Certified Junkie!

Yep - I'm living up to my reputation as a challenge junkie. I didn't get around to finishing this for the IMCK online crop last weekend. This was for a scraplift challenge. I lifted a LO by my friend Amy who is on the Design Team there. It also was for a black and white only challenge at SOS AND a challenge to use heat embossing from Scrap Treasures. Multi-tasking at its finest. LOL


Don't forget the Memorial Day sale at Scrap Treasures. 15% off everything through Tuesday.

It's starting to hit me

That wave of emotions from realizing that my oldest will be starting kindergarten in exactly 81 days. Here's an excerpt of an email I sent as soon as I got to the office this morning. I sent it to a dear friend whose daughter is getting married in 2 months.

I'm a blubbering mess this morning. And the first thing I thought of was how you must be having the same feelings each and every day right now. Why is it so hard to see our kids grow up? I mean, them growing up is all part of the master plan isn't it?

We're nearing the end of regular session at Addison's preschool. She'll stay on for Summer Session until the middle of August, but the regular session is winding up with lots of year-end activities. This morning was "Build a Book". So we sat at a table for an hour with a blank spiral mini-book, glued foamies and paper, and colored. When I start to leave, I find in her cubbie a 3-ring binder. Her teacher made each of the 11 kids in her class their own scrapbook of the year. Thirty 8.5X11 pages documenting her year in Miss Beth's class and the sweetest letter to her at the end from Miss Beth. Not Ali or Heidi style, but perfect for a 5 year old. Why am I crying? Because I'm so sad she's ready to start her journey into the big mean world with kindergarten as the first stop. And I know that somewhere along the line she's going to realize that not everyone loves her like her Momma and Daddy and Miss Julee (her first sitter) and Miss Beth (her first teacher). It's just so stinking sad. And my makeup is a mess. LOL

Here's a pic of Addison with her awesome scrapbook. We will treasure this forever. And he'll kill me if he reads this, but Carl even got teary-eyed when he read the letter Miss Beth wrote to Addison. Thanks Miss Beth for loving our little girl!!

Fort Knox

Welcome to Fort Knox. And yes, there are some treasures in here even though they may not be gold. LOL This is what you have to do when you have a scrap space in an open area AND have an inquisitive, energetic 19-month old whose curiosity outweighs his ability to retain what "NO" means.

1. The "U" in my U-shaped area is barricaded with a baby gate.














2. I actually started using these Rubbermaid tubs for project kits, theme papers and alterables when I started running out of storage space. It turns out they really were necessary to prevent bandits from using the craft desk as a tunnel.













3. I had to build up a barricade next to the wall. This only used to house my crop tote, but Clark was climbing over that on a fairly consistent basis. He still gets the floss holder down and carries it around like a suitcase, but so far he's been deterred from trying to climb in anymore.


















And there you have it. Mom's way to protect her space!!!

I'm really not sure where the month has gone!!!

I've been busy. I've been scrapping. I did get sick....REALLY sick. They say it was food poisoning, but I have no idea why I got it and no one else did. I just dropped a bunch of pics off the camera to the computer. Here are a few of my favs.

Celebrating National Scrapbooking Week

I've often said that I never in my life thought I could ever find a hobby that would rival my dh's golf spending. Then I found scrapbooking. I met Carl the second week of April....right in the midst of the Masters Golf Tournament. I learned quickly that his world STOPPED for the Masters. At least until we had kids. Now he tries to celebrate Masters week yet balance his paternal responsibilities. And too funny, but that's how I now feel about National Scrapbooking Week! Like it should be some kind of sacred holiday.

I will be celebrating this week by going to the CK Convention on Friday. Then coming home and cybercropping with some online friends at Sunny's new site: Scrap Treasures. There will be games and challenges and PRIZES all weekend!! If you don't have a place to celebrate NSD, please join us at Scrap Treasures. And, of course, I'll be balancing my scrapping with making sure the kids stay clean, fed, and happy. (They don't need to eat that often, do they?)

I should just admit I'll never catch up! LOL

Life is ALWAYS crazy it seems. Carl's shoulder surgery ended up being more intensive than they thought so his recovery time is now 6 weeks instead of 1 week. It's tough doing the whole get ready-get home-dinner-cleanup-playtime-bathtime-bedtime thing without his help! But his left arm is supposed to be immobilized for another 5 weeks. It's times like these I wonder how the single moms do it all. We'll make it, but it has definitely hindered catching up on other post-tax-season things.

I had so much fun at the SOS Spring Fling Crop! I was able to get a few layouts done which is always a good thing! My favorite creation was the Altered Planner Challenge. I made this to slip in the plastic cover of my 3-ring binder I have to keep up with the class assignments.

















And last night, I finished this LO combining one of Ingrid's sketch challenges and Gina's Scrapping with the Stars Challenge at Willow Traders.

Tagged by Jolynn!

Foods:
1. Mexican
2. Anything barbeque'd
3. Meatloaf & mashed potatoes
4. A good juicy cheeseburger

Four Jobs I've Had:
1. Campground registrant at a State Park in DE
2. Concessions worker for Vanderbilt University sports
3. Internal auditor for a weight loss company
4. Tax Manager/Principal at a local CPA firm

Four Places I've Lived:
1. Laurel, DE
2. Nashville, TN
3. That's it!
4. Just 2 places

Four Vacation Spots I Have Been:
1. Hawaii
2. San Francisco, CA
3. Bahama Islands
4. Destin, FL

Four Places I would rather be:
1. Scrapbooking!
2. In bed asleep
3. At a baseball game
4. Walking along the ocean

Four TV Show's I watch:
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. House
3. ER
4. Deal or No Deal

Four Friends I think will respond:
1. Linda F.
2. Amy Renee
3. Julie LB
4. Kathy M.

Happy Easter!!!

We're not letting mom's crazy work schedule interfere with our Easter fun. Addison is really enjoying it. When I got home from work Thursday night, I asked her about the egg hunt and party they had at her school. "I had so much fun Mom! Hey Mom, did you have a Easter party at work today?" When I told her no, she told me "Tomorrow to go to work and tell them they need an Easter party!" LOL We colored our eggs in shorts and short-sleeves, then a few days later went to the Egg Hunt with winter coats on! Hard to believe it's turned so cold just in time for Easter. Here are a few pics of the festivities. Clark loved the Easter bunny, and he really did a good job hunting for eggs.

Trying to remember it's all in how you look at it!

The past few days, the panic has been setting in.

• Still needing to get things to fill the kids' Easter baskets.
• Need to take filled eggs to school by Friday for the Egg Hunt the following week.
• Paperwork that only an attorney could understand needs to be mailed ASAP for a cash tender offer on some stock I've owned for a long time.
• Need to run by my cousins to pick up some shoes she bought for the kids.
• Should really buy some new spring outfits for both kids now that warm weather has arrived.
• Checkbooks need updating and bills need to get paid.
• Need to do a little more cleaning before Mom arrives on Saturday.
• But mostly, way too many tax returns and other work projects that need to be completed in less than 3 weeks now.

It's always this way the end of March. Knowing that the next few days of my life will be consumed with getting tax returns finished or extension payments calculated. This morning I decided that instead of moaning about how my plate is too full....I'm trying to realize MY LIFE IS FULL!!!!

Full with a wonderful family who still deserves to celebrate Spring and Easter. Full with extended family who love us and show that love by buying things for us or spending a couple of weeks here trying to replace "mom" in her absence. Full with material possessions He has blessed us with that require good stewardship. And full with a 20-year career that is challenging and yet gives me lots of flexibility the other 50 weeks out of the year. And full because this lilac bush that was planted back in 2001 finally bloomed this year!!!

So if you hear me start complaining or whining anytime before April 17th, remind me .....Your life is full girl!!!!

I think I put this off as long as I could. It's just so hard for me to give them their first haircut, kinda like one of those things that if you just keep putting it off you can keep them babies a little bit longer. But I just couldn't take the shaggy look any more. Here he is!