Xmas Photos

I give up..third time I am trying to upload some photos..I'll be back and add more in..but geez :))) My big post is gone too. We had a great xmas...very low key and NICE. Mikey was laughing so hard because he bought Katie what he thought was lip gloss but it turned out to be GLITTER GLUE and we couldn't stop laughing. He also shared his bakugan with a crying wee one who was so upset because it wasn't fair that she didn't have one. He got his beloved microscope. Just a nice holiday all the way around. Hope your 2009 is a wonderful year!

Our Xmas Photo Shoot

Every year I do this and then after taking 5,000 pics wonder why oh why I subject myself to this. It's about the same time the tree goes up and I ask plaintively- please..why don't we have a Norman Rockwell xmas once???! No one of course listens to me. This year I didn't even try and add Kev to the mix. He's the biggest baby of all...always complaining and it was a bit later than we normally take our photos.

Read- brisk and freezing. Jacket weather for sure. I made Katie and Mikey wear their vests but little Anna had no vest so she was wearing this old jacket which makes me shudder but she loves. It didn't match so I knew it was going to come off. What I forgot was what a ruckus she makes when she is unhappy.

We get to the park near our home..fantastic setting. Love the barn (Cari turned me onto this a year ago). And we proceed to snap quick as my hands are freezing. Anna is whining about no jacket so like a true model we keep bundling her into it at breaks. We get an awesome pic of the dog that KATIE took. And some ok ones of the kids...we finally about 100 pics in get THE photo...I am loving the light, etc..but still need a group one....and Anna is having a meltdown.

Mikey was just slightly better than the other two..but kept looking at me like...MOM get on with it already. Love this shot of him. :)

I had promised myself to be that zen photographer..um so not going to happen with MY kids..bribes don't work...they hate this...Katie in her most serene in pics in the tree...is glaring at me between takes saying. I just ADORE Christmas MOTHER. :)

A helpful guy with his family and like 12 dogs decides *now* is a good time for camera talk..um are you serious? Really? And starts trash talking my new baby- the 20D. Um I do not think so. We are leaving and the funniest thing - a family with a car with a bow on it trying to get a pic of the car and their not so small selves (3 ppl) with this TINY -and I do mean TINY, teeny camera that is a point and shoot on the smallest tripod I ever saw. I think..she's breaking *every* camera rule...you are going to look 500 lbs heavier if you take the pic from the ground UP and you will never include all those ppl and a freaking car. Being nice I offer to help them..and she was so rude to me..probably embarassed to be in the parking lot taking up the whole place with this ridiculous photo shoot. Word to the wise ppl..bring a person to SNAP the picture. :)

Anyway here are some we got that were good..the 2nd best pic is actually my header picture!

For next year I've already made plans...I am swapping kids with anyone of my friend's...they'll for sure cut down on the whining then! Or I am renting a family. Apparently the kids and Kev agreed to chip in. This year's xmas photo:

Love, Fee!

A special shout out

To three very dear friends...Bonni, Ron and Dolly who were there for me in my moment of crisis with appropriate words of wisdom....Bonni for holding my hand and not judging me or looking at me oddly ;) well no more than usual...and Ron and Dolly for giving me a shoulder (or car) to weep in and pointing out the obvious. For that I shall be eternally grateful. You made the order in the universe make sense again and I love all three of you. I don't know what I did to be granted such good friends but I thank God everyday for all of you!

More Dells and Georgia!

Here are a few more of my faves

Anna's Invites

I'm honored to be helping a dear friend with her wedding invitations..of course now Kev has ideas for when we redo our vows...so I better love this :)

Anyway here you go! Thanks Anna for letting me do my part in making your day special!!!

Hugs,
Fee

First Day of School

it went well...I was very nervous for AG....she was not happy...was "sick" last night according to her..burning up. LOL Today her stomach didn't feel well- poor baby...I bet it didn't. Last night K had a meltdown about her first day and what to wear...and then told her dad she didn't want to be 13 and get older. :( And Mikey was up at 1am because he was so excited...I don't think about going so much.....but who knows. LOL

I got some cute pics of them and the day went well. AG was terrified at school but I was upbeat and smiling and refused to "hold" her...a lot of kids were just sobbing and I told AG to tell me at least 2 good things that happened when I picked her up.

She was sure she'd have three things to tell me and she did. I was there early and got her and she was thrilled to see me. Told me she saw her brother in 5th grade and got to hug and kiss him And we ate out at her choice- Taco Bell..this kid would LIVE there if possible. And she took a LONG nap when we left..all three of mine took naps again after starting school. Let's hope the bedwetting and waking 5 times a night settles down now that it's not so scary.

I start my school on Monday..maybe I'll have the kids take a pic of me and maybe I should wake them up a few times crying about school..then have a meltdown about what to wear ;) Think the kids will laugh? ROFL

Anna's new monkey shoes :)

In other news Bonni and my cousin Anthony have dragged me kicking and screaming into myspace..which I still hate but at least I can see pics, etc but I did discover FACEBOOK and man is that place addictive...look me up there via my name and I'll add you as a friend. Lily sent me something the other day and I still can't figure out how to get it It's so EASY to use though I am loving it and it re-connected me to an old net friend who I lost when we both moved.....so it's been a great week.

My tattoo...after 2 weeks..lookin' good and NO scabbing amazingly enough!

Peace out.

Fee

Boys and Parties

Wow....boys are much different...while more laid back in their needs..they also are like wild indians running around my yard. M's party was a hit I suppose...he did mention to ALL the kids that only some were invited to sleepover...heck the three that did tried my patience with SLEEPING :) It appears as I get older I get less tolerant of sleepovers...esp when *I* am not the one staying awake all night having fun!

We had pizza (not enough this time) and puking on our pool deck (ick) and kids running around and having fun and it was all outdoors and they were able to do it on their own for the most part. One kid kept thinking it was hilarious to splash me and my camera when I was out there...I was most UNamused. :)

Now my house has 1 little girl Anna's age and her brother....Mikey's age or a little younger....and 1 other boy (the 2nd boy went home already- YAY)..my gram and Kev and Riss and me...kind of full this am. The girls are already in their swim suits and have been since about 7am....and K is ignoring their repeated requests to swim and NOW :) I spent the night on the couch with kicky- aka Anna...because she was crying out in her sleep...causing Kev to miss his alarm this am....that's been ramping up the closer school comes (this thurs).....

Anna told me in the dells..momma...everything I see during the day I see in my dreams and it scares me. LOL I knew this. We went to Top Secret there and frankly I was UNimpressed...the guide told me it wasn't scary (like heck) so Anna and I went in and because she was shy and scared he decided it'd be funny to scare the pants off her...unamused was my attitude and he was shocked when I said..where is the nearest exit b/c we aren't going to sit here anymore and do this....it was behind me and then I had to go all the way around the outside of this place to the parking lot..Anna thanking me the whole time for putting her blankie over her head. Poor kid.

Idiot Top Secret place...the older kids liked it...so I was glad for that!!!

And this same scared little girl kept trying to ride Zeus roller coaster..but she was about 2 feet too short :) We are pretty strict with her and rides...even if she's just a bit over if an adult isn't on with her - she's not going on...we discovered on one ride that she would have slipped right out since she's so slight.....but she WANTS to ride them..man alive..the kid was GO KART maniac...every two seconds begging someone to take her on them ROFL. Mikey still gets green on most rides..he's the most like me..poor kid....wants to ride so bad but then gets sick.

Ok gotta go...drive Gram home and get off my lazy behind...might even scrap today! :) Doing dinner with friends tonight. YAY..and then school stuff starts...amazing how fast summer went by! Amazing how happy I am without a store hanging over my head. Who knew?!

Dells

Man was it ever fun...we took a friend along for Katie to ride the slides with and the kids ALL had a great time..next time we will also bring a friend for Mikey and stay a week we think. There is SO much to do there....we ate at our fave Paul Bunyan's. If you haven't eaten there you need to...all you can eat and it's good old fashioned food.

I'll throw one pic in for now...since we are on our way to get the supplies for Mikey's pool party (they invited 17 kids..I should have checked the list a bit more closely! LOL)

See you all on the fly!

Fee

One Last post

The BEST Cinnamon Rolls EVAH...if you want the recipe - email me ..we love them..all cinnabon like...goodness...

not that I eat em anymore ;)

Fee

Some Layouts

I did a LOT of scrapping at Bonni's...but haven't scanned them at all YET. :) But here are some older ones that ppl might not have seen.....

Hot time...

In more ways than one LOL....just came back from a lovely break and vacation with my dearest friend and "hero" Bonni.....my mom and the kids joined me in the hottest part of the country. Oy. Have I mentioned how I hate heat and it makes me cranky????! We got sunburned in 1 hour at the pool..luckily enough for me NOT enough that I couldn't get what I went there for...but alas for poor Bonni...none for her on her sunburned neck (I still think you did it on purpose!!!!)

Kids bday party after we returned in June!

A brief recap of my summer so far....do I do it in concerts or trips? Both have been insane this summer. I don't know if it's because Mom lives here now (instant babysitter) or because the kids are older. We fell in love at Summerfest (kev and I) years and years ago (15 now or more) and haven't really gone that much in recent years...our concert going started with that I think....trying to remember now. Actually I lied :) We went to Rush back in March? Long story with that...Kev has been TRYING to get me there for oh I don't know? 15 years? But I hated them...and really do I have to do EVERYTHING with my spouse? So I avoided it that long. Finally I caved..and said MAYBE I would someday go to one. LOL
Kev at Summerfest- a balancing act of great entertainment!
Bad mistake..within 1 hour he had us tickets to see them in Moline. Very SMALL venue btw....so Kev and I did a couple's weekend there and it was FUN. The show was FANfrickingTASTIC. I couldn't believe it...we were so close to the stage Kev was hyperventilating. I agreed that they rocked and I wouldn't mind seeing them again. Well we already had tickets (2) for the Summerfest show and we sold those and got 4 (for K and M) to join us and had a rocking good time. We went to Summerfest like 4-5 times to see various bands....Loved Snopek...and also some other small name bands...and then saw STEVE MILLER BAND with Joe Cocker and Rush again. We loved SMB so much that we saw them a week later in IL grabbing 7th row tickets for $30 each (stubhub or ticketsnow- great places to find tics). Went to see Dave Matthews Band in there somewhere- it was "ok". I left it early actually- this show he seemed zoned out and not with it..with his band..but that venue was in my old neighborhood and so NICE...remembering that one for sure!!!!
Kev and I in Indy with our new Sony Powershot? I think that's it. LOVE this little powerful camera!!!
Then we ended recently with FOO FIGHTERS (talk about a SHOW) and another RUSH concert in Indianapolis. OY. Came home from that..finished school and rushed out to see Bonni before we leave on wed for the Dells. After that the kids go back to school and I am in school FULL time this fall..where my blog can become the adventures of the college co-ed

Anna's New SHORT cut like her big sister's!

So it's been go-go-go...trips so far have been:

San Diego and side trip to Mexico!, Moline, Savannah/Fort Stewart, Indianapolis, Madison, Milwaukee and the Dells. Trips in the spring- MEXICO with Kev..I can't wait. :) And FLORIDA to see half the old DT it seems...Lily, Julie, Janet and whoever else shows up!!!
Brat Pack 08- Madison...a FULL group minus one person- not too bad for a college reunion!

The closing of Scrap Addict has been such a blessing in SO many ways. I did my first college class in 10 years or so this summer and it was such a good class..even though it was beginning math again it was EASY and I learned a lot. I scored an A. YAY. And I found I still love learning. I can't wait to get through all my schooling. I've had time to cook, organize things...clean and rearrange. And spend time with my kids

. My very DEAR friend- Dolly! :)

So my big news....a TATTOO..how long have I been mentioning this? I almost did one at Summerfest but had PROMISED to do my first with Bonni..who then ditched me due to sunburn And it was FINE. How soon til I can get more???!

I had worked the pain up to epic proportions in my mind but was determined to do this for me. :) I'm SO so glad I did. It wasn't painful at ALL..although my toes were curled Bonni said ;) I didn't move a muscle. It felt like someone digging their nails in...the color hurt so much worse than the outline but Marcus (Dove who tattoo'd me and Bonni) had said the outline would hurt....The actual tat now is SO much brighter than this pic but it'll work to show you. It was going to be one small thing and kinda grew...I decided on the tattoo design for a variety of reasons....Butterfly (thanks Annette) because it signifies a change or metamorphisis....a rebirth if you will and I am reinventing myself and am totally different. It represents my 60 lb weight loss so far and the road I am traveling still....and then flowers and vines...I had seen this in a tattoo magazine but didn't want the SAME one.
Researched flowers for birth months....and decided on Narcissus for mine (who wants an xmas holly in there? LOL) and Hawthorne for Katie....Honeysuckle is June- Mikey and Kevin and then a Daisy for Anna- and for Bonni...Gerbera Daisy is Bonni's fave flower and it's purple- her fave color..so all the most important ppl represented in my life. And mom's flower is also dec- narcissus...

We got asked if they were twins...we were laughing til we looked good at them and thought....holy cow..they DO look like twins. :) We had great fun teasing them ALL the trip! Miss you guys loads already!!!!!

So that's our summer in nutshell. I'll try and throw some pics in here too!

Fee

Congrats to Mr and Mrs Demott

And can we say- it's about darn time you two. It was THE wedding to be at...even though the church photos were so rushed.....and I didn't get the shots I totally wanted (thanks to Jim for being there with his "hobby" camera which blew mine out of the water)- the day was FUN...and isn't that the most important thing? I managed to get photos of pretty much EVERYONE there (their one request) and the band was awesome as was the dj...I wish I wasn't so tired that I could have stayed and danced. The food- amazing and the love....stunning. I was so honored to be part of your special day!

How to Get through Customs with no worries

It's true..you CAN upon entering our country again get past US Customs with nary a worry. But how do you ask? Well you need my secret weapon. :) A little background..we went to Carlsbad to an exclusive resort this summer for vay-cay with the kids. The resort was beautiful but our highlight of the trip was a tour to Ensenada Mexico! I loved it there..the culture and the street vendors...omg everything about it...don't be surprised if I move there to work in a pharmacia ;)

Mikey wanted a shark's tooth necklace..try asking for that in spanish A cool little store called Coyote off the beaten path actually had it! I loved that little store!!!! Anyway he roped me into this HUGE sombrero. And then the next vendor told me he needed a poncho. Ok so there is my kid looking more Mexican than American and carrying his dad's new GUITAR. He looked like a freaking mariachi player. And when we walked into customs...with this boy in a sombrero as big as his body and this poncho strumming a guitar..well the WHOLE building basically broke out into La Cucaracha and waved us through laughing the whole time. What did Mikey say when they asked his name? OMG you'd have died laughing ...proudly he said: Mi Llamo Miguel. I was like....Michael knock it off. LOL

Have I mentioned how much I love and adore this kid????!!!!

Instant Karma

Yep it's true..karma is out there..now whether you choose to believe it's good or bad...isn't it truly all in how you look at it?

I did this layout about instant Karma with my kids.....the journaling is all about how ppl might think one door is closing in my life but in reality it is SO a window opening. I'm a glass is half full kinda girl. Now you tell me: I've got my health....I'm down 55 lbs and still losing, I'm looking better than I ever have, we have riches untold in family and love and life and we are able to take great vacations and I am blessed with being able to go back to school full time for a 2nd degree (pharmacy) to become a pharmacist. I'm still scrapping but I've gotten rid of all the drama and stress and nastiness....if this is karma may I have it always in this much abundance! :)

For those not in the "know" or living under a rock...we closed our local store this past weekend. It was a hard decision but not as hard knowing we weren't making any money there and that the market is dead lately. We were truly lucky to get out when we did. Whether or not the kit company keeps going is still up in the air because my other big news? I'm back in school full time. I took a long look at my life and I want the career and the salary and the lifestyle where I can see my kids..where my phone isn't ringing every 2 min, etc

Kev and I talked and he said if you went back to school would it be for admin? (My BA is in elementary education) and I said seriously if I went back I'd go to be a pharmacist...full on. It's 2 years of prereq's...math/science heavy and then if I get accepted (there are 4 local colleges that offer pharmacy colleges)- 4 more years. So that's what I am doing. And going back after 14 years is not nearly as hard as I imagined and I am working harder for it and actually getting it!

We still anticipate having our message boards/gallery (I can't get rid of the girls there anyway ;) Even if we have a different name for our site. We will keep everyone posted as things move along here but don't worry about me girls.....I so appreciate all the loyalty and support I've gotten from my true SA friends over the years and the rest of it simply does not matter. Don't sweat the small stuff right? And the rest is ALL small stuff.

Hang in there and enjoy summer. I've got to do some more posting - lots of good stuff to put out there..pics of Mikey and summer......but I have to leave to study for class!!!!