Baby you can drive my car...

I love love love these pictures of Madi. She dug her car out of the laundry room and drove it ALL over the basement. The pics of her adding her toys to the passenger seat are missing on this layout because I still have more to do.

After I took the photo of the layout and was editing the size Madi came and climbed into my lap. She kept pointing at the picture and saying "Happy mommy, Madi happy". She is a mess and keeps my days from ever being boring!

PMS Challenge!

With the July new release came a couple of challenges. The first being a "nautical" challenge that I JUST FINISHED ;) I am headed now to party with the PMS Makeup Artists!

Imaginisce Summertime Challenge

The challenge for June on the Imaginisce blog is to use this picture for inspiration:

Along with these lyrics:

Summer Holiday
We're all going on a summer holiday
no more working for a week or two.
Fun and laughter on our summer holiday,
no more worries for me or you,
for a week or two.

We're going where the sun shines brightly
we're going where the sea is blue.
we've all seen it on the movies,
now let's see if it's true.

Everybody has a summer holiday
doin' things they always wanted to
So we're going on a summer holiday,
to make our dreams come true
for me and you.
for me and you.

And this is my take on it using Imaginisce Animal Crackers paper and embellishments. Alphas are from American Crafts, Bella Blvd, and Sassafrass.

Happy Hour

Last night there was a happy hour sketch over at Memorable Seasons. It began at 9pm and you had 1.5 hours to get your lo done, photographed and uploaded. I was able to finish just under the wire! I really enjoyed the process though and am completely satisfied with the layout that I was able to complete.

A picture of Madi was my inspiration and "you are" came into my head. I turned that into the complete titling of "just the way you are" and my journaling on the lo describes how I never imagined that I would be parenting one of *those* children. You know the ones who are loud and wide open and no matter what you really think the parents aren't doing anything to control it. YEP, I have one. After watching her grow (in size and personality) I realize that I don't WANT her to be quiet and reserved, she just WOULDN'T be me Madi if she was. I love her outgoing personality, the way she adapts to change, the hugs/kisses and love she has. She goes with the flow and goes at it full force. I can't wait to see where she leads me!

Remember when....

When I saw the challenge at Scrapfit to scrap a picture from your childhood I remembered this picture I came across when I was cleaning the laundry room earlier this month and knew I had to scrap it. This picture was taken at Sears (which is where my mom always had our pictures taken) I was 3 here and when I see it I think of my girls (who both showed a STRONG resemblence to me at this age) and it makes me smile. and remember when... live was simple and there were no worries.

Lucky me!

So today was extremely trying. The whole day, just trying in general. I had to run out and do a bit of shopping and took 3 of the kids with me. I went to WalMart which invloved a checkout time of more than 20 minutes. Yep more than 20 minutes with a 2 year old (I'm sure you can only imagine)... I was just frustrated by the end of the day and sat down to edit some photos to unwind a bit. Then I see this photo and realize how silly all those frustrations were. Really? My sweet son is winking at me. How lucky I am to be their mom.

The Gift for Noel Mignon challenge

When I saw THIS challenge on the Noel Mignon blog I knew I wanted to complete it. I started thinking about the best gift I have ever received. I couldn't believe how many things came to mind almost immediately. You think that if it is "THE BEST" you would be able to select it quickly right? WRONG! HA, my first thought was my husband and children. I am blessed to have a man who loves me and be a mother of 4. My next thought was Cadbury Easter eggs for Valentine's Day. A tradition my DH started the first year we were married. After thinking and thinking I realized the best gift I have EVER received is a white box. A WHITE BOX?? (I'm not crazy I assure you). It was the lesson learned with that box that is the greatest gift. The lesson not to "judge a book by it's cover" and "things aren't always what they seem". I received a white box for Christmas as a young child. Not a barbie box, not playdoh, nothing on the outside of the box that I recognized and I was HEARTBROKEN (not because I was an ungrateful child or spoiled, I just didn't "get it" yet). After some heavy convincing from my parents I finally opened that plain white box and found a teddy bear that became one of my most beloved toys. I had that bear up through high school until it got destroyed in a move. I learned that the things you think aren't worth anything are the most valuable treasures you will ever find.