Live from Tormville!

Sing it! It's Monday!

Man, I am so glad that it's Monday - you just don't even know.  And yes, moreso than usual. 

Saturday I ran all day long - from an appointment at 9:30 am, to heading out with Wendy for some quick visiting at 9:pm.  It was a good busy day. 

A sharp contrast to our Sunday. We headed out to Sunday School and church and then came home and took turns napping. Or - if you were me - naps and then pacing. I was so restless yesterday it was driving everyone bonkers, including me and the dog.  I just couldn't seem to find a direction to content me. So I took another nap. 

Today I'm ready to hit the ground running. 

There are appointments for some Torm or another every day this week, I want to start sewing that valance today (February is running out of time), the days are getting a little longer and the lists are long. 

Time to get busy

Happy Monday! 

 

 

Sneak Peek: Technique Tuesday March Studio AE

It's the 25th already - which means I get to share a sneak peek of next month's Studio AE set.  It also means February is almost over.  *phew*  February is not my favorite. 

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Today we're enjoying a noisy morning - everyone is home. 
For a bit. There is a lot of running to be done today. If you're looking for me, I'll be running in and out all day long - right up to bedtime, and perhaps beyond. We're especially thankful that the dad of the house finally has a Saturday off and that it's this Saturday

Starting first thing this morning with a haircut appointment - Wendy wants to get there in time to look at the hairstyle books - no clue what she wants this time.

Happy Saturday!  

 

I freshened up the pillows

I was in the mood to do some sewing today, but not quite yet in the mood to tackle my valance. 

So I decided today was the day that I just couldn't stand those green pillows even one minute more. The boys like those plushy things. Me? Not so much - they look dirty so quickly. 

So I dug out my new ironing board (purchased for $1 last week at a garage sale - my table top one and my over the door one don't always cut it) 

Then I pulled out my new ironing board cover and pondered the packaging while sipping my afternoon coffee. 

Frequent - 1-2 Weekly Uses

That's so vague. If I use it just once this week, can I use it three times next week?  If I don't use it for several weeks, does my usage time rollover? Is there a time limit on my usage - is 10 minutes one day and two hours the next day - the same?

These are the types of things I ponder. 

I pondered them the whole time I was sewing. 

After the first pillow, I had the itch to throw in something else, so I grabbed the red. I only had a little bit of that left from a previous project, and divided it between this pillow and the next one. 

The fabric is just stuff that I've picked up here and there and was hoarding in my stash. It feels good to be doing a little stash busting this year - last month with Brian's quilt and now with fresh pillows. 

I used up all but a couple inches of the ticking - but still have a bit of the floral left. 

I might leave my sewing machine out for our hoped for snow day tomorrow and get that valance started. 

And where is that snow anyway??  

 

snow day hopes

I keep listening to the forecast, checking different weather sites, and they're getting my adrenalin pumping. I've heard everything from 4 - 11 inches. 

*squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*

We're really really really really hoping for a snow day tomorrow. We're craving a snow day. And I firmly believe that every winter needs a least one.  While we won't be making valentines like we usually do on the first snowday of the new year - we'll find something cozy to do. 

So we'll be putting our jammies on backwards and inside out
putting spoons under our pillows
put a penny under the door
and flush an icecube down the toilet
and whatever other snow making rituals my kids might have learned at school.

Bring it on.

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Easy for us to say since this is the first weekend that the man of the house doesn't have to travel to Chicago. He's been very fortunate road wise this winter. 

 

Project Life: Week 7

*grin*

Now you know how it looks before the crop. Like my newish Crocs? 

Confession: I came real close to just putting a filler page for week 7 with my largest letter stickers with the word: Meh! 

I wasn't that fond of week 7. I had several days of pain, the husband was gone again, the taxes were hanging over my head. Meh. 

But I knuckled down and put it together this morning.  Three pictures of Brian (one of our four children) and five pictures of my possessions.

It's a tad off balance.  *grin*  It's real.

Something different this week - I handwrote the dates. The reason for this is because I finally got around to cleaning out my retired stamps - and the set I was using was a retired one - it got put away. This might cause me to twitch and I might go back and change it.   (the only reason I put the retired ones away is to keep me from accidentally using them on an assignment that needs to be current - not because I'm an 'oh, that's so 2011 snob'....just want to be clear here) 

I kept the boy's valentines in packaging they got from their valentine's parties.  Wendy puts hers in her own album, so those aren't included here.  Allan, the in house 16 yr old,  didn't get any, that I know of.... feel free to let me know if you know differently.  

The other thing I did different this week is switch up the layout on the right side from an A page protector to whatever this one is that you see here (I'm still in a meh mood, is it noticeable?) 

The reason I did this is because I really wanted to include the toothless photo of Brian without having to add a bonus insert for it.  It's pretty much the only good picture I took all week and a highlight. 

Now I can think about week 8.  

be good! 

 

 

Inspired by a sock monkey

One of my favorite ways to get the creative juices flowing is to use pictures or objects for inspiration - a launching pad of sorts. 

So when I was challenged this past week to use this sock monkey for inspiration - I couldn't wait to play. Here is the card I put together - obviously inspired by the color combination and lines. Fun!  The stamps I used are from the batch I received last week - more specifically, Wishes from Technique Tuesday. You know me and my love for sentiment sets!  

I used Whisper White Pigment Ink from Stampin' Up for the White and Jenni Bowlin's Chili Powder Red for the sentiment. 

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My husband got home safely from Chicago again last evening. I promptly handed over the reins and fell sound asleep in my rocking chair. Not sure how long he'll be home for this time.

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Today we are relaxing. Although I might have to get dressed to take the teenager out for shoes this evening. And church pants 

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Although if we're supposed to get rain on top of this flash snowfall we got this morning - I might put that off a night or two....

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As for today - I'm creating. And it's good. 

The Monday List

I do love Mondays - even when the kids are off school, and even in the summer. 
There's just something about them.

As for today....

• The husband should be home this afternoon from his fourth weekend in a row in Chicago.  This *should* be his last Chicago weekend.  I'm often asked if he travels a lot for work and I can only answer that it ebbs and flows.  So far in 2012, he's gone five times - four weekends and one full week. That's a lot. But then there have been six month stretches that he doesn't go at all.  We're just grateful that he's working. 
• There is chili in the crockpot for dinner.  I have a 4:00 appt. today, so the crockpot is my friend. 
• Project Life won't be shared until tomorrow this week, this is only because I couldn't justify an extra trip to Costo to get pictures when I'll be in that area today. I'm all about consolidation. 
• The tooth fairy in this house lives on the edge, but *pumps fist* she got her duties done on the first night this tooth. THAT hasn't happened in a few tooths. 
• In fact, the kids are so used to it not happening the first night, that it hasn't dawned on him yet to check and see if she came. I'm not bringing it up - just seeing how long it takes him to check out of curiousity. 
• I got the taxes done this weekend. That's a record - I'm usually pushing the end of March. Amazing how a looming bill just pushes things along. 
• Our normal routine is for my husband to take the kids to the park, visiting or The Henry Ford for the day so I can do the taxes without interruptions. With him gone so much this year - that clearly wasn't going to work.  I was a little stressed trying to think between the mom! mom! mom! mom! -ing - but I got it done. And the kids still seem to like me. 
• I still haven't gotten to my February sewing project. Hopefully this week. 
• We had 1/2 a pig delivered yesterday - I'm anxious for some fresh bacon. We'd been out for awhile
• I also have a goal this week to play with a new Technique Tuesday stamp each day - I like to break them in when I get them, and with the taxes now done and behind me - I'm ready to play. 
•  I'm loving the sunshine this morning
• Time to get some laundry humming and take advantage of that heat coming through the vents (I still line dry everything) 
• be good! 

Tales of the week...

Brian lost his tooth during Sunday School this morning. 

Mom, I lost my tooth but then I found a tooth on the floor and I knew it was mine because it was an exact match to the one I lost

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Jumping into the van this morning I exclaimed about the 20 degree weather while shivering:  Whoooo, baby, it's cold

Allan (16):  Really. My ankles in my too short church pants could hardly tell 

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On Tuesday this past week, Valentine's Day, it just happened that the little boys thought it would be funny to trade seats.  If your house is anything like our house - we migrate to the same unwritten seating chart for every meal. 

What happened next, is that everyone just impulsively decided to take another persons seat, and then portray the part of the person whose seat they had taken. 

Dad was me, I was Wendy, Wendy was Allan, Allan was dad, Mark was Brian and Brian was Mark. 

I'm only amazed that nobody choked. It was the most laughing we've ever had at a dinner table as Dad was trying to mimic (failing miserably) my restless leg tapping that drives him nuts every night, and as I (Wendy) was laughing until her gut hurt, tears rolling down her face and then turning around to whine about having to do the dishes and that it's officially the worst day ever - laughing tears quickly switching to misery tears.  Wendy, portaying Allan had to keep poking me (Wendy) and then announcing that he was off to Matt's to get his second dinner.  Allan made an attempt at being a stern and serious dad who loves to tease his daughter and the boys - who had started the whole game of charades were trying to keep up with the game and mimic each other. Mark is always full and Brian always wants more, which you would never actually guess looking at the two of them. 

It was a scream.  

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Wendy cleaned out her closet this week, and I had her tallymark her outgrown pile because I like to itemize our donations on the taxes. 

Her tally sheet read:

t-shirts - 8
skirts - 2
jeans - 3
shoes - 2
tits - 1

Me: Um - Wendy?  Tits?  1?  
Wendy:  That's supposed to say tights!!!

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I had bought a new necklace at an estate sale this week. My husband, seeing it on the dresser in the hallway picked it up and commented on it. 

Oh, I bought that at the estate sale up at the condo's, I said.  I like the longer necklaces that fall below the chest and above the bellybutton. 

Studying it, and the three pieces of intertwined metal he asks, but does it do anything? Does it move?

Oh honey, I said, I can make it move. 

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Keeping it real - 

Oh - and if you come here for the layouts - you can see one that I was honored to create for this week's sketch on the Studio Calico Blog.  Has me all anxious to start photographing hot air balloons again! 

 

Project Life: Organization

I spent some of yesterday reorganizing my work space. I do this about every three months. My needs change, my favorites change, what I want closest to my fingertips changes. My work space is very small, so it's important that I utilize my space as best I can. 

Pretty much what I did yesterday was play musical containers - everything shifted. 

My journaling cards for Project Life shifted to the metal recipe card box that I shared a couple days ago. While I can't close the lid - that doesn't matter to me. They fit perfectly. 

This wooden recipe box (I have a thing for recipe boxes) previously held some of my Technique Tuesday stamps, but now holds more Project Life cards and other things that I'll be using for that project. Because Project Life is so daily, and I like to fill it throughout the week - it makes it easier and more doable if these things are close. 

A little bowl holding some tapes and date stamps. (I have a thing for old bowls.)

Wendy brought down this pink plastic flower pot and said she no longer had a use for it. We're constantly exchanging and shuffling containers. It's not my favorite, but I'm going to try it for awhile to hold some of my smaller ink pads which were previously overflowing two smaller bowls. 

My page protectors are stored in a box underneath my work station.  I have a punch already in the binder, but this box stores the other layout options.  The Project Life page protectors came back in stock yesterday at Amazon, so I was able to order the Big Variety Pack 1 and the G's (I love the size of the G's). I've currently been using the A's along with some F's. I love variety and will use these protectors in my other albums as well. 

Where all the containers fall on my desk right now.  The glass vase near my laptop holds my blocks for stamping. 

And from a little further back. That's as far back as I can show you right now - the rest is still under construction.  :) 

Today I will work on reorganizing my stamp storage - I have to first go through and pull the retired stamps which is a job I've been procrastinating on. With my shipment of new stamps having arrived this week - it's now moved to the top of the list 

Other things I hope to work on today:

sewing a valance
Keeping the household peace (we're not off to a good start)
taxes
two layouts

I best get started.....

Happy Saturday!  

The kid can draw

for the family that likes to be updated on Al's art. He has an album on facebook - but not all of our family is on book.  All these were drawn within the last couple months

and he can nag. 
mom .... did you take pictures of my artwork yet?
mom..... did you take pictures of my artwork yet?
mom .... did you take pictures of my artwork yet?  

Hey Al! I took pictures of your artwork! 

His drawings are getting noticeably better. There's a big difference between what he did at 15 and what he's doing now at 16. This is probably because he's rarely without a pen/pencil and piece of paper. He draws constantly. 

Now if we could just get him to apply the same sort of dedication to algebra. or physics. 
Right, Al?  

He's only had a couple art classes in school, and recently one four session cartooning class at the library - and has no interest in going to school for art. He doesn't want to be told how to draw or to have it change how he relays what's in his head.  I've told him that he could use the techniques he learns to apply to his own art, but he's not convinced. 

Ever since his upper elementary years, his teachers at conferences - every single one of them - would comment that Allan draws. A lot. 

I'd tell them - trust me, you'd rather that he draw than what he'll do if you take his pencil away - because if you take his pencil away, he'll resort to toe tapping, or lip sucking, or shuffling is feet, or chewing on his shirt. These are all things that he did before he grabbed the pencil. He needs to be doing something. 

And he hears everything while he's drawing. He can relay a story word for word. 

As for his algebra and physics, disorganization is his main problem.  It amazes me that my most OCD kid can be so disorganized with his schoolwork, but he is, and no amount of punishment, follow up, daily journals or repercussions has been able to change that. 

In the end, it's up to the kid - and he knows very well that he will either reap the rewards or suffer the consequences. 

He never loses his artwork though. 

And they pile up quicker than I can photograph them. 

I do enjoy them. I can't even draw a stick figure - so it amazes me that he pulls these out so effortlessly. 

The Cactus Guy Series