This blog has moved...

Just trying to get all my ducks in a row, so that I can post more often... So this blog has moved over to Typepad. http://simplyphoto.typepad.com/simplethings/ Please update your bookmarks. Thanks! Staci

Time

I have clocks all over my house. You’d think with all these clocks I would be a pretty good time manager…yeah, you’d think. I have 2 in the office, plus the two computer clocks. 4 in the living room (one set to Texas time), 2 in the kitchen. 1 in the guest bedroom, 1 in the bathroom, and an alarm clock in our bedroom. My Mom collects clocks, so she has tons more, and if she see one she really likes she picks it up for me too. We changed our time this morning, at 2 a.m. Spring forward. Why 2 a.m.? Why not just midnight. Of course like everyone else I went to be at 11 thinking “OH MY GOODNESS! It’s already midnight!” And totally worried that I would sleep until 10 a.m.

This clock sits in the window right above my computer. I went to change the time this morning and noticed, that it was already set to the correct time. I didn’t change it when we “Fell back” last year, so I didn’t need to change it this time. I guess you can tell that I hardly ever look at that clock. I also never have to change the battery. It just keeps ticking away, on time or not.

And I was happy to see that my computer automatically made the change for me. I wonder if it did it at 2 a.m. A whole extra hour of glorious sun. (Just wish all the rest of this snow would melt.)

I hate this war

There I said it.

Sometimes people think that just because I’m a military spouse means that I’m for the war, that I’m for this administration.  And sometimes I feel like I can’t have an opinion about any of it, because I’m a military spouse and that if I said anything I would be disrespecting all the soldiers, and even my husband.

But I’ve seen too much now.

I’ve seen my son come home from school upset.  Because they got their “flat Stanley’s” back from all over the world and his little friend cried because her’s came from Dad who was in Iraq.

I’ve sat with friends who husbands have been gone and drank coffee and pretended that everything was great, when I know inside they were about to break at anytime because they were so worried.

I’ve watched the news when they have talked about the death’s of soldiers as an after thought to Britney Spears and her current psycho state of mind.

I’ve held my breath when they have flashed warnings about suspected terrorist activity in the area, and Americans should be extra vigilante.

 

I don’t want to get into any kind of political debate.  There are pros and cons for all of it, and I understand them all.

But I hate this war.  I hate what it’s doing to my friends, my family, me.

I hate it.

I hate it.

I hate it.

 

 

 

 

Do you have a tattoo? Would you ever get one?

Yes, I have two tattoo’s. I got the first one when I was 19. I was home on leave without Kody and my school friend and I decided to head off to Ft. Worth to get tattoo’s. She chickened out when we got there, but I went for it. A pink rose. My tattoo artist was new to this shop, and really just learning, and within a week it was starting to fade. So I headed back up to the shop and had them take a look at it. Yep, the “new guy” didn’t go deep enough with the needle. In fact, tattoo’s actually take a lot longer than a week to heal up. So they had to “re-do” it. It was still a little tinder from the first time so this time it hurt like you would not believe! When I got home, I was reliving the whole thing to Kody and he said, “Ya know, my cousin is a new tattoo artist, I wonder if he knows the guy that did yours?” So we go off searching pictures for his cousin. And yep, you guessed it, it was Kody’s cousin that was my tattoo artist. My second tattoo was done in Okinawa, and was a “going away” night out for some really good friends of ours. She got her nose pierced, and I got my “Tex-ass”. It’s my absolute favorite tattoo. Do I want more? Sometimes I do, and other times I don’t. I like the ones I have, but don’t want to over do it.

What's the coolest thing you've ever done?

I was flipping through some photos today, working on a Circle Journal for Paula. I ran across the photos from our trip to Hawaii a couple of years ago. That was such a fun time! I loved every bit of the trip. But the coolest thing I got to do was swim with the Dolphins. That’s just one of those things that’s on my “LIFE LIST,” and when I saw a brochure in the hotel lobby, I knew I had to do it. Kade was little at the time and I wanted him to join me, but I don’t think he would have liked to do it. I remember being super excited but also super nervous. I know that Dolphins are the friendliest, most gentile animals around. But they are a wild animal, and big, and I just didn’t know what to expect! Their skin is like slick rubber, but soft at the same time. And they are super fast, and strong! But most of all they love to play! It really was the coolest thing I have ever done, and as soon as I can I’m going to make sure that Kade gets to experience it.

Here's some photo's...they were scanned in several years ago so please disregard the quality.

I'm Back

I’m back! Up and running on a new much faster ISP. Did you think I would never make it back? I have to say at times I did! I was actually up and running for about 2 hours on Thursday, but then something went wrong. Come to find out, all our fancy equipment wasn’t so fancy after all, and all this fast streaming data fried it. It’s so funny now, but wasn’t when everything was broke! I did learn a few things during the outage. 1.) We have some fantastic libraries around here! The one on Landstuhl has such nice people and lots of Audio/video selections. They even have PS2 and Xbox games to check out. 2.) You actually can go more than an hour without checking e-mail. I thought it was impossible, but come to find out, actually doable. And 3.) I waste entirely too much time surfing the internet. I mean I could be watching tv! LOL! No really, my house is clean and I’ve even read two books. It’s a new month over at my scrapping group. That means new challenges and lots of new everything! One of the challenges this month is to scraplift Elsie Flannigan. It was super hard for me, cause that girl is a doodler! I want to be a doodler, but just haven’t gotten the feel for it yet. The layout I lifted can be found here. And here is my rather shameless lift. I think it’s almost exact. But that’s what “lifting” is all about right? Papers and elements/alpha from Michelle Coleman’s “All you need is Love”. Paint strokes by Christy Lyle. I’ve got to get out and make some lunch for the boys and get ready for bible study. We are having a potluck lunch with Pulled Pork. Yummy! I might just have to share that recipe with the group for another challenge! Happy Sunday!

Still On....

So for some reason I still have phone and internet service today. This is day two that I’ve actually had it, and it should be off. I say YEAH! Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth! But that just means that “hook up” process is a little slower. I wanted to post to tell my friend Elizabeth that it’s going on three days now, and I’ve had my sink shinny the whole time! And I’m dressed to my laces, and all the bathrooms have been swished and swiped. And I feel so GREAT! So thanks E, for pointing me in the direction of Fly Lady again. I’m going to work on a few website things and digi scrap a bit. I’m downloading Ms. Mint’s free kit, and listening to some Disctalkradio. Love the fact that they opened everything up for free. Have a fun Wednesday!! Staci

When I was 8...

I really can’t remember much of when I was 8. That is totally weird to me cause I remember EVERYTHING! The only thing I really remember is 3rd grade. My teacher was Ms. Schuman. She was the meanest teacher ever. As a form of discipline she gave out “tickets.” Mine always said “Talking is not controlled.” And the points were taken off your “Good Conduct Grade.” Not good. I remember that several times I got a ticket for dropping my pencil. And if you argued your case against the ticket, you got more points taken off. That year sucked! My best friend was Elisa. She moved that next year. I found her several years ago, and actually meet up with her again. She has two kids, and her Mom who was really sick, had a complete recovery. We were living in a new house that my parents had built. For a little while I had my own room, and then my brother was born and I moved back in with my sister. We shared a really large Canopy bed. It was green checks. She was a cover hog. And she kicked in her sleep. But that’s really all I remember. I guess I need to talk to my Mom and find out if something traumatic happened to me. LOL! Totally loving the fact that Amazing Race started back up! And as bad as I hate to say this, GO ROB AND AMBER! Love seeing all those favorites back! But who the heck are the bald guys. I have never seen such whiney men! YIKES! And Britney shaved her head. Yikes, she really is a psycho.

So True!

I got this in an e-mail today and loved it.... so true! One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a debate that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.” The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: Which wolf wins?” The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.” CONTRIBUTED BY BECKY HADRATH

#14

I wanted to cheat. Cause I have so many pictures from this trip that I think are technically better, and really get the point across. But I chose number 14, just like the instructions said to do.

This photo was taken on our last big outing in Japan. We took a couple of weeks and flew up to Tokyo to go to Disneyland and just relax before the big move. One last “Who-rah!” It was in April, and the cherry trees were in bloom. We were walking down this little road on our way to a temple and the blossoms were falling like pink snow. Kade was 5 and thought he was too big to walk beside us or hold our hands so he walked in front holding the map. Telling us which street to turn down, and pointing out things of interest. This trip was a surprise for me. Kody came home and said “Wrap things up this week, cause next week we are going to Tokyo for a while and see the sights.” We always have the best time that way. When we just take off and go, with no plans or worries about what to see or what to do. This was no different. We ate at great places, stayed in a fine hotel, and spent two days at Disney. I miss it. Japan that is. I miss it a lot. And I talk about going back there all the time. But I think I have it so built up in my head, that when I get there, I’ll think “How could I have ever loved this place?”

Digi page and a little TV

I know, I haven’t been on here in a while. I’m a slacker, what can I say. That and the fact that when I’m stressed in the least little bit, all I want to do is sleep. So I go and take a nice long nap, and then wake up to bigger and better problems. It’s a sickness really. Something I need to get a better handle on. One more thing on my list of “Things to do before I die.” My Scrapping Group is working on our Album In A Month Challenge. And since you can see how many times I’ve posted on here this month, it should give you a little indication of how many pages that I’ve done. ONE. Sad! I have a lot of catching up to do! So I put that aside today, and worked on a Digi layout that I’ve been wanting to do for sometime. Practicing up on my Brushwork skills! Papers and elements from “All you need is love” by Michelle Coleman Stamped Alpha by Heather Roselli Beaded letter by Kimberly Giarrusso Tag, Staple, and Stitches by Digital Design Essentials Curl ribbon by Natalie Braxton Scraplift from CD Muckosky A few shows started back up and I’m super excited about them! Survivor!!! I was getting a little bored with it, but just seemed to jump right back into the swing of things when it came on. “Rocky” so reminds me of “Boston Rob” from a few season’s back. And due to my extreme fear of snakes, I don’t think I will be watching much of the action on Exile Island. I either hide my eyes on that part or fast-forward. I’m also watching American Idol, 24, Heroes, and The Unit. So as you can see I don’t have time to blog, cause I’m watching too much TV! LOL!! Hope you all have a super weekend!

Beach Days

I ran across a few pictures in the process of putting my computer back together. I just loved them and since we are right in the middle of the winter months here, I thought it would be nice to scrap them. Plus, I’m missing Okinawa a little bit and this helped. I think my “home sickness” started because I was taking a shower and nearly blinded myself with my white legs. I need a tan or just a little bit of color. I need it so much so that I’m thinking about purchasing the spray on tan stuff that ultimately makes you orange. But really, anything would be an improvement! Here’s the page.

I made this from a video tutorial from Photoshop Friday by Jessica. You should really check it out, she always offer great tips! Papers, tag, staples by Shabby Miss Jenn. Felt swirls by Amanda Rockwell. Circle date stamp by Christy Lyle. messy stiches by Gina Miller Now it’s time to get ready for a new week. It’s already almost February in the new year…Time really does fly. Oh, and I realize that my new template isn’t working all that well. I’m really on a mission to try and fix it.

Trying something new

What do you think?  I thought I would try something new for the ol blog.  Hibiscus are my favorite flower.  It used to be daisies, but since I have been away from Okinawa, I have begun to realize that I really like Hibiscus.  Found this template and knew it was right for me.

The wind has been howling the last couple of days.  I mean it has been gusting up to 100 mph in some places around.  And my house is on the top of the hill so we are really feeling it.  But the wildest thing of all has been the temps.  Today it was 55 degrees F.  Yes people, it’s January, and it’s 55!  And it’s snowing in Texas.  WHAT?!  There just are no words.  Strange.

The best news of all!  My laptop is back!  I’m writing this on it as a matter of fact.  It’s totally awesome.  I have spent the last few days reloading all my programs and settings.  But as I have been moving everything over I have been organizing.   Yes that is right, I’m still working on my organization for the year.  I have begun to realize that organization is not something that you do once, it’s a life style change. 

I plan on scraping a little bit today, but gotta clean up a few things in the house first.

Happy Friday!

 

BPS Class

So I bit the bullet and I'm taking a class at Big Picture Scrapbooking. Who by the way has totally revamped thier site, it looks great! The class I’m taking is a brush class. It’s actually to learn about brushes in photoshop, which I’m super excited to take cause I know NOTHING about them. In fact, I have a ton of brush downloads that I never knew what to do with. So I feel like now I have a ton of possibilities opening up for me as far as the scrapping goes. Here is my first layout for the class. It’s all designed by Renee Pearson (the teacher!) and I just followed along with the tut.

The photo’s were taken by Kade, so they aren’t the best…but I liked them, cause he took them. Just one of those things. Really excited about what’s going to happen this week with the class! I have a ton of photo’s to edit from this weekend, so I better get to it. The weather is nasty again today, but school started so I HAD to get out of my PJ’s to take Kade to school. LOL!Have a happy MONDAY!

2006 in review

I finally finished up that layout I started working on several days ago, before the Great Computer Crash of 2005. Actually I make it sound worse than it was, cause my laptop didn’t actually crash, the screen just went dead. Anyway, here is my 2006 year in review.

Template by Gina Miller. Kit from Shabby Princess, Cuddle Bug. I love this kit and I think I’ve made about 4 different things from it!

Also, is there scrapping without templates? CAUSE I LOVE THEM!!! The weather is nasty out today. The wind is blowing something fierce, and it’s raining. I guess it sounds worse than it is, but it’s just another excuse for me not to get out of my PJ’s (again) today!

Coffee + Dishwasher = Bad

If by some strange chance you ever get even a small amount of coffee grounds in your dishwasher, just go to your electric breaker box and turn the electricity off. Then go back in your kitchen and rip that thing right out from under your counter. Throw it out on the curb and RUN! Run far away from it. Trust me, I know. After about 4 rinse cycles, I’m still picking coffee grounds off of all the dishes. Just run…it’s better that way.

An Artist...

Amongst other things I want to accomplish this year, I also want to become an Artist.  I know it sounds strange, even to me.  Not strange in the sense that I can’t do it, but strange in the sense of, how do you become an Artist.  Really I already am.  And so are you.  And so is everyone else.  I guess I just want to recognize the art within myself.  As a scrapbooker and photographer, I’m a “Life Artist” (according to Ali Edwards who I wonder if thinks I’m a stalker, cause I think I’m on her blog at least twice a day.)  I guess what I really want to do is look outside the box, and really make something “Art worthy.”   But what is that?  I don’t know but part of what I’m going to do this year, is find out.  I think I’ll start by looking around and finding something that defines art for me and go from there.  

 

OH NO!

Once again something terrible has happened again.  In an effort to make this old computer faster, my sweet DH, was trying to take out some memory from his computer.  Mind you his computer is well over 5 years old, and while I understand that’s not that old, in technology, that is ancient!  He had been having a few problems with it anyway, but somewhere in the process, his computer stopped working.  Just totally quit.  Dead to the world.  And he’s tried everything to bring it back, but it’s dead.  So he took over the old one that I was trying to use.  So I’m totally computer less now, and DH is having to deal with this one until we can somehow purchase a new one.  BUT, all the pictures and all my scrapbooking things are on drives that were in his computer, and we can’t make this SUPER ancient motherboard recognize them.  So I’m without until my laptop makes it back.  And I had just started a fantastic layout from a template by Gina.  It’s the Year in Review and I almost had it done, but just needed a few more elements to top it off and they are on the other drives.  And I think that’s the one kit I had yet to put on back up disk.  

I sent Kody out cause he was getting a little frustrated and told him to go to the computer store and just take a look around.  He goes back to work tomorrow and I have lots of plans for all time and most of it includes digi scrapping.  I’m hoping that he comes home with some kind of solution.

But if you don’t see me for a few days, you know why.  Have I mentioned that I can’t wait until I get my laptop back?!?!!

 

Wrapping up...

Wrapping up the Holidays and a whole year.

First the Holidays.  Our first Christmas in Okinawa was a little bit of a shock.  See Christmas is a Christian Holiday, in case you didn’t know that, and well, you don’t find many Christians in a predominantly Buddhist country.  Therefore, you couldn’t just go out and purchase a Christmas tree.  Which was terrible for me, cause I ALWAYS put up a tree the day after Thanksgiving.  Now the AAFES did a good job of shipping in Christmas trees, but they didn’t arrive until the middle of December, and they came by boat.  So after spending a good two weeks at sea, the majority of them were pretty dead and dry by the time they ended up in Okinawa.  So that first year, I did something that I said I would never do, I went out and purchased a (gasp) fake tree.  Kody hated it, but I picked out the best one, and was quite proud of it.  It looked beautiful, and while everyone else was waiting for the Ship of Trees to arrive, my tree was up and glowing!  And it’s the same tree that I have put up for the last 8 years.  And it’s the same tree that I have taken down for the last 8 years, and put into it’s original box, and there are 8 years worth of packing tape placed across it to hold it together.  The tree is down.  And I’m always more than happy to take it down, cause by the time Christmas rolls around, to be honest, I’m tired of seeing, walking around, and having it remind me how far behind on Christmas shopping I am.  But just like all the years before, there is now a huge empty “hole” in my living room where the tree once stood. 

Our Christmas this year was fantastic.  We stayed in our PJ’s for three whole days, and would still be in them, but had Bible Study late on Wednesday and thought that it would be best if we showered before seeing the world.  We spent the better part of a week, down stairs in the “movie room,” playing X-box 360 and watching movies.  We have eaten all of the chocolate in the house, two boxes of popcorn, drank all the coffee, and finished off at least a case of Coke. 

We have to get up and go to the store today and re-supply.

 

Now the Year.  I have to say this has been by far the best year of my life.  I know that’s pretty much a bold statement, but I’m all about living Boldly these days.  We are finally settled here in Germany.  We love the weather now, and are pretty upset that we haven’t seen snow yet.  And that is HUGE for this family!  Especially me!  I started the photography business and it’s booming.  And I’m really excited about the start of the new year, lots of marketing and planning in the future.  And Kody loves me.  I could write a novel on our relationship’s ups and downs, but somewhere along the way, without me even knowing when, God answered my prayers.  And my husband stepped up and became well, a husband.  One of those fairy tale husbands.  It’s amazing really.  My relationship with God is growing, and it’s going to continue, and I’m so excited about the things that He has done and how He continues to bless my family.  I’m always excited for the start of a New Year, but usually because I want to forget all the things that happened in the past year.  But not this time, I’m just happy to continue on. 

 

Here’s to 2007!  The year of Organization,  Love, Creativity, and Continuations!

Organization

I want to be organized.  I really, really do.  I’ve even read books on the subject.  Lots of books.  But I’m just not.

Case in point.  No posts on the blog in a month?  Not because I didn’t want to, I did.  But my laptop screen went dead, and I had to ship my laptop off for repair in Texas.  (yep, my laptop went home for Christmas, not me…something is just wrong with that!)  Well, everything is on that one system.  I mean everything.  Including my login and password for blogger.  I just now figured it out.  I was hoping to have everything back in a couple of weeks, but that time has come and gone and so I just started over from scratch and loaded everything back onto the old desktop computer.  It’s also taken me a month to do that.  What a pain!  I’ll sit down to do something and realize that I don’t have that program installed and it will take 30 minutes just to do that.  Good news with all of this though is after the New Year, I’ll have a brand new desktop that is much speeder that this old thing, and I’ll have a back up to the laptop.  

But back to the organization.  The New Year always prompts me to clean.  Weird I know, but “out with the old and in with the new!”  I want to clean out closets and junk drawers.  And always my New Year’ resolution is I WANT TO STAY ORGANIZED.  I have tons of plastic storage bins, and fancy containers that I have bought over the years to help me achieve this, but now they are filled with the junk that I promised to throw away last year.  It’s a terrible cycle.  But I really am bound and determined to break that cycle starting NOW!

Yesterday I started with my “inbox”.  I have a nice little fancy basket that sits on my desk and I call it the Inbox.  But really it’s a trap for all of the things that I need to organized but just don’t want to deal with at the time.  It took me over an hour.  Sad I tell you!  But it’s a start. 

Our landlord came out last week with all this wood stuff.  Turns out it’s a little outdoor shed, that you put together like Lincoln Logs.  I can’t wait to get that together!  I can then finally clean out the laundry room that is stacked to the brim.  He’s actually supposed to be out today to start on it.  Of course all the directions are in German, or I tell you I’d be out there trying to do it myself!

So here’s to 2007, the Year of Organization!

 

 

catching up...

Wow…this week has really flown by! I had so much on my “to do” list! And when I’m a little stressed, I just shut down. What a terrible thing to admit! Time management! I really need to work more on that! In fact, I’m starting today! I have a daily planner that I keep by my side, and I’m a list maker so I’m going to start working on getting things straight! Starting today! My Thankful List… Nov 13-I worked on the webpage a little today. Happy to finally be updating it. I also had a photo shoot with a friend and showed her the pictures and she cried she loved them so much. I’m thinking for my gift today as a photographer. That is just a God given talent, really it is. To me taking pictures is just easy and I don’t understand why people ask me to take them. ME?! It’s just a vision I guess…and I love it and I’m thankful for that gift. Nov 14-Bunko Night. I joined up with a group of ladies in my village for Bunko. I thought it was going to be fun, and now I’m just totally stressed about it. I really don’t fit in with these ladies at all, but I thought I would give it a few more months (we play once a month). It’s a great way to network, show other ladies what I can do. Why is this on my Thankful list? Well for two reasons: 1. sometimes it’s good to be in a situation where you totally DON’T fit in, so that you can realize exactly where you DO fit in (I found that tonight!) and 2. I’m not going to quit. See I’m a runner…if I’m in a situation that is uncomfortable, I run. But I’m not running from this…I’m still going. I know that somewhere along the way, one of these ladies is going to teach me something. Nov 15-The gym. I can’t believe that I’m actually Thankful for the gym. I started going to the gym in the mornings, MWF. I have been running on the treadmill, and then light weight training. Today I meet my weight goal! This is totally huge! That means that I have lost 15 lbs. since August. And I feel great! Slowly, I’m getting excited about going to the gym. Slowly! Nov 16- Today I did absolutely nothing! I means that I laid on the couch all day in my PJ’s! And it was great! I’m super Thankful for days like today, cause lots of people in the world can’t do this, and I’m Thankful that I can! Nov 17- Parent Teacher Conference day. Today we learned that Kade took a math test that they give the kids at the end of 1st grade to see what all they have learned. He scored 96%. He missed two questions. That means he already knows all of the math for 1st grade. We also learned that he scored the highest grade in his class for the Grammar and Reading test. He loves to read on his own, and the best part is that he “comprehends” what he is reading. According to Frau Izumi, that is very unusual for a 1st grader at the beginning of the year. He is doing all of this and in German. I’m so blessed to have such a wonderful, healthy, well adjusted, and smart KID! GO KADE!!! Nov 18- Kody and I have found a wonderful little café. Coffee time together is something that we started back in Okinawa, and it was always at Starbucks. Well, the closet Starbucks to us is an hour away, so we have been on the look out for a great café for a while now. It’s just nice to sit together, away from the TV and the computer, and spent a little time together. Sometimes we talk the whole time, and other times we just sit there and sip. But we do it together, and that’s what matters. So today I’m thankful for “togetherness!” I’m super blessed to have Kody here with me and not in some far off land fighting a war. Nov 19- I finished up my Christmas cards today. Totally loved how they turned out. I was going to do a photo card this year, but started digging in my scrapbook stash and noticed that I had lots of Christmas things that would be perfect for a few cards. I ended up making 16 of them. I don’t know if that is going to be enough, but it’s a good start. Today I’m thankful for “Creativity” and most importantly a well stocked supply cabinet. (lol!) I’ll take a pic soon so that you can see how cute they are!

New Kit

Nikki has several new kits out right now and I'm playing today with them!

First on the list is the "Halloween Treats." I love the little felt elements that come with this kit.

Here's my layout with it.

Today I'm Thankful for Sunshine! It rained yesterday and was really gloomy. But today the sun is shinning right through my window as I'm sitting here scrapping. What a wonderful day!

Thankful today for....

Sacrifice. On Kody’s Birthday we drove up to Luxembourg. Interesting little place. One of the places on our list to visit was the “Luxembourg American Cemetery.” There are 5,000 graves of service members who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country and freedom during WWII. General Patton is buried there at the head of his troops. I was surprised by my feelings, and I guess I just didn’t know what to expect. But when I came over the hill and saw all of those white crosses, I just wanted to crawl into a ball and cry for a few hours. It is quite humbling. We all seemed to split for a moment. I think everyone felt the same way and just didn’t want to look at each other for fear that we might actually all just crawl into balls right then and there. Humbling. Hug a Solider or Veteran today. Or sit down and send them a note of Thanks. Most of them didn’t or don’t “have” to serve our country. They want to.

My Thankful List continues....

My Thankful list got a little behind…

So here is a little more to get me caught up.

Nov 6- So the family left for a quick trip to Paris. And as much as I love them, it’s nice to have a quiet house for the next couple of days. So today I’m thankful for the quiet, and a washing machine! I’m trying to get caught up on the laundry today!

Nov 7- COFFEE! I love it! And I’m so thankful for it! I found a new coffee shop today that servers the best Cappuccino’s! And it’s right inside the hospital close to Kade’s school. So while I’m out and about doing my errands, I can sit and relax and enjoy a nice cup of coffee!

Nov 8 –Today I pulled Kade out of school a little early and we all headed up to Frankfurt. (remember us trying to get there last week and had the flat!) What’s great about it is we did it all without GPS! Now I love the German road system. Who could not when you can go as fast as your car can run in some places on the Autobahn? BUT! There are no N,S,E,W directions here. For example you can head out to Frankfurt, but you have to know what towns are before Frankfurt to go the correct direction. (A6, direction Mannheim, not I 10 south) See what I’m saying? So if you don’t know what else is in the way, you’ll get lost in a hurry. So we have relied heavily on our GPS. As we headed out, we realized that we didn’t have it so we decided to “wing it”….and WE GOT THERE, no problems! So great, but we realized that we really needed to start paying closer attention to what we were doing just in cause the GPS ever brakes in mid trip! So today I’m thankful for “a sense of direction” and of course GPS.

Nov 9- Kody’s Birthday. I’m thankful for him! It’s really been a long and sometimes really hard road, but we are still here together. And I couldn’t live without him.

Nov 10- Friends! Cam and Liz came out for dinner…I love friends!

A layout...

I actually finished up this layout last week, but haven’t had a chance to post it. I really love the way that it turned out. I have been wanting to get a photo of Kade in the cornfield around here since last year! And at the Pumpkin Festival they actually had a corn maze, so it was the perfect opportunity. This is a scraplift of Little Helper.

Kit is from Shabby Princess called Cuddle Bug.