Our comings and goings . . .

enjoying today

 
holiday inn and bing crosby.  something about his voice is just so dreamy.  i fell in love with this movie when i was younger and finally found it on dvd last year.  it's playing in the background as i dig into the citrus tree studio january kit:)

a book i stumbled across at the library.  if you enjoy the lord of the rings then i'm sure you will enjoy this book.  i've been stealing away little bits of time here and there to enjoy - it's hard to put down.  also i should mention i found it in the young adult section of the library while waiting for wes to finish up on the computer so it's an easy read and makes it really easy to get caught up in the story without the long descriptive words that tolkien tends to use in his writing (holy, run on sentence there! lol)

not the best of pictures - but our new tree.  it's so pretty and i love that it's tall and skinny and makes such a big impact in our little living room.  we finished decorating it and it looks so homey with it's eclectic mix of ornaments and popcorn strings. 
 

homemade goodies for neighbors.  don't they look delish!  also got the popcorn balls finished and need to decide on one more little goodie that will fit into the containers.
 
 

his grin

it's a tad bit gappy right now.  love this age when teeth are falling out and they have those funny grins.  also i worry so much about his teeth . . . they are coming in so crooked.  i had so many years of dental work and i forsee it coming for my boy as well.

it's a week a little over a week left before christmas, are you ready?  i just finished wrapping most of the santa gifts today as well as filling wes' stocking.  also got a few other presents wrapped and put under the tree.  the rest of the big items are suppose to arrive tomorrow by fed ex.  i'm finally feeling like it's all coming together, especially since i decided against christmas cards this year.  :)
 
 

what i always wanted for christmas . . . ?

• diabetic testing kit
• shoe laces
• and last but certainly not least - a pedometer that needs a new battery.

oh yes, what i've always wanted for christmas . . . or not.  these were our white elephant gifts from our christmas party.  you should have seen wesley's face when he opened the diabietic testing kit.  especially since he wanted that present so bad since it was the biggest one on the table.  poor kid learned fast what a white elephant gift is.  lol!!  i'm pretty sure though that test kit will be passed back and forth for years to come. 

it was great fun and i'm so glad we did it.  it was last minute and the husbands both ended up sick today (i'm sure not related at all to the party), but so worth it considering i haven't laughed that hard in weeks. 

so grateful to 'our' couple for always giving us a good time.  ever couple should have 'their couple' they do things with.  you know the ones you have so much fun with and just seem to click with that the idea of getting together makes you count down the days.  yep, so excited for new year's eve!

 

all is merry and bright

all month the dream street blog will be showcasing the gorgeous christmas line designed by amy teets - merry and bright.  it's a beautiful line with a slight twist on the green and red color palette and has subtle sophistication. 

i created a ruffle look with a studio calico stamp and a green chalk ink.  after stamping it on the green pattern paper i then cut it out and stacked the strips staggered and curled the edges.  the leaf rubons i adhered first to vellum, cut them, out and curled the edges to give them some dimension.

I wanted the chipboard accent to stand out from the card so I backed it first with a mat of red cardstock and then with a scalloped circle before attaching it to my card with foam adhesive. 

one of my favorite holiday songs is 12 days of christmas and this tree for some reason reminded me of that song.  i placed the little birds in the tree and put the expression on the chipboard along with two little hearts cut from pattern paper.

  

 

december challenges

are up today at citrus tree studio.  Come play along and you could win this yummy basic grey paper pad. 

Here is my sketch challenge for the month along with the layout it's based on.  Sorry for the crappy picture of my layout.  Not the best weather to get good pictures in since it's so dang bright out today and my layout has a lot of white space.

 
  
 
Does anyone out there play the flute and want to come take my place tonight?  I haven't played in public for awhile and was asked to play the flute alongside the choir.  Why i agreed to this i'll never know.  The nerves have slowly built all day and i can't wait until it's all over.   

ward christmas party

this year for our ward christmas party they did the 12 days of christmas with stories and singing.  during the last 3 days of the countdown the little primary kids dressed up for the nagtivity scene and wesley was asked to play joseph.  as soon as they walked out and placed baby jesus in front you could immediately feel the spirit.  

they were so adorable. 

after they finished santa arrived . . .

still not sure that was the proper shirt to be wearing to have a visit with santa.  i guess it doesn't really matter if he is always watching anyway . . . lol!

this time around wesley asked for lincoln logs and the new indiana jones video game.  he's convinced that since all santas aren't really santa but just santa's helpers he can ask each one for different items thereby increasing his loot on christmas day.  he's a thinker that boy of mine. 

  

when's spring again? . . .

i'm freezing !!!!!  which seems to always be the case these days.  that 50+ pounds wasn't just weighing me down it was keeping me warm. 

it's been snowing off and on for the past couple of days and although it sure is pretty with all that freshly fallen snow it really is cold.  the temp on the bank while driving brandon to work this morning was 14 degrees, it's suppose to be colder tomorrow . . . i have a feeling i might be investing a few more hats and scarves and it's going to be my new fashion statement in and outside the house.   

 

so glad brandon put the bikes away like i asked him;)

 
  

citrus tree lovelies!

two days in a row . . . look at me go:)

well i found that camera disc.  can you believe i put it back in the box my camera came in and put the box in the closet.  it was kind of a hmmm, i wonder moment . . . so glad i found it. 

here are the lovelies i was trying to get up today. 

every 4 months cindy picks a new product to show and this time around she picked this artist tray by 7gypsies.  when it arrived along with the beautiful december kit i was in awe and so excied to play.  i loved using each square as it's own little canvas and just going for it.  i'm even thinking of picking up a couple more - how great would this be to give as a christmas gift! 

can you tell i really like the new family photos my sweet friend took of us.  it's really the first good photo of all of us that doesn't include santa.  lol!  this was a layout that talks about how growing up i imagined my family differently, but how 3 has turned into a lucky number. 

a dry embossing technique i did during my MMM year and thought would work perfectly for this layout to fill the space next to my photos.
   

saw this wreath ornament made on martha stewart living a few years ago.  for a new twist i housed a little bird, label, and letters from the kit along with a pretty satin ribbon from my stash. 

and a quick card.

 
  

also available is this fun mini kit - jolly by golly.

 
  
 
 

i'm back:)

i'm now typing from a little laptop at home.  yay!  so glad i can now type from the convenience of my own home and don't have a 30 minute countdown in the corner of the screen. 

brandon has already complained about how much i was on here yesterday, but it's only because i was trying to get photoshop and the internet hooked up right as well as trying to get use to vista.  still trying to find the the software for my camera.  i've looked through all the desk drawers and can't find it . . . still trying to remember where i put it for 'safe keeping'.  don't you hate that!  it's like when grandma would find my christmas presents she hid away in june. . . . lol!

i have a pile of projects just sitting here and i'm amazed at home much scrapping i've done since not having a computer at home.  funny to see just how many cards are among them.  i got on a card making kick last month when finishing up some dream street cards for december and just kept going.  here are a few that i did for november.

 

well i better go do some more looking for that disc . . . where oh where could it be.   
 

 
 

bits of randomness

• today according to wes 'just keeps getting better and better'.  he woke up this morning to pajama day and then i reminded him that the halloween carnival was tonight. 

• i'm wearing my 'skinny' jeans - happy day indeed!!!  jeans i put in the back of my closet and thought i would never wear again. 

• have decided that i need to work out in the morning again.  not knowing if i'm going to get my workout in at night with brandon or not is not working.  not that i don't love getting all sweaty with him (boy, that sounds bad!), but it starts my day out so much better if I do it first thing. 

• have loved watching the leaves around the neighborhood change, but why did they have to fall off and be gone in less then a week?  fall and spring just don't exist very long in ut. 

• there are so many pictures on my camera now that i'm just dying to edit . . .

just a few things on my mind right now.  hopefully i have some new projects and pictures to share later in the week when i take a trip to grandma's.