congratulations to the MILLERS

did you all see my cousins??? well, they almost won a million.. came close.. got runner up!
but they did win a cool new dodge !!
So proud of COle and Ld. http://www.nbc.com/Americas_Got_Talent/
check them out . click down on the left to hear the millers.

well, I should fess up, they are not my cousins. But they are home town favorites. I have been watching these guys and their family play since LD was like ten years old!! He is amazing, that kid!

not much going on here. running here and there. preparing for the fall routine.
Had my big open house for my business yesterday. Didn't have a huge turn out, but got lots of outside orders. My goal is to make enough so that I can put down new flooring in my kitchen and dining area!!
with a two year old feeding himself, the carpet has become spot central! Yes I said, carpet in the dining room. Is that not the dumbest thing?
anyway, I have searched out, and am going to do a wood type floor. hopefully soon.

Brig is almost potty trained. well, he would be if I would stop being the lazy mama and just work with him more. Its so convenient to just let him go in the diaper! he is coming and telling us, so that is good.

I think the other thing, is the milestone of that my baby is pottying in the toilet!! HE's not a baby anymore..=(

I 'll leave you with a funny comment from the mouth of a 2 year old.
He was just looking out the front window. He saw a little white truck drive by (like an S-10) or something.
He started saying.. "bye bye pizza.. bye bye pizza!"
cracks me up. is is saying to much about the habits of our neighbors..(certainly would not be us!

Have an awesome weeekend! I am going to get my scrap on. hopefully. I have definately been slacking.
party on dudes =)

some random stuff.

yeah, have not done a random post for awhile.

can you tell which kid's mom is addicted to scrappbooking? actually both are, but my kid is putting out the cheese! i am loving the too big shorts.. they look like jams. my mom thinks he looks like an old man.

quite frankly there is not to big of difference between a baby and an old man. mushy foods. diapers.babbling about nonsense!

this is my cutie head with his little friend Noah. the moms conned the dads into going to Hobby Lobby. we individually bribed them with dinners out.. (conveniently located near HL!).

I stocked up on patterned paper and letters, and a bunch of cardstock.
I am so bummed that of course the heidi swapp stuff was not included in the sale.

we went to a concert at our downtown train depot. The Clayton Miller Band (local fave) has made it to the finals of that reality show of Regis'. "America's Got Talent".

They came back to perform. Actually its just Ld on the harmonica, and his brother Clayton on drums and vocal.. but they used to play with other guys. It was cool to hear them.

Brigham loved every minute of it.. and was a crowd pleaser with his fancy moves! I swear this kid is part African American. this boy can dance!!

Don't know if you can see the kid in black on the harmonica.

He just blows me away with talent. We started going to hear him and his family play five years ago, when he was just ten years old. He was so cute.

He's grown up now, and lost some of that cuteness appeal. Hopefully his talent will get them thru. Check it out Wednesday August 16th is the finals.

We took brigham to his first movie on Tuesday. Andrew took the day off and we just played . We saw Barnyard. Brig lasted 45 minutes before he got very loud. animated. and yelling out every kind of animal that was on the screen, and added the noise each one made.

though cute, I am sure it was a bit annoying for the other people in the theatre. Its a kid movie in the middle of the afternoon, so I am sure it was to be expected, but brigham was by far the youngest kid in there. so we left early, but truthfully the movie was really bad.

and i was rooting for it b/c Kevin James plays the lead "cow". sorta funny. really stupid.

He was mezmerized by the screen and totally enjoyed his little kids pack of popcorn, lemonade, and pixie stix. Guess his loudness could be a result of sucking pure sugar thru a straw.. who knows!!

pictures next time around.

been scrapping lately. and Lisa made the cutest layouts of Brigham for me. She is quite the "blue star" designer. though I always refer to her as the blues tard designer!! I read it like that everytime she posts. man does her talent blow me away. Thanks SO much girl. =)

you can check em out on twopeas since I can't post any more pics.

hope everyone is having a great week, and the weekend is right around the corner!

Ascot parking lot jogging???

IS this the new thing??? Seriously we were at Tarjay the other night and this guy was jogging around the parking lot.. in some very short shorts.. and an American flag little neckercheif..
cuz, you know when ever I want to go for a run... I choose a very large parking lot.. where there are lots of moving cars to dodge!!..
it was the funniest thing.

okay, so we have been super busy lately.. thus the reason that I am totally slacking with the cj. I am soo sorry girls.. I 'll get back on track. and the sad thing is that I have cropped the last two Fridays with some friends. I have gotten lots of layouts done , but can't seem to get the mojo moving for the cj's. Examples:












Its so freaking HOT.. and we've been either in AC "cwafting" or at a pool. "Cwafting" is what brig likes to ask to do while I scrap.. SO cute!!
I am so glad that Brigham likes the water, though much of the time, he prefers to run around the pool and play catch with his pool toys, while I float in the pool. not a bad deal, for me.

I have really been stressed lately.. and feeling like I am spinning out of control. I am trying to get things set for the fall.. and that means meetings, meetings, and more meetings. Once I am in the routine, its awesome. I LOVE to have a full calendar, but doing all the prep work begins to wear. I also don't like to just join something to join. If I am a part of an organization , you can bet that I will be chair of a committee or jump on the Exec Board. Guess I kinda bring all this on myself huh?
Well, in the midst of all that, I am trying to kick off another season of my business. With our new catalog out.. I am totally pumped and am having a 10 hour open house in a couple weeks
!
and I am also trying to enroll to take some classes at Purdue. I love to play with color and decorating.. so I figured I might as well go get a degree in it so that I can actually get PAID for it!!!

I did this layout to remind myself of the simple things in life.. Everyday moments.. And everyday laughs(guess I just created a title for another LO)!!
well, check it out on 2peas.. guess blogger is not willing. =(

I also scrapped a cute little pink card for Darcy's bday last week.----->picture it here!
I invited a bunch of peas to join in and make sweet little feminine pages for her.. still waiting on a couple of them, and then I will send them out to you D.
Rachel and Hanni also did surprises for her.. so I am pretty sure her day was made!!

well, i gotta run. .. literally. I decided that instead of sitting on my hiney watching my soaps..(though CBS daytime completely rocks) I should get off my hiney and start exercising.
SO now I have started walking away the pounds with Denise Austin. So far it seems to be working. I have lost 7 pounds in a little over a week!
guess, refraining from nightly trips to Dairy Queen has helped too!!!

have a great Tuesday everybody!

the barnyard bash revisited...(hopefully) !!

so here was the front of our house:
and a sign that i made....... and then in the backyard i had hay bales , a red wagon, a duck pond, signs posted on the fence like "they went that away", or ice t and lemondae 5cents!
we had several little games, like horse shoes, pin the tail on the pig and an apple tree for the kids to play with.
Here is a pic of the food . We had quite the big ol spread.. hamburgers, chips, beans, home made pot salad, corn on the cob, fruit salad, watermelon..
YUMMMMM !! and here is the cake. .. and i need to say that still today we have an entire barn cake, and the cow cake, minus and ear and a whole out of the hoof!!
the cuppy cakes went super fast.. and the silo.
we also had the best homemade ice cream!!
those Little "haystacks" are made with pretzels and butterscotch chips.. MMMMM.. good =)
and i have pushed my luck so you'll all have to wait yet another day to see the MOOVALAS cake that brigham hardly touched!!

thanks for peeking, hope ya'll enjoyed your tour.

a birthday kinda weekend!!

So last Thursday was my little guy's 2nd Birthday!!
can't believe he is already two.. growing so fast and learning so much everyday!
We started the celebration with his traditional breakfast(how much of a tradition right, he's only 2?) at Mc Donalds for pancakes!! this kid ate nearly THREE of those big ones!!
then after community care we went to meet grandma at Applebee's for a FREE birthday lunch =)
did you know you can fill out a postcard and they will mail it back to you for a free kids meal!
very handy!
so he thouroughly enjoyed the royal treatment and his GREEN balloon.. and the cuppy cake that grandma brought him! I was so looking forward to the icing all over the face.. but no, not this kid. He is so cautious, that he dipped the candle in and out of the cuppy cake numerous times, just to get a little taste at a time!!

We spent the rest of the day napping and then opening all the goodies that had come in the mail!
this kid raked in $85.00 from out of town relatives! must be his cute little cheeks. =)
Friday, we spent most of the day shopping and organizing things for his party on Sat.
we had to mentally prepare ourselves too, b/c the forecast was to be 95 degrees!! and with 40 people coming I was counting that the party would be outside!!

So the theme was a barnyard theme. It all started with the invites that I sent out:
I think you can see it ok! I got so many compliments on these little things.. I do think they came out quite creative myself!!

So we turned our house into a barnyard. I had gone to the farm n fleet store and got troughs and lots of galvanized buckets to serve things in. and then I dug through my moms collection of her "country stuff " from the eighties!!
SO glad that she was not in to Pottery barn way back then, or I would not have gotten so many perfect additions in serving ware!

I used red and white gingham and navy and red bandana prints. We put all of Brigs toys out of sight and only had out barns, and tractors, and stuffed farm animals. One of my friends loned my two little rocking horses, and several farm themed puzzels!
Everyboday came in their barnyard duds.. and we had a farmtastic time!!
we wanted to make sure the guests knew which hose was the party house.. SO.....
(i will have to finish in another post!!)

anyway we had a fabulous time! more than one child threw a fit when they had to leave!
we survived the heat.. although, I did forego the games.
They were having too much fun in the duck pond and the sandbox to stop for organized play!
Thats ok by me, cept now I have 15 pink balloon "pigs" floating around my living room!
I had added pink ribbon for tails, and drew nose and eyes. the game was that the kids had to "swat' with a fly swatter, all the pigs from one side of the fence to the other!!

------------continued in next post----------------------------------

promised pics of Cinci

this view was right behind the stadium. It was so calm and pretty! we went across the river to KY to this cute little germantown.

here we go!








this was on the screen just as the grand slam was hit!

fireworks went off. music played. everyone was slapping hands!

IT was a good time!!!
and this is the GABBER.. . my husbands had to get a picture taken with the odd character.

(i am such a good sport huh?)

(don't be afraid Niki... he is really lovable!!)

and here is a pic from the concert. What is JULY 4TH without a picnic from KFC??? classic, american fanfare.

So I have some super fun pics from our trip to the zoo ,but I will save that for another post.(don't wanna push my luck).

however I will leave you with my latest scrappy page.

(kinda fits in with the traditional american theme)

well, i pushed my luck. will try later =(

check out my previous post to hear about our anniversary weekend =)

go REDS, white and boom, an 85th, and a little bling!

WHew!!! well, its THursday, and I basically am still recovering from the weekend!.
So remember in my last post , i mentioned it was our anniversary..(actually same has JILL and her hubby).. Such a fun little tidbit to find out that we shared the same date!

I told my husband to leave work around noon on Friday, because I was taking him away for our anniversary. We took off driving but on our way we had to make one last stop... ( i was beginning to be mad at him for waiting to the last minute to run errands).. so we pulled up in front of
stall & Kesslers.. and he ran in.

I waited patiently, trying not to let my mind wonder too much. He came out with nothing. anyway,,, i just played it cool.
So we were off... heading out of town. After about an hour, he says that my present was not ready yet.. and that he felt really bad.. and everything..suprisingly, I was ok with this.. and not bothered in the least!!
I was not expecting anything since we were going away. THIS was our present to each other. and the $$ in the trip was going to add up fast!!!

We ended up in CINCINNATI at a hotel. The hotel was set in a business district, but pretty secluded among trees at the end of a road. do you know he actually asked me if there was a scrapbooking convention or something?? He thought I was trying to rope him in to everything at once!!.

NOPE that is in two weeks...at CHA in chicago.. i cant' wait to see all the scrappy goodness!!

anyway, his present was that we were staying in a fabulous suite.. and then heading to a REd's game!
Andrew has a goal of visiting every major league park, so I KNEW i could not go wrong with this one!!
The game was awesome, our seats were right down the first base line. We were the first seats at the wall.
basically we talked to the right fielder throughout a lot of the game....(which was a bummer)..
at the 7th inning stretch, Reds were down 7-0... fans started leaving... and then......

craziness started... they scored 4 runs in the 8th inning, and then 5 more in the 9th to win!!
it was so exciting.. the bases loaded and Adam Dunn came up and hit a grand slam...
right into the indians' bull pen(which was within arms length of us!!).. the stands went wild.. they had fireworks.. and screaming... and later that night, we found out that we were on SPORTSCENTER!!! can you believe how well , i planned this anniversary gift for my hubby???
i don't think it could get any more guy style!!
********i was going to share pics, but blogger is not cooperating, once again... i am seriously thinking about switching**********UGH!!!!

so since it was the 4th weekend, after the game, there was an amazing fireworks display.. it was all coreographed to music and lasted about 45 minutes!!!
totally an awesome evening...
and when we got back to the hotel... Andrew had a little wrapped box sitting on my pillow...
inside.. diamond earings!!
i about flipped! they are so gorgeous.. he picked them out so they would have the best of the four C's!! and man do they sparkle!!!
He totally scored some points with that one!!

the next day we went to the zoo.. we were the fifth people in, and were in and out by noon, so it was not very hot. It was a very nice zoo. and I have lots of awesome pics.. but we'll save that for another day. seriously, can't believe how close I could get to these guys!!

we did some shopping 'cross the river in Rednecktucky... I mean Kentucky!!! actually it was fine, as long as we stayed in the little germantown. We ate at some fabulous little places known for in CINCI. ya know.. ribs.. chili.... etc... YUMM!!!

It was a really cool weekend, and so fun to get away!

Sunday we had a family reunion of sorts to celebrate my grandma's 85th birthday! She is an amazing woman. Still standing tall(meaning she is not hunched over yet) , very healthy, and still got her whit!!
It was nice to have the whole family, minus two of my cousins get together. We live less than two hours away..(actully 3 cousins live less than 15 minutes away!), but we hardly ever see each other!
We ate at this incredible SMORGASBOARd.. known in the region for serving it up right to farmers.. Isn't that a strange word.. my dad kept using it and I kept correcting him saying
"dont' you mean a buFF- ett?
i began pondering.. what is the difference between a smorgasboard and a buffet?
this was a very nice restaurant;very clean; and very good food.(even lots of healthy stuff).
HMMM> maybe that is the difference.
something to think about.

We celebrated the fourth at an outdoor concert over on Purdue's campus. there about 30,000 people spread all over the lawn. The fireworks were ..OK.. but Brigham had a blast, waving his little flag around. He kept saying "FAUKER".. "BOOM"....."awe pretty". yep we just hope he won't be talking about firecrackers at church.. yep, say it outloud.. thats what it sounds like!! He even tried his first elephant ear. He was not to into it after the first bite, (thank goodness), so darn, his mama had to help him finish it!!
I don't think I've had one of those in ten years. Oh and I even got cotten candy at the ball park.
I was sure reliving my youth!!! HA HA HA =)

well, thats it for now.. will try and load up some pics.. and of my new scrappy pages. I have been on a roll lately.. but for now, ya'll can take a peek at two peas.

thanks for sitting thru my weekend's recap. Have a great thursday =)

three years ago today......

I was ....goin to the chapel... and gonna get married!!!

Gosh, so much of it seems like a blur...

we drank a whole lot the night before at our rehearsal dinner.. then my bridemaids and I went back to the hotel I worked at for free liquor in the bar.. and we all passed out in our complimentary suite...

next day, we crawled across the street to the spa.. to get all purtied up...

went to the church... went through the ceremony...(don't remember half of what was said.. we were both so nervous).

shook hands with lots of people, we don't really know!!!.... just kidding, we knew most of them.. but our guest list was so big.. we had lots of distant friends and relatives.. that we were just meeting for the first time!!

saw my hubby looking all fine....but it was so sweet at how nerveous he was!!

we were escorted by a classic car and chaueffered by the owner of my mom's company.. we went over to campus where we had gorgeous weather in which to take pictures.

here we are escaping thru the mass of bubbles... and here is the get away car..

oh and here is one of my fave wedding party pics near the fountain at purdue...

onward to the reception.. held at the other hotel that I worked for... we did it up right, let me tell you... with one minor hitch...

as we were waiting in the lobby, for all the guests to be seated, so that we could make our entrance... I turned quickly, not knowing one of my bridemaids was standing on my dress...

OOOPS.. a huge R I P.. righ in the embroidered lace!!.. yep, I was pretty much pissed.. and told her so..

remember, it was MY day,,, and I was the princess.

after a glass of wine, it was completely forgotten!!

here is a pic of the pretty hors deuvre's table: HA HA HA , I tricked ya!!

well, i pushed my luck with blogger.. and he won't let me post anymore!!.. i may try later.

basically the reception was a blast.. we had amazing food, lots of music and dancing, DUH!!!

and one of my bridesmaids got real mad and stormed off to a local bar... ( i have not talked to her since!).

next my aunt and I got real cozy over in the corner, as we shared a couple bottles of vino...

I pretty much lost my new husband after the first dance!!!

towards the end.. my maid of honor and i headed up to the martini bar on the top floor.. where one of our friends was bartending...

My attempt to "flash" him my newly married off boobahs.. was hindered, by the fact that my bodice would not budge... and the fact that ANdrew walked in right at that moment!!

we stayed in the bar for awhile.. until I felt the urge to hurl... ran to the bathroom.. and basically that was the end for me.

My dress was so romantically removed by Jennifer. My ring picked up off the bar floor, by Andrew's friend(because I had taken it off and threw it).

I passed out with a trashcan beneath me, and after I had broken the towel bar in the bathroom!

( i tried to use it as leverage, as i picked myself off the floor!).. lucky for me the hotel suite was a gift from my boss!!..( i told him much later about the bar incident!)

Andrew enjoyed his wedding night curled up on the couch as he watched MONSTERS INC!!..

( i still have never seen it!).

we awoke the next morning and stumbled to our after wedding brunch. and then boarded a plane.

I was very happy to arrive at our honeymoon destination.

AHHH the memories... who would want a boring wedding with no glitches!!

I may try to upload some more pics later.. plus some scrappy pages that I got done over the weekend!!

have a great day =)

a manless week, the beginning of terrible twos, and my retreat!!

WHOO HOO, yep I was "quite without a husband" all week!! That line from Parent Trap(one of my all time faves) just kept popping in my head all week!

Andrew had his first big business trip in Michagan. He has only been with the Farm for 1.5 years, and he is the only one from his training group that has been asked to do this. He actually had to prepare, and give seven agency visits, and then also speak at two BIG meetings. He was so nerveous and excited. Well, he claims that he did great.. guess I will take his word for that..
No, he really is an incredible speaker;very confident and elequent with his words.
so while he was up partying with the bigdogs.. I was at home, by myself with an almost two year old!!
Actually, I thought I would be scared, or miss him, , but I actually had a great time by myself.
Reasons why my husband should leave more often:
1. Seriously, I had the bed all to my self, without being mauled every night!!
come on you married ladies , know what I am talking about.. and if you're not yet, ... trust me, it will come soon enough!

2. I was able to watch what I wanted on tv..with out feeling guilty that I was not including him!
I actually watched that new "america's got talent".. .. it was not half bad.. but seriously, where did they have to go searching to find MR. Nightrider.. I thought he had drowned in the ocean somewhere!!!
guess, this will be a comeback for him.. and Brandy!!

3. I could talk to my friend in Ga for over three hours one night, with out getting "the look"..
He never understands how I can talk on the phone so much!!

4. I could be on the computer and blogging, with out him totally making fun of me.
He thinks blogging and talking with "friends" on the net.. is for dorks.
Well, then he must be married to one.. although I admit, the internet is a scary place, and actually not a very "true picture" into what people are really like.. since you can be who ever you want to be ! I just have fun with it, and have "met" some pretty cool people....(so I think)

5. I was able to scrap.. uninterupted!! I never like to be working on my stuff when he is home, so I could work into the wee hours, and then just crash.. yeah, in my bed alone.. to SLEEP!!!

I also got to spend a bunch of time with my friend Jennifer. She and her son came over one morning, and has we talked and the kids played.. we realized nearly 3 hours had gone by and we had not eaten. So we packed up and headed to Mc D"S. and stayed for another couple hours while the kids played. It was so great not having a schedule, or have to be home to start dinner(not that I really ever do that!).. but I try to be home when andrew gets home from work!

Jennifer is such a dear friend, a fellow pea, and was my matron of honor in my wedding. We live in the same town, yet its been over six months since we have gotten together!
It was so great to catch up. and we are going to a crop tonight at a LSS. I am so looking forward to girl time.. and getting some pages done!!
-----------------------------------------
Brigham is three weeks away from turning two. I think there must be something in the manual the kids are given by God, before they exit the womb.
Boy, he is certainly starting the clingy ness, the definate attitude, and his little tantrums, where he lays down on his back!
I actually think its pretty cute, so its hard not to laugh, but I usually just ignore him.
He is talking up a storm, which also can get quite annoying. !! He is repeating everything...
whoops, the other day I called the dog a little shit.. So then Brig was saying "thit" all night!!
so funny.. but, yes, not good-

I took him Dog n Suds (this little drive in place) the other night. we got to sit by this huge dog carrying a tray of rootbeers.. he loved his coney dog, which he picked off the stick, bit by bit!!
and he totally enjoyed his kiddy cup of rootbeer.
(another thing I could do with the hubby gone...is give my kid soda!)


So every evening after I put Brigham to bed, I went out to my retreat... My garden.
Gosh, i just love being out in nature. even pulling weeds and playing in the dirt, is refreshing to me. I love to see the results as the flowers start to bloom.
One night, brigham even helped me spread mulch over my back flower bed. He loves to be out with a trowel in hand just like mama!
Although, I think he ended up with more mulch on him, then the garden!!
so i will leave you with this.. and hope that you will get a glimpse into my happy place!
---------------------------------------------------------EEEEEEKKKKKK!!!(thats me screaming)--------------
okay, i may just be giving up on blogger. the last four posts have not allowed me to get picts up, or at least very many!!
guess, i will try later.. I know you all think i am a big fat liar, and that I don't truely have pics of anything I talk about!!!

have a fabulous weekend everybody.. I am hoping to get a bunch of scrapping done =)

what a week...!! relaxation, food, fun, and more food!!

I had every intention of posting last week, but teaching vacation bible school for 25 two and three year olds, was a bit more exhausting then I thought!! what a bunch of cuties they were... it was so exciting to see the energy in every one of the kiddos!!
i was so impressed at how quietly they all sat while listening to the story teller.. as she told them about GOd's love for them. It sure helped that she had a pet parrot named ZOCH that gave out lots of hugs!!
through, bible stories, crafts, playground time, movies, music, and free play.. these kids had a great time at SONTREASURE ISLAND..

my litte guy concentrating way too hard on the beam to look up for me =) ------------------------------>
on the last day, we gave the kids all pirate hats, and they got to dig in the treasure chest for all sorts of special "treasures". We also had lots of fun at the carnival where they had face paints, ring toss, and a duck pond!
The kids had a blast as they took whacks at the rainbow piniata.. .. After each kid had tried 3 times, unsuccessfully, to bust the rainbow.. we had to lend a helping hand.. and then they were showered with candy and fruit snacks!!
no doubt all these kids were pretty tuckered out.. I know mine was.

Not to mention we had playdates at the pool nearly every afternoon too, which meant.. NO naps.. but lucky for me he went to bed early!!


this pretty much sums up the week---->oh, and here's a peek at what the room looks like, we still have a lot more to do.. Including a mural on the outside wall.. but all the kids seemed to be pretty enamored with all the fish!!

ok, well I guess I have reached bloggers limit for pics... Sorry for creating all the suspense... I know you all are just dying to see the children's ministry rooms!!

So Friday afternoon, we had lunch with some friends.. and then met some other friends for pool time! Brig is so loving the water this year.. I was not sure if I would have to be extra causious around the pool or not.. and luckily my easy going kid, is just as laid back at the pool.
Other then the fact that it is super hard to get him out.. twice last week he was climbing back into the pool, after I had already changed his clothes!! quick little booger he is!!

So the miller fam went out to dinner on Fri.. and then Andrew and I put Brigham to bed at um... 8:00pm!!(that is way early for us!) and we watched the RINGER!!
seriously, this is super funny... johnny is a riot in here.. not to mention all the rest of the "extras.".. I was busting a gut, numerous times, but i was feeling so guilty for laughing at the...
"mentally challenged"..
Andrew kept reassuring me, that the Special Olympics... Probably made a killing off this movie, since there name was plastered all over the place..
so if you have not seen this.... this is a very GOOD recommendation.

Sat, we were lazy, and did some yardwork... and then took naps. We went to our town's annual fundraiser.. THe TASTE OF TIPPECANOE...
yep, its a teeny weeny version of the taste of Chicago.. or any other big city that has one.
Still, it was great weather, great crowds... (45 thousand were in attendance!!).. , awesome music, and incredible food.
Brigham was the hit of the show, as he was jammin so hard to the "rock stage" that we unleashed him from the stroller..
Everybody was getting the biggest kick out of watching him clap, boogie down, and stomp his feet..
Then there were fireworks at 10 pm, which Brig was totally blown away by..(well, not really, but we did get ashes all over us!).. he kept saying BOOM everytime the sky would light up.
I am so happy that he was not scared. We are planning a big party for the 4th, and so i was worried that he may be too afraid to be out and about!

Sunday, we had a bbq at my house for my dad and Andrew.. good, down home, traditional cook out food. I even tried my first batch of deviled eggs.. there was not a one left!!!.. good sign =)

and last night my mom took Andrew out(with brig and me) to his favorite restaurant called the BLUE NILE!!.. this is such a quaint little Mediterranean place on campus. the food was awesome.. and really spicy. Brigham could not get enough of it...
and I payed for it this morning, as he left me quite the bit of gratitude in his diaper!!

anyway, I have got to finish cleaning the house and getting laundry done today.. and then Brigham has his FIRST haircut!!... i am so leaning to having the girl give him a mullet, ..just so I can keep his curls.
Andrew says, why not, we are in Indiana, and that seems to be pretty popular around here.
NO joke.. we saw FIVE people at the taste, sporting mullets!!..
amazing!!
so wish me luck that I am not too emotional as she snips away at my baby!

where have all the cowboys gone?

ok, so my title has absolutely nothing to do with the post.. but that song has been stuck in my head for like the last week and a half... (does anyone remember that one) and because the only titles I could think of were completely lame..

so I did actaully blog last week.. I know, I know you probably don't believe me since it has been, um 16 days since my last post..
But really I did.. and it was a good post, with lots of cool picts.. and whitty comentary, and it took me over 2 hours do finish it..
but blogger was not playing very nicely, so when I was frustrated enough by the lack of participation that blogger had in uploading my picts.. I finally called it quits.
Went to publish my post.. and WHAM!!! it was gone.. yep, maintenance problems or something.. and of course I had not saved it yet!!

So I will save that one for later on in the week..

last Friday, andrew called me in the middle of the afternoon, and asked if I could find a sitter.. he would not tell me why.

He had been working overtime for the last couple weeks, which means he was not coming home until 10 pm and working 12 hour days on Sat. So this was a complete surprise that he was going to come home early!!

I did not have to persuade my mom to watch Brigham.. in fact he got to spend the night, and she kept him all day Saturday too!!

Andrew and I had an awesome night. We went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse.. one of my faves.
I was even good, and only ate 1 roll.. and got the veggies and salmon, . (i usually indulge in 3-4 rolls and get the baked potato and steak)..

after dinner we went shopping... (my husband actually was willing to go to the mall??)
i have been complaining for the last couple months, how none of my clothes fit , so un beknownst to me, he set aside some "clothes money" for me.
He did not complain once, as I was very indecisive on this excursion!!

Next, we went to see the BREAK UP!!.. and my hubby gave me cash to go get a mongo Diet Mt. Dew and milk duds..
trying to figure out why did I even bother eating healthy at the roadhouse?

anyway if you have not seen this movie.... it is an absolute MUST!!
Vince and Jennifer are totally hot in the movie, which made it very easy to watch =)
I have always liked Vince, but he is now in my top two fave actors.
about 20 minutes into this movie, I turned to andrew and said "we need to own this".
seriously, I think the writers were flies on our walls. the relationship issues, the converstations, the miscommunication.. it was so REAL!!!
plus, Vincent D'Onfofrio (law and order ci) played Vince's big brother.. and he was hilarious in the movie.
Jason Bateman.. (yep he is still around) is one of "the guys" and a look alike to Tom Brady .
it was sweet, romantic, bust a gut, bust a fist thru the wall, all at the same time.
the best that there was lots of SWINGER moves considering Jon Favreau was Vince's best friend.
awesome , awesome movie.. and it took place in Chicago.. so what could be better?

after the movie, we went to our fave little bar around the corner.. i tried to live it up by downing a Long island... this was MY drink in college.. now, not so much. I could barely get thru it..
I am such a wuss.. so I settled for good old COORS LT.

we ended up being out tile 3 am.. and it was so much fun to "live" again =)

Saturday, I got some more flowers and got them in, before it rained. then since I was kidless, I went downtown to all the trendy little shops, which are very inticing for little hands, but not for this stay at home mama's budget!

it was fun to just be by myself for a while.
that night, we all met my mom for dinner at this little greek place.. YUMM-O!!
Here is Brigham on a sugar high, eating a chocolate creme pie!

**** pretend here is the adorable little guy with whipped cream all over his face! *******

Well, I was going to show you all how are VBS room turned out. We are going to call it UNDER THE SEA community child care.. cuz the infant thru 2 year olds are going to be called
Covenant Cove..(our church is Covenant Prebyterian).
It is so cute.. but since blogger is not cooperating.. I don't want to even attempt this..
also, its midnight, and I have to teach 20 kids under two tomorrow morning.!!!

I have been working on a few scrappy things too.. got my cj sent out for Felica's fabulous life of...
you can check it out on 2peas if you want...
hopefully later this week, I will get to post some pics.. URGH!!!!

later peeps =)

life moves at ya pretty fast...

if you don't stop to look around once in awhile,,, you just might miss it!!!!

Ferris said it so well, and that is totally how I feel!! We have been running 110 miles an hour for the last couple weeks, thus the BAD BLOGGER syndrome which I have contracted =(..
sorry all.. thanks for the patience!!

woke up on Mothers day as an instant mother to 3 kids. My dearest friend went out of town to look for houses so that she can ....MOVE AWAY!!. We had the priveledge of watching her two babies , ages 3 and 10.. We had a blast.. and fed them lots of sugar.. and watched Jim Carrey movies!!!... Sorry Jop... but I am sure you know by now =)/

so my friend did find a house in south GA... and she will be moving... next week!!! I am so bummed about it.. but totally excited for her. She is going to have an amazing time in the south.. and is only a couple of hours away from Disney!!. Yep, our next year's vacation is already planned =) I know that God will bless her with an abundance of wonderful friends.

less than a week ago, another one of my closest friends packed up her bags to move south... to Miami!! We're all friends and we knew the time would come that these two would get transfered due to their husbands jobs,- we just did not think it would come so soon.
i have to say, I am glad that they are both going somewhere warm...makes it real hard to visit, for sure!!

My neighbors must think I am a total nutcase because even though it rained for ten days straight, I was able to get some planting in= )
I dodged the raindrops, and managed to get over 200 annuals in the ground. and then over the weekend, I put about 100 perrenials in that my friend and I dug out of my mom's garden.
My fabulous husband surprised me on Sat by spreading a driveway full of mulch around our entire house!.. actually he just dropped the piles, and i was on my knees spreading it. I did not trust him not to bury my flowers!!!
of course just shortly after we were done, we had two more days of rain. once my babies are up again, I will take some pics.. and post!!

this is my last week "teaching" at the community care.. until the middle of June.
My focus now has turned towards VBS.. I am in charge of the 1-3 year olds. I am so excited about this!!.. I have been busy planning lessons, crafts, activites, and decor for the room.

in conjunction with VBS, a friend of mine have been working really hard on getting ready for the transformation that our children's ministy is going to have.
We are still working out the names of the rooms, and we are changing the name of our community care..
You'll have to wait til, its an approved thing, but the theme is going to be tropical...
SO FUN!!! I have been in Michaels, and Hobbly Lobby more times in the last couple weeks, my car is on auto pilot!!!....(not that it did not have a BIG clue before, HA HA HA)

My brother came in yesterday from Mesa, AZ. so we have been out and about a lot.
It is so good to have him home. his wife of 1.5 years, told him to move out in Dec... and in January, he found out that she had a "boyfriend", or something.. Now she is pregnant and planning to move to Hawaii this summer!. the papers are not completely final, but it has been extremely difficult for him... and for our family, since we are so far away.
We're all looking forward to a great visit and hopefully, guide him in some direction.

American Idol fans????? Okay, so I admit, taylor is IT.. i mean that guy is the one..
however, I do stand by my original comments that he is not an American Idol(at least the type that we have been accustomed to in the pop culture). I know he will go far.
Katherine will do fine with whatever she gets. She does have the looks. and a voice. I would have to disagree with her fashion sense, but Oh, well!!

Okay, so I am off to watch the finale of LOST!!! so stoaked about this..
if they leave us hanging.. I will be so P. O.'d!!!

Have an awesome Wednesday all my bad (in a good way) bloggin babes!!

its raining men!!

well not actually, but it is raining something fierce in good ol Indiana!!
we're on the 3rd day of grey skies and wet grounds. makes me feel for those living in Seattle..
Hailey, I don't know how you do it!!!
not to mention I finished planting about 200 flowers just minutes before the downpour began.
my little guys are pretty much drowning now!
My fingers are crossed that they will survive!

speaking of surviving... how in the world did Katherine make the last cut?? and what was up with my boy Chris getting the boot this week on AI?
Not like any of the final 12 will be hurting for a job, but seriously that Chris had some serious talent.. not to mention looks! In my opinion, he was the total package.
My vote now goes to Elliot. his voice is good, and if he does not win AI, he could always get casted as the new Mr. Ed! (the singing Mr. Ed)
Taylor is not an idol, at least for teens...and Katherine.. well, she'll do just as well joining the cast on some Wb series.

to continue with my angst with television(public right of free speech, right?) could LOST have any more twists in it? I am thinking long term, but how long do you think this island thing will keep up? at east five seasons? I am one who hates to not know what is going on. My mind is always running away with what could be happening.. Man these writers are good. I am not looking forward to the last epi.. cuz I know they will leave us with a major cliff hanger.. and we'll have to suffer thru the entire summer!!
I just want to know, why all of those people are placed there? HOw long as the island been inhabited? Are the others good or bad? Whats the driving force?
anyone know what ever happened to that big monster thing? its been in hibernation for a while.
all I can say is this show will be winning awards.

my life is not all about tv. in fact since we got rid of HGTV and ESPN(2), it is on much much less.
sad, I know.. but now we actually are doing home and garden projects and playing sports instead of just watching others do it!!

We did have a very fun and filling Cinco De Mayo party last Friday. I am so glad for the invention of mexican food. some seriously good stuff =)
My husband has suggested many times, moving to Mexico... I am considering it.. just for the food!

We went to the INdpls Opera and slept..i mean enjoyed it thoroughly. My dad was in it , so we went as support for him. The costumes, makeup and set designs, were beyond amazing. The music was fantastic. The story line.. predictable, and well, the time frame.. about 2x, too long!!
this was only my second opera. The other one was Madame Butterfly, starring Glen Close.
I won't say, I'll never go to another one, but it is not high on my list.
another thing.. opera patrons are rather snobish.. again not my style!

well another week as flown by, as I have been forced to be cameraless. I was able to steal my mom's for a few days.. I will leave you with some cute pics of Brig.
lets just say RANDOM PHOTO FRIDAY.. for you Jill !!


brig finds his way to a mud puddle!
and picks his first flower!

<----here is my little model, as he attempts to climb the big boy play equipment.





maybe we should not introduce potty training during his "hat" stage!!



Thanks to his friend Noah, or "no" as he calls him, brigham has developed an obsession with choo choos!
we are easing into Thomas(im not a big fan!). but this is a train my grandpa made for my brother.

here is a pic from Easter! I just got these from my mom, so I thought I'd share. I love his little outfit... my brother wore it 28 years ago!!

thanks for reading my random thoughts and peeking at my photos.

all you mamas, have an awesome day ... you all deserve the royal treatment!

just a little bit

cuz, I just hardly have any energy.. thank goodness, tomorrow is Friday!!
this week has just been jam packed . I have had something every night.. and of course they all have involved food(yeah, not so good as we approach bathing suit season).
Last weekend we got to practice having two little ones, as we watched our friends' adorable little boy. Brigham and Dawson are only 3 months apart.. and they have so much fun together. It was so cute to see them egg each other on.. and copy one another.. completely Monkey see, Monkey Do!!
I think there is a reason you can't have kids that close together!! whew, it was a bit hard chasing them both!

after they went to bed, Andrew went out for a guy's poker night! He gets together once a month, and the stakes are fairly low, so I am not that worried. Plus, it is very good for him to be with "the guys" every once in a while.
So while I had the house to myself, I took advantage of giving myself a pedicure while watching the Day time Emmy Awards.
If my husband were home, this would not have been allowed on!!!
It was so fun, I am so amazed at how young some of these actors are. They work so hard.
My two fave soaps won a bunch of awards. My fave new character on ATWT won her first emmy... and I found out she is the daughter of Charles INgalls!! How cool would that have been?
My secret is out.. I am a house wife, that watches soaps and eats bon bons.
actually, it's bked doritos and if I miss an epi, I won't die!!

I am totally stoaked for the bloggin babes circle journal. Its so sad though, cuz once I create something, i have to send it away! i decided that I am going to do a similar one for my AAM book, so I can have the same stuff for me
and you girls have such awesome topics.. I would love to document for myself.
Can't wait to get to know you girls better! what a talented, fun, group it will be!!
and a super shout out to KAT, you rock chica, for organizing all of this!!!

Speaking of scrapping, I have actually been getting some pages done!!!.
<---------just some things I am into right now. and this is one of me and my friend Meredith->











My moms' bday was last weekend so I took her for a pampering day. It was so cool to spend some time just for us. She is in real estate, and works a really demanding schedule. She hardly ever gets time free, and when she does, she spends it watching Brigham!!
We went out to a little diner that night, and had big greasy burgers and chocolate malts!
YUMMO!!

I am still waiting on my camera, but will leave you with one of my cutie head.. can you tell he loves his PB & J!!!

crazyness!!!

that is pretty much how our lives have been lately..
this spring weather has definately put a skip in our step!!!
(did I just say that??)
I am pouting, b/c the last week and a half have been so packed with photo opps.. and I have been without a camera :(
however, I finally decided on one, and ordered on Monday.. so hopefully I can get out and recreate some of these moments!!

I have been super busy in the yard.. planting and weeding. I am designing a pathway to go around the whole right side of our house.
Thanks to my dog who, so nicely got rid of the grass by pacing in a very specific path throughout the entire winter!! That's a little less work for me!!
We are also designing a deck so we'll attack that sometime in May.
Brigham is loving being outside; he has become quite the little gardener too! He gets down in the dirt with his little trowel and scoops up like TWO pieces of dirt at a time!!
He also has developed quite the little obsession with running under the garden hose, when I water the flowers. he always ends up soaked!
This is going to be a fun (and dirty) summer!!! I can't wait!!

I started working three days a week at my church. We offer a cool service of Mom's time out to people in the community.We have three different sessions, and the kids take part in so many fun activities. It is such an awesome ministry to start with these wee ones!!
I am having a blast being with so many different temperments and Brigham is loving it too.
He learns so much from being there.. and it very cool that I can be there to experience it with him.
My friend and I are gonna tackle a renovation this summer of all three child care rooms.
that is Infants, toddlers , and community care. We are throwing around some different themes and then will get out the paint and go nutz..
I will probably come to you bloggers for a vote when the time gets closer. I am a horrible decision maker.. and can use all the help(KAT???) I can get!!

I have been asked to be in charge of a room for VBS this June. Vacation Bible School is an awesome week for the kiddos to release some energy and learn about God too.
The theme is SONTREASURE ISLAND... set in the Carribean.
I am so excited to have the wee ones again... 1-3 year olds!!! its gonna be so much fun!!
So, I have less then a month to get my room ready, including, stories, crafts, decor, and snack!
ANY creative cats have any ideas??

I have been pretty pathetic at blogging lately, mainly cuz after I visit all of you, I have just about enough time for a quick nap, before Brigham wakes up!!

Our days have been packed with play dates, and walks, and going to the park.
I am hoping to walk every day ..we have this really cool trail, by our house, that is close to 4 miles.
I thought having a toddler would help me burn off these pounds!! Its probably the fact that us moms get together for lunch 3-4 times a week, and meet for coffee a couple times a week.
My social calender seems to be revolving around food!!
anybody else have that problem?
Why is it that no one wants to get together for a gym play date???
Can you tell I am stressing about bathing suit season??
.. and for one more random thought... I am so stoaked about the blogging babes cj!!!
it is going to be so much fun!!
I need to get the blinkie link.. so I can add it to my blog.
speaking of, I actually have a lot of updating to do on this thing...wish I could just snap my fingers!!
I'll leave you with the last LO I did of brigham . I love the brightness of it, and he still had his baby chubb cheeks.!!!

have a super Thursday!!

how could I forget AI...
i was completely okay with the results of Kellie getting the boot(as if my opionion mattes!).
my picks are that Paris, will be next..
then Katherine, Taylor, Elliot, and hopefully the next AMerican Idol will be Chris..
I think he is really deserving..
they all rock.. and will end up very successfull/
i always hate that there CAN be only one!!

still recovering

from the weekend!!
yep, it has taken me until Wednesday to be able to post. I guess I should stop saying "out loud" that I have intentions to blog more frequently.. because it almost never happens!!
REally, I do mean to spend more time blogging, but life just gets so busy.

I truly hope everyone of you had an awesome Easter weekend. Our entire last week, was awesome, as we spent lots of quiet time in reflection as to the meaning of Easter.
One of our friends gave the most powerful sermon on Maundy Thursday and then on Friday our church did a really moving thing, where in almost darkness, people were invited to walk up and "nail their sins" to a big cross in the front. The only sound was the hammering. Very intense.

I also stayed up on Friday and watched the Ten commandments. I can't believe I had never seen that one before. Yes, the acting and the special effects were extremely out there...
but it was a cool story. Hollywood has definately come a long way since then.


Well, we had horrible storms last weekend too.. A tornado warning on Friday night. Andrew was in route from work to home while the sirens were going off. I have the biggest fear of tornadoes, and was trying to stay calm and keep Brigham calm and quiet so that I could hear the weather reports. I think he sensed I was tense, because he was soo figety and whiney.. the more I shhhh'd him, the more he escalated his whine...
The phone rang, and Andrew was calling me from church.. he had thought I was there, and in the middle of the Good Friday service, the pastor came out and told everyone what was going on with the weather.
So , since Andrew knew I would be scared to death, he decided, to leave the safety of a HUGE church basement, and DRIVE home through it!!
.... and this was supposed to make me feel better!!!
anyway, the wind died down, and everything was fine, but it was quite and eventful Friday.
oh yeah, and while I was doing laundry, the washing machine decided to start smoking and it was determined later that the transmission was out. So we either pay $300 bucks for a new one, or we just go buy a new washer . So we're now making trips to several applicance stores.!!


Saturday, my dad came over to watch Brigham so that we could have a date night. He even gave us money so we could go out to dinner. My mom had given us money too, so that we could go get each of us a new Easter outfit!!
I don't know about any of you, but whenever I have money to burn, I can never find anything!!
It took us forever to find a new shirt for andrew and a new dress for me.
We went to dinner at one of my favorite places. This joint has the best fried dill pickle chips..
MMMMM> dip them in horseradish sauce, and it is just heaven!!

We were finishing up our dinner and planning on heading to Wally world to get Easter basket stuff for our egg hunt the next day..
We were almost home, when the blue and red flashing lights came up behind us!!
Yes, we were pulled over!!! unbelievable--
turns out, a campus cop had been following us for awhile, and for some random reason ran my plates.
they were not in the system.... is why she pulled us over. Then come to find out, my tags were expired two years! My last registration known was 2004!!!
WHAT?????? this was crazy... I had no idea at all.
So, after we got a ticket for $112.oo, they politely (there were now three cop cars around us) that it would be unlawful for them to allow us to operate this vehicle.
SO they impounded my poor jetta. We were both a little mad, but what can you do...so we had to get everything out of my car, and pack into a squad car, and then got dropped off at home.
What a romantic date huh????
The best part was that because it was the weekend, we could not get the car out til Monday.
well, so we thought. I had to show proof of payment for updated registration, and conveniently the License branch was closed on Mondays.
I had to pay for two extra days for them to take ever so great care of my Greta.(yes, my car has a name.. Greta the Jetta).
side note.. when we finally picked up the car on Tues. there is a big sign that says... Warning: Do not enter with a hostile attitude or an abusive mindset. we reserve the right to withhold your car....... Guess they have had some not so pleasent situations. and they are not known for hiring very nice people.
Seriously, this is a gold mine, though, after I saw how many cars were in the lot, and being charged $25 a day.. and get this.. They are not responsible for any damage, theft or fire done to the vehicles... surprising huh??!!! funny, though, they have the lot all chained up and with barbed wire at the top. Don't know that anyone would be getting through anyway!
okay, we got the car back and all is well.
Sunday was an awesome day. The weather was beautiful. the food was great. the chocolate was fabulous. We had a blast with family and friends.
Brigham had so much fun with the easter grass.
I have pics.. but will have to post later.
Last week, Brigham decided throwing the digital camera was more fun than a ball and he chucked it on the drive way.
We are now researching cameras.
Are you tired yet???
I am exhausted, just typing out this crazy antics that occured this weekend.
Plus, I came down with a cold and had no voice until yesterday.
I hosted my bible study last night so I was up making a dessert and cleaning the house..etc.
and then this morning I had to be a co hostess for a women's organization I belong to.
Finally, I got to relax today, when one of my closest friends, came to visit.
She and her husband are real good friends of ours, and they moved to Virginia about a year ago.
Her husband is deployed, so she made the trip to IN for a visit...by herself, with two kids under two. She is a very brave woman!
It was so much fun to have our kids reconnect too.
Of course no pics either since my camera was MIA.
man, this is really going to bring angst to my life....
any suggestions on real good cameras... would be awesome.=)

life is good

okay, so I am now gonna do something. .. that I usually don't find attractive in others..
You know , when people go on and on about how great their life is... and they have no problems.. and they want all this "atta girl/guy" praise from people..
We all know someone like this.. and we all know that it is not real.

"Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strenght or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight" Jer. 9 23-24

It is in my thoughts, that one does not have to boast about the good in their life, yet, the good will be evident by the way the conduct themselves.
Plus, the fact, that if everything is always just super duper, than it would be easy to conclude that all is not super, and that overcompensating the good is to cover up the bad..
and we ALL have the bad..

I share this, because so often, I look at relationships,(marraiges) and think.. "how do they do it" .. or "they are so in love".. "how come its working for them"...
the truth is that it usually is not.. more often than not there are struggles, fights, distrust, selfishness, isolation, and unhappiness going on that the "world" can't see.

We are all very good at putting on outward appearances.. but what I really admire, is when those people who open up and say.."we have problems".
This weekend, I sat among 1400 people who were confident enough to stand up and say...
"the most diffucult years of marriage, are those following the ceremony"
My Husband of 2 years and I attended the most incredible weekend and probably the most important . We spent three days in downtown Indianapolis at A Weekend to Remember..
this is an amazing conference put on by http://www.familylife.com.
We had the most dynamic speakers.. couples, sharing what 23 and 35 years of marriage is really like.
Andrew and I really got to talk.. and we hit some big topics. We focused on timeless blue prints for marriage, about committment, and communication.. romance, and of course resolving conflict.
Having gotten my degree from Purdue in Management, I thought I knew all about these big topics.. from my classes, well except the romance part..( I learned about that one on my own!!)
Funny, how all the basic principals go out the window when you are dealing with the one you love.
In business, you are lacking one thing.. EMOTIONS!!!
What an amazing time for Andrew and I to share, and laugh and cry.. and really reconnect.
We had so many of our friends and parents praying for us during this time, and it was really evident.
From the fact that an annonymous donor(from our church) and dear friends of ours, committed to financially enabling us to attend( the conference and hotel were over $600) simply through the power of prayer..
We are so grateful to have had the opportunity this past weekend and are committing to invest in not only ours, but marriages of others.. as we start up a HOMEBUILDERS couple series.
If you are married and have not heard of this.. you need to run.. not walk to the website I already mentioned.. and discover how to make your relationship all that God intended it to be.

So why is life good??
*absolutely because, I got to attend this conference with Andrew.
*and we got to eat like kings..(really splurge) for every meal in some awesome restaurants
*we got to enjoy the beautiful spring weather on the Canal Walk..














* Seeing the beauty of nature, as my flowers are all coming up!














*God is good
*my little guy peed on the potty while staying at my moms over the weekend.
Yay for grandma, getting him to do it!!
*My dad performed Sun. at our church Traveling light which is a modernday, 38 monoluge, drama depicting parts of Christ's life.. and leading up to the reserection... very powerful.
*my brother"s recently ex-wife is pregnant..(thankfully not my brothers).. GOD is GOOD.
*I only have five days, until I can indulge in that sweet sweet substance!
*Experiencing holy week with my family
*my husband is going to a concert tonight, so I will be free to Scrap!!

Have an awesome Tuesday!!

and the winner is......

well, it certainly is NOT me..
i am the world's worst blogger..
but did you know that they have awards for this crazy addiction???
Yep, its true, I saw on Dateline last week that the first annual Bloggie Awards were handed out.
(was going to post on this subject a week ago, but just would not be me, if I was not very sparatic in my postings!).. so I am doing it today!.

They had some interesting catagories.. most HUMOUROUS....best british... best European, etc..
There are appearantly some 30.6 million blogs around, and of all of these, the judges(who have way too much time on their hands).. chose a mere 30 winners.

The best Irish blog was "girl with a one track mind".. in it the author just reveals the escapades of her sex life.. and appearantly, she has a lOT to write!!

The best Eurpean blog was called "my boyfriend is a word that Josh cant say on Dateline-nbc"

The best Humorous is called "overheard in New York".. this one actually sounds pretty amusing..
the author compiles lists of sentence fragments and emails heard through out the streets on New York..
that one kinda makes me think of the "headlines that Jay Leno does" and when the last names of potential couples are listed in the marriage section.. You wonder if this could be real, but obviously somone is spending their "spare" time scoping these things out!! and providing us entertainment in the process.

BOING BOING won the bestest award there is.. the LIFETIME ACHIEVMENT award..
this would be fitting, since the author of this blog is only six years old!

One of the most interesting, that I found, was the "my secret" blog. This won for the best american blog. the author simply asks for anyone to send him a postcard stating their secret. he then scans it in and posts it on his blog.
any thing from the most trivial to the big whoppers.. are posted from people all over the country.
And the coolest thing about these awards, is that there actually is a prize.. a whopping $20.06 !!!

So I ask you, why do you blog?? I wonder how much time, do you actually spend reading other people's blogs.. and what purpose does it serve you?
If you had to hand out awards for the above mentioned catagories.. who would you choose?

My husband completely makes fun of me, for having entered the blog world . He has some few choice words, about it that I can't say on blogger.
wait, what am I saying.. I control this blog..!!, but I choose not to for fear, I could offend someone.
I keep trying and trying to explain this addiction.. when I reveal that it actually stemmed from a scrapbooking addiction, then he really says I've lost it!

So I wonder, do your husbands or significant others, think you're crazy, for spending hours on the computer, telling random thoughts, or even pouring out your hearts to total strangers.. and much less, potentially the whole world???
Personally, I don't have that much time to invest. My schedule is busting at the seams between, all the activities I have with Brigham, or organizations, I am part of, or preparation for offices I hold, or trying to manage home with my business.
Some of you know, that I am not the best when it comes to keeping in bloggy touch. I have found many of you to be very entertaining, and interesting, and down right hilarious.
I love those of you who are REAL. The ones who say it like it is. The ones that admit that life aint a bowl of ice cream. There is a whole lotta crap in our lives.. and I love to hear the "REAL" stuff.
I think that people who are willing to share the downs of life.. are the ones that are the truest.
It is hard to believe when some one is always "UP" and has everything so "good".
anyway, that may just be the first catagory that I award.. KEEPIN IT REAL.
feel free to nominate yourselves.

I have decided to take a new approach in my blogging.. but this will mean I will have to be disciplined. I am committing to blogging 3 times during the week, and once on the weekends.
I look forward to this new direction in my blog, and hope that anyone who reads it will benefit in some way.
thanks for all of you, who take time to read the randomness in my head..
Here is a LO that I did of Brigham with one of his new toys at Christmas. I love to see him constantly learning new things. He has such an intense look on his face, as he focuses on new skills.
Happy Monday!

its over for me!

march madness that is!!
I am a huge basket ball freak, and play the tournament brackets every year!!
I did awesome in the first round.. beating my husband by 2 points.(he he he)
and did pretty well,in the second round too, at least because others picked some of the losting teams to go all the way.
My confidence was building.. I looked forward with my head held high.. until ..... last night!!

What a major upset with LSU pulling it off against DUKE.
Bad for me, i took Duke to the championship. good for my husband who predicted them to lose .

What is up with UCLA beating Gonzaga? another outcome, I was not predicting.
I almost did not wish Gonzago to beat IU, only because I felt loyal to a big ten school(except OSU) !!... and because Coach Davis was forced to resign at the end of the season. I was hoping he would be able to work real hard and go out with a bang.. and then make all his admin. folk, question themselves.
When Andrew told me that Coach had all ready accepted a head position at Deleware, I felt unsorry for him..
So then I rooted for the trailer park kid with Gonzaga.
I did feel so bad for them when they lost and he laid on the court crying.
I always feel so bad for the kids that lose. Guess it was because I was such an athlete and know how hard these kids work.
After dating athletes in college, you realize how sweet it is for these "big boys" to love their momma's.

Well, even though my teams are gone.. and my brackets shot.. there is nothing like hanging in a sports bar , in INdiana.. watching ball. =) it will be a good weekend!

Andrew insists that Brigham will be a football star. Almost wanted to name him Xavier Trane just so that his nickname would be "X-train".
I am pushing towards basketball...or golf..

so now that we are four days in to spring.. of course it would snow again. I was hoping to get some major yard work done this weekend. but I am sure it wont happen.

guess that just means I will have to scrap. I am getting so inspired by many of the talented peas.
I actually "feel" the mojo...(rachel, I 've got it too)!!

I bought a bunch of new stuff.. speaking of.. do any of you scrappers have more of a "buying scrapping supplies addiction" rather than an actual scrapbooking addiction.
I feel like my stash is busting at the seams, yet I am hardly going through any of it..
I hope to get five pages done this weekend, and to use some of my older stuff..
fingers crossed.

so i will leave you with some pics I just got back of Brigham. these are his 18 month old pic.
I scanned them in, and i am gonna see if Walgreens.com will upload them... shhh. don't tell.
Have an awesome weekend!!

I can't believe how big he is getting!!
such a little boy.
where did my baby go??
uh oh,you all know what that means????

little bit of this n that....

I am curious if you think that you will ever get an original thought. I guess I will just have to wait for a while. Anxiously awaiting.

SO this is what Miss/Mr. Anonymous left as a comment on my last post...
I begin to ponder.... and then rethink what i wrote.....
whoa.. this "anonymous" person is reading my mind.. and living the same life as me???

could it be??? do I have a clone out there somewhere... a twin???
How creepy that this yayhoo feels that they actually have had the same exact experiences as me... and thoughts.. etc..

and how completely lame of you NOT to have balls enough to post under a name!!!

i think that you must not have any original thoughts, if you can't even claim your words.!!

.... okay, so i move on .. away from that!!

the first day of spring... funny that it is not official until 2:37 in the afternoon.
You can't wake up and say "its spring".. you have to go half way through your day.. until you get to 2:37 pm.
Well at least that is what our (very educated) local weatherman says.. I use the term loosely, b/c they are always so WRONG in giving their forecasts.
I can't give Mr. Mike too much slack, because my husband is friends with his wife, and I don't want him to predict a tornado.. just over OUR house!!

well, in the middle of Indiana, the first day of spring was ... of course met with gray skies, cold wind, and snow!!

luckily, last weekend was nice , so we took Brigham out to the park. It was so cool because, he can now (finally) walk!!




He takes off like, he is a fearless wonder. there is nothing gonna stop in his way...
except.. MOLE HILLS!!!
this was hilarious.. the little guy would start toddling so fast, and then hit these mushy mounds.. and then just totally bite it. Hardly a second would pass, and he would hop right back up and do it again.. until the next mushy mound!

We just stood their and laughed at him.. I am sure it was a strange feeling for the ground to be sinking ... (growing up, I used to be terrified of mole hills!!).. i got over that, when I finally realized my tiny cat can kill these things... I should not be afraid of them!

So since spring is finally here.. and i have all these green things coming up in my yard.. i figured it won't be long til bathing suit weather.
so my goal.. of hitting the gym very frequently has moved to more like ever so infrequently.. but this is going to change.
i got me a cute little work out outfit..(so i am not in a frumpy t shirt and last years yoga pants). and i started tanning( so that my fat will have a nice glow instead of that dimply look). and I have gotten a trainer( so I will have a clue what to work on where)..
I now have NO excuse.
I have even found a fabulous bathing suit that is screaming my name.. but only if i lose about 30 lbs!

My girlfriends and I got together last night.. and I brought the dessert..(cuz you know when girlfriends get together, there must be food!).
I made this sinful chocolatey, candy bar, rocky road type thing.. my mouth was watering so badly!!
the women all raved over my conkoction, yet not a morsel touched my lips.
Still no chocolate for this girl until Easter.. at which time, I probably will eat an entire choco bunny!!

so i leave you with a layout of my son.. he finally began walking at 18 months!! we thought perhaps we'd have to stroll him into kindergarten.. whew!! .... he save us quite the embarrassment.

******Stay tuned for the next post, since blogger is not playing nice*******************

who is up for LOST tonight????
I am so stinking exited for this... and my husbands class is cancelled, so we can watch together...
i hate that they leave you hanging for so long.. not like they don't have the new ones done..
if they are short on epis, than why don't they produce MORE epis????
i am sure it has something to do with ratings.. and money and such... and that they are the PRODUCERS, but Man, it is so frustrating!!! i think us viewers could do such a better job of marketing this thing!!
happy Wednesday!!

Whoa... what a weekend!

Did i just say Whoa??? I sound like that Hil and her sister in that commercial.
I must confess, i don't say it with the same intensity the Joey Lawrence does.
(can you believe, his one of my first CD's ). I am really dating myself here!!

Sometimes a weekend goes by, with nothing to exciting. Or it goes by with so much crammed into it, that it is not relaxing. But last weekend was a blast.

Started on Friday with motivation to go to the gym! I have decided to strive towards 25 pounds lost in the next 3 months!! Since I have already given up chocolate, this should not be problem..
as long as I actually go to the gym every day.. and that the Lemon(lowfat) girl scout cookies find another home!
How exited was I to come home to mail.. not just any mail, like my Ck, that gets me real excited, or the new PB or WS catalogs...(they really make me nutzo!).. but A BIG package of goodies .
The super cool JILL sent me all this yummy stuff .

Seriously, I could not believe, how much stuff she sent.. and so many fun papers, and boyish stuff.. lots of ribbons... HS stuff.. embellies!
I can not wait to start scrappin with it!
thanks so much Jill! You rock!


Friday night, my dad came over to watch Brigham, cuz andrew and i both had plans. They always have so much fun. My dad is always half way asleep on the couch after an evening of keeping up with Brig!!
Love FREE babysitting. WE are so lucky to live in the same town..actually just a few miles away from both my parents. So we get to go out a lot!
So on Friday, Andrew was working late and heading to the gym, so I went out with a friend.
We had so much fun ! We spent over an hour in Hobby Lobby. Gosh, it was so nice to be able to take my time, and neither of us had our little boys to deal with!
Of course, I had to get me some scrap stuff.. and I got tons of ideas for outdoor decorating!!
Every time I go out.. is an adventure.. this time was not exception.
We had to deal with smelly guy following us . This guy literally smelled like the Dan Pablo's kitchen. Although, since his wife did not , we realized, that they had not just come from dinner.
The smell lingered for about five minutes, after he vacated our aisle.
And of course 20 minutes later, we run into him again.. we had to be real quick with our selections, so we would not pass out!
When we got to the checkout.. we actually chose a much longer line, just so we would not have to breathe behind him!
Moral to this.. if you smell, you should be aware of it.. and if you are with someone who smells.. you should make them aware of it!!

We went to the mall, and indulged in a rich and thick coffee drink!! and ohhhed and awed over lot s of baby clothes. We did pretty much shop til we dropped..
and then relaxed in a cozy little downtown bar.. as we gabbed.. and drank.. and laughed.. and drank.!!
It was so good to have a girls night out !
Saturday, I was able to sleep in.. and do a little work around the yard. Then I met my mom for dinner at my fave Mexican restaurant. (the smells of hobby lobby had gotten me in the mood for this!!)
Then my mom and I shopped for new spring clothes for Brigham. I picked out a bathing suit, that I swear, I will get into by June!!

Came home that evening, and watched a good movie with my hubby. Very cute.. kinda sappy, very predictable.. but Sandra and Hugh.. were easy on the eyes.. for both of us!
check out Two weeks notice.

Sunday we had a great church service.. always love when it just speaks to me.. so fun to start the week out that way! After lunch , the three of us just played and played. Brigham is getting to be such a character. He is always on the move. and there are always sounds coming out of him!
It is so much fun to be just plain silly with him.
Andrew went to work, and Brigham and I both took naps.
Don't know what my deal is.. but the last few weeks.. i am always soo tired! Love it when I can take a nap.. and not feel guilty!

I got all domestic, and made a yummy pasta dish for dinner. and then I got to curl up on the couch and watch my hottie Matthew in How to lose a guy in 10 days.
He is sooo cute.. just amazing that a guy can be that perfect.. (i dated a guy in college that looked a close second to him).. man, what could have been?!!!!

So that was pretty much it lots of fun and relaxation.. and quality family time!
and woke up to 70 degrees and sunshine today!!
Whoo hooo!

have a marvelous monday.=)
.....and nobody puts baby in the corner.

the good and the bad..

so the bad first...
actually it is not so bad, as much as that I have have been in a BAD mood lately.. Why??
because I am becoming thoroughly annoyed by the littlest things..
1) people who claim to be the almighty Christian, yet do all the unspoken and unseen, constant sinning.(gossip, cheating, lying, basically foregoing the fruit of the spirit)
(come on we all do this, of course) but don't claim to be all self righteous and stuff, and think that you are so much "better" than non Christians. It bugs me to no end to hear all this GOD talk, and then see all the "fakeness" right along with it.
How are we ever supposed to draw people to Christianity.. who would want to be part of all that!
2). along those lines, I can't stand people who need to know information under the pretense that they are praying for you!. Again, so fake.. Luckily God is the only one who truly knows whether they pray or not. But so often, people (these righteous Christians) feel they need to be "in the know" of everyone and everything. Seriously, they must not have enough in their own lives to deal with!!
** Don't get me wrong.. I will pray long and hard for those who ask for specific prayer requests. But just to pry into someone's business, under the cover of a prayerful spirit... I think not!
4) I can not stand it when people constantly use people's names when talking to them.
Now, I am not referring to when you address someone in person or on the phone. By using their name, in a greeting, (as to make certain to whom you are speaking) but, it bugs me so bad, when people feel the need to make blatent reference to individuals, whom they are not friends with by constantly spouting out the person's name.. As if this gives the speaker, more credibility, because, it sounds like they are good friends??
For all you 2peas addicts out there.. thats another place where I see it so often.
Just because I leave my name on my post, does not give you the right to call me by it.. Unless we have at least had a conversation, or by email.
or like when you go to a restaurant, and the server gives their name.. and then (my mom) and others feel the need to use their name everytime they ask for something.
I was in retail management for 4 1/2 years, and as a store manager, I purposely never wore my nametag.. there is no need for customers to know my name, unless I tell them. We are not friends or aquantences.. You don't need to be calling me by my name!!
Silly I am sure this sounds. but, It drives me crazy!

for the good...
1) my new fave artist is going to be on Oprah! in fact I just got his debut album over the weekend.
I am such a dork, that I did not even know who sang this song.. Luckily, on Friday night, my husband and I were just pulling into Barnes and Noble, when by some strange coincidence, the car radio was on.. and this song was playing.. I had to practice the chorus so I could go in and sing it to the poor guy behind the counter.
Luckily, after the first bar, I sang, he knew right who it was!
so if you have not heard of James Blunt.. watch Oprah.. and then go buy his CD.. back to bedlam!
amazing lyrics. Incredible voice.

2)and another good, is that my girlfriends and I got together last night for a cooking class!
we learned to cook and amazing meal and tantalizing desserts. it was so much fun, and we ate so much, and laughed and laughed. A very fun evening, except that I could not partake in the decadent desserts!
I am currently on my 7th day of NO Chocolate!! I am completely insane, I know.. but this is my weakness. and I am giving it up for lent.
3) american idol tonight.. .

okay so have a fab Wednesday.. 1/2 way to the weekend!

happy National bloggin recipe DAY!!!

okay this one is a tribute to my grandma.. down on the farm!
she has lived in the same house for over 50 years!! has raised 5 kids, and been a saint to a very hardworking husband til he died a few years ago.
she litterly has an ice house, a cellar house, and no dishwasher, til two years ago!!
and the stories she tells(she's 86) of life surrounded with cows, sheep, hogs, chickens, and all the dogs and barn cats running around..
so meals are always awesome.. when we eat at the farm... some real down home cooking!
these are some of my faves:
(beware they are all fattening!)

Chicken Tetrazini

1 ) 1 pkg 7oz spaghetti.. cook and drain and put back in pot
2) 2 c. cubed , cooked chicken.. add to spaghetti
3.) make a rue with 1/4 c margarine and 1/4 c flour
4) add to rue, 1/2 salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 pint heavy whipping cream
2 tbls. water
5) add mixture to spaghetti, and add one can drained mushrooms

put all in 13 x 9 pan top with shredded mozzeralla or cheddar cheese(or both!)

bake at 350 degrees for 30 min..

so YUMMMMY!!! and makes a lot..

Corn Pudding

2 cans whole kernel corn
1 can cream style corn
1 egg beaten
1 box jiffy corncake mix
8 oz sour cream
1 stick margarine

mix all above together and put into greased 9x13 pan. bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes.
DELISH!!!!


Candied apples
4-6 med. size apples
1 c sugar
1/4 c corn starch
1/2 cup red hot candies

peel and slice apples in a qurt baking dish. combine sugar and corn syrup sprinkle evenlly over apple slices. sprinkle red hots on top.
add enough water just to the place where you can see the water under the apples.
bake at 350 degrees to apples are soft .. approx 30 minutes.. stir frequently.

this one is an all time fave. all family gatherings.. the grandkids fight over who gets the most of this!!
YUMMMO!!

can't wait to see what everybody shares!
have a super Wednesday..
so stinkin excited for a NEW lost!!