more bday pics...

I realize that there is some major "pink" and "birthday" overload happening on my blog right now, but I got Payton's birthday pictures back from Kim this weekend and I had to share some...so so cute. I love little girls...and these are definatley girly pictures! Thank you sooooo much Kim for taking pictures for me. I highly recommend this to anyone doing a birthday party...it was so nice for me to just enjoy the party and do everything I had to do without worrying about pictures. Yay!



My house is a disaster today and I can't bring myself to clean it...I'm sure when Gray gets home he'll be thinking, "so what exactly did she do today???" Hee hee. Come on, I went to Walmart, read books with the girls and played with pictures in photoshop! Totally productive if you ask me (wink). I'm actually just feeling super overwhelmed right now with my life in general...so excited for Girl's Night Out but a little stressed with all that Kim and I have to do to pull it off. Aaaahhh! And then Graham is leaving tonight to work out of town for a quick trip, them home for a couple days before he's away again for over a week. He deserves to get away (his annual dirtbiking trip) but I miss him when he's gone...he is such a calming influence that I need as I tend to stress out and freak out over the littlest things. BUT....all will be well! Lucky for me I have my family and friends around to help keep me busy and sane. Haha!!



Hope everyone is having a great Monday.



T:)



P.S...this is the crazy "Birthday" month in mine and Graham's family's...Happy early or late Birthday to Kedan, Molly, Jeremy, Sean, Ryan (I think??), Mom, baby Harry and Me!! (maybe that has to do with me being bummed out...as of Friday I am now 28. AAaah! Feelin' old.)

the ballerina party

I thought I would share some of the pictures from Payton's little ballerina birthday a couple weeks ago...beware, there is alot of pink! It was so fun and all the little girls were so cute...Payton was waaaaaay excited to say the least. These are all "before the party" pics...Kim actually came to take pictures during the party and I still need to get them from her, so I'm excited to see those, too! So this was the party...




the invites...


(I loooove how these turned out!)






the cake...

(Thanks to my sister, Karly for decorating the cake...last year I tried to make Payton a Dora cake and ended up stabbing the cake in frustration 'cause I suck at icing!! So I let Karly do the decorating this year. haha!)




the decorations...

(I didn't do lunch, just snacks and cake for the girls...worked out well and was very easy!)





the "activity"...

(I got these crowns at Michael's for only $1.50 each. Then I made the wands and each girl got to decorate a crown and a wand with those fun foam stickers. They loved it.)






the goodie bags...


(Pretty much got everything at the dollar store. Yay!)





the tutus...

(Nana made tutus for each little girl. They were a hit and everyone looked so stinkin' cute. And look at my little 3 year old!!! Love her.)




the pretty flowers...


(I had these Martha Stewart flowers hanging in my scrapbook room in the old house and thought they would be perfect for the party. So girly, I love them!)




and last but not least, the banner...




(Did you think I'd pass up the chance to make yet another banner??? As if! The cute scalloped triangles are made by Jenni Bowlin. I think I need to buy some more!!)




It was such a fun afternoon and I'm glad the party was only an hour...we kept the girls busy and then it was time for everyone to go! (heehee) I'll share some "during" the party pics as soon as I get 'em, and here's a little video of the girls dancing (sort of) before I go...




Good night!



T:)

wanna see?

This month we're featuring our scrapbook rooms at The Goodie Box so you can head on over there today to sneak a peek into my room. It's all about my closet storage!


See you there!


T:)

President Hinckley

As I was browsing through blogs today and reading on my church's website, I've just come across so many articles and thoughts on President Hinckley. As most people know, he passed away on Sunday night and I am just overcome with gratitude and love for this sweet and amazing man. I loved hearing him speak at general conference and he has always brought me feelings of peace and comfort in a time when our world can be such a scary place. I am so grateful for the work and service he did for all of us...and I am so happy to know that he is reunited with his wife whom he openly loved so much. What an amazing example. It is has been a neat opportunity for Graham and I to talk with Payton about how we will see him again and because of Heavenly Father's plan for us, we will all be together forever.

We love you, President Hinckley.

so excited!!!

So I had said in my last post that I had something exciting to share....and now I can spill the beans. I'm not sure how many of you check out the Club Heidi website, but I think everyone knows how much I love my Heidi Swapp products. Anyways, a few weeks ago Janet Hopkins asked Kim and I if we'd like to create projects for the site using the Club Heidi monthly kit. So of course I said yes!!! And I am soooooo excited 'cause the kit and ideas are up today!



You can check out my hanging word ornaments here. So fun...there's a pdf you can dowload with pictures and instructions. I also have a layout ("You are my Star") and a valentine's card ("Love You") here. The kit is so much fun...but like I said, I love any and all Heidi Swapp products! So that is my exciting news...I couldn't wait to share.



On another note, it is so stinkin' cold here right now it is unbelievable. We are going on day 4 (?) of just being at home...there's no way I can take the girls out in this crazy weather! And we had Payton's birthday party on Saturday and it went really well....for a bunch of 2 and 3 year olds I was surprised at how happy and well-behaved everyone was! Pictures to come, I promise.



Oh, and one more thing...Graham and I are addicted to "Prison Break". We've been watching two episodes (at least!) every night...we're on season 2. Love it!!!



Kay, I just wanted to share my Club Heidi news, have a great day!!!



Tal:)

ten things i love

I thought it would be fun to make a list of 10 *random* things I am loving right now. I find that I am always like, "oh, I love this!" and "ooohh...I love that," so it's time to share. Here we go!

1. This rice cooker by Pampered Chef. So awesome. My sister has had one for a while and I finally got my hands on one, too. Makes the best rice in the microwave. So easy and no mess and you can't screw it up! And, my mom showed me a way to make a yummy pudding cake in it, too. Maybe I'll have to share that sometime as well. :)

2. I just got this MAC eyeshadow "All That Glitters" (scroll down about halfway to see the color) and  I loooove it. It's really not glittery at all, just has a nice shimmer to it. MAC makeup is my fave.

3. The Sugar Coated chipboard letters by Doodlebug. Looove them!! I have them in almost every color now...I just love the font and size and everything about them!

4. This show on TLC. Freakin' love it. The kids are hillairious, and it makes me feel good about my life which I think is crazy at times....what would I do with EIGHT KIDS??? Oy. That mom should win a medal.

5. These brushes by Rhonna Farrer. Love them and I'm experimenting with actually using them on my scrapbook pages. I tend to buy digital kits 'cause I think they're great and then I don't do much with them. I'm trying to break out of my comfort zone!


6. Heidi's blog. She's been putting up some sneak peeks of her new product that's coming out....I am drooling!

7. This DVD. Her voice is crazy, and being a (retired) dancer, I just love the show. The dancers, choreography, everything is amazing. My friend was in the show for the full 5 years as a dancer, too...it's pretty darn cool to see her dancing front and center behind Celine on the DVD! Can't believe I never saw this live while it was running in Vegas. (sniff, sniff)

8. Making. Memories. Noteworthy. That's all I have to say. I would eat it if I could.


9. These baskets in my laundry room. Yup, I got them at Home Sense and I just love how pretty! I actually have all of our extra sheets and guest bedding in them, so whenever we have company, I just pull a basket down and everything is there, ready to go. Then when they leave, I throw everything in the wash and then put it right back in the basket for next time! Stuff like this makes me happy!


10. And last but not least, I love this place. Who doesn't? It's the happiest place on earth and we're taking Payton there in June. We've been wanting to go on a little trip, and Payton will love it. I can't wait to see her face when she sees the "real" Cinderella and Belle. And don't worry about Gabby...she's going to be spoiled by Nana for a week. When we told Payton about Disneyland we all put our arms in the air and said "Hooray!" and then when we told Gabby she'd be staying at Nana's she put her arms in the air and sqealed with joy. It was so stinkin' cute.

Okay, it's so time for bed. We're having Payton's birthday party tomorrow afternoon...wish me luck! I'm hoping it goes okay...there will  be lots of girls and lots of pink!

Oh, and another thing...I have something really exciting to share on Tuesday (ish). I can't wait!!

Tal:)

pillow love

So, I am obsessed with pillows lately. Beautiful, gorgeous, colorful, comfy pillows. Ever since we moved (it's already been 2 months!!) I've been having fun trying to decorate and add new things to my home...and I've realised that decorative pillows are the easiest way to brighten up a room, make it feel homey and bring in a little color.



This is a view of my living room...I had the exact same picture wall in my old house and I just wanted to do the same thing here. I like the familiarity of it and why change a good thing, right? Maybe I'll update the photos if I ever get around to it...we'll see! But, see how fun the pillow is??? It just totally makes me happy!

Here's a couple more that I love...the colors and design are just totally inspiring to me. Our upstairs loft is done in browns and this awesome, sea-foamy green color (which is EVERYWHERE right now, p.s....it must be an IN color right now. All I know is I love it!)



And if you're wondering where I've gotten all my pillows, for all you canadians this is the place. I have just have one thing to say...


I. Love. Home Sense. It is seriously a favorite store right now. I love it 'cause it is always getting new stuff in, and good prices, too! Which leads me to the next thing...


I am short one pillow. I know. Gasp. So I have a little challenge/favor to anyone who is reading this!!! If anyone can find me this pillow:

at a Home Sense store, then I'll of course totally re-imburse you for the cost (it's $20), pay shipping and give you some scrapbook stuff in return. Does that sound good? I have a whole pile of stuff still sitting in a box that I need to give away so I'll send you a little package! I've been to all the Home Sense stores around me and can't find anymore...there's gotta be one more of these in Canada, right?? We'll see.



And I just thought I'd share some pictures since I've been so bad at that lately...I've seriously fallen off the picture-taking bandwagon and I need to get back on it! Here's Payton this afternoon:






And then here are 3 perfectly-imperfect photos of Gray and Gabby that were taken in December. These 2 love eachother so much. I feel quite left out sometimes!!






Okay, long post today...my family is sleeping so I've had a little time this afternoon to play. We took the girls swimming and it was so fun...definately something we need to do more of. Have a great weekend!!



T:)

just thinkin'...

...of lots of stuff tonight...


Kim and I have been so busy with Girl's Night Out stuff and I'm getting so excited. Our husbands tease us 'cause we are constantly on the phone...like, literally 5 times a day AT LEAST, hey, Kim? Haha! I'm just so grateful for all the support we are getting...it's going to be such a fun night. I'm so sad that my mom, sister and mother-in-law won't be here for it. 'Cause trust me, it is going to rock. If you're thinking of coming, make sure you register soon...there are still spots available, but it's filling up!


My brother-in-law and his wife just had their baby today!! Congrats guys!! They had a little girl (told ya so!), Avianna at about 5:30 this morning...she was 6 pounds, 8 ounces. Gray and I went up to the hospital and I was reminded ever so lovingly by my husband that we are NOT having another baby and NOT to let that baby fever kick in. Haha. Really, when a female sees a perfect, teeny little baby, how do you not have baby fever??? It took coming home to my happy little girls (note the sarcasm in my voice) to realise that maybe I'm not quite ready for another one. We'll see. Anyways, Avianna (sp?) is beautiful...so feminine and perfect.


And now I'm getting even more excited for my sisters baby due in February. Little Harry. I can't wait! My other sister, Karly, her daughter, Winter and I are all heading to Houston to visit the little guy at the end of March. I get to go childless, which will be a treat. More time to cuddle with my neice and nephew!


What else is on my mind? This past weekend Gray and I got to be there when Kim and Cody were sealed to Ryker for time and all eternity in the temple. It was so amazing. Ryker was adorable and it just made me realise what a miracle adoption is...how they were all meant to be together, they just found eachother in an unconventional way. He is so sweet...he loved my neclace that day, made me feel special! Haha!


Happy that Gray is home...he was out of town for a quick couple days, but it always seems like forever when he is gone. Love my man. Love that he doesn't mind that we had chocolate chip cookies for dinner rather than "food". I had a craving and had to give in. Mmmm.


Planning Payton's "friends" birthday party and I'm excited. We're going with a ballerina theme so it should be cute. Of course I'll share all the details as it happens!


Hope everyone has a good weekend.


Tal:)



Oh, and thank you so much for all the comments in my last post. I really love how simple this collage book came together and how there are just a TON of pictures in one little book. As for photoshop instructions, I know this sounds lame, but I am one of those people that I can make my way around photoshop but explaining how to do things is a different story. I've learned with help from husband and by trial and error. If I ever feel like I can explain how to do something...I will share. For now, I think it would just take too much time for me to figure out step-by-step instructions. I sorry.

*UPDATED!!!*

Check out Rebecca's blog...she's done a little "how-to" on how to collages in photoshop!

my "collage" book...

I put together my picture collages last night...








I kept it SUPER simple...with all of the photos I felt like it really didn't need much at all. To assemble the pieces I just sandwiched a strip of ribbon between 2 of the picture collages and then it's folded accordian style. The only thing I would have done differently is use a wider ribbon...but, oh, well. It's done! Then I just added some journaling about some of the things I want to remember about 2007. Like I said...super simple!


And then I thought I'd share these cute jars...



In my kitchen I've collected retro stuff over the last 5 years. I love enamelware and jars and stuff like that. Anyways, I got these stickers at my LSS last week. (I think they are made by Melissa Frances) and I just added them to these 2 jars. And easy way to decorate! My sister gave me this idea...thanks, Karly!



And here's a view of my kitchen today...




Okay, Gabbs is waking up (why does nap time go by so quickly???).



Have a good day!!



T:)



(Oh, and there's a new challenge up at the Goodie Box...head on over if you want to "challenge" yourself!)