Good things to come!

I'm gonna post about scrap styles by the end of the week, will start having contests and FREE goodies as well! Be on the lookout, cause the goodies I give out will be COOL! I wanna make this blog fun, so if you have any suggestions or ideas, please let me know in the comments section. Thanks! =)

Live each day to the fullest

I got an email from my childhood best friend a few days ago, informing me and several others in a form letter that her mother had passed away. Kiera's mother Debby Hamilton was a 56 year old AMAZING mother of 9 children, and grandmother of 9. She had recently just gotten remarried only 4 months ago. The news shocked me and at first, I admit, I thought it was a joke, until I read the obituary and the press release. Mrs. Hamilton was hit by a semi at 7 in the morning last Friday.

I can't begin to tell you how bad I feel for Kiera and her siblings. I have lost a mother figure in the past when I was a teenager, and now another mother figure. It makes me want to call my mom every day, and spend as much time with her as possible, cause you never know when life cuts you short! I hope my brothers are reading this and thinking the same thing.

I remember a million little stories about Mrs. Hamilton and I hope that now that she's in heaven, she can look down and see how many lifes she's touched in this world.

She was a great mother. 9 kids..can you imagine?
9 kids..and I can't remember a time I saw her really lose her temper.
She had SO much to do, and I can't remember a time when her house was MESSY.
I was at their house probably 3/4 of my childhood life, and almost daily in the summer. We had sleepovers, and she would make HOME COOKED meals, because two of her children were PKU and needed special food. Not only did she cook and clean, but she was ALWAYS doing for others. I remember that she baked bread ALL the time. I remember that she made TONS of baked goods for church bake sales. She sewed clothes for her kids. Would you believe that after 9 kids, she still had an exchange student from Japan for a long time?
Debby also taught piano lessons at her house. As if she wasn't busy enough! I dont think she had an enemy in the world!

God bless you, Mrs. Hamilton! You ARE a saint, and I'll remember you forever!

Made some more pages

I made some more fall 2006 pages for my 8x8 album the past couple of days. For some strange reason the scans came out really wierd, and make the paper look textured, etc. I'm too lazy to redo all of them, so what you see is what you get, and trust that they're better IRL! ha

I'm not gonna say that I DISLIKE these pages, but they're not my favorites either. I"m thinking that because of my laziness and desire to get them done, I'm just doing fast pages, and instead of being creative and trying new things with them, I'm keeping them with the same theme throughout (mostly) and just want to have it FINISHED so I can say I have gotten something accomplished. I might have a crop this sunday, and/or have one or go to one next week, and then...you will see pages with good creativity and time spent! =)

Until then, here's what I've got. Enjoy!

Tell me my family isn't crazy!!

Ok so a couple of weeks ago, I got called into my son's room, and this is what I found. YES, they're all wearing underwear on their heads!!! Tell me my family isn't crazy!

Fall is in the air

The air is getting chillier, the leaves in the backyard are changing color, and I'm craving hot apple cider already! I got the urge to scrap today, and havn't in WEEKS! I got all 4 kids down for a nap at the same time, grabbed my scrap stuff as quickly as possible, and made 2 new 8x8 pages. They are from pictures of LAST fall at the pumpkin patch. When I'm done, I'll have a whole 8x8 album from last fall. Here are pics of the two pages I made today. I really like how they turned out! The paper and embellishments are from a CK album kit.

Just another day in the life....

I havn't written much on here lately...partly cause I'm really busy, and partly cause I want to write things that are funny, or have some SUBSTANCE, so people don't get bored and want to come back and read again!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to spend quality time with my mother. She wanted to take a mini vacation for her birthday present, and since i'm the closest one to her in location, I wanted to be able to go with her. We got a hotel in Irvine close to the beach, and spent the whole weekend there basking in the sun at Aliso Viejo creek beach. It was so beautiful! I'll post some pics later tonight! We went out to dinner friday night with my friend Edie. Across the street from the hotel is a new Italian Restaurant named Z Mario. It was totally expensive, but soooooo freakin good! We all had a great time talking and laughing, and had our own little room to ourselves! The next morning we got comped buffet breakfasts (36 dollar value) at the hotel (you never know unless you ask, and I asked..and i received...hehe) It was really good, and we both ate healthy. We found our way to the Orange County swap meet and bought some useless junk....cause it's fun, that's why! Then we went shopping, and then had lunch at a greek cafe. Let me tell you...i was scared it was gonna be totally nasty! I was shocked to find that I LOVED it, and can't wait to find one close to home! I had chicken and steak shisk ke babs. It came with fresh pita bread, hummus, rice pilaf, and salad....TONS of food! We went to the beach after that and took pictures, and then that night we went to bristol farms and got sandwiches that we brought back to the hotel, and we ate them in bed in our jammies while watching a movie together. We woke up the next morning, had another free comped breakfast (same as the day before, cause it was good!) We went back to the same beach and read books on the sand for about an hour. We had to get home to collect the kids, so we took a pretty route along the ocean for a while, and then through Temecula. I'm so glad my mom had a great weekend. I lost a "mother figure" several years back when I was a teenager. Not having her in my life has been hard, and I think about her daily. I couldn't imagine losing my bio mom. She has become one of my best friends, and I hope she's here for a LONG LONG TIME!

On another subject, Jason had surgery last friday. I'm not gonna mention what this surgery was, cause I doubt he wants the world to know his issues, but the surgeon said it's one of the most painful surgeries he performs. He told Jason he'd be out of work for a while, so he's been out of work all week long. Jason went to a follow up appt today, and the doctor said he'd be out of work until the 18th!!! This means fully bedridden, no lifting, baths 3 times a day, etc etc etc. So, I'll be taking care of my kids, taking care of my husband, taking care of the kids i babysit for, Cooking, cleaning, taking kids to school, laundry and everything else. I'm not mad, I'm not bitter, I'm just tired...and I hope that I'm appreciated.

At the end of the month, I'm going to the scrapbooking expo in Ontario. I am REALLy looking forward to that! Next month, we are going on a cruise to mexico with friends and family and our two oldest kids, and then in December I get to go to my dear friend Dona's wedding in Texas! I am blessed to go on so many trips....I will be honest and not to humble when I say that I have earned them, I deserve them, and I will thoroughly ENJOY them =)

Second chance

I havn't posted in a while. Partly because I didnt' think anyone was reading my blog, and partly because I didn't feel like I had anything positive to say, so why have a negative blog for people to read? I didn't get a call from the biggest loser, and when I went back on their website last week, I saw that they REOPENED their casting call to members of the BIGGEST LOSER CLUB. SO, of course, in a last ditch effort, I joined the club, submitted another application and made a video. I have to say, my video pretty much sucked. I didn't have enough people to film me, lighting was bad, I had a lot of FRIEND issues to deal with that day, and my husband and I got into a HUGE fight that lasted HOURS. I tried to put on a happy face in front of the camera, but it was just a BAD day to film. now that I've sent it in, there are so many other things I would have loved to have done in front of the camera that probably would have gotten me on the show.
Oh well, such is life.
I am, however, still doing weight watchers, and have lost 16 1/2 pounds in the past 6 weeks, so at least that's a start. I was really sick on Monday, and that threw me for a loop, but I'm better now, and this weekend I'm going to the beach with my mom for a few days, and we're gonna hang out and celebrate her 61st birthday. (don't tell her I told you her age!) it will be a nice relaxing time!
Ok so I'm sitting here writing this, and hearing WIERD noises either coming from IN my freezer, behind my freezer, or in my cupboard, and I'm praying to GOD that it's not a mouse!!! ugggh!
Sorry, got off subject. I havn't scrapped in a while, and it's depressing, because i love it so much, and my scrap area is now clean! I am, however, reading like a freak, and have read over 10 James patterson books in less than 2 months! When the kids take their naps, I sit here and read, and am almost through a full novel in the past 24 hours. I just won an auction of James Patterson books on ebay the other day, so I have 12 more I get to read..that I'm sure I'll be done with by Thanksgiving! haha
If I hear anything back from the biggest loser, I'll be sure to give an update!

The Biggest Loser-didn't get picked!

Well, it's been 9 days, and I havn't gotten a call, so I guess I wasn't good enough for the show. I want to thank all my friends for sending in the awesome letters to the show. I think there were over 40 emails from all over the country sent in! I'd thank my family, but noone was willing to take the 2 seconds to write the email, cause their lives are so busy (I'm not bitter)

I'm thinking about printing out all of the emails (at least the ones that were forwarded to me) and mailing them in one big manilla folder to Oprah or Dr Phil, and saying that I wasn't picked for the show, but if they're doing Christmas wishes this year, to grant my wish and send me to an exercise camp or something, and providing me with a personal trainer, nutritionist, and gym membership.

In the meantime, I'm doing weight watchers and I have lost 12 pounds this month...woot!

The Biggest Loser waiting game

This past saturday, i had the opportunity to audition for the Biggest Loser show in LA. When I got there, I was surprised to see that there were only 75 people in line in front of me! woot!
I got really lucky, and waited by some really funny, sweet people. The lady in front of me was around my mom's age, very funny and very sweet, she was like a mom figure to me and the girl behind me, and we joked that we could go in there as a family team, with us being the sisters (lost at birth) and we found eachother and our birth mother right there in line for the show. Then the guy behind us said that he could be the mormon husband, and we could all be his wives...we were cracking up! I totally felt so good around these people! We waited in line for 4 hours (but it went by sooo quickly, and thank GOD it wasn't a 100 degree day!) WHen we got towards the front of the line, I saw Alison Sweenie (Sammy from days of our lives) she is the new host for the show. I've been watching days since i was a teenager, so I was really excited! I yelled over to her, and she smiled at me, and I asked if I could take a picture with her with my cellphone,,,she was so nice! We got called to tables in groups of 8 after that, and we all had 5 minutes to answer as many questions as possible as a group. I was hoping it WOULDN'T be a group setting, cause I really wanted some one on one time to stand out from the crowd! I answered the questions as best I could, trying to be funny when possible, and serious at the same time. I think I did a good job on my answers, and hope I made a good impression! I have several friends that emailed the show saying that I'd be a good candidate. I've read what some of them wrote, and it made me cry! I have such awesome friends! Now I play the waiting game to see if they call me back for the next round of interviews. Wish me luck!

My scrap space revamped!

Ok, here are the after pics. I still have to go through my cabinets and make my sell piles and my trash, and rearrange, but at least it's beautiful on the outside! =)

Last weekend

So I am so lame....I posted those messy scrap room pics, cause my full intention was to CLEAN the area, and then post AFTER pics the next day! DIDN'T HAPPEN>>>>>>Instead, I had a sleepover party with my great friend GEENA at her parents house while they were away, had a poker party with Jason's friends and my sister and her hubby, went swimming, and took my mom and my son to go see HAIRSPRAY. It was acctually a nice, peaceful weekend for once! I'll try to find some time to clean my scrap area by the end of the week so I can finally post pics of what it's SUPPOSED to look like. I'll also take pics and post them of the fabulous scrap finds I got at BIG LOTS! Holy cow, I spent a small fortune! Now I have to have a scrap garage sale and sell some of my crap, so I can reimburse myself! haha

I was in a store this weekend, and I saw a framed piece of art that had a saying I really really loved on it. I've never heard the saying before, and if I had liked the artwork next to the saying, I would have bought it in an instant..but instead, I just kept the saying in my head till I could post it on here. It said..... "Once in a while in ordinary life, Love gives us a fairytale"

If only everyone could use their imagination once in a while, and live in that dream, fairytale, fantasy world.....you should try it! It's fantastic! =)

My messy scrap room

Ok, so I've let my scrap room turn to a crap room...seriously! I took some before pictures, cause I really want to get it all cleaned up and looking fabulous so I can take some amazing after pictures and wow you guys. SO here they are....my messy as heck before pics!

What I FOUND when I went to Publish the pics..

Ok, here is what I found when I put my camera card into the pc to upload pics. Can you tell who's been using my camera?? haha

Trying to wake up on the RIGHT side of bed

So I wake up this morning, take my shower, get dressed, come downstairs, and sit on my couch. I start thinking about how I'm gonna make my day better, so I'm not as stressed by the end of the day. I look over to my left, and sitting next to me on the couch is a naked barbie with her arms up in the air as if saying "HOLDDD MEEEE!" I start to giggle. Then I pick her up and realize it's not just a barbie, it's a Mary Kate and Ashley barbie....even funnier! Then Ians mom drops him off (kinda like a drive by) *open door, hand the baby off, and run* She tells me he hasn't had a bottle yet, so I get out his bottle, and it's the 8oz bottle that needs a liner. So I look in the bag for a liner, and the liner is 8 inches long, and looks like a freakin horse condom all rolled out and ready to go! More giggles.....this is how my day began.....

Now, as I speak, Jordyn is coloring "tattoos" on naked mary kate doll. SHe's very proud. Gotta love kids! I'm still debating whether I should take a PICTURE of naked barbie....I'm acctually debating getting some of my scrap supplies, and making her into white trash mary kate....I have so many cool rub ons that would look great...maybe a butterfly on her butt, the word LOVE across her boob, I could make a nose ring with a brad, oh....the possibilities are endless! =)

I decided to take some pictures of jordyn walking to the bus stop with Jamison (another little boy I watch.) Here are the pics...

Last one tonight, I promise!

I'm just testing this thing out to see if I can post pics in this section...sorry to be so annoying tonight! Looks like it worked...wooo hooo! This is a layout I created about a month ago at a crop. It pretty much sums up what the BOYS were doing right before the wedding, while I was stressing about my hair, makeup, and where the hell my bridesmaids were! =)

Mid Life Crisis?

Ok, so who knows, maybe I'm having a midlife crisis or something. I feel like I just kinda don't "care" anymore..if that makes any sense! And YES to your next question....I AM posting twice in one day...I'm sure it won't be the first time! I also want to appologize for my first post being so negative. If anyone reads that and acctually comes BACK to read a second post, I'll be shocked! lol

I just got back from back to school night. What a nightmare that was. Parking was rediculous, but Jordyn really likes her teacher, and I'm happy about that. So I get there, and I look around at all the other parents in the class, and I felt sooooo out of place! The moms all had their makeup done, their hair nice, dressy clothes on with jewelry, and fancy shoes. Me, on the other hand..didnt really think I was gonna go, so I didnt do JACK to myself. I wore dirty old flip flops, black capri sweats, a tank top that is WAYYY too big for me, and my hair in a lazy pony tail. NO makeup, no jewelry. I felt soooo embarrassed! Oh well, thank God it wasn't Jacobs class...he would have suffered the all humiliation network tomorrow with his friends!

So...since I'm going through this crisis...I figured I should make some lists to help me get over my FUNK.

The first list will be things that I think I'm really good at, and the second one will be things I need to work on.

Things I'm good at and things I love.... (I will keep this "G" rated, although I could write a whole blog on other things I'm good at..haha)

*making cute kids
*practicing making cute kids (just kidding)
*making friends
*helping others
*making people smile
*loving with all my heart
*spending money (I may have to put this in my "things to work on" list too!)
*scrapbooking
*tucking my kids in
*reading novels in one weekend
*planning fun vacations
*making my kids smile
*creating a meal out of NOTHING
*watching reality tv shows over and over again (even reruns)
*scrabble

*love mexican food
*love my kids and family
*love giving gifts
*love christmas, Thanksgiving and Halloween
*love camp Noyo
*love Wyones house
*love my new house (although not when its a mess-which is always)
*love nature, and just being OUTSIDE in the fresh air
*love going to the ocean
*love playing in the snow
*love love love watching 80's movies
*love cropping with my friends
*love talking to my friends about anything and everything
*love reminiscing about the past
*love my daydreams...cause they are wonderful and I live through them when I'm down in the dumps (which is often lately)
*love cheesecake
*love how my son still wants his CUDDLE time with me, even though he's in 6th grade now
*love watching how much Jordyn loves art
*love how Jadyn is already a sneaky little pooper scooper
*love the word "bippee" cause it's funny as hell!
man, this list could go on an on, so I'll stop right here

what I need to improve on.....
*being a better wife
*not being so judgemental
*not YELLING at my kids when they're bad
*taking time for myself
*my housekeeping skills...they're nonexistant
*watching my language
*being obsessive and wanting what I can't have
*not forgiving myself for my past
*not having the best relationship with my parents
*not being able to let go of lost loved ones
*not having "TIME" for everything my family needs me for
*not dressing up enough and being lazy

ok, this post is depressing again...geez...I've never written in a journal before...this could get rediculous, cause I feel like I could write forever and never shut up! Tomorrow's a new day...watch out!

My Very First Post!

Wow, my very first blog. I have NO IDEA what to say...and it's funny, but I have SO MUCH to say at the same time! I really don't know if I should just blog about scrapbooking, or if I should blog about my scrappy life, or both....I guess that Is gonna be my first question that I ask of anyone that reads my posts.

I guess I'll start my blog with what kind of week I had. OMG....can you say hectic? Jordyn started kindergarten, Jacob started 6th grade, and I'm watching 2-3 kids or more a day. Need I say more? My morning starts at 5:30 when I wake up and take a shower. Then I wake up hubby and get him out of bed and into the shower. I get about 10 seconds to myself, before I have to make lunches for school, and have to wake the baby up. Then Ian (the 7 month old I babysit for comes) Shortly after Ian, Maddie comes. All madness breaks loose after I send Jacob off to school. Jordyn is so obsessed with school, that she waits by the door for HOURS (I kid you not) with her backpack on, asking every 10 minutes HOW MUCH LONGER till it's time to go to the bus stop. (can you say...CALGON TAKE ME AWAY?) this isn't just a one time thing, either...it's every single day that she does this. So for the next few hours, I'm giving breakfast to the babies and Jordyn, changing poopie diapers, giving naps, and trying to clean up messes. At 10am, I take Jordyn, along with Jadyn and the babies I watch out to the bus stop a block away. (can I just TELL you how freakin hot it's been this week? Can you say....hot enough to fry an egg on my ass?) IT was about 107 today....109 yesterday...and when the bus is late, it's REALLY late! So I stand there with Jordyn in the heat, and she's saying "how much longer till the bus gets here?" over and over and over again, while the babies are whining to get out of the stroller, and I'm dripping sweat (sounds like a lovely day so far, huh!)

Once the bus (thank GOD) picks up Jordyn, we go back home and I get Ian down for a nap. Then I ATTEMPT to get Jadyn (my 17 month old ) down for a nap. This usually takes between 1 and 2 1/2 hours, and sometimes is not successful at all! (something's gotta give) At this point I'm at my wits end, and am ready to call cps on myself, and have to take a breather (thank God I don't drink, cause this would be the time) I usually give up, and go downstairs and try to relax, but by this time, Ian has woken up from his nap cause of Jadyns crying, and I have to give them all lunch. Jadyn loves to throw her leftovers all over the floor, so I'm sweeping up CRAP at least 3 times a day (isn't parenthood lovely?)

After lunch, we play for a bit, and then guess what? It's time to pick up Jordyn again (fun!) I pile all the kids into the stroller AGAIN, and head out into the heat AGAIn, and wait for the always late bus AGAIN. Jordyn gets home, and she's instantly...well...herself. Yelling at me, telling me she hates me, demanding snacks, STEALING snacks, hitting me if she doesn't get MORE snacks, and torturing her sister. The next two hours after she gets home I could write a whole novel on, so I'll just leave it as hell in the household. Jacob gets home next, and Jordyn proceeds to antagonize him. Ian goes home at 5ish, and then guess what...I get to rest! NOTTTTT!!! Then I get to make dinner for everyone (and you KNOW you can't please everyone) so I pretty much have to make dinner for each individual person (see insanity in the dictionary)

After dinner, I clean up, put things away, and give the kids their baths. I make sure they have clean clothes for the next day (which usually means doing laundry) and get the kids ready for bed. It takes me until 9:30-10 to get Jadyn to sleep. Once she is asleep, I'm usually asleep seconds after her.;......why am I telling you all this, you may ask?

#1-so u understand that it's NOT YOU that I'm stressed with when I answer the phone
#2-if my emails sound bitchy, it's just cause I have two seconds to breathe to write them
#3-cause I'm hoping for a pity party
#4-cause I'm really good at putting all my shit out on the table for everyone to see
and last but not least, to explain the TITLE of my blog "My SO CALLED SCRAPPY LIFE"

when, you ask, do I get time to scrap? I'll take any second I can get and when I do....I RUN with IT!!