I'm On Vacation

Hi bloggy friends...I know posting has been spotty since I left Omaha. Well, I am here to tell you that it will be non-existent until probably next week this time.

I know, I know...what will you do without my daily dose of awesomeness? Find new blogs? Abandon mine? Please don't! I will be back soon and BETTER then EVER! You should just hear all the plans I have for a BIG Back To School Week starting August 16th! Giveaways, recipes, ideas and more!

Until then, you can all just think of how lucky #178, Gwen, was to win the HUGE scrapbooking giveaway...

Happy Days folks!

The Collision of Cakes and Scrappers

Every hobby and group has its own "celebrities", those that the others look up to for advice, ideas, and info. The ones who give the demonstrations, the classes, the autograph signing.

In the world of scrapbooking, Lisa Bearnson is one of those people. And I am one of those looking for advice, ideas, and info from her books and magazine, Creating Keepsakes, the one magazine I always make sure to subscribe to.

This past weekend, I got to attend Scrap-N-On-The-River (I know, what a mouth full of mush!) with my sister, Jeni, one of my best friends, Melissa, and her mom, Lynne. We were there for three days of scrapbooking bliss, complete with gossip, good food, and great scrapping!

This year, the organizer of the event asked Lisa to come be the guest teacher at the event, and she agreed! Cool thing that my mom was doing the cake for the convention and is so nice that she traded the cake for our fees to get in (my mom got the short end of that stick, but I love her for it just the same...the cake was worth WAY more then $220)!

I decided to contact Lisa and see if she'd like to come to church with us on Sunday, after the convention, and go to my parent's house for lunch. She's also a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints so I thought I'd give it a shot...well, guess what? SHE DID! How cool is that?

So, the convention was a blast (I finished two BIG projects and would have finished more, had I actually stayed at my table and not wandered the vendor booths, went to a church activity, ate lunch at a bunch of yummy places, toured an antebellum home and went home early one night) and I am so glad I got to go and spend time with Melissa, Lynne and JENI.

The best part of the entire convention? There are two:

1. Getting to cut the cake my mom made...It gets messy so you get to lick your fingers (when I am done or whenever I want? You might never know...), Oh and watching the ladies FLOCK to the cakes cut with the cricut when my mom entered...my MOM is a cake celebrity...just ask Brennan and he will say, "My Grandma Cupcake is a movie star because she has her own DVD."

2. Getting to talk with Lisa and her fantastic daughter, Brecken, during dinner one night...sorry we bothered you but Melissa and I loved it! And, it was suprising to see you all alone, too...I mean where did our southern hospitality go that the "star" of the event is alone for supper? I think people get a bit too caught up in the "star" stuff and forget that they are real people, just like you and me. Melissa and I had fun talking about ourselves and learning a bit about Lisa's family, too. Lisa, feel free to call anytime you are in the Omaha area...we can do it again :)

Sunday we met up at church for some great talks (I use the term great loosely b/c I gave one of them, though everyone else rocked theirs...including my sister, Lynne and Lisa...my dad is so sneaky!) and an even better Relief Society lesson (maybe I only say that b/c I have not been to RS in years!). Afterwards, Lynne and Melissa took Lisa and Brecken on a tour of Longwood (such a cool place, she took us on Friday afternoon) and we rushed home to get the food out for lunch. We had chicken and tuna salad from Uptown Market, Shrimp Pasta from Little Degos, and homemade banana pudding. Yum.

After lunch, my mom pulls out her cricut to give Lisa a demo on my mom's latest cake decorating technique...

This is by far my favorite picture of the day...my mom teaching Lisa using a scrapbooking tool!

After the cricut demo, my mom starts to talk about the sure-cuts-a-lot program and once again has everyone's undivided attention.

Our time together was short, but everyone left with a full belly and lots of pictures.

Lisa, I really enjoyed meeting you and getting the chance to hang out with you!

The moral of my little tale? Don't forget that you are just as important as all those "stars" out there...so don't be afraid to be kind to everyone you meet, even if they are a little more well known then you are. And, never, ever, ever let a visitor to your town sit alone for supper. That is just bad manners.

I am like a star shining brightly.
Shining for the whole world to see.
I can do and say happy things each day
Because I know my Heavenly Father loves me.

Dog Days of Summer Scrapbook Giveaway, VALUE $250!

Hey everybody! I am in Louisiana now and having a blast! Today was the first day of a local scrapbook convention and Lisa Bearnson is going to be there Saturday! I really hope I get to meet her, but it seems the "founder" of the convention might be a bit "celebrity happy" and hog her. Oh, well.

To celebrate the fun I'm having at the convention AND to participate in the Rocks in My Dryer "Dog Days of Summer" Giveaways, I am hosting a scrapbooking giveaway! I have got a ton of stuff collected from some great local friends and myself...and we want to give it all to YOU! All $250 of it (really it is probably more but I lost track!)

There is a set of 3 photo albums (12x12, 8x8, and a mini one that is so cute I almost just kept it :) plus another album, TONS of embellishments and papers, even a stack of ribbons. Since I don't have any girls (a moment of silence as I mourn this forever fact), I really love ribbons.
There's baby stuff for boys or girls, beach stuff, seasonal stuff, even Captain Hook stuff! There are letters and stamps and die cuts and MUCH more.
I know the pictures are not the best ever, but about 1/2 an hour before it was time to go to the airport, I remembered I needed to take pictures of all this great stuff...so here's a few pictures, and let me tell you, there is WAY more where this came from.
So, how to enter?????

Leave me a comment and tell me your favorite crafty item, whether it be an already finished product or a product you use over and over again in your crafting. No blog needed to enter, just make sure to leave an email address!

Extra entries: (leave separate comments)

*Follow me

*Grab my button
*Grab my friend Jamie's button. She's started a fantastic event/wedding business and would love for you to come have a look at her website...even if you don't live in the Tampa area, it's still fun.

Grab Jamie's Button!
(copy/paste into your own
website or blog):

<br /><center><br /><br /><a border="0" href="http://www.confettievents.net" target="_blank"><br /><br /><img border="0" src="http://www.confettievents.net/images/confetti_small.jpg"/><br /><br /></a><br /><br /></center><br /><br />

*Visit Jamie's WEBSITE (not blog) and tell me one thing about her company or whatever you might notice on her site.
*Blog about the giveaway.

Giveaway ends on July 28th.

I'm a bit bummed...Rocks in my Dryer has a thing about the giveaway, but I did not notice a carnival anywhere on their blog. If someone has that site, please email it to me so I can add my fantastically fun giveaway!

Oh, one last thing...b/c I am in LA right now and I just don't think my DH would do the best job ever, the prize will not be shipped until we get home in August...unless you live in LA, in which case Bart will just bring it with him.

SO, good luck!

Loving My New Sling By Posh Papoose

Sleeping on the airplane on the way to Tampa. The flight attendants did not let me leave it on when we took off, but Ethan fell asleep during take off so as soon as we were up, I put the sling on and he stayed asleep, thus allowing me to sleep, too.

At the airport as we are about to leave Jamie (sniff, sniff) I threw Ethan in the sling, had Jack in the stroller and we were good to go. The cool thing about this sling is that since the ring sling part is plastic, you don't have to take it off to go through security, so my sleepy baby was able to stay close as I walked through the metal detector!

I got a great new baby sling from Posh Papoose. It's a stylish ring sling and let me tell you...it is fantastic. When Ethan was born, I got this sling from a great friend, and really liked it...but he has outgrown it (even though they say it goes through toddlerhood) and I am scared he will fall out of the bottom of it.

I wanted something that would be comfortable on me AND easy to use. This was. It's shoulder and back are padded for me, the baby ring sling's ring part is easy to pull and tighten the top part or the bottom (or both), and it is so darn cute that I kept looking at it and coordinated my outfit on the trip to Tampa to match.

This sling is handmade and very versitle. It fits newborns to about 30 lbs or so. Ethan is topping the scales at 23-24 lbs. and I wore this sling all over the Tampa Airport, at the beach (it was a hike to get there!), to the pool, to church last week in Omaha and plan on using it for a long time to come. Not once was I worried Ethan's fatty thighs would break through the bottom and have him fall out (he has slipped out of the other sling). When we got the sling, Jackson wanted a turn and I put 34 lb. Jackson in there and took him for a short walk around the living room. It was a bit heavy with him in it, but not too badand would work if for some reason I had to tote Jackson for a bit.

Oh, and it has this pocket on the bottom. A pocket that when I wore the baby sling to church last week, someone made fun of...until I used it to stash the pitcher of water I was carrying to nursery in, thus freeing my hands to do something else. :) Then, at the airport, I used the pocket to stow our boarding passes and my camera. At the beach, I threw the sunscreen in it. I now love this darn pocket that is built into the bottom. It is the perfect place to store my digital camera.

So, I just wanted to share the best baby sling I've ever used with you. I hope you try one from Rachel if you want one...she's got a ton of fabric choices and I bet it will be hard to narrow it down to just one!

Fuzzibunz Winner

#28, Rebecca1217 is our Fuzzibunz winner!

Congratulations!

BTW, you can use these at the beach if you aren't going to get your baby all wet but want to have a barrier between your baby's diaper and the sandy water. We used a reg. disposable diaper on Ethan, put a Fuzzibunz on him (minus the insert) and let him go...it helped keep his diaper from absorbing the water in the sand he was sitting in and kept a bit of the sand off his bum. Just another great use for a cloth diaper.

Worth A Listen

(Thanks for posting this on FB Karen!)

If I were this talented, I'd sing everything. (And play a drum or guitar while I did it)

I went to the stoooooore.
Bought some caaaannnnnnddddy.
Cause I like to sppppppooooiiiilll my kidsssss.

What'd you think?

I'll be back to regular blog land soon...cause there is that Fuzzibunz giveaway I know you all want to win and there are pictures from FL you want to see (nosy readers) and there are clothes to wash and family to see and emails to be read and fun to be had...

Where do you call home?

Right now I am in sunny Florida, hanging out with one of my besties (to borrow a friend's term), Jamie! The only thing that could make it better was if the kids I have with me (Ethan and Jackson) were with a nanny and Bart was with me.

But I digress.
Today I wanted to talk about home.
Where do you call home?
What is home?
How can we return home to live with our Father in Heaven? (Oh, throwing some church at you!)

Really, though, where is home?

For me, I say, "Oh, I am from Vidalia, LA" BUT, what about the fact that I actually lived in Baton Rouge longer then I did Vidalia? What about the fact that now "home" is wherever I am with my husband and children? And, what if I wind up living in Omaha longer then the other places? I don't want to say Omaha is my "home"...it's missing my roots. Will it be "home" for my kids?

I still say, "I am going home for a visit this summer." BUT, my house/home is in Omaha. So confusing.

Bart, home is NOT the town you are born in. You just happen to have been born and raised in the same town your entire life. It does not count for the rest of us.

One thing I love about going home is stocking up on my favorite jambalaya mix, Oak Grove Smokehouse brand, made right down the street from Baton Rouge in Prairieville, LA. It is by far the best mix I've used...it beats the pants off of Zatarains or Tonys. Every time we go "home" we stock up and whenever someone from "home" comes to visit, they come bearing the gift of more mixes! (I don't do from scratch)

So, while I can't wait to go "home", I won't know if I am referring to LA or NE...where do you call home?

So long farewell, auf weidersehen good-bye

I hate to go and leave this pretty site...

We are off to sunny Florida and muggy Louisiana. Blog service for the next three weeks could be fantastic because I will have so much to share, or very spotty because I am too busy to post it all. I do have some "auto posts" set up while I am in Florida, so we will have to see how that goes (word on the street is auto post is acting up lately).

Don't worry...Bart gets to join us on our vacation at some point...just not the entire three weeks. What do you think we are, made of money???

Preparation H (for HOT! You know, b/c FL and LA are way hotter then NE?)

Man, I kill myself I am so darn funny sometimes.

crickets.


anybody, anybody?

Well, okay, so I won't try out for "So you think you can joke?" but, I will tell you, I have been busy, busy getting ready to go see one of my favorite friends of all time.

I made that picture super small for a reason...she is so darn pretty all my readers will drop me like a hot potato and run to HER blog. Have HER plan your parties and weddings and such.

Fine, fine, fine.

I'll just sit here and sniffle. Feeling sorry for myself.

Why oh why did I not keep up my "Wii Fit Regimen" so I'd be skinny by now? My plan was to be skinny by summer. Like, a super model skinny. I guess the fact that I just returned a pair of capris I bought online to the store b/c they were too large will have to be good enough, right?

Oh, well. I think Jamie will love me anyways...and my family...they don't have a choice ;)

Preparations for Preparation H:

*Cleaning up. Yes, I know Bart will be here, all alone, for two weeks, but I wanted to leave with the house in a state that I won't mind returning to. This gives Bart NO EXCUSES to A) NOT cut the grass and B) Not keep it the way it is/will be tomorrow night.

*Wardrobe planning. Who wears what when. Do I really need that green sweater vest for Ethan? Will Jackson really wear Spiderman Crocs, flip flops, AND leather sandals? Why did I just now fall in love with the stripy boatneck shirt in black and white and not have time to go find one? I mean, this shirt I dreamed of/saw in a magazine when getting my hair cut yesterday, plus my white capris...the PERFECT boat outfit. Dang it.

*Menu planning/Grocery shopping. Bart can NOT be trusted to stay within budget at a grocery store. All the snacks, "new" stuff, and treats call his name and he winds up with a whole lot of nothing. In order to ensure a happy checkbook (and wife) and a healthy Bart, I just do this for him, and leave him with a $20 bill...that is all the "wiggle room" he gets for more snacks, eating out, etc...it's only two weeks folks.

*Worrying. Will Jamie like me still? Will my boys play nice and sleep well? Will the flight get delayed in Chicago? (EVERY time we fly through there we get stuck at Midway. Maybe the tides have turned?) Will Ethan sleep throught the flights? (please vote yes) Will I accidently lose a kid or two? Will Bart remember to put out the trash? Will I need a magazine or book for the flight or will the boys occupy every second of the trip?

*Dreaming. Of a scene of serenity...Jamie, Jack, me, Jackson, Ethan...the children playing contently in the sand, the mama's sipping pina coladas (or whatever icy cold drink you want to insert, I just like PC's.) Oh, we are on the St. Petersburg Beach, too, where there is a cool breeze rippling the pages of our trashy novels (Maybe I will get to read that next James Patterson???)

*Enjoying. My last few days with Bart...too bad NCAA Football 2010 came out tonight :) We already went on a "last" date before the trip to see "I Love You Beth Cooper" (Thanks Kris and Mick!)

*Sleeping. Preparation H (for HOT! You know, b/c FL and LA are way hotter then NE?) is hard work.

and tomorrow/Thursday: *Packing! That wardrobe planning isn't just for fun.

What do you do when you have to leave for a big trip?

Adventures in Cloth Diapering, 1 of several

So, I have been using cloth diapers only about once a day (because I only have one for each boy :) but yesterday I got a GRO baby in the mail and I picked up a cloth diaper I won from a friend's blog (Smartiepants). So, for the next two days, I can use 3 a day!
I haven't had any problems with leaks, and both boys have slept in a cloth diaper a few times. The only thing that hasn't happened yet, that I am still dreading a little, is poo...Ethan still hasn't had a BM while in his cloth diaper. So...stay tuned...my song may be changing once that happens.

One Handsome Devil

I know I am a bit biased, but seriously...how adorable is this kid?

He flew to New Orleans Saturday all by himself and he did great! He had his Nintendo DS, tootsie rolls, Airheads, and a new Dav Pilkey book about robots. He was set.

He told me he made friends with a grandma on the plane from Nashville to New Orleans (cause his unaccompanied minors got off at Nashville...although it was a direct flight, they still made a stop along the way). There were 6 unaccompanied minors on Brennan's flight so Brennan was not alone in his travels.

Now that he is at Grandma Cupcake's and Papa Jeff's house, he is like the little king of the castle, stealing each person's heart, one by one...Uncle Justin is already wrapped around his finger, from what I can tell.

He called to ask if Brennan would eat something and mentioned, "Oh, and we might get a new DS game." Yep.

I think they are smitten with my little man.

Oh, but watch out...he's one sneaky boy and will steal your heart and any quarters you leave lying around...

My babies have Fuzzibunz, Giveaway ends July 21st

Cloth diapering.

Sounds a bit scary, old school, and stinky, right?

WRONG!

Kim at FuzziBunz sent me two cloth diapers to review...one medium and one large.
When the diapers came and I opened the package, Bart said, "Those don't look like any cloth diapers I've ever seen before!" (I wrote it down b/c it was so funny)

Folks, cloth diapers are NOT the prefolds that require pins that hurt you and the baby and need covers. NOPE! They have come a LONG way from the days of white, rectangle, leaky cloths. You'll see...

These diapers fit a wide range of kids, come in a variety of colors (because I am learning CDing is all about the variety of cute on the booties), and are so easy to get a great fit...Four snaps total and you're done. Even wiggly Ethan was easy to diaper in one.

Ethan and Jackson (who is potty trained but refuses to wake up at night so he sleeps in a diaper) have been sleeping in their new diapers and I have had no leaks! This is great because Ethan leaks through a lot of different brands of disposable diapers. Jackson loves how soft the diaper is. (The inside is lined in fleece)

I love the pocket system...just slide the stuffing in after you wash and they are ready for the next stinky change. I also like that they come in both the "one size" for those "average" babies and then the sized ones as well. I have BIG babies, so having a choice is great for me and my chubby cheeks babies.

Fuzzibunz is going one lucky reader a 3 pack of diapers! I am SOOOOO jealous. Really, the diaper bug has bit and now I want all things cloth diaper related. :)


To enter (and this must be done before the gazillion "extra" entries count) simply go to Fuzzibunz and pick your favorite color and tell me what size you'd want. Mine is yellow, but that is just the LSU in me coming out. I love Ethan's orange diaper, too...I mean, so cute. Leave a comment (be sure to include email address if it is not listed your profile) and cross your fingers that you are the WINNER on July 21st (why so far from today? Cause I will be in FL until then!).

Extra Entries: (one comment per entry, cause if you leave one comment with it all, guess what...it counts as one entry.)

*Follow my blog
*Grab my button and put it on your fabulous blog
*sign up for the Fuzzibunz newsletter and leave me a comment (be honest! the bloggy demi-gods are watching, along with Percy Jackson and his dad)
*Blog about this giveaway and link to it in the comments so I can check it out.
*Tweet about the contest and let me know...I do not do twitter, but I know you CD addicts do, so just let me know you did it.
*Find out if there is a store in your area that sells them and tell me which one it is (if there are none, tell me which online store you'd use to order)
*Give me one good reason from Fuzzibunz website to use their diaper as opposed to any other cloth diaper out there.
*Give me one reason why you DO cloth diaper or why you would want to TRY to cloth diaper.
*Go watch Fuzzibunz short video (be honest!) and tell me what it is about.

That's a LOT of ways to win...have fun if you are new to cloth diapering, like me, and are just discovering it all. If you're an old pro at cloth diapering and just addicted to winning more (not that I have any friends with that problem ;) then you know the drill and have probably written a novel on cloth diapering to me in the comment section.

Thanks for entering and for finding out more about Fuzzibunz...watch out...if you haven't caught the cloth diapering bug...by the time I am done with you (or my friend Megan) you just might.

Friday's Freewrite

Sara of Ordinary and Awesome does a "Friday Freewrite" and I thought I'd join her this week...I mean, she's like one of the only people who ever gives me a blog award.

Speaking of awards....here's another one she gave me...


Meaning...The Gold Blog Award...which is of course CORRECT :)

I'm supposed to pass it on to eight bloggers, so let's see, 1. my sister, 2. Lexi, 3. Anna, 4. Megan, 5. Maren, 6. Cathi, 7. Kasey, 8. Lori

Back to Friday's Freewrite

* Today we ran around all morning collecting Brennan and Jackson's prizes for doing summer reading programs...I mean, if you are already reading, you might as well rack up.

We did the public library, which was the best...we know have TWO free passes to Coco Keys (waterpark) and when the passes go back on super sale on that site I haunt, I will get two more and our family can all play hookie one day when school starts and go. They also gave the boys 2 passes each to the Omaha Royals game on August 8. We will be out of town, so if somebody wants 4 passes, email me. Finally, they got a free book each! Jack picked a 3rd grade level Scooby Doo (cause it's the Doo man!) and Brennan picked a Robots book by Dav Pilkey, author of Captain Underpants (which made its way into our home and hearts numerous times this summer.)

We did Borders, which was the worse...their book selection (which, by the way, their program only gives you 1/2 price on one selected book) STANK so I convinced Brennan to leave the "Learn to Draw Spongebob" book for $10 and get 2 books at our next stop...which was...

Half Price Books, my second favorite summer program. I have a soft spot in my heart for HPB b/c my college roommate, Crystal, works for them and so every time I go there/drive by, I think of her and our fun semester. Anyways, they give you a $3 gift card, which can be a lot at HPB. Brennan wound up with 3 books and Jackson with 2...they have great sales!

We ended our summer reading collection at Barnes-n-Noble...Brennan was the only one who could participate (had to be school aged) and he picked a pretty cool book about the moon.

I'd say for the price of gas (which is only $2.21 right now) we did pretty good, coming home with 8 books for nothing!

*After summer reading collection, we ran to Jackson's appliance shop and picked up our oven element...I am tired of not being able to use it when we want so tonight Bart and I will take the five minutes and replace it. The internet says (and we all know the internet never lies) it is super easy to do. It sure was super easy to burn out!

*Brennan leaves tomorrow and I am so glad. He wakes up early and that makes Jackson wake up early...it will be nice to sleep in! (Hopefully)

*While typing this, I smell a rotten banana, but I don't think we have any so this is puzzling me.

*I have not gone grocery shopping (except to pick up a few items here or there) since before June 19! Crazy, right? It's getting to where I NEED to go, but I am holding out until Monday. Yep. We can do it, though we are now out of macaroni and cheese, something I thought not humanly possible.

*Why can my house never stay clean? It's like a battle I just CANNOT WIN. Oh, well.

*And finally, I think it is time to take a nap. All that book running made me tired.

So easy, even a preschooler can do it!

Have you guys heard of the new Purex 3-in-1 sheets?
They are fantastic. Seriously.
All you do is throw a small sheet into the wash with your dirty clothes and start your washing machine. The laundry soap is released in the wash...no need to pour or measure or anything!
When the wash is done, it makes the trip to the dryer with your clothes where the heat activates the fabric softener and anti static strip.
As soon as I got it, I fell in love. I actually had the boys do it...I believe in teaching them about how to do household chores, and helping with laundry is one of them. It was super easy...as easy as it was for them to throw their dirty drawers in.
I just saw you can go to their site to get a coupon for $1 off your purchase of them. I will have to sign up so I can save money the next time I buy some!

Ethan wants to be a Gro Baby

I have caught a bug. The cloth diapering bug.

You see...it's contagious. I caught the bug from Megan. Now, I am worried I will spread the bug.
That's okay, though...it's not like this bug is bad for you!

One cloth diaper I'd really like to try (b/c Megan likes hers!) is the Gro Baby diaper. The Gro Baby diaper seems like a great started diaper, because one shell can be used multiple times by simply snapping in a new liner.

You can also use the diaper for multiple sizes, from birth on up, which is good...I mean, if you are making the cloth diaper investment, you probably want to get your money's worth out of them.
I hope I get to try a Gro Baby diaper...I mean, who wouldn't want a way to save money in these "tough economic times"???

There's four cute colors to choose from, too, so go ahead...take a peek. I bet you if you catch the bug, you won't want to stop with just one diaper...

Creative Memories Online Only Party!

My friend Nicole is now selling Creative Memories and I am hosting an online only party!
Simply go to this site, look around, and shop away.
Enter Jessica Remington as your hostess so I get the hostess rewards!

Shop now through July 21st.

The Countdown Begin!

One of these two kids is going to Kansas City on Saturday.
The Kansas City Airport.
Where he will then be escorted through security by his very brave mother and handed over to a lovely flight attendant for Southwest.
This lovely flight attendant (AKA: The Stylist if you ask Bren) will then seat him on the plane where he will then talk some poor, unsuspecting stranger's ear off for the three hour flight to New Orleans.
At the New Orleans Airport, his Papa Jeff and Grandma Cupcake will be waiting for him with open arms for a week of fun (with no Mommy, Jackson, Daddy, or Ethan!) before his family joins him.
I can't wait!

(Is it wrong that I am counting down the days to only being in charge of two kids for a few days?)