A Little of This, a Little of That

Where do I start? I guess I'll start with some of my Project 365 photos...

Erin and I made bread last week and Hattie wanted to try her hand with the 'Ove Gloves. She did a pretty good job of modeling them with her bathing suit. Doesn't everyone bake bread in their bathing suit??

Dad and Aunt Dovetta came home from Silver City via Virden. They brought back 24 HUGE watermelons. They used a few of them for a High Priest party in their ward and the rest they shared with family. Here is ours. The picture doesn't do it justice. It's ginormous!! I had to weigh at least 50 lbs. We ate it for several days!!

I've been working on another altered book taken from Erin's Big Picture Scrapbooking class. It's the same techniques, but a different book. Here is the result.

A couple of weeks ago, Mark and I had a fun day junkin' around the valley. Here are a few of the items I scored! Mostly they're for a class I'll be teaching in RS at Super Saturday. You'll want to sign up...I know you will!!

And I've been bidding on a few items on ebay. I got this wonderful vintage bingo game and a couple of sets of word flash cards. The Bingo game is large enough for a party of people and it's aged nicely, but in pristine condition! I was lucky on that one!

Last Tuesday I went to the Southwest Summer Trade Show for scrapbooking retailers in Scottsdale. Here is evidence that I went! Deb did a make-and-take using the 7gypsies binderie punch. The cover papers, etc. are from 7gypsies. The insides were from various other companies, but since I'm a gypsy at heart, I'm sure they will be replaced...not the cover, just the "guts". Several companies did make-and-takes. Some were better than others...but 7gypsies was the BEST! But am I prejudiced? I think not! It was fun to see the new products that were released at the CHA summer show. My friends and I did a bit of damage when we made some hefty orders. But oh, how fun it will be to play when it gets here!



Friday and Saturday was Libby's birthday sleepover. She chose McDonald's for dinner. Rest assured that Mark and I chose something else! But that's what she wanted. She also wanted to go to Castles 'N Coasters to play miniature golf. She's pretty good! She got several holes in one and beat Mark, to boot. I didn't play...I took pictures! Of course, she wanted ice cream afterwards! It was hot, after all. The next morning she wanted Pop Tarts for breakfast. Then we headed off to Target to shop. She had to look at EVERYTHING before deciding. We looked at clothes, books, movies, toys, room decor, shoes, etc. She kept saying, "I'll remember that." And we'd move on. As you can tell in the picture, she chose several items to stimulate her creativity. She got a Klutz stenciling kit, Play-Doh, a white board and several markers, two Amelia Bedelia books (they are her current favorite), and a movie. I'd tell you the name, but I can't say it nor spell it, so you're on your own! She couldn't wait to go home so she could get started creating.


That evening, Eliza called us and asked us to come watch her in their ward talent show. It was sort of spur of the moment. She did a little jump rope routine....all by herself! She choreographed it by herself and did a great job!

Today I went visiting teaching. I've been going alone all summer since my partner moved. And one of the ladies I visit moved last month. Boo! Hoo!! But I'm getting a new partner next month and we get one more lady to visit. It's a great group and I'm looking forward to it.

I snapped this picture today on my way home. I was noticing the clouds and they were beautiful...so billowy and fluffy. I had to snap a picture. I just wish it would have rained. Tonight is the RS book group. We'll be discussing a Mary Ellen Edmunds book, "Peculiar in a Good Way". It was an excellent book. I enjoy her perspective and dry humor. Very motivating. Next month we're reading "Minding Mama" by Marilyn Arnold. I just started it and it's very funny already.
On to the next things.....

Fun Weekend Ahead!

Next week is Libby's birthday, so this weekend is her sleepover with us. She has lots of fun planned. She's wanting to go goofy golfing. We'll also shop for her birthday gift. As of the last check, she wasn't sure what she wanted for her gift, so I'm sure we'll be looking at LOTS of stuff so she can decide! That will translate into lots of time at the store!! But it will be fun!
We're excited to spend the time with her.

Stuff

I've been busy....really.

On Thursday morning, Erin and I took a drive to Anthem. She'd found a cute dresser on Craig's List for their new baby and we went to pick it up. I think she's planning on painting it and adding some funky new knobs. It will be wonderful when she finishes with it. I can't believe it's only 2 months until grandbaby number 10 makes her way into the world and our lives.

On Friday, Jan and I cropped the night away at Scrap Happy. It was fun. I got a couple of projects done, which always feels good.

Saturday started off with picking up our Bountiful Basket. Yum! And then we spent the whole day just junkin' around town. We managed to get a few items, and had a good day together.

Sunday we had dinner with Erin's family and Brian's family at Erin's house. We had pork roast, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and Kamille's famous corn flake "cookies". Everyone loves them....A LOT!

Today Jan and her sister, Sharon, and I went to Mesa. Our primary goal was to get a new line of paper at Scrapbooks, Etc., but we managed lunch at Cafe Rio, another stop at Mystic Paper and finally, Deseret Industries. That's always a fun adventure. You never know what you're gonna get. And we got!

It was a long, but fun day. Tomorrow is the Southwest Summer Scrapbooking Show in Scottsdale. It will be another LONG day, but it will be fun seeing all the new products, hearing Heidi Swapp speak and doing some fun make 'n takes. And on Wednesday, Jan and I were "invited" to volunteer at the registration table at the show for a few hours. It should be relaxing....at least I hope so. And on Thursday, we're teaching a Zutter class at her house.

If I had back to school pictures for all of the grandkids, I'd post them, but since I only have pictures of two of the school-aged grandkids, I'll have to wait until I get the rest! Hint! Hint!

I Got My Job Back!!!

Remember last spring when so many school employees were given their pink slips??? Well, I didn't ever get a pink slip, but since school has started, I have my old job back. I'm grading papers again!!! I'd forgotten how rough the kids' handwriting is at the beginning of the year. Their cursive is downright painful to try to read! Ugh! I'm sure they (at least most of them) haven't put a pencil to paper since school got out in May. It will get better, I'm sure, but for now, it's pretty difficult to read some of their papers. But I'm grateful I still have my "job". It's just enough of "school" to satisfy my need.

What a Week!

On Wednesday of last week, Brian started back to school. He called me in the afternoon and reminded me that I'd told him I'm make his name "tents" for his students' desks. And would it be possible to get them before "Meet the Teacher" night on Friday?? Of course! I got right to it and it took less than two hours from start to finish. And since we didn't really have anything else going on, Mark and I drove them to Brian that evening so he could get them set out and ready.


Last week, Erin and Brian had a wonderful week in Hawaii, so we got to enjoy their girls off and on during the week. On Thursday, we picked up the three older girls and brought them to our house. Libby was so excited to get to finally work on her jewelry making...a well deserved reward for her. She made jewelry. Then she made more jewelry. Then she made jewelry again!! She had such a good time. Ellie got in on the fun, too and made four bracelets and a necklace, which she proudly wore for the rest of the week. Eliza made a pair of earrings that she could wear that evening to her Meet the Teacher night. All in all, Libby made 14 bracelets and a necklace. She would have happily made more, but between the time of night and my dwindling beading supplies, we decided we'd save the fun for another day. Before we went to meet the girls' teachers, we dropped Ellie off for a sleepover at Brian T's sister's house. The girls met their teachers and looked around their classrooms. They found their desks and got a feel for the layout of their new rooms. They even convinced Grandpa that they "needed" a school t-shirt, so he obliged. Then we went and picked up Abby and Dallin and brought them back to our house for one last summer sleepover. They watched the movie, Race to Witch Mountain, and then they all sacked out on the living room floor. The all went to sleep quite quickly. The next morning we had a French braiding session with Abby and Eliza. Libby just wanted a couple of clips. And Dallin was lucky enough that he didn't even need a comb! Then we headed out to find a new outfit for each of them for school. It was a long morning, to say the least, but I think they all were happy with their choices. After picking up Ellie, we delivered them all back to their respective homes and Mark and I crashed for a few minutes!

On Friday night, I finished reading our RS Book Group book, Peculiar In a Good Way, by Mary Ellen Edmunds. I loved the book. She has such a unique style of writing (and speaking). I can really relate to what she has to say.

On Friday night, after his Meet the Teacher session at his school, Brian headed to Urgent Care. He hadn't been feeling well all week and thought he should have things checked out. He found out that he had a viral infection and the Dr. told him he was highly contagious (Oops!) and should not plan on returning to work until at least Wednesday next week. Poor Brian. That's not the way a teacher wants to start off the new school year. So Mark and I spent a good part of Saturday at the school with him getting things ready for a substitute and disinfecting his classroom!! Tomorrow won't be a good day for him, I'm sure. He'll be missing out on meeting his new students and seeing Dallin start his first day of kindergarten. Hopefully, he'll be back at it on Wednesday!

Today was my lesson in RS. It was on the Wentworth Letter. I was a little concerned about having a good discussion, but my worries were all for naught. It was a great discussion and we ran out of time WAY before we ran out of material to discuss. It's a wonderful lesson and I would recommend it as good reading annually.
I hesitate to say this, but my calendar for next week is totally BLANK! I probably just jinxed myself....I hope I can get some things done around here, though.

It's That Time of Year Again!

It's time for school to start. I my opinion, thought, it's way too hot for school to start. I remember playground duty the first couple of months of school....HOT!!! This is the time of year when I get the urge to go back to school, go back to work at the school....do something school related!! I did get my bulletin board fix a couple of weeks ago when I helped Brian get his boards done in his classroom. They look great, too! And next week will start the paper grading again, so I guess I'll be okay!!
I've been busy since the reunion, but mostly boring busy. Know what I mean? Last week I helped Brian one day with his kids while he attended a district math meeting/workshop. On Friday, Mark and I went to Casa Grande to take Matthew and Emma school shopping. They'll be attending a new charter school this year and will be wearing uniforms. Matthew's things were easy to find, but Emma's...no so much. We decided to look in Phoenix for what she still needed. Over the weekend we had a sleepover with Hattie and Ellie. What fun that was! Ok, Saturday was fun, Sunday was tiring! On Saturday we went to Target to finish up some shopping for Emma for school. The first store we went to had everything she still needed! Lucky us. So we called Dan and arranged a meeting in Chandler. We met for lunch at Saigon for some Pho. Yummy! Dan's kids LOVE it, but Hattie and Ellie weren't so sure. They were troopers, though, and tried it without complaint. Then Dan mentioned that the reason they came to the valley was for an entertainment center at Sam's Club. Problem was it wouldn't fit in their car with all of the seats in, so they would have to come back next week without kids. We offered to help. So we put on of our seats down, put Ellie and I in their car, and Dan, Mark and Hattie in our car with the entertainment center and off we went to their house. That baby was HEAVY!!! But after a time, we got it out of the car, unpacked, and all set up. It looks great!! Then we and the girls headed back to the valley. It was a long day, but fun. The girls loved playing with Matthew and Emma....at least until Matthew donned his Star Wars Storm Trooper helmet that alters your voice when you speak into the microphone piece. The girls were both scared. It was funny....they come from an all girl family and just aren't used to boys and their antics! The girls went to bed just fine on Saturday night, but Hattie woke up at 2 am and didn't want to go back to sleep. She did lay in her bed for a while with her eyes wide open. We tried her in our bed with us, but with the same result. So at 5:30 am, we finally got up with her. We went to church and other than a little grumpiness, it went fine. The girls were good during church (just not so good at whispering!) and we went home afterwards hoping for a nap for Hattie. She did finally go down after lunch for a couple of hours. We returned them home that evening.
Last night was the August Enrichment meeting. It was a swim party/BBQ. But we didn't BBQ anything. We had macaroni salads, fried chicken and brownies. The food was good, but the weather was so darned HOT!! I was glad when it was time to go home to our cool, air-conditioned home.
Today I will be getting things organized for another couple of days with grandkids. Tomorrow Libby and Eliza are coming over. Libby earned a day of jewelry making with me and Eliza has been wanting to make a Summertime Album like one I made recently. So we'll be busy with that. Then on Friday we're taking them, along with Abby and Dallin shopping for school clothes. Should be a fun couple of days!!
And I teach this week in Relief Society. The lesson is The Wentworth Letter. If you're going to be there on Sunday, be sure to read the lesson....we'll be having a DISCUSSION!
Anyway....on to crafty organization!!