Cupcakes anyone?~

These cupcakes were sooooo good! Hunter has always liked helping me cook and bake.. and recently been on a cupcake kick, wanting to bake cupcakes for his sitter. Finally we got to make some .. and let me say they were delicious. We had a ton of fun doing this and then sharing them with his sitter June and all the kiddos there.
As I said in my previous post we are wanting to do a bunch more kid friendly cooking very soon. We did so much running this past weekend we didnt eat at home once! Crazy I say... not to mention expensive. ugh!

Not much else to post today except that Creative Scrappers has a new sketch up for the week.. its sooo cool. I missed out on doing the last layout sketch.. I just couldnt wrap my head around it.. of course then I dreamt about it all night and now I have a good idea of what I want to do.. figures. This weekend is Card Making Day on Saturday.. CS is having a card crop and so is Crazy 8's. I should get lots and lots of projects done. It is also the first weekend for deer season around here. My husband is sooo flippin' happy. I think maybe I am too. I dont know.. I just wish gas wasnt so overpriced! It costs them $20 per day to drive to their hunting spots. Gah! I dont see me spending $20 per day on scrappy stuff.. .hmmmfff ... ok this is turning into a rant and in lieu of the awesome cupcake pictures I just cant do that. oooooo and guess what? I got some cool cupcake Jolee's from Angie for a RAK!!! I cant wait to use them.. and the snowman stamp that was in my baggie of goodies!!! Woot!
Have a great week people!

Can I get a WOOT WOOT!

Hey GREAT news! I won the 1 hour contest that was held over at Creative Scrappers on Tuesday night. For the layout below- Guy Thing!!!! It is such an honor to chosen because of something I love to do. I love those contests and even if they weren't voting or whatever, I still would have done it! I cant wait til next month when we can do it all over again. I'm thankful that I found a nice forum, with really nice girls and awesome challenges with sketches. I've scrapped more than I have in a long while and for this my husband is thankful. He sees me actually using the things that I buy. I can see a big difference too, in just the hoarding end of it. I just want to scrap more!!! That's a great feeling! ;)
On the flip side, I felt so bad for Kristine who runs CS, because she had to deal with some drama over the whole thing. Its so hard to run a forum {of any kind} without someone always trying to rain on your parade and stir up some kind of ruckus. We live in a world of self-serving folks, folks that will bite you in a matter of minutes if they don't feel they are being treated fairly.. and most of the time they don't even stop to think or listen to the whole side of the other party. They are jealous, petty and ultimately disrespectful. And to see someone disrespect a person who was trying hard to be fair to everyone involved just makes me angry and sad. Sad that these people don't think more of themselves or their peers to stop for a moment and reflect on the blessings that have been bestowed upon them. Angry that those people do not deserve the strife they are being caused.

Onto other things.... Oh my am I ever tired! This is my long day.. I will be glad to lay my weary head down to sleep tonight for sure! hehee This weekend Justice will be up and we are taking him and Hunter to see Ironman! I cant wait. We rarely get to go to the theatre so this will be a treat {Thank you for $1 night Wehrenberg Theatres} hehee I also told the boys that we'd be making some kid friendly foods.. stuff that they can help me make. I already know that we will be making Rattlesnake Eggs and possibly Donut Muffins... both recipes can be found on this wonderful cooking blog Mommy's Kitchen. I've copied down several of her recipes and can't wait to try them out!

Have a great weekend!!!

Hilarious!!!

~me-circa; 1966
Cary from List of the Day first introduced this crazy concept, then my friend Aime did it and I cant believe I am just now getting around to posting my yearbooked photo... go ahead and laugh.. its hilarious.. and go to the site and yearbook yourself!!! So much fun..I even changed my avatar to it... great for my mood today-which is surprisingly awesome!!! Maybe because its payday.. YES that may be it!!! laffin!

Tattoos arent just for guys~

This is my layout for the 1 hour sketch contest over at Creative Scrappers last night.. let me just say the *RUSH* you get from this kind of contest is out of this world! I love it. It really stretches my imagination and freaks me out man hahaaa, but I LOVE IT. I have loved this photo of Hunter for a while, was just waiting for the right time and the right elements to jump at me. And it reminds me of a few things that I have pondered upon lately.

As the title says.. tattoos arent just for guys. I, myself have 6 tattoos. I have been persecuted for these symbols that I wear on my body for forever. I have been complimented as well. But it is the persecutions that seem to stick. As does any kind of negative tidbit that is spoken verbally to a person. You are too fat/skinny, too pretty/ugly, too weak/strong, too emotional/not enough... and the list just goes on and on. As this rages inside our souls we also keep the negative in the subconscious and it sneaks out when least expected. We try to be strong, we try to control it, but to no avail it rears its ugly head!

This happened to me the other day. I was reading a post regarding a woman who had a challenge to photograph herself and do a layout about herself. I have never been one that wants to be in pictures... but this day and age.. with the internet.. people want to see just who it is they are talking to, so Ive loosened up a bit and let go of some of that and will give the occasional mug shot. But when asked to do a shoot and layout I almost always refuse. I dont want to be in the *spotlight* so to say. I dont want people picking me apart.... and I dont want to have to face the fact that Im picking myself apart as well. And then it happened... someone posted the other side... the unselfish side.... What about your family? What happens if you pass unexpectedly and there are no photos of you? What do you have that your boys will remember you by? I ended up going to bed that night bawling. I got to thinking.. Ive always wanted to know more about my Mom.. little details about her thoughts, her dreams and wishes.. and yes photographs as well... and I got to thinking.. although they are boys, they will probably want to know the same about me their Mom.
So- I made a promise to myself that I would do more writing and journaling, and possibly at some point do a *book of me*... Im thinking my boys will treasure it eventually. Im going to encourage their Dad to do the same. ---- Maybe you'll want to as well! :)

Weekend project and TAG you're it!!!~

Well this layout is the only thing I really got accomplished this weekend other than the Skully Candy Jar in the post below. I loveee this photo of Hunter. It was taken back early this spring when we went over to drop Justice to meet his Dad at the Arch. We then decided to go down to the landing to have a bite to eat. He loved the cushy sofas and atmosphere a bunch! Anyway.. I couldnt think for the life of me the name of the restaurant so I journaled St.Louis Pasta Company.. gahh.. later last night Hunter was looking at the layout and asked "Mom, where was that?"..I said "You remember that place we went to eat over in St.Louis that was downstairs?" he said "ohhh yeah, The Spagetti Factory!?"... OH-MY-GOSH! Im going to need this child a bunch in my old age.. hahaa. So I wrote the story on the back so when he looks back later he'll know he was a smart lil fartknocker at the age of 3. His memory never ceases to amaze me. So proud!
In other news... I got tagged!!! woot woot.. never been tagged.. but got tagged by the sweet and talented new friend Ive found over at CS- Angie!

THE FIVE TAG

10 years ago I:
1. I was 30, getting ready to turn 31
2. Going through infertility.
3. Felt more secure than I had in a long time.
4. Went to South Dakota-fell in love with it and saw Mt.Rushmore!
5. Lost a very close friend to suicide. ;(

5 things on today's "to do" list:
1. Work {loose term for blogging} hahaa
2. Prepare chili for crockpot
3. Sleep
4. Pick Hunter up from sitters
5. Hang clothes in closet

5 snacks I enjoy:
1. Twizzlers-strawberry only
2. Frozen snickers
3. Doritos w/ melted velveeta over them
4. Mint chocolate chip ice cream
5. Cantelope

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Put away savings for the boys/education.
2. Move back home, buy real estate, & build new home. {dream house}
3. Pay off debt.
4. Help family members that need it. {Preston needs a truck}
5. Quit my job. {Hell to the yeah}

5 places I have lived:
1. New Bloomfield, Missouri
2. Fulton, Missouri-HOME TOWN.. woot woot ;)
3. Columbia, Missouri
4. Hallsville, Missouri
5. St. Louis, Missouri

5 jobs I have had:
1. 911 operator {best job ever!}
2. Auto parts delivery girl-fun fun
3. Insurance Liason for the University of Missouri-go Mizzou!
4. Medical Assitant for 18 different Specialty Physcians-burnt out!!!
5. Office manager for Trash company {2nd best job ever}

I am tagging: Cat, Linda, Brooke, Gina and Amie !!!!

Rules: Each player answers the question themselves. At the end of the post the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blog and leaves them a comment letting them know that they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person that tagged you know when you've answered the questions on your blog.

Challenge Yourself~

Come by and see what you can come up with. I tell ya... Ive gotten so much scrapping done by being challenged wonderfully by this site. Great girls... great sketches... who could beat that? See you Tuesday!
Oh... more news just in... Kristine made this cool icon for us to post on our blogs for the Creative Challenge posted by Carol at CS!!!The *Lets Go Green* Challenge is as follows:
* For this challenge you may do a layout or an altered item.

* Your project must contain one or more items on it or made from something that would normally be tossed into the trash, but you have repurposed it for your layout or altered item.

* Project must be posted in the gallery and also linked here so we can all see what you have done.

* Projects are due by midnight CST, September 30th and I will draw a random name from all those entered and you will receive a goodie RAK from me.

Here is what I made... It was made from a left over plastic container that had the instant teas for bottled water. Im going to fill it with candy and give to a friend for Halloween!

Arghhhh Mateys~

Happy "Talk Like a Pirate Day"!!!... be good or I'll make ya walk the plank! ;)

Okkkkk~

So ... I think I finally have my blog looking the way Id like it to... however it doesnt look near as dark and evil as I am inside.. hahahaa. Oh well.. we'll see what Halloween brings, maybe I can get down and dirty and show another side of me then. ;)

Onto other things. For goodeness sakes.. Im STILL sick! Yeah.. cant hear a thing out of my left ear.. and let me tell you people, its not only irritating to you when I say *huh?* its irritating me and its like Chinese torture!!! You know that sound that is made when a basketball hits the pavement?.. that is what it sounds like in my head NON-STOP! Except its the beating of my heart. And at night.. whoa its even way worse. Holy Hannah, I sure hope things loosen up soon. The strong as heck antibiotics the doc gave me also gave me ummm the cha cha cha's.. nice huh?.. Well Im going to try to look on the bright side of things and feel blessed that I have so much more in my life. And I vow that I will not write ONE MORE BLOG POST about being *still sick* again. hehee
Today Im at work and the fabulous Thunderbirds are flying overhead doing their tricks and preparing for the Air Show this weekend here at Scott AFB. Its quite thrilling and freaks me out so bad that I have jillions of goosebumps. Seriously if you have not seen a show.. Go!.. and if you havent been to the websites.. GO! Its amazing and people of all ages just love it. Im amazed and proud! Cant wait for this weekend! Its going to be a blast!!!

OMGOSH~

Im once again messing with this darn blog/header and layout.. please bare with me.
Still sick, still at home... this is getting seriously messy. More to come...

HOLY COW~

LOL... you dont have to be old to not be able to hear... heheee I STILL cant hear a dang thing. I think today I must call the doctor. The pressure on the side of my head is driving me insane. Ive taken every pill available and even antibiotics and it hasnt helped yet. Im afraid he is going to say time. And I think I may have to put a watch you know where! Anway... This weekend I got a lot of scrapbooking done. Several layouts and several cards and a mini Thanksgiving album. I thank Creative Scrappers sooo much for all the inspiring sketches.. I just love them all! I think Im going to try to sell the album as I dont really need it, unless I come across some good Thanksgiving pics around here. Today I finish the darn invoices and then I think I'll take the afternoon off. This past weekend they were supposed to move my office around and get me a new desk.. we'll see if that happened. If so Im going to be spending the rest of the week organizing it. I like that kinda work. :)
Have a great week!
ETA~Doc report was double ear infection and raging sinus infection..yay! I got some super-duper antibiotics and waiting very un-patiently for them to kick in. Why am I so sickly this year? Sighs...

Is it safe to say?~

I dont quite know if its that time.. but I suspect its coming real fast.. within the next few weeks. Today we are experiencing the remnants from hurricaine Ike. Windy and raining. I was up with Hunter last night, he was sick throwing up. I hope its nothing much. Im still sick, still cant hear and clogged up. Im so aggrivated by it. This is the first time ever that Ive had no relief within a couple days. Anyway.. Ive been scrapping up a storm, cleaning up my supplies and today Im going to work on some cards. I save a lot of my old recieved cards and tear them off and recycle them so want to work on that... maybe some Halloween stuff too. Oh and some Thanksgiving stuff. This afternoon I think Hunter and I will bake some snickerdoodles.. thats good stuff for colds no? haha

The sickly gives~

Awww.. wasnt that nice?? ... my son gave me his cold.. only along with the cold, I have a horrible ear ache! Goodness am I ever miserable! It will be good to *BREATHE AGAIN* haha
In other news... well there isnt much other news except my husband was kind enough to make me grilled cheese tonight. I must say.. he makes the best grilled cheese ever!
OOoo, I know what else I wanted to tell you about..... Did you happen to catch Fashion Rocks 2008? Did you catch Duffy? OH MY isnt she cute???.. I loved her song-Mercy.. If you havent heard it.. Here it is. Enjoy and have a great weekend! :)

Home with the sickly~

Today Im home with the sickly.. Hunter has came down with a sinus/head cold. Poor thing is just miserable. Im going clean, cook and nap with the kiddo and hope that with the home meds he gets better. His fever has already broke so thats a good thing.. although I know the afternoon brings spikes. Will have to keep an eye on him. He thinks we are on *vacation* because he heard his Dad and me talking about me taking a Vacation Day for pay since Im missing today. haa. Rotten kid! Anyway, have a good week and keep away from the germies!

Hello Monday~

Hello Monday! Ugh.. well not really. Here is a song that I cannot get out of my head this morning. Wonder where I heard it last?

Barracuda!~

Last night I got hooked watching the Republican National Convention. Ive never been a political person, nor have I voted strictly one party ... I always chose who I believe will do the best for our country or situation. I have totally been wanting John McCain to run for presidency for a LONG time and sooo glad that now I can actually be able to vote for him for our next President. Now, your opinion is your opinion and you can vote for whoever you like.. that is your right. Just please vote! That is my main message other than this........... last night at the end of his speech and at the end of the Convention they played "Barracuda" by Heart.........whooaaa.. I LOVED THAT!
You go John McCain!



Unfortunately Heart doesnt feel the same way~

Been thinkin'~

I have been thinking.. there are so many cool videos on You Tube ... I thought I may post a video time and time again of music that I like.. some new, some old. Hopefully my visitors would enjoy it as well. Anyway.. here is my pick for today.. A rainy Thursday in the Mid-West. Hangin' in there til the weekend!

Heartbroken~

I know this might sound silly.. but I just read some of the most heartbreaking news.. "Singer-actor Jerry Reed dies at the age of 71" Im totally upset because when I was a kid.. boy Jerry Reed was it.. I thought he was soo freakin' funny.. I even decided that I would name my first boy Reed after him.. although that never happened.. I never forgot about that or Jerry Reed. Im so darned sad right now. At least he did live a longer life than most in his profession.. I hope that he rests in peace.
"NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Jerry Reed, a singer who became a good ol' boy actor in car chase movies like "Smokey and the Bandit," has died of complications from emphysema at 71.
His longtime booking agent, Carrie Moore-Reed, no relation to the star, said Reed died early Monday.
"He's one of the greatest entertainers in the world. That's the way I feel about him," Moore-Reed said.
Sony BMG Nashville Chairman Joe Galante called Reed a larger-than-life personality.
"Everything about Jerry was distinctive: his guitar playing, writing, voice and especially his sense of humor," Galante said. "I was honored to have worked with him."
Reed's catalog of country chart hits, from 1967 through 1983, were released under the label group's RCA imprint.
As a singer in the 1970s and early 1980s, Reed had a string of hits that included "Amos Moses," "When You're Hot, You're Hot," "East Bound and Down," "She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)" and "The Bird."
In the mid-1970s, he began acting in movies such as "Smokey and the Bandit" with Burt Reynolds, usually as a good ol' boy. But he was an ornery heavy in "Gator," directed by Reynolds, and a hateful coach in 1998's "The Waterboy," starring Adam Sandler.
Reynolds gave him a shiny black 1980 Trans Am like the one they used in "Smokey and the Bandit."
Reed and Kris Kristofferson paved the way for Nashville music personalities to make inroads into films. Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson and Kenny Rogers (TV movies) followed their lead.
"I went around the corner to motion pictures," he said in a 1992 AP interview.
Reed had quadruple bypass surgery in June 1999.
Born in Atlanta, Reed learned to play guitar at age 8 when his mother bought him a $2 guitar and showed him how to play a G-chord.
He dropped out of high school to tour with Ernest Tubb and Faron Young.
At 17, he signed his first recording contract, with Capitol Records.
He moved to Nashville in the mid-1960s where he caught the eye of Chet Atkins.
He first established himself as a songwriter. Elvis Presley recorded two of his songs, "U.S. Male" and "Guitar Man" (both in 1968). He also wrote the hit "A Thing Called Love," which was recorded in 1972 by Johnny Cash. He also wrote songs for Brenda Lee, Tom Jones, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and the Oak Ridge Boys.
Reed was voted instrumentalist of the year in 1970 by the Country Music Association.
He won a Grammy Award for "When You're Hot, You're Hot" in 1971. A year earlier, he shared a Grammy with Chet Atkins for their collaboration, "Me and Jerry." In 1992, Atkins and Reed won a Grammy for "Sneakin' Around."
Reed continued performing on the road into the late 1990s, doing about 80 shows a year.
"I'm proud of the songs, I'm proud of things that I did with Chet (Atkins), I'm proud that I played guitar and was accepted by musicians and guitar players," he told the AP in 1992.
In a 1998 interview with The Tennessean, he admitted that his acting ability was questionable.
"I used to watch people like Richard Burton and Mel Gibson and think, `I could never do that.'
"When people ask me what my motivation is, I have a simple answer: Money."

The country is where Im from~

....and where I sooo wish Hunter could grow up. He is such a natural country kid. He told me while we were down visiting my Dad this weekend {back home Fulton, Missouri}that he wanted to live there the rest of his life. I dont blame him.. I never knew how much Id miss it until I was gone. I almost dont want to go back at times because I always come home heartbroken. But.. we'll keep working and maybe someday our dreams will come true. This is a picture I snapped while at my Dads.. the porch swing on his front porch... We all agreed that the reason us older kids loved it so much is because when we were growing up Grandma and Grandpa had one just like it.. we'd spend hours upon hours swinging on that swing. And I didnt want to leave Dads.. I could have sat on that porch and watched the wind blow for days.... so beautiful.