Summer is flying by!

Abbie and her cousin Anna - fresh from the pool July 2009

Sam and Jacob with cousins Bryce and Sierra. July 2009

I can't believe another Friday is here. The summer is flying by in a happy blur as it always does...and I feel a little sad when I see it slipping by but I will enjoy it while it is here and know that fall in Virginia will be a whole new experience to savor!

So time for another Friday Fill-ins :)

And...here we go!

1. It's time for me to buckle down on my diet - I have gotten a little off track this summer.

2. Richmond, Virginia; it's not a bad place for summer - most people think it is hot but it is no hotter then it was in Omaha over the summer.

3. I must be lazy - no matter how much I want to like exercise I just don't. Ugh!

4. The love of my family is the best thing I have ever known.

5. My dog Zoe is simply the sweetest dog around!

6. The last time I laughed really loudly was at Summerfest with Judy and Todd.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to seeing Don after his week away, tomorrow my plans include family time - either running around or at the pool and Sunday, I want to do some vacation planning and scrapbook if I can squeeze it in plus a nice family dinner at home!

Hope you have a fun weekend on tap!

My Sweet Baker

When we went to the library earlier this week Abbie got lots of book - including several cookbooks - namely cookie cook books. I love to cook and Abbie has spent lots of time in the kitchen with me learning to cook. I am not much of a baker - I don't like to be precise in my cooking and with baking you need to follow the recipe more closely then I like. Which brings me to Abbie - you see she is a major sweets girl. She love anything sweet but especially chocolate! So naturally she would want to make sweet treats.

She asked if she could make cookies all by herself from this cookbook she got. Sure, why not?! I have to say - they turned out perfect and were wonderful! I am sure she is planning her next treat as I write :) I am so proud that she is already wanting to cook and doing such a great job.

I already made a scrapbook page about this yesterday but it is for the Sketchapalooza class going on right now. I will share it with you when class is over :)

Hope you are enjoying this summer day!

Best Shot Monday - 7/27/09

I took this of the James River which is just a few miles from our house :)

Today we went to the Library here for the first time since we moved in and boy is it a nice one! Abbie and I could have stayed all day but Sam was getting bored so we left with new library cards and 12 books in hand. Looking forward to heading back again soon!

Friday Fill-ins

Jacob and Zoe on our way to Indiana :) July 2009

Friday Fill ins...
1. Being seen without make-up is not the end of the world. (In high school - I would have died if I had to go out without it on! LOL)
2. Sitting here, listening to the sound of rain falling, I feel cozy in the house - perfect for reading a good book! (It is not raining today -sunny and 88 degrees but I can imagine it)
3. Food tastes so good! (Seriously - I love most food - unfortunately for my waistline!)
4. Sometimes, putting others first is the best feeling in the world.
5. Nature is breathtaking, really.
6. Well, maybe there is such a thing as too much scrapbook paper. LOL!
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to dinner and maybe a movie with Don, tomorrow my plans include a bit of moving things around then furniture shopping and Sunday, I want to relax and scrapbook!

A list to catch up :)

I am finally back home and feeling a little more caught up on things :) Thought I would share a brief recap of some of the things we did on our trip...

• Left home June 26th for a 3 weeks trip.
• Put 2200 miles on our new car.
• Drove through 9 states.
• Spent a fabulous weekend catching up with our friends the Sipich's.
• Enjoyed music, beer, food and general fun at Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
• Spent time at both of Don's brother's houses - letting the kids play and enjoying some time together.
• Put my 10 year old daughter on a plane to Omaha, NE all by herself. (so proud!)
• Don flew home to Virginia
• Spent a fun evening catching up with my sister and family at Hidden Lake's festival in Merrillville, Indiana.
• Abbie spent a week at Camp Kitaki in Lincoln NE - her 3rd time. She LOVES it!
• Went to Connie and Dave's house on the Lake for the 4th and got rained on.
• Ate at our favorite local joints in Indiana.
• Went to the casino boats and only lost $4.00 (that is a win in my book!)
• Did lots of shopping and got some great new shirts for my birthday.
• Jacob and Sam did a ton of fishing at my Mom's.
• We went to several movies.
• We toured the out Sheriffs house and jail in Crown Point, Indiana where Dillinger escaped from jail. Very interesting!
• Went to a classic car show that had my Dad and Jacob drooling!
• Zoe (our dog) is the best traveler of the bunch :)
• Went to dinner with a friend I have know since I was born and it was like we were never apart - so nice!
• Had an awesome scrapbook weekend with friends in Chicago! So much fun getting creative and catching up with each other!
• Drove back to Virginia with my Mom, the kids and the dog (lets just say the girl were all well behaved - me, my mom, Abbie and Zoe and the boys - Jacob and Sam - not so much.
• Spent a few days doing things like hanging pictures and shopping for rugs.
• Took my mom to Belle Island - one of our favorite Richmond parks
• Spent the last week since she left catching up on laundry and things around the house.
• Whew!

A big thanks to my Mom and Dad and to Don's Mom for putting us up and putting up with us :)

Best Shot Monday - 7/20/09

Flowers again :) This time taken in my mother-in-laws front yard in NW Indiana at mid-day. Not the best lighting but the flowers themselves are beautiful. I hope to get back to my long neglected blog this week with an update about our looonnnggg trip to the midwest.

Sketch Class starting Monday!

Hi everyone! Just checking in from Indiana...I will be heading home next week and hope to get back to regular posting but I wanted to pop in real quick to let you know Feeling Scrappy's next skechapalooza class is getting ready to start! Here are the class details as posted on the blog:

We have some exciting news for our next Sketchapalooza class which starts July 13th! Our guest designer for the class is Tracy Kosofsky and she has agreed to make digital templates for each and everyone of our new sketches! Great news for digital scrappers and those that are just starting to dabble in digital!

Here is what you can expect during the Sketchapalooza Class:

• A full FOUR WEEKS of class running from July 13th to August 10th
• Detailed sketches made exclusively for you by our design team
• A full 20 sketches (5 per week!)
• New this class! Digital templates for each sketch
• Challenges with prizes each week
• Several double page spread sketches and more pictures per sketch
• Plus tips and tid-bits to keep your creative juices flowing
• Fabulous creative examples for each sketch by our talented design team
• Paper and digital examples layouts for each sketch
• A private class forum with lots of support and friendly conversation
• Self paced class - do as much or as little as you would like
• A PDF file including all the sketches from class for you to keep for future reference
• Graduation crop with challenges, games and prizes
• Plus a few surprises :)

The cost for this class month long class is only $25.00. You can sign up by visiting the Feeling Scrappy blog: http://feelingscrappyclasses.blogspot.com/search/label/Classes