top 10 of 2010 ~ Craig version

I've been seeing a lot of these top 10's on peoples blog this year. So I decided to scrapbook one & then decided to play around with my new Stampin' Up My Digital Studio I got for Chrismtas. It was fast & easy. I'm sure my first creation is generic compared to some peoples, but hey I'm just figuring the software out. So far I like it & am happy w/ how mess free it was. Meaning scrapbooking for me is dragging stuff into the kitchen to use that table. You can click on the picture to make it bigger I believe & read the list.

Dear Santa,

Dropping off mail today in Rogers I went inside & saw the cutest Santa mailbox. So I had to go out to the car & grab my phone to get a picture of course. Then of course my next thought was this blog & letters to Santa.

So here goes.....

Dear Santa,
I've been good this year. And I want Bakugan Battle Brawlers tomorrow morning. I really want Stinglash, Facoln Neer, Fear Ripper, & Saurus. Thank you for letting Hadlley visit us.
Love, Logan.

Dear Santa,
I have been good this year. I would like some of the following things. Like an XBOX360, a laptop, an iphone 4, & ummmm a Under Armour hoodie. Thank you for the good presents previous years.
Love, Stephanie
PS One of my Christmas wishes is to let dad let me play his 360 more.

Thanks for being a good sport Steph, that is why you are on the good list ;)

Dora Card Steph made

Steph did such a cute job I think on this card for Riley. The parties theme was Dora. Sorry the photo is sideways I couldn't figure out how to correct it. ****side note, it looks like the card is correct now so hopefully it will be right when you open this****

Bread, Fudge & a trip to MO..........oh my!

Got up this morning & made two batches of peanut butter fudge. Just looked up the recipe for the friendship bread that I need to make also. These are for Retha's family in MO. I'm giving them a plate, & I will put a Definitely Decorative Decor Elements from Stampin' Up in the center for the fudge. The bread is going in a loaf pan. Chris is on call so he has to stay home :( We go up there about once or twice a year & they are all the nicest people you could ever meet (or be related to). I remember going up to a family reunion right before Chris & I were married. I was so nervous & shy, but everyone was so nice & friendly.

We also have a birthday party to attend to for a sweet little two year old named Riley this morning also.

So lots of celebrating going on for us today!!

only 15 more to go

No I'm not talking about days til Christmas. Here is the reason we have been getting our daily recommended intake of fruits each day, lol. These are little cans that pineapple was in. Open the bottom w/ a safety can opener so the pull tab stay intact. Fill w/ candy for your favorite person or in my case your childrens teachers. Reglue bottom back on. Only 15 more to go! Good thing a friend is coming over tomorrow afternoon & we are having a can making marathon :) I usually do the big soup cans however w/ 16 total teachers between both kids I decided to go smaller this year. Hopefully the teachers all like them. Sure wish my friend was helping me make my cans, but no I'm showing her how to do hers :)

Duck & cover!

I have a SU shipment due yesterday that I forgot about. It's about 6pm or so & pitch black outside. I'm sitting by the front living room window & hear a mans voice clearly. Chris hears it also. I tell him that someone is on our porch. As I'm saying that it sounds like the doorknob starts turning. (Side note....we always keep our doors locked even when home). Chris jumps up & says softly "Get down". I'm freaking out at this point for 1. I have no where to get down because of the foot stool & the Christmas tree. 2. Someone is trying to break into our home w/ US IN IT! 3. Chris has never told us that before EVER. Chris is running to the bedroom to grab his gun. I am right behind him because I'm not staying in the living room. As I run past Logan I touch his shoulder & say "come on". Steph has run into the kitchen & literally is whimpering. She decides to follow the rest of the family. Once we reach the bedroom Chris can't get out because we are all lined up behind him. Then we hear this sort of rumble outside. Chris asks if that is a UPS truck. I said I don't know. I peek outside & see nothing or no one. Chris go & checks out side & finds a box the UPS has apparently thrown from our sidewalk & it hit the screen door. The last two deliveries they've not rang our bell & if Mr. Brown knows what is good for him he might want to start ringing doorbells..........especially where people own handguns.

OUCH

Every Mon, Wed, Fri Chris goes running at a local park & most days the kids go w/ him to either ride bikes around the trail or play while Chris is doing his 4 mile run. So on Fri while Chris is running Steph hears Logan laughing, she turns around to see what is so funny. He was laying on the ground by his bike crying. She turns her bike around to comfort him & see how bad he was hurt. (such a good sister) He managed to scrape his ankle on his pedal & also twisted his wrist pretty bad. Steph intercepts Chris to get the truck keys so they can go sit in the truck & wait for him to finish his run. She neglects to tell Chris that Logan got hurt (who knows why she didn't tell him). Logan was still crying when Chris got to the truck & found out about the bike wreck. After he got home we iced up his ankle & wrist/arm while we checked for swelling & brusing, which none happened. Of course we made sure he could move his fingers & bend his wrist. It's still hurting today & he's not using it much so I know it must have hurt it pretty good. But still no swelling or brusing.

Family Photos

Logan didn't turn in his picture money for school pictures. I found out this little fact the day after retakes. I know what the photo looks like because the teacher gave us a couple stickers & he got the missing child card. They aren't the best photos he's taken. So off we go to Portrait Innovations to have his pictures done & family photos as a bonus. I like that you also get your photos the same day (less than an hour) you take them. We haven't had professional family photos taken in a LONG time. Chris & Steph were not very happy w/ Logan but they were good sports for the most part :) Here's a small sampling of the 80 shots they took.

{personal chauffeur} & {fancy baby shower bag}

Stephanie has gotten a lot of practice driving today. The kids & I got our flu shot at the school flu shot clinic this morning. Since we were out so early Walgreens pharmacy (the pharmacy not the actual store) wasn't open yet so I couldn't request a refill I needed. Steph drove home from Walgreens. Chris decided to jump on the flu shot band wagon & I checked out places around the Lowell area & she drove the fam to Ozark Urgent Care (behind Sonic). They give flu shots for $15 if you need one :) Then she drove us to Walgreens since they were now open, then across the street to McDonalds for lunch, then home. Since I never made the grocery shopping trip today she drove Logan & I to Marvins to grab some things for dinner tonight. Can't wait til I can just send her to Marvins by herself to pick up things for me. And yes this is a photo taken as she drove to my parents one day, but it was handy on the computer for me to use.
This is a plain $1 bag from Wal-Mart that I jazzed up a bit for a lady at work having twin boys. I replaced the boring shoestring type handle w/ green ribbon. Stamped the tissue paper w/ baby feet, & added the words on front plus the ribbon too. The cards are edged w/ green & yellow (can't see well in photo) & they say thank you at the bottom. Since I never posted these photos I decided to toss them into this post.

Huntsville trip

Went to my parents house in Huntsville to see my mom for her birthday & decided to stop by That Little Pizza Place & pick up some pizza for lunch. She loves their taco pizza (so do I). As you can tell, it is a little pizza place, but if you are ever in the Huntsville area you should stop by & try them out. They are right across the street from Wal-Mart & Pizza Hut. This was also Steph's first time to drive to Huntsville. She decided to let Chris take over though after we stopped at the pizza place.

Decided to take some photos of the kids & their Nana & Papa while over there. We ended up on top of the hill mountain. I think between her camera & mine we got a few good shots.
This is on the way down the mountain, heading back to the house. Their house is in the little clearing you can see at the bottom, center. To get to the end of their driveway you still have to drive a little farther down.

Oh My

Has it really been 27 days since I posted? Geez, I guess time flies when you are having fun huh?

Happy Birthday one day late to my wonderful mom! She celebrated yesterday!! Hope it was a great one.

Conferences was this week at school & I'm happy to report that there are no D's on either childs report card. YEA!!

Logan is doing well adjusting to Middle School & all that class changing. A counselor is going to work with him on organization, which bless his heart, he needs help with :) We were told he's a very happy child & always has a smile on his face.

Stephanie is also doing well her second year of high school & all her teachers enjoy having her in class. Most said she always has a smile on her face & is happy all the time. One mentioned she was shy..............oh my..........really??? Granted it's first hour & I think she's just not woke up really good then. lol She's doing well driving & actually drove home from the school after the conferences tonight.

Chris is still a non-smoker, wh-hoo Chris. His cigarette money has been put to good use on a flat screen tv for our bedroom (XBOX 360 games), & his Kindle just arrived tonight. I told him I'd have to try that Kindle out & maybe he could buy me one :) I do love reading!!

Not much going on with me other than letting Steph drive home every afternoon (part way from school) & working like normal. I did finally remember to call about getting someone out to talk to us about a new heating/ac unit. And they came out one day later & got it installed. Just in time to with the first freeze scheduled for Friday. I'm not sure our old heater would have came on.

Okay this is a long enough update for now. I'll try to make a few posts ever so often w/ photos because I know I enjoy photos on blogs myself.

Busy times

So we've had our fair share of things going on around in the last month.

Logan & Chris celebrated a birthday. We had a small gathering of friends for Logan's party last Monday. I always do it at the end of Sept due to the fact that the turn out is never good right around his actual birthday. To close to a holiday & school had just started.

Chris was even surprised on Friday evening after his birthday w/ a couple we are friends w/ meeting us for bowling. We never do that & it was fun.

As you know Steph passed her drivers permit test so more gray hair has sprung up on my head........no she's doing well........just ignore the times she almost rammed the garage door mixing up the gas & brake pedals, or sliding into our driving & almost hitting a tree in our yard, & I bet the guy walking on the street would disagree w/ her doing well when he had to jump off the road or possibly get ran over :)

For the first time since Jan. of 2001 Steph is no longer a member of Girl Scouts......guess I should change my yahoo email now huh?

Chris has been batteling a little cold or sinus/allergy thing & now Logan is sitting on the loveseat & not feeling real well..............

Zoom Zoom

My my, how times have changed. Gosh I sure sound old huh? Anyways........."way back when I did my learner's permit testing" it was called the written test & it actually used a pencil. :) Now it's done on the computer & is called the Learner's Permit test. I guess that makes sense because you have your Learners Permit once you pass the test.

So now we have a teen driver (only w/ an adult over the age of 21 who has had a license over one year) in our household. Can you tell I've also been reading the drivers manual? She has one year to do the practial test (aka Drivers Test). The earliest is 30 days. Even if she did her driving part test in 30 days it's no different than the piece of paper she has now. Meaning she still has to have someone 21 in the car also. So no rush.

Congrats Steph!!

Happy Birthday Chris!

Today is Chris's birthday. The family celebrated w/ lunch out & a quick stop by a fruit stand (which he didn't want to do I might add). We love you & hope you had a great day!!

What Were You Doing 12 Years Ago?

Logan's very first picture ever. Gotta love those lovely hospital baby pictures that really look nothing like your baby lol. And yes the paper background is wrinkled up, I guess Logan wiggled or something & they didn't notice it.
Here is his last school picture.

Birthday Wishes Do come True!!

Right after Logan blew his candles out on Sunday someone asked him what he wished for. Chris stopped him before he said it. While watching the weather on tv the next evening the 7 day forecast comes up & it shows a good chance of rain for the week. Logan all exicted jumps up & says "Mom, my birthday wish is going to come true!" I had to giggle because this isn't the first time he's wished for rain. There's probably not many kids out there or adults for that matter that would be using that once a year wish for rain. His 2008 birthday he wished for rain on his birthday from Hurricane Gustav. And that came true also. I think there are many people out there glad it rained today because it's been since mid July since we've had any decent rainfalls.

Thanks Logan for an awesome wish!!

Logan's Family Birthday Party

Bakugan was the theme this year since Logan is crazy over it. The family all came over on Sunday & we enjoyed a lunch. All foods was in the shape of bakugans. Meatballs, Potato Balls, Garlic Bread Balls, Watermelon Balls, & Grapes. Of course we had cake/ice cream after lunch too. Fun was had by all. Thanks for celebrating with us everyone!

We finally had Gina over to spend the night on Friday. We've been trying to plan this sleepover most of the summer & it just didn't work out. So after staying up late letting her watch You Tube videos of old America's Got Talent segments the girls slept in till about 10am. Chris decided that we all needed to go to Borders & visit the coffee shop. His is the boring coffee in the back, lol. Gina was picked up by her mom there later. As we were all leaving I decided a quick trip to the restroom was in order. So as I round the corner I see the "Men" sign & turn the other way towards "Women". Before I see the sign for the ladies I see this lady come out of the mens room. I'm thinking surely I read the sign right so I stop & look again to make sure I'm heading the right way. She stops when she sees me & puts her hands over her mouth in total Macaulay Culkin fashion. We are both stopped looking at each other & I feel I have to say something. So I say "Anything look different in there?" It was SO FUNNY!!
Close up & personal with yummy goodness.
Leaving Walmart tonight I saw the most unique sunset. This picture you can barely tell. The rays were spreading out in an arc above the sun.

Sonic Gift Card Contest

I read this blog called Because I Said So all the time. She also has a review blog & on it she's doing a Sonic gift card contest. You can read all about the contest at the link below. Join in on the fun.

http://dawnmeehan.blogspot.com/2010/08/we-all-scream-for-sonics-real-ice-cream.html



The link to the non review blog is www.mom2my6pack.blogspot.com
Go check her out.

First day of school 2010

6th & 10th are the grades. Kirksey Middle School & Rogers High School are the schools.

Chris got the honors of making the first day of school drop offs this year. I forgot my cell phone at home & first break ran home to grab it & call him for a Logan drop off update. When I asked him how Logan did this morning he asked me "Why? Did they call you?" He said Logan was twisting his fingers up like he does when nervous. Got out of car & walked really slow. Turned around & gave a little smile & it broke Chris's heart. He said it was like he was yelling "Help".

Stephanie had a good day she said. She took her map from last year & had to use it once she said. She doesn't really like her Spanish teacher because she only spoke in Spanish. I told her after two years of Spanish you'd think you could understand part of it. Chris asked her if others in the class were like "What?" She said no one could understand her. He told her that she'd get more out of that class that the whole last two years of Spanish classes.

Logan told me he had a good day. What he told Chris was anything but good. He said he got lost twice, but did ask for help. Which is major for Logan. Talking is something he LOVES to do, but talking to people he doesn't know is one of those social type things that really is hard for him. Once he stayed at his locker trying to get it open & that hours teacher came out in the hall to get him. Not sure if that was just luck on the teachers part or somebody else in the class told the teacher Logan was out in the hall. He didn't want to go back to school today he told Chris. We explained that wasn't an option, so I hope today was a much easier & better day for him.

Locker Practice & WHAT??

Logan had his Middle School Open House last night. He now will have a locker. And with that comes lots of practice opening it. Good thing dad was there to force me & Stephanie out of the way because we were just confusing the poor child. He opened it many times & already knows the combination by memory. If he can just remember to go to it & open it from time to time to get supplies out :)

Over the summer we happened by the school supply aisle in Wal-Mart. As I was scanning the shelves my eyes about popped out of my head when I noticed the price this folder had. I mean I realize it has 8 pockets & it's an organizer & all. But $66.60......SERIOUSLY! What's in those 8 pockets? And does the "organizer" organize everything in your life? If so maybe I should've bought a couple. One for backup in case the first one had a melt down trying to organize my stuff.

And then there's the 'ol trusty Zip Envelope for a small price of $60.00. Wow what a deal compared to the organizer above. You'd think this was just a local store mistake, but I saw these same products in another store with the same prices listed. And this post has just solved a problem everyone has that shops at Wal-Mart. It's how you can go in the store & come out w/ only a couple sacks & spend $100 or more.

Lazy Days of Summer

Here is Steph taking a mid afternoon nap yesterday. Gonna be rough not being able to nap at 2:30 when school starts in about a week & half huh?

How did this happen?

So the family went shoe shopping this last weekend. Chris needed some new running shoes & the kiddos & I needed new shoes for school. Once we get into the store Chris & Steph head off into their sections. I go with Logan to the boys section. I normally look at his shoe size & go up one half size & go from there after trying on shoes. So I can only find one boys shoe that has a size 7. I'm thinking maybe he'd fit into the smallest mens size. Head over to mens to look. For some reason I was thinking size 5 was the smallest mens. There are no 5's & very few 6 sizes. So I decide to take him back to boys & measure his foot............

........find an employee who measures his foot & says he is in a size 7 mens. I'm thinking surely not. I guess the look on my face says this too because he says if you get Nike (his old shoes were Nikes) you'll probably want to go up to a 7.5 because they tend to run a tad on the small size. I repeat 7 mens & he says Yes. Probably thinking lady your boy isn't in the boys sizes anymore I see it everyday just go to mens already. So off to mens we go, again. We start trying on shoes & ended up with a pair of size 8 mens. I'm still in shock & thinking HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? No wonder he takes his shoes off as soon as he steps into the house.

Grand Opening & Free Stuff

Aldi's had a grand opening in Siloam Springs on Monday. I wouldn't normally drive that far for a grocery store grand opening however decided I should make a Little Debbie snack run before school starts & stop by the new Aldi's store on the way home. They had been putting $5.00 off a $30 purchase coupons in the newspapers & so I had one for me & Retha. I'd been needing to make a grocery run & been putting it off.

The store was a pleasant surprise, it was NICE & BIG. They did have lots of items that the stores in Rogers & Springdale don't have. I didn't really like how they had their carts over on the side & you'd about run into people leaving the store (blind corner) & have to wait to get in the entrance door. But seriously how often will I be shopping there?

The above picture is all the items in a reusable bag they were handing out as we left. They had tons of samples also & I got to admit I am in love w/ their kettle chips :) Can't say I was to impressed w/ the flavored water though :( I also don't care to much for the choc. pudding we got (to lumpy) but I guess maybe I could try mixing it w/ some jello brand pudding. The kids have been wanting me to make some dirt cups & I think that jello will be used for that. Just need to buy some cookies for the dirt. I have worms left over from the Flip Flop Cookies

Staying cool in the pool

This is our 5th summer with our above ground pool. Even though it's only used a few months out of the year it's enjoyed almost every afternoon. Especially when the temps rise to the high 90's.

Here Steph & Logan have just gotten in & since I decided to snap a few photos we kept all the pool toys out. I was standing up on the ladder trying to get a different type angle.

This is Stephanie swimming under the water & I wouldn't have included it however look at the shadow she's making. It looks like a big fish with it's mouth open.
This one just cracks me up. Kids sure do make some funny faces while in or around water don't they?

Logan still practing trying to swim above the water & not under.

This is how I spend most of my time in the pool. I love pool noodles & my lounge with a chair back. If Tropical Storm Stephanie & Hurricane Logan aren't in full force & the water is fairly calm the current in the water will slowly pull you around in a counter clockwise fashion. Sometimes if I outlast the kiddos I'll have one of them bring me a book & I'll just float around & read. So relaxing.

Fun Little Contest

On another blog I found.....don't even remember how now.....she made some sugar scrub & it looks awesome. She is giving away some & if you blog about it you get another chance to win. Go check her out I've enjoyed reading her blog. http://roselandfamily.blogspot.com/ is her blog address.

I think this would be a great little gift for all my co-workers at the school for Christmas. I know I won't have any children attending that school next year, but I will probably go ahead & give little gifts out from me. And this won't mess w/ anyones diet, lol.

Yummy Flip Flop Cookies

I saw some really cute cookies in the August 2010 edition of Family Fun Magazine. http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/sweet-sandals-907343/

Of course it was the first dessert I thought of when I invited a friend over to swim last weekend.

My mom came over the day before the swimming & I showed her the article. She thought it'd be cute to decorate in pink icing for a baby shower for a lady at her work. So off we went to buy all the supplies.

Here is My Moms Version on her blog. Mine are below.

I did use the sour gummy worms & since they are cut in half they aren't very sour tasting. I did try sticking the gummies on w/ icing like the magazine said, but found they were so sticky on the inside they stuck just fine to the icing on the cookie. (notice the one of the top left) I thought I had some graham crackers to crush up for sand at home but I didn't so I had no sand also.

Let me know what you think.

Don't have my groove on :(

I am normally a fairly fast scrapbooker when I do scrapbook, but not today. I just couldn't get into a scrappin' groove. Everything I started wasn't turning out like I had visioned. Then I try to use some brand new smooch spray & it wouldn't spray so that got me all sidetracked for at least an hour. Finally I decided to just do a layout like on a pack of stickers I picked up in the Target Dollar Spot about a week or so ago. I think that was part of my issues. I've never done really well w/ using sketches. (meaning it takes me forever even though it's all laid out for me) I normally just grab pictures & paper & end up w/ whatever I get. Not sure what you'd call that style of scrapbooking. Guess I should be happy that at least I did get 3 pages done today. One I'm not including in this post is of a little girl I used to babysit. It was finished in about 5 minutes, maybe 10. I had some ladybug stickers & used them & titled it "Cute as a" placed ladybug sticker.



Sorry the layouts are placed backwards.......trying new stuff in blogger. Apparently the layout on the right is barely showing, but if you click it, it should show up larger. Like I said I'm learning.

Cute plus more Dr. Appts

I've been looking for blog headers, or banners or whatever they are called to go on top of my blog. Found one I liked & Chris added the photos of the kids in for me, did you notice? Still haven't quite figured out how to make the green part in the back disappear. So you may have to deal w/ that for awhile folks. Look on the bright side though......you have two cute faces staring at you as soon as you log onto my blog now :)

Okay onto other cute stuff now. I found this while searching. So funny!!!



Chris had his post op appointment this morning & all is well. Still swollen (inside his nose). Has to go back in 6 weeks. We'll be back in school & he said I didn't have to go w/ him. Wasn't that sweet? Now when the time comes he just might insist I go w/ him & be there for moral support. Men.....

Birthdays & Bandages

I had a wonderful birthday on Monday. Went on a "hunt" for an outdoor clock. Found one marked down at Hobby Lobby. So I guess I got what I wanted for my birthday, even though I had to buy it. I baked cupcakes off on Sunday & the kids iced them on Monday. Chris, the kids & I went to dinner & enjoyed cupcakes at home for dessert. It was a really good birthday for nothing major happening.

Chris had his deviated septum nasal surgery this morning. He is being a good patient so far. Still having some "dripping" of blood which is normal. We are keeping the gauze changed really quick when that happens so it doesn't scare the kids. He goes in tomorrow morning to have the packing inside the nose removed. He'll be off work the rest of this week & all of next to make sure he's good & recovered. His philtrum (also known as that little dip above your top lip for all you non doctors out there...............& yes I googled it lol) is swollen & no longer dippish. He is still doing really well with not smoking & didn't even have his Chantix med's this morning because of surgery.

Rainbows & Stealth Bomber Bat-Birds

We've been getting ate alive sitting outside on the backporch this summer so today I bought some Citronella candles & holders for the liquid I have. Had to test them all out tonight of course. So Chris & I enjoyed some time sitting on the backporch w/ only one mosquito spotted. He went inside & I decided to enjoy the cooler temps & read a little bit. He came back out a few minutes later & spotted this rainbow off to the south. We'd been hearing thunder all around us but no rain for us as of yet.

While I am up on the ladder taking this picture I had a Stealth Bomber Bat-Bird small tiny bird glide over the top of the pool RIGHT AT ME!! It might as well been a real Stealth Bomber because it scared me. I screamed & jumped down off the ladder. I did manage to scare the daylights outta the little bird too. Although it kept coming back & made a couple stunt circling fly bys to see if the coast was clear from the maniac screaming lady. Chris asked me if I was just trying to break a leg when I climbed up to the 3rd ladder rung to try for a better rainbow picture.
He assured me that if the kids & I are in the pool it'll steer clear. I just hope & pray he knows what he's talking about. Stealth Bombing Bat-Birds aren't my idea of fun times, rainbow or not!!

Day 7 ~ Time to Go Home

Ocean on the right & ocean on the left. This also shows how far we are from the beach. The dune on the left behind the power pole is the dune we walk over to get to the beach. The house w/ the red roof is called Cloud Nine & the light blue house is named Risky Business. Empty lot between them that Cloud Nine owns & drives on to get into the parking under their house. Not sure of the name on the peach colored house right beside us. There is an empty lot between Risky Business & the peach colored house.
This is the view from the deck/balcony of the bedroom Chris & I had. You can see the waves much clearer than in these photos.

While taking the above photos, Chris & the kids were running up & down the stairs loading stuff in the car. I decided to snap this & I really like it.

We had a pretty uneventful trip home (thank goodness). Left a bit earlier than normal & got home a bit earlier so that was nice. On I-540 just before the Bobby Hopper Tunnel the fog was rolling in so I'm really glad that we got there when we did & not any later. This picture shows the fog just hanging in mid air.