October by the Numbers

Here we are, the last day of October. I spent the latter part of the Summer, wishing that the Fall months would hurry up and get here. Now we are on the brink of November with Christmas right around the corner. Now I am hoping that time will slow down just a bit :-). I want to enjoy it ALL.
We had another fabulous month...one of my favorites.

ONE book read (Dewey's Nine lives)...review to come.

TWO A. the number of times our family was BOO'ed.

TWO B. family photo shoots this month...loving the new family photos.

THREE World Series games played by the Giants...hoping for that BIG win.

FOUR new albums added to my collection (John Mayer - Battle Studies Expanded edition, Taylor Swift - Speak Now, Kenny Chesney - Hemmingway Whiskey, and Sugarland - The Incredible Machine...love,love, love new music!

SIX pumpkins picked at the Pumpkin Patch

SEVEN dozen homemade sugar cookies baked for the 4th grade Harvest party

ELEVEN A. blog posts recorded.

ELEVEN B.scrapbook layouts completed...I am on a roll.

THIRTEEN soccer games were played by the 3 older boys.

THIRTY SIX candles on my birthday cake this year.

FIFTY FIVE days until Christmas.

EIGHTY NINE Trick or Treater's knocked on our door. Had to turn our lights off...we ran out of candy.

ONE HUNDRED SIXTY SEVEN birthday wishes on Facebook. John counted them. He kept calling me and asking "Have you seen all of your birthday wishes"? It was very fun and helped make my day.

THREE HUNDRED AND FOUR days without a Diet Coke...just in case you are wondering:-).

Halloween 2010

This was the first year, in my 11 and half years of parenting that I did not have to purchase one single item for Halloween costumes...all thanks to my boys!

Tanner used his SCREAM costume from last year.



















Carter wanted to be Brian Wilson. He owned all of the baseball gear and we used his eye black (from last season) to paint his beard.




















Garrett was content on being a pirate again!



















Brody was Buzz Light Year. Tanner wore this costume when he was almost 3. We added the wings and gloves that Brody received for his 3rd birthday and the costume was complete.




















The Jacks have all been carved...everyone got involved.

























hAPpY hAllOwEEn!!!

I think a lot about scrapbooking. Are you surprised? I didn't think so :-).
It is something that I enjoy. It is something that brings me happiness. I love to take photos...lots of photos! I like to record the thoughts and memories that accompany those photos. Scrapbooking has been become the perfect outlet for all of those things. I love it when my boys pull the albums out and look through them. There are lots of "I remember that" and "that was fun"!

I am often asked how I find the time to scrapbook. People often comment that they are too busy to scrapbook. I can guarantee you that I am kind of busy too. I just make a point to do the things I enjoy, even if it means staying up late. I have been busy creating the weekly KIT OF THE WEEK for Green Tangerines. I have seen, first hand how my albums are filling up just by completing a layout a week. The photos on the Halloween layout(see below)were from the year 2000...10 years old. I just got around to scrapping them :-). I figure as long as I am taking the mass amounts of photos that I do on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis...I will never be caught up :-). I enjoy the process and that is all that matters.

If you are looking for a place to start, check out Green Tangerines. The kits from Green Tangerines come with a color photo of the weeks layout and all of the product needed to create that layouts. On top of the weekly kits, we are getting ready to launch the yearly calendar pages. Some type of thing...kits ready to go. All you have to do is add your photos.

Here are a few of the most recent Kit of the Weeks.






Happy Scrapbooking!

Coyote of the Month

We are so proud of Carter. At the end of each month,the elementary school has an award assembly. Each month, they learn about a new character trait. This months trait was RESPECT. Carter earned the Coyote of the Month award today. This is what his teacher had to say about him:
"I am so fortunate to have this young man in my class. He participates in class discussion. He completes his assignments including his homework. He would be the first to volunteer for anything including helping his peers. He is honest, kind and respectful. This student demonstrates all of the character traits and I could give this student the award every month."

WOW! Carter is a hard worker and we are so very proud of him!

another year older

{photo & cupcake courtesy of my super talented friend, Mer}

My 36th year of life is off to a great start. I was seriously spoiled from sun up to sun down. I was showered with yummy treats(see above cupcake...that was mine), flowers, texts, cards, emails, gift cards, homemade treasures,Facebook messages, photos in my inbox, and gifts. I have been blessed with a wonderful family and some pretty amazing friends. Thank you!
One of the best surprises was the birthday card/love note that I received via snail mail from John. He knows just how much I love happy mail. He timed it just right and it arrived in the mailbox on my birthday. I loved that!

Thank you for making me feel over the top, special!
I am anxious and excited to see what my 36th year of life will bring me.

tis the season

for pumpkin patches, that is! We have been twice...so far! One of our favorite yearly, Fall traditions is to hit Bishop's Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland. We pulled the boys out of school a little bit early and headed out there. When we arrived, the last of the field trip groups were leaving. It was perfect.

We enjoyed the Fall colors.





We enjoyed the tractor ride out to the pumpkin patch.
.

We enjoyed picking the perfect pumpkins.





We enjoyed yummy sweets.


We enjoyed the hay bounce(well okay,the boys did).


We enjoyed feeding the goats. They loved the cones. They would snatch them right out of the boys hands.


But most of all, we enjoyed each other.




It was a perfect October afternoon.

Halloween countdown

I saw this Halloween countdown calendar over on the Jillibean Soup blog. I knew the boys would love it. I headed down to my favorite local scrapbook store,Green Tangerines to gather all the supplies I needed. The next step was to find the perfect frame. It only took me two tries at our local Goodwill stores. $5.00 later, and I was out of there with my perfect frame. A stop at Home Depot for black spray paint and I was on my way home.









Only 17 more days until Halloween!

I have been in the mood to craft. I love Fall. It just screams all things comfy, cozy and Halloween. It makes me want to stay inside and hunker down. The weather is driving me crazy. One day it is nice and cool & I am sure Fall is here to stay. Then BAM,the heat is back. I guess when you have AC, it can feel like Fall all year long :-).


Early last week, I found these perfect white pumpkins. They are not too small(like those tiny orange ones) and not too large...they are just right. With a circle foam stamp, black paint,a circle punch, Modge Podge and some ribbon, this is what I created.



















Since this photo was taken, I have painted about 8 more of these fun pumpkins. I have them on a table in our entry way!

I didn't stop there. I saw a darling Halloween countdown frame that I knew I had to make. The hardest part was finding the perfect frame. After two Goodwill runs, I was successful! I will share that little project with you tomorrow!

Happy Crafting!

clownin' around

I love picking this little boy up from preschool. It is always a treat to see what they have done during their time with Miss Christi and Miss Kirsten. Today they came out dressed like little clowns. They all looked adaorable.

Quick Scones and Buttermilk syrup

I have had several requests for this recipe and thought it might be a good one to share on the blog. My Mom has been making these scones for years. It is a Christmas morning tradition. I started making a batch of scones yesterday morning before General Conference started. Tanner woke up and said "It smells like Grandma Sandy's house on Christmas morning". They are every ones favorite. My Mom received this yummy recipe from our talented friend, Marilynn Stringham.

QUICK SCONES
Large batch - Serves 16
3 yeast cakes
4 cups warm water
4 T. sugar
Let stand 5 minutes, then add:
1 T. salt
3 T. oil
8-9 cups flour
Mix to a bread dough. Let stand for 30 minutes. Roll out and cut into pieces. Let sit for 5 minutes before frying in deep oil. Use electric fry pan at about 30 degrees. They should be a light golden brown on each side.

BUTTERMILK SCONE SYRUP
2 cups of sugar
2 cubes of butter
1 cup buttermilk
2t. white Karo
1 t. baking soda
2 t. vanilla

Mix all ingredients in a saucepan, except vanilla. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes(use large pan). Remove from heat and add vanilla. This amount will be enough for the full recipe of scones. This is also great on waffles, pancakes or carrot cake.

This is a horrible photo(trying to do too many things at once) but I wanted you to be able to see the shape of the dough when placed in the hot oil.

*Raimi's tips* If you don't have time to make the dough. Bel Air/Raley's sells loaves(3 to a pkg.) of Bridgeford dough in the freezer section. Place frozen dough in your fridge overnight. It will defrost and rise slightly. Slice pieces of dough about 1/2 inch think. Gently stretch and place in oil.

I don't have an electric fry pan. I use a fry pan on the stove.

General Conference was wonderful. It was so nice to have the whole family in one place. Some of us even stayed in our jammies...we just soaked in the lazy morning. The boys enjoyed Conference BINGO and their packets filled with word searches and other fun activities to do while while watching conference.

General Conference is a weekend that happens twice a year for the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints. Once in April and then again in October. It is a time that we are able to hear from our Prophet and other General Authorities from our church. They give us counsel and direction. It is a weekend filled with outstanding talks/messages and beautiful music. I am so thankful for a modern day prophet and his counsel.


And who doesn't love Skittles? This is what the boys used for BINGO markers this year.

Not one...but TWO!!!

Kit of the Weeks, that is! I have been busy creating new KOTW's for Green Tangerines.

First up, Summer Moments. I used the new Echo Park pattern papers, Thickers, Maya Road ribbon, and some Bazzill. Each kit comes with all the product to create this two page layout. Notice the little happy sun and fluffy clouds...all hand cut for each kit by yours truly :-).




Up next, Back to School




New BoBunny(pattern paper & stamped images), American Crafts Thickers, and Bazzill(cardstock and brads).
If you are interested in these kits, you can call Green Tangerines at 916-771-8010. I am so happy they are back in business.