Here's what we did at home on the first day of school

J and A started school this week.  I have pictures, but I haven't edited the school pictures yet, so those will come another time.  They both did great, and (I think) really enjoyed their first day.  I missed them while they were at school.  It was so quiet at my house.  D especially missed them.  He squealed with delight when they got in the car after school.

While they were away, we had a good time. :) We ran some errands in the morning and it was so so simple with just the younger two. :)  S and I had some REALLY great conversations about the creation, and Heavenly Father, and Adam and Eve.  It was nice to have just her little voice and her little thoughts with me in the car (well, D was there, but he wasn't saying much).  I captured a few pictures of them after I took the older two to school.

I made pancakes and eggs for everyone for the first day.  D had a late start and didn't eat until I returned from taking J and A.  I guess this his idea of a GOOD pancake.  Oh and I do serve my children their food ON plates (most of the time), I guess he just removed his pancake from his plate...and the remaining margarine from it's plate as well.  hahahaa ! :)

"hmmm...I don't think it looks quite like this when Mom butters it."

"oh well.  DIG IN!!  mmmmm"

Never fear, I quickly put down the camera and ran over and rescued him from death by margarine before a single bite was taken.  Yes, I AM that fast.  I do think he successfully got a lick though.

S was very sad with her favorite play things back in school, so I told her to pick something special that she could do when D was napping.  She wanted to buy some of her very own paints--and not the water color ones that we have readily available at our house (hence the errands in the morning), and a frame, and paint a picture for me to hang on the wall.

 Here she is painting her first masterpiece. She literally spent three hours painting. I love it!

and here she is painting her second one.  If you look at the first one finished at the edge of the table you can see her finished masterpiece.  She painted a beautiful sunset...the colors from the top down are the blue sky, then the yellow sun, orange sunset clouds, blue ocean, orange reflection of the sunset in the ocean, and then the green grass.  The artist mom in me is so very proud!! :)

Hopefully tonight I will have the school photos edited! and then I 'll post them tonight too. :)

new rain boots!!! :)

for me!!! :)  Anyone who knows me knows I L*O*V*E shoes!!  I have a serious love affair with them. :)  I can spot a new pair of shoes that a friend of mine will be wearing a mile away. And I regularly get shoe envy, even with my plethora of shoes.  Well, today I was at Ross, one of my favorite places to find great shoes, and I stumbled upon these awesome rain boots.  Living in  WA I really don't think one can go wrong with a purchase (or two) of rain boots. 

You can check out the black ones HERE

you can see the brown ones HERE

Seriously, I fell in love!  And I adore the wedge heel on them.  They will serve me well with keeping my long pant legs dry (a typical problem for short people in the Pacific NW), as well as making me happy by just being cute.  I may start to take after my little S and just wear rain boots all the time because they are easy to slip on, and I like em. :)

Oh, and the best part about them, well really, the best part about Ross, they were only $9.99 each!  What a steal!!  

I am happily wearing my brown ones around the house right now, just for kicks and giggles! :)

A few layouts I did today...

I am working on a class that I am teaching for Creating Keepsakes Digital Scrapbooking Experience at the end of this month. I am teaching with a friend of mine, Nancie Rowe-Janitz. Well, I guess my sisters would call her a "fake" friend because I have not actually met her in real life. But I have known her on line for about three years. Any way, we are teaching a class called "The Easiest Ever Intro to Digital Scrapbooking". As I have been working on the class content I have been busy making layouts and taking screenshots of the process to help teach the class. These are the ones I have done today.

They are all of D. He is just at such a fun phase and is changing too much everyday, I want to capture each moment. I just love my little guy so so much...

credits: The Quickpage is from Aja Abney: Sweet Valentine QuickPages available at ScrapArtist.com

credits: Black Alphabet is mine: Tall and Chunky; Template is from Gina Miller: Front and Center 8; the kit is by Designs by Lili: B is for Boy.

Everything is available at ScrapArtist.com

credits: everything is from Funky Junky Old School by Kate Hadfield, Rachel Young, and Pixel Works available at ScrapArtist.com

I hope you enjoyed them. You can click on the images and see a bit of a larger version.

TTFN, and wish me luck with planning the rest of my class.

Just my baby being cute...

This was D yesterday morning.  I know his hair is getting a bit unruly, but I have a month left to enjoy his darling curls before I am cutting it.  I just love them.  Anyway, D was snuggling his very special horsie, hiding under S's drawing board.  I just could resist taking some photos.  He was just too too cute.  After a few photos I attacked him with kisses!  And you can click the image to see a slightly bigger version.

Some pictures from MAY! :D

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This is my sweet little A before her school end of the year concert. I don't do her hair very often because, well, I just don't. I don't excel in the "doing hair" part of mommy-hood. LOL!! But she asked very sweetly if I could curl her hair before her concert. She just felt so special, it was worth the 45 minutes.

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say CHEESE! This is how he smiles at the camera now. I know it is all my fault for taking WAY TOO many pictures! hee hee!!

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Wishing and hoping and praying... that someone will open the door... so I can escape!

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An eagle in the tree across the street.

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Another one of D, just because I love this one!

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D learning to ride.

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J after a baseball game--trying to give me his game face look. :)

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S-- she may look all sweet and innocent here, but trust me, this girl is trouble, hahahahaa!

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D and his very best friend-- his blankie!

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J ready for his first REALLY far away field trip. I was a nervous wreck while he was gone. LOL!! But he returned all safe and sound and had a great time in the city!


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Daddy and D snuggling.


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A few friends over to play, while the girls were coloring, the boys were video gaming. haha!


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taking another stab at it.


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Seriously, just too cute, as my littlest darling one decides to drink his milk from his cereal bowl! I believe most of the milk dribbled down the front of him.

April and May were busy busy...and June hasn't been much better

With the school year coming to an end, baseball season in full force, dance recitals, and end of the school year concerts, we had our calendar full. Not to mention, Mike and I went to Costa Rica for a week at the end of May. So in efforts to catch up on blogging I have to rewind a bit...

April 24-30 in photos...  you have to scroll down to the bottom if you want them in chronological order.  From the top down they are in reverse chronological order.

120.365 30 ap

S decided that she would make D happy by jumping in his crib

with him.  It DID NOT have the desired results. :)

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Again, D trying out the equipment.

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Mike and I have been exercising a TON lately.

We have converted half out basement into a "home gym" area.  

Here D trying out the new exercise equipment.

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D with his favorite toys, my little ponies, or "orsies" as he calls them.

Mike, of course, demanded that I get him some real "boy" type horses. 

Which he now has.  However, he still loves the ponies, and he picked

a my little pony coloring book at the store. hahaha :)

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The kids decided to make a "library" in J's closet.  

It was all fine until I made them put all the books back where 

they belonged, and the toys back in the closet.

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D trying to touch my camera lens.  A big NO NO! :D

If you look carefully you can see his black eye and big messy milk face.

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A lovely spring evening walk.  

I have a ton more pictures from this walk,

I will post them on Facebook. :P

J and A are like best buddies here, S is actually looking towards me, 

and D is giving me his crazy cheesy grin.  hahahaa!!

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D just as happy as can be because he is on the counter. :)

oh--and he still has his nice shiner.

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D sitting on the counter eating. 

Bad mamma, I know, but he wants to be right under my feet when I am 

cooking dinner, and this seems to be the happy solution for both of us. 

I get to get dinner ready without a crying baby tangled in my legs, 

and he gets to be right next to me. :)

Misty returned my kids....

I've just been too busy to post anything about my trip or anything since then!