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...I still scrapbook!
I just haven't had much time to do anything lately due to Christmas, kids and just LIFE in general. So I just wanted to share the few things that I HAVE been working on. The first is Gabby's baby album. I did the same thing for Payton...a 2page spread for every month of her life and then special occasions and stuff. I love this album...I put it ALL together before Gabby was even born, so all I have to do is add the photos and journalling every month. I just wanted to make it as simple as possible to guarantee that it would actually get done. It's been working so far...I still manage to get a little bit behind, but as long as I stay on top of the journalling, I don't mind if I get a bit behind on adding the photos.
Another little album I just finished is this one of Payton. I included a picture of her for every month in 2006...I can't believe how much she has chnaged in just a year!! This was a fun one to do, and again, really simple. Check out the rest of the album here.
So this is a page that I did for an online class that I'm taking called " A Year to Remember". It's taught by one of my all-time favorite scrapbookers, Heidi Swapp, and I am soooooo excited about this class! It's a year long and we'll be completing a calendar (a layout for every month) but it goes beyond just scrapbooking....every week we get a new assignment and an audio message from Heidi. Our first assignment was to set a goal that we want to achieve this year, and a completion date for that goal. My goal....to dance onstage again. Some people may think that this isn't a very big deal considering dancing was my life up until I got married...but since i've had my kids I haven't danced at all...and I miss it. And the thought of being onstage totally scares me. But it's something I want to do, and just a little piece of me that I want to get back. So now that I've put it out there, I guess I better do it, right? Hehe! So if any of you are interested in taking scrapbooking classes from the comfort of your own home, go an check out Big Picture Scrapbooking...there's some really cool stuff over there.
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(Oh, and ps....Kim took these pictures for me last week...it was fun. I thought it would be alot easier to pose and move around...not so much. I soooo have to work on balance, control, flexibility, everything...this definately will not be an easy goal!!)
This has been another busy week...Payton keeps me on my toes. She hasn't been wanting to nap and it's always funny to watch her emerge from her room. Today she came out of the room with her Dora blankie over her head so I "couldn't see her"....seriously, I totally cracked up. She was just standing there totally still...I'm sure she thought she had tricked me. Another funny thing she does that Gray and I have noticed lately is every time she comes out of her room, she HAS to close ALL the doors in the upstairs hallway. I have no idea why, but she does. Again, it totally cracks us up to watch her in action.
I'm having a baby shower for Kim tomorrow, I'll be sure take pictures and share...can't wait!!
Tal:)
...i am GIDDY right now over these pictures.
Gray got me a new camera for Christmas and I hadn't really had a chance to try it out yet, (It's a SONY DSC-H5) so since we're stuck in our house today (it's totally blizzarding outside!), I thought I'd play.
And I am SO HAPPY with the results. It takes pictures totally fast, no annoying delay. And the pictures are so clear...my last camera I was having a lot of problems with pictures always being totally fuzzy...not with this camera. Yay!
I've been wanting to do some pictures of Gabby and I for a while now but since she's been sick I haven't gotten around to it. I'm so glad I caught her on a happy day...she is so sweet. Her cheeks, her eyes, her lips....
I am dying right now. (not literally, but you know what I mean.)
I told you, I am totally giddy right now!!
So I've basically spent all day playing around with photoshop just editing away. Haha! My husband is sitting here right now going, "so...what are we gonna do tonight?" I think he is bored. (I told ya, we've been in this house all day!)
Just wanted to share these pictures with you all.
Happy Snow Day!
Well, with the holidays being over we're (kind of) getting back into the swing of things over here. It's been nice to not feel like there's always something I have to be doing...I like it when things slow down a little bit. Gabby's been doing a lot better these past few days, she's actually been willing to eat so that's made things a lot easier. And she's just been so happy, so we love that. And she's been sleeping through the night....we REALLY love that!
I feel like there is always stuff to organize and clean around my house...and no matter how much I organize and clean, there's something else that pops up that needs to "cleaned out". Aaaahhh! Does anyone else feel like this? Anyways, we rearranged our family room last weekend and I love it now...we actually have a clean, functional space. It was so nice to move all of the furniture and clean up in places that you can't get to all the time and dust and vaccum everything. Makes me so happy! We made a little play area for Payton behind the couch which has been awesome...I totally organized all her toys so now she actually can see what she has and she can entertain herself for hours. And the best $30 purchase I've ever made was this little table and chairs from Ikea...she loves to color and will sit there coloring away forever!
And here's Payton in the tub...I went to the movie "Dreamgirls" the other night while Gray watched the girls and this is one of the pictures he took...this little girl can be wild, let me tell ya! But so, so funny. She talks so much...one thing she says lately that cracks us up is "Yee-haw!"...not quite sure where she got that from, but it's funny. And she's awesome at identifying when people are "happy" or "sad"...that keeps her busy for a while when she's in the mood, too. (and if you haven't seen this movie...GO NOW! It was so awesome!)
And here's another picture of my happy little baby...we are just so in love with her. With both her and Payton having been sick on and off since october it's been hard to just sit back and be thankful for my daughters. How lucky I am to have them. How happy I am that I am their mama. How happy they make ME. Gabby has the sweetest personality...she is so easy going...not at all a fussy baby. She is such a blessing to our little family. The other day I watched her and Payton absolutely laughing at eachother. It was so cute and so neat to see them interact...I hope they will be best friends.
Anyways, I'm hoping to get some scrapping done tomorrow...I haven't been able to do ANYTHING in the past month and I'm getting itchy to create. I just want to sit and PLAY. Wish me luck!!
Talia:)
It is hard to believe that the holidays have come and gone, but Christmas and New Years for us was definately busy and fun. All that preparation...and it seems to go by too fast! Like I said, we had lots of fun...and my girls were happy and cute, so that made it all the better. Here is a picture of my happy little Gabby...I love her big smiles!
And this is Payton with her cousin Winter whom she idolizes,,,everyday she asks me "Where Winter go?" and she just babbles away about her. Winter is at that perfect age for playing with Payton...she is so patient and fun with her...I love to see them together.
And me and Gabby at my mom's in front of her (little) tree. (I inherited the big tree this year!)
Do any of you ever shop at Children's place for your kids? I love that store...they have such cute stuff and always have awesome sales. Here are the girls in their Christmas dresses on Christmas Eve...they even had a skirt in Winter's size...so so cute!!
We spent Christmas Eve at my mom and dad's house, just eating, playing games and hanging out...it was nice and low-key. Then on Christmas morning we opened presents at our house...it was nice to do Christmas at our place...every year since we've been married we always do Christmas morning at my mom's, so it was nice to just wake up at home and do the Christmas morning thing. Payton was so cute...she had a pretty good idea of what was going on, and was actually really sweet...we just kept handing her presents and she was just trying to concentrate on one toy, rather than the million that were all around her! haha! Oh, to be a kid again. After that, we headed to Graham's parents to spend the rest of Christmas with them...and let me tell you, there is a full house over there! It was so fun...3 babies, and Payton got to play with her cousins Mya and Kedan...she was very busy. We all just got spoiled this Christmas as usual...just always makes me so grateful for all that we have, and for all the people that love my little family...it was good times. So here's those 3 cute little babies...Gabby, Osh and Jack. I just couldn't get a picture with Gabby and Osh looking at the camera...they just wanted to play with their toys!
So, shortly after Christmas, Gabby got sick AGAIN...we've found that she's just been consistently sick lately. And it's so sad, 'cause she's the happiest baby in the world when she's feeling good. So I took her to the doctor this past Friday and he diagnosed her with asthma. I knew something wasn't right, so I wasn't very surprised to hear this news. I'm just so sad for her...many people are telling me that lots of children "grow out" of their asthma, so I'm hoping that's the case for Gabby...but it doesn't make things easier in the meantime. Luckily we have an awesome doctor and there are medications that can help, so we're just plugging away over here. I'm hoping within the next few days she'll be getting a bit more back to her normal, happy self. Life just never stops, right?
Gray and I also re-discovered our "movie nights" over the holidays...just turning off all the lights, cuddling on the couch and watching movies. It's been so fun...reminds me of when we were first married and had all that time ALONE (hehe!). And seriously, why get ready and go out, when you can just sit at home in your pj's and be comfy? That's the way we see things! So we've had fun.
Now I'm thinking about the new year and what my resolutions should be...the top of my list right now is:
GET MORE SLEEP!!!!!
Hahaha! Happy New Year, everyone!!
...Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all. Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!
Tal xo
Yup, my baby is two...it is so hard to believe that it has already been 2 whole years since we had Payton. I am having a hard time with the fact that she is growing up. I am so proud of her everyday...she is learning so much and talking so much. I can't believe how quickly she is picking up words and forming her own little sentences. But a part of me is sad...wishes she would just be little forever. But...it is too fun to see her grow and become her own little person. Payton is so full of life...so hillairious. She LOVES Dora the Explorer. She could color for hours (and is just learning that she can only color on PAPER....not my walls and furniture). She loves Barbies, Groovy Girls and any kind of plastic people. She LOVES to dance. I am thinking she will be quite the little dancer. Her favorite color is pink. She ADORES her baby sister and loves to help take care of her. The other night we had Gabby lying on the couch while Payton was playing with her toys. Gabby started fussing, and Graham and I watched as she said "It's otay, Dabby" and covered her up with her blankie and put the soother in her mouth. Then she patted her tummy and jabbered to her until she was happy. Seriously, it made me cry. I was so happy that my little girl cared enough to make her sister happy. Didn't mind taking time away from playing with her toys to take care of her baby sister. These girls kill me, let me tell ya. You never know until you are a parent the plain and simple LOVE that you can feel for these little people. Couldn't live without them.
Sooooo....we had a very fun-filled birthday for Payton. Yesterday after church we went to my mom's for her party...Payton was very excited about her "Dora cake" (she talked about it non-stop) and once she understood that all the present she was unwrapping were for her, she was very happy! Another cute little thing she did...when she opened her present from Gabby (a Dora nightie) she didn't understand that Gabby was giving the present to her....so she opened the nightie and walked over to Gabby and gave the nightie to her. So cute. (I'm gushing, I know!) Anyways, she got way too much stuff, but she's a kid, right? I'm actually going to tuck away a few of her gifts for a rainy day...it's nice to keep some little surprises around! Today we took Payton to West Ed to Build-a-Bear and then on some rides at Galaxyland...she was in heaven. She was so cute stuffing and dressing her bear...and she named her "Bear". Haha! When we got home this afternoon her Aunt Jody and Uncle Ryan stopped by with MORE gifts (aaahhh!) and now she is with her cousin Winter looking at Christmas lights around the city.....and rumor has it that Santa (or "Ho Ho" as Payton calls him) may be stopping by tonight....so we'll see! I wasn't lying when I said this has been a very fun-filled birthday!
We absolutely LOVE you Payton, Happy 2nd Birthday!!!
And for some more very exciting news.....my best friend Kim and her husband just adopted a little baby boy last week. I have been holding this in for about 2 months now and I am just so excited that I can finally share their news! His name is Ryker Fynn Loewen and he is absolutely perfect. I can't even begin to express how happy I am for Kim and Cody. They have waited so long to be parents and just deserve this little guy so much. Seeing Kim as a mother just makes me so happy...to know what they have been through, and to have watched her be so strong through it all...she is amazing. It took me two years to get pregnant with Payton, and Kim was with me every step of the way...we cried together when we felt like EVERYONE around us was having babies...and she supported me and loved both of my babies when they were born. I was so scared to tell her when I was pregnant the first time, and she was nothing but happy for me. She is such an amazing friend....so seeing her and her husband with this new little baby is so very wonderful...like I said, they have been through so much and are such a positive and amazing couple...I love you guys!! I just think that adoption is such a miracle. Kim has shared things here and there with me about the whole process as they've been going through it....to think that Ryker's birth mom loved him SO MUCH that she made such a sacrifice to give him to parents who can give him EVERYTHING and will love him dearly...that is amazing. She wanted Kim there for the birth, she had Kim and Cody go to one of her ultrasounds....how awesome that these 3 people loved this little baby so much and that they got to welcome him into this world TOGETHER, and just in time for Christmas....I love that.
He is a little miracle. Congratulations you guys.
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