dreamer Designs. You can see all her cute things at: http://www.littledreamerdesigns.com/shoppe/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=5 You should see her Good Morning Lucille Kit. It has coffee and these cute little eggs and a sunshine paper. I really want to get it, but I am trying really hard to be good! :) I will probably get it to cheer myself up one day though because the more I look at it, the more I want to be bad! Anyway, she is a really sweet person, and she has a little girl Kylie's age.
Today was really hot, but I only went out once in the heat for some medicine. Poor little Ari. She has so much stuff draining down the back of her throat. She sounds terrible when she tries to talk and breathe. You know what I'm thankful for?- air conditioning. I was thinking how much more miserable she would be if it was hot inside too. We are having a mini camp out in our room tonight. The girls are on sleeping bags on the floor because they both wanted to sleep with me, and Ari wanted Jas to sleep with us too. So, this was my solution to everyone being with us and me being able to give medicine quickly and get back to sleep. Last night was like a three ring circus-First, Ari wanted to sleep in Kylie's room; so, we set up the sleeping bag on Kylie's floor. Then, she called a while later wanting to go to her room. At 11:00, she was up with a 103 degree temperature. So, I moved her to our room to keep an eye on her. But Jas started feeling horrible and asked if we could sleep in the other room so that he could have more room in the bed. So, I moved to Ari's floor in the sleeping bag. Then, in the morning, she moved down on the floor with me. Plus, the dog and cat always like to add to the confusion in the night. I don't mind it anymore because I am just glad for our crazy family. When Kylie was little, it seemed like so much more of a big deal to be up a lot in the night; but, now, its just funny when I think about it.
My friend Melissa told me about these great things for colds. If you need something to help when you are stuffy, Vicks plug in things are great! They're called Gentle Vapors.
Ari is so sweet while she's sick. She wants to take care of Jas because he's sick. Last night she said, "You should get a bowl of jello for Daddy too." She looks terrible but doesn't complain. She threw up last night a little, and she didn't cry-just said "There's some on my hand." She cuddles and wants me to hold her hand. I love her and feel so bad for her.
Well, so much for a short post! Ha! Good night!

So Thankful

Just wanted to take time to be thankful tonight. First, I'm thankful that I know Jesus. I'm thankful for a family that prays for each other. God helps me through so many things, and I really know that they are praying and God is listening. Then, I'm thankful for Jas. What a perfect match for me. He balances my spontaneous nature and has taught me to be positive. He always does dishes for me and helps around the house (dishes are probably my least favorite thing to do). Tonight, Ari didn't want the soup that I thought might help her feel better. (She didn't eat but a couple bites of anything all day.) Instead, she wanted doughnuts. So, poor Jas, who isn't feeling well at all, went out for doughnuts. And, she ate about half of one!!!! What a sweetie I am married to! Then, I am thankful that I have girls! They are so much fun! I love that I can trust Kylie with anything. She always tells the truth and follows the rules. She loves to cuddle and tells me that she misses me at school. She drew some pictures of her family at school, and they made me feel so loved and special. On one page it said...I need______. She put "my mom" and drew a picture of us holding hands (actually, it's just her and I connected by a long line which means that we're holding hands :) She is learning to read and gets as excited as I do about it. She is very compassionate, and has been working around the house to earn money for a little boy that her Sunday School class is trying to help. I am so proud of her. Ari is just full of love for everyone and everything. She cried so many times today because the "anties" that she had in a little cup wouldn't move. Apparently, ants should always move. :) She thought one was dead once and just had huge tears. She tells random people at the grocery store that she loves them, and she is always giving out kisses and hugs. She has been my buddy while Kylie is at school. I love going places with her because she is a wanderer like me. To us, life is much better when it is going slowly. We love to just see stuff. One day, I took her on a bike ride, and she said I was going fast!!! I don't think I have ever been told that! It was great that she was content to go at my extremely slow pace! :) I have a million other things to be thankful for, but I think I'll quit for tonight.

my mom and dad are so cool...

Mom and Dad always went on trips with me (choir, basketball, senior trips). They were always involved when I started going to "real school". And, of course, when I was homeschooled, they were a huge part of my education. Well, they are no different with my girls. They love to see what they do and help out. They came to visit and go to Kylie's school and game this weekend. Of course, they were totally fun and popular with the kids in her class.

Here's Kylie's teacher. She's so laid back and was so kind to let mom and dad hang out.

I love this picture of Dad and a girl in Kylie's class. You can see how much kids love my parents.

Everyone wanted to have their picture taken by mom on the playground. :)

Kylie

I love my mom's pictures. She is so good at getting great ones!! I think I get my love of pictures from her especially.

Kylie's new friend

Here's Dad coaching the little cheerleader group! :)

Mom and Dad always seem drawn to the kids who need a little extra love and attention.

Doing a craft in the hall with Grandpa and Grandma

Kylie's Candy Corn Man

Counting Songs

And, here's a couple new LOs:

Using mostly Kasia's Eclectic Fall Kit @ Shabby Pickle Designs: Oh, and Kasia will be a guest at Catscrap for October and November!!! Check her new kit out here:

Using First Bike and other kits and freebies from Vinnie @ Pixel Canvas:

Therapy

20 Ways to Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity

1. At lunch time, sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hair dryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.

2. Page yourself over the intercom. Don't disguise your voice.

3. Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with that.

4. Put your garbage can on your desk and label it "In."

5. Put decaf in the coffee maker for 3 weeks. Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to espresso.

6. In the memo field of all your checks, write " For Smuggling Diamonds"

7. Finish all your sentences with "In accordance with the prophecy."

8 Do NOT use any punctuation

9. As often as possible, skip rather than walk.

10. Order a diet water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

11. Specify that your drive-through order is "To go."

12. Sing along at the opera.

13. Go to a poetry recital and ask why the poems don't rhyme?

14. Put mosquito netting around your work area and play tropical sounds all day.

15. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you're not in the mood.

16. Have your co-workers address you by your wrestling name, Rock Bottom.

17. When the money comes out of the ATM, scream "I Won!, I Won!"

18. When leaving the zoo, start running towards the parking lot yelling, "Run for your lives, they're loose!!"

19. Tell your children over dinner, "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."

My mom sent this to me, and it made me laugh! I can't decide which one is my favorite. I think...probably the skipping one. Can you imagine someone just skipping past you in the mall or at the grocery store?! Or, maybe the coffee one...... or the opera one.... Which one is your favorite? :)

Cold Coffee

Have you ever had one of those days when you have heated your coffee five times but still not drank more than a couple sips? I finally finished the cup that I had been trying to drink all day- at about 5:00! :) October is such a pretty month, and I always get excited about doing so many things.... but inevitably allergies and colds seem to dash those plans. My poor dd got a temperature in the night and so I thought I'd better take her to the doctor. She has looked so miserable all day. Good news though- it wasn't a wasted trip! We got an antibiotic because she might have strep throat. I feel bad hoping that they are sick enough to get medicine, but it's frustrating to drag them out when they feel terrible just to be told that it's a virus and give them Tylenol. Here's a picture of my poor dd today. She just wanted to sit and snuggle.


My poor husband has been sick all week too. :( One good thing about the fall is that we usually get really close as a family because we're all cooped up, and we try to be extra nice to each other because we feel bad for the sickies. This morning was kinda crazy. Jas needed me to find a bank statement with our new account info, and I of course had thrown them into the trash. :) I had to pack a lunch because I was too lazy last night, dress the kids (and me), call the doctor, and run over to the school. The rest of the day continued in the same way- too fast. I love reading Gina Marie Huff's blog. She is so positive. I want to be positive like that. I have all these ideas of things that I would like to do to help people, but I am not really a leader. I wish that I was a little more brave or able to actually do all the things that I would like to do. I'm always scared of what people might think or that they might be offended. Like yesterday, I wanted to help Kylie's teacher, and I offered for the second time. Then, I felt like she might feel obligated to let me volunteer. I was worried about it a lot last night. So, this morning, I tried to explain that I just wanted her to know I was available but she didn't have to have me volunteer. I always make more of a mess by trying to help. Anyway, I think that's why I like this quote as my blog title. It's what I wish I was able to do. Here's the whole quote:


"Work as if you have no money. Love as if you have never been hurt. Dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. And live everyday as if it were your last" -Anonymous

Here is my newest LO. For credits you can go to any of my galleries.

I finally did it.... and now I don't know what to write...

I finally created a blog. I've been wanting to for a while because it just sounded fun. But, now I'm kinda scared to write anything. In case you haven't noticed, I love to scrapbook. Just this weekend I was accepted as a creative team member for Danielle Young at Oscraps. I've tried a couple times to become one, but without any success. I was really excited and suprised that I got picked. :) Anyway, enough about that. Today was a great day. I saw one of my old students at the library. She was so grown up! It doesn't seem that long ago that I had her in my 3rd grade class! My dd and I had a lot of fun at the library. They had a little mommy/ baby class and we got to sing and read together with a lot of other moms. Well, I guess I did it- I wrote my first entry! Yeah! :)