My layout for unpubbed

This is my lift of Heather's layout. I turned it on it's side.

My beautiful Karen

So, I talked Karen into wearing her hair down yesterday so I could get some pictures of her. A little too much Halloween party the night before had her looking a little pale but that just made those cute freckles stand out some more.

Believe Canvas for OLW

I haven't done a layout for one little word in a while. I already had this canvas in mind when I looked over there and saw the current word is "believe." They are due today. I'm not sure if there is a time limit but I whipped this one up this afternoon. The stickers and rubons and pp are MAMBI, the chipboard swirls and alphas are Doodlebug painted and stamped. The big "believe" is also a rubon.

Check out the Tshirt

Karen took Seth to the pumpkin patch this past weekend and she took some pictures. She emailed a few to me today. This one made me laugh, not because of the picture itself but because of the shirt he is wearing. It says, "I didn't do it. You didn't see me do it. I want to speak to my grandma."
Don't you love it?

Woo Hoo, I got a small nod

I didn't win but I "caught their eye" over at unpubbed. Thank you! Congratulations to Jamie, the winner this time.

Quote for the day

In those whom I like, I can find no common denominator; in those whom I love I can: they all make me laugh.
W. H. Auden

Thankful

My cyber-friend Samantha has tagged me for 7 random facts and Theresa wants to know what I am thankful for. I've done the random fact thing a couple of times and I love that Samantha tagged me cause it makes me feel loved but I am going to give thanks today. You may learn something from these, though.

• I am thankful for a husband who just smiles when I mention making a side trip to visit Archivers on my way home from Austin.
• I am also thankful for a husband who thinks I'm beautiful.
  
• I am thankful for children who are thankful that I raised them to be independent.
• I am thankful for quiet in my house for a couple of hours each day so I can do what I want.
• I am thankful for the relationship I have with my grandson and that I get to spend two evenings a week with him. It is just enough.
• I am thankful that I have a laid back, forgiving attitude toward life and am not easily upset by change.
  
• I am thankful for six wonderful brothers and sisters and the wonderful people they married and all those awesome kids they brought into the world for me to love.
  

I also got a great thank you note from the female faction of those kids who stayed with us a couple of weekends ago. All five of them signed it and wrote individual notes inside. Great kids. I did not expect anything from them at all. They made my weekend great. No note from the boys, though. Do boys write thank you notes? LOL

Just a fun layout

Parent's weekend at UT

I just got home from Austin and visiting with Allison. She and Jessica have really made their little apartment very cute with all of their assorted cast offs from everywhere. Allison says that her favorite new store in the whole world is now Goodwill. Cool stuff for so cheap! It was parent's weekend at UT. Since this is her third year there, we skipped most of the formal "getting to know your child's school" activities except for the presentation made by the College of Natural Sciences. She wanted to hear the dean speak and we got free breakfast. Allison then gave me her own tour of campus. She showed me the room she had her very first college class in. She showed me the giant lecture hall with three video screens that she has had several classes in. She showed me cool buildings with unique architecture. She showed me several good vantage points to take pictures of the tower from. She showed me a study lounge with comfy chairs that people fall asleep in all the time. She ttok me to play in the "noodle sculpture" outside the Blanton art museum. Finally, she showed me the turtle pond and how much fun it is to feed them. She was just like a little kid playing with them. We capped off the day by standing in line to take pictures with Bevo. For those of you not familiar with college mascots, Bevo is the official mascot for the University of Texas Longhorns. My little girl is just so grown up. Loved hanging out with her.

Another thought provoking Brian Andreas quote

"She asked me if I had kids and when I said I did she said make sure you teach them what's right.
and I said how will I know? and she nodded and said, good point, just don't teach them any obvious wrong then. "

Brian Andreas, The StoryPeople

This one makes me think about setting examples for our children. If we lead the kind of lives we want our children to emulate, some of those really important lessons about love and compassion and kindness will be learned without any words ever being exchanged.

A Good Day

Today, Curtis and I both played hooky from work and went to the state fair. Free tickets and a parking pass from my friend, Terry, made it irresistible. A light misty kind of rain was falling when we got there but it soon went away and the residual clouds kept the temperature comfortable. By noon, however, when we stopped to have the requisite turkey leg for Curtis and BBQ sandwich for me, the sun was out. It warmed up to the 80's but it was all good. We saw lots of cool stuff that we wanted to buy but didn't, ate samples of yummy foods, and watched a cooking demonstration that definitely made me want that expensive cookware. I resisted, though. I really wanted to ride the ferris wheel but it wasn't running. It was great being out there on a weekday and not having to fight the huge crowds of the weekend.

Allison usually calls me on Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 9 and 11 because she has a break during that time at school. When she called and I told her where we were, she laughed. She said, "you guys are just too funny." It was fun just hanging out with my guy for the day. We will definitely have to play hooky again, someday.

Thankful for

I went to a crop last night and got 4 layouts done. I am just so impressed with how my mojo got going. I was smokin". (teehee) I think two of them turned out pretty well. One of them used the batman pictures and one was of Karen and Seth using some very cool Scenic Route paper. I think I'll hold those back for a while for contest possibilities. This is one I did for a little self made weekend challenge at the CKMB. There was no challenge posted this weekend. Maybe because of the drama? Anyway, Noel Joy suggested we make our own about things we are thankful for or that make us happy. This is my family. They make me happy. I used lots of word stickers since I have been reading Ali Edwards new book.

Unpubbed layout

This is my version of Leah's layout. My silly Allison and her equally silly co-workers from the YMCA this past summer.

My first canvas

I've been wanting to try this for a long time. The contest at the CKMB coupled with how much I am enjoying Ali Edwards new book got me motivated. I bought my canvas at Hobby Lobby for 30% off this week and there were two in the package so I have to do another one now. This is an 8x10. I painted it apricot with some pink streaks. I used Basic Grey paper and rub ons from Karen Foster and Daisy D's. Then, I just threw on a whole bunch of flowers. The stamps are Autumn Leaves. I really love how it turned out. I think I will give this one to Allison and will make a different one for Karen.

Last week, Seth spied the new Disney Year book sitting on the kitchen table. He asked if it was a new book for him and I said “sure.” He immediately sat down in the floor and starting turning pages. The camera was near by, so I grabbed it and took a few pictures. There were lots of pictures of animals like a daddy frog and a bug who were carrying their babies on their backs and pictures of penguins and lizards and wolves. There were animals with ugly features. He kept asking “what’s this?” and “why?” He got excited when he saw pictures of Mickey Mouse and Bambi and Goofy and the Little Mermaid. We read about Chicken Little, too. When Grandpa got home, Seth showed him the pictures and told him all about the daddies who take care of their babies and the ugly monkey. It is very fun watching him repeat the stories I read to him like he is “reading” it back. He loves to be read to. I hope when he learns to read, his love of books continues.

The invasion of the college coeds

This was Texas-OU weekend and anyone who follows college football knows what a big rivalry it is. Texas lost but I had a great time. Allison came home for the game and brought 7 friends with her to stay in our house. They brought sleeping bags and pillows and camped out in our floor. Several of her other friends came over on Friday night for dinner. Curtis grilled chicken, smoked a brisket, made macaroni salad and a big pot of beans and they ate until they couldn't move. They played a giant game of Uno in the living room floor while a game of dominos was going on in the dining room and Curtis and I just enjoyed listening to the chatter of young people in the house. I didn't much understand any of the biology discussion that was going on but loved hearing the laughter. I got up early on Saturday to fix them a big breakfast before they headed off to the fair. Allison made me laugh a couple more times. The first time was when she yelled , "Mommy, I can't believe you aren't taking pictures of all these people getting ready in our bathroom at the same time!" Of course, I obliged. Look closely. There is a boy brushing his teeth in the midst of those girls. The second time was when they were about to leave and she announced a ticket check! She held up her ticket and said , "I want to see everyone's ticket because if I have to turn around and come home, I will be seriously annoyed." Taught her well, didn't I? Fun times. I hope they come back next year, too.

My unpubbed layout

congratulations to my bloggy friend Cheryl Wray for being the current famer at Unpubbed! How exciting it is to see people I know and admire being recognized for their talent. This is my take on her layout. I got to use my new fun Sugarloaf stamps from Inque Boutique I got as a prize at Scrapbook Playground. This is the only scrapping I did all week. I have been cleaning house and getting ready for the invasion of Texas Longhorns who stayed in my house last night so they could all go to the big game today. I will post pictures of that really fun group tomorrow.