Live from Tormville!

a week of lasts

• This week has been a week of lasts. Monday night was Wendy's last Busy Bees (Sunday School girls) get together for the season. Pizza party.  Tuesday night was Wendy's last volleyball for the year (Pizza party) and last night was Wendy's last choir concert for the year (back row, fifth from the left) I didn't see any pizza.  
• About a half hour before we were to leave, she came downstairs with her black flats, shared how the bottom is nearly completely separated from the shoe and said - MOM! I need new shoes!!! (before the concert) 
• Right. 
• She wore a pair of too small heels instead. She's already tall, so she was very anxious about being extremely noticeably tall with her heels on, but the girl next to her was just as tall, so she was fine. I spent the whole ride to the concert telling her that it would be much prettier to stand tall and be the tallest there than to purposely slouch (her plan) just to be the same size as someone else. 
• Allan decided to opt out of the weekend four-wheeling trip since grandpa wouldn't be there and nobody his age would be there. This worked out well for me since it got me out of bringing two little boys to an hour and a half long choir concert. 
• Wendy's taking a year off from choir so she can take an art class next year
• Greg texted this morning - they made it safely to their destination (he and Derek). I hate that all night driving so an arrival text is always good. 
• I'm working again today. I work all but one day until the end of the year. I insisted on taking Allan's graduation party day off. 
• I turned the heat back on this morning and brought my plant starts in last night. We had the a/c on just a couple days ago. 
• Time to get a few things done this morning. Starting with printing a return form for the boy's shoes. I measured their feet, used the chart and both their shoes are several sizes too big. Thank goodness for free return shipping. 
• Happy Friday! 

ps. Wednesday was Allan's last day of school - in sticking with the week of lasts theme. I'm just in denial. 

logic

Scene: me, considering an afternoon nap

Me: I think I'm going to take just a quick nap

Brian: A nap? Now? You're tired?

Me: yes, I think I get tired when I think too far ahead.

Brian: So do you think ahead at bedtime so you fall asleep good?

Me: No, if I think ahead at bedtime then my mind races too much to fall asleep. 

I swear it makes sense in my head. 

 

whack.

I spent the morning wondering if we were really going to make it to the zoo field trip, what with the threats of thunderstorms and 100% chance of rain. But we went, and the thunder held off and my umbrella got a work out.

I began the day with three kids in my group, but one was sick - so then I had Mark and one other - but then one group's chaperones no showed (they thought the field trip was next week), so I ended up with three extra.  I spent the entire field trip chanting - 1, 2, 3, 4...5.  1, 2, 3, 4....5.   I took a LONG nap when we got back home. 

With five kids to watch, I didn't take a whole lotta photos - but I did catch a few of the tigers. They were a unanimous favorite. They are sisters - two of three triplets. The third one stayed securely nested in her hole in the wall - I picture her being the firstborn, wiser and staying out of it.

Whack. 

Technique Tuesday + Kiwi Lane = card making fun

This month Technique Tuesday joined forces with our friends over at Kiwi Lane to share what can be done when you mix our stamps with their card and layout making templates. I had fun! 

Above, I mixed the Tiny Tag Accessory Set, the Adorn Accessory Set and Technique Tuesday's Thank You set. 

And for this card - the Tiny Nature Accessory Set, the Sentiments Set and Technique Tuesday's Cap and Gown Seal

And lastly, I combined The Sentiments Set, The Tiny Nature Sentiment Set, Thank You, and Chevrons Two Step. 

fun fun fun

Take a moment and check out Teri, Tanis and Daniela's blogs as they are also sharing today. 

graduation announcements

For Allan's graduation announcements, I dug through my box of discontinued stamps for my set of Extra Large Underground numbers. I've been BEGGING for another large set of numbers. Help me beg.  ;)  Large number stamps are a set that I always get lots of use out of. 

Several notes....

I often have a piece of chipboard underneath my stamping surface. It provides both a cushion and a place to catch the ink of the overlap. 

The inks used on this card are both Jenni Bowlin for Ranger inks - Lemon Drops and Seed Packet. Allan's school colors. But they call them green and gold.  They don't know what I know.  ha. 

The above stamp is Chevron Two Step.

 

I began by stamping the one chevron nearish (I don't measure) the bottom, and then added the solid chevron both above and below.  Clear stamps are such a fantastic invention, don't you think?  The ability to see where the stamp is going to land is huge. I wasn't able to do this with the wood mount stamps that I used to make his birth announcements with almost 18 years ago.  

Because I don't measure, and because I was kind of winging it, I added the twenty-thirteen (from the set - In a Nutshell) right into the chevron on some cards, and on the bottom of the others. And you know what? I like them both. 

The bottom created, I then stamped the 2013 above the chevron...

....about 45 times. I'm a firm believer in the assembly line process (do all the chevrons, then do all the twenty-thirteens, then do all the dates....). It went quick. 

The inside invitation portion I printed out on our computer and adhered it in. 

Nothing fancy. 

Today I will work on his thank-you cards. 

Happy Tuesday!
be good.  

weekend rundown

So Friday night we had volleyball
And Saturday I woke up and started the day with an hour long walk.  

My husband set his alarm and got an early start on changing out the side door (the last time he changed this door, it took three days as one project led to the next led to the next and you know how it goes) 

I brought Brian to soccer while Greg worked on the door. Brian surprised me by volunteering to be goalie. 

Back at home, I puttered about and took care of a few of my own projects and then responded to the 'there's a 68% chance we'll fly tonight, can you crew?" text with - "I'll be there" 

The winds took awhile to die down - so we watched Jerry test 'em out first....

...then Denny headed up. It was windy - the landing was a little rough. He was glad that Laura and I managed to keep up and find them in time to help pull them out of the bramble. 

The balloon packed away and the vehicle retrieved - I headed home, Uncle George was over. He changed the strings on Wendy's guitar - she had popped one during her first guitar lesson last week 

I snapped a picture of the new door. The trim will go up this week, and then I'll paint the wall. No idea what color yet.

I forgot to photograph the outside of the door. It's FUN. 

Sunday afternoon, after Sunday School, church and dinner, my husband took four kids to the lake to go fishing.  He asked if I wanted to come too. I passed - took the moment to catch my breath. 

Brian came back miffed/crushed - seems everyone caught fish but him. He was discouraged and ready to huck his fishing stuff into the trash. Instead, I hauled him across the street and made him talk with our trophy winning bass fisherman neighbor. It worked. He won't be throwing out his tackle box this week. 

We then packed some burgers and Sweet Baby Rays and headed over to a friend's house for barbeque where I played camera tag with their second grader. 

I won. 

Now for another week of busy busy. 

But first - bonus: George testing out Wendy's new strings combined with me trying out my new video option: 

and that's that

Wendy's last volleyball games were last night - they did well and had fun. The next few practices will be for scrimmages against the other teams from the same rec, and a pizza party, or so I've heard. She just hopes it's not on Thursday because that's her spring choir concert. 

Today is Brian's first soccer game. 

Have a great day. 
be good 

accidental revenge

This morning, typical for us, was a bustle bustle rush rush, get out the door type of scene. To fully appreciate and understand this next part, I have to remind you that I was not home last evening and that my boys were long in bed by the time I did return home. 

That being said...

We bustled our way out the door, zipping backpacks and switching shoes to the right feet and I finally took a moment to breath when we arrived at the entrance of the kindergarten hallway. It was there, a minute before the bell rang, that the neighbor asked, "Mark, what happened to your forehead?" 

???? 

I glanced Mark's way and was all, My Lands Boy! What happened to your head???  

It was the first I saw the sizable scrape. Sizable enough that he got asked about it all day long. 

In the minute before the bell rang I figured out that it had something to do with the rope swing and his brother. I nodded. I've become good at filling in the blanks. Made sense to me. 

Home from school now, I took the time to break down the story a little more clearly. 

It seems that the boys (Brian and Mark) were mutually rough housing and it went a little wrong with Mark getting whacked a bit hard in the forehead with the rope swing resulting in a noteworthy rope burn.

Brian went on to explain that it was an accident, but that Mark had sat on his head earlier - so, HAHA, he got his revenge. 

I lectured that we don't believe in that type of thinking, and that he shouldn't be out to exact revenge on his brother. But! Brian reminded me, It was an accident - so, ha ha, it was an accidental revenge! 

I was supposed to be in Ohio about now. 

 

A day of camera carrying

Yesterday I was gone from 8:30 am to 11 pm, only home for 45 minutes around suppertime - 20 minutes of which I tried to take a quick nap, equalling supper wasn't much and I forgot to eat altogether. 

The day started with the second grade walking tour field trip. We walked from the school to town, and proceeded to walk from building to building for the next five hours. 

At each tour, the kids opened their passports and got a stamp saying that they'd been there. 

The courthouse was the biggest letdown ever. I've been on this tour before, and my big kids had been telling Brian all week - oooh, just wait until you see inside the courthouse! It's SOOO cool!  And it is. Only they've eliminated it from the tour and nobody seems to know why. It's been condensed to a brisk waste of a walk in one door and out the other. I would have been more impressed with a walk of the exterior and a mention of the architecture and clock at that point. 

Does anyone know why it's been taken away?  None of the tour guides or teachers can get an answer as to why. 

From there we went to Peanut Row and learned some more history. The kids were sweltering by this time, so I'm not sure how much they took in - but they loved the peanuts that came at the end. 

With the courthouse no longer in the running, the Opera House is the favorite part of the tour by the landslide. (If you don't count Dairy Queen) 

Random fact: Melissa Gilbert stopped by and visited this very Opera House just last week. Having grown up on Little House on the Prairie, that would have been a kick to be walking downtown and have seen her, but alas - my timing is off as usual. 

Brian was a little creeped out though by the feeling of ghosts in the place. 

Field trip done, I ran home real quick - hopped in the van and scooted my sunburnt self over to my sister-in-laws for a quick visit and cup of coffee with my sister who is up from Raleigh for a couple days. 

I then ran home for my 45 power minutes - then took off with Wendy to volleyball....and to ballooning which was conveniently right next to volleyball. 

Last night Denny did an inspection of Jerry's balloon. By law the balloons have to be inspected once a year. 

Denny tried to (tease) tell them that there might be some problems, but he needs to work on his poker face. 

Rita was in town! 

There goes Wendy's ELA teacher - her first flight. 

And there goes Denny and Rita. 

I slept well last night. 

As for today - 

work
volleyball
catch up.

Happy Friday!  

Taking time to smell the lilacs

I've been so happy with my lilacs this year. We have four lilac bushes and each one is the fullest as I've ever seen them with every bud in bloom. If you look through my photo catalog, you'll see I've taken pictures of them every day this past week. 

And now it's Thursday. Today was the day I was going to head out of dodge.  Ah well. You'd think that being home now would have me with a free day, but not so. Today is packed full. 

• Field trip with the second grader (he's been counting days for two weeks) 
• a visit/late lunch with my sister at my sister-in-laws
• volleyball
• ballooning
• and anything else I can squeeze in between the cracks - lots of end of school year stuff/graduation/etc that needs to be done. 

Hope your Thursday is awesome! 

be good.