Mother's Day Post

There is so much I could say today about what an amazing mom I have, but I don't think words can truly convey what I really feel about my mom. In thinking about all the time, effort, energy, love, tears, & prom dresses my mom has put into raising me & my siblings, I can only describe it as a labor of love. One way I can think of to thank my mom is by trying my best to be as wonderful a mom as she is! I am so thankful to be a part of a church that puts so much importance on families & mothers. I am so thankful to be a mother, for the amazing experience it has already proven to be. So I want to say, on this mother's day, thank you Mom! You are amazing & you inspire me to be a better person & mother! I love you!

New Item for Sale

I just finished a receiving blanket & burp cloths set & they are now available in my Etsy shop. Go check it out! I will have more colors & fabrics for sale soon (as fast as I can with a teething infant), so let me know if you want something specific. These would make a great gift for a new mommy!

Ouch

Today I went for a run for the first time in about 5 years...and my body can tell already. We went for a run together as a family, even Jack & Sharon came, to start training for a 5 & 10 K in July. I'm doing the 5k & Ammon's doing the 10k. I ran for exactly 11 minutes & ran 1 mile. I'm fairly sure I will be really sore tomorrow, but I know that once we get over the first few runs & the pain, things will go a whole lot more smoothly. So, here we go.

Shake those Booties

For any of you who want to make your own cloth shoes, I used this free pattern.

It's Giveaway Day

Today is my photo shoot giveaway on Becky Higgins blog! If you want to enter to win just go & enter a comment!

Sharon's 8 month page

8 months

Sharon is now 8 months! I know, I can hardly believe it too! She is as cute as ever & is more fun every day. She likes to jabber to herself, is rolling over all the time, trying to sit up by herself (though not quite there yet), she likes to grab her feet now, I think she's started teething, & she loves to smile at Mom & Dad, & even Jack when he walks by. I wanted to take her 8 month pictures & also practice taking some outdoor pictures in anticipation of the upcoming photo shoot giveaway, so we headed to a town park this evening. It was pretty windy & a little chilly, so we weren't able to stay as long as I would have liked, but I did get some good pictures. Tell me what you think. Which ones are your favorites. I love this first one! It is how she is most of the time & I think it really shows her beautiful eyes well! I love her toothless grin!

An exciting giveaway!

Awhile ago, one of my favorite scrappers, Becky Higgins, did a giveaway on her blog. She had a local photographer offer a free photo shoot to one lucky winner. Unfortunately I didn't win. But, Becky decided that it was such a fun giveaway that she decided to do it again & has opened it up to photographers everywhere. Now, I am by no means a professional photographer, but I do love to take pictures of my family & friends & I love to do digital editing & scrapbooking.

So, I emailed Becky to see if I could be part of the give-away & offer to give someone a free photoshoot. I am excited to say that I am part of the BIG PHOTOGRAPHY GIVEAWAY and I will be featured on her blog on May 8th! So, all you Kingmanites (or those that would be willing to drive to Kingman for a free photo shoot) that need some new family pictures, put a note on your calendar for the photo giveaway. On May 8th all you have to do is go to her blog, find the post about me, & leave a comment telling us why you want these photos. You can also nominate someone else by leaving their info in the comment & why you think they would deserve to win. I'll pick the winner, I'm not sure how I'll do it, but somehow I will.

I'm so excited to be a part of this! I think my dream job would be to take portraits & then make the Christmas cards, baby announcements, grad announcements, etc. to go with the pictures. I would love it!

And...if you aren't the lucky winner, I would still love to do your family pictures. Since I'm not exactly a pro at this, my rates would probably be pretty affordable.For those of you who aren't in Kingman, still check Becky's blog every day in May to see the featured photographers participating that day. There are quite a few Arizona ones, but plenty all over the country. Just check out the map showing all the places with a participating photographer {here}. It's going to be great! Don't worry, I'll post a reminder the day of to help you remember to enter!

Addition to my shop

I want to create your announcement or card! I love to do digital scrapbooking, & also enjoy making baby announcements, graduation announcements, baby & bridal shower invites, etc. I have added some samples to my Etsy store of a few cards I made just to show what I can do. Everything is fully customizable, including paper, fonts, colors, everything. You'll just have to send me your picture(s), tell me the info you want on the card,  & specify a color scheme if you wish. I'll make a proof of your card, email it to you to get your approval, then email you the actual file for you to take to your local photo printing store to get as many copies as you'd like.

A fairly easy project

I forgot that I had pictures of this on my camera until I uploaded them this evening & surprised myself. This was a fairly easy project to complete & I am totally happy with the results. Someone made us a board similar to this (in different colors) as a wedding gift, but I have to admit that I have no idea what happened to it. The last I can remember for sure seeing it is when we lived in Flagstaff before we moved to Payson the first time. No idea where it went, which is a bummer because it was pretty cute. So, I decided to make another one. Don't you just love my vinyl lettering. Ha! Tricked ya! It's not vinyl! I used the same method that I have used before to fool you & used scrapbook paper. I first had my husband cut me a board 25" long, which he also routered the edges on to give it a more classy finish. Then I painted it white (I know, super hard). In my previous "vinyl" lettering projects I've had to cut out my letters by hand with an exacto knife, but no longer! I recently purchased theSilhouette SD, which is wonderful! I love it! I used it to cut out my letters in black, & then green for our first names. Then I painted some Mod Podge onto the board under each letter, applied the letters & then coated it all with a generous layer of the mod podge again. It's now hanging above my door & I love looking at it!

7 months page

A rough day!

Today has been a rough day, so I decided to take a little break, shoot some pictures of Sharon & do some scrapbooking. I hope that whatever she's got passes quickly.

A sneak peek

Sharon turned 7 months last week, so yesterday I took her 7 month pictures. Here is a sneak peek at the pictures. You'll get to see the rest once I find time to scrapbook them, hopefully this week or next. Sharon's been kind of fussy this week as she had a few more vaccinations on Monday (not a happy camper), and she has discovered a new friend in the mirror in her room. When she is supposed to be going to sleep, while I am rocking her, she babbles to her friend in the mirror, who just happens to babble back. It's pretty funny, though somewhat frustrating when she is supposed to be asleep. Anywho, here is a picture to whet your appetite.

A sweet moment

I forgot I had this picture, until I uploaded the pictures from my camera and found it in the file. Sharon fell asleep on the couch in her boppy pillow, with her thumb in her mouth (of course) and Jack curled up in the available space next to her and went to sleep. They were so cute all conked out together that I just had to take a picture! Aren't they sweet! This was on March 11th.

Ruffle Butt Onesie

I felt the need to create this morning, so I pulled out a couple of new white onesies that Sharon fits in right now and got crafty. I've had some eyelet lace & decided to ruffle up the onesies. I just sewed three lengths of lace onto the butt of the onesies, and added some cuteness to the front. I did a blue felt heart on the white lace one & you can see the red squares I sewed onto the front of the red ruffle one. I think they turned out so cute, & they just add a bit of girliness to my bald little baby. I think she's so cute in them!

More from Family Reunion 06

Old pictures, new page

Just catching up on some old pictures, and my next scrapbook is going to be 12x12.

6 months

Frog-Eyed Salad

I love this pasta salad & am planning to make it for our upcoming Relief Society activity. Just thought I would share the recipe.

Ingredients
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 3/4 cups unsweetened pineapple juice
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 quarts water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 (16 ounce) package acini di pepe pasta
• 3 (11 ounce) cans mandarin oranges, drained
• 2 (20 ounce) cans pineapple tidbits, drained
• 1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows
• Maraschino cherries (I just add these with the rest of the fruit)

Directions
1. In a sauce pan, combine sugar, flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pineapple juice and eggs. Stir and cook over medium heat until thickened. Remove from heat; add lemon juice and cool to room temperature.
2. Bring water to a boil, add oil, remaining salt and cook pasta until al dente. Rinse under cold water and drain.
3. In a large bowl, combine the pasta, egg mixture, mandarin oranges, pineapple and whipped topping. Mix well and refrigerate overnight or until chilled. Before serving add marshmallows and coconut. Toss and serve.

A Sharon Update

Right now Sharon is zonked out on her belly on a blanket on the floor, one sock on, one sock off, eyelids partway open but definitely not seeing anything, sucking her pacifier to death. Here, I had my camera really close by, so I decided to snap a quick picture of her.She's slept pretty well the last two days, mainly because she had her 6 month check up & shots yesterday, so she came down with a slight fever. 6 months...I can hardly believe it. Her entrance into the world was harldy easy, but these last few months have just flown by! Her check-up went well yesterday. She's up to 9 lbs 4 oz & is 22 inches long (I know, some of you are thinking, holy cow, my baby was bigger than that when they came out!). She is doing so well. She rolled over for the first time last week, though she hasn't done it since then. She loves to watch people. We were at Stake Conference this weekend, & I took her into the foyer to give her a bottle & once she was done she would have nothing to do with me holding her up on my shoulder, she wanted to sit on my lap and watch the other kids run around. She also loves to sit on my lap & watch the computer while I check email & scrapbook. I think she is getting close to being able to sit up on her own. For now, this is what we've resorted to:
She is such a little character, & it's even more fun now that she is smiling all the time. She really loves it when we figure out she has a messy diaper. You lay her on the changing table to get started & she is nothing but grins. We are so blessed to have her in our lives! I love my sweet Shari Jo!