No schedule today. Picture overload and Goal #5.

Our day has been a lot of things...but on a schedule is not one of those things!  :)

For whatever reason, all three of my children have snotty noses and a slight cough.  Now, I might expect my school age girls to catch a little bug during the beginning of the school year.  Why is it that my 2 year old is the worst one and running fever today?  :)   Poor little man!  I hate it when he feels bad...because when he does sometimes there is no consoling him...no matter what you try to do to help.

So, I scratched trying the new schedule...and just tried to take it one hour at a time. 

As for #5...I am working on it and still have a lot to learn.  But as of right now, I am REALLY enjoying a new little toy we got a few days ago. 

We finally took the plunge and decided to purchase this little number:

Of course, whenever I get a free second or two...I start snapping.  I have pretty much been shooting in automatic mode and have a lot to learn about everything with this camera!  However, even with a rookie like me...I think I got some pretty good shots over the last day or so and thought I would share them.  So be prepared to see a ton of pictures of my kiddos!  

 

I think this picture about says it all!  :)

Finally!

Remember this post?  Well, it has taken me a little time...but I finally am posting some pictures from my brother's wedding back in June.  It was definitely a memorable day with all the weather related inconveniences....but still a great day!

I am definitely a person who likes to combine and conquer as many things as I can into one project...and that is what you get in the pictures below.  Not only am I finally getting to post what I had promised weeks ago...but I am catching up on my memory keeping too.  I have finally been able to somewhat conquer  my severe "OCD" about having to scrapbook chronologically....or even that every picture must make it to a scrapbook...or that each scrapbook has to be made in a tradition 12x12 album....  So, now that I have been able to try some new things in my scrapbooking....it has been amazing at how much more I can accomplish in my few spare minutes each day.  Also, the fact that I have been gravitating toward doing more digital pages helps too....they are SOOOOO simple and easy for me to complete!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Make a Smilebox greeting

So if you remember my post from the other day....it listed 5 goals of mine to complete and then I will tackle the next 5?

1. Increase the amount of time I spend in prayer and bible study.
2. Get our family on a schedule and routine that works without us stressing over being somewhere at a specific time.
3. Make and document memories more about all the little things my kids are doing....this translates to scrapbooking for me!  I would like to set aside two hours a week to work on catching up on the kids scrapbooks.
4. Keep a journal of everyday events.
5. Recognize my talents and gifts and not focus on what I CAN'T do...(with that being said...my goal for this is to learn more about photography and improve on my designing abilities and hopefully make a full time hobby/business from it...)

 

As you can see...I have succeeded in at least beginning a process...not to say that I don't have room to improve and will continue to move forward on these items.  #1...well, that will always be my first and foremost area to improve upon....so it will never be crossed off the list.   I have started and we are working towards #2 and #5 and I will post about them tomorrow with some photos I took this afternoon and a new schedule that we are going to begin tomorrow.  So check back for that info!

Have a great evening everyone!

Just buzzing around like busy little bees...our normal weekend routine

How cute is this?  Couldn't resist getting a picture of my little man!

Rain, Rain Go Away...

We pulled in the driveway from school....and as soon as we got out of the van...this is what happened.  Guess what?  I just let them go and have fun...because one of the goals I have set for myself (which you will see in a post really soon) is to let go and just have more fun with the kids....stop worrying about laundry, making beds, cleaning the house, and just all together being too caught up in things to enjoy the simple precious moments with them!

As you can see...I definitely need to work on my photography skills...but in my defense...it is hard to hit three moving targets just right every time!

Testing the new design...and a pretty picture!

And you call this summer vacation?

Edited:  Of course I made a typo....so I found out that I missed a key word in my description of our trip...see below in red to find out the missing link.  Thanks Gram for pointing it out to me....it makes much more sense now when you read it!  :)

Some people call this time of year summer vacation...however, I prefer summer CHAOS!

Don't get me wrong...I am being somewhat sarcastic because we have been so busy without a minute to stop and enjoy summer vacation....but I still love the summertime and all that goes with it!

I am back and will be back to blogging after this evenings events.

For those of you wondering where I have been...

We spent last week in Indiana with family and were there for my brother's wedding.  And yes, we were there amongst all the rain and severe flooding...we were without power for 36 hours at one point.  Humorous at times and very nerve wracking at times....like when your brother is getting married and you have no electricity to get ten people ready for pictures!!!!

If you haven't heard about the severe flooding and disasters in the Midwest....go to this link and take a look at the pictures of the flooding.  There are hundreds of pictures that show southern Indiana and the devastation there.  We are very lucky that it was just the power and re-routing that we had to do for the week we were there.  Many others have had total loss and are really struggling right now.  I will share more stories and pictures of what we saw later on.

We got home very late Sunday night and have had Vacation Bible School every night this week.  I don't think we have been home before 10:30 any night this week. 

So, I said all this to say....

I have tons of awesome pictures and stories to share about the wedding and some other events that are happening with our family!  Stay tuned!

Here is just a preview of what is to come:

 

 

Y'all have a great Thursday and be sure to check back for Thursday Thirteen....of course it may be 11:59 before I type that post!!!  :)

Happy 4th! Family photos and a few more things...

Good morning!  The sun is shining bright and it is already hot here this morning in Alabama!  My hubby is working today and me and the kids are planning on spending the day out in the pool and having some fun.  I actually have secretly planned to scrapbook this afternoon ..... after I wear the kids out and bring them in for napping and/or watching a movie later this afternoon.  :)

 Old Glory....I love seeing this flag hanging from the front of our house each time I pull in the driveway!  It reminds me of the freedoms I have and of all the men and women that have fought and gave their lives for that freedom!  Pray for and remember OUR soldiers today....both past and present....AND be sure and thank God for this great country and the blessings we receive as a result of being citizens of this great country!

The last few days I have been printing lots of sketches off of some really cool sites that I have familiarized myself with lately....Pencil Lines and Page Maps are probably my two favorite....however, there are a few more that I have found and I will share with you soon. Oh and one that I found on my buddy Leah's blog....Little Book of Sketches....I am quickly growing fond of it!  Check these sites out!

I am working on some birthday gifts for some of the girls friends and some wooden letters and coasters for home decor.  I plan to share my finished projects with you soon!  Also, I have been printing pictures and getting pages together a little this week and really hope to be able to share some new layouts after the weekend is over.

I have gotten so far behind in my scrapping...and it makes me so mad at myself....because I DEFINITELY collect plenty of cool supplies to be able to do all the cool pages....and I have collected and continue to collect many idea book, magazines, and websites that I view and think....I can do that ....

However, I never seem to be able to start or finish a layout....it stresses me and makes me uninterested when I think of how far behind I am....IT IS TOTALLY OVERWHELMING TO ME!!! and the madness has to stop!!!  :)

I am so so tired of not getting any pages done....so, I have come up with a system that seems to be working for me....I will share it with you in the next post....I had to do something so that I would get my tail in gear and preserve all these precious memories that we have made as a family....maybe you can pull something from it and use it in your own scrapbooking.

I have some pictures to share with you today....I mean come on....is it really a post if there are no pictures?  LOL

First, we had our yearly family photo done this past weekend and I was pretty happy with the way turned out...we were supposed to get my mother and father -in -law with us in one of the sittings, but at the last minute they couldn't come....hopefully we can get one with them soon!  We went to Hollis Photography....which we have been going there for some time now....and as always they did a great job!  You can go to the above link and click on the button that says View Your Photographs Now and then our password number is 5678.  Type that in and you can view a slide show of our family photos.  Let me know which one you think is the best....cause I am having a hard time choosing!!!!!

Here are just a few others that I have taken over the last few days that I thought were cute!

Just "Croc" -ing around outside!  Parker finally got his first pair of Crocs and he is trying to figure them out....he will walk in them...but does not seem too sure about them... :)

Some outside fun in the backyard yesterday with the bubbles!

Good morning Sleepy Head!  Took these this morning when I went in to get Parker....he was in there singing and letting me know it is TIME to come and get me Mama!  :)

Have a great day and enjoy the festivities!

More later....