Gettin' By

Weekend Sneaks.

Just wanted to add a few more Jenni Bowlin kit sneaks before the gallery goes live on Sunday (at midnight CST).  Enjoy! :)

I guess someone around here DOES listen to me.

Yesterday I was working in my office, finishing up some of my JBS layouts for June.  Hayden was in the backyard hitting golf balls and Riely was sitting on the floor of my office, decorating cardstock with old letter stickers.  Occasionally, she would have me examine her "words," asking me what she had spelled.  I would try to sound out the random mix of letters into some sort of crazy pronunciation, to which she would reply, "No Mama, that spells I LOVE YOU!"  Well, alrighty then.

So we are each working intently on our projects when I hear her little voice mutter, "Oh, shit.  There are no more N's!"

Hmmmmmmm.  How does a parent react to that one?  Don't freak out...think, think. Deep breath.  Calmly, I reply:

"Riely!  That's not an acceptable word to say.  Where did you hear that?" 

"I don't know, Mommy."

"Did you hear me say that?"

"No."  (whew!)

"Because that's not a word we use, OK?  It's not nice or ladylike. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Mama.  I know.  We don't say that word.  We say dammit or for christ's sake, right??"

Touchè, little girl.  Touchè.

Just to pique your interest....

....thought I'd post a few sneaks of the new Jenni Bowlin kit for June.  No surprise, it's simply scrumptious!

 

 

I've got two pages complete, and three more in the works.  The vibrant oranges and greens are so summery and fresh.  You'll want to eat it up, I promise.  The full reveal of the kits and gallery will be on the 30th, but until then, you can get your fix at the JBS Inspiration blog.

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I've also got another little teaser up my sleeve:


This amazing collaborative project will be launching on June 1, and all you simple scrappers will definitely want to check it out.  I'll keep you posted on details, but for now, mark your calendars for June 1 - it's gonna be BIG!

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So yesterday the kiddos and I wrote a list of everything we want to do this summer - from camping and swim lessons to zoo trips and dinosaur excursions.....it's all on one master list.  And whenever the infamous phrase "I'm bored" gets muttered, we are pulling out the list and getting busy!  We'll kick that off today with a bike ride and trip to the pool, which means I need to get off the computer and get these kids moving. Have a fab Wednesday, y'all!

How To Entertain Your Kids When The Weather's Too Crappy to go to the Pool:

Since our plans to spend the weekend at our neighborbood pool were compromised by 55º weather and a broken pool heater, we are finding some other ways to fill this long weekend.  Namely, giving Hayden a video camera to start working on his debut movie, Supergirl Adventures. After a strenuous day of filming, we fired up iMovie to polish the masterpiece with some music & sound effects.  (I took some creative liberties and edited the 75+ minutes of footage he captured down to a more manageable size - look for more installments of SuperGirl in future blogposts!) Enjoy!


Hey, Mom - this is a web VIDEO. Click the tiny triangle in the lower lefthand corner to watch it! :)

And they are together again.

I apologize for not updating the blog - I haven't been too inspired to share the last few days.  My grandfather (Opa) passed away somewhat unexpectedly on Friday and we are all still in a bit of shock.  He was not in perfect health, but seemed to be doing quite well, despite missing Oma.  When I talked to the kids about his passing, Hayden told me tearfully, "Mom, he just wanted to be with Oma!"

And knowing that they are together once again does help the hurt a bit. 

I am getting together some old photos for his memorial service (I am lucky to have lots of photos from their lifetime) and wanted to share these with you.  It's easy to see how my Oma fell for him - he was so handsome.  He was truly the epitome of a strong, loving man who served his country, family, and God whole-heartedly.  He's left some very big footsteps to follow in.

We'll miss you, Opa.

I have no voice, but I have LAYOUTS!

Well apparently my sore throat has settled in for the long haul, Zicam and tea be damned.  Ugh. Is it just me, or do sore throats hurt way worse as an adult?  Or maybe I'm just weenie.  Who enjoys swallowing without pain.  So while I go find someone else to whine to about my ailment, please enjoy these layouts from this month's  Jenni Bowlin Studio kit, ok?

15 Hours and Counting....

...until the midnight gallery reveal at Jenni Bowlin Studios!  You will not want to miss what the design team has done with this kit - it's some good schtuff, baby! The kit features Jenni's new line of papers, Front Porch, in lovely shades of cherry red, spring green, and soft yellow.  I seriously couldn't stop scrapping with it. It's such a lovely mix of vintage and modern.  Here's a few sneak peaks of my pages:

And just so you know, this month's guest designer is my lovely friend, Steph Howell. Her unique style is so well-suited for this kit - you'll be blown away, I promise!  So put it on your to-do list to stop by the gallery after midnight, alrighty?!

Today I woke up with a horribly sore throat and a virtually no voice...a treat for my kids, I'm sure. After a few cups of lemon & honey tea, the voice has improved to a gravelly, throaty tone that makes for a darn good Stevie Nicks impression.  Karaoke, anyone?!?

Have a great Tuesday, my friends! 

Weekend Revelry.

We kind of stretched the Mother's Day holiday into a whole weekend of events, because really, is one day enough to celebrate moms?!?  My brother-in-law, Ben was in town, so on Saturday morning, the guys headed out for a round of golf in Castle Rock.  The kids and I got to hang with Ali, Owen, Ava, and Grandma & Grandpa D while we waited for the golfers to return from the course.  Here's a quick recap in photos:

Hayden and Owen defended the backyard against any intruders (and terrorized their screaming sisters in the process...)

The girls were comforted by the mommies and snacks....

...Ava demonstrates exactly how you eat a GoGurt.

Dixie makes the rounds, enjoying head rubs from anyone willing to give them.

The ladies got to dream about planning a girls' weekend in Napa...

...while enjoying plenty of prosecco in our favorite flutes.

I snapped a rare photo of the Dickinson boys all together..

...and later we were serenaded with a surprise performance by the Dickinson Family Band:

The playlist included hits from the musical Grease and several Christmas tunes, including everyone's favorite, Jingle Bells.

It was a fun-filled day and everyone was sad when it came to an end:

...especially Riely.

On Sunday morning, I met up with Ali at Cherry Creek where we did some quick wine shopping at Cost Plus, scoring a yummy bottle of Cupcake Cabernet, which happens to be delightful with a rich chocolate cake. We made the obligatory stroll through Anthro, with lots of oooing and ahhhhing and wishing we had an extra $5000 to drop there. Then we hit the big sale at Gap before finishing up with lunch at Hacienda (Mango Margaritas, anyone?)

I wrapped up the Mother's Day weekend with a fabulous dinner at Rock Bottom Brewery with my three favorite people, who made me the perfect Mother's Day card, featuring this photo:

So life is good.  And how was your weekend??

In a scrapping frenzy....

...and haven't made time to blog.  Please forgive me. But, hey!  Have you seen this month's Basic Grey newsletter?  If not, you can check it out here.  I was honored that my buddy Kelly asked me to contribute this layout to the issue:

Off to finish some pages....and come up with a graphic design project for Hayden's second grade class tomorrow.  Should be an excellent opportunity to instill a deep seated hatred for Comic Sans in a whole new generation.  A cause worth volunteering for, no?!?

Happy Wednesday!

Maybe she does remember those sleepless nights.

A few weeks ago during our spring clean to get ready for the garage sale, I unearthed some boxes in the basement that had come from my parents house when they moved last fall.  The boxes were full of my old dolls and Barbies, and all their accompanying accessories and wardrobes.  Thanks to the sewing skills of both my Oma and Grandma Neva, my dolls were never lacking the perfect outfit. And apparently, it was the late 70s when these fashions were being created, so there was an abundance of polyester and loud graphic patterns.  Full length orange fur coat?  Got it.  Denim patchwork pantsuit with red pleather boots?  Awwww, yeah.  Pea green crochet poncho with leather trim?  Work it, baby!

It has been many, many moons since I've seen these dolls, yet some of them I remember playing with like it was yesterday.  And some of them I have no recollection of ever seeing before.  So either my mom slipped some random dolls in there to mess with my mind, or maybe I'm starting to see the effects of all that beer consumption in college.

There were two dolls that Riely immediately started playing with - twin babies, one blonde, one brunette, in matching gingham outfits.  They have what Hayden has termed "the super advanced technology" of closing their eyes when laid horizontally.  They also "cry" when you whip them around violently, a feature I am hearing quite regularly when the babies get involved in a light saber war with the Transformers they share a toy chest with.

So one afternoon last week, when it was particularly quiet in the house, I went upstairs to see what trouble Riely might be getting into and found her in her room, rocking one of her twins. 

"Shhhhhh, Mommy!"  she said as I approached.   "Can you see?  It's a miracle!  A miracle! My baby is asleep!!"

Ironically, I seem to remember uttering those same words during her early days. :)

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P.S.  If you happen to be a scrapper, please hop on over to the KI Memories blog, where I am hosting a sketch challenge this week. Come join in, alrighty?!