ShonaScraps

One Little Word - CHOICE

2012-01-10T08:00:00.000-05:00

How many times have you started a new year out with a list of resolutions, only to slowly give up on a few if not all of them within a few weeks or a few months? Yep, I am guilty of that.

Many people who are part of this amazing little creative community I am part of choose One Little Word to concentrate on all year long. Studying that word, immersing themselves in that word, discovering how it fits and applies to their life. Ali Edwards, over at Big Picture Classes (www.bigpictureclasses.com) offers a year long workshop complete with prompts to help you discover that One Little Word You have chosen. This sounded like a worthwhile endeavor to me so I jumped in, and boy, I have already learned a thing or two, like sometimes your word picks you instead of you picking a word. I originally wanted to do the word "serve", like serve God, serve my husband, serve my kids, serve my coworkers, serve my community, but the word CHOICE kept coming to the forefront of my mind, after all every little moment of every day is wrought with seemingly little choices that when combined make a big impact (whether good or bad) on you and the people around you. So I am immersing myself in the word CHOICE this year and sincerely hope by the end of the year I can totally embrace the choices faced with me every day. I have no idea where this word is going to lead me but there a few things I want to invite as I move through this journey:

An open mind
Fun, after all I still have two little ones at home, and I more often than not choose the obligatory mundane things in life over building a fort with my kids, and they will not be here forever.
Compassion, for others, sometimes this is a choice in of itself. We are all human beings and will all reach a time in our life where we will need some compassion, I do not always choose compassion over judgement.
Commitment, sometimes commitment to something is very much a conscious choice that has to made each and every day you wake up, whether that is commitment to exercising, eating well, loving, daily devotion, date night, etc.
Joy
Excellence, which interestingly enough is a definition of choice.

New Year, More Time, and Freezer Cooking

2012-01-08T18:39:00.000-05:00

It's a new year, and boy have a taken on a ton of projects. Most of them are year long projects, I am sure I will be sharing as the year progresses. I have some ideas for this little blog of mine, so the first thing (which will likely take me a long time because of the effort involved) I want to start working on is a new design for this little page. Its time to clean out and re-decorate. So as we move forward you will likely see little changes along the way, they are intentional.

As we start this year, I am looking for ways to streamline my time, so I have more time for the fun things like my dear husband, my two children and my hobby. There are certain things that have to get done..laundry, dinner, packing lunches, exercise is not negotiable too, I have to do that to make sure I am around for those people I love in the future. I want to learn to choose the fun things when there are little nagging things that really are not important (like dusting) hanging out there. This will be a journey for me, wrought with lots of twist and turns and lots of big bumps, I am somewhat of a control freak and am learning that this compulsion to keep everything clean and in my order is nothing more than my way to try and control something, since there is so much I have not control over (when the next disaster is going to hit, Chris's schedule, and Lord knows anything that has to do with my kids). So I am concentrating on choices, the little choices we are faced every moment of every day that mold and shape this bigger thing called life.

So, one of the first things I have to get back under control and streamlined is dinner. In Georgia I was so good and efficient at once a month freezer cooking. I got out of that habit, partly because when I was laid off followed by a big very expensive move which we paid 100% for, we just did not have the money to buy a months worth of groceries at a time. That has changed, but the kids are a lot busier now, so I am compromising. I have started freezer cooking again, two weeks at a time. And, I have found this satisfies my inner control freak, it feels so good to have two or three weeks worth of dinners prepped and in the freezer. Yes, it is the little things. Not only that, I now prepare a weeks worth of lunches for the entire family over the weekend, so all I have to do the night before is grab the main lunch dish, the two sides and a snack and throw it all into each of our lunch boxes. This is so much more efficient and time saving than trying to do it at night or God forbid in the morning. Again , this satisfies my inner control freak very well and both of these methods saves tons of money.

One of my basic freezer recipes is Hearty Meat Sauce. I have no idea where I got the recipe from, to give them credit, but it is an awesome base because from it I can make several different dishes like sloppy joes, spaghetti sauce, chili and taco filling. I suppose if I tried hard enough I could figure out a hot dog sauce as well. I am going to give you the recipe along with two variations, sloppy joes and spaghetti sauce.

When I make a full batch of this is makes 15 cups. I divide this into 5 freezer bags of 3 cups each (this is for a family of four). So I get five meals out of this.

Hearty Meat Sauce Base

3.5 lbs of ground beef (I use ground round, and sometimes I use ground turkey)
2 cups of chopped onion
5 large cloves of garlic, minced
4 cans of diced tomatoes
2 cans of beef broth (if I have none on hand I use chicken broth)
2 cans (the small ones) tomato paste
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
2 large bay leafs
1/2 cup chopped parsley (if you don't have any omit it)

Combine the first four ingredients in a large skillet or dutch oven, cook over medium high until meat is browned, stirring until it crumbles.
Drain and pat dry with paper towels
I wipe the drippings from the skillet
Return meat to the skillet and add all the ingredients except the parsley
Bring to a boil
reduce heart and simmer uncovered 35 minutes stirring occasionally. Add parsley towards the end and cook no more than 5-10 additional minutes.
Remove and discard bay leaf.
Spook 3 cups into each of 5 labeled freezer bags.
You can store in refrigerator up to a week or in freezer 4-5 months.

Sloppy Joes

3 cups Hearty Meat Sauce Base

2 TBSP chopped green pepper

2 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp cider vinegar

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

4 buns

Combine first five ingredients in a pot and boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes uncovered or until almost all the liquid is evaporated/absorbed.
Top buns with meat mixture

Spaghetti Sauce

3 cups Hearty Meat Sauce Base

1 cup tomato sauce

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp basil

Combine all ingredients in a pan bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

FlashBack Friday-The College Years

2011-09-16T09:34:00.001-04:00

Its been a while since I did a flashback Friday, but I find myself with a few minutes to indulge myself. I am traveling back to my college years, I probably could do a whole month on college. Seems fitting to do this now, as so many of my younger cousins and even some friends children are heading off to college just this week. Such exciting times, but boy oh boy, just thinking about Phoenix going off to college makes me go into a fit of anxiety. One of my Aunts commented to a cousin regarding her daughter going to college, "at least you are not there to know what she is doing, Ignorance is Bliss"...heck no..ignorance is not bliss...I am an admitted control freak, and well quite frankly, I've been there, and I want to know everything, but I do have a few years to overcome my control issues and let go.

So anyways, I went University of Florida and majored in Environmental Engineering. I did not arrive to UF until 2 years after high school, and I really had not known or kept in touch with any of my high school classmates who ventured to UF after high school, so I arrived, alone, not a friend in the world (yeah, ya hear it?..woe is me). I lived off campus. I was soo excited to have my very own place, until some crazy man decided to murder and mutilate 5 students. I think that was still the most scared I have ever been in my life, not knowing anyone, living alone in a strange place, but I got through it.

Now I know, some of you will not believe this, but I was kind of shy being in that real big place not knowing anyone except my boyfriend when he finally arrived, so I concentrated on studying and working those first few years. But those last two years came, I came out of my shell. Probably something to do with attending class and being involved in activities with the same group of people over and over and over again. There was a core group of us that seemed to do pretty much everything together. Those are the years I remember the most, really good times and really good memories of Gator Football Games, Wine and Cheese Parties, Softball, pizza with no cheese (please don't ask), a wastewater design competition, even a St. Patricks Day Party at my place, the yielded me in the emergency room the next morning to get a tetanus shot (that's what happens when 20 people crash at your place and you get up to tinkle and step on that part of the belt buckle that goes in the hole of the belt) and some really good memories of some really good people of which most I have lost touch with.

So I have a smathering of photos from that time, I lost many of them in my divorce so many years ago, but I still have a few.

We (actually I think it would be proper to say Dave) formed a intramural softball team one year. I remember this game well, because my best friend Elaine and I singlehandedly saved the game with our uncanny and amazing softball skills. So let see from left to right that's Dave , Jamie, me Kevin, Greg, and Elaine (in the top picture). In the bottom picture thats Dave and Kevin.

A few pictures from Gator Stompin (probably best I don't include all of them). So Gator Stompin occurs the last week of school, you buy a ticket or a wrist band (the details escape me) that entitles you to a a free drink special at all participating bars along University Avenue. I cannot name half these people anymore, but, soo much fun that night. My favorite memory of this night was crashing a non participating (that happened to be entirely empty until we showed up) bar to drink and dance...

Below, Me, Dave, his buddy, and Elaine before the Gator Stompin Activities.

Random photo from that night.

So where we got all the money to do all we did, I have no idea, but that last year I swear it seemed like a typical night consisted of going out to eat every night (third pict below) followed by either a night of dancing, playing pool or drinking.

My friends Chrissy, Dave and Me.

Chrissy and me out to dinner.

I would go back to those years, but I would not trade those years for anything either!

I will never forget...

2011-09-11T09:10:00.000-04:00

It hardly seems fitting to let this day go by without commenting on it. You know, as much as I really believe in documenting our life, the events surrounding our life, current events, culture etc, I have never been able to bring myself to create anything regarding that day and have decided this year I will be adding a page to the appropriate album regarding 9.11.01 and the days that followed.

I was at work the day the planes hit, Phoenix was five months old, we had just sold our condo, our house was not finished being built and we were to be moving to a hotel until the house was complete.

I was working on my computer engrossed in a project when a coworker yelled from an adjacent office,
"Tracy just called and said a plane hit the World Trade Center". Both of us dismissed it as an innocent accident and we both assumed it was probably a small plane that somehow got off course. When Tracy called the second time to tell us of the second plane we knew something was terribly wrong. Other people in the office started receiving calls from friends and family and before we knew it a spouse had brought is a TV and we all (it was a small office) gathered around the conference room table and watched in complete horror the events unfold that morning. As we got news of each additional plane I realized I had no idea where my father was, and could easily had been on any of those planes, the horror I felt was unimaginable. I called my brother and asked him if he knew what dad's schedule was, and he said he did not. I called his work and got a hold of his assistant. I had never met Debbie before, bit I no sooner said this is Sho...and she blurted out, he's here, he's safe. But he had the unfortunate task of telling a class of New Yorkers he was teaching the terrible news.

We had already though we had seen the absolute worse that could happen and all watched in disbelief as that first tower came down. It never occured to any of us (and I was in room of structural engineers, just imagine the conversations) that the second tower could come down, and when it did, well...as many of you were feeling as you watched, the feelings and emotions and palpable feel of that room was indescribable. I know I sat there thinking, we are for all intents and purposes under attack, and the feelings of uncertainty and of what would come next was the absolute worse I have ever felt. Nothing, with the exception of the events in New Orleans when the levee breached, has ever come close to the feelings I had not only that day but for the months that followed.

Although the feelings of horror and helplessness was so prevalent for so many months there were times I felt ever so proud to be an American. When the story of passengers on United Flight 93 unfolded, I was amazed, and full of pride, and often felt myself wondering as a new mom what would I have felt or done if I was on that plane. The selfless unrelenting determination of the first responders and rescuers moved me to tears every day, but not just them, the stories of the clean up crews at ground zero who hadn't been home in weeks, hadn't seen their families, and said they would not go home until they were done moved me to tears. Even the news media profoundly affected, I cannot imagining having to uphold the highest level of professionalism, and objectivity, as they had to cover one of the most horrific events in American History, and I guess as I watched the news every day I never realized how hard it must be for them until a CNN reporter broke down in tears as she was reporting from the street, she had went down there to cover one angle, but once she got there and she realized the story of the people was more important and urgent she changed her plans, and it obviously deeply affected her.

As I mentioned above, we had to move into a hotel. Can I tell you, that was the worse time to not have a place to call home, not to be grounded. It was awful, and uncertain it was miserable. We moved into our house in November and we were relieved more than anything.

I had decided to create a time capsule for Phoenix's first year, it quickly turned into a 55 gallon tote, we put every newspaper, magazine, pictures we took around town in that tote..her time capsule. I've never opened back up, bust as she gets more curious as she gets older I suspect we will go through it.

America lost so much that day, and so many families are still sacrificing as they send their sons and daughters oversees to fight to protect us and our ideals in the middle east.

I'm grateful to the amazing brave service men and women and other law enforcement personnell who have kept us safe the last 10 years.

I am also proud to be an American and proud how we come together when we need to despite our differences!

Flashback Friday July 29 2011

2011-07-29T12:41:00.000-04:00

I forgot I even had this picture, along with a few others that day. I also had to a do a double take and confirm with my husband that the dude on the left was his friend Orlando, because, well it has been 11 years and uh, he has no hair now. These are two of Chris's best friends. Orlando and Roman, Roman and Chris have been through a lot together, and Roman was the best man in our wedding. This was October 2000, Orlando and Roman picked us up in the boat at our condo on the river and we spent the day in the water mostly out by the Sanibel light house...then they dropped us back home, perfect day with good friends. We miss you guys!

Flashback Friday July 22, 2011

2011-07-22T16:31:00.000-04:00

This is my and my best friend John, circa 1988 or 1987, Honor Society Induction. We met in Junior High, and he put up with me and all my shenanigans through Junior High, High School, College, a First Marriage, the fall out from that marriage and watched me marry Chris (hopefully satisfied I finally made a decent decision). We lost track after that, you know distance, marriage, kids, tend to do that. Whether he was aware of it or not, he was there for me in some of the hardest times in my life, most of the time he was there just by being there, nothing more...John is nowhere near the emotional type like I am (like this blog will be too emotional for him likely) and in no way was he ever going to indulge me in a pity party or crying party etc...ever.., back then it frustrated me. Today...I appreciate that.....

I got a chance to spend a weekend with John last year, it had been 10 years since we had seen each other, or spent any measurable amount of time together. I have to say, I was a little nervous about the idea of spending an entire weekend with him after 10 years of not seeing or talking to him, but there was no need for that. It was a very nice, comfortable weekend, spent catching up with an old friend, you know the type of comfortable, where it does not always feel like you have to fill the quiet with talking (and coming from me that is big...I always talk). He is just on of those friends who fit like an old pair of jeans, and I love him! This is us at the upper falls of White Oak Canyon in Shenandoah National Park, circa 2010.

Flashback Friday, July 16 2011

2011-07-16T09:41:00.000-04:00

I have so few of these old pictures. That is ok, the class I am taking (Finding Photo Freedom at Big Picture Classes) points out that rarity creates value. Since I have so few of these photos, I will treasure these and the stories behind them even more. And I do not know about you, but I definitely have found with the dawn of digital camera, I take way more photos than I would ever in a million years be able to get in a photo album let alone a scrapbook, which is why I am now scrutinizing every photo and purging the excess.

So I am still flashing back to the same trip as my previous post. It is spring break 1983, my Aunt and Uncle and Cousins and Grandmother have come to visit us in Orlando. They leave is alone while they go out. We snap these picture. The first one is of Me and my cousins Michelle and Amanda, the second one is of my brother and my Cousin Andrew. Again, not the greatest pictures..but for the memories of that night it evokes.

So our parents have left us kids for the evening to do whatever it is parents do as a group of adults without kids in Orlando....and me and my brother get in this huge knock down drag out all out full physical fight (probably instigated by me being the bossy control kind of freak I was, seeing a pattern here?) The twins were so scared, apparently they did not fight with each other or their sister like me and my brother fought. For the longest time...I mean the longest time, whenever they would see us that night would inevitably come up in conversation, kind of sad that for most of their childhood that episode stood out in their mind. Lots of good memories with those three though! Every throughout Junior High and High School they came to our house for spring break, if it was not for those visits, I may have grown up not really knowing them....so the few photos I have bring back so many memories....like the one trip My aunt was driving all of us to the back in my moms little dodge charger (wondering how all of us kids fit..yikes) when the clutch went out and me and Michelle had to wait in Howard Johnson Restaurant along I-4 while Aunt Sherry went to get it fixed. Or the spring break Michelle and I spent together doing Epcot and spending a few days at the beach in a hotel right on the beach all by ourselves, and the look on my Aunts face when she decided to drop in for a surprise visit and saw the hotel room (it was a mess...and apparently Michelle was not a typical teenager with a messy room). Lots of memories from those trip...love that family!

Flashback Friday

2011-07-07T11:38:00.000-04:00

So, as I mentioned in my previous post, I have been going through all my photos and organizing them. This process has caused some laughter and some tears. So many many memories, some so sweet, some so so funny, some so sad. I have loved every minute of the process. I am realistic enough to know it is unlikely I will be able to scrapbook all the photos/memories, but, I can still share some of the stories..on my blog...still technically a form of Scrapbooking.

I love this photo. This is me and my cousin Shelly the photo itself..well it sucks...it is not very good, you cannot see our faces, definitely a candidate to be thrown away...but for the story behind it.

This was spring break, 7th grade, our first year in Orlando. Shelly, my grandmother, and Shelly's family came to Orlando to go to Disneyworld, the first time for all of us. This is the Dumbo ride, stupid little ride for 12 year olds. Non the less, Shelly and I fought the entire ride, if you look closely she looks pretty P.Oed, and I look pretty smug, you can even see me reaching for the button which raises and lowers the elephant car. Shelly and I fought the entire time over who was going to push that stupid button, I won. Ohh, I so remember the look on our Nana's face and her frustration with us (well probably me). I still happen to be a control freak (I realize this, I am forever a work in progress), and Shel, well, distance has caused us to grow apart, but I know enough, that her personality is not one of controlling, or always having to have her way, she is gracious, and kind and probably would let me push that button today (and yes my personality is one that I still would fight over pushing that damn button).

Oh what I would give for a picture of the two of us on that ride today....

Photo Connections

2011-07-07T11:16:00.000-04:00

So I have been doing something I have wanted to do for year. Go through my photos and organize them. Now the good news is/was, I already had them arranged chronologically. You know being an engineer everything has to be in some logical order, and chronologically made perfect sense to me. I even had a system down for scrapbooking, I scrapbook the previous years photos in the current year, so for example, right now I am working on 2010 scrapbook album. It has worked for me so far. Here is the kicker, I noticed more recently that as the kids get older I take fewer pictures (i still take a lot) and that there were connections I could likely make with current photos to older photos. I had started to make those connections in my head when looking at a current photo of Phoenix showcasing her fashion style or shoe obsession I would say ohh..I know I have a photo of Phoenix when she was 2 with daddy's shoes on her feet, or with some crazy outfit on, so I would go back through my years of photo box and search for that photo (this was a several hour process, finding the old photo) ..and find it and make a page. I thought to myself, there has to be an easier way.

And there is...a fellow scrapbooker and Club Scrap aficionado (Pam Butler) made a comment either on Facebook or in the Club Scrap message boards about Stacy Julian's Library of Memories which Stacy teaches every two years online at Big Picture Classes. And basically as I ready more and more about this I realized this is exactly what I am looking for. So I signed up. I will not go through the nitty gritty, but the whole process involves going through your photos (digital and otherwise), purging them (yes I through away thousands of photos..egads...but it felt good), rating them (deciding what you definitely want to scrapbook, three stars and which ones you want to keep but not scrapbook, one star) storing the highest rated photos in storage binders (this is where those who cannot let go of chronological scrapbooking can still maintain chronological scrapbooking if they want, I have storage binders labeled by year with my 3 star photos in them, and I will scrapbook from those) and triaging them. Triaging them, probably the hardest step. Triaging is the act of taking those photos (that have aged a while in storage binders) out of chronological order and putting them in four basic categories: All about us, People we Love, Places we go, and Things we Do. And then those categories have further subcategories. Oh my goodness can I tell you how liberating and exciting this turned out to be for me. So many connections to be made. I had pictures from Griffin's first fishing trip, some more from a trip he went on with his Uncle Kevin and Grumpa, and some random trips he took over the years since then. How many fishing layouts can you have? They get old after a while, but a layout featuring all of these, and the relation ship between him and the men in his life...PRICELESS!

Or how about the photos of my grandfather, Uncle, Brother and Father in their sailor uniforms, then a photo of our family in front of the Navy Memorial in Washington DC....again..Priceless.

Oh....and I picture of me and my great grandparents in their front yard on Caroline, a picture of my Nana and Phoenix in the same yard on Caroline 25 years later, along with a picture of this beautiful tree in that same yard all covered with snow and a picture of my Nana all dressed and ready to go for my cousin's wedding in that same yard...again PRICELESS...to be able to document over 30 years of memories in that yard is priceless, and connection I might never have made if I did not have a Places We Go/Nana's Caroline House.

Pictures of me and my cousins at Cedar Point when I was 10, then another Picture of me and my cousins when I worked at Cedar Point in College....

Here is a good one, a picture of me rolling in the mud at age 2 or 3....and a picture of my husband rolling in the mud about the same age...you think we were meant for each other?

Making connections all over the place, problem is I have to carry a notebook around so I can write them down as I think about them....

I love that our scrapbooks will have that much more meaning, and I have totally, totally have broken free from Chronological Scrapbooking...feels soooo good.

My Nook.

2011-01-22T10:29:00.000-05:00

I so wanted an e-reader, but could not justify the expense. Then one day my co-worker came in my office and said she got her kindle, not this particular co-worker is frugal and so I knew she likely did not fork over cash for a kindle so I asked her how she got it. She replied, with Credit Card Points. Light Bulb! I have crdit card points, I checked, and I had more than enought to get enough Barnes and Noble Gift Certificated to get the color nook. I texted Chris (guilty as charged, I knew he would never say no, nothing ever seems to much for him when it comes to me, so blessed! and know it). Asked what he thought about my scheme, he said go ahead, and I did.

It arrived, of course, while I was out of town. I have to admit, I was not too sure at first, But after countless crossword puzzles later and a book later, I am satisfied. The best things about my nook:

I do not have to run out to the store or library when I finish a book
I do not have to have a light on when I read in bed at night, and hence I do not have to wake up Chris at 3 am after I have fallen asleep with the light on and ask him to get up and turn the light off (spoiled, I know)
Unlimited daily crossword puzzle and sudoku puzzles..yeah
I am learning to play chess.

Woo hoo! Yep, I am happy with my nook, especially since it did not cost me a dime!

January 1

2011-01-01T23:52:00.000-05:00

Simple Easy Resolutions, yet also seemingly harder than they sound:

Spend more time with God
Do the Loving thing every day.
Spend more time with the kids (after all the clock is ticking until they will leave)
Move more
Eat Less

Period!

December 31

2011-01-01T23:48:00.000-05:00

New years eve. Well we had goof intentions, first, Phoenix got sick, you know, stomach bug kind of sick, then our friends were going to come over, but they canceled, then we were going to do a family game night, and that got sabatoged by neighbors, but we did light the fire pit and roast Marshmallows, and we called it a night around 10:30, so to speak. We all piled into the master bedroom, put on Harry and the Henderson's and all of us, save Phoenix, fell asleep before 2011 arrived. Oh well...this seems to be a pattern with the Gibson's. Happy New Year!

December 30

2010-12-31T19:53:00.001-05:00

Ahh...2010, the last year of the first decade of the 21st century. 364 days later, and 6556 (yes count them) 6556 photos later the year has come to an end. We have been through a track season, a soccer season, 3 baton parades, two 5 k races, me turning 40, and Chris landing a job. It has been a year of many activities but more importantly many blessings. Has it turned out the way we intended? Absolutely not, but it has turned out the way God intended for us, and that is the best thing.

We still own our house in Georgia, and yes, we would have liked for it to be sold and us in our own house here, but we have given it over to the best real estate agent ever, God, and we know that he has an ultimate plan for that house, either he has the perfect family for it, who just has not made their way to Georgia, maybe he plans on returning us to Georgia, maybe we still have it so it can bless the people who are living in it. We have no idea, but we know God does, and that is good enough.

We have settled into a church home. Now, this was hard for us, we kept comparing churches to our church in Georgia, but finally realized no two churches are exactly the same, so after a year, and lots of prayers God led us to this church, not necessarily the one we would have picked, but it is the one He picked, and that is good enough for us. He has also led us to a wonderful loving life group as well.

Financially it has not been an easy year, however, we are a little less in debt and continue to learn we really do not need much to live and be happy. I just hope we can instill that attitude into our children.

We are happy, healthy, and alive. For that, we are soooo, sooo thankful. And for the people God has blessed us with, we hope we are as much as a blessing to you .

Looking forward to all God has planned for us in 2011.

Love and Hugs
Enjoy the LittleThings

December 28

2010-12-31T19:52:00.000-05:00

Indulge...oh the indulgences at Christmas Time. There are many for me, sugar cookies, peppermint, and new found favorite, candy cane popcorn. But I still have to say my favorite Christmas time indulgence is Starbucks Peppermint Mocha. I make sure to have one each Christmas!

Disclaimer, I did not take this picture, I am not that good, I found it at this gentleman's http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephenccwu/3035854901/ Flickr Page, and he gets all the credit for it.

December 27

2010-12-31T19:44:00.001-05:00

I have been off since December 21, and its back to work for me today...blah. Hi Ho, Hi Ho, its off to work I go...

December 26

2010-12-31T19:44:00.000-05:00

The Day after Christmas. Both Chris and I are home. We have to take back one gift, Phoenix's cell phone. But, we did decide to go to the movies. This seems to be typical for us the day after Christmas, whether Chris is off or not, I seem to take the kids to the movies the day after Christmas, may be so we can all decompress. Not sure. We went and saw Yogi Bear. To me it was the cheesiest, stupidest movie I have ever seen, however the kids were tickled pink and laughed out loud most of the movie making the 26 dollars we paid for the family to see it well worth it. And yeah, we got the phone exchanged.

December 25

2010-12-31T19:43:00.002-05:00

Our kids are weird...weird I tell you. The woke up, tried to come into our room to wake us and when they encountered a locked door the turned around and sat on the couch to wait for us. What ever happened to banging on your parents doors to get them up immediately to open up gifts from Santa. We were up anyway so we padded out into the family room and the unwrapping frenzy began.

We spent the morning unwrapping all the gifts..BB Guns, Video Cameras, American Girl Dolls, Nintendo DSI XLs, clothes, Bionicles, art kits, rocket kits and the list goes on. Was so heartwarming to see the kids faces. Santa really hit it this year.

The afternoon leading up to our guests arriving was spent building rockets, shooting BB gins, talking to family, and checking on the brisket.

We shared dinner with one of my oldest friends and her husband and when they left, we collapsed in our beds and I for one, slept like a baby, happy and content!
All in all, a very relaxing and blessing filled day.

December 24

2010-12-31T19:43:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve..it is here. And I wanted it to be so special and memorable, yet I had the biggest monster mom moment...I felt so bad. However, all three of us (me and the kids) were tired, I was kind of weepy about not having any family around, they were pushing each others buttons as well as mine and I just lost it and I felt terrible. I took a deep breath, apologized, and suggested we go watch a movie in our room in the hopes we would all fall asleep, and eventually we did, only to wake up when Chris arrived home at around 6. Our usually tradition of attending Christmas Eve Service went out the door. Phoenix had not been feeling good so we scrapped going to a friends house for a Christmas Eve Celebration. I really felt we needed to regroup as a family, so we made a pizza, opened up our PJ gifts, changed into our PJs and settled in to watch a Christmas Story. The kids went to bed around 11, and I think I did an ok of salvaging what could have been an other wise awful day....

December 23

2010-12-31T19:42:00.000-05:00

One of the best Best Birthday Gifts I have ever received, from my dear husband of course, and I cannot wait every for Christmas to get here so I can display it!

December 21

2010-12-31T19:41:00.000-05:00

Our House, Right Now, This year, In Texas.

December 20

2010-12-31T14:58:00.000-05:00

I love being surprised. I really do..but gifts and cards that is. But I am rarely surprised by much anymore. But I guess that is ok. This year, I participated in a Christmas Card Swap over at http://www.clubscrap.com/. If you love to handcraft cards and receiving handcrafted cards, I would highly recommend doing this one year. This year I made 33 cards, sent them in and received 24 cards back (you see there were 3 groups of 11, you were required to make 11 cards for your group, making one for every participant was optional which is why I only got 24 cards back). Anyhow, when my monthly pizza box arrived with my kit, it had another pizza box full of these absolutely beautiful cards, and all handcrafted, and although I knew they were coming I was still quite surprised to receive them. It seems like fewer and fewer Christmas Cards arrive to the Gibson household every year, all these cards were an unexpected blessing. Loved them!

December 19th

2010-12-28T20:49:00.000-05:00

I wrote a letter to Santa today...it was kind of fun. I should do this every year.

December 18

2010-12-28T20:41:00.000-05:00

I AM SOO EXCITED! Not only am I cooking Christmas Dinner this year, but we are going to have company, yes, I said company. My BFF Lori and her crazy family of 6 are coming over to Celebrate Christmas with us, yup. Loru, Bob, Robbie, Blade, Gabby, and Natasha are traveling over the hills and through the woods to eat with us. What are we having you ask? Well the menu is as follows:

Smoked Beef Brisket (we are in Texas after all)

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes (My Signature Dish it seems)

Brussle Sprouts Sauteed in Butter and Garlic

Rosemary French BRead with Garlic Butter

Apple Pie

Sadly...no pics....but I love having company at the Holidays! Merry Christmas!

December 16

2010-12-28T20:39:00.000-05:00

So thankful for so many things and have never taken the time to just reflect on those things or write them donw. I so often think about creating a gratitude journal but I never get aroudn to doing it. SO rigth her right now I am going to list just a minute fractionof what I am thankful for right now.

~ My husbands hands (i say this often because they save us so much money every year) ~ Our children who bless me every day in so many ways ~my job since it keeps a roof over our heads ~ our vehicles which allow us not only to work but also afford us so many other opportunities we otherwise would not have ~ our computer which allows us to keep in touch with so many of our friends and families ~ our phones ~ the simple pleasure and luxury of a morning cup of coffee with a little bit of cream ~ my bed ~ my parents without whom I would not be who I am today ~ the freedom to worship my God my way ~ my savior Jesus Christ who was perfect and died, so that I may live forever ~ my church family ~ our leaders in Washington, complain as we may, they still have the unenviable task of running this country and they cannot make everyone happy all the time ~ my friends who just accept me as I am (I know that is hard sometimes) ~ cousins who are like sisters ~ books which allow me to escape to other worlds ~ the privlege of prayer ~ the means to bless our children this Christmas ~

Hugs and Love
Enjoy the little things.

December 15

2010-12-28T20:38:00.000-05:00

I am blessed with a December Birthday, today to be exact, and I am turning 40. And I have made sure everyone has known that, and they all responded as they should. My coworkers decorated my cube, my husband has planned a dinner out with my friends, and even better yet, two whole days without the kids, and even though those two days will be filled with Christmas Shopping, it is well appreciated, as it allows us to get so much done we otherwise would not get done. The only bad thing about a December birthday is that it makes it really hard to have a get together, people are out of town, people are busy getting ready for the Holidays, it is just a busy time of year, but regardless, I am so grateful for the time I got so spend throughout the past month with some wonderful people celebrating my 40th year walking this earth. I am so blessed, and so thankful for all of them in my life!

A group picture from my Birthday dinner at Magic Time Machine...FUN (yep that is Pocohantas who jumped into my picture)!

Hugs and Love
Enjoy the little things.

December 14th

2010-12-28T20:36:00.000-05:00

Have you ever really thought about how your Christmas Gifts get distributed? I actually never have! By the time Christmas Morning rolls around we have so many gifts under the tree it is somewhat sickening. We only allow the kids to open one gift under the tree on Christmas Eve and it is always Christmas PJs (so they look good foir Christmas Picutres the next day). When the kids wake up Christmas Morning to the addition of Santa Gifts to the already overflowing tree an unwrapping frenzy follows. I will say as they have gotten older, they do take turns opening their gifts. One will grab a gift open it, then the other one will grab a gift and open it. they are not picky as to whether they open Santa Gifts first or not, but they will pick a box intentionally if they think it is the box that has what they especially want in it and when they come across one for the adults they bring it to us, and we only open our gifts after they have opened all theirs. We let them tear through their presents, stopping a few times during the frenzy to gather up the gift wrapping to put in a trash bag, but for the most part it is a uncrollable, unrapping frenzy, and I would not have it any other way.

A peek into the unwrapping frenzy.

Hugs and Love
Enjoy the little things.

December 12

2010-12-28T20:31:00.002-05:00

One of the blessings (or curses depending on how you think of it) of growing up in Orlando was having Walt Disney World in your back yard. Back in the days I was in high school and the first year of college what is now known as Downtown Disney was referred to as Disney Village, and it was not nearly as commercialized or popular as it is now, as a matter of fact I remember it as a well kept secret. Every year Disney would hold a Live Nativity at Disney Village and we would go watch it as a family. It was such a moving production, every year I would get goosebumps whenever the drummer boy made his way to Baby Jesus' bed. We only did this as a family a few years, I have no photos of this short lived annual trek, and I would continue to go until I left Orlando to go to college in Gainesville, but I remember it as a fond and special memory with my family. The last time I went to Downtown Disney with a glimmer of hope that the may have the production at Christmas, I was sadly mistaken. I was greeted by full parking lots, a throng of shoppers, and really no remnants of the quaint village I remember from my high school and college days. And definitely no signs of the real reason for the season.

December 11

2010-12-28T20:31:00.000-05:00

Oh Christmas Tree. I have a love/hate relationship with Christmas trees. I love the IDEA of a beautiful lighted Christmas Tree in my living room, where I envision me spending peaceful nights sippping coffee or cocoa when everyone else has gone to bed...YEAH RIGHT. This never happens though.

Buying the tree and decorating the tree is such an ordeal. Not sure why it is or if it has to be, but it seems to be in our house.   In Georgia we had started a tradition of cutting our tree down and bringing it home. The one year we did that does hold some awesome memories, but then we moved to Texas, and the closest farm is a two hour drive. Just not an option. The past two years one of us adults has run to the store to pick one up, so it has not been even undertaken as a family.

Our Christmas tree style is very sentimental, all the kids ornaments they have made throughout the years are lovingly and proudly placed on the tree each year. We try to buy an ornament every place we visit, and those too are placed lovingly and proudly on the tree.   This year, the kids actually asked about many of the ornaments we brought back from Alaska on our honeymoon, and it was fun toi reminisce about our honeymoon and share it with them.

In the end, yes, I love the lighted, ecelctic, tree, however, those eveninngs I dream of sitting in the dark room with nothing but the Christmas Tree Lights on sipping a cup of coffee just never materialize.   I'm thinking I have to schedule that into my evenings!

Our tree this year.

Hugs and Love.
Enjoy the little things.

December 10th

2010-12-28T20:27:00.000-05:00

What is it about wrapping? I love the idea of beautiful paper, coordinating tags, and ribbon, and making the packaging as much as part of the gift as the gift itself. HOWEVER, it never happens for me. Usually I find myself wrapping gifts to be sent out while I am in line at the post office, no joke here. And, well, Christmas Eve, instead of enjoying a nice cozy night watching a movie with my husband, which is what I would rather be doing, he and I find ourselves spending the entire night wrapping gifts. Every year we say "We are not waiting until Christmas Eve to wrap" and every year Christmas Eve finds us up late wrapping gifts.

Heck, I still have a pile of gifts I made for friends in Georgia and family in Ohio, still sitting in my craft room because I never got them wrapped, it has been a year people, and there they sit, and will likely sit for another year. I suppose we could add waiting until the last minute to wrap to our Christmas Traditions.

December 9th

2010-12-28T20:26:00.000-05:00

Year after year, when I think about Christmas traditions, I think of how we have not done a very good job of creating treasured family traditions for our kids.

When I was growing up, we had several traditions, but the most treasured one was opening family gifts on Christmas Eve. As a Navy family, it was rare we were in Ohio with the rest of the family for Christmas, but we still received gifts from those Ohio family members, tons of them when we were younger. And, since the Ohio family had the annual Christmas Eve get together on Christmas Eve, my parents let us open their gifts so we could call into the party. I really treasure the memory of that tradition.

Now that we are in Texas and my bestest buddy in the whole world lives a short 40 minutes away, we instituted the annual Bambach-Gibson cookie/crafting day. Her kids came over and we baked dozens of cookies, and made dozens of ornaments. That was a fun day, and a tradition I hope we can keep going. The kids were not too interested in the baking, but they did love the ornament making and they enjoyed making marshmallow hot chocolate stirrers.

With our kids, we allow them to open one gift on Christmas Eve, and it is the pajamas, and we all wear our new pajamas to bed Christmas Eve. Not sure how they feel about that tradition, but it is what it is.

A few years ago in Georigia, we attempted to start the cut your own tree tradition, however, since we have moved to Texas and the nearest cut your own tree is hours away, that went by the wayside. In Georgia, we had our annual Christmas Dinner with self named Saturday Night Supper Club friends, but we are not in Georgia anymore.

One tradition that has stuck year over year for me is making my Christmas Cards. I have made them for 4 or 5 years now, and I still enjoy doing it. Now I find Phoenix making random Christmas cards to send to people and she has a pretty good eye for them (especially for a 9 year old).

I really hope we can create some more family traditions with our Children, whatever they might be. Suggestions anyone?

I will leave you with photos from our annual craft/cookie day.

Hugs and Love
Enjoy the little things.

December 17

2010-12-27T12:01:00.001-05:00

For my Birthday I took December 16th and 17th off, and so did Chris, and for the first time that I can remember Chris and I went shopping together and finished off our Christmas shopping...so awsome. We had our list, we checked it twice, and basically caounhted every one as nice and tackled the list. And for the most part, we got it all done, only having to go to three store for the one elusive item on our list, only to find one left at the last store went to, whew!

My Christmas gift giving ebbs and flows, some years I know what the perfect gift is for a certain person like the Memory Wreath I made my nana many years back,a and some years it is a struggle. This year I think my perfect gift is a scrapbook I made for my BFF documenting our first reunited year after not seeing or talking with each other for 27 years. I wish I had made two because I know it is the perfect gift. But I am not always so lucky every year in finding the perfect gift for even just one person. I just don't think it is supposed to be that hard, and I honestly think I make it that hard, especially when it comes to my parents and Chris. I alwasy fail miserably when buying for Chris, and he always does an awesome, thoughtful job when buying for me. One of these years, I will find him a perfect gift, it just has not happened yet. I'm waiting for that year.

December 13

2010-12-27T11:13:00.001-05:00

One of my most favoritest (its a sentance and a word, I jsut made it up) parts of Christmas is the Christmas music. I love Christmas Music. I love the traditional Christmas Hymmns and the new modern Christmas Songs as well. I just love the feeling of Joy many of those songs impart. I even love those cheesy songs such as Granma Got run Over by a Reindeer.
If I were to create a playlist on my Ipod (no, I don't have an Ipod, I had 2, but left both of them at the gym never to be seen again) these would be in a playlist labeled, Favorite Christmas

Joy to the World (my absolute favorite Christmas Song)
Silent Night
Little Drummer Boy
Grandma Got Run Ovder by a Reindeer
Christmas Shoes
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer
Jingle Bells
Frosty the Snowman
We Three Kings
Jingle Bell Rock
Christmas Carol

Oh, I like so many more, but these are just a sampling of my favorites.

December 6th

2010-12-14T10:05:00.002-05:00

I have so many good Christmas memories. My parents always made sure we had Christmas, even the years we were traveling from one City or another for a military transfer, usually those years we would swing by Ohio to spend Christmas with my mom's family, and attend the annual Christmas Eve get together. I will admit, those years hold some of my best memories.

But I have to say, my favorite Christmas memory is the year my and my first husband lived in Nebraska (1995). We decided at the last minute to drive straight through to Toledo and surprise everyone by showing up to the annual Christmas Eve party. We had to tell someone so we told my Nana who in turn told my Cousin Shelly. But they were the only ones who knew.   The drive to Toledo itself was miserable, but once we arrived we had a day all to oursleves with my Nana before we left for the party. Shelly came over, and spent some time with us, she was pregnant with her first baby and had just found out, she was so excited, as I was excited for her. My cousins Kip, Kraig, and Kent all called separately to see if Nana needed a ride to the party, she told each of them one of the other ones were taking her.   We were late (not uncommon when I am involved), however my Uncle Bill and his family were even later.   Kip, Kraig, and Kent were confused because each of them were there without Nana. We knocked on the door, and walked in, and managed to surprise everyone, and in my family that is a huge feat, even my Uncle Bill did not put two and two together when he arrived and saw our car with the Florida tags in it. I can say this was the first year I "made" soemthing by hand, it was a Memory Wreath for my Nana. Now, remember this was way before internet, somehow I managed to get letters to all her kids and grandkids asking for pictures of them and momentos that would represent them. They sent them all back to me and I deocrated a wreath with small picture frames and the moementos. She loved that wreath. I love that wreath, it is now in my possession, and it brings back such warm memories.

During that trip I also spent some time with my grandfather and his family. I visited my Great Grandma Reese. It was my last visit with while she was still relatively healthy.

That was the last Christmas I spent with my Nana, she died years later, but in those years I had never made it back fro Christmas.   Uncle Bill and My Cousin Kip are no longer with us either. I miss them all. The annual Christmas Eve get together has waned in recent years with all of us grand kids having our own families, and being tugged in every direction, kind of sad, but so grateful to have those memories to hang on to and so wish my kids had experienced one of those get togethers.

December 4

2010-12-06T08:22:00.001-05:00

This year, it is so..well just so nice, that we are all here, and able to decorate the house inside and out together, well Chris did the bulk of the outside of the house, but we did it, and it feels so much more like Christmas.
The other night after we put the tree up, Griffin fell asleep on the couch next to the tree. He is still at that age where the Christmas Magic is still "magical". As I looked at him, I thought to myself, this is just perfect, yes, perfect, our little family all together to enjoy the entire Christmas season. I cannot think anything much more perfect than that, except for the rest of the family to be here with us.

Merry Christmas, enjoy the little things

Hugs and Love
Shona

Dec 3

2010-12-04T09:56:00.000-05:00

Yayyy! I feel very accomplished, Christmas Cards Done this year, three different versions. I am still at a stage where I love making the cards, and am not naive enough to think I will make them every year forever, but for now it is a great feeling of accomplish when they are complete before December. This year I am just waiting for the family pictures to put in them before they go out.

Dec 2

2010-12-02T21:57:00.000-05:00

It never failed in Georgia, when the dog days of summer ended and Mother Nature splashed her paint brush all over the trees up and down the mountains with every red, orange, adn gold shade imaginable, I would say to myself, nothing could be more beautiful. But then She would cover the earth with snow, and ice, and my breath would be taken away again, so magnificent, magical and peaceful is a fresh snow covered landscaped yet to be disturbed. And even more so when She does it for Christmas.

This time last year we already had snow. And Mother Nature unleashed a doozy of a blizzard on us on Christmas Eve giving my children their first ever white Christmas. I do hope She does that again, but even if she does not, I love the cool crisp weather, allowing for the crackle of a fire pit out back, or cozying up in the family room. I am not sure what it is, since I spent the majority of my life in a tropical climate, but there is something about cool crisp weather making it feel more like Christmas.

December 1st

2010-12-01T19:20:00.000-05:00

It is December 1st already. I cannot believe it. Twenty four more days until Christmas. And for me, the next 14 are busy, busy, busy. This Thursday is the annual lighting of the Christmas Tree in the Square in Denton, and we are so going this year. Saturday Phoenix has a parade, then we have caroling at a local nursing facility, then a sleepover with the 5th and 6th grade girls from Club 56 at Church. We are making Christmas Gifts for their parents. I am in Louisiana Monday and Tuesday for meetings. Then next Saturday is another parade for Phoenix, I am already tired just thinking about it. And next Sunday is the first annual Gibson-Bambach Christmas Ornament and Cookie making day. The following weekend is my 40th birthday celebration weekend (I cannot even believe I am almost to that milestone in life, I still feel 12). So it will be a whirlwind between now and Christmas!

Every year I embark on the Journal your Christmas Journey (check it out at Shimelle.com), and every year I never get it all done. But that is OK. I love the idea of it, and have decided I will get done what prompts I can get done. I have done this for two years, and I have to say going back and reading the entries and looking at my scrapbook pages have brought back some sweet sweet memories.

The first prompt of the project is always the Manifesto where we state our intentions for the season....well I think this about sums it up this year not just for the Christmas Season but for every day in general after that:

Merry CHRISTmas everyone! Relish the season and take time for the little things!

Hugs and Love
Shona

Thankful...for green beans, orange juice and Stacie (and so much more)!

2010-11-27T09:52:00.001-05:00

So its the season to be Thankful, I am so thankful for so many things, even the simple things, like coffee and half and half...mmmm...love my half and half with a little bit of coffee! Thankful for my husbands hands, I probably cannot even begin to describe how many thousands of dollars a year those hands save our household, there is not a repair out there he will not attempt to fix himself whether it is on the car or the house before paying a service man to come out and fix it (unless it is illegal, ie fixing a home air conditioner cause he does not have a freon license). Gotta love those big clunky hands of his. Thankful for my friend Lori, here in Texas, and her family. Never in a million years could you have told me after not seeing each other (or talking to each other) in 25 years (last time in Orlando..high school..EEK!) that we would be in the same state, Texas of all states, and just as close, if not closer as we were back then. I am quite sure GOD put her and her family here for me and my family so we would not be so alone we we got here. Thankful that our house in Georgia is occupied, and rented, and being cared for by friends instead of strangers. I am thankful for those friends. Thankful God has seen fit to continue to bless me and my family with both my parents..and my brother. Wish we were all closer. Thankful for Chris's mom, who, well she loves me like I was her own daughter, and puts up with my control freakiness so well.

But....but..but..so excited...are you ready? I am especially thankful today for cards...yeah..cards, especially the ones I receive, and homemade, and from my cousin, yeah, the cousin who is like a sister to me (oh yeah, I am incredibly thankful for her too). Here is the card I got in the mail yesterday from her, it came totally out of left field. You see, I am kind of high maintenance, and I have been hounding her for years, I mean YEARS people, to send me something...anything in the mail. I even made her some stationary to make it a little easier. And it finally arrived (but she made her own card, instead of using mine...bonus)! YAY! It was worth the wait.

I loved getting that card. I love her! She is the one person in this world, that no matter where we are, or what we are doing, we laugh together so hard all the time. And no matter what, nothing or anyone will ever get in the way of our friendship! Here are some pics of her and me.

So...the picture above..is how it really is between us!

And this is soooooooo Stacie....this was a good memory!

Oh and speaking of thankful, one of my most favoritest (it is a word, I just made it up) and cherished Thanksgiving memories of all time involves her, green beans and orange juice. I miss her!

Don't forget to leave me a comment to let me know you are here....also, you can choose to following my random ramblings too.

Time marches on..

2010-11-21T23:35:00.000-05:00

Can we say crazy week..beginning with a speeding ticket...yes a speeding ticket. So mad cause I never saw the cop, but I did notice I was speeding and slowed down, he pulled me over good 2-3 minutes later...cut me a break dude..I did the right thing..ugh!

So process from speeding ticket to a two day trip to Lousiana, only to return to work to quite a bit of negative press in LA about what it is I do there...oh well..still love my job.

And now thanksgiving is breathing down my back. Time just marches on, I cannot believe it is Thanksgiving already. So thankful we are all together as a little family this year, so even if we are not surrounded bu a few other people, which seems more normal to me, I am still going to savor every moment.

Fun Friday

2010-11-12T12:52:00.002-05:00

I get to spend my Fridays off in my kids classrooms (How lucky am I!). I am working on personal yearbooks with each class. So my first Friday off I take photos and the second Friday we scrap and journal them. At the end of the year they will have their own personal yearbook to take home, and mom and dad get a glimpse into their school day.

Today was the school's second six weeks awards ceremony. The theme was Homecoming. Every six weeks the school celebrated the children's achievement with a big awards ceremony with a theme and the kids get to dress up according to the theme. They hand out Math, Science, Ready, Social Studies, most improved and Citizenship Awards. It is one of the things I feel the school does good.

As I mentioned, the theme this six weeks was Homecoming. As part of the Homecoming Celebration the University of North Texas Cheerleaders and a handful of football players, along with the coach came for a pep rally. The UNT coach spoke to the kids about dreams, work ethic and good grades. Then the players got down on the floor and sat with the kids and talked with them, and shared their awards. Very gracious of them. It made the kids feel incredibly special and important.

Today, Griffin earned a science award, as well as perfect attendance, but he was most proud of his science award. I must say, I am secretly thrilled that both my kids take after me in the math and science category, they both love the subjects and are good at them.

In her awards ceremony, Phoenix earned the all A honor roll. My kids rock, and I am so insanely proud of them!

Halloween and other Stuff

2010-11-07T08:41:00.007-05:00

I admit, I soo use Facebook as a crutch. I post all photos of the kids there as a way to keep people informed, but realize now not everyone uses Facebook like some of us do. So I am re-establishing the blog. Now, admittedly, I do great with this darn blog thing from November to around early February, then something happens. So I am just going to go with the flow.

We have started our second year in Texas, still not so committed to Texas but I will say, as predicted, after a year it has grown on us a little more. I love my job, and more importantly the people I work with, and that makes all the difference in the world. So I am so grateful that God lead me to this position, and to top it off, for the first time in a long time Chris is actually in a position that has tremendous income and professional growth. He is in the middle of NAPA accelerated management program and should finish up in a few months.

Now onto Halloween, last year I was hear alone with the kids so I took them to our Church's Trunk or Treat Celebration, which was a lot of fun. But this year they really wanted to trick or treat in the neighborhood. Which we did, and oh my goodness. I have not seen that many kids on the street since my days as a pre teen on the Navy base, and boy did they bring home a haul. They had a lot of fun. I stayed back to hand out candy and I ran out in 45 minutes flat, lessons learned for next year. As you can see Phoenix choose to be a snowy owl (OK I know the orange beak is confusing but we improvised) and Griffin was a vampire

SO now the CRAZY season starts, hopefully this year, with all of us together it will seem more like Christmas, Chris has already taken down the decorations so we can start decorating...it seems to come earlier and earlier every year, but maybe we are in a rush since we were not together until December last year. Who knows.

Anyway, onto our Sunday activities. Have a blessed day everyone. Leave me a comment and let me know you were here.

Weather

2010-02-15T08:30:00.008-05:00

We have been settling back into a routine of both of us working, it has taken some time but it is starting to work. It looks like Chris's schedule will be somewhat regular at 8-4:30 Everyday, which coincided with my schedule of 7-4:30. Yeah, it is the first time he has had awesome hours like that.

We have had some crazy weather over here. We got around 15 inches of snow in out location..in 24 hours. The kids had two snowdays. I missed a day of work and Chris was late one morning because he would have slid out of the driveway on a big sheet of ice if he left before the sun came up. I had a chance both during the snow and the morning after to go out and take some pictures, and let me tell you, God rewarded me with some gorgeous results.

Griffin in snow.

Griffin in snow.

Phoenix and her snowman.

The kids.

Sledding on the lid of a rubbermaid container...they do not sell sleds in Texas.

Griffin Trekking up the "sledding hill"

Phoenix ever the poser

A shot of the greenspace area in our neighborhood.

Snowball fight.

The creek in the greenway, isn't it beautiful?

The kids.

A view from the front of our house.

A sculpture in the neighborhood, notice the palm trees.

Miss Phoenix

Me and kids.

Me

News and Hair Cut

2010-01-29T18:09:00.006-05:00

So we went to Sweet and Sassy last Friday to get the kids hair cuts. Well, I love Griffin's hair long and shaggy...kind of like this:

This is what we ended up with:

All I can say is that I am so very thankful hair grows.

Oh...I said we have new...well Chris received a decent job offer and started work on Monday...Yeah. God is so Faithful! We are so thankful and know just how blessed we are!

That is it for now!

Hugs and love

S....

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T22:53:00.003-05:00

We all schlepped out in the cold and the rain to go see Avatar tonight. It was a good movie, however, between the publicity and then all the input from friends who have already gone and seen it, it did not live up to my expectations. The visuals were awesome, the world was fantastic, but I guess the story line lacked a little bit for me.

It is 10 pm our time and we are all hunkered down in the living room watching Disney Channel, waiting for the new year. Chances are I will be asleep when it rolls in. I am ready to say goodbye to 2009 and welcome 2010. I am not saying 2009 was a bad year, but it was a hard year. I am reminded that suffering makes us stronger and is never a bad thing. It always reminds us of what is good in our life and how awesome God is!

So my friends, I hope 2010 brings you much joy and happiness. We Gibson's plan on continuing in the adventure God has crafted for us (we are in Texas for crying out loud, only God could craft that). We are reminded how blessed we are to have awesome friends and family, a roof over our head, and food in our tummies every night. We are blessed with our health and two very healthy, happy children. I cannot say we have much to complain about, and we have so much to look forward to.

Happy New Year!

Crafting Again

2009-12-31T00:26:00.004-05:00

I am finally crafting again..on a regular basis, if you can define what a regular basis is. I made a set of these note cards as a gift. They are size A2 cards. The base cream paper is Coredinations cardstock. The cream paper sued for the snowflake is ClubScrap Paper from the Rhapsody kit. The red paper is BoBunny Snowy Serenade Concerto. I cut the snowflake on the Cricut using the Gyspy Wanderings digital cartridge. It was cut at a height of 3.25" and I cut the layer at the same height. I cut crayon box using Tags, Bags, Boxes and more, filling a 12x12 sheet of paper, the envelopes and cards fit inside perfectly.

This is the inside:

And the crayon box:

Thanks for looking!

Happy New Year!

December 28

2009-12-28T22:18:00.004-05:00

Ahh..it is December 28th, back to work. Life almost back to normal. We had a great Christmas. The were blessed with some awesome gifts, Phoenix received a camera, and lots of scrap booking supplies. It was a "Transformer" and "Bionicle" year for Griffin.

We actually had a white Christmas this year, however the blizzard that occured on Christmas Eve, was somewhat treacherous for us. When we got in the truck to go to work and Chris took his foot off the brake in the driveway and the truck slid out of the driveway, he said "We are going to look back on this and think to ourselves, sliding out of our driveway was the first clue we should have stayed home"! He was right. Getting to church was not so much a problem. But getting home took forever and we spent most of that time spinning our wheels in the ice. No fun whatsoever.

It appears Chris may have a job. He interviewed on the 23rd, and received an informal verbal offer. The manager said he just needed to work up pay rate and paperwork, and needed about a week to do that. So hopefully we know something by this Wednesday! We need this to happen, the timing is right, but we also know that GOD may have his own timing and we are trusting him to take care of us.

Meanwhile I returned back to work, and am ready for the new year. The halls at FEMA are awfully quiet right now, and I am ready to work. At home, I am trying to get back into a regular routine. Eating, exercise, and otherwise. I am also getting back to scrapping and crafting on a more regular basis (losing the job and relocating took my heart right out any crafting).

Do any of you have any indulgences that you seem to feed at the Holiday. I have several, first it is crafting, I see a Christmas project I like and I have to buy all the supplies to make that. THis year those added up since they included some expensive pieces of machinery. The other indulgence is any sweets co-workers happen to bring into the office, I just cannot seem to keep my hands off of them. Luckily, the candy dishes are dwindling, adn the cookie plates are empty. Next week it should be back to normal.

Some Pictures of the family over the last couple of days.

We hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

It's getting close

2009-12-22T21:16:00.003-05:00

December 23, Christmas is almost here. I have very little left to do..I think. I still have some Christmas cards to stamp on the inside and mail. I have some gifts to wrap, but I guess the biggest to do item is a gift for Chris, but I have a pretty good idea what I am getting, and a few back up plans. And of course, we have to bake cookies for Santa, which we usually do on Christmas Eve. The best thing is I have the rest of the week off so I can do what I need to get done, even catch up on my Christmas Journal, and enjoy the next few days without being rushed. I think this will be the least rushed Christmas I have had in a while, and I really kind of like it.

We did not get much decorating done this year since Chris did not arrive until the first week of December (almost the second week actually). But we did manage to get the tree up and decorated and the stockings up. That is just fine with me....

Traditions

2009-12-09T19:11:00.004-05:00

So many families have treasured holiday traditions. I have to admit that Chris and I have not done so well at creating any regular traditions, but we do have a few.

One die hard tradition that has stuck since Phoenix was a toddler is baking and decorating cookies for Santa, the kids have a blast decorating them, and now I have the Nick Brown super secret family sugar cookie recipe that is awesome, so I actually enjoy making the cookies because they turn out so darn tasty.

Last Christmas we went to a Christmas Tree Farm and cut down our family tree, we had such an awesome time doing that so we decided to make that a new tradition. We have even scouted out Christmas tree farms in our new home town.

Of course, Christmas Card making seems to have become a recurring tradition too...I really wonder how long that is going to last.

Would love to hear some of your tradition, leave a comment and let me know what they are.

A Perfect Christmas

2009-12-04T19:12:00.004-05:00

I asked Phoenix what her idea of a perfect Christmas was. Here is what she came up with:

"I want to sleep in the living room by the tree and puta video camera by me and tape Santa. This is my perfect Christmas"!

I asked her to draw a picture of her perfect picture and write down her thoughts resulting in this scrapbook page for my Christmas Journal this year.

Griffin's idea of a perfect Christmas is getting everything he asked for. He was not interested in writing it down or drawing a picture. Oh Well.

Hugs
shona

Christmas Cards

2009-12-03T22:41:00.003-05:00

Every year when I am in the midst of making Christmas Cards, I always say I am never going to make Christmas Cards again, but every year, when it is time to think about cards, I cannot bear the thought of buying cards. I guess since I cannot buy a gift for everyone I want to, a card seems like a small gift that is a little piece of me (and many times the kids, since they always get to help).

This year I ended up making two different cards, both with a snow flake theme; blame it on a new Cricut Cartridge I received which has become my all time favorite cartridge ever. I am also using up some cards I have left over from last year. And, I also have made a few more intricate cards for some special people. Those were a lot of fun to make, and seemed way to pretty to give away. But they are written in and the envelopes addressed, just awaiting pictures of the kids to include in the card.

I do not know how long I will continue to make my Christmas Cards, in the midst of making them it always seems like an added obligation during a busy season, and it always costs more than going out and buying a box, but when they are done and ready to go, I am always glad I did make them.

Love and hugs
Shona

Let It Snow

2009-12-02T23:18:00.007-05:00

IT SNOWED TODAY! The kids were so excited this morning, and secretly I was too. Oh, I have seen snow before, it snowed in Georgia, but never this early the time we were there. And the flakes were so big and fluffy as they fell down covering everything in a thin blanket. And the timing was perfect. Admittedly, it has been a little harder for me to get into the Christmas spirit this year with Chris still in Georgia, and the cold weather and surprise snow seemed to help put me a little more in the spirit. That coupled with the fact that we are one day closer to Chris arriving allowing us to be a family again, made me add little bounce in my step this morning (I did not forget to snap a quick picture of the field outside my office).

I am not sure why cold weather and snow makes it seem more like Christmas, after all I have spent most of my Christmases in sub-tropical climates. All I know is when it is cold outside and there is snow around, it just feels more like Christmas.

LET IT SNOW!

Love and Hugs
Shona

I Declare

2009-12-01T23:35:00.003-05:00

I Love Christmas, but unfortunately all too often I get caught up in the Christmas Card Making, gift making, gift buying, decorating, etc, that I forget to enjoy the season with my family or to really reflect on the awesomeness of the Gift that was given to us 2000 years ago.

Since I am in a new town, in a new state, in a little different financial situation than years past, and have a whole lot less obligations and a lot more time I declare I am going to take the time to reflect on the season, old memories and traditions, and even try to create a few new traditions with my family...and to really just sit and enjoy my kids an my husband, and take the time to record a little bit of our life this year.

It certainly has not been the easiest year for our family and many of our friends. However, not only can I look back and see the hand of God in everything that has happened this year, I can feel him working right now as Chris leaves his job to come join the family. We are stepping out in faith knowing God will provide him with a job in His time, which is always the right time. And in the meantime, we have a wonderful season to Celebrate as a family, and I intend to make the most of it.

Let the Season Begin!

Gypsy Spot Give Away

2009-11-30T13:23:00.006-05:00

OH OH OH... : Custom Crops donated a Gypsy!!..Yes a Gypsy to The Gypsy Spot... be sure a go to The Gypsy Spot and find out how to enter to win!! Its being given away Tuesday December 1st!!...Here is the link to the Gypsy Spot.
http://the-gypsyspot.blogspot.com

Changes

2009-09-13T08:22:00.002-04:00

Well, for those of you we keep in touch with on a regular basis you know we have moved, and for those of you who we don't keep in touch with on a regular basis...well we have moved. Me and the kids are in Texas. I accepted a position with FEMA Region VI in the Risk Analysis Branch located in Denton Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth Area) I had set my sights on a FEMA career about two years ago but Engineer positions come open very rarely, and when I saw this one open up in February I applied for it. I was still gainfully employed way back then. I was interviewed in April, and I relaly thought I blew it. Actually, the first thought that crossed my mind was that it was a good thing I was still employed because I did nothing to help myself secure that job. I knew if I got a call for even a second interview that it would be a total "GOD THING". I was laid off in May, the day before school let out. I decided to take the summer off and spend it with the kids. By this time I had totally given up on the FEMA position. In late June I started throwing some resumes out to private firms and the Corps of Engineers, and even another FEMA job in Atlanta. Much to my surprise, I received a phone call the first week in July with a job offer for FEMA in Texas. It was a tentative offer pending a background investigation, but an offer none the less. Five and 1/2 long weeks later I cleared security just in time to give us a week to make a trip to find a rental house, pack up the house and get the kids here to start the first day of school here in Texas. God was with us the entire way. We were able to find a house on a weekend trip, even though the rental market was hot and every house we looked at had 10 applicants ahead of us. We were able to get the house packed up, spend an awesome evening with some very special and awesome friends the night before we left town, and get here the Sunday before school started (which was the following Tuesday). We had just enough money to get the move done, get set up and have just enough left over to get us by to my first paycheck (although it does not feel good to be down to no saving). There were a few other circumstances that clicked into place that made it obvious this was the direction God was moving us. Chris will join us in a month or two while he finished up some projects on the Georgia house. But we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

We have been here three weeks today. Much to my surprise Griffin, my very OCD structured child who hates change, has adjusted extremely well. He was none too happy with me about leaving Sardis Elementary back in Georgia. Phoenix has had a rougher time. She's had girls tell her that her hair looks like a boy (not sure where that one came from), she has had a few emotional outbreaks in class when trying to keep a certain student out of ore trouble. She has a learned a very valuable lesson, sometimes you have to let someone get in trouble even if it bothers or hurts you to let it happen. The consequences are always based on decisions that person makes, not you. Lo and behold, the day she decided to not try and help him, he ended up in the principles office. She said she finally got it, and she decided it was not worth it to try and help someone who would not listen to her only to get very frustrated and disruptive in class (she was yelling at him at the top of her longs in class) and end up very upset and in trouble. To the teacher's credit instead of penalizing her she pulled her out of the situation for her to calm down. But she does miss her classmates and teachers who know and lover her so well at Sardis.

From what we have seen of the area we are pleasantly surprised. We think we will like it a lot. Every area has its upsides and downsides. The downsides of the immediate area is not very many trees. After four years in Northeast Georgia and lots of trees, it is hard to get used to. We have not gone exploring to see if there is any hiking or outdoor opportunities we like so much close by. The other downside is it is so BIG. The biggest downside is that being a Gator Fan out of enemy territory is no where near as fun. But on the upside anything we want is within 10 miles, and the traffic is awesome. The transportation network is amazing. I drove to Dallas Fort Worth airport in rush hour to take Chris to the airport, and it only took me about 25 minutes.

The neighborhood we are renting in is a traditional neighborhood, houses close together, garages on the back of the houses, with alley access, small backyards, sidewalks on both sides of the street. A resort style pool and water park in the neighborhood, hiking and biking trail, a fitness center, fishing ponds, and lots of parks. However, the kids have made it clear, they prefer a large backyard over all the bells and whistles. So we will likely buy somewhere else.

Once my job gets into full swing it will be something I enjoy. the people in the office all seem very nice. I am part of a team of four engineers overseeing Risk MAP (Map stands for Mitigation, Assessment, and Planning) for Region VI. I will be overseeing projects with the end result of helping people and/or their property (although in many cases they do not realize it). There will be some travel involved for meetings with communities, but once Chris is here, that will not be a problem. I am one of those weirdos that does not mind (actually enjoys) public speaking. There will be some stress too, the high profile counties will always turn congressional and I will be dealing with a communities congressional representative and/or their staff. Of course, all this is secondary to disaster response and recovery. When disasters happen in our region (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico) I will be deployed.

We miss all our friends in Georgia. In some ways leaving Georgia was so much harder than leaving Florida. But we are excited to see what adventure GOD has in store for us.

Love you all (even you DAWG fans)!

Blog - NWF Green Hour

2009-02-26T18:52:00.006-05:00

Ok. As a family who would prefer to be outside rather than inside this (Blog - NWF Green Hour)is very disheartening. Go ahead click on it and read it.

So far we have not had to go to the dictionary to look up any nature words, I guess because we have always spent so much time out doors my kids just seem to know what everything is....that and the nature magazines they have received since they were about 2. But can you imaging city dwellers who do not have the access to the outdoors like us? I cannot even fathom!

A new project we are starting this month is picking a bud on a tree or bush and documenting its life cycle from now until fall (idea from green hour.org) through pictures and sketches. My guess is Phoenix will want to draw everything and Griffin will want to photography it, will be interesting how this plays out.

Oh how I dream of a white Christmas

2008-12-10T18:27:00.004-05:00

Growing up we mostly lived in tropical locations, at least we lived in tropical locations from the time I was 4 when we moved to Hawaii until my dad retired in Orlando. So any Christmas memories I still have are of warm Christmases. Occasionally my dad would be transferring during the Christmas season and we would stop in Ohio en-route to visit family and get a small taste of snow and cold. When I married and settled in Fort Myers and started a family it seemed like every Christmas was warm. It never felt like Christmas when we were running around in shorts and swimming in the neighbor's pool. But, our relocation to Georgia three years ago promised the possibility of cold Christmases at the very least and even promised the slight chance for a white Christmas. Oh how I dream of a having a white Christmas....maybe one year!

Remembering what is good!

2008-12-10T18:23:00.001-05:00

With a adverse and uncertain year gone by and the threat of another year just as bad as the previous approaching, I am reminded over and over again of the blessings God has poured out on me and my family. With the Christmas season here, I decided I wanted to reflect on the seasons and traditions, maybe even start a new one or two, to basically reflect on what is good in my life and the world right now, and journal it over the next month or so. There is nothing more promising than the Christmas season and the gift the first Christmas brought over 2000 years ago. So hopefully, this year and my little journal will serve as a current reminder of all that is good in my life and help me, and my family, remember that we are indeed blessed. I am taking 30 minutes each day, to relish the season and reflect on Christmases past, enjoy this year's Christmas, and and to dream about future Christmases.

Silver and Gold

2008-10-18T18:35:00.006-04:00

One thing that has been the hardest for me with our relocation is making friends. One of the biggest reasons I did not want to leave Florida was because I had rooted….after all, being a Navy Brat, Fort Myers was the place I had lived the longest than anywhere else in my life. The idea of starting over and having to make friends all over again was not a very pleasant idea. I love my old friends. Everyone of them are dear to me. And maybe every time I'd meet someone new I'd compare them to an old friend, not so fair to the new person. Although I am somewhat more shy (yeah---me shy) than I used to be, I am still a very social person and really need that social interaction with other people. I crave it. Funny thing is, I had friends (although their football affiliations are a tad bit questionable…I mean LSU and Georgia..c'mon!) right in front of my face and was too blind or too or ..oh heck I do not know, but when I sat back and opened up a little bit, there they were, right in front of my face all along. People who would give me and my family the clothes off their back if we needed them. People who I can laugh and cry with, people who I can be myself with, people Chris and I both can count as friends. You know, the kind of people who you can just drop in to their house at any time and be received with warmth and love. I still miss my old friends somewhat fiercely, especially the really old ones, you know the ones from junior high, who went through that awkward,self conscious time with you, I mean, if we can manage to get through that terrible time together and still manage to be friends, you really have to love each other right? Although in this crazy disconnected world we live in does not allow me to see or hug all those old friends, everyone of you should know I love you and I miss you and you will always be an integral part of my life and of who I am. And to the new ones, I love you just as much, and am so glad we have each other to get through the good times as well as the tough times, and I have reached a point where I could never imagine leaving Northeast Georgia cause I’d have to leave you all behind. Wow..it took me three years to reach that point, it is the first time I have not gotten the urge to run back to Florida when the going gets tough….and for that and for you I am grateful! I love you all!

Fall

2008-10-06T22:10:00.002-04:00

Fall is definitely in the air up here in the Northeast Georgia mountains. One of the main reasons we left Florida was to move to a place that would experience some sort of seasonal change. Although we are not near the peak of leaf changing seasons the leaves are definitely starting to change. I have the distinct privilege of crossing the Lake 4 times on the way home, as I leave work each mile brings me further and further into rural Hall County away, with each mile I leave the stress and hub bub of my work day. And right now with the leaves starting to change to contrast of the red leaves against the water and the trees yet to start their annual metamorphosis is quite striking. Combine that with the cool crisp night air the wafts through our open windows at night and it's official, fall is arrived.

In Northeast Georgia there are definite annual traditions that also herald in the beginning of fall, corn mazes dot the landscape, apple picking begins, Burt's Pumpkin Patch opens up for Business, Cumming Country Fair in Forsyth County, and the list goes on an on. These traditional fall traditions are still all so new to us migrants from South Florida, where the closest thing we had to a pumpkin patch were the imported pumpkins that dotted church lawns. And a Hayride was out of the question because the heat and humidity was stills so sweltering in mid to late Ocotber.

One of my fondest memories of fall is also fairly recent. Our first fall up here. We headed on a spur of the moment whim to go driving in the mountains to look at the leaves. We stopped at way stations along the way, took little paths, found a farm where we roasted marshmallows, took a hay ride, took a train ride, etc. From there we pulled off to waterfall hunt and found several waterfalls. We stopped at Vogel State Park for a picnic lunch and more stunning views of the leaves. We drove around to Blood Mountain to where the Appalachian Train crosses the road. That is before we knew a lot of people, were involved in almost nothing, and had nothing better to do than spend time together as a family, I kind of miss those days. Now we have to block out a weekend to even consider taking a day like that now, and I think every weekend is booked between now and the end of October.

Homework 1

2008-10-06T22:02:00.002-04:00

So...I want to spruce up my blog, so naturally I find an online class at SISTV titled Bling Out Our Blog. So I am moving into unchartered territory. See, when it comes to handling and fondling paper and creating scrapbook pages and cards...well I can handle that, but now I am moving into the electronic world and, for all intents and purposes, digital scrap booking, and well...I guess its just intimidating to me. So this class gives me homework and homework today is what we want our blog to reflect. Well, this is me after all, and by nature I am all over the board so naturally my blog will be too. I really want this to be place where I can share what is happening in my life, reflect on my feelings or what is going on around my life or my world, and yes eventually I do want it to be a place where I can share some of my creations, I have not done much of that yet. So there you have it! Keep checking in and hopefully I will try to incorporate some of these "things" I am learning...like creating my own banner...already sounds complicated to me. We will see

Dinner table conversation and Shona's 10k

2008-09-02T17:58:00.003-04:00

Oh six months or so ago we implemented a new “tradition” so to speak at the dinner table. Since we all come together as a family and eat dinner together after being separated from each other for 8 hours or more we started asking each other to tell the rest of us three things that happened to them throughout the day and how they felt about it. Now, we are not die hard stringent about making sure we do it every night and some weeks we do it every night and some weeks we do not. Truthfully it is sometimes hard to come up with three things that seem worth of mention. And truthfully I am not sure we have learned too much from each other for the six months or so we have been doing it, although I have to say there have been little tidbits I have gleaned from Chris. Anyways, last week the kids started doing it again, maybe since they are back in school and we are on a more regular schedule, and lo and behold I actually learned something from Phoenix I do not think I would have otherwise had the intuition to pick up on. One of her three things that happened to her was that when we went to the mail box her Highlights Magazine and National Geographic Kids magazine was not there, and had not been for months, and that made her feel sad. I had no clue she looked forward to those magazines every month, In my eyes they were just more pieces of clutter messing up her bedroom, when in reality they were something she welcomed every month with anticipation. I guess Santa is going to have to deliver those again this year for her, if she can wait that long.

So on to the 10k. The day finally arrived. My friend Audie and I had to actually run into Atlanta and pick up our race packets the day before the race. While there we decided to scope out the course…BIG BIG BIG Mistake. Granted the description described the course as challenging, and some even ventured to say it was the most difficult 10k in America, but really, how challenging could it be since it was for all intents and purposes in suburban Atlanta? Well…lets just say in 6.2 miles there were five very steep, very long inclines, with some declines, but nothing that matched the inclines, and it was not an out and back course, it was a linear start at point A and end at Point B route. The first two inclines were by far the most challenging; they were between a half-mile and a mile long each. Being the engineer I am, I am researching the grade change in for each incline cause I am curious that way and beside I feel like I deserve bragging rights. Needless to say those first two inclines we walked up. I actually found my “sweet spot” at mile 3 but was a little hesitant to push myself too hard since I have not run 6.2 miles in over eight years, and I did not want to push only to tank later on in the race, although our second half time was a lot better than our first half time. We completed the race under our goal and have something to shoot for next year. Phoenix and Griffin joined me towards the end and crossed the finish line with me. The Kenyans won. They ran it in 28 minutes (In my dreams I’m a swift and very svelte Kenyan).

Being a part of the race was an experience in itself. There were over 10,000 participants. Live bands and DJs set up along the route, spectators cheering us on, running with Olympic elite, looking forward seeing thousands of runners in front of you and looking back to see droves of runners behind you. There was also a 100k-bike race and a 10k wheelchair and inline skate race as well with all their elite participating. Pretty amazing to experience. All the proceeds benefited the World Children’s Center and apparently the event raised over 2 million dollars for the Children’s Center. Publix supplied all the food at the end of the race, trucks, and trucks of fruit, ice cream, sandwiches, you name it they had it. All free for participants and their families.

Honestly after surveying the route I considered making up an excuse to not show up, but I am glad I did not and made it. Next up (I think) is the Zooma women’s half marathon on November 18th.

The 5K

2008-08-09T17:06:00.012-04:00

The runners: Phoenix, Shona, Mary, Brian, and Audie.
The cheerleader: Griffin.

Well, the day finally arrived, after one postponement due to a hurt knee, I finally ran the 5K I had set for a goal this year. It's been 9 years since I ran an organized race so I was a bit nervous. After all I am carrying scores more pounds than I was back then, and although I was not nervous about running in general, I was more worried about my pride. I just did not want to be last. Phoenix decided she was going to run the 1 mile run in conjunction with my 5k.

We woke up at 4:45 AM so we could get to Downtown Atlanta by 6:30. We had plans to meet my workout partner Audie and her friends Brian and Mary. Now those of you who know me well know I am never on time, so I had a very restless night worried I would oversleep, but I did good. When I woke Griffin up, he promptly went to his window and yelled out to me "But Mommy its still dark and I am still sleepy". Phoenix woke up ready and rearing, she slept in the clothes (all pink of course) she planned on running in so she just had to roll out of bed and put on her shoes.

We met Audie and Brian and Mary and waited for the race to start. The race organizers actually had a gym represented there and one of their aerobic instructors warmed us up, which was very cool. We lined up at the starting line and the gun popped and off we went. Now, I do all my training on a treadmill because I either work out in the morning before work at the gym, or more often then not during lunch. Now, let me tell you its much easier running on a treadmill, knowing your pace, having the fans blowing on you, etc, etc. I had a hard time finding a good pace. I did have a goal to run the entire 3.2 miles under a 15 minute average mile (mind you I run walk intervals right now). At every mile they had people with stop watches sitting there yelling out the times. At mile one I was a 14 minutes, at mile 2 I was at 29:44 minutes and at the end of the race I was at 46 minutes, which comes to a 14:37 minute mile, so I beat my goal and set a personal best, and I was not last (thank God). So that is out of the way. Now Audies bright idea is to run a half marathon in November, we started the training program two weeks ago.

Shona approaching the finish line.

Audie approaching the finish line.

Phoneix's fun run started after our race. I was worried about her getting upset if she did not "win" or if she had to walk a little bit. Let me tell you, nothing phases that little girl, she is not afraid of any challenge. She started really fast and got a pretty bad side stitch but she worked through it by walking a little bit. She finished strong too. She was so proud of herself, as were me and Chris. She told us all that she thought the 1 mile was too easy so she wants to run 3 miles with us next time.

The one mile fun run starting line.

For some reason she thinks she is in a fashions show for every picture.

Starting the race.

Finishing the race.

Finishing the race.

Shona, Audie and Phoenix.

AHH--SCHOOL STARTS

2008-08-07T22:41:00.009-04:00

Well its hard to believe its been since Memorial Day since I have had a chance to post to this blog. Since memorial day we have had vacation, fourth of July, Chris's birthday, my mom stayed with us for 6 weeks, Phoenix has spent 2 weeks at summer camp, Griffin had a camp weekend with mommy and daddy while Phoenix was gone, and finally, yes finally school started. Man, even though we as parents seem to have to be a tad bit more responsible, like having to get up every day at 5:30 am every morning so that Phoenix does not miss her 6:45 am bus (no more sleeping in for the heck of it), its somewhat of a relief to be back on a very predictable, reliable schedule. Granted with the beginning of the school year comes after school activities, which makes it seem like we are gone every night of the week between church and the two kids activities, but at least we know what is expected and when. No more slacking.

Phoenix started second grade today. We are very fortunate that her first grade teacher looped up to second grade so she has the same teacher and the same class with two more additions who happened to be in her kindergarten class. Her teacher is awesome and Phoenix is truly blessed to have her. As usual Phoenix was ready and rearing to go at 6 Am. She carefully put together the outfit she planned on wearing today (right down to matching unmentionables) and carefully laid it out the night before. She decided to take her lunch and made sure mommy had it prepared the night before to her specifications and had her backpack carefully packed. She could not wait for the bus to get here so she could see Miss Regina (her bus driver who spoils her rotten). She was our predictable happy go lucky Miss Phoenix this morning.

Griffin on the other hand. Well he did pick his clothes out the night before and seemed excited then 5:45 am arrived and well, lets just say he is not a morning person. First he wanted his hair spiked like daddy's but then decided he hated it and threw a temper tantrum because of it. Then he decided he did not want to go to pre k quite yet. Well you get the picture. He was the polar opposite of his big sissy.

So mommy picked them up after school and the roles reversed. Go figure.

This weekend we will all be participating in a 5k as a family. Mommy and Phoenix decided to run it. Daddy and Griffin will walk it, and be there for Phoenix if she decides she cannot make the full 3 miles with mommy. So wish us all all luck.

Memorial Day

2008-06-09T22:28:00.006-04:00

We found ourselves spending Memorial Day celebrating a coworkers 1 year anniversary up at their lease site in the mountains. Their trailer is right on Boggs Creek and the kids had a blast playing in the creek and just running around being kids. We had a really nice time relaxing and spending time with friends, Phoenix and I even tried our hand at Karaoke.

Funny, I always get the urge for a change once I've been somewhere for 3 or more years. And true to form that urge is starting to surface (we have been here 2 1/2 years), chances are we will end up somewhere else at some point (not any time soon though, gosh lets not get those rumors started), but for the first time since we have moved here I actually consider Gainesville home. For 2 1/2 years I could easily have packed things up and moved back to Florida and picked up where we left off without batting an eye. But that day driving up to the mountains to celebrate a friends anniversary I realized Gainesvlle finally feels like home, and aside from the people in Florida I have no desire to go back there. And now I have the urge to move again, go figure. My mom did that for 20 years, must have been hard to just finally get settled in only to up and move again, by necessity, unlike me who has the desire to move, guess thats the by product of being a navy brat, it just gets in your system and it is hard to shake (wonder if I will ever shake it?).

Griffins Birthday

2008-06-09T22:12:00.003-04:00

Well, I am a little behind, and several people have asked me what about Griffin's birthday. So I am posting Griffins birthday pictures. We did a small celebration at home then he had a party at school with his classmates. I attempted to make a pirate cake but it was a very busy week at work and preparing for an out of town trip, so that whole Martha Stewart thing was not happening. But we tried to stick with the pirate theme as best we could, as shown in the pictures (his hair has been cut since then, man he was looking like a girl). Griffin was so excited with those cheap little trinkets. He got a rock tumbler, so we have been polishing rocks ever since (boy is that thing loud). Its hard to believe my little guy is 4. He's trying so hard to grow up on me, he is counting the days until he is seven like his sissy. But with another year came the deep seated desire to do do everything in his power to annoy and agitate his big sis. And, man he knows how to push her buttons, all of a sudden I am nothing more than a referee in my own home. Funny thing, I know God gave me kids to teach me patience, but it ain't working. I pray for patience every day, but He never gives it to me, I am impatient waiting for the answer to that prayer, along with a whole list of other things I want or think I need.

Enjoy the pictures!

Chris's New Do

2008-06-02T20:50:00.002-04:00

Chris got a new do...not sure what has gotten into him, I would say a mid-life crisis but 32 is kind of young for a mid life crisis I think. There are two significant things about the new do: first he actually has some hair to DO something with (he's always kept it buzzed for the nine years I have known him) and he had it colored. I have to say I kind of like the change!

Girls Weekend/Dude Stuff

2008-04-13T22:00:00.010-04:00

This weekend was Phoenix’s weekend to celebrate her birthday with her friends. Her very best friend from Fort Myers came up for the weekend, and her best friends here came to our house for a certified girls weekend. Daddy and Griffin went to the woods to do “dude stuff” as Griffin put it.

Phoenix choose to take her friends to a little girls boutique and get their hair and makeup done, she is such a good girl, she choose orange and blue hair spray for her finished doo, GO GATORS. We then came back to the house and the girls played while the mommies talked. We made cookies and pizza and had ice cream. Mommies indulged in some Irish Coffee ( I was painfully reminded why I do not drink after that experience).

Around 8:30 daddy called on his way home, apparently Griffin was a little cold and actually started having some breathing issues so they came home to be safe. So much for “dude stuff” we made them stay in the basement so we could finish our girls night.

The girls summoned Uncle Kevin via video chat and proceeded to act like little girls being silly, not sure if Uncle Kevin knew quite what to think, but the girls had fun doing it.

They settled into mommy’s bed in front of Disney Channel while the mommies settled down on the sofa bed watching a chick flick. I think we were all up until about 1 am…and had to be up at 7 to get to church in the morning. It was an awesome night.

None of us get to do those sorts of things very often anymore. It made me really appreciate my family and the awesome friends I am blessed with. They just love me for who I am and we enjoy each other. Those sorts of friends are harder to find and make as we get older, so when you find them you really, really appreciate them!

Enjoy the pictures!

Phoenix turns 7

2008-04-06T15:55:00.014-04:00

My little girl turned 7 today, hard to believe. She decided she did not want a party but wanted to go with her friends next week to have brunch at the American Girl Place so we celebrated as a family today. We got started late because mom was up late making the cake (yeah I surprised myself with that cake, to quote someone who told me this week, I'm turning into a regular Martha Stewart). We decided to get her a computer, but I am not sure if she was more excited about the computer or the doll cake. To my surprise, she knew a lot about that computer, I guess they teach more than reading, writing and arithmetic in school today.

She is growing into a remarkable young lady, extremely sure of herself, knows what she wants, and quite bossy (she gets that honestly I think) and she loves, I mean adores, her little brother, and he adores her. We got lucky in that department.

Atlanta Math Fest 2008

2008-03-29T19:58:00.004-04:00

Today was Pheonix's big day, it was the next level of Mathfest. Her along with 7 other first graders (and 45 other students from the other grade levels) from her school we made the trek to Atlanta for her to compete. We started this whole journey with absolutely no expectations, and as such we did nothing to prepare her for the competition except to tell her to have fun and do her best. I do not think she understood how big of a deal she could have made it. Chris and I were more nervous for her than she was for herself, which was good I hope.
So out of the eight first graders from her school participating, six of them (out of 200 total first graders) made it to the top 50 and moved on to the second round. Phoenix made it somewhere in the top 30 (between 20 and 30), they only gave medals to the top 16. I was very proud of her. There were kids coming out of the second round room (it felt like American Idol while we waited outside the door for the kids to come out when they were eliminated) bawling their eyes out, they were so crushed. Phoenix comes out looking a little worried, but she sits in my lap and says its ok because the rest of her friends were still in there and she was proud of them! I was truly impressed. So of course I asked her what kind of problems she was missing she tells me, I was astounded at the complexity of the problems they were giving first graders, and they were getting them right. She said she got the problem X + 41 = 185 what is x right but missed the 38 times 3 because she only had 5 seconds to answer the problem and could not write 38 down tree times to add them together in 5 seconds. Right before she was eliminated one of the proctors came out and told us these first graders are doing 3rd and 4th grade math.
The whole event was well organized, there was a a huge exhibition hall with games set up all over, games that encourage math of course. While waiting for their event the kids could play the games and earn tickets to redeem for prizes. That was a lot of fun.

Mother and Daughter

2008-03-24T22:10:00.003-04:00

People always tell me my daughter looks like me, I just do not see it, but I ran across this picture of the two of us taken not so long ago and boy it just jumped out at me. she is her mothers daughter.

Easter

2008-03-23T16:53:00.019-04:00

Another year, in a few short days Phoenix will be 7 (count them 7) years old. Unbelievable how fast time goes. We spent our weekend doing the usual Easter Activities, we had an Easter Egg hunt and egg toss at church..check out daddy and daughter nailing those tosses. I think they make a great team, they did not win, daddy overthrew one time and the egg went rolling into the parking lot where it met it's demise. After the Easter Egg Hunt Phoenix performed in a dinner theater production of Fish Tales, very cute! Let me tell you , she had to make her statement. She was very upset she was not chosen for a solo and She told me that they picked girls you could barely hear, so she protested by singing at the top of her voice for all the songs. You could hear her above everyone! Somehow we ended up going home with four more additions to the family, two Mickey's, a Minnie and a Pluto ( I think they are lobbying for a Disney Vacation). Yep, every kid went home with two goldfish, lucky us. Thats her and Griffin with their two best friends Savannah and Montana.

We spent Easter Morning hunting Easter Baskets, at church, and having our own little hunt in the front yard. Sometimes I long for the day when we do not have to do so much for Easter and/or Christmas, but I know that means they have to grow up so I will cherish this as long as I can.

It's been the first Easter we have not had a house full here in Georgia and I kind of missed the hubbub. Never thought I would say that, as much as I like my quiet and like to be a homebody I missed having people around. Guess I get that from my mom.

Hope everyone had an awesome Easter!

For Stacie

2008-03-19T17:26:00.007-04:00

My cousin wanted pictures so here are pictures.

Reminiscing

2008-03-05T21:31:00.002-05:00

So, Club Scrap started the Pro Scrapbooking League a few weeks ago and I eagerly was drafted onto the red team. There are weekly challenges that are very specific and this weeks challenge is mix and match, that is to create scrapbook pages using elements from at least three different Club Scrap kits. Well, I thought it would be fun to go through some old photos and get some of those on those pages. OMG, not such a good idea. I have spent the entire week going through photos and reminiscing (weepy eyed of course) and not finished (well lets be honest, I have not even started) a page. But I ran across something interesting...almost telling...maybe a little too telling. I have no idea when I wrote it...sometime before I got married..anyway it was a list of the 100 things I want to accomplish in my lifetime. I only got to 54 things at that point in my life. Now there are some of the predictable goals like:

Get Married (done)
Become a Mom (done)
Celebrate my 5th anniversarry (done)
Celebrate my 10th anniversary
Go to NYC
See the Grand Canyon
Own a home (Done)
Run a 5 K (Done)
Have a garden (did that in Florida)
Spend New Years Eve in New York
Hike the Appalachian Trail
Earn my Professional Engineering Liscense (done)

I can say of all those above I have not done, I'd still like to do. Then there were things that very obviously had to do what I was involved with at that time in my life like:

Site see at Florida Southern (not sure why thats there)
Visit Arcadia Catholic Charities (again..I am at a loss here)
Earn my Advance Toastmaster Bronze Award (yeah...I was very involved in toastmasters back then..not so much now)

And then there are the ones I probably thought I would never accomplish back then but decided to put them on there like:

Make all my Christmas Gifts (Done...did that this year..go figure!)
Teach Sunday School (did that this year too)
Leave Florida (did that too)

Out of 54 I listed I am sadly reporting I have only accomplished 10.

I think it is time to update this list, and hang it on the bulletin board so I can get busy learning how to paint, buying a motorcycle, seeing Mt Rushmoor, travelling to Australia, going to Africa, buying Gator Football Season Tickets, buying a sailboat, helping a soup kitchen, riding a train cross country, etc, etc, etc....

We tried to cure the doldrums...

2008-03-02T21:22:00.005-05:00

So it was such a beautiful day today we decided we should spend at least part of it outside.

Ok, in my family we cannot make decisions, the morning chatter went something like this...."So maybe we should go to Amicalola Falls, they are having a backpacking clinic today...or how about going to home depot and buying some pine straw, renting an auger and doing some landscaping in the front yard...or maybe we should take a trip to Cloudland Canyon so we can get another punch in our canyon climbers card...or how bout a breakfast at Amicalola Falls Lodge and a quick hike to the base of the falls then we can come home and work in the yard..." You get the picture. We did end up driving to Amicalola Falls and eating breakfast and peeking in on the backpacking clinic. But we really wanted to do a hike so we set off the Chattahoochee National Forest, without a map mind you. We were looking for Dukes Creek falls Trail or Springer Mountain (the Southern terminus of the Appalachian trail). We did find signs for each of these and we drove aimlessly in the forest on Forest Service Roads for most of the afternoon, but the only trail we found was a not so pretty or well maintained trail around a wetland that was dry. Oh well...we need to invest in some maps if we are going to go on these adventures. We could not have been too far from Springer Mountain, and the kids really wanted to set their feet on the Appalachian Trail. We were traversing along the crests of some mountains, and the view was beautiful, but we did not find a trail head. We came upon the Army Ranger Training Facility, a trout hatchery, lots of neat camping sites, but no Springer Mountain Trail. So eighth hours later, with nothing accomplished we wended up back home.

The doldrums....

2008-03-01T16:33:00.003-05:00

Well, as I come off a week of being sick, with the week before being totally crazy because my brother likes to make a habit of going through near death experiences, I find myself kind of bored...yep bored. I played in my scrap room today (it really , really needs to be cleaned and organized, maybe my mom will come do that for me when she is done cleaning Kevin's place) but even playing with scraps did little to lift me out of this doldrum mood. Oh well. Trying to talk hubby into loading the tent up and going on an impromptu camping trip, we will see how that goes.

So I somehow got roped into a years worth of personal training sessions (twice a week for 52 weeks) with a gal from work. It started innocently enough, when we were at the gym one day she said she was going to go talk to a personal trainer. She figured she would get some input since she only has an hour at lunch and she wants to make the most of that hour. Oh, see if he will train two at a time and maybe we can save some money. Well, I got called away when Kevin decided to crash himself on the bike. Meanwhile, Audie sees the trainer, who decides he wants to see her twice a week for a year. When I arrived back she asked if I was still interested and I said of course, and she imed me saying he wants to see me twice a year...which I though was odd, of course I wanted more than twice a year, and she imed me back saying twice a week. I said great not realizing it was twice a week for a year and its a contract thing. Probably would be a good thing for me since I can't seem to be accountable to myself and there is that whole class reunion thing coming up and I really need to get all the weight off I've been carrying since I was pregnant with my six year old (very convenient excuse, but for crying out loud it's been six years). So I start Tuesday with Robert....

Well guess I should go tend to dinner before it burns...

February 3

2008-02-03T20:49:00.000-05:00

Today we all went for a bike ride down the street at at a campground on Lake Lanier. The campground has been closed for two years now due to federal funding issues, but it is a great place to go walk or ride since it is fairly flat and there is no traffic. We stopped at one point and walked down to the lake. The significance of this picture is we are walking where there should be water. Lots of water. The lake is down 20 feet. The good news is that the lake ihas risen approximately 5 feet since the end of November. Thats my family way over yonder in the distance...

February 2

2008-02-03T20:37:00.001-05:00

Lesson number one during project 365...make sure to post more often than every 10 days or so. It's hard to go back and remember what the intent of the pics you took were. I am skipping ahead to February 2. My daughter participated in Mathfest. She did not want to but she did. She ended up placing third (out of first graders only). She will be going on the participate in the National Math Fest Competition in Atlanta. This is here with her certificate.

January 27

2008-02-03T20:36:00.001-05:00

My little guy!

January 26

2008-02-03T20:34:00.001-05:00

Ok--so I had to reach. This picture a day stuff is more challenging than you may think.

January 25

2008-02-03T20:33:00.001-05:00

Work Piling Up...

January 24

2008-02-03T20:31:00.001-05:00

Building Blocks

January 23

2008-02-03T20:29:00.001-05:00

He's just watching the herbs grow....

January 22

2008-02-03T20:28:00.001-05:00

Good Medicine

January 21

2008-02-03T20:25:00.001-05:00

Pugsley the dog...

January 18th and 19th

2008-01-20T09:41:00.000-05:00

Well for Friday the 18th I had a photo all picked out and ready to post when my daughter comes running in screaming Griffin is bleeding from the eye. I run outside and, although not from the eye itself, Griffin is bleeding pretty badly from a laceration above the eye. It obviously needed stitches. Him and the neighbor kids had been playing Superman, Griffin being Superman (I am not sure how that happened he is the smallest and the youngest), and the two neighbor boys were the Green Goblin and Dr. Octopus. Superman was fighting both of them and there was a collision between two heads (more specifically Griffins head and the Green Goblin's teeth). A logn trip to the emergency room and five stitches later he was was ready to go. We arrived home around 11 pm. And Phoenix had fallen asleep waiting for use to get back. So, obviously I had to change the picture of the day to two pictures...one of Griffins patched head and one of big sis asleep on the ottoman/couch in the family room.

On January 19th thebig story of the day was severe winter weather. We were expecting 4-6 inches of snow with significant accumulation. Although we did not see as much accumulation as expected it did snow all day. We let the kids go outside and try their hand at sledding with the neighbor kids. You see, snow is a big deal for our kids because they have lived most of their short lives in Florida, and this was the biggest snow event they have seen. So picture of the day is...well kids playing in the snow....

Project365

2008-01-18T14:49:00.001-05:00

A NEW YEAR..a clean canvas..maybe. I have not quite finished formulating all my goals for this year but there is one I definitely want to do. It is called Project 365, where you take a photo a day every day. My goal is to do that, and post it here (once I figure out how). I first heard of the project at Scrapbooktakeout.com. One of the founders of scrapbook takeout read about it on Photojojo, an online photography newsletter.

In today's crazy world where time seems to fly by, it seems to make sense to document every day of your life. We will see if I can do it and at the end of the year hopefully the photos will be a decent reflection on my life this year....

Project365

2008-01-18T14:49:00.000-05:00

It's Monday

2007-10-15T22:01:00.000-04:00

It's another Monday and it is going to be one of those weeks. Today and tommorow I am doing make-n-takes at a brand new local community center where I will be teaching papercrafting classes. Makes for a long day when leaving a day job, shuffling kids, and then trying to make it on time. Today I took Phoenix with me. We actually had a great time. She got to try her hand at a duoprinting technique using stencils and Glimmer Mist by My Tattered Angels. And she did not hae to worry about mommy yelling at her about keeping the liquid in a limited space since we were in a gorgeous art room made to get..well..messy. We left the cards there for display but I will post what she did tommorow night (hopefully). I think she t five cards finished. She had informed me she wants to make 17...one for each classmate in her class.

We are getting visitors from FLorida this weekend, it is going to be nice to see some old friends. We will top the weekend off with a hayride at a state park and a good old fashioned campfire with chili and roasted marshmallows. I sure hope it cools off a little before then.

It is alrady time to think about getting all those Christmas projects done I have started. It is so hard to believe I am thinking about Christmas again.

Ta-ta for now...

World Cardmaking Day

2007-10-07T21:48:00.001-04:00

October 6th was World Cardmaking Day. One of my most frequented websites, www.scrapbooktakeout.com, had an impromptu cyber crop centered around World Cardmaking Day. There were ten card challenges. I was able to complete five cards and had a blast doing so. I love making cards but I usualy assembly line fifteen cards using the assembly line formulas Club Scrap publishes every month. It was actually fun creating five unique cards from scratch with nothing but a challenge or a sketch for inspiration. I surprised myself. Here are the five that I made:

Moving forward....

2007-10-06T00:15:00.000-04:00

I used to feel quite proud that I kept up with technology, but I have come to the sad realization that I have not kept up as well as I thought I have. With social networking, virtual games, web pages, blogs, voice over IP, and GOD only knows what else its safe to say that being knowledgeable and adept in such windows, microsoft, and a few pieces of software I need to know for my job is not quite keeping up with technology. My six year old daughter is probably more technologically savvy than I am. Heck, do not even know how to use photshop elements, which is pretty scarry. I am hoping I can use this blog to share my life as I see fit. I am an avid scrapbooker and love to take photosand want to dibble-dabble in posting and sharing some of my creations. It would also be nice to hook up with some old friends and meet a bunch of new ones. So here goes....