God Bless America

This is the (new) flag that flies on the shed in our yard. Joe just replaced the entire light fixture the other day. Perfect timing. We haven't had a flag flying for a little while since the light was out of commission but the light is back and so is our flag-just in time for Sept 11.
When I walked the kids out to wait for the bus this morning I called them over and we all stood around this flag. I reminded them why today was a special day and encouraged them to take some time out today to pray for the families of all the people who died this day 7 years ago and for all our service members and their families as well.
I encourage you to do the same. :)
Our hearts, thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims of 9-11.
God Bless America!!
Amen.

Nikki's poster...

SO NOT finished-

obviously....you can see, IN THE PICTURES, that she's still working on it but it's late, I'm tired and ready to go to bed and I'll probably forget about taking a picture in the morning.

So here it is:

See...

She's STILL working on it.

And guess what??

Tomorrow is picture day (at the High School) AND she has her first Volleyball game.

She's going to HAVE to go to bed pretty quick here and just finish the rest tomorrow at school. She still needs to come up with a graphic but I think she's going to draw something herself. She really is a good artist. She gets it from Joe...he really surprises me sometimes with the things he can draw.

....and a closer up view.

LOOK Lainey!!!

I DID IT! I DID IT!!

Nothing CUTE but I got it to work, by MYSELF, and THAT is an accomplishment in itself!!! :)

Okay--now I'm REALLY going to bed!! Nighty night!

What a NIGHT!!!

Oh my gosh!!

My 'vision' for tonight was WAY different than how it's turned out to be but it's all good.....

I'm spending time with Nikki so that is a good thing. I'm actually helping her with a poster that is due guess when??? Mmmm, TOMORROW!!! UGH!!!!!!

Instead of dwell on the negatives I am going to focus on the positives: Nikki and I are spending time together, talking, and not fighting AND I'm using my craftROBO!!! **I WILL be posting a picture of her poster once she's done. I might actually have to post an 'almost completed' version since SHE'S the one who's going to have to glue EACH and EVERY letter down. They get time to work on it in class tomorrow too so she'll be fine.....I hope.

It's going to be very plain and simple, at the teacher's request, so don't be expecting anything fancy. :) Nikki's not too thrilled with the idea either but that's what the teacher wants so........that's what she'll get. :)

Nikki chose all the papers. It IS her project.

On to the card.......

OH! Did I forget to mention I had a card to share???

Oooops!

I have a card to share!!!! :)

I picked up this stamp set from Joann Fabric, in the $1 bin, I think last month. It was the last one in the bin. It must have just been meant to be!!! :) I've been WANTING to use it and just haven't had the occasion OR made the time!!

One of our friends gave us a BUNCH of homegrown jalapenos, among some other fruits and veggies, so I thought this little chihuahua would be perfect for the Thank You card. Inside, of course, it's stamped 'Muchas Gracias'.

This is a close up of the little chihuahua dog......

YES!! That IS stickles you see...It just needed a little 'something' and stickles just seems to work!! I colored the 'lil pooch in with colored pencils and blended with OMS.

I was thinking of using this little guy, and maybe the cactus too, for the recipe card, I'm PLANNING on making, for that salsa I mentioned in my earlier post from today.

Alright. That's all for now. I have a poster to help finish up!! :)

Enjoy the rest of your week.

It's back to work tomorrow night for me so I'll be gone for a few.

Until next time.......

Hasta luego!

Just for you.....

I literally whipped this up yesterday. I was looking for a 'thinking of you' card and only had about a half hour before I had to start getting ready to leave the house. I ALWAYS think I'm going to just make up some cards to have on hand for occasions other than birthday or 'thank you' and never do. Well, that's on THE LIST now!! And I'm going to JUST DO IT!!! (Maybe TODAY, if I get low censused!!!) :)

Anyways, I didn't end up giving this to the person it was intended for so I will either add some bling to it or just make a new card.....as I'm writing this post, looking at it I'm thinking it's a little too plain for my likings right now. There are a few simple things I'm thinking I can do that might just help it be a little more appealing........

Thought I'd share a few pics of my crazy family too.......just because they make me smile----

Okay, so maybe this picture of Joe just makes me LAUGH --out loud!!

THIS is SO Joe!!! LOLOL

I KNOW how truly and completely BLESSED I am to have such an AWESOME man as my other half!!! God is SOOO good!! There is NO other man out there who would make a better second half to me than him!! He SO enjoys just having FUN. He just MAKES me laugh. I mean COME ON!! HOW could you look at this picture and NOT laugh?!?!

It reminds me of those dog pictures. You know the ones I mean right?? Where the dog faces are all out of proportion?! He does stuff like this all the time. Now I'm going to have to find some more pictures of his crazy antics!! Never a dull moment around here..........

Nikki tends to leave her camera hanging around like she happened to do this day. There it was, lonely on the counter, so Joe decided to pick it up and leave a little 'laugh' for Nikki!! :) Or perhaps a little reminder that he's ALWAYS watching???? :)

And then there's Nikki...

....our 'Beauty'.....it IS one, of her many, nicknames around here. I think I've mentioned before how when Samuel was like 2 years old he couldn't enunciate beauty so what came out was 'booty'---the irony............

Anyways, she IS our beauty and she LOVES taking pictures....of herself. Is it a teenage girl thing or is it just her?? We just can't figure out WHY she's always making funny faces?! lol The majority of her pictures have her making some strange face like this one. Who knows. I don't care. She's still, and ALWAYS will be, our beauty!!

Well, I hear Joe downstairs making up some Pico de Gallo so I guess I SHOULD get down there and do something with the REST of those tomatoes and jalapenos before they go bad. I'm thinking jalapeno poppers!! I got this AWESOME recipe from my friend Katrina (hey Kat!!!) a few years back. It's an ALL TIME favorite around here. I feel a trip to the grocery coming on to pick up some HOT sausage and cream cheese..........

Maybe, if I get low censused, I'll even take the time to make up a cute little recipe card with the recipe for those jalapeno poppers.

I DID IT!!

I did it, I did it!!!
I worked last night......
JUST got home a little while ago....
I took my morning pills, one of them being a Tylenol PM so I can STAY asleep during the day, and was HOPING I would be able to keep my eyes open just long enough to finish a card for one of my co-workers tonight and I DID IT!
I JUST finished the card, took a few pics, I'm going to POST a pic and GO TO BED 'cuz my eye's is tired! :)
Moving right along.........
This is the card I made for our co-worker who will soon be leaving us:

Paper is Cosmo Cricket: Gretel: Autumn and misc scraps

Inks are CTMH: Barn Red and Bamboo

Ribbon: Both CTMH

Stamps: Quotes by heidi grace designs

Misc: buttons (stash)


**I just made one, itsy, bitshy change.......I restamped the image on Barn Red cardstock (CTMH) in black ink and just cut out 'real friends' and paper pieced it over**
Okay.......
Now it's time to go to bed. The house is quiet.....both kids spent the night at a friend's....so I'd better 'get' while the gettin' is good!!
Here's to Sweet Dreams!
Until next time,
'night...

BOYS

Joe just showed this to me this morning:











Nothing spectacular, I know. Just a bee's nest.
But look at how big it is!!
Joe was just telling me how all summer he's been cutting the grass and whatever all else he does outside and NEVER noticed it, which, I MUST admit is pretty unusual for Joe. He makes it his job to be AWARE of most everything! Comes with the territory I guess..........
Anyways, he and Samuel were watching the water from the sprinkler last night when he finally noticed it.
The BIG hole at the bottom is where the bee's come and go from.
Then WHAT? in the heck are all those OTHER holes???
ahem...
yeah,
well.......
that would be where these 2 come in:




Mutt
(aka Joe).....
















......and Jeff
(aka Samuel)


Teeheehee






Obviously they weren't shooting at the bee's nest with the slingshot in THESE pictures.....
But they WERE using the bee's nest as the target for target practice with the BB Gun. THAT would account for ALL the OTHER holes!!
I'd suggested that he kill the bee's and bring the nest to Samuel's class. I'd noticed, at Open House, how she had quite a few large bee nest's hanging in the class and thought we could add to the collection. I guess there are too many holes!
BOYS!

"OH MY GOSH! MOM! Come and take a LOOK at THIS!!"

I actually took these pictures the other day, Monday I think, and just haven't taken the time to post them yet......

We were just going about our evening the other day when Samuel yells out, "OH MY GOSH! MOM! Come and take a LOOK at THIS!!" So we walk over, thinking it'll be an Eagle or something and what do we see???

This:

It's a vulture.

Not the prettiest bird in the world, no doubt, but kinda cool to look at with his wings all spread out like that!!

(you can click on the picture for a closer view...if you're so inclined-but be warned...I think they must be, like I said above, THE UGLIEST looking birds!!)

I just panned out in this photo.

He stayed like this for quite some time. I kept wondering, why, is he just settin' like that?? Then I wondered, hmm...I wonder if it's a sign for the other vultures?? "It's over here! It's over here!"

Who knows?! Maybe that's how they cool off???

Why are they even there? You might be wondering. Well, it would seem someone hit a dear, again, and after being hit it ran off into the neighbors yard, AGAIN! Those neighbors are from the coast. I don't think they've been back since the LAST deer was hit and ran into their yard to die....Anyways, their yard has a lot of trees and I'm SURE the vultures could SMELL the decomposition they just couldn't FIND it at this point.

Not too long after this fellow showed up....

They just remind me of one of those Disney movies--talking to each other....

I can just hear him:

V2 (Vulture 2): Where is it? Where is it??

V1--head cocked-looks like he's listening....

V2: I'm talking to you!! Where is it? (salivating)

V1: Disgusted. Looking away,

sorry his invitation

brought THIS 'help'!!

SO, last night we were doing whatever we were doing when Samuel comes running to tell us there are now FOUR of them. All sitting in the very same tree.

Interesting.....................

............the things we see, living where we live............

I had a date this morning.......

Yup! That's right......
with my secret sister. The OTHER Queen......you can find her blog here. Check it out. She has some AWESOME pictures!! AND she's a FABULOUS scrapbooker!!!!
Anyways, she ever so patiently guided me through using my craftROBO, that I have had for YEARS now!! I tried using the blasted thing once, shortly after I got it, couldn't get the darned thing to work and it's been collecting dust ever since. Miraculously, I found ALL the needed parts last night, installed it onto THIS laptop, which by the way doesn't recognize the driver because I was STUPID, STUPID, STUPID and went Vista instead of sticking with XP.
I haven't been overly thrilled with Vista...can you tell??? Anyways, hopefully I'll be able to take care of that issue sometime this week but in the mean time I've just used my old laptop.
The point is...........
with Lainey's help I've actually figured out how to make this contraption WORK!!!
Thank You Lainey---a million times over!!!
It's a ton of FUN! And OH! so addicting. I finally decided I HAD to put it all away so I could get something done today. But FIRST I cut out a whole bunch of words for Nikki for her school notebooks!! She's happy...which in turn makes ME happy!!! :)
Yippee, Yippee, Yippee!!
It's a GOOD day.
Thank You Lainey!!!!!
I love you sistah friend!!!!
BIG SMILES!!!
---now, back to the cleaning.......ughhhhhhhhhhhh