Life. Crazy, Chaotic, Ours!

Starting Point: A Scrap Late, A Bit Short, but Completed Nonetheless...

 One of the blogs I surf quite regularly for creative inspiration is pretty paper.true stories{and scrapbooking classes with cupcakes.}  Shimelle's got all kind of tips and, well, inspiration.  Some days the only 'scrappin' I get in is via a blog surf or two for inspiration.  I have many that top my list, but last weekend I seemed to linger a bit longer on this one and actually took her 'starting point' tip to create my own page.  This was the specific spot to start on her blog:  http://www.shimelle.com/paper/1213/scrapbooking-starting-point/.

I had gotten this Basic Grey Wisteria Collection Pack on clearance at Michaels last month...(yea, me - I love Basic Grey and I love a bargain even more)!

 

(The tray that the paper pack is lying on was also a bargain, like under $4 and it's 12x12!)

I knew I had to use the paper but I didn't have a specific photo in mind.

I was listening to "This" by Darius Rucker while walking back from the store one day and knew the lyrics would be perfect for a scrap page.

So my base was created:

 

And then I quickly perused through my photo library to find a complimentary photo for the lyrics I wanted to use:

 

There aren't too many photos of just me and the kids floating around out there.  I've gotten better about handing over the camera, but I'm far from great at it.

So Shimelle's starting point + Darius Rucker's lyrics + clearance paper + a photo from Mother's Day = the perfect {and quick} page:

 

 

 

And "THIS" is just another reason why I love scrapbooking and blogging!

 

Little Delights

"Delight in the little things."  {Rudyard Kipling}

 

Do you do this?

I try.  Sometimes it's hard.  Sometimes it's easy.

Easiest when you have kids to help lead the way.  They don't have the weight of the world on their shoulders.  They don't stress over money or jobs or commuting to work or politics or silly, petty arguments. 

 

They realize that the little things make life worth living

 

and that there's always time to 'stop and smell the roses'

 

and there's always great opportunities to dance between the raindrops

 

or wish upon a star

 

or just to explore for the sake of exploring.

 

They know the ride is short yet amazing.

 

They know that silliness and laughter is the best thing for the soul.

and that rainbows are always within reach.

 

and they remember to party like it's 1999 [even if we made it through that moment and onto the new year and they can't remember or weren't around for that year].

 

Life is good.

Life is short.

And we should know it.

And live it and appreciate it to the fullest.

 

Do you?  I'm trying.  And these guys help me do it more every. single. day.  So I'll leave you with this wisdom from the 70's:

Do a little dance...

Make a little love ...

and get down tonight! 

(Who doesn't love a little KC & the Sunshine Band?)

Up for the challenge?

Ready?  Set?  Go!

 

Giggles and Gab!

 

See these two girls laughing in this classic photos from 1986?

They were best friends forever throughout high school.

Remained close enough to be in each other's weddings in 1994.

 

Drifted apart a bit when our kids were born starting in 1997 or so ...

then ran into each other at a class reunion or two ...

and decided to make a much better attempt to keep in touch regularly.

 

And for the past year we've been pretty good about that promise.

Because when you become friends in middle school ... during those awkward years ...

when you become friends because you both had to wear headgear.

when you both become cheerleaders together, as the unlikely-not the most popular girls.

when you both get a job at McDonald's so you could spend even more time together laughing about boys and inside jokes and sharing Ramen noodles and sugar biscuit donuts.

There are just too many memories wrapped up to let go

of a comfortable, easy-going, acceptable friendship.

So we now slow down and make time for a weekend breakfast every couple of months

to catch up on our family life and share in our personal ups and downs

 

to reminisce about old friends, styles and what's new on facebook

 

and, of course, our conversations are never short on time or words and we spend a couple hours enjoying each other's company, friendship and and endless drone of chatter.

 

And that's how you keep a true friend.  One who knows you inside out and will always be there.  Despite the distance of time, the silly squabbles that truly aren't important.  It's how we cultivate a life [and friendship] worth living [and keeping] and how we {Tanya Marie and me} want to stay forever...

those silly, happy 'best friends forever' from high school without a care in the world, as we both hope and believe that our children will find that same kind of comfortable, always-there-for-you friendship that withstand the test of time!

Here we go!

 

It's a new school year!  Crazy how fast Summer went by!

Our back-to-school haircuts [and pretzels]:

 
(Yes, Caroline got bangs!  Side bangs and she was quite particular about the cut with the very patient hairdresser!)

So the week before school began, we had a little earthquake...first time anyone in my family ever experienced one since we live in MARYLAND.  Yep, that's right, not exactly on a well-known fault line area!  ha ha

And the Saturday immediately preceeding the first day of school, Hurricane Irene made an appearance, knocking out power to virtually everyone in Maryland [except us {yea!}].  So, as we found out via the school website, the first day was delayed for two days and the kids started back on Wednesday!

 

Too odd, huh?

 

And we now have an 8th grader [who is lots taller than his Mama]!

 
A 4th grader [who is closing in on his Mama and struck that pose all by himself]!

 
And a 1st grader [who hasn't had any separation anxiety issues so far {3 days into the new school year} and is going to school on Monday missing both of her front teeth - she was just minus one in this photo on Wednesday; Andrew 'helped' the second one out on Friday.]!

Oh, and I'd totally be remiss if I forgot to post a picture of the first night homework:

 

forms, forms, more forms, and, oh what's that?  a fundraiser already!  Yippee!  Need a Yankee candle or something representing your favorite sports team?  Yep, got all bases covered ... gifts for the women and gifts for the men. :)  The kids thought it was hysterical that Mommy had more homework than they did on the first day!  It's okay; I'll have less than they do in the long run! lol

So maybe now we'll get back to some regularly scheduled posting?  Okay, don't hold your breath.  But I have created two scrapbook pages this week and check out this:

 

Know what it is?  Think mid-June til last week in August...

 

Yea, that's a stack of 302 photos I had developed at Walgreens this week with a coupon.  They include:  Ben's birthday celebration, my niece's wedding and our 'staycation' week photos with a smackling of other events tossed in!  I've got lots of scrappin' and ideas running through my head.  I can't tell you how many 'nature' photos I have taken this Summer due to the gorgeous butterflies visiting our flower beds and veggie garden.  We also made a trip to Ladew Gardens that yielded lots of photos courtesy of the kids' input!

The good news?  Our 'daily life' is being well documented in the Project Life album!  Though I'm a bit behind on the journaling, the photos are there waiting for the stories to get written down and I'm catching up a little here and there.  So I suppose I will have as much homework as my kiddos this year!