Happy Birthday, Brianna!

Okay, I started this post on Friday, but then I haven't been able to get back on to edit and create posts ever since, so it's a little late, now, but Brianna turned 5 years old on Friday - oh my, how time flies! Here are some fun pics to see how she's grown...

Hours old...

1 year old...playing in the sprinkler

2 years old...

3 years old...

4 years old...

And finally 5 years old - this one was taken on her b-day - my mom made her these fun Amphibians (I love hearing my girls say that word) and she just loved them (and so do her sisters)!

She got so tired that afternoon that she climbed up in the chair and fell asleep for a nice birthday nap. She had the frogs hiding under her so her sisters wouldn't steal them ;-)

PageMaps now has a blog!!!

And to kick it off, they are having a sketch contest! Click here to check it out.

Here is my layout using this sketch - while it is not exactly a NEW layout for me, it's the first time being posted on my blog...if I get time to play, I will create something newer!

I created the patterned paper to match Brailee's coat - I used the Emerging Color technique using clear embossing powder and a sponge and brayer to create this look.

Products Used - all CTMH: Blooming Flourishes stamp set, Chocolate Mini Medleys, Font CD, Circle Coluzzle, Sandpaper.

Colors Used: Chocolate, Breeze, Sweet Leaf, Vanilla Cream

What a blast!

We had so much fun camping and playing with friends at Boysen Reservoir - we all got a lot of sun and a little burned (some of us *ME* more than others) but it was so much fun! I am still trying to play catch up - so much to do - but I thought I'd post some fun pics - warning, there are LOTS of pics!

Playing in the sand...

Notice the strip of sand between the rock and the water - this is where we drove into our camping spot and each day the water kept rising and rising. When we finally left, we had to drive through the water to get out, but luckily we got out without any problems!

Brailee and her friend Kadie...

Making handprint beach treasures - luckily my most recent Family Fun magazine came just a couple of days before we left - that's where I found this fun idea! Since there are no shells at Boysen, we had to take our own, so they are not true lake treasures, but the girls still had fun making them.

My little fishies...

We took out our water tramp and our new 'island' - that was Brailee's favorite - the inside was like a 'mini pool' for her and she had a blast running back and forth and splashing in the water while Mom or Dad sat and relaxed and watched the other kids play on the tramp and slide.

We camped with some friends who had a boat and took us out on their tube - the girls had so much fun!

After watching the 'big' girls go fast, Kaylee didn't want to go slow anymore, she wanted to go fast and fall off, too. So when I was on the tube with the girls, she kept begging me, 'Can I fall off now, Mommy?' I finally gave in and told her yes, but then she said, 'I'm waiting for him to hit a big bump so I can fall off' ;-) I guess none of the bumps were big enough, because she never did, so I flagged them down to stop and as we stopped, the tube started to go under, so Kaylee took that as her chance to bail.

Here is Brianna and her friend Aubrey after Kaylee and I 'fell off' - Bri was pulling them in ;-)

So then the little girls got to go with the big girls and they went a lot faster this time - they thought that was just awesome!

4-wheeler fun...

Here is David taking all of the girls for a ride - Brailee is on the front with him, blowing good-bye kisses - in the back is Aubrey, Kaylee, Ashley, and Brianna.

Exhausted!

Roasting hot dogs...

Hopefully I'll get things cleaned up and ready for this weekend early so I can get some time to create something this week, I'm really going through withdrawals!

Celebrate!

Yesterday was David's birthday - he turned the big 3-0! I tried to squeeze 30 cupcakes out of the batter, but barely got 28. He needed a little help blowing out the candles ;-) Oh, and Brailee was so cute, after singing 'Happy Birthday' she kept calling the cupcakes 'Happy!'

Kaylee had a friend's birthday party to go to yesterday, too. She had so much fun making the card and present. All I did was cut the paper for her and she put it together, stamped, and edge distressed all on her own! She found a shaker card I made a while ago and wanted to make it for her friend - and we turned her shaker piece into a balloon for a b-day card. The book she made was a fun little birthday memory book - all the girls at the party signed the book and there are spots for pictures and pockets for other treasures - Kaylee liked the mini brag books that I made for my last workshop so much and was so excited to get to make her very own! She is quite the stamper/paper crafter, and she's not afraid to ink distress those edges ;-)

Speaking of celebrating, I hope everyone has a very happy 4th of July! We are leaving either tonight or tomorrow morning, it just depends on how ready I am before Kaylee's last ballgame. Hopefully the weather will be nice for our weekend out at the lake. Maybe next week I'll finally get a chance to get caught up on some things like e-mails and visiting my favorite blogs! Stay safe, everyone!

July Challenges

Here's how it works - at the beginning of each month, I announce which layouts from Cherish and Imagine that we are going to be doing. I will also post my example. You then create the layout using your choice of theme, papers, orientation, etc. and send me a link or a picture of your layout. I will even accept pages that you have previously done, as long as they use that month's layout. I will draw a name from all participants and the winner will get a fun bundle of cards at the end of the month. It's fun to see the different results from the same layout!


For the month of July...

...the CHERISH Challenge is 'Balanced Blocks' on pages 104 and 105

Melissa's Cute Baby Pages

On this layout I used some fun Basic Gray papers I received from Melissa Priest - thanks Melissa! I was excited that the CTMH Dutch Blue ricrac ribbon matched so well. I also used CTMH's Wishes booking set, Solo #3, and some silver hinges and star brads.

...the IMAGINE Challenge is 'Conclusion Combo' on pages 56 and 57

These pages are the conclusion of my 6-page tribute to my horse, Ghostbuster - all 6 pages go from 1985, when he was born, to 2007. He was a gift to me from my Grandpa Sager for my 8th (?) birthday, but I've known him since he was born. He's now 23 and doing great! There was a horse show in Star Valley a couple weeks ago and the little girl who rode him got High Point in her age division - he is such an amazing horse, simply irreplaceable! If you want to see all of the pages for this tribute, click here.

Products Used: It's a Guy Thing paper pack, Clear Inspiration buttons, Charm Upper and Lowercase Alpha, SU chipboard tags, Olive Embossing Powder, Pewter Accessories, Tiny Typewriter Alphabet

More Summertime Fun!

I just realized when I posted my update yesterday that I still had pictures on my camera from the circus last week that I forgot to include - plus some more bubble and softball fun...

I love that I can finally pull Brailee's bangs out of her face - now they are not hiding her beautiful eyes! I never liked bangs on her, but she would never leave hair clips in, so her hair was always in her eyes, so I had to eventually cut bangs. Now she's finally letting me fix her hair, I think she looks so much cuter without the bangs!

Kaylee had another ballgame last night and they actually won - both teams did great and they all had fun! Kaylee got a hit and eventually made it all the way home to score for her team - a first for her. She got another hit, but got out at a close play at first. She also was a quick fielder and almost got a girl out at second - they are all really picking up on the game and starting to get a hang of it. Too bad tomorrow is their last game. I'm so proud of her, though - this is her first year, and in her age division (5-8) they do machine pitch and the slowest they can get it is 30 mph. Her team has been able to practice a lot with the machine the last two weeks when they haven't had games and it has really helped - before, the only chance they got at the machine was during games and I think it was a little intimidating. Now they are all hitting pretty well!

Kaylee on second base...

Kaylee fielding...

Brailee playing with a new friend...

3 Generations of Handmade Love...

Here is a 2-page 9x9 layout that I finished last week - I entered it in this month's CTMH Sassy Strands contest. I wrapped the #3 with Sassy Strands and then crocheted around the circle on the right page. I've really been second guessing my title since I've sent it in, though. I'm wondering if 4 generations would have been better than 3 - which would have made more sense to you? Here's what I did - tell me what you think about the title - I may change it for the layout I do for my book. I also wish I would have added something about the dress - it's the same dress that my two older girls and myself were blessed in - I believe my mom made it and tatted (?) on it - Mom, correct me if I'm wrong.

Here is the pull-out tag...

Products Used: PageMaps layout, Silhouette Paper Pack, Because I Love You stamp set, Hodgepodge Alphabet stamp set, Solos “3” stamp set, Black Stamp Pad, Bamboo Stamp Pad, White Daisy Sassy Strands, Circle Coluzzle, Tags Coluzzle, Micro-Tip Scissors, Expressives Font CD, White Daisy Embossing Powder, StickStock Vellum, Edge Distresser, Piercing Tool, Size 10 Crochet Hook