More Layouts

One of the most beautiful pictures of Noelle that I have. I love this layout because I love this photo. I really haven't used so much bling on a layout in a long time but I sure enjoyed blinging it up here, it looks like.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was a very good day. I received the sweetest notes EVER from my 3 children. Even Eric gave me a darling note and he wrote a poem. I LOVE his poems - he hasn't written me one in SO long. I need to post it here... because if I put in our scrapbook, I'll have to find the scrapbook, open it up, then find the note, yada yada yada - when I could just type it here and voila! have it to look at whenever I get on the computer.

Also, my favoritest NEW toy- my KINDLE!!! Yay!!! Eric and the kids gave it to me for Mother's Day and I"m having a blast downloading my favorite books on it. So far I have downloaded about 25 books BUT I have only BOUGHT ONE book - all the rest (24 or so) are FREE downloads because they are classics. All classic book can be downloaded for free - but it's a pretty generic version. OF course, I could pay for the book that has been "kindle-ized" if I want - but I enjoy reading the free version JUST as much. So why spend all that $$??

The book I bought was The One Year Bible, New Living Translation. I have the paperback Bible but I like that I can just click on the Bible and my Kindle takes me to the very last page I read. I can also go to the date of any entry and start reading the Bible there. Awesome. Can I say it again? AWESOME!

I have all the Jane Austen classics: Mansfield Park, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Northanger Abbey, and Emma. Also, Jane Eyre, Moby Dick, and Little Women - free classics. I just remembered: I am downloading "Dracula" - one of my all -time FAVORITES. I'm shocked at how much I loved this novel. There were so many Christian references and I was held captive by the story. REALLY well-written.

I don't know if I'll download magazines. I know that Eric liked Reader's Digest... I might subscribe to that.

Also, I have been scrapbooking my little heart out. Here are my most recent creations:

Today

Eric and I in Arizona. He didn't feel well the entire time we were there. His chest felt heavy and he had a hard time breathing. We enjoyed being together there, but he felt bad... I wish we'd known that he could take diuretic meds to remove the water from his lungs and stomach. He would have felt so much better! We found out when we returned home and Eric spoke with a doctor about it. One good thing is that the doctor at Duke believes that Eric will be placed on the heart transplant list by next month.

Today I'm overwhelmed by many things. I wish I could understand WHY certain things happen. Or WHY certain things DON'T happen. I know that I am finite. My mind certainly IS finite and my wisdom and understanding of life is even more finite. I spend too much time thinking about what if we had done this... or that. Or what if I had chose a different major in college, where would I be now? I regret MY REGRETS. How about that? I feel uncommitted to anything. I want to sing in choir - I just don't want to go to practices! I want to work out but am SO tired of the stairmaster. I want to lost weight but I still like to eat chocolate. I am a mess.

Who I am today

Today I went to work and met Eric at Chipotle for lunch. Today I hoped for more patience tomorrow. Today I dreamed of heaven. Today I forgot that I am loved. Today I heard boys saying boy stuff (hee, hee). Today I said I'm overwhelmed. Today I read a report on Bosnia. Today I watched the clouds cover the sun. Today I believed. Today I felt like running away to the beach. Today I wondered why God gave us the burdens we have. Today I bought Dunkin' Donuts large coffee, light on cream. Today I cleaned my body in the shower! Today I cried with Cindy Waters. Today I went quickly to carpool. Today I hoped for more grace. Today I dreamed that Noelle will one day be well. Today I forgot that I am forgiven and whole.

Summer Fun

The most memorable part of my summer - it went so fast I can hardly remember it - was when our whole family went on vacation near Western Carolina University, Silva, NC. We rented a cabin in the Smokey Mountains. Cade took his friend, Ethan Fuller, so that he would have someone to hang out with while Noelle attended the soccer camp at WCU. Every evening Eric and I would go to campus and watch the girls scrimmage with each other. The fields are right in the valley and there's beautiful views of the mtns. all around. Noelle was privileged to stay in the newest dorm. She didn't have a roommate and as it turned out, was very happy to be alone. She slept well and didn't feel too lonely. Her bestest friends there were from CASL - Boop (real name?) and another CASL girl. Ashlyn (keeper with TUSA) was there also. Noelle must have played pretty well. The coach just said that he wanted to keep an eye on her and he'd like to see her play more this year. It was stressful for Eric and I because we had to watch her not play as well as she used to - before her tendonitis in her knees made her sit out for 6 months. She is still not quite to the level she was at before her injury. Maybe she'll never be that good again. Oh well.. the Lord will use it.
I want to post pictures of our cabin, the boys, the waterfalls we visited - but I'll have to do that later.

I'm embarrassed...

that I haven't posted on my blog since March. I guess that so much has happened - I haven't even had time to think - much less sit and blog.

I do love blogging, though. I guess I've really missed it. It's so important that I keep this blog up to date - not just for myself - but for my family.

I have been visiting Craigslist way too much since the summer. We bought a king-size bed frame, large dresser, and 2 side tables from a girl in Fuquay in July. Our 16 year old 4 poster bed had a broken frame - and boy, could our bed creak. Eric and I have talked for years about a king-size bed and I saw this posting for a bed set in Fuquay- and I went to see it and it was really pretty. We have our queen - size mattress on the floor in our bedroom now because we want to research mattresses and get the best deal as well as good quality.

Then I came across the deal of the century. I've been praying about getting a Cricut EXPRESSION (I've had the baby Cricut for 6 years now) and a girl was selling one for $85 and 3 cartridges. The machine is practically brand-new! It was the best bargain and I'm thrilled with the larger size Cricut.

Now I"m playing with the idea of buying the Cricut software OR another software for the machine so I can weld letters, cut shapes from my computer and free myself up from the cartridges. I'm still researching that part. I think I'll "probably " go with Make the Cut software because a friend said it was the best and pretty user friendly.

SO, I've been cutting lots with my Expression. Mostly shapes and such to make cards. Also, using the texture embossing folders from Tim Holtz as backgrounds on my cards. OH! and how I love using the "color core" cardstock. It's beautiful when embossed and then lightly sanded. I'll post some cards. Gorgeous paper!

Cade (12 yo and 5'7" tall) is playing CCS Middle School soccer. Only 20 boys tried out and 15 made the team (including him). It's been an interesting commitment - especially since he can't stay focused. He has to be out of bed by 5:30 a.m. and at practice at CCS by 6:30 a.m. Eric has been driving him that early and going to work early. Cade has a game every Tues. and Thurs. afternoon at 4:00 pm (usually) for the next 8 weeks. He plays center defense. He could be quite good - but he only expends as little energy as he can possibly get away with and still get the job done. He could be FABULOUS if he put some energy into it. He looks so lazy out there. I don't know if it is laziness ... but he sure looks relaxed out there on the field. Eric told me that he went to his club soccer practice last Tuesday. His team was scrimmaging against girls. He was center D and would NOT let the girls past him. He was amazing and worked SO hard. I believe that it was because he was NOT going to let girls beat him. He actually played HARD. I wish I could have seen that! You can see Cade in picture at the top of this post. He's with his team. He is so much more interested in socializing and talking with the guys. Go figure!

Ribbon Layout from Shimelle's class

Here's the newest layout I created - using ribbon from my stash. I had a lot of fun with this.