Back to Winter.

Glad I didn't have to drive to Shelby today, because it has been nasty out. It has snowed most of the day. It is cold and so is the wind. And the roads are slick! We were spoiled earlier this week!  Have already shoveled twice today!

Would have stayed in, but there was a bowling party for a certain 8 year old.
There were about 8 or 9 of her classmates. Nic had a blast too! Just trying to keep Cooper entertained was a challenge. He wanted to be bowling too!

A couple of cute photo of him from the other day. He is hiding from his nana.





He is at the top of the stairs that lead to the basement or out to the garage. He will go down the three stairs to the garage but is afraid to go down the basement stairs which is a good thing.


And a card I made for a good friend who has an up coming birthday.
Linking my card up to Simon Says Stamp Wed. blog challenge  - Where Anything Goes

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Happy Birthday, Kirsten!

Today daughter #1 celebrated her birthday! I had planned to take her to lunch, but something else got in the way. We will try for Monday!




I headed down the highway this morning! Headed to Canada, you ask? Not quite!

You can see why they call Montana Big Sky country. It was a beautiful day to be out on the road.


The Rocky Mountain front was spectacular.


Lots of trains where I was going!


And look who I found! She wanted to surprise her niece for her birthday!


We made it back in time to pick her up from school! And boy, was she surprised. Birthday #8 is turning out to be pretty special for her!


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Today we Celebrate

As our princess turns 8! What the heck? How quickly those 8 years have flown by!
She is cute. She is smart! She is sensitive. She is stubborn! She loves to read! She loves to spend time at her nana's and papa's. I love this right now, and soak up every moment,as soon we will not be some of the most important people in her life! I love our little Toots!

I have to share a couple of photos from back in the day!



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She is growing up way too fast as far as I am concerned!

Curtis and I picked her up after school today. The whole crew was here for dinner. I made spaghetti. And then we rushed out the door for her first basket ball game. Came Home for cake and presents.

The beat surprise is yet to come! Her Auntie Cait is on he train bound for Montana and will surprise her at her birthday party on Saturday. That means I drive to Shelby( 90 min) on the road to pick her up in the morning!






It is so entertaining watching second graders play this game!





She wanted a My little Pony cake! There is no such animal in this town. So her creative mama got busy and baked her a rainbow cake. We got two little ponoes for the top, and she loved it.

A Day Worth Reapeating!

Yesterday was so gorgeous that we repeated it today. It didn't reach 69F like yesterday, but pretty close-64F. I believe we were warmer than parts of Florida!

We had a busy evening last night. Going back to Girl Scouts is an interesting deal for me. My gosh, there were 10 little Brownies and a lot of them are not as well behaved or as mature as Harlee! And there were siblings there, which I never would have allowed! I led every level except Brownies and now I know why!

I brought Harlee back here and Curtis took over and took her across town to basket ball practice. And then he picked up Kirsten from work and took her home. Kirsten's car needs the clutch replaced. They just have to find time for Tim to do it.

Today I got my house majorly cleaned! That meant mopping floors. Not sure how they get so dirty with only 2 of us here. Use to have 2 more and a dog in the mix!

Kirsten and Cooper visited this afternoon. The crew will all be here on Thursday evening to celebrate Harlee's birthday!



Finished up a layout of Cooper!


Now I am up to my armpits making Valentine cards.


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Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!!!!!

It is cloudy and overcast, but the temperatures are way above normal for the end of January.  It is warm(50's).  The wind is warm.  It is marvelous.  I have been out walking.  Most of the huge piles of snow and ice are GONE!  
The east coast is experiencing our normal weather for January.  So nice to have a break and get ready for the next round.  Because it will be coming!  We still have Feb. and March to get through. 

I worked yesterday and it was busy for me.  My little legs were tired at the end of the day.  I collapsed on the couch with a big bowl of popcorn.  That is all I wanted to eat. 


Saturday, Curtis and I went out for a drive.  Just to get out for an hour or two. 
We stopped at Home Depot for a few things.  And went out for lunch at On the Border. 
Working on Valentine Day cards.  And getting ready to celebrate birthdays at the end of the week. 

Double page spread of H's spring soccer photos.  So many photos.  The little soccer images were cut on my Silhouette. 

What's Happening?

In your part of the world.
Having a pretty quiet week in central Montana.
And that is OK with me. 
Went to PT yesterday and woke up with sore, sore hips.  Hey, I thought we were working on my L shoulder not my hips?  I could hardly get out of bed.  And my shoulders are sore, but I expected that.  I am going out to walk and hopefully work some kinks out. 
Will be watching the boys tonight, so Tim can take Harlee to her first basketball practice. 

The chinook winds will be blowing and with temperatures climbing.  I guess close to 50F. 

A layout of the boys riding around in Nic's car, this past spring.
I had cut out the background of circles when I was making tags for the grandkids advent calendar gifts.  And I thought, I could use this for a background for a page.  It has been hanging around my scrap space for the last month and I put it to good use.
The green piece also came out of my scrap pile.  

Middle of the Week

I am dragging my butt this morning!!!  Worked a long day yesterday and it was busy.
To add to that I didn't sleep well the night before.
Curtis left late with his Red Cross drive to Missoula and didn't get home until 1am. 
And I didn't sleep well until he did. 
Which makes for a short night when you get up at 4:45 for work. 
Therefore, I don't have too much on my agenda for today. 
Go to physio and pay some bills. 

But I do have a layout of Harlee to share.  This is her school photo from last year when she was in first grade.
I used Bo Bunny papers.
And some elements from Kaiser Craft.
The little doily border is old, old, old.  It is from My Little Bicyle.
I cut the title on my Silhouette.  

Monday, Monday, Monday!!!

Starting a new week.  Curtis is off on a trip to Missoula for the Red Cross.  Thankfully a break in the weather, so hopefully a clear drive.
Managed to do a few things around the house today.  Like vacuuming.  I mended Harlee's snow pants and ran them through the wash and then delivered them to her house.  Ran to Michaels.  I needed scrapbook adhesive.  I needed some plate holders to put up the plates the grandkids made me for Christmas.  I took my teapots and a few other breakables out of a cupboard and washed them all.  And I reorganized my baking goodies to another cupboard.
When we got our new fridge, Curtis needed to move the cupboard up about 6inches.  My cookies sheets, racks, muffin tins were all above the fridge.  They are harder for me to reach.  So I moved a few things around and they are now down low, much easier for me to get.  I don't have to go out in the garage for my step ladder.  Yeah!!!

I took this photo on Friday.  The sun was setting in the huge puddle at the end of our walk.  So much snow melting!!!

 I have been sharing layout of the boys,  So, here is one of Harlee playing soccer last spring.
Used October Afternoon papers.  I cut the soccer ball out on my Silhouette.  Ali Edwards stamps.  And the title was cut with a quickutz font.

I had a large 5X7 photo and I cut the soccer ball.  Now how to tie them and a few other photos together.  I decided circles would be my best option.  

A Quiet Sunday!

After working a 12hour shift yesterday and not sleeping well on Friday night, I was pooped.  A quiet Sunday was in order.  And that is what I got.  Spent the afternoon in my craft space.  But it needed a clean up before I could start crafting again. 
Had a visit from Kirsten and Harlee.  Kirsten had designed invites for Harlee's 8th birthday at the end of the month and now she needed envelopes.  So, out came the Envelope Punch board and she went to work. 

I leave you with a couple of layouts.
This is Nic's Kindergarten photo. So handsome!   

And Harlee's cheerleading photos from last winter.  I wanted to use up some Thickers, but I didn't have any e's left.  I became resourceful and used upside down, turned around 3's.  

Sketchabilities Sketch #131

I keep seeing these sketches from Sketchabilities come up on my FB page.  I finally have had the time and wanted to do a layout for their challenge.

This is their Sketch:
And you are to use white and placid blue. 

I am not one that wanders out of the box too much.  What I see is what I see.
I want to share what my page look liked before I added all the elements in the upper left corner.
Sorry the photo is dark.  Trying to find natural light in my house at 4:15 in the afternoon.
I used a stencil in the upper left and brushed Mr. Hueys mist on.  As you can see it will be mostly covered up. 

And here is the finished product.

Papers from Basic Grey-Sugared
                    Elle's Studio-Cameron
                    MME- Lost and Found 2
Mr Hueys mist- Splash
The love circle, the banners and hearts were all cut on the Silhouette
Circles- Quickutz die
Leaves-Memory Box die
Simon Says Stamp Mosaic Heart stencil

My week off has come to an end and I will be back to the grind tomorrow.
I was out to Sam's club this morning with Kirsten.
And in my craft space this afternoon.  And boy does it need a pick up.

January Thaw

We have temperatures above freezing and all that snow is beginning to melt.  I actually have a bare walkway out to the road.  It will be a while before all that snow we had melts.
Officials are saying, at this point, if we don't get anymore snow, it will be the 6th snowiest winter on record.  Somehow, I think we will be having more snow as it is only mid January.  Let's be real!!!   Enjoy some less cold temps.  Sad to think near 40 is warm.  But it is all relative. 

Having a slow morning.  Cleaning bathrooms.  Putting things in order.  I had more physio to my shoulder yesterday.  ROM is much improved.  But it sure is sore after I have visited them.  Picked up Harlee yesterday and all the kids and their mum were here. 

A little layout of Nic.  I believe I used Echo Park paper. The chevron cards I cut on my Silhouette and also the title  and the Today arrow.  One project life card.  The arrow is from Crate paper- Kiss, Kiss.  The 100% boy is an EP sticker.  a couple of stars from my stash.  And some mini letter from Glitz design.  

The Quiet of the Morning

I love the quiet of the morning.  It is still very dark out.  I am an early bird.  The only sound is the furnace coming on to warm up the house.  But, not so cold out this morning.  The weather channel says 32F, which is a heat wave for here.  Need to get some of the snow melted away before the next dump!

The snow plow came down our street the other evening when I was just getting home from work.  In the 25 years I have lived in this house I have never seen a snow plow do our street.  That was a first.  So, that is how much snow we have had this winter.  The side streets were a mess. 

Enjoying my time off this week.  Just being lazy.  I did sort through some paper scraps last evening.  And being in my crafty space creating.  Has been a while since I have done this.  Lots of photos of the grandkids to scrap.  

Have been creating and will share a couple of layouts with you. 

This first one is of Nic's 6th birthday.  It's a 2 pager. It is not very often I do two pages.  But there were quite a few photos I needed to use.  The title was cut on my Silhouette. 

The second one is of Cooper doing his fish lip face.  This seemed to be a favorite back in the summer.Used some old Pink Paislee papers on this one with a strip of Washi.  I always like using circle shapes at the bottom of my photos to ground the pictures.  I used some Quickutz dies to cut the title. 

A Blast from the Past

This evening I had a step back into the past! I took Harlee to her Girl Scout meeting. I was a Girl Scout leader for 15 years while my girls were growing up! Both of my girls earned their Silver awards and Kirsten earned her Gold award, which the highest award a girl scout can earn. They both were involved at girl scout camp during the summers. So, Harlee is a Brownie. She has missed quite a few meeting since her mama works evenings. So, Curtis and I will step up to the plate and get her to meetings! Oh, and yes, it is almost Girl Scout cookie time!!!!

And after working so much last week, I got my house cleaned up this morning. I got my Christmas wrap put away. I got my floors vacuumed and mopped, even my craft space.





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Working Hard!

I have clocked in a lot of hour in the NICU this past week! 48hours plus and I am a tired little nana! Came home and crashed on the couch early!
But we do get do experience pretty nice sunrises from our vantage point in the NICU! Last weekend we saw a rainbow and sundogs as the sun came up over the horizon! I was feeding a baby so I didn't get a chance to snap a photo or two!







One day last week when I was at work Curtis had picked up Harlee. She wanted to know where I was when she got back here. Curtis told her I was working! She wanted to know if I was in my craft space? Had to chuckle at that one! Does she know her nana?

It was snowing out earlier. But seems to have stopped for the moment!

Can you see me taking the photo in this one?








I'll leave you with one little layout! Still back at Halloween with pumpkin carving! Going to spend a lazy day in my craft space with the sweats on! And may find time for a nap!







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A Change of Pace!

Can you believe it? No snow! We had sunshine and cold! The roads in town are still one big mess and slick! They are saying more snow for Sat. night!

Curtis has decided to volunteer and drive for the Red Cross. So he took a dry run with his buddy to Missoula this afternoon. Will be back later this evening.

So I ran to the bank to get him a dollar or two! Went into work for a couple of hours so a gal who commutes could make her doctor appt.

Picked Harlee up from school. Just chilling this evening.

Will share a layout I have been working on.

Going back to Halloween. Using old MME product.


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More of the Same!

It's beginning to sound like a broken record here in central Montana. More snow today.  They said we would get a few snow flurries.  Oh, no!!!  It snowed practically all day to the tune of 3.4inches.  You can imagine what the driving on the side streets is like with over a foot of snow.  And not so nice on the main street either.  I saw someone turn totally around.  Luckily there was no traffic around him.  Kirsten was stuck for a bit in our driveway.  I am happy to be driving a big all wheel drive rig.  Mother Nature is sure hitting us hard this winter. 

 Our fireplace out back is totally buried

 Icicles from it melting slightly yesterday.  The kids were impressed with these!

 You can see it snowing in this one. 

After working all day yesterday, I was pooped.  But, I had things to do today.  I dropped Curtis at the coffee shop and headed across town to Walmart.  I think the snow was keeping people away.  Came home and did some wash.  Kirsten dropped off Cooper so she could run some errands.  And then I headed out for some PT on my shoulder, which I hurt back in the late summer.  And it just has been aggravating me.   Picked up Harlee from school on my way home.  Busy little day.  Working some hours tomorrow and all day Saturday.  We were busy yesterday with 15 babies.  Keeps me out of trouble.  No time for crafting.  But next, week I am off all week and plan to get some done.  I ordered some photos so they should be arriving.  Off to put some heat on my shoulder. 

Short and Sweet

And to the point! One picture tells the story!
Curtis took the photo out back yesterday when he got Harlee.



This is the snow in our back yard after it dumped around 10 in. yesterday.
It is up to her waist!
The roads are slick, as we found out when we ventured out today.
A little bit more fell today.
I am thankful for our next door neighbor who came by with his snow blower late yesterday afternoon.
Roads closed! Schools closed, but not here in GF.
It is real winter!


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Thank You Cards!

I have made a couple of thank you cards since the New Year.  Not sure where I fit in the time, but I managed to.
Have worked the last couple of days and they were busy.  I was supposed to work today(Sunday) but I moved to Saturday to help cover the unit since is was very short with sick calls.  On Friday, barely found time to gobble down my soup for lunch.  Not very wise on a 12 hour shift!  But it was a stupid, crazy day.  Good thing we had an awesome team on board that day.
One of my co-workers drove home after and had the worse drive of her 16 years working here.  We are having a snowy, cold winter with poor driving conditions.  Good thing to just hibernate at home.  No real reason to have to go anywhere.  We are still in a winter storm watch !  It is snowing and it is minus 4F at noon.
Going to try and scrap a little this afternoon.  Seems like forever.  But I did put together a mini album for a friend for Christmas.   Just didn't take any photos.

Hawaii in April is looking better all the time.  I just think Jan. and Feb. and Mar. would be good too!!!!!

 I embossed the background with snowflakes.
The thanks is a die from Savvy Stamps
The paper is from Crate Paper- Bundled Up(I've had this in my stash a while now)

Again used a snowflake embossed background.  The savvy stamp die.
Also a Impression Obsession snowflake die.  And a piece of Washi tape.
Pretty easy peasy to make.

Going to try and link this to Darnell's NBUS #3 challange

Happy New Year! 2015!

Here we go with a brand New Year!!!
Hope it is a better year for Caitlin!  Put her on the plane this morning bound for Seattle. 

Will be missing her bunches!!!  But she has a few things she needs to get sorted out and hopefully find a new job in record time!!! 

I worked diligently at home today and took down most of the Christmas decorations.  The tree is down.  The Santas are in the cabinet.  The snowman village can stay up until the end of the month. 

Still cold and snowy out and more snow is on its way over the weekend.  How I wish I was a snowbird instead of heading to work tomorrow. 

Getting back in the groove and working on a couple of thank you cards!