coming soon...

...I hope!!!



Here I am at 38 weeks. Graham took some pictures of me this afternoon, I figured I better get some pictures before baby comes! It could be anytime now...I had Gabby at 38 weeks, so we'll see!



I'm finally feeling a little bit ready. We finished up the baby's room today (pictures to come soon), so it's just a matter of getting the house somewhat clean and crossing a few more things off the to-do list. Watch me be like, 2 weeks overdue...oh, man that would be awful! I don't even want to think about that! I'm feeling so many things right now...the main thing is SCARED for the labor. Now that it's in the *very soon* future I am scared...trying to tell myself that it'll all be okay. I'm having a hard time believing that at only 4 years old Payton is going to be a big sister for the second time, and that Gabby is just going to BE a big sister. She's been our baby for 2 and a half years, so I'm definatley sad about that. Tonight when we were putting the girls to bed, Gabby was sad (no more bottles!) so I took her with me to the rocking chair and just wrapped her up and cuddled her...she just seemed so tiny to me. It's sad that pretty soon she will seem huge compared to the baby...I need to treasure these last few days with her as my baby, and life with my 2 girls. Of course I am so excited for the baby to arrive...but I'm just at that point that all of this is becoming a reality, and you know what? Sometimes change can be scary. Exciting, but scary.


Thinking back on this pregnancy, it's hard to believe it's almost over. I remember the afternoon I told Graham I was pregnant. He came home from work and I told him and he totally didn't believe me! I could barely believe it myself...such a funny memory. I somehow made it through the 6+ months of nausea, gaining weight, mood swings, aches and pains...aaaahhhh! What a crazy, crazy time. But what you get in the end makes it sooooo worth it.



I can't wait.



T :)

guess who's coming to town?

Yup, you got it! The one, the only, HEIDI SWAPP!



I am so excited to officially share the news that she's coming! Heidi and I have been talking, emailing and facebooking back and forth over the past few weeks about details, so it's going to be lots of fun. Here's some of the info:

When: Tuesday, April 28th/09 at The Greenwood Inn in Edmonton, AB
Time: All Day (specific times to come soon)
What: A full day of classes with classes with Heidi Swapp
Registration: Open on Monday, March 16th/09 (check Heidi's blog)
Cost: Info available at time of registration


Heidi will be opening registration on Monday, March 16th, so start thinking about it and planning ahead...and more info will be coming then, too! Be sure to check out her blog for updates and I'll keep you updated here as well.


And just for your information: (I know you all probably have alot of questions!)


*Heidi has CHOSEN Edmonton as a place that she wanted to come and teach. How cool is that? She knows there is a strong scrapbooking community here and wanted to come somewhere that she knew would have fun and enthusiastic scrapbookers!

*This is Heidi's "event", or rather "Day of Amazing Classes"! This is not a "Creative Escape" or a "Girls Night Out"...just a day to get down and dirty with her concepts, new products and ideas. You will not want to miss it!

*Yes, she's coming on a Tuesday...remember that Heidi lives in CHINA and has a very very busy schedule when she comes home to the states (and in our case, Canada!). Take some time to look at your schedule and start clearing your Tuesday so you can come! It will be so worth it and lots of fun.


I have known Heidi for a few years now and I can honestly tell you that she is one of the industry's best! Not only is she totally sweet and sincere but she has crazy scrapbooking skillz and ideas and concepts that blow everyone away. She is such an awesome teacher...on the "technique" end as well as the "inspirational end". If you've never had a chance to take a class from her, this is your chance. I would highly recommend it...she rocks!



Like I said, I'll be posting info here as it becomes available. Hopefully I'll see you on the 28th of April!




Tal:)

holy cute!

Monday, Monday, Monday...the start of another week. I've lost track of time since I've been so busy and I can't believe it's Monday again already...but that's a good thing. Graham gets home tomorrow night, so I'm counting down. Haha!



I bought these adorable winter jackets for all 3 of my girls (eek! 3!!) at Children's Place this weekend. Regular $55 and they were on sale for $9.99! How awesome is that? Love me a good sale. They're actually for next year, but they were so cute, I couldn't resist taking some pictures. Well, Gabby refused, but Payton let me take a couple. And then I had to scrap them, too. (thanks to Elsie for the inspiration for the title...that's what I say everytime I look at those jackets!) Serious cuteness! I am in love with the hearts and the color combo...so very happy!


Anyways, I'm 37 weeks and counting. Graham thinks we should have the baby this week...if only we could just "decide" when the baby comes, right? Me...well, I'm thinking I could use another week of sleep. I'm ready, but not *quite* ready yet...the two I have are keeping me busy enough!



Okay, gotta run...lots more to come. I'm hoping to finish up the baby's room by this weekend and a fun announcement is on the way, too!



Happy Monday...hope it's a cute one!



Tal:)

baby shower stuff

Here are a few quick pics from the baby shower I had for my friend last night. She just adopted a baby girl and I am sooooo happy for them! Lots of people came, lots of presents were opened, and lots of fun was had. It was a very busy day!














Hope everyone has a great weekend...mine will be busy, just like this week has been! Oh, and I'll be checking this out for sure...they are having a "house warming" party on Saturday and Sunday and it looks so fun!



Talia:)

what to blog about?

I've been trying to think of something interesting to blog about, and the fact of the matter is, I am so darn busy this week that I can't even keep my head on straight. That, and I am 9 months pregnant. And feeling it, big-time.



Some of the things we've been doing this week and some things that still need to be done:
-playschool
-playschool registration night
-baby shower at my house
-still need to clean my house for the baby shower tomorrow night
-doctor's appointment
-try to keep Gabby happy while she's sick
-grocery shopping
-work on getting "baby stuff" ready
-ballet class for Payton
-church meetings
-attempt to clean the basement
-laundry
-get a new toilet upstairs (yay!)
-go out for my mama's birthday
-prepare myself for being on my own for 5 days while Gray takes a little snowboarding trip to Vancouver (he deserves it)



Did I mention that I'm busy?



I'll be back as soon as I can to share pictures from the baby shower...baby stuff is always fun!



Tal:)

today

I've been busy getting things ready for this baby that will be coming soon. As of today I am *almost* 36 weeks and considering that both of my girls came 1 and 2 weeks early, I could technically have this little one any time! I am all the things you'd expect to be feeling at this point before a new baby comes...excited, nervous, uncomfortable, scared, hopeful. You name it, I'm feelin' it. Here's a little peek at her closet...a good mix of old and new baby clothes. I am amazed at the amount of baby clothing we have accumulated in this house over the past 4 years! I am super sentimental, so I'm very excited for the baby to wear some of the same little outfits and sleepers that both of her big sisters wore and to be cuddled in the same blankets that we cuddled the "big girls" in. (I'm pretty sure we'll be referring to Payton and Gabby as the "big girls" once the baby comes!) And pink and brown are most definatley a popular color combo this season! It seems that almost everything new I've bought is pink and brown. Funny!



Anyways, there's still lots to do before we meet our newest little girl. Her room is all painted and ready to be decorated...my mom will be sewing her bedding and curtains and then I'll be able to work on all the finishing touches. Of course I want the room to be totally "done" before she comes but we'll see...I'll do as much as I can do. I can't wait to share!



Today has turned out to be a busy day. It started off with cleaning up puke in about 6 different locations around the house at 7 o'clock this morning and since then we've done lunch, play-doh, walmart and a little mini birthday party at Payton's friends house this afternoon. Whew! And my house is a disaster and I have 2 new magazines that are begging to be read. AAahhh! What to do? Oh, and top of all of that Graham is out of town till tomorrow night working so I am on my own. For some reason that always makes things a little bit more unbearable, hey? Oh, well...I suppose I'll survive!



Okay, off to start on some of that cleaning that needs to be done.




:)

happy valentine's day!

Remember this layout-card that I made Graham for Father's Day? I decided to go that route for Valentine's Day this year, so this was his gift. (He does love this stuff...well, he's learned to! Hehe!)












I hope everyone has a Happy Valentine's Day!! I'm off for a b-day lunch with my 2 bestest friends, the girls will be decorating valentine's cookies with daddy, and then my hubby and I have a date tonight on the couch with a good movie. I can't wait!



xoxoTal


(And just to quickly answer a couple questions:
You can find the stamp set I've been using recently here and you can find the cute little beanie hats that my girls have here and here!)

i'm still "feelin' the love"...

Okay, I know I have been posting an excessive amount of valentine's stuff, but I can't help it...I am just LOVING anything to do with valentine's day this year!! First off I wanted to share this v-day book I made the other afternoon using this awesome download from House of 3. I love it!! And have I talked about HO3 yet? I am so excited about this new venture of Heidi's, Janet's and Rhonna's. If you haven't browsed the site yet, go now...there is just sooooo much inspiration and eye candy there I don't even know where to begin!



Anyways, on to the album:












I chose to use the template that you can just print the pages on to your own patterned paper. This way you can make as many different "versions" of the album as you want...so cool. I also kinda made it as a little valentine's card for Payton and Gabby...fun, fun!




And some more scrapbook pages:






I have been totally in the scrapping mood lately and it's been awesome. I'm sure I'm just getting in as much as I can knowing that in about a month, it's back to square one again when the baby comes. My basement is a disaster 'cause I scrap while the girls play, but you know what? We're all happy, so who cares, right?




Anyways, I just wanted to stop in to share my latest projects...come back on Saturday to see what I made Gray for Valentine's Day. (I'd post it today but I don't want him to peek!)



See you soon!
Tal xo


(P.S. I've also updated my scrapbook album with all of my latest projects!)

valentine's

So this was the reason for our little "valentine's photoshoot" that we did a few weeks ago...to give away as the girls valentine's this year. It seems that one project has morphed into the next with these photos, and that's just fine by me! From the hanging valentine's, to the blog banner, to the valentine card I sent out to our families...now to these! Fun, fun!



Anyways, I just wanted to share these if you haven't done any valentine's with your kids yet. I did these up on the computer, printed the pics at costco and tied them to a heart sucker. Easy-peasy. And I figure the kids are young enough that they won't be embarrassed to give out valentine's with their faces on them. Haha!













Hope everyone had a great weekend. I turned 29 yesterday. AAaahhh! Feeling old. Graham took me out on Friday night and it was nice to eat, chat and see a movie without worrying about snacks, running kids to the potty, bathtimes, bedtimes, etc,etc,etc. A good enough birthday present for me! Oh, and my sister and niece took the girls after church yesterday, so I slept aaaaaallllllll afternoon. It was glorious, thank you!!



:)



Tal xo

a regular occurrence...

...at our house in the afternoon's.




Both of the girls on the couch with their blankies and milk. This is quiet time.



Yes, Gabby still has a bottle. What the heck. I am totally not a freak about kids and bottles...although, it IS time to get rid of it. She just has so much change going on right now with the new room and potty-training (did I mention we're attempting that?) and the baby coming soon...how much change can one little 2 year old take? So we'll see.



And a couple new scrapbook pages:















(pages inspired by this)




I am loving today. Beautiful weather. One child sleeping, the other one playing so nicely on her own. Just got up from a short nap. Maybe time to clean the kitchen, but we'll see if I get to it.



Have a happy afternoon!

Tal xo



P.S. I've answered a couple questions from the previous post in the "comments"!

hanging valentine's

As promised, here are my "hanging valentine's" that I made on Friday. I had the urge to make something "valentine-y" after looking at all the fun new valentine-themed products that are coming out. So this is what I did, and I loooove them! (of course the cute girls in the pictures help, too. wink!)



I love how they just slightly twirl and spin...so cute!





Here's a look at where I have them hanging...above our island in the kitchen. (Yes, I totally should have emptied off my fridge for the sake of this picture, but what do ya do?)

I got the idea to hang ornaments like this from Becky Higgins last year, but instead of just hanging some kind of ornament I decided to make use of these cute pictures of the girls. (and they are simply hanging from the ceiling with little hooks and clear thread.)




Here are the "fronts" of the valentine's...






and the "backs"...





So here's what you do to create these on your own:

1. Cut 4 pieces of chipboard to 4x6".
2. Cut 4 pieces of patterned paper to 4x6".
3. Using a glue stick, adhere patterned paper to one side of chipboard, and a 4x6" photo to the other side. Distress edges.
4. Embellish valentine's as desired. (I chose to just add glittered and chipboard hearts.)
5. Punch a small hole in the bottom of valentine and hang a dangly embellishment.
6. Punch a hole at the top and tie a ribbon and decorative pin to finish off your valentine.

(supplies: patterned paper: Heidi Swapp, Making Memories, Love, Elsie; pins: Making Memories; chipboard hearts, ghost hearts, chandelier crystals: Heidi Swapp; other: ribbon)



I am all about keeping things simple, and trust me, this project was very simple! If I was able to do it with my 2 year old and 4 year old running around me, then you can do it, too! Valentine's day is just around the corner...there's still lots of time to whip something cute up. And if you're looking for a couple other Valentine's day ideas then look here and here.



Happy Monday!



Tal xo



P.S. I made a mirror album of Payton this weekend, too. You can see the entire album here!


Just a few notes about the "mirror albums":
-they are made by Heidi Swapp
-you can find some here
-they measure 5x7"
-the only "mirror" on the album is the actual cover (I've slightly spray-painted both of mine)
-you can create your own inner pages, or use Heidi's clear inner pages like I did to embellish and layer you pages!