Black Sunshine Notes

Avery Grace Wilde

2011-08-05T20:43:00.000-07:00

Avery is here!

Finally, she is here with us. She was born Tuesday August 2 at 10:15 am.

She weighed 7 lbs, 7 oz and was 20 3/4" long.

She is beautiful!

Little bug

Cute!

I love baby feet!

Newly arrived

So cuddly

Happy big sister

Cute!

Here are the kiddos! I cannot believe there are 4!

My doctor was concerned because I was measuring big and he worried about my anemia. Because of that, I was induced at 38.2 weeks. The birth was smooth and relatively quick. I checked into the hospital at 5:45 am and was started on Pitocin at 6:30. They broke my water at 7:30. I had the epidural at about 8 am. At 9:45 they checked and said I was basically at a 10, but my doctor was still in surgery. We waited a little while and he showed up and started getting ready to deliver. I was kind of surprised-I thought we might have a while to go. We started pushing at about 10:00 and she was born shortly after that. It was great! All the time I've been pregnant, I've been visualizing an easy labor and delivery much like Jack's. Though it was not exactly as I had envisioned (I did not expect to be induced), the end result was the same. I had time for an epidural, the labor progressed quickly and she arrived safely.

We are all so happy and trying to settle into having so many kids.

Thanks for all the prayers and help!

Let's get real

2011-07-23T20:26:00.001-07:00

Let's Get Real

So in this post, we are going to talk about what it's really like at my house when I am very pregnant.

1- I forget everything!

2-I am very very cranky.

3-I am very anti-social. I think my friends all think I hate them. (It's not true!).

4-I cannot get motivated to do any art.

5-I cannot get motivated to open my shop (someday soon I promise!).

6-I completely neglect my blog--wait, I do that even when I'm not pregnant.

7-I completely neglect my online friends (by the way, my friend Paula just filmed a DVD for Cloth Paper Scissors!).

8-I completely neglect my responsibilities for groups I've joined.

9-I don't play with my kids much.

10-I read a lot (both a positive and a negative).

11-I do not get much housework done (see photos below).

12-I whine a lot.

13-I cry a lot (usually when I am alone and feeling frustrated that I can't do much).

14-I'm pretty slacking in my church calling (see #1).

15-I'm sure there are more but I can't remember (again, see #1).

Bathroom floor needs to be swept and mopped

Cluttered countertop

Jack's room (did he really just clean it on Thursday?)

Now, the boys usually clean their own rooms twice a week, but I will pick up here and there in between those scheduled cleaning days. Not so much right now.

Clutter under the desk and needs to be vacuumed. See that book on the floor-Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean. Ironic.

Sam's room. Again, all this since Thursday? *Sigh* boys!

So, you can see that right now is not the happiest time in our home. It's not terrible, but we are all ready for the baby to be here so we can get back to normal. Hopefully soon!

I will be 37 weeks along tomorrow. I guess no preemies this time!

I have been having a lot of contractions for the last couple of weeks and when I went to the Dr on Wednesday, he said I was almost 3 cm dilated. Maybe the next post will be about baby Avery? Pray that that is the case. I am ready!

2011-05-15T20:42:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more photos for ya!

Sam and Addison eating lunch in Zion NP.

Surfer Jack in La Jolla, CA.

Addison with her birthday cake made by my mom (Addison was really tired at the party-can you tell?)

Hiking in Zion NP.

Sand Dunes trail in Snow Canyon near St. George.

Another cute photo of Jack in Zion NP.

2011-05-15T20:06:00.000-07:00

Can't I just post twice a year?

Jut kidding!

I have not been feeling up to much of anything these days. I've had terrible anemia with this pregnancy. It makes me so tired! It's been bad enough that I have to go to the hospital once a week and get an IV of iron. It's been horrible. I was only supposed to have 5, but they say I need 3 more. I just pray that these are the last.

We had an ultrasound in April. The tech said it's a girl, but they couldn't get a really good picture. I'll have another ultrasound in 3 weeks so they can double check. Other than that, everything looked great.

My grandmother (my Dad's mom) passed away at the end of February so we headed to San Diego. It was beautiful there, but it was a sad reason for going. I was so happy to be at the beach. It is where I feel the happiest and most at peace. I was happy to learn that it was my grandmother's favorite place also. She would have been happy we spent some time there.

Addison had her 2nd birthday. She's a nutty little girl. SO much personality. I love it! My biggest fear about my kids' personalities is that they would be dull. How could I stand it? No problem there yet though.

We are planing for the arrival of the new baby. Only a little while left. I am 27 weeks along. Hopefully this one doesn't come too early. We don't want a repeat of Addison's birth! Sheesh!

We had a great vacation in Zion's National Park in April. It is pretty much the only trip we are going on this year. All of our usual travel time is too close to the baby coming. Next summer we'll make up for it though.

I just got called into the Relief Society Presidency. I am excited. I have never been there before and I am excited to learn a lot of new things. And I know it's where the Lord wants me to serve right now. I will miss primary terribly though! I loved it there.

I had a wonderful mother's day and birthday. My sweet hubby and kids do so much to make me feel loved and appreciated. Among my gifts (for both) were a Lisa Leonard necklace with all 3 kids' names, an iPOD touch, gift cards, 3 (THREE!!) prenatal massages with my friend Annette, an altered canvas with photos of everyone, and a fun date to dinner and then a movie at home. Love this time of year!

There you go! There's an update! Talk to you in 6 months! HAHAHA!

Here are a few photos also.

Hiking in Zion's

Me and Addison in San Diego. Look at her eyes! Can you tell she's mine?

Finish it Friday

2011-02-04T12:49:00.000-08:00

I finished!

A couple of weeks ago, I received another art journal in the mail from July. If you remember from several months ago, I was invited to join a round robin art journal project led by the fabulously talented Paula (who had an article published in the current issue of Art Journaling Magazine!!).

The theme of this journal is Vintage Love. This was a difficult theme for me--it's just not my style. But I did my best and finally finished it today. I have to say I was very motivated to finish because not only am I backed up on these journals (I still have to finish Paula's journal), but I REALLY wanted to put a link on Robyn's "Finish it Friday" blog post today. Now I can!

Here is the journal:

A little far away, but I wanted you to see the 2 pages side by side.

Left side

Right side

Detail of the glassine envelope (some small journal spots will go here later). The image is from The Graphics Fairy.

Another detail photo. That purple at the top is decorated packing tape adhered to one side then folded over to the other. I love doing that!

Detail of pearls and lace attached with Tiny Attacher.

Can you see the shimmer? I sprayed the entire page (all of them) with Old Lace Glimmer Mist to make it a little shiny. That image is also from The Graphics Fairy.

The quote I used. You can see the texture from scrumpled tissue paper which I adhered with heavy gloss gel. I then put a thin wash of white acrylic paint over it to blend it into the page. The tissue had been colored with Oriental poppy GM and Burnt Red GM. The colors were a little overpowering for the pages, so I toned it down with the white. I love the texture.

My sign in page-love that image of the girl. She reminds me of me though I'm not that cute! :)

All in all the pages went quickly. There were several of those "ugly" stages where nothing looks right. But Paula says you have to just push past those and continue on. Ultimately, I like the way it turned out. I think it represents my style and matches the theme.

It will soon go off to Margo!! Yay!

2011-02-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

I've figured it out!

(After 5 years!)

Remember this is only MY opinion.

If you are offended-IGNORE IT!

It's no secret to anyone who has talked to me for any length of time that I HATE the library in my town. It is awful. I live in a very small town and the library reflects that.

For one thing, they close at random times. If there is a holiday listed on the calendar, then the library has to be closed. No matter what it is. Nothing else will be closed-no schools, banks etc-but sure enough the library is closed. If the holiday falls on a Friday, they will be closed Friday AND Saturday. They are not open on Mondays. Why? Do the librarians really have such a hard job that they need that much time off?

They close at 8 PM. EIGHT O CLOCK PM~!!! What? And earlier on Saturdays. Do people in Tooele stop learning after 8 PM? (Of course with a lot of people in this town I wonder if they ever started in the first place!)

9 out of 10 times they do not have the books that I am looking for. They rarely get anything new. Not even kids books. Their kid section is really bad. They have all kinds of old kids books, nasty falling apart chapter books and very few picture books. And they have so few new children's books. It's very frustrating when one of my kids will read a book at school and want to find it at the library. They never have it.

The worst part about it is that the librarians are so proud of the library and think it's so great. I guess it is compared to what they used to have. But it's nothing to be proud of.

I am happy to pay the $80 per year fee to have a library card at the Salt Lake City Library in Downtown Salt Lake. Now that is a LIBRARY. It's beautiful!! That will have to be another blog post.

Anyway- I went to the library tonight and found every book on my list except for one! I felt victorious! I felt accomplished! I was so happy! And I finally realized after 5 LONG years of living in this hellhole (Sorry if you like Tooele!) how to use our library. Here is the secret:

If I want good books, new books, or anything with substance I can go to the City Library in SLC. If I want a brain candy, entertainment-only novel, I can go our library. HAHA!! I figured it out!! Now I don't have to tear my hair out in frustration when I can't find my book!!

I am so happy

What I checked out tonight

PS-This may sound harsh. But realize I hate this town and I cannot wait to get out. It is sucking the life out of me. In all fairness, I'm sure the library is better than it once was and the fact that they even have a library is miraculous given the education level of most people in this town. And the library does have a few good books: a few classics, a few good non fiction books, and things like that. But when I say 9 out of 10 times it's frustration, I am not exaggerating. Pray for me.

2011-01-07T09:10:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

I'm sorry about being away so long. We have a lot going on the last few months of the year.

And there is another reason I haven't been around lately. I have been too tired to do much of anything! I haven't been scrapbooking, art journaling or anything. And the reason for that is...

I'm pregnant!

That's right. Baby #4 on the way! We are so excited. I am 12 weeks today. We've known for a long time (about 2 months!) but wanted to keep it a secret until I was further along.

I was apprehensive about getting pregnant again for many reasons but we knew it was what God wanted for us. And we couldn't be happier.

Here are some things we've been doing lately and some other updates:

Sam at the Zoo.

Addison at Christmas. I just loved her little ponytail!

Jack and his guitar. He has the rocker face and stance down perfectly.

My cute girl with her brother's boots on.

Some of the artsy Christmas gifts: Neocolor watercolor crayons (Love these!), Black Lava texture gel, Gloss Super Heavy gel, Colored India Inks, and pen nibs.

Urban Decay Naked palette: the coveted sold out everywhere palette! I found it by chance at Ulta so I grabbed it! I was so excited. For those of you who don't get excited about makeup, ignore this photo! :)

Some books. I love books!!!

Stampotique stamps. I absolutely adore these! They are so my style! I wanted the circle in the middle because it reminded me of my 3 kids.

So, right now my Etsy shop is closed. I am still trying to work on some new inventory but since I don't feel very energetic right now, it's hard to get motivated. I really miss doing it though, so I have to start back up at some point. I'll keep you updated. In the meantime, I have a few newsprint paper bags left, some little envelopes, and a few bottles of Glimmer Mist so if you want some just send me a message and we can work something out.

I signed up for an online class called Remains of the Day. It's taught by the cute and quirky Mary Ann Moss. I LOVE it! I cannot wait to make some journals. My husband also got me a Brother XL2600 sewing machine so I could make them. I have to get together with my grandma so she can show how to use it. I have no idea and the manual doesn't help. I am sewing machine illiterate. And it makes me really nervous!

Anyway-I don't know how often I'll be posting on here. Blogging in low on the priority list I'm sorry to say. So is my YouTube channel. I have 2 videos that will go up someday! One is part 3 of my travel journal kit. And the other is about downsizing my art studio. Hopefully they will be up sooner rather than later, but you never know!

Have a great rest of the weekend and I will see you soon!

Jamie

She's back!

2010-10-04T13:23:00.001-07:00

Here we are!

We are alive! Here are a few things that we have been up to.

Cute Addison!

Lion King Broadway show-Amazing!

Jack started preschool. He LOVES it! Isn't he a goof!

Sam started 1st Grade-he's getting so big!

Hanging out at Bear Lake. That's me with the book while everyone played. Great time!

Hiking in Logan Canyon. We've done a lot of hiking this summer. Definitely one of our favorite activities.

My girl likes to play in the dirt...

...and get all dressed up!

I'm participating in a Round Robin Journal Project set up by Paula (Journal Artista). This is the first Spread I did in July's journal. I love how it turned out. July is an amazing artist. I felt unworthy to work in her journal!

Here is my second spread in her journal. Love it!

I have Paula's journal now and the pages are coming along. This has been so much fun!

I've been working hard on orders and doing well there. I will have an update about my Etsy shop in a few days (hopefully).

And more posts to come!

See you soon! Jamie

Glimmer Mist on Etsy

2010-07-27T23:13:00.001-07:00

Glimmer Mist now available in my Etsy shop!

Yay!

Swatches of the colors coming soon!

Check it out!

Exciting news!

2010-07-16T20:02:00.001-07:00

Exciting News!!!!

Do you know what this is?

More info to come!!

Are you excited yet?

I am!

Good mail days

2010-06-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

Good Mail Days!

I put my address up on a mail art website recently when they were asking for people to write to each other. It has been so much fun! I have met some really cool people and I have a long list of people still to write to. Here are some things I've gotten so far.

This is not from the mail. But my good friend Robyn brought this over. I was so excited! I love this stuff! Thanks Robyn!

I'm ready for a quiet evening alone answering mail!

This first mail I received from this letter group! Vintage postcards from Christine!

So cool!

Awesome mail from Patty. I love how she recycled a used envelope. Cool idea! Her goal this year was to write 365 letters! And she is on track!

Inside she included some images to use on more mail art. And I really loved how her letter was written on advertisements from a magazine! I so have to try that! And it was an ad for Tiffany's no less! Y'all know how much I love tiffany's! I still haven't shown you my mother's day gift-from Tiffany's! I love my hubby. I'm getting off track!

This is from Marnie. Love that envelope! She's a sweetheart. I've got a package going out to her soon.

A little note from Stephanie with some goodies. So fun!

Here's a closer look at her envelope. I love it!

From Linda. She sent this little book and an amazing handbound, leather journal with handmade paper inside. So gorgeous! I felt spoiled and slightly unworthy. I still have to find something to send to her that is equally cool!

This mail stuff has been so much fun! i love talking to people around the country and I have the addresses of people in other countries also. So fun! I love how the internet can help people connect over miles and miles. I have met so many cool people! I'm doing a round robin art journal project with some ladies from YouTube and I know that when I am ready to start my own round robin project I have a bunch of people ready to participate. It's awesome!

CONTEST UPDATE! The final video for my art journal contest is coming. Be patient! It has been crazy since we've been back. It will be up probably by this weekend. I have gotten some message from people telling me they do not have a YouTube account but would like to participate. Since I am not the kind of person who would solicit subscribers with a contest I will make it more fair. Three people to leave a comment on the video that is coming and 3 people to leave a comment here on my blog with the same information (see contest rules). That way everyone can play! Yay!

Talk to you soon!

Of to the woods and contest

2010-06-15T06:37:00.001-07:00

Fun things!

First of all, look at my girlie girl walking around with bracelets on her arms. So cute! She looks so big! She's 15 months now. (That's crazy jack in the background.)

Second, check out my YouTube channel because I am having a contest. Here are the details:

Watch the 2 videos titles Yellowstone Art Journal Kit Parts 1 & 2.

Pay attention to the items I show (or talk about!).

When I return from my trip, I will make another video of what I've made while I was away.

Watch for the things that I showed in the 1st videos used on my pages.

The first 3 people to leave a comment on the 3rd video telling me SPECIFICALLY what they saw from the first videos and where I used it in the 3rd video will get a prize.

Anyone can play along-you don't have to be a subscriber (though I do love subscribers!).

**UPDATE: I will also give a prize to the first 3 people to leave a comment on this blog if you are unable to comment on the video. Please choose one or the other. Thanks!

So much fun! I know a lot of you are looking forward to the next video. I'm excited about your enthusiasm!

Lastly, we are headed off to the woods again!

See you in a week!

PS-I added my address to a mail blog and I got some mail yesterday! Ah! I was so excited! It was from a very sweet lady named Christine. I haven't taken photos yet. But there were 2 vintage postcards from 1946! So cool! I LOVE stuff like that! Yay!

Art Journal Process

2010-06-09T20:27:00.001-07:00

Art Journal Process

I got some new art materials in the mail yesterday and was very anxious to play with them. I started working on backgrounds, then was taken with a green page I had painted previously. It took off and I ended up going through the whole process and finishing it. I took photos along the way for you!

Here is a peek into how I work in my art journal:

Blank pages ready to go. I love using composition books. They are sturdy (though the pages are flimsy which can be remedied) and cheap. I don't feel bad doing whatever I want to them.

Here is how I remedy the situation with flimsy pages. I tear up random magazine pages and glue them onto the blank pages. It doesn't matter what is on them since the images will be covered up anyway. Then take a snack break-hehe!

Cover the magazine pieces completely with gesso or acrylic paint. I'm using gesso here. I have never used this type before and I'm not sure I like it for backgrounds in the AJ (art journal). It's too think. I'll just use it for texture on my mixed media paintings.

Allow the gesso or paint to dry completely. Here I am using a heat tool. I am incredibly impatient! :)

Apply paint with an old credit card, gift card, or palette knife. I love the way the paint goes on with these tools.

Spray watered down acrylic paint, glimmer mist (as I did here) or other spray ink and let it drip down the page. LOVE this look!

Choose collage elements.

That's as far as I got on that yellow page. Now I move on to the page that I finished last night. Still picking out collage pieces.

I tore the vintage book page into pieces without any thought, then adhered them using gel medium. The kind I'm using is Liquitex Matte Gel Medium. I love it. It is thick and smooth. For many months I used a gel medium from Golden and I didn't like it very much. I used it all up so I don't even have the jar to tell you exactly what it was. But I really love this one. And I don't have to use much so I think this jar will last a really long time. On this page there are also pieces of handmade paper and an image from The Graphics Fairy. I also added some old Basic Grey rub-ons randomly around. Again with the glimmer mist drips.

Next comes inking and random stamping. I love that Tim Holtz stamp.

Added some more random rub-ons and ink to the edges.

Add embellishments. I have not been able to break out of my comfort zone and add any really bulky embellishments. I still keep it flat. Here I added inked labels and an acetate butterfly. I thought the page needed some red to warm it up a little bit.

Added the title with Making Memories foam letter stamps and black acrylic paint.

Once the title was done, I thought the page was done and I could move on to the penwork. I added a quote with a black Sharpie poster paint pen. I LOVE these!

I outlined some of the elements with a black waterproof pen to give them more dimension.

Here's what it looks like with journaling added to it.

More pen work with a white Sharpie poster paint pen. Also some random white doodle swirls around.

The finished product! I love it!

Close up

I don't know why this one is blurry. Sorry! You can still see what I wanted you to see though. Notice the red smudges and red along the edge. I just added that with my finger--once again, to give it warmth.

So there you go! I hope it helps you. Let me know if you have any questions. I made a YT video about this page. It will be uploaded soon (I'm headed over there when I am done with this post!). Remember: BlackSunJamie is my name over there.

Have a good night! Go make something! And then come back and show me! :)

Some videos about me!

2010-05-24T15:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some links to videos about me! Rather--they are videos about some of my projects and products that I sell!

Check it out!

Jules
Tammy
Yolanda Fast forward to 4:50!
Denise Fast forward to 5:38!

Also, if you haven't seen my YouTube videos, check them out! They are terrible and I am a dork! But they will get better, I promise! I am currently trying to do some tehnique videos--art journaling, tag making and perhaps some scrapbooking. Keep an eye out for those! I've already had a few requests for videos. If you have any other requests let me know.

Have a great day!

National Geographic and Art Journaling

2010-05-13T21:54:00.001-07:00

This is MY Son

This is my son. He brings home these little books from school that he's supposed to read. They are so stupid! "Pam and Pat take a nap in the pot." Shoot me now!

The other night I walked past his room and this is what I see:

Yeah, that's my boy. Straight to the good stuff.

He's 6, by the way.

(On a side note, we had a great time Monday night watching Nova together. We are both fascinated by Tornados!)

My username on YouTube and Etsy is BlackSunJamie. I've been looking for a sun stamp that I could use to "sign" my projects and things. I could never find one that wasn't cartoonish with a smiley face. So I carved my own. I see a lot of mistakes, but it works for me. I may eventually end up with a collection of sun stamps. I LOVE carving stamps. It's so fun!

Here are some bits from the art journal page I worked on the other day. The page I chose was painted with grey acrylics to begin with. Then I sprayed it with Haunted Shadows Glimmer Mist. I dabbed some off then sprayed again. This drip in the corner was done with watered down black acrylic paint. I again dabbed some of the wetness off, dripped some more, dabbed some off etc to get the layered look.

The shiny crackle was done with Ranger Rock Candy Distress Crackle paint.

I really love the way the background turned out. I seem to gravitate toward framing my pages with a darker color and then gather images and text within those borders. You can see the random stamping. I was just trying out some stamps.

Stamping layered over the paint and a photo.

Some more of the distress crackle paint in the other corner. All the edges of the photos and text are torn. I love the look and it is symbolic.

More stamping, the edge of a photo etc. I love my stamps to sort of make a place for something to go. For instance the mesh seems to frame the corner of the photo.

Anyway-I hope you enjoyed that peek. There will be more art journal goodness to come!

PS-I totally sold out of all my paper bags this last week (like within 5 days!). A new shipment of Newsprint paper bags arrived today so there will be an Etsy update early next week! Keep an eye out!

A post with no photo

2010-05-05T16:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry

Here is a post with no photo. I do not have access to iPhoto right now, but I really wanted to post this.

A great quote from "Harriet the Spy":

"There are as many ways to live as there are people in the world. And each one deserves a closer look."

I have no time for people who shut others out and judge without reason.

I hate cliques.

Update

2010-05-05T12:48:00.000-07:00

Update on yesterday's post

Let me tell you a little about my life. I have 3 kids (obviously) and I rarely get to do something from start to finish. It usually happens in small chunks.

So yesterday, it took me about 3 hours to get that post written and posted. By the time I was done, it was sunny and warm. I didn't want to change the whole theme of my post, so I published it. Some of you may have been confused as you read about rain and saw only sunshine outside. That is why!

R-Jay said it just goes to show that things will turn around if you just wait long enough. So true.

In the end it turned out to be a pretty good day.

Since I don't really like posts with no photos,

here are just a couple cute photos for you to enjoy.

Addison and her cousin who is only 2 months younger than her.

My cute boys!

Today

2010-05-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

Today

is cloudy and trying to rain.

I had a sad dream about a lost friend that I haven't seen in years and still love tremendously.

Today is kind of a down day.

Because of that, I will be doing some work in my art journal. I will be working on some personal topics so I probably won't share the pages. Perhaps there will be pieces that I can share. We'll see.

Right now, I'll share some of the things that make me happy these days.

This is what I got for my birthday from my sweet family:

a block of watercolor paper

white acrylic artist's ink

Cotman watercolors

a BUNCH of carving blocks (I've been without any for many months so I am excited!)

My first painting

Remember--I am not a professional!!

But I'm proud of it.

A cute page of Addison

Addison's Room

A very simple page about a trip to Bear Lake. I love all the kids lined up like that!

The other day, R-Jay had Addison in the backpack. He said she started fussing and crying and when he looked back he saw her feet! She had gotten her legs out of the leg holes and gotten into a "V" position. Then, of course, she couldn't get out. When he showed me I just started laughing and instead of helping her I got my camera (of course!). She is quite rambunctious!

Here is a link to one of my favorite YouTube movies. It makes me smile and sometimes cry a little (Shhh, don't tell anyone!). I like to think that we would be friends with these people.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

2010-04-23T09:59:00.000-07:00

Look at this girl!!!

Is this really my baby? She is more and more like a little girl every day!

(And, yes, Mom needs to practice doing little girl hair!)

She loved it!

She even sat still while I was putting them in.

I love her goofy crooked smile!

Have a great Friday! :)

2010-04-22T06:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day!

Have a great day and enjoy all the beautiful things the Lord has put on this earth for us!

A favorite scripture:

"Yea, all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart; Yea, for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul. And it pleaseth God that he hath given all these things unto man; for unto this end were they made to be used, with judgement, not to excess, neither by extortion."

Doctrine and Covenants 59:18-20

Hello!

2010-04-17T14:18:00.000-07:00

What have we been up to?

So much!!

My Etsy business is doing well. I have had my first international sales this week. It's been interesting working out all the details of international shipping.

I've started making YouTube videos. I never wanted to because I am such a dork! But it's a great way to advertise my Etsy shop. And I have made some good friends. It's so much fun--such a fun talented community of scrapbookers. Check out my channel if you want a laugh. There's only one up right now, but I have about 5 in line to be posted.

I have joined another online community of scrapbookers called Life on the {Scrap} Beach. It's awesome! I cannot believe how many people I've met in the couple of weeks I've been a member. I'm doing a swap with someone right now (she sends me a box of scrapbook stuff and I send her a box of stuff). They have virtual crops once a month which are so fun. I stopped in on the one for April and it is so cool. I've donated some paper bags for prizes for the May crop. It's all things scrapbooking with people who are as passionate as I am (something I have been looking for for a long time and have not been able to find since we moved to Tooele!).

Preparing for the Book Club that I am hosting this month. The Devil and Miss Prym. Beautiful book! Can't wait to talk about it with educated, kind women! I love this book group!

We spent a good part of the day last Saturday at Murray Park. Such a gorgeous day. We played on the playground, went for a walk along the river, ate a yummy lunch,

found a cool tree to play under,

and to take ugly pictures of ourselves under. Hehe! I really love this hat by the way!

I participated in a bottle swap hosted by Yolanda (yoliebean) on YouTube. We filled a 2 liter bottle with stuff and sent it to your partner. It was so fun to go collect the mail and see this bottle sitting next to my mailbox.

My partner was Michelle and she LOADED this bottle. It was amazing how much stuff she got in there.

These papers are gorgeous! That black and brown damask has a wallpaper like texture. I LOVE it!

Lots of fun goodies!

A close up of all the yumminess!

Addison took her first steps on Sunday! It was awesome! It is just as exciting when it's baby #3 as it was for baby #1!

Sam lost a tooth on Sunday during Primary. He was so excited. His teacher told me after that he wanted to come right then and tell me but she convinced him to stay unto class was over.

Life is sometimes so fun. I never thought I would be (nor did I want to be) married with 3 kids. But I am here where God wants me to be and there is no other life I would ever want to have. We are so blessed!

Life is so good!

Big Sale!

2010-03-30T12:04:00.000-07:00

Big Cape Sale! *CLOSED*

My husband is having a HUGE sale on his website on April 1st only!

You won't believe this: 50% off everything! His capes are amazing. My kids love to play in theirs. He can do all kinds of custom shields (like the pony one for our friend). They are awesome! They come in kid sizes, adult sizes, baby sizes and dog sizes.

Go check it out!

Remember the sale ends at 11:59 PM MST April 1st! So hurry!

This one is my favorite!

Have a great day!

Random Art Journal Pages

2010-03-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Random Art Journal Pages

Here are some pages to look at on this cold (and SNOWY!!) Spring (really?) day.

Quote says "The answer was always right in front of her...she just forgot to look."

Unfinished but I like it so far.

I was playing around with layers on this one and it turned out SO cool. I may just leave it blank.

I used black embossing powder around the edges of this one. So neat looking. I love it.

(I don't remember who this quote came from!)

There you go. I hope you enjoyed and that it makes you want to go play!

March?

2010-03-14T08:16:00.000-07:00

March?

When we returned last night from a day in Salt Lake (to see Brian Regan!), this is what we found. So much snow!! I know we have another week until it's officially Spring, but still. This much? Ech.

I hope it's warmer where you are!! :)

Close up of Mariposa papers

2010-03-12T16:34:00.001-08:00

*This kit is sold! Thanks!*

Detail Photos of Mariposa Papers

These are close-up views of the papers that are in the Mariposa Mini Album kit on my Etsy shop.

So very beautiful!

Enjoy!

This one is turned. Oops!

Is this enough paper or what!! Love it!

2010-03-09T19:32:00.000-08:00

The (Mostly) Completed Album

Here is the finished product!

Here we go!

Fibers, ribbons and lace attached to the binding rings. There are also several cute charms. I love the Tim Holtz fragment charm with her photo attached.

I wanted to leave the cover quite plain so as not to overwhelm my favorite paper.

Note: If there is a page that was shown in the previous post that does not show up here, it is because no changes were made to it.

I love this page. That quote makes me want to cry every time I read it. It's so fitting. The paper was white when I got it. I inked it with Tim Holtz Walnut Stain Distress Ink. You can't really tell in the photo, but I covered it with Rock Candy Distress Stickles. It looks awesome!

Cute simple page.

Cute page about the hospital. A few charms added. The fibers on the edge were tied through eyelets attached to the edge of the papers.

This page is sideways-Sorry! Here is one side of the transparency.

Here is the other side. Love the way this turned out.

I love this page with the little envelope. It says "Adore" embossed ingold on the front. The back has a cute photo of me and Addison. It just slips into the pocket which is help shut with a piece of velcro and then has a cute butterfly die cut on the edge.

I love this page. This is the cover of the paper bag pockets.

One of the inner pages.

The second page. Then the paper bags open to hold tags (which I have not added yet).

Cute pocket page with the chipboard butterfly inserted. I'm not sure what to put on it yet. Maybe just journaling on the back.

Cute page with silly sleeping photos. This tag was white but I distressed it the same as the first one.

Adorable photo. Slips into the pocket made from the lace.

Simple collage page, lots of photos.

I love this photo of her. I kept this page simple also. It is a piece of glitter cardstock. I cut a gold doily in half and added the halves to the side as a type of border.

I used a small file folder as a template to make this file folder out of one of the Mariposa papers. A chipboard flourish is covered with black paint and then gold paint. I then added UTEE and glass microbeads. Looks pretty cool. I could practice that technique more in order to do it better, but it's ok. I love the butterfly accent and the lace on the edge.

The file opens to show photos from her blessing day.

The final page of the album is a photo of me, Addison, my mom and my grandmother. Four generations of women--so fun.

So, there is the album. It was so fun to make and I love the final product. My main objective when I make something is that I want to look at it again and again. And that is the case with this. Awesome!

Sneak Peek

2010-03-08T16:08:00.000-08:00

Addison's Mini Album

(A sneak peek)

For Jack's first birthday, I made an altered board book which showed all of his changes during the first year. It showed first teeth, first solid foods, etc.

I loved making it and I wanted to do the same thing for Addison. As I write this, her birthday is past and this book is completed (mostly). But I have not taken photos of the completed book yet. So you are getting the before pictures.

I love interactive pages

These small pages are made with small black paper bags from Michaels. The ends open up as pockets.

Beautiful transparency from Anna Griffin. Love that cameo button.

Frame from Michaels. A photo will be inserted into that frame.

Here is the cover. So Beautiful!

I will be getting the final product photographed soon so you can see it. I love it so much! I showed it to family at her birthday party and everyone thought it was amazing. I put a lot of time into it and I hope Addison likes to look at it as she gets older.

(We pulled out Jack's book as a bit of inspiration and he has since kept it on his bookshelf. He looks at it every night! So cute!)

2010-03-05T08:00:00.000-08:00

My baby is one!

Today is Addison's first birthday. I can't believe it. I clearly remember being in labor with her. That was an amazing experience. And she has been a sweet ray of sunshine in our lives ever since.

Look at that face! You can see why we are all completely smitten!

Sweet baby girl!

See new post below Etsy update!

2010-02-19T20:17:00.001-08:00

Check Below!

The most recent post ended up beneath the Etsy Update post. Sorry! It's a long COOL one so check it out!

Update to Etsy

2010-02-18T10:45:00.000-08:00

Etsy Update

I found these really awesome paper bags and I am selling some bundles on my Etsy store for only $2.00!! There are 25 in a pack. They are 6" x 9". If you would like to order some, head on over there (there is a link on the sidebar to the right). They are so great for mini albums and mixed media art stuff. So cool!! Also, if you want more than 25 you can order as many as you'd like. Just email me and I can give you a price quote. I cannot wait to get started using these. I think a mini will be happening this weekend using these. I'll show you when I'm done!

SF Travel Journal

2010-02-11T08:47:00.000-08:00

San Francisco Travel Journal

Here is the journal I took to San Francisco in September. We celebrated our 10 year Anniversary by splurging on a big trip. It was awesome. We were gone for 5 days and my parents watched our kids (so nice of them!).

So before we left, I inked some of the pages and added images I found in books and on the internet. The purpose of doing that was to make the pages interesting to begin with. I find that when the pages are visually interesting to start with, I am more inclined to use the journal. That is true for not only travel journals, but my daily journal as well.

I started writing in it before we left. For instance, I started a packing list in there. I had a page for our flight information, a page for tour car rental information, a page for our Alcatraz tickets, etc. Those pages included order dates and confirmation numbers, as well as any specific instructions--like when to arrive for the Alcatraz ferry etc. Anything about those specific activities that we needed to remember. That way I had all the information in one location without having to worry about a pile of several papers floating around. It worked out very well.

Here is a page at the very back about stopping in Santa Barbara to write postcards to our kids.We mailed them from SB so the kids had them when we got home. I kept the postcards and clipped them in the back. I normally would put them into the kids journals, but R-Jay had done some cute sketches on each one and I wanted to make sure they were preserved with this album.

I really love lists. When I go on a trip, I make a list before I start packing so I know that I won't forget anything. I also like to remember what I take with me after the trip. So this is a photo I took of all the things I take in my day bag--the bag I take when we are out and about. Then of course there is the list next to it. (Confession: I REALLY love watching "What's in my purse/bag" videos on YouTube and looking at those kinds of photos on Flickr. So this kind of photo makes me excited. I'm a dork! )

This is a really simple pages with some of the highlights of Fisherman's Wharf.

A page about the city at dusk. So beautiful!!

This page is about hanging out at Stearn's Wharf in Santa Barbara. That "Beach" square is an old chipboard coaster from years ago (Lil Davis, I believe). I used foam dots to mount it up and make it into a pocket. Then the Making Memories tag could slip behind it. There is a bulleted list on the front of the tag and then another photo and journaling on the back.

More about Stearn's Wharf.

This page was very fun to make. I was really excited to bring this travel journal on the trip. I normally just take random notes on a trip and keep all the tickets and pamphlets and things. Then when I get home, I make a scrapbook page or sometimes I never get around to doing anything. But this time I wanted to actually keep the journal while I was there. So I brought a few things with me. Basically a small letter stamp set, some glue, pens, small ink pads, a letter stencil, watercolor travel set, some small travel themed stickers and rub-ons, small scissors, some watercolor paper I cut down to 4" x6". It was really fun having all the stuff there so I could work on it while we were out and about or back at the hotel. I learned a lot from this experiment and I am excited for the next trip to try again.

This is a page about one of my favorite restaurants on California. This particular one is on the pier at Redondo Beach. Love it. We had a table next to a window where we could watch the waves roll onto the shore. So beautiful!! You can't see it but under the receipt is a photo of some people fishing off the pier. After we ate, we watched them for a while. One guy caught 2 weird flat things. My dad said they were some kind of shark, but I can't remember the name. We also saw sea lions swimming all around the pier.

This is a simple page about the nice anniversary dinner we had. I did not have any photos for this page but I just embellished it with small scraps of paper (red dot at the bottom) and some stamps.

A simple page about Chinatown. We did not stay there very long but it was fascinating while we were there.

I am a makeup geek. I had so much fun going to Sephora. It's one of my favorite stores. We don't have any in Utah so I make sure to go whenever we go somewhere that does have them.

This is a really cool page--very simple but cool. I had a few photos of this beach near Golden Gate Park that I wanted to include. I didn't want to use multiple pages though so I glued the bottom photo onto the page, then added the next photo with the glue just on the top and attached just above the other photo. I did that again for the final photo. I'm able to lift up the top photo to see the next and so on. It looks awesome!

Here is a simple page. I printed this picture from the internet, then while on the trip I added this map of Golden Gate Park. It was too long for the page so I folded it in half and added a tab. The list on the left page is how I remembered what we did each day. I just made a quick list as we went along and then added detailed entries later. (See my little helper Jack?)

The title page.

Some photos of the book all fat and beautiful!! :)

That green tab was off of the file folder I used to store all our travel information before the trip. You can use anything!

I hope you enjoyed seeing this little experiment. I really liked doing it and is so fun to look at now. One of my intentions was to have both me and R-Jay write in while on the trip. But of course that did not happen (he didn't really care all that much). He wrote a few sentences here and there once I got the book done after the trip. I love him anyway! :)

Have a great day!

Quick update

2010-01-18T14:17:00.000-08:00

I have not been able to get into the groove of blogging again. I have a list of ideas to talk about, but I can't seem to force myself to sit down and write anything.

I just wanted to write a quick update to let you all know what is going on with us.

First of all, we are well (not entirely since we all have some kind of cold). Christmas was fun. Addison didn't know what to think of it all but the boys had a blast of course. This is a cute photo taken before church on December 26th.

R-Jay's working on a big project at work. He's been terribly busy lately. He is still tutoring at the USU extension center. I have taken a paper route to have something to do, make a little bit of money and teach the kids about work and paying tithing. It's been a lot of fun so far. The kids love it.

I have been trying to get up at 6 am so I have time to workout and read my scriptures (2 things that have been missing from my schedule for a little while). I have not been perfect at it, but I try. And I have to say, I love the way exercising makes me feel. But I HATE getting up early. Some people have the hardest time with the getting out of bed part but once they are up, they are fine. Not me. It is hard getting out of bed, then I am groggy for about 3 hours after.

I will be posting my new year's resolutions soon. I also have tons of art journal photos and scrapbooking photos to share. My creativity has picked up after a long hiatus. I'm excited about that. I'm working a lot in my art journal and I have some goals regarding that. That will be in another post also. But it's been a lot of fun and I am energized again.

Well, that is all I can think of right now. Hopefully, you will hear from me again soon!

2009-12-03T13:07:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the Absence!

I have been so so busy the last few months. I'm telling you ahead of time, I will not be posting much in the next few weeks. Once things settle down after the holidays I will get back into regular blogging. Sorry about that!

Here are some random fun photos for you to enjoy! :)

Addison on Halloween (So cute!)

Sam and Jack on Halloween

Those are the pumpkins we grew this year.

Me and my boys

Addison on her new mattress (finally sleeping in her own room! I procrastinate because I love my babies close to me!)

Jared Leto with 30 Seconds to Mars (Concert with Tavia this week). So cool!

Reenacting the Nativity with my extended family.

Have a wonderful season and I'll be back when I can!

2009-09-30T10:46:00.000-07:00

Hey there!

Here are some photos from our recent trip to San Francisco. It was our 10 year anniversary so we decided to do a big trip. We were gone for 5 days. It was so hard to be away from the kids for that long. But we had a good time. SF is certainly in our top 5 favorite cities! I'll post more photos at another time. Enjoy!

Beautiful cityscape at dusk, as seen from Coit Tower.

Nasty fish in Chinatown.

Golden Gate Bridge on a foggy cold night.

Alcatraz tour--so awesome!!

Here we are--10 years. A lot has happened in those 10 years (and it shows on our faces! Look at those wrinkles!).

This is what I've been thinking too

2009-08-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

This post (August 19th) at Holy Experience is what I've been thinking about a lot lately. The chaos of our crazy life with 5 people (and the stuff, schedules, stress, emotions, choices, heartbreaks, etc. that go along with them) has been wearing on me. I have been terribly unhappy lately--feeling overwhelmed and under--appreciated and like less of a person than I (deep down) know I am. Haven't we ALL felt that way at some time in our lives?

I came across this post this morning and felt an instant uplift because I have been thinking along the same lines. Ever since our stake conference last weekend, I've had so many thoughts running through my head. Mostly about scripture study, prayer, conversion and turning our lives over to God--completely. It is interesting that it coincides perfectly with our preparations to sell our house and move because we are completely following promptings from the spirit. He is guiding us down this path. We don't know what it holds or what the outcome will be, but we feel peace and trust Him. It's been an amazing experience so far. And I feel the hope beginning to return to my heart.

Have a great day everyone!

PS--I've added some more inspiring links to the side so check them out!

hey there!

2009-08-17T11:09:00.001-07:00

I am not dead! I have been so crazy busy lately. I can't seem to get my thoughts together to even post anything!

Here are some random photos of some of the goings on in the last few weeks.

There are some big changes happening here. I'll post more another time. Let's just say it has to do with packing things up, selling or giving away A LOT of stuff, and meeting with our real estate agent! Very excited to see what might happen in the next few months!

R-Jay and Sam at the Oquirrh Mountain temple openhouse.

Sam had two permanent teeth growing behind his baby teeth so the babies had to be pulled out. He was such a trooper and so excited by the first visit from the tooth fairy!

A fun trip to Bear Lake. The boys stayed at the beach all day. Addison liked to hang out at the beach as long as she was not touching sand or water! Silly girl! Is she really a part of this family? :)

Have a beautiful day everyone!

Thoughts on Simplicity

2009-07-15T20:11:00.001-07:00

Simplicity

I want simplicity, not minimalism.

I want to know what is in my closet. I want to know that all the clothes in my closet fit me well and that I wear them all. That when I get dressed, I can just pull something out and know what it goes with and how it will look on me.

I want to know that all the purses I own are ones I love and use regularly.

I want to always be able to find a pen because there are lots of them around.

I want to know where every bill is, when it's due and that I have the money waiting at any time to pay it.

I want to know where my keys, phone and purse are at all times.

I want to be able to have a place where I can sit during quiet moments and worship, where my scriptures and journal are waiting.

I want to know right where everything is because there is not an overwhelming amount of stuff to take care of.

I want everything I own to fit comfortably in my house.

Have a good evening!

PS-Michele: Here is another good scripture. Psalms 93:3-4

Scrapbook pages and Randomness

2009-07-11T20:58:00.001-07:00

Scrapbook Pages and Random thoughts

(The best kind of thoughts?)

As promised, here are some really cute layouts I made last week. They turned out exactly as I had them in my mind. Most of the time, I can't scrapbook when I want. I have to wait until the housework is done or the kids are in bed. So I think about it. I plan layout designs and colors, inventory my stash and decide what I am going to use. Then when I sit own to work I know where I want it to go. That's how these pages came about. And I think that perhaps that amount of thinking and arranging helped them turn out so good.

This first one is going to be titled "Summer Girls". It's me and Addison sitting outside watching the boys run through the sprinkler. I really love all the different patterns together. That's one of my favorite techniques.

This second layout is going to be titled "Our sunshine girl." Because she is so happy most of the time and so smiley. I haven't put the titles on yet but I really wanted to get this posted so imagine them in your mind's eye!

This of course is my cute girl. This was taken just this afternoon.

Now for the randomness:

Toward the end of June I was reading some of my favorite blogs. I came across one (I apologize, but I cannot remember which one it was!) that really got me thinking. I immediately grabbed my journal and started writing about it. I wanted to share it here and see what you all think.

Here was the question:

Does seeing too much (tv, books, magazines, art, blogs, etc) contaminate us as artists? Does it negatively impact what we create, making it less pure?

My answer (taken straight from my journal):

Art is about taking pieces of our world and creating something that expresses what's in our soul. An artist is someone who takes what's inside themselves and what's in the world they live in and combines them together into something that is uniquely theirs. The only time the art becomes less pure, less authentic is when one tries to copy or imitate someone else's art. Then it is not really one's own. But learning from others, experimenting with techniques or processes or materials, that's part of the artist's journey. That's part of the fun! Everything we see combines into our own art, in our own way.

What's your answer to that question?

Have a great weekend!

Quick reading list!

2009-07-09T14:06:00.000-07:00

Quick Reading List and Photo

Here's a quick list of books I like:

The Alchemist

-Paulo Coehlo

So Big

-Edna Ferber

-Anything by Phillipa Gregory

The Bell Jar

-Sylvia Plath

Mrs. Dalloway

-Virgina Woolfe

We were the Mulvaneys

-Joyce Carol Oates

The Poisonwood Bible

-Barbara Kingsolver

Stargirl

-Jerry Spinelli

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

-Betty Smith

Anthem

-Ayn rand

Secret Life of Bees

-Sue Monk Kidd

This is a short list. I might post a few more of these over the coming weeks. There are always so many books I enjoy and since I am always looking for new books to read I though maybe some of you are too!

Here is a photo from our recent trip to Yellowstone! This is at Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park. SO Gorgeous!

Have a beautiful day!

Enjoying Summer!

2009-06-29T15:53:00.001-07:00

I love Summer!

We are enjoying the warm weather here! It's been gorgeous! Ahhh--Sunshine is good for my soul! (Hence my nickname.)

Here are the girls watching the boys play at the park

My silly kids!

Addison is Adorable!!!

Arches Trip

2009-06-09T08:28:00.000-07:00

Arches National Park

This trip was so awesome!

R-Jay and I love Southern Utah. But we haven't been back for at least 8 years!

So we decided it was time to show our kids a place we love.

We stayed at the KOA in Moab in a Kamping Kabin. So much fun! I highly recommend it

We hiked, and played in the dirt, and watched movies in our little cabin.

R-Jay hiked the Devil's Garden trail early Friday morning while I hung out at the cabin with the kids.

I was sad to come home!

Here are some awesome photos!

Looking up at Double Arch

Rock art just outside of Moab

It was so windy on Friday. Sam had fun at the Park Avenue overlook.

A great view of Double Arch

Sand Dune Arch--Awesome trail for kids!

Sam on the trail to Balanced Rock--he and I hiked this trail together. So fun!

On the way to Sand Dune Arch! Unfortunately the wind was blowing hard, whipping the sand around and into our eyes!

Jack's cute feet!

Jack at the base of Skyline Arch. He and I hiked this trail together. He and I had such a good time!

Addison this last Sunday (sorry it's stuck in the middle here. You know me and Blogger!).

Jack and I on the Skyline Arch trail.

My boys at the opening to the Sand Dune Arch trail.

Addison looking very serious after lunch--look at those eyes!

Everyone at the base of Double Arch. They loved climbing on the rocks underneath the arch. It gave me a bit if a heart attack though! The slickrock was pretty steep!

There will be more photo to come, I'm sure. There are so many good ones! And I'll show pictures of the mini book I make about the trip.

This trip was so good!

watch this video!

2009-05-31T19:58:00.001-07:00

If you are a woman, you need to watch this video!!

This girl is beautiful and inspiring! I am going to watch this every single day, at least once! :)

And I say in response--HELL YEA!

Have a beautiful day!

Prosthetic Toenail

2009-05-20T13:56:00.000-07:00

Prosthetic Toenail

A few weeks ago, the front panel from one of our kitchen drawers fell off and landed on my toe. I had to go to the doctor where they drilled a hole in my toenail and drained the stuff out. It has taken forever to get better. Well, finally, while at the cabin, the nail fell off completely!! It was kind of gross, though not as bad as I expected. I won't frighten you with a photo, though I did take one. It feels so much better. But now I have no toenail. I was talking to R-Jay about it last night, telling him that I am so upset and worried that the toenail might not grow back in. And do you know why I am so worried? BECAUSE MY PEDICURE WOULD BE MESSED UP FOREVER!!

Yes-you can laugh at me. I asked R-jay if he thought there was such a thing as a prosthetic toenail. He laughed at me. I was only half joking! Anyway-I am glad my toe is finally healing, and praying that the toenail grows in fine.

I'm a dork. I know.

I'm ok with that.

Cabin trip

2009-05-20T13:38:00.000-07:00

Cabin Trip

Our trip to Island park and Yellowstone was fun. There was still a bit of snow (a lot in the back). It was not terribly cold though. We had a fun time in Yellowstone. We did not see a bear-we have some built in bear repellent I think. For at least the last two years, my parents and sister have seen bears but we never have. Dumb! Apparently they have been having a lot of troubles with Grizzlies in Island Park, especially near Macks Inn. Which, by the way, is at the bottom of the hill from our cabin! One incident happened just on April 30 only a few block from our cabin and on the same street as my Aunt and Uncle's cabin. Last year they had a notice posted in their door that said a bear had been spotted near their cabin and they needed to take precautions. Crazy! Needless to say, we were a little hesitant to spend too much time outside. R-Jay had to go out after dark a couple times and he came running in all freaked out. He's so cute.

Addison is adorable of course!

These babies were also adorable!

Elk at Mammoth Hot Springs picnic area

Porcelain Basin trail

Part of that same trail.

All in all it was a fun trip. Anyone who has small kids knows that a vacation with kids is not really a vacation. It's just like being at home only harder because you are in a different place. We had fun though. We played games, watched movies, ate yummy food, saw beautiful areas. We are going back the middle of June for an entire week. Fun!

Prayers please!

2009-05-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

Prayers for baby Cody! My nephew was born 2 days ago and is still in the hospital with some problems. Thanks for your faith!

Art Share

2009-05-12T13:38:00.000-07:00

Art!

Here are some of our latest projects!

My Mother's Day cards:

My pig from Sam--he's so funny!

This is from Jack. (R-Jay helped a bit)

A page about my favorite birthday present EVER!!

Isn't my Hubby sweet!?

This is a close up of the large color block so you can see the detail better.

Another close up.

Products used-- Cardstock: Close to My Heart (Black), Prism (Turqouise); Transparency: Hambly; Letter Stickers: American Crafts; Stamps and ink: Close To My Heart; Jewels: Close To My Heart; Pen: Zig writer.

I am loving doing pages for Addison. I love all the pink stuff! Crazy!

A close up of the this cute butterfly

Products used--Patterned Paper: BasicGrey (dark pink), CK Kit of the Month (pink grid); Transparency: Hambly; Letter Stickers: Making Memories; Velvet ribbon: Unknown; Paper border strips: Making Memories; "Love" Epoxy Sticker: Unknown; Butterfly die cut: Amy Butler for K & Company; Glitter Glue: Ranger; Scallop die cut: Amy Butler for K & Company; White Gel Pen: Sakura; Chipboard monogram: Close to My Heart.

A layout about how much I love R-Jay's hands.

Part of the journaling talks about when I first saw him sculpt.

We were not officially dating yet (though we both knew it was serious).

He was working on an assignment for school at USU.

I was in the studio waiting for him to finish.

I watched the way his hands moved almost on their own, how gently he touched the material as he worked.

Wow!

I really loved him that night!

Close up of some details. I LOVE layers.

Products used--Cardstock: Close to My Heart; Patterned paper: BasicGrey (green), Unknown (white strip); Transparencies: Hambly (green brick), My Minds Eye (flourish); Brads and Screwhead eyelets: Making Memories; Letter stickers: American Crafts; Pen: Zig Writer.

Hope you enjoyed that!

I want to share my work more often!

I have some Close to My Heart demos coming up so I will get those posted soon!

Family Art Day

2009-05-11T14:22:00.000-07:00

Family Art Day

I was feeling kind of sorry for myself Friday night because my art journal retreat had to be postponed. It's also coming up on the time I was scheduled to go on a Watercolor Journaling field trip to the Channel Islands in California. I cancelled that trip when I found out I was pregnant. Since Addison came 5 weeks early, I would have been able to go! These 2 things prompted a Family Art Day. R-Jay and I have been talking about this for a while--having time set aside on a regular basis for us all to work on art projects together. It was first inspired by Amanda Soule. (They recently had a family draw night which added to my desire to do this.) Since it was such a beautiful day on Saturday, we put up the table and all headed out. Here's what we worked on:

Addison sleeping--she loves it outside! (She's my girl!)

Jack just messing around--he's not really into art! Where did he come from?

Sam's clay "projects"

Art journaling

R-Jay sculpting

(doesn't he have such SEXY hands!! It's one of the first things that made me fall in love with him!)

All in all it was a great afternoon. The weather was perfect, we had a fun time. R-Jay and I got some things done. It felt good to do something that fit with the "culture" of our family. This is important to us (obviously!).

Have a great day!

PS--Hi Russ!

Oops!

2009-05-04T12:32:00.000-07:00

For some reason the post I just published was put in between a couple previous ones. The date is wrong also. Weird! You know me and my blogger issues! Anyway-look below for the newest post (silly baby photo!). Sorry!

Addison's blessing

2009-04-27T17:25:00.000-07:00

Blessing Day

Yesterday was Addison's blessing at church. It's basically where the new baby is given a name and a special blessing. It can be quite a beautiful and emotional thing sometimes. It's also a time to present the baby to everyone and kind of celebrate their entrance into the world in a more reverent kind of way. So lovely.

Super cute little shoes

My sister Jen and her husband Chandler

(This will be them soon! Only with a little boy!)

Proud grandparents (my parents) with their first granddaughter

Super proud Mama!

Is this girl gorgeous or what!!?

This dress is extra special for 2 reasons: First, the lace overlay was cut from my mom's wedding dress. How beautiful is that? Second, Addison's grandma (R-Jay's stepmom, Colleen) made the dress! I was so pleased with it. She is so talented! Isn't the dress stunning?

It was a great day. I was grateful that R-Jay was able to give the blessing. I was also so happy that so many friends and family were able to come out and see us. There were several friends that I have not seen for a long time and that I love dearly (Hey Lib, Deb, and Ed!). It was a wonderful day.

Happy Birthday!

2009-04-25T11:11:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to me!

Have a Great Day!

Here are some cool videos:

This is Beautiful

This is fun

This is inspiring

Hi from Addison

2009-04-20T12:09:00.000-07:00

HI!

From Addison!

More photos of projects coming soon!

Cute baby!

2009-04-20T12:01:00.000-07:00

Hey there!

She's 7 weeks old! Crazy!

The beginnings of smiles!

She's making good eye contact. She loves to watch people talk.

My little baby doll

Look at her eyes!

Can you tell I like this girl?

(Sometimes I compare her to other babies her age and wonder if she's developing ok. Then I remind myself--she was 5 weeks early!! I smile and say a little prayer of gratitude. She's doing ok--actually she's doing pretty dang good!)

Album Part 2

2009-04-20T11:20:00.001-07:00

Album

Here are the rest of the photos I have of Addison's album

I love this page!

I still need to put a title on the right side

I love this strawberry paper (I can't remember what company it is). Ignore how HORRIBLE I look in the bottom photo. I was VERY tired-too tired to do anything that morning but get dressed!

This page is so funny because there is one just like it in Jack's album--the appointment card attached to the story. I cannot believe it happened twice! Weird! It was sad too because this would have been the first time R-Jay was able to come to the doctor with me. So instead of meeting my OB-GYN at this appointment he met him in the delivery room!

I love looking at all these pages and remembering those first days.

The majority of the papers and stickers are from the BasicGrey "Eva" and "Urban Prairie" collections. Some KI Memories (chipboard shapes), My Mind's Eye (rub-ons and crown transparency), Making Memories (pink decorative edge paper), Pebbles in my Pocket (baby postage stickers).

Addison's album

2009-04-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

Cute Album

Part 1

Here are some photos of the 6x6 album I made for Addison. I had made one for Jack right after he was born. It included details of his birth, the time in the hospital, his new home and the first few days. I loved having all that stuff in one place, especially in the first weeks after his birth. I wanted to do the same thing for Addison. So I got an album (We R Memory Keepers 6x6 3 ring album in Kiwi), picked some papers that coordinated and started putting an album together. I was pre-making the pages so that when she was born all I had to do was add the photos and journaling. The colors were brown, sage green and turquoise. I loved the paper (it had trees and little deer on it!) and the few pages I made were cute. But when she was born, I could not use it. I had to have pink! So I went to the store and bought all girly stuff. I loved it! It was the 1st time I got to buy girl scrapbook stuff. I bought a new album (that same size and style) in purple to match her 12x12 album. So here are some of the pages. I will put more in part 2--I want to show off almost all of them!

I really liked the way Jack's looked so I did the same for Addison.

Details of her new home, including her room.

These are just some cute photos. The page on the right side will be journaling about my general impressions of her first days.

Adorable!

Big brother Jack

I love this photo. I love to see all the pages--so full of bits of her life.

Hers and Jack's side by side. I need to add more misc photos into Jack's. I've been thinking I need to try to go back and make something similar for Sam. I'm not sure I still have much from his birth, but I can try so he has one too.

There you have some of this cute album. I love making such small pages. It is a little challenging, but if you can print out smaller size photos (I like 2x3 for this size book), then it can be really fun. I find that the pages come together really quick because there is less space to fill. And I love having such a small book that I can take to show people or that can sit on a shelf in our house to easily flip through.

Have a great day everyone!

Me today

2009-04-02T13:19:00.000-07:00

Me Today

(Ok, not exactly today. I took this photo a few days ago.)

A few random facts about me:

1-I love to go to meetings (any kind)

2-I like to eat pretzels dipped in vanilla frosting

3-I am scared of the dark

4-I am typing this with 2 hands AND I have a baby in my arms!

5-I get road rage really easily

6-I wish I were at the beach right now

7-I love sparkling juices (especially Cold Duck flavor)

8-In September I will have been married for 10 years

9-In 23 days I will be 30!

10-I am incredibly shy but I love to have parties at my house!

What's something unusual about you? Tell me!

I miss my husband

2009-03-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

I miss my husband

We are all doing well here. SO tired. Having a hard time adjusting. I do not remember the adjustment after Jack's birth being this difficult. Perhaps it is because there are now 3 I have to take care of and work into a schedule. Anyway-we all feel out of sorts.

Addison is getting so big. I'm not sure how much she weighs, but I am sure it is well over 6 pounds. She is now wearing newborn size clothes (rather than preemie size). I just can't believe it's been a month since she was born. It has gone so fast.

One of the hardest things right now is that R-Jay and I can't sleep in the same bed! Addison has been having a hard time sleeping due to congestion in her nose. She can't sleep unless she is nearly upright. So she sleeps in the swing in the living room. One of us sleeps on the couch so we can hear her when she wakes up and the other sleeps in the bedroom. It sucks. I suppose more relaxed parents would be able to sleep together in the bedroom with a baby monitor on, but we worry too much. Hopefully this won't last much longer. It's been hard on us. You don't realize how much you enjoy even just being near each other until you aren't anymore. Hence the title of this post.

I have been working a lot on a mini 6x6 album of her first days. I love it! I will take some photos and hopefully post them in the next few days. That album is nearly done. Once it is, I will be working more on her 12x12 album. I purchased the Becky Higgins Kit of the Month called Sweet Baby. I'll share more of that as I get it done too. It is nice having a kit that has pre-organized pages where all I have to do is fill in the photos and the information. So fun. The paper and the embellishments are not exactly my style, but I'd rather just have the pages done. Documenting her life is the most important thing--not what paper I use.

Have a great day everyone! And tonight as you climb into bed with your significant other, think of me alone on my couch and be grateful for even the little blessings!! :)

Birth story

2009-03-15T14:56:00.000-07:00

The Story of Her Birth

On Wednesday March 4, I was having a lot of contractions. I had been having contractions more and more over the preceding few weeks so I didn't think too much of it. My doctor had said I needed to take it easy and not do very much since that was what triggered the contractions. I had been trying but that is really hard for me. This day I had a big burst if energy. I had made several lists and plans the day before. This day I started to do those things--add some last minute things to my hospital bag, sweep and spot mop the kitchen floor, do a few loads of laundry, straighten up my bedroom and make the bed, straighten up the bathroom, double check the packing lists for the boys stuff. I was reading my journal entry from when Jack was born, remembering everything. When R-Jay got home from work, I went to Walmart looking for a calendar with a picture of the beach to use as a visualization photo for labor. But they didn't have any. I was planning on looking somewhere else another day.

R-Jay left for his 2nd job as a math tutor and I was left to give the kids a bath and put them to bed. I'd felt great all day but by late afternoon and evening I felt crummy. They took a very short bath and we read only a few stories. By 8 pm they were in bed. I looked around the house and thought "I really need to straighten up. But I don't feel good. R-Jay will be home tomorrow so he can help me clean up." So I just sat on the couch and turned on a movie. At one point Sam came out to get a drink of water. When I went back in with him, I looked out the window and saw it was snowing! So Sam and Jack had to look too. Sam started to get a little upset and said "If spring never comes, then the baby will never come."

After that I continued watching my movie. I was so engrossed in it that I did not get up to go to the bathroom for about an hour (which is a long time for a pregnant lady!). When I was finally in enough pain at about 9:55 pm, I stood up and felt a small gush of fluid. My first thought was "oh no." But then I just brushed it off telling myself it was just because I had to go to the bathroom. R-Jay got home just a short time later. I told him what had happened. He was not all concerned. We talked for a while. I watched the last few minutes of the movie. Then I decided that I should go to the emergency room. I was concerned. I got my hospital bag finished off and put into the car. I was feeling foolish for wanting to go to the ER and R-Jay kept saying "Better safe than sorry. Just go and find out that it is nothing and come home." I told him that him saying that made me feel like I was overreacting and that maybe I shouldn't go. Then I had a really big contraction that stopped me in my tracks and made me double over. So I went. R-Jay stayed home with the boys. I had another big contraction on the way to the hospital. It's a good thing it only takes about 5 minutes to drive over there. By the way--it is really hard to park the car when you are having a strong contraction! It was about 11:45 pm when I arrived. I went in and was feeling impatient with them to check me in because I was scared and knew that something was not right. I got to labor and delivery and they got me settled into the observation room. A really nice nurse started checking my vitals, hooked me up to a fetal monitor and blood pressure cuff. They tested the fluid and told me I was definitely in labor. I was nervous for the baby's safety but excited too. I called R-Jay and told him I was in labor to hurry and come down. I also called my mom and asked her to come and stay with the boys. R-jay called my good friend Michele to come and stay until my parents got there. He arrived at the hospital at about 1 am. He seemed almost bursting with excitement.

The nurse told me that the hospital did not keep infants who were born before 36 weeks. Since this baby was coming at 35, we could either transport me to Salt Lake to deliver or I could deliver here in Tooele and then rush the baby to Salt Lake if there was a problem. When my doctor arrived, we talked a little bit about it. Since they said they could give me something to slow down the labor, I decided to go to Salt Lake. Because of a snowstorm they could not bring the helicopter. So my doctor called the University hospital and the ambulance team were on their way. The nurse put in an IV with fluids, antibiotics and magnesium (to slow labor). R-Jay and I waited while my contractions got worse. He helped me breathe through them. At about 2:30am I began to have a hard time staying on top of the contractions. The nurse told us the ambulance was still about 40 minutes out due to the snow. I told her it was getting bad and I would shortly need an epidural. I was sure I would not make it to Salt Lake. I was afraid of having contractions like this for an hour and a half in the ambulance. Not long after I'd arrived at the hospital, the nurse had checked me and I was 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced. When the ambulance team arrived a little before 3 am, they checked me again and I had not changed much-maybe a half cm. I was having such terrible contractions though. The ambulance nurses said I probably wouldn't make it to SLC. Alicia started checking on the anesthesiologist so I could get an epidural. The flight nurses decided to wait 10 more minutes-- if i was a 4 or more, they could not take me. During that 10 minutes, the contractions got incredibly intense. The pressure was almost unbearable, it made me cry out. I knew the baby was coming and I kept thinking "If I am only a 4 and the baby is coming, what will that mean?" I was very afraid of tearing. That fear made it much worse I think. At about 3:10 or 3:15, they checked me again. Then the chaos began.

I heard Alicia say "She's 100 %!" People started running around, shouting for the OB/GYN and the pediatrician. They needed to get me to a delivery room but because the contractions were so bad (I was crying out and screaming--embarrassing!) they could not move me over there. They just wheeled the bed into the next room. As they were moving me, I kept thinking "Wait! What about the epidural?" Then I realized I would not have one and would have to do it naturally. I was terrified. Luckily by the time I realized that, the really intense contractions were over. When we got to the other room, the doctor got ready and everything was ready for the baby (about 5 minutes), they told me I could push during a contraction. 3 or 4 pushes later, she was here. Born at 3:26 am! It all happened so fast!

Once she was born, they put her on my chest and a calm descended on everything. All the chaos was over. She was perfectly healthy. It was so nice to just snuggle her. I had her for such a long time after she was born--even before they weighed her or checked her out. I guess they could tell right away that she was fine!

All in all it was a pretty smooth (though really fast) birth. It was pretty awful for me but I feel extremely proud that I did it with no medication. I do not handle pain very well. But I did it!

So there is the story (finally)! We are all doing great now. She's growing fast and is so adorable! Thank to everyone who've given us so much help and love!

More photos

2009-03-12T14:11:00.001-07:00

One week old today!

Addison and Daddy

What can I say about this face?

Jack is getting used to this new little creature! And I think he likes her!

This is from today. So sweet!

When we find the time R-Jay and I will corroborate our stories. Then I'll be able to share the birth story with you. We have to work together since there are a lot of details I can't remember (I was in a bit of pain at the time!). It's a crazy story though! Check back soon!

She's here!

2009-03-07T09:16:00.000-08:00

Addison Sage Wilde

Thursday March 5, 2009

5 lbs 7 oz

17.5" long

3:26 am

Our family

Addison holding tight to her daddy

Look at the pride on that handsome face! Sam loves his sister!

Fun

2009-03-04T13:46:00.000-08:00

Almost there!

I think it's funny...

that my boys sometimes bump their heads on my belly when they walk by! It's getting kind of hard to miss!

(aren't I brave for posting this photo?)

So loved

2009-03-03T15:48:00.001-08:00

This is what I saw when I got out of the shower this morning...

8 boxes of my favorite cereal. R-jay had gone to the store this morning and gotten me some. I told him that I don't know what to eat if i don't have this cereal--it's all I want in the morning. He left for work and I got in the shower. He came in a while later and said that he had left a surprise for me on the counter. I thought it was this but I did not expect to see so many boxes!! He's such a sweetheart. I can't help but love him!

2009-02-23T15:54:00.000-08:00

Art Journal Retreat

So, I am planning an art journal retreat in May. (Yes, I will have a brand new baby to take with me and what a wonderful break after being stuck at home!) We will be going to my family's cabin in Island Park Idaho. It's 22 miles outside of West Yellowstone and the west (obviously) entrance to Yellowstone National Park. It's such a beautiful area. One of the girls who will be coming requested some photos of the area. So here they are!! Enjoy and oogle away! Also, if anyone is interested in coming with us just let me know. We have lots of room!

Me and Jack

Big Springs-where you can feed the fish and watch all the birds

Hiking on the trail that follows the river starting at Big Springs

Misc photo from a nice drive we took

Blue Heron seen on our canoe trip on the river

Sandhill Crane seen on that same trip

Here we are in the canoe-so beautiful!!

An area of hot pots (I forget the name right now)

Another misc photo taken near Quake Lake

Lots of hanging out

2009-02-05T08:49:00.000-08:00

Lots of this...!

I'm sorry to say, there has been a lot of this going on at our house lately. I am now 31.5 weeks pregnant and exhausted. The anemia I have also contributes significantly to my tiredness. So we sit around too much, watch too much tv, read too many books, and are all ruled by general laziness. It is incredibly hard for me to be like this. I am usually always up doing something. But these days, I carry the laundry up from downstairs and I have to rest for an hour. It's crazy! And I have such a hard time getting up and going in the morning. Right now it's nearly 10 am and I am still in my pjs (so are the boys).

We've been trying to paint the boys' room. We got one wall primed and painted this weekend.I was glad to get that one wall painted since we had to do it around two crazy paint-obsessed kids, work, a friend's birthday party in Orem and regular life. I have not taken any photos yet. This weekend we will finish it up. It should go faster since this color did not need a primer, we don't have as much going on and R-Jay and I will both be working on it at the same time (rather than tag team like last week). I'll be sure to take some photos. You may be surprised at the colors. We let the boys choose. But I say-Hey! It's their room! I'm ok with what they want to do.
This was a special moment between brothers that I caught the other day. They had begged me to come out and build a snowman. I felt guilty for so much tv watching so I agreed. I got them ready, sent them out, then had to rest for a few minutes (see what I mean!). I finally got dressed and was sitting down to put on my boots when what do I see out the back window? These two cute boys. They had moved these chairs to face each other and were talking to each other while they ate big chunks of (fresh) snow. How amazingly cute! I was glad the camera was sitting right at the computer desk in front of the door so I could capture this moment!! By the way-the snow was too powdery to make a snowman which was good because I was really too tired to do much anyway!

I am hoping to get a couple of creative projects done in the next little while. I need to make some valentine's cards for a meeting I have tonight. I will be sure to take some photos. I an hoping to post a lot more of my creative projects on this blog this year. I just haven't been doing much. I am really hoping that this will all be over once the baby comes. I can't wait to be back to my normal self!!

Have a great day and I will talk you again soon!

29 Weeks!

2009-01-19T19:38:00.000-08:00

Hello!

So here is a photo of me at 29 weeks (this week!). If you can see the previous post with my 23 week photo, you'll see that I am so much bigger!

Here are just some cute photos of my boys from the a few days ago, playing with some light up toys.
And Jack is a goofhead. He stuck his finger in his nose just as I was taking the photo. He is the clown of the family!
Have a great night!

Health update

2009-01-19T15:47:00.000-08:00

Update!

I got the results from the 1 hour glucose test from last week. My blood sugar was high. So this Wednesday I am going in for a 3 hour glucose test. It's the same thing: I'll be fasting when I drink the glucose drink. They will then draw my blood one hour after, two hours after and then three hours after. Sucks-that's all I can say.

I will also be getting my Rhogam shot. (I have a negative blood type.) I already knew about this since I had to do it with my other 2. I'm not looking forward to it though since it hurts really bad!

And finally, the doctor told me my iron levels were really low. My hematocrit and red blood cell count. I have a minor case of anemia anyway, but she said the levels were lower than they ever have been in the past. So I am taking ferrous sulfate pills daily. I'm trying not to worry too much about what low iron means for the baby. I am trying to focus on what I can control--taking my pills regularly, taking care of myself physically etc. Worry and stress are counter-productive anyway.

On lighter note, I have been stressed that this baby is actually a boy. I'm not sure why. I'm carrying low which makes me wonder (though I don't remember that with the boys). So last night I was lying in bed scrutinizing the ultrasound pictures from Jack and from this one. Jack was very obviously a boy. And this one was very obviously missing something. That only reassured me a little. R-Jay came in and saw me hunched over these photos-the only thing missing was the magnifying glass! I'm sure I looked like a crazy person!

Here is just a cute photo of Sam from our thrip to Park City a few weekends ago! Such a beautiful day but bitterly cold up there! We had lots of fun!

Serious Nesting!

2009-01-15T15:48:00.001-08:00

Nesting!

I have been experiencing intense nesting over the last few days. I decided to buy paint for the boys room and the baby's room this weekend. We set a date to actually paint. I pulled out all the baby stuff we have stored. I bought a bunch of baby stuff today. Here's just a look:

Did you notice the makeup? R-Jay thinks that is part of the nesting. He may be right! I have no other explanation.
I adore these rainbow things!
A few months ago, we went to Target and got a registry started, just for fun. I went there today just to look and saw that all the cute things we registered for were on clearance (and mostly gone!). So I got some things. I like things on clearance. I loved these things because they had two of my favorite things-trees and birds. And they were feminine without being frilly or cutsie. I am having such a hard time finding girl clothes that I like for this very reason.

I went to the doctor today to do a 1 hour fasting glucose test. I am waiting to hear the results. I had gestational diabetes with Jack (my second son) and so I am sort of planning on getting it this time. I am hoping and praying that I don't though. It was quite stressful and I was always hungry! I'll let you know what I find out.

Anyway-just a quick post! Have a great day!

It's a boy!

2009-01-12T14:53:00.000-08:00

I just found out my little sister Jen and her husband Chandler are having a boy! It's their first. She's due about 2 months after me! That will make 3 boys and one girl. Fun!

Their wedding day-October 2007

Congrats guys!

Makeup and Moleskines!

2009-01-12T09:13:00.000-08:00

Makeup and Moleskines

Here are a few things I am really into right now.

First of all, I am learning to knit. Slowly. But I really love it. I haven't moved past the knit stitch yet. I think I am afraid. But I really want to make some simple things for the new baby. We'll see if I can get past the mental obstacles and get something done. I have aspirations for a small afghan, but I'm not sure. I've got to go to Logan and have my Grandma help me get started. This photo is a scarf that I made for Sam. He picked out the yarn himself. It completely matches his personality. He loves it! It feels so good to make something for my little ones. (Jack's scarf is in process.)

These are two scarves that I made before Christmas. The purple one is mine and the other is for R-Jay. It was supposed to be a gift, but I forgot to give it to him! Oops! His was actually the first thing I ever made.
The next thing I am really into right now is Moleskine notebooks. They are so wonderful. I love them all. They are so well made and so sturdy. They handle all the junk I do to them. And they are the perfect sizes. I purchased a pocket sized sketch book to use as a nature journal and I got a pocket sized ruled cahier to keep a list of the books I read this year.
I am using a pocket sized red one as an all inclusive information book that I keep in my purse. It has important phone numbers, my visiting teaching list, the book list for my book club as well as a list of books I want to read. This photo is my New Year's Intentions. (Sorry the photo is sideways. I had uploaded it before I realized and didn't want to do it over. You get the idea!)
Here is a gentle reminder of the importance of my role as a mama. Aren't my boys cute!?
Another pretty page with some quotes that inspire me. These are from a wonderful book called A Year By The Sea.

In the back pocket I have some note cards for transitory information (dates I need to transfer to planner, shopping lists, scrapbook ideas, etc). Also, some images cut from magazines that I want to add in somewhere. Some other things in this book are photos of my family, words to hymns that uplift me, photos from the internet that inspire me (like photos of other people's moleskines!). I love to just pull out the book and flip through the pages. It just makes me happy!
Now for the embarrassing thing. My 19 year old granola-girl self would be so ashamed. Right now, I love makeup! There, I said it. It's such a waste of time and money. I don't feel any different when I wear makeup. I don't think it makes me any more beautiful. But I just love all the pretty packages and colors. I love shopping in stores like Sephora and The Cosmetics Company Outlet. Here are some things I got a little more than a week ago at the CCO in Park City. These are all MAC things. I love them all!
These last 2 are some lip glosses from the Napoleon Perdis line at Target. I love these glosses. They are so pretty and look great alone or over lipstick. So nice!
Well, there you have a little peak into some of my loves right now. Hope you have a great day!

Reflections and Intentions

2008-12-31T20:51:00.001-08:00

So here we are, coming up on a new year. It's exciting and a little frightening. I'm excited for all the changes that will be going on. But I am frightened of all the changes and the unknown challenges we may face. We had some hard, hard challenges this year-personally and as a family. I wonder what will happen in the months to come?

On the SimpleMom blog, there is a list of questions that you can use to reflect on this previous year. I found them to be quite useful in thinking about the past year. I also thought an interesting activity might be to answer the questions for the next year as if it turned out the way I imagined it. For instance, one of the questions asks "In what ways did you grow spiritually?" I would like to answer something like this: "I gained a greater testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I found a connection with Heavenly Father deeper than any I have ever felt. I have strengthened my faith and feel much less fear about the future. I created a regular habit of scripture and gospel study and feel myself greatly enriched by these." So if that is what I want to say, what are the steps I need to take to be able to say that?

I've found, in thinking about the new year, that 2008 was nothing like what I want my life to be. There are some factors that are out of my control (the way my kids behave, the choices my husband makes, where we live, etc.), but there are many things that are in my control. Those are the things that I want to focus my energy on in 2009. For instance, so much of my time is wasted on stupid things like watching You Tube videos and reading blogs. Very few blogs actually leave me feeling uplifted and inspired. So I will focus on those and leave out all the rest. I have been amazed also that I have let so many things go that really fill me up emotionally and spiritually. I used to (before I had kids) go for long walks everyday. I would just look at the world and think and pray. I would notice things and be inspired by the beauty that I saw in nature. It's much harder to do any of that with kids, but this year I must ask for

R-Jay's help so that I can have it again.

So here is my list of intentions for the new year. (I wanted more general ideas rather than specific goals. I want to be able to see how these things evolve during the course of the year without feeling like I have failed.)

2009 Intentions

Significantly reduce our debt.
Seek more intellectual stimulation for me personally.
Spend more time outdoors studying and enjoying nature.
Be more active as a family.
Declutter our home and learn to live more simply.
Grow closer as a family-spend more quality time together.
Increase the spirituality in our home-become more Christ-centered.
Gain a greater level of spirituality for me personally.
Seek Serenity and Beauty.
Lose baby weight and be more active for health and energy.

So there you have it. I feel really good about all these things. They make me excited. Most importantly, they are all in line with how I want my life to be.

Lastly, I just wanted to share some photos of the boys. This first one is Sam last Christmas. (2007)

Then Sam on his 5th birthday in September. (2008)
This is Jack in December of last year (December of 2007)
And Jack in the autumn of this year.
So cute!

I hope you all have a Happy New Year! Good luck on all of your goals and intentions. God bless!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T07:50:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!!

Hope you are all having a very happy holiday!

Much needed inspiration

2008-12-13T19:15:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post today. I have been having a hard time with my mothering lately. Maybe being pregnant and ornery. Maybe it's because if the other parts of my life that are falling apart. Whatever the reason, I am not loving being a mom these days. I'm sure everyone of you with kids can relate!

I woke up on the morning of the 8th and immediately climbed out of bed onto me knees. I was overwhelmed already! I prayed for strength and comfort. Then I went about the business of getting the kids breakfast, drinks and a show. Once they were settled on the couch, I got my own breakfast and sat at the computer. I like to check email and look at blogs first thing. I was so inspired and uplifted by what I read. And that continued for the next 2 days. The first that inspired me that day was Ann at Holy Experience. What I love most about her blog is the way she shows that God can and should be a part of every aspect of your daily life-from housework, to raising kids, to just finding the time to study the scriptures. I have been uplifted many, many times. This time I was especially inspired by her posts on December 8 and 9. I felt that Heavenly Father had answered my prayers.

The second one was Amanda at SouleMama. She is so incredible. I think her life is such a close match to what I want my life to be like (and is so far from!). I just love reading her blog first thing in the morning. I was inspired by her post on December 10 entitled "How we're going... this time." I was feeling so overwhelmed (yes first thing in the morning), but then I read these words "It's fair to say there are moments of being overwhelmed. Moments where one might wonder what one has gotten oneself into. But then. Always just then-at that moment before utter overwhelming panic sets in-a moment of peace, a clear sign of love. Surely a sight of family. All of the above stress is quieted and overshadowed by the reminder that this-this is what it's all about." Wow! Thanks for that. Even writing about it now, I am reminded in my heart of what is important.

I need to remember these things better and be content in the life that I have. It is good. And I am grateful.

I'm back again!

2008-12-13T18:23:00.000-08:00

Can you believe that I am posting twice in the same month? I can't believe it! I wanted to share a couple quick things with you. First-some pages from my December Daily album. It is turning out so great. I love the messy pages (though I may have to find another solution since these books are not as sturdy and I think this book needs). Here are some of the pages I have finished:

I am finding out some things about myself during the process of this album. I have not been motivated enough to do something every single day. I have not wanted to find something just so that I have something for that day. I have been including things that really mean the holidays to me and our family. It's been events so far, but I am working on a page about our favorite holiday music (all 3 CDs) and then our favorite holiday movies. And I seem to go for 2 or 3 days then put those things into the book-I don't work on it everyday. I have been having a hard time because I have not been doing it exactly the way Ali Edwards said she does it. As if I am doing it wrong. But I have to be ok adapting the project to our needs. I am also finding that I like and don't like having predetermined pages. I like it because I don't have to try to put one together each time I'm ready to work. But I hate not being able to easily add more pages if necessary. It's good though because I can only put a few photos in where I would normally put in too many. All in all it has been lots of fun. I will definitely do this again next year.

The last thing I wanted to share is a photo of myself (blah). Here is my 23 week belly. I am definitely bigger with this baby than the other 2. I can't wait until she is born. I am having such a hard time being so big! I think other factors in my life are contributing to that also-but I just feel so fat all the time. :( Only a few more months.
Have a great weekend!

PS-I learned how to save post and post them later (I'm slow I know). But now I can write a few when I have the time and then spread them out!

2008-12-02T08:56:00.000-08:00

I am still alive!

So I have a lot of excuses for not posting in the last FIVE MONTHS! But it basically all comes down to laziness. I have had nothing but problems with blogger lately and I don't have the patience to sit and deal with them. In the coming year, I may try to find another blog server. We'll see.

Anyway, I have been feeling a little bit more energetic the last few weeks. This pregnancy has been a lot harder than the other 2. One of the things that has suffered the most is my creative energy. I have not wanted to much of anything. I had a bit if nesting happening a few weeks ago and decided I wanted to take everything out of my studio and rearrange it. So I did. I found out quickly that I did not have the energy to take everything out of the room, so I took most of it out (or rather, R-Jay carried most of it out). My room feels much more open now and I can actually find things and have space to work.

Another thing I have been able to do was to make some messy books, inspired by Emily Falconbridge.

I had so much fun putting them together, then had my sweet friend, Michele, sew them together. I cannot even tell you how much I love these books. I love to just hold them and flip through the pages and sometimes just look at them. Here is a picture (sorry it's not very good. My camera is being a pain in the arse!). I wanted to show more but, of course, back to the blogger problem again!

I am also very excited to begin my December Daily album which was inspired by Ali Edwards. I wanted to do it last year, but once again--LAZY! So I am determined to do it this year. I decided to make a messy book for that purpose. When I get some photos I'll post them also. Here are a couple photos from Sunday night. Even though it was technically still November I am going to use it for day one in the album. Aren't my boys cute?

So, Jack is getting tired of me being on the computer so I better go! I will post another blog very soon, I PROMISE! I want to share more of the things we'll be doing this month.

As a side note, everything is going well with the baby. We are 22 weeks along. She is a wiggler, whereas the boys were both kickers. We have chosen the name Addison. We're still working on the middle name.

Also, check out our ad for Super Cape, Super You on Emily Falconbridge's blog (the link is on her name above). It looks great and I am excited to have it on her blog-she is so inspiring!

Have a great day!

2008-07-01T11:42:00.000-07:00

SUPER CUTE LAYOUT I MADE A COUPLE NIGHTS AGO!

I really love living in a city. (That's why I am having a hard time in Tooele! There's not much here!) I took this photo near Henry's Lake in Island Park during our recent trip to Yellowstone. Looking at it brings up feelings of longing. Longing for the kind of life we would have if we lived in a place like this. I used to want to live in a cabin in the woods. I have not wanted to for a long time. But looking at this picture and remembering how beautiful and peaceful it was there makes me wonder if I really do still want to live like that? It's not even an option right now so I don't have to really think about it. But maybe someday...

2008-06-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

YELLOWSTONE AND SCRAPBOOKING

We went to Yellowstone for a week June 16-21. It was such a fun trip! I was so excited to get Tuesday, Friday and Saturday off of work. This was our family vacation for the summer. It was such beautiful weather and it was great to be out hiking.

This photo (below) is the unfortunate event that happened to us on this trip. We were on our way to Mesa Falls when all of the sudden, something hit our car. It had flown at us from the side so it was obviously a bird of some kind (which was also evidenced by the flurry of feathers that was settling on the road behind us!). From the feathers we found we decided the bird was a ruffed grouse.

R-Jay and the boys worked on a painting of some flowers. The finished painting is awesome! I'll take a photo and post it maybe tomorrow.
Here we are on the Big Springs River Trail near island park. So fun!

And finally, some layouts I promised to share. There were made a few months ago, a couple were from right after Jack was born. But they are some of my favorites. The one below is from the 24th of July last year. I wanted some red white and blue, but I really loved the green balloon and wanted to highlight that a little. I love the way this turned out! I used a ruler and pen to draw a line around the edge to give it a little more definition. Loved how that worked.

This is a super cute and sweet layout I did about Jack. I really love the colors of this one!
Another one from Jack's birth. I love these layouts with one photo. I love that they highlight an emotion that the one photo brings up. I think I am liking these two layouts even more right now because Jack will be 2 years old in about a month. I can't believe it!
This is a cute layout that I made to demonstrate the products in a kit that I will be putting up on my etsy shop this week. The next layout is from that kit as well.

I really love these papers and things. They are all so vintage looking. I am loving that right now.

Hope you all have a great evening! Tomorrow I am planning on posting some photos from a cool art journal I made. I will also have a link to our Flickr account so you can see the full set of Yellowstone photos. There are a ton! :)

2008-06-08T19:51:00.000-07:00

Is anyone there?

So I am the worst blogger ever. I have been so busy. Posting to my blog has been the last thing on my list. My computer was so slow, it took way too long to even post the shortest thing. Now that we have a new computer (yeah, mac!), it will go much quicker. Now I have to think of what to talk about!

First of all, these photos are from two separate trips we took to San Diego last month. I work for an airline so we get to travel for free. The first trip we ever took was in February (none of these photos are from that trip. R-Jay and I went to San Diego alone for 3 days. We had a trip for the whole family planned for May. He then found out he had to teach a training class at Amex. I was disappointed, but I decided I was going to go anyway. So I did. I took Sam and we went to San Diego for 2 days. It was so awesome to be able to do that with him. He and I don't get much time together just the two of us these days. It was so nice to focus on him for so long. He was so good. I get lost so easily in San Diego, but Sam was such a patient little trooper. He was great. We had such a great time. Two weeks after that trip, R-Jay and I took both of the boys to San Diego. It was so much fun. The outbound flight was a little hard because Jack was so tired. He was screaming and crying for the first half hour we were on the plane. Luckily, once we were actually in the air, he fell asleep and slept the rest of the time. It was so cute to see Sam on the plane for the second time. He sat right in his seat, put on his seatbelt and his headphones and was ready to go. He knew exactly what he wanted for a snack and a drink. He is so cute.
While in San Diego with the boys, we headed to a mall so I could go to Sephora. It is my favorite cosmetics store. Oh! It is like a pretty, scented, sparkly candy store for grown up girls! I was so giddy while I was there! Anyway, while were at this cool shopping center, there were cool sculptures of sea lions. Here is Sam near a mom and baby one. Cute! Look at that face!

This is my favorite photo from my trip with Sam. I loved being with him so much. He is a great kid.

Our lives are pretty normal. Boring, busy, exhausting. R-jay and I are both overwhelmed with creative energy these days. There are so many things we want to do and not enough time to do all of them. I have been very excited about scrapbooking again. I was burned out after all of the projects I did at Christmas time. My attempt at giving more handmade gifts this past year was successful as far as how the projects turned out, but I was so tired and sick of anything to do with any of it. Anyway, my passion is finally returning and I am excited about that. I am also excited to paint again. I haven't for a really long time. But I am looking forward to doing it again once I get some new supplies (like fresh paint etc.).

I've been reading like crazy. I read so much more now that I have kids than I did before. It's a great relaxing escape. I am reading The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler. I love love love John Steinbeck, so I have not been disappointed so far. I saw the movie "The Jane Austen Book Club" and loved it. So far I am not impressed with the book. It is relatively flat. I am waiting for more to happen that might fill out the characters and give some meaning to the book as a whole. Before these, I finished reading the three books in the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyers. Loved them so much! I cannot wait for the fourth book, the movie and, hopefully someday, the book she is writing from Edward's perspective. I am not a geek, I promise! I just have a thing for vampires!

We recently added the soundtrack for "Across the Universe" to our iPods. I love that movie so much and the music is beautiful. I love how Julie Taymor (the director) put the Beatles' songs in such different contexts from what they were originally. It adds so much to the story. Anyway- watch it! It's so great!

That's about all I'll talk about right now. And hopefully it will not be another 8 months before I post again. I am hosting a scrapbooking group at my house this wednesday. Perhaps I will share some photos from that as well, as some of my most recent projects!

Later!

First real snow

2007-12-01T07:38:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share one of my most recent favorite layouts. I thought it turned out so cute if I do say so myself! It's about my youngest son Jack. I took this great photo of him playing at the park. When I looked at the photo later, he looked like such a big kid! So I wanted to create a layout that would portray the feelings I had looking at the photo-a little bit of sadness, a little bit of surprise but most of all love for this little guy. I love to layer things--here are three different pattern papers, a journaling tag, stickers (brackets), and pen. I love putting different patterns together and love the kind of patchwork look they create.

And finally, wanted to share some photos from the first real snow storm we've had here. It was really nice this morning with nothing to do, nowhere to go. R-Jay and I got to lay in our warm bed and talk for a long time since the boys slept in until 8:30! Heavenly!

Hope you have a great saturday!

7 random things

2007-10-17T13:48:00.001-07:00

Here are 7 random things about me:

1-I love to microwave M & M's so the chocolate is melted inside.

2-I don't like to get dressed up.

3-I have read Anne of Green Gables about 20 times.

4-I buy more books than I read.

5-I really don't believe in soulmates.

6-I wish I were in Hawaii right now (this statement would be true any moment of any given day! :)

7-I hate having naturally curly hair.

Post a link to your 7 random things!! J

Me, like it or not

2007-10-15T21:31:00.001-07:00

I have been thinking a lot lately. And I just want to say something tonight. I am very frustrated with people and the way they treat each other. Why do we hate each other because we are different? Why do our differences tear us apart? Why can't we accept that we do not think the same or believe the same and move on? I want everyone to know that I am ME. And I like it. I am not about to change, no matter how much you want me to. I answer only to myself and to God. This is me, take it or leave it. I love my children, I love my husband, I love God. And I am happy with those things. I love people, I love my friends. I love to help people and serve where I can. I have so much more in my life that some people in the world and I want to share. I am terribly shy, but I love getting to know people and learn from them. There are so many things I can learn from the people in my life. I know am not perfect. I have many many weaknesses. But, believe it or not, I also have many strengths. I am a good person. I try hard. I work hard. There are many people out there who don't think so and to them I say "Go to Hell." I am tired of letting other people's opinions of me color my opinion of myself. I deserve to be treated with respect. Someday I may be brave enough to let go of the people that only bring me down. For now I will work on myself and my own weaknesses. That's all I can do. We'll see what changes come of it.

Thanks for letting me rant

Jamie

Hi Baby!

2007-10-09T15:59:00.001-07:00

Hi daddy!
Isn't this a great photo to start with? Are you a little glad you're in Nebraska, not here listening to this? He is cute though and I kind of just want to laugh when I see his face!

Sam said he wanted to show you his sparkly dress. And he wanted me to take pictures of him dancing around in his sparkly dress. So here he is. He's posing-Cheese!

While I was taking a photo of Sam saying "Cheese", I heard Jack behind me saying "Cheese cheese cheese." So he is actually posing and saying "cheese" in this photo. So cute! Of course it's blurry because he wouldn't hold still!

All day he has been climbing in the baby swing, making it swing, standing up, falling out, etc. It's been annoying. I actually had to move it into the library because I was tired of him getting into it!

And right now they are banging metal sticks on the metal chairs in the dining room! I am going to scream! Agh. Time to take those sticks away. Well, we love you R-Jay and I hope you have a great night. I will get a photo of the dishes later. I didn't get a chance before I posted this! Later love! Jamie and Sam and Jack

PS-a couple cute photos I thought you'd just like see tonight. Love you!