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Sometimes it's quite a struggle for me to balance the things I "have to do" and the "things I enjoy doing" from day to day. It's not that I don't like being a mom and staying home to care for my family. It is quite a blessing and privilege in my life to be able to do so. But I do struggle with days in a row where the routine-ness of it adds up and it can make me weary. Making meals, cleaning up, starting laundry, folding laundry and keeping tabs on kids' homework isn't always a thrill day in and day out. Especially so in the long winter months here in Michigan.
So I find myself very thankful to have my hobby and outlet in scrapbooking. I am on two different design teams {both Maya Road and Cocoa Daisy} and it is truly the creativity that I crave that keeps my spirits up at times. I wonder if my kids or anyone will care to look back on some of the photos, stories and things I've made years from now, but even if they don't I know that it has been fun for me. Just as some people sit and watch sports on tv or paint or do crossword puzzles or work out. Whatever it is that fills a certain point of happiness inside of you I think is an important part of life.
Even if it means you document things like how much you appreciate breakfast with your husband on occasion. =)
I am actually getting excited to do lots of picture-taking and memory-making when I get to join Chip for a weekend in Palm Springs, next week. He will be out there for some golf adventures, and I am meeting up with him to round out his week. The warmth and sunshine are high on my list of "things I think I will love about Palm Springs"! I know there will be some relaxation, good food, fun memories and hopefully some great scrap pages when I get home from the trip too!
I'll be sure to post some pictures of our trip- both on FB and Instagram too. So if you don't already connect with me in those places, feel free to send me a request!
I hope my phone has room for all the photos I plan to take!
This guy.
Four years old.
Attending preschool 3 mornings a week.
Still not always using the potty when he is supposed to.
Wakes up totally grumpy.
Or.
Totally sweet.
But the sweet wears off usually by the time he has to go to the potty.
He sings when he plays games.
He plays games when he eats.
He eats like a puppy most of the time.
And he whines like a puppy when it's time for bed.
He loves playing tricks, and bugging his siblings and can't have Daddy leave for work without giving him a high-5, exploding knuckles, hug, kiss, pinky promise and arm bump.
His idiosyncrasies are almost too much to deal with in a given day.
Yet our days wouldn't be the same without them.
He can drive us all crazy, and then melt us all in the same two-minute time span.
He must have some hidden super power or something. Because with a single tight squeeze around your neck, you forgive him for all the little crazy and big things he's done and all he makes you feel is Love.
Oh, Teague.
What a guy.
Hello March 1st! I would like to think that it signals the onset of spring, but we are getting more snow even now as I write this blog post. We had a couple of inches over night last night, so between the accumulation of new snow and the cold temperature {today was right around 20 degrees here in west Michigan} it doesn't seem all that hopeful for an early spring. But they do say March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, so we are perfectly on course to do that!
March 1st also brings the opportunity for anyone who wants to get a Cocoa Daisy kit, add-ons or Day In The Life kit the chance to do so. This month's Grey Street kit has been a big hit with the subscribers and we as a design team all loved it too! The greens, gray and splashes of other colors make it fun and definitely get you wanting spring even more so!
I loved scrapping the page about Teagan's rainboots and the sweet memories they bring to my mind- even all these years later. March is Teagan's birthday month and so those memories are even more vivid as we prepare to mark another birthday without her here on earth with us- but never far from our hearts and minds! She will always be such a colorful, cherished part of my memories and I am glad that her stories can still find their way onto my scrap pages.
I loved scrapping Teague's newborn baby picture too. There is something so amazing wrapped up in the hopes and dreams of a new baby. Teague is quite a handful now, than he was all tiny and sleeping in that photo, but I still have huge dreams and hopes for all of my kids! I am sure that never changes- even as they grow and change themselves. Here's to a bright future, a new beginning with the onset of spring...and hopefully sunshine to start melting all the snow!
I have been having a blast scrapping and making things with Cocoa Daisy's Color Swatch kit. It is available for purchase now! If you are a new 6-month subscriber, you can get 40% off your first kit...such a great deal! This kit is bold and colorful, but there is so much in it and on the reverse sides that you can tone it down and go for some subdued projects if you like those too. So many options and loads of fun! Now that is a winning kit for sure!
I am also making some Valentine cards with my scraps right now, so if you leave me a comment and tell me one thing that you are loving in or about your life right now, I will choose someone to mail a card to. Just leave an email in your comment so that I can send you a note and get your mailing address in return if you're the lucky winner of some happy mail! Here's to lots of love, color and happiness all month long! Happy February, everyone!
This has been quite a winter all over the nation and world, I believe. We are in the midst of another 'arctic blast' here in Michigan and on our 3rd consecutive snow day...with a weekend in between. So the days all sort of blur together, but we are cozy, warm and we love staying in jammies all day long. Last week's days off were added fun since Grandma Genie {my mom} was in town staying with the kids and I while Chip was in Orlando for the PGA merchandise show. The unexpected time the kids got to spend with her and the low-key schedule compared to getting ready and doing school drop-offs and pick-ups was nice for all of us! We played games, had Ava's room painted {pale pink}, baked and ate good food, sang songs and hymns, watched funny DIY shows and a couple of movies, ate popcorn and just all-around had a great time enjoying Grandma at our house. We were sad to see her go, but happy for my dad, since we know how much he was missing having her around too!
I didn't get much scrapping time in, and had actually planned to do quite a bit while she was here. But the time spent doing other stuff just filled up my craft free time. Still, I am so excited to share peeks of the layouts I made with the next Cocoa Daisy kit for February...called Color Swatch! It is one of my favorites! I received the paper add-on as well as the Paint Chip add-on kit and it is a wonderful mix of items for crafting. I have plans to make some Valentine's a am hoping to make a couple of other little projects too. The pinks and fun watercolor/paint patterns and designs add some charm and whimsy to each project. Tomorrow night is the big reveal for this kit, so join us over at the message board and see for yourself! If you sign up for a subscription there is a special 40% discount for your first kit right now. And trust me, when you get snowed in with a box of Cocoa Daisy goodies, it's a wonderful thing! Stay warm and safe everyone, and have fun crafting!
Happy first of November to you! I can't believe another month has come and gone! I do love the fresh start of a new month though, and today is even more exciting if you are into crafting and scrapping as much as I am. Over at Cocoa Daisy we are having a weekend online crop. What does that mean anyway? Well, it means that there is a full schedule of classes, games, challenges, guest chats, giveaways and more! It means when you click over there you will be inspired, learn new things, meet new people and just have an all-around good time!
I am teaching my first class over there this evening at 9pm eastern time. I have had so much fun putting my project together and have enjoyed making a beautiful mess with the November Stargazing kit! It is available now and I think the combination of colors and patterns on the papers are my favorite ever, so you will definitely want to get your own set! To do that, you can click here...the Daisy Boutique is always open.
I hope that you will find many things to be grateful for this month and into the next one too. The holiday season always has so much to offer and this year I want to be as intentional as ever in making the most of it all.
I can't wait to get my first "red cup" of the season either. Oh yes, Happy November indeed!
I am popping back in to let you know that Cocoa Daisy's Cabana kit and extras are available for purchase right now. It is such a fun kit for scrapping summer pictures, especially. The graphics and bold colors and little details make it easy to make pages and memories look good! I especially love the new Day in the Life kit and the letterpress cards that they have been adding to the kits. You can't go wrong. Every month it is such a wonderful thing to get a box of this kind of goodness on the front doorstep! I already got a sneak peek of what is to come for next month too. So if you are thinking of getting a subscription, I am here to tell you that you are in good hands if you choose Cocoa Daisy! For sure!! Happy Summer scrapping and memory-making!
As of yesterday at just before noon, our family is officially on summer vacation! The kids all did SO GREAT in their studies and growth this year. I am proud of each of them. Lots of hard work to get on those A/B honor rolls, but they are proud of their efforts too and hopefully we will find lots of simple ways to enjoy the next 3 months of downtime and break from structured routines. There was a lot of happiness as we collected their last few items from their classrooms, hugged friends goodbye and headed home to start the more relaxed, lazy days of summer.
I love waking up whenever we get up and going, not rushing around making lunches and changing diapers and buttering toast all practically at once. It gets overwhelming so many days in a row with the kids at their different ages and stages. So this mom of 6 kiddos at home is happy to take a breather.
We already went to Chip's workplace- which besides a lovely golf course and clubhouse, happens to have a great pool/kiddie pool and hot tub as well. We are looking forward to turning our kids into little fish for the summer. They have enjoyed their first night poolside and if the summer weather cooperates, I foresee lots more memories made at the pool for sure! I am so glad that I got back into scrapbooking last year, and with the recent Cocoa Daisy Candy Shoppe kit and the Project Life stuff that I have added to my collection of cute papers and embellishments, I am excited to scrap lots of happy memories and summertime events the next few months too! Cocoa Daisy has such a great variety of items in their kits each month. I always have way more than I need and it is a fun thing for me to do and share with my kids too. So we'll be cutting and gluing and stamping, in addition to swimming and splashing this summer too! We will miss being so close to family and friends and all the fun things we did with them last summer. But hopefully we will find ways to stay busy and not think too much about what we're missing.
What do you love about summer? What are your plans for making the most of the months that fly by so quickly? I still miss all the fun and excitement that Teagan had when it came to the fresh air, outdoors, flowers and chasing butterflies. She is always in my heart and mind and I am thankful that I enjoyed so many special moments with her while she was here on earth. Happy summer to all of you!
It's so hard to believe that three weeks flies by so quickly at times in between blog posts. There has been lots of wet, chilly spring days during the past 3 weeks, but at the same time, there has been a lot of activity going on too. These photos are all snippets of that.
There is almost always scrapping going on around here. It is still my fun and pleasure and definitely breaks up my monotonous days of waking kids and making lunches, doing laundry, changing diapers and all the other tasks that stay-at-home moms do around the house all day long. I am very excited about Cocoa Daisy's June kit~ Candy Shoppe, which will be revealed tomorrow night at 9est. It is always fun to see what all my other design teammates create using the same stuff I get too! This month I even found a way to scrap some nature onto a page. We are trying hard to grow a new lawn and had it seeded- only to have a week of downpours and rain. Our poor baby grass! But it will hopefully start to fill in and it will get another seeding again soon.
I also got to be the guest designer for Webster's Pages new Plum Seed line. I have been doing more of the Project Life-style pages, but not scrapping chronologically or daily/weekly pages. Instead I just scrap using all the cute pieces that work so well in the plastic sleeves. There are so many great new products just for this type of page. I love that! Cocoa Daisy has monthly Day in the Life kits that you can get as a subscription now too. It is a fun way to use your scraps differently and my album is starting to fill up quickly this way!
The kids have their last 4 days of school this week. It has dragged for part of the year with the stress of a move in the middle of the school year. But in a way it has also flown by and it is hard to believe I will have a kid in high school so soon! It has been a year of lots of changes and growth in all our family. The girls just wrapped up the Girls-on-the-run program last week and ran a 5k early on a Saturday morning with Chip. They were all so proud when they got home to tell me that they ran it in about 33 minutes and especially proud that Bella- who had not wanted to even go to the event- ran the whole thing and beat her fastest time by far! We are hoping to get in better shape and have a healthy active summer as a family. One way we plan to do that is by visiting the golf club swimming pool as often as we can. None of the kids are all that great at swimming, so hopefully being in and around the water so much and getting some private lessons will change that in a hurry too. In one of the photos posted today they are all hanging out in Chip's office. I think they would all live at the golf club if they had that option. They must think all Chip does is have fun there! He does work hard, but they see the games and the fun and food and to them their Dad has a pretty great job. We are very thankful for his job and hope the summer is a great success at the club! I'll still make sure to find some time to scrap. And if I am really lucky and motivated, I plan to get back on my bike several times a week too. As long as the rain isn't pouring. =)
Happy May Day everyone! If you are somewhere and it is snowing or you have snow in the forecast, my sincere condolences to you. How terrible that nature is still dragging her feet with spring in some parts of the country. At my house today the windows are wide open, the breeze feels amazing and the sun is out in full strength. It feels like the perfect spring day and I am enjoying every minute of it!
I am posting on my laptop as Teague and I sit on the front step to take it all in. Love this kind of weather! I had to pop here on my blog to share the news that this month's kit- Record Label- is now available for purchase and it is a hot seller! So if you like what you see in these pictures above and you want your hands on some of the fun too, get to Cocoa Daisy quickly, because these kits are a favorite among so many. Our Design Team loved this kit so much and I have gone so far to say it is my favorite kit I have gotten to scrap. The gallery is SO inspiring and awesome this month...check it out for yourself here! I am still creating with it- there are lots of pieces in it and such great papers. I am thinking about getting a second set of everything! =)
I hope your day is off to a great start too. My Bella left for nature camp for the next few days with her 5th grade class. I hope she has a blast and I am sort of wishing I could have chaperoned the event. It's that nice!
I will be beack to share some exciting details about a little thing called Inspiration Day at Cocoa Diasy this coming weekend too. Stay tuned for that if you love scrapping, games, prizes and good-ol' fashioned fun!
It's Friday. Fridays are mixed emotion days for me, because while I love that the weekend is just around the corner, Friday nights have taken Chip away from us and leaves me with the 6 kiddos at home. We have come up with some things to fill the nights with fun and activity, but my inner/better mom still feels guilt that we "never do anything fun" as far as going out or doing anything exciting. Last Friday was another one of 'those nights'. Chip actually took Brock, Crew and Bella to work with him though. Brock got to hang out and bus some tables {and he managed to make some good tips too!}, and the kids always like to visit the club, eat dinner and play games in Daddy's office. It gave me a bit of a break with just 3 kids to entertain at home. I grabbed Happy Meals and shakes for the three that stayed behind so that they had some fun of their own.
Then that picture of Wyndham is a peek into the rest of our Friday night. I asked Wyndham if she wanted her picture taken on the iPad. She loves taking pictures of herself. My jean jacket just happened to be out on the arm of the chair she was in, so I put it on her and brought her next to the window in her room for the last bit of evening natural light. She is the one who started to pour on the charm and big personality. She was playing air guitar and doing silly faces and just making a big deal about her impromptu photo session. I was happy to get a front row seat to her show. =)
As I have been thinking about the way life goes sometimes, I was realizing this week just how awesome and lucky and special it can be to GET to stay home and do nothing. Sure it gets boring for middle schoolers and kids who want more of an active social life, but truly, as we hang out and play games and pop popcorn and laugh while answering random life questions around the table together, it is a pretty amazing thing all it's own. I know we are still making some wonderful memories to look back on. Even if we never leave our home. And that's something you can't put a pricetag on. Even when it's considered "boring" to some. I am trying more and more to simply embrace the place we are at, the limited things we can do sometimes, and to see the spectacular in the typical day-to-day life we live. I sometimes wish it was more hyped up and exciting. But I am seeing more and more how it sort of is all that.
This week I have been scrapping Cocoa Daisy's May Record Label kit. I am so thankful each month to be on such a great team and to get to scrap such great stuff all the time. I love that it 'forces me' to put the memories and pictures of our lives right now down on a page. I am having a blast with the cool designs and funky bits and pieces in this new kit especially. I scrapped Wyndham's picture already and look forward to taking more pictures of our "boring Friday nights" and other exciting days in our life to scrap too. Here's to making memories- no matter where you find yourself having fun!
