Total Slacker/ December Daily Update

Good morning! Ok so I have been a TOTAL slacker these days on the blog front.  I have been so super busy with so many things it's not even funny.  We have been trying to get our house ready for when my grandma comes and I am trying to PURGE and get rid of crap that we don't need, use or want because we have a fairly small house and LOTS of stuff....ugh.  Anyway, this morning I am sitting in the dark, in the quiet just enjoying the internet! Ahhhh.....and my coffee has just finished.  Be right back.......ahhhh, love it! I love my family and all the excitement and busyness they bring....and I also enjoy the quiet moments to myself!

We have been busy here decorating for christmas, yes I know it's early but it seems like Christmas comes and goes way to fast and it is my absolute FAVORITE time of the year! So, since I decorate with fall decorations in September and enjoy them until after Halloween I have decided the past few years to go ahead and decorate for Christmas in mid November...it works for us (or for me which means it works for everyone else too).

I have also managed to get my hubby to take a family picture earlier in the month...went to a professional had them....first time in 4 years!!!!! So I bought LOTS of pictures well not really but I bought the big nice expensive ones....so we added some new pictures to the walls yesterday and I got most of my christmas cards addressed and filled and ready to go out.  They will be on their merry way on Friday! :D I am a happy girl!

Among all the chaos I have managed to get ALL my shopping DONE and most of it wrapped and those cards almost finished! I don't think I have been this organized or ahead of the game in YEARS!

Ok-so now....I have also worked on the december daily with ali edwards.  And I have been participating in the form at noel's about logging our daily albums and sharing them.  I could not justify spending any more money when I had tons of stuff on hand.  So I just made my own template, the main sheet in Ali's album for pictures, journalling or whatever.  Then I added patterned paper between every day to do whatever I want to it because I did not have the transparnecies that Ali had either.  I have also found I don't wanna decorate mine before hand.  I think it will take a little more time each day but I like to add that special touch and embellies that match whatever we did or maybe didn't do that day. So I have my base pages done and all my supplies gathered into one container, a new ink cartridge in my photo printer so I can print daily and I am ready to go! I am super excited! This is the first year I am doing this, it's my favorite time of year and my grandma will be here the whole month (and more) but for this project I just think it's special because I will be documenting all the memories we make and I will have them! :D

Here are a few pictures:

Thankful Thursdays

Well over at the elles studio blog she does a thankful thursday.  Such a simple concept...why didn't we all think of that? It really makes you take time to appreciate the things and people around you....or it did me. I love this idea! I am thankful for such freedom! I love the usa, I love being an american, I love having the freedom to do so many things and I am truly grateful for it! There are so many people in so many places that just do not have the freedoms we do and I am really thankful I do. :D

Have a great Thursday evening!

Muffins and Piles

So I was hanging out with my kiddos yesterday...which by the way I thoroughly enjoyed, I do everyday but there was just something different about yestserday.  Minus the part about Jackson teething he was so whiny all day! Anyway, I typically make my gma's banana nut bread a coupld of times in the fall, yesterday was no exception.  However, I decided to make these instead:

Muffins! YUM-O

Even Jackson enjoyed them!

Then I was sitting there....I glanced over and saw this picture packets.  This is what they look like spread out:

And this is what they look like when I stack them all up! I would say that I am B-E-H-I-N-D on scrapbooking! I actually thought I was pretty on top of everything.....not so much! The sad thing is I have more pictures supposed to arrive at my house on Tuesday next week.....I have got to find time to do some scrapping!

Now this is a picture of all the pages I have done, that have to be placed into an album.....oh wait....I'm outta albums too! Can you guess what's on my christmas list! (besides grown up alone girl time)....ALBUMS! And Ms. Noel....I specifically told my hubby and my mom they can purchase gift certificates from your website!

Anyway-that's what we had yesterday, muffins and piles of pictures and pages! Oh by the way...that was just pictures and pages within reach! And to think I keep adding stuff to my plate...no wonder I'm exhausted all the time! Happy Thursday everyone!

Home Executive File System

So I was inspired by this by ms. virginia tillery! She keeps a file system with daily routines to help her keep track of day to day tasks.....SOOOOO what I needed! THANK YOU MS. V! It has taken me forever to find a container....her's was from the dollar bin at Target....which I looked for and couldn't find so instead I got this one at the dollar bin at target:

Tied some ribbon around it and used an embellishment from the sweet sue kit:

Then I used patterned paper....sorry I don't remember where the bird paper on this first one is by but I LOVE it and want more! I used lots of October Afternoon papers, added some embellies to the top of each day to help thumb through the day.

I'm hoping this helps me remember things better. I have not completely finished this but pretty much. I keep wanting to add things and then remind myself the purpose is for pretty papers (accomplished) and simplicity (done). 

Same Color Challenge

So here I am again.....after time passes by! I'm not very good at this blogging/daily upkeep thing! I'm really trying, just not as successful as I would like. So today I would like to share with all of you a layout I did for the latest challenge at noel. The new challenge that runs through November 5th I think...don't hold me to that one is about using the same color throughout your layout. I thought this would be easy peasy especially since I had ordered the back to basics limited edition kit....which has sat in my hallway for about 2 weeks completely UNTOUCHED.....GASP....I know right! Not fun! I just could not manage to get any time in to use this kit

sorry the picture color and quality is not very good....not sure what was going on there.....and it is JAM PACKED! As are all of noel's kits!



So now I can't figure out this weird alignment....ok so back on task here....so it was not easy because I LOVE this kit and it's not just black and white it's black & white, cream, a little red, and browns. Well I wanted to keep it all black and white so I did....I also tried to do Virginia's challenge about getting all my favorite things out and just putting them on the page.....I couldn't use all my favorite things...they didn't match! Boo! Hahahaa! Ok so without further adu:

Again...so sorry about the weird coloring! Maybe I should change the light bulbs in my dining room! Leave a comment and tell me what you think! :D

This woman! The Bravest I know

So frustrating! I had a long blog on here and then it didn't post....GRRRRR! Anyway-over on the Lisa Leonard blog she is doing a giveaway of the Brave necklace.  If you have not checked out her stuff you need to! She is AMAZING! LOVE her jewelry....in fact some of her stuff is on my christmas wish list! So today the bravest person I know is This Woman:


Look at her! Standing, smiling and full of life! Just days before this photo op she was near death, no kidding.  The doc had told her the day before this pic it was a good thing she had been brought in to the hospital.  She was completely dehydrated which stems from a previous surgery she had gone through earlier in the week.  This is my granny....Wennette Jone....she is the bravest person I know because in her lifetime she has lost her mother, her husband, fought and won through breast cancer, cervical cancer, 2 heartattacks, 3 stints, mini strokes on a daily basis and I'm sure much much more...I know back in 95 she was on dialysis for another near death experience.  The woman's resilience is AMAZING and she is a FIGHTER! I don't know that I would be a fighter if I were her!

TV Title Challenge: Happy Days

The latest challenge at the noel challenge blog which you can find by going through noel's main webpage.  We were to choose a tv title and this was fun! I came up with a list of titles I am dying to scrap with and I got a notebook to jot them all down with.  I did this layout while taking care of my gma.  Got a call over the weekend she went to the er and I loaded up and came out here....I threw my bag, my schoolwork and a few scrappin items...which I quickly found out that all my embellies are at home! So I had to work with just a few supplies...it's a simple layout but I LOVE it...because they are truly what makes my days happy! :D