Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's day to all you mom's out there! Hope you have a relaxing day and are spoiled by everyone! I was awoken to handmade cards and Kevin cooking French toast. I also got a dandelion bouquet yesterday for Mother's Day I was told :) 

Unfortunately, I am sick with a sinus cold and poor Kieran has a sore throat and ear infection.  I had him at the clinic for 3 hours yesterday waiting and he was as good as gold.  I was so impressed! He's got some antibiotic in him now and seems to be doing better today.

I've had some medieval battles going on in my living room.  Kevin made the boys swords and shields out of cardboard and duct tape.  It is so cute (and yes, potentially injury causing, lol).  Must get some pictures to scrap before they get destroyed :)

"Bridget, what's a dog say?"

"woof, woof"

"What's a cow say?"

"woof, woof"

"What's a cat say?"

"woof, woof"

Too cute!! 

She's also still giving the cutest hugs and kisses.  Slightly less cute at 5am when I want her to go back to sleep, but still pretty cute! And she's *almost* taking steps.  She's getting really balance and standing on her own a lot.  Won't be long, but I'm not in a huge rush!

I finished a couple of LOs this week, yay! I got Kieran's "This Boy" LO done:

Journaling reads: Just turned three (yahoo!). Is my best napper.  Loves balls and is very sporty. Makes me laugh. Has a dimple that sometimes gets him out of trouble! Starts preschool in the fall. Loves Franklin stories. Gives great hugs. Is a "big boy". Is a very picky eater - loves pancakes for supper. Is loving, kind and polite. Frustrates me at times. Is sensitive. Sometimes cries to the point of driving me crazy! Is a sweetheart and my reason to be!

And I did this LO with this month's DT kit from Scrap That! I've had this LO brewing in my head for awhile and these fun papers were perfect for it!  

Journaling reads: May 5^th, 2009. I knew it was coming but wasn't sure that would be the day. The last day that I would nurse you, ever. For awhile I had been working on weaning you. Over a period of a month or so I started putting you down for naps without nursing. Then I stopped nursing you through the night when you would wake up. But, for a few weeks after that I still held on to that one last session of nursing you before bed in the evening. It was so hard to let go. You are my last baby after all. But, in a week and a half Daddy and I are going away for a couple of nights so I knew I would have to stop. On May 6^th, Daddy put you to bed. You did rebel a bit (but heck, so did I!), but you were pretty good. Only a few tears and Daddy stayed until you fell asleep. I'm still happy to get up with you at night and rock you to sleep if you need it, at least I can hold on to that as long as I want. And I will, for sure! I'll never be one of those moms that wishes she had held her babies more...I'm getting all the snuggles I can while you guys are little! As I look at you peeking out of this pirate ship, I can't help but think that it won't be long before you will look at me over your shoulder as you run off to school, as you graduate high school, as you leave home, as you walk down the aisle. It won't be long before you peek at me from around your own sleeping baby's head. I'm sure time will pass like the blink of an eye! So, can you blame me for hanging on to your babyhood? Please forgive me as I smother you with snuggles and kisses...you'll understand someday when you're a Mommy. And please, don't grow up too fast!!  

Can't wait to crank out a few more projects with this kit, but I might need to clean up my scraproom first so I can get in there!  Hope you all have a great day!! 

I'm three! Yahoo!

Kieran was very excited that today was his real birthday and that he was finally three! "It's my real birthday? I'm three? Yahoo!" So cute! I think he's kind of like his Mommy with his love of his birthday :) His party was yesterday and he had a great time playing, opening presents and eating cake. Luckily it was nice enough out that the kids could play and eat cake outside, thus limiting some mess inside my house! He got his '"t-ball thing" and his "boy race track" so all was good! He also got a lot of other fantastic gifts that he loves and that have kept him occupied through today (for which Mommy is thankful!). He was very polite and very thankful for all his gifts...so cute!  I don't even think he realized that he was going to get a present from everyone...he was just happy it was his day and he had a hockey cake, lol! That is...a hockey stick, a hockey puck and a hockey ball....he was very specific! I tried my best...not my most impressive cake, but he was happy :)  He even sang happy birthday to himself and beamed the whole time!  Bridget also sang happy birthday the rest of the day, or rather, "Ha Buh" in Bridget speak, heehee!  I can't believe he's three already! Time sure does fly by.  I'm a little sad to say goodbye to 2..I think it's such a cute year and 3 from all I've seen is crazy!  Hopefully, I'll deal better with it the second time around! 

The hockey stick, ball and puck.  Yes, the puck is just a round cake and looks nothing like a puck, but you can convince a three year old of anything :) And we actually do have an orange hockey ball so that's good.  The stick is a little sad, but if you saw what I had to deal with before it was frosted, this is a miracle.  Should have taken a before picture!

Kieran joining along in a rousing "Happy Birthday!!"

Bridget wondering where her cake is :)

Kieran's present opening stance, lol! He opened most of his gifts in this position :)

A few cute kid stories:

The other day Riley was playing pretend.  He had a hotel with a zoo in it and he was the zookeeper. I was a person coming to stay in the hotel and he asked me my name so I told him my name was Alice.  He said, "nice to meet you, my name is John," and he shook my hand (so cute, I know).  Kieran was there paying close attention so I asked him what his name was and he told me he was "different John", heehee! Maybe he'll have a better imagination now that he's three!

One night we were having supper with my parents and the salad had almonds in it. Riley picked up an almond and said that he was going to "make it a present for his mouth". LOL!

Bridget has her second top molar. She's also taken one step about three times now...just one :) She can stand for a long time by herself but is still hesitant to take those steps.  I'm not in any hurry, I'm busy enough!! Besides, she's my last baby...those are my last first steps so I'd kind of like to savour them too...maybe she knows that.

Oh, one more. The other night we had bbq'd hamburgers for supper.  Kieran now, amongst all his other picky habits, doesn't like anything barbecued because he doesn't like "black stuff" (and if you know how Kevin barbecues then there's very little avoiding that!).  So, he wanted his hamburger without the meat. I took it off and he had a bun, a cheese slice and ketchup.  Then he asked for a second hamburger, with no meat, lol!  We call it a Kieran burger!

I haven't had much of chance to scrap lately with all the cleaning, party planning, baking.  I'm hoping to get back into it this week!

Strictly Scrappy Post

Ok, I do have some cute Riley stories, but I have quite a few new LOs to post so I'll save those for later :)  I also have to get permission from someone to tell one for fear of offending the person, lol!

Here are a couple more DT projects for Scrap That! 

An altered canvas...I just loved this piece of chipboard so I made it into a fun wall hanging.  I embellished it with stickles and glossy accents, but that's kind of hard to see in this pic.

Cards aren't really my thing, but I thought this one was kind of cute.  Just a simple little card...just because :)

This pic of B just makes me giggle :)

I really enjoyed working with my first DT kit! The colours in the papers and embellies are so vibrant and fun to work with! I can't wait to see what we get to play with next month!

Here are some LOs that I did at the crop last weekend: 

This was done using this weeks Sketch DT  sketch at Paws.  Great sketch, Sandi!!  The jouranling reads: 

makes me smile, frustrates me, has the best blue eyes, is a great big bro and helper (when he wants to be!), loves to learn and read, is smart as a whip, makes me laugh, makes me cry, gets bigger everyday, loves to be outside, loves preschool and can't wait to start "big" school, makes me proud, eats and eats and eats!, loves to play computer and Wii (and picked them up so fast!), will make his mark on this world, will always be my baby, is my everything!

This LO was also chosen as LOTD yesterday over at Treasured Scrapbooking :)  I was tickled to be picked again.  The girls there are so fantastic...a great place to hang out! And tons of inspiration in the gallery so go check it out!! 

My girly equivalent of Riley's LO.  This LO was done using the April sketch by Laurajean at Treasured Scrapbooking.  I had a great jump off point with that sketch.  I love all the bling and the two toned stitching (a fun technique :)).  I added some stickles to these flowers (thanks to Amanda for all her inspiration!).

Journaling reads: 

melts my heart, makes me laugh, is stubborn, will be walking soon, is growing way too fast, gives the best hugs and kisses, loves her brothers, is a tough cookie, "bops" to music, keeps me up at night, will win hearts and change the world, is my whole world!

(Yes, I am going to do one for Kieran too...don't worry about my middle child, I'm taking care of him!).

I have one more LO that I would like to post but it has a pic that isn't one of my kids so I just want to check with the parents first to make sure it's ok with them.  It's a cute one though :)

My last piece of news is that I am now officially a Stampin' Up demonstrator.  I haven't received my kit yet so I won't be hosting any parties or anything for a few weeks, but I'm all set up otherwise.  So, just come to me for all your stamping needs, haha :)  I'll probably be having an open house toward the end of May so I'll keep you posted!

Ok...I have cursed my computer enough for one day (it really hasn't been agreeing with me!!) so I'll get those funny stories to you soon :)

This made my day

I saw yesterday that one of my LOs was picked for LOTW (ok, non-scrappy friends and family, that's Layout of the Week) over at Treasured Scrapbooking.  I popped over yesterday to check out the forums and there I was on the main page...too cool :) Click on the link to check it out!

I'm finishing up my last projects for this month's DT work at Scrap That! I've been having a lot of fun with the kit and hope to have my last projects posted tomorrow before I leave for the Paws crop (hmmm...guess I'll have to pack for that some time as well :)). 

Easter, kid updates, new scrappiness

Easter was fun in our house.  We were up at 6am (well, Bridget slept in until 7:15 or so) and the egg hunt was complete by 6:17, LOL!  It was actually more even than I thought it would be. Guess I underestimated Kieran's hunting abilities.  I think the split was 12 for Riley, 9 for Kieran. When Riley saw what the Easter bunny brought (some treats, a new Play-Doh toy and a sticker book) he declared, "I must be special." It was too cute.  And Kieran, everytime he found a plastic egg, he would open it up, say, "candy" and close it again.  Every time.  Just in case. :)  We had a big breakfast with mom and dad, then off to church (where I just found out today that Kieran was doing somersaults behind the minister during the children's story.  sigh.) and a big family dinner at Nana's house.  It was a fun day!

My funny bunny :)

My guys decorating eggs (yes, even Kevin did one!  And yes, that is still Bridget's b-day sign...don't worry, I finally took it down today :)).

The loot!

Candy.

I can't believe how fast the kids are growing!  Here are some updates.

Bridget: 

Says No (her fave word, haha), cat, bye, night night, woof woof, mama, dada...I think that's most of it.  She does try to mimic a lot of words and actions though.

Is pulling herself up on everything and walking along things and even between things.  Will push anything that will give in order to walk.  Very close to standing on her own.

Still getting up at least once and up to 3 or 4 times some nights

Trying to transition to one nap a day 

Has Riley's appetite :)

Has Kieran's scowl :)

Kieran:

In a matter of weeks it seems, he can now reach the kitchen light switch

Loves to jump, tumble, wrestle

Is a VERY picky eater and will chew one bite of food for up to 20 min or so 

Loves to sing...his faves are Prince Ali and Little Einsteins

Likes to sleep with Artemis on his bed

Loves Franklin books

Can recognize over half his letters

Can count to at least 12

Can kick my butt at Wii bowling (it was 201 to 132 today)

Riley: 

Typical of Riley, he is using large words (and in the correct context) Words like "apparently, noticed, actually, assume"  "Apparently, my jacket isn't zipped." Heehee

Loves to read any and all books

Is very into playing superheroes and Star Wars

Is starting to draw actual pictures (Star Wars characters, the Easter bunny)

Wants to have "big boy" jobs to help around the house

Can also kick my butt at Wii bowling, lol

On to the scrappiness.  I have a new LO finished for the Scrap That! DT.  This is a picture that I've been meaning to scrap for awhile.  The journaling reads, "I'm not sure what you two were fighting/crying about this day.  But to save my sanity, I just had to laugh and grab the camera!"

 My last LO, "Buds" was accepted into the Basic Grey gallery, which I was pretty pleased about.  I may submit this one as well.  I also forgot to mention that I had four LOs published in Scrapbook News and Review, an e-zine, in thier March issue.  They were my first publications so I was pretty excited about that too :).  

I am really looking forward to the Paws crop this weekend! Can't wait to chat, eat and, oh yeah, I might scrap a bit too! Looking forward to hangin' with you, girls!

Quick Good Friday Post

It's been awhile! I've recovered pretty well from my dental surgery.  Thankfully the pain wasn't too bad but the swelling and bruising was much worse than I thought it was going to be.  It's still a tad embarrasing to go out in public because my chin is still quite bruised.  I feel like I should be wearing a sign saying, "I had dental surgery, I am not being abused!" LOL!

I'm having fun being on the DT at Scrap That!  I issued a challenge for this month to Go Green in honour of Earth Day. The challenge was to use something recycled on your LO and to include the colour green in the LO!  Here's my LO :) 

 

I received my first DT kit in the mail yesterday and had a chance to work on it last night and this morning.  Such fun papers and embellishements from Basic Grey's Marrakech line.   Finally getting some of those photo shoot pictures scrapped :) 

Paws is also in the midst of it's 28 days of Spring fun! There's a new challenge everyday so lots of opportunity to get some scrapping done!! The girls are pumping out tons of fabulous LOs!! I hope to get to join in the fun a little bit before the 28 days are over.  Hopefully I'll get a chance at the crop next weekend!

The kids are great!  Riley had his first sick day from school last week.  Must have been just a 24 hour thing because the next day he was back to his old self.  It was freaky on Monday though because he was eating very little and actually fell asleep in my lap (for those of you who know Riley, you know that is VERY unusual!).  The other 2 are still healthy, thank goodness, though Bridget has been getting up a bunch at night.  I don't really mind once or even twice sometimes, but any more than that and I've hit my limit!! 

This was a quick one because now we are off to Easter dinner (a couple days early) at mom and dad's!  A yummy ham dinner, yay!  

Here's a picture of Bridget in her new wagon :)  This is what I will probably use to take Kieran and Bridget in when I have to walk R to school next year (wonder if we'll ever make it there on time??).

Here's Riley trying to give me a "king" look! Apparently, he thinks kings never smile, lol! 

Kieran being silly! 

Have a Happy Easter everyone!!

Exciting News and some kid stuff

I am happy to finally be able to tell you all that I am part of a new Design Team!! I was so excited to get the news on Monday!!  Scrap That! is a Canadian company based out of Alberta and their forum, blog and DT are all new.  I should get my first kit next week (awesome BG Marrakech papers and goodies!) and I can't wait to start creating for them.  Come on over and join in the fun!! 

Here is a LO I did for this week's sketch challenge over at Paws.  Awesome sketch, Marcee!! 

Yesterday was April Fool's Day.  I had to explain to Riley what it was, but once he got it, he and Kieran (who didn't really get it but wanted to be like Riley) had fun telling stories to everyone. He told Grammie he saw a bear in our backyard.  I think he almost had her until he told her it was swinging on our swings :)  He told Daddy there were frogs in the water table at school and they were jumping all over the classroom!

Another funny Riley story....Kevin was cleaning up the kitchen yesterday and put one of those microwavable steamer bags in the recycling.  Riley told him he should rinse it out, so he did and put it back in the recycling.  Riley says, "no Daddy, put it back in the cupboard so we can reuse it."  Then: 

Riley: "Knock, knock"

Kevin: "Who's there?"

Riley: "A person...."

Kevin: "A person who?"

Riley: "A person that doesn't use things again!"

Kevin finally gave in and put the bag back in the cupboard :) I laughed A LOT when I heard that one!!

I was on preschool duty yesterday.  It was a pretty good day :)  The kids were cute and good.  And snacktime was fun because they all had cups and saucers with juice and tea biscuits pretending to be kings and queens.  Awww, so cute!  While I was there Mom and Dad were looking after Kieran and Bridget.  They taught B that a dog says "woof, woof".  She is just too cute saying it!

In case you were wondering (I know you must be, haha) my finger is still numb.  It's driving me crazy and making typing kind of difficult.  I'll worry about it later though.  For now I'm having gum graft surgery tomorrow so I'm more worried about that.  Doesn't sound pleasant at all but I've been putting it off for 5 years.  Wish me luck!