Kieth's 38th Birthday

I wanted to bake Kieth a cake for his birthday, but since he wouldn't be here to eat it, and the last thing I need is a cake I thought I would wish him a happy birthday and make a picture of a cake for him instead. We will have to wait a week till he comes home for the real thing. This will be the first time in 20 years that he has had to work on his birthday, (as he has reminded me several times). As I only spoke to him briefly early this morning, I hope it turned out to be a good day for him. You never know how things will go on "the Patch".

With so many birthdays in the last few days (friends, family, Felicity's friends), I felt inspired to sketch out and create a few birthday cards. Unfortunately, I've only had time to complete one so far but am optimistic that I will have time for the others later this week as Isa's nap schedule seems to be back on track.

This first card is rather simple, but I like the colours and whimsical design in Basic Grey's paper pack and didn't want to distract from that by cluttering up the canvas with too many embellishments.

For the Birds

One of the things that we enjoy most about having the garden is the many visitors we get each season. There are so many birds, bugs and small furry creatures that visit us and often I never think to pull out the camera.
These beautiful birds were photographed by my son, Tristan while we were sitting enjoying a warm summer afternoon on the patio. The males had such intense yellow color, but were much more skittish than the females and therefore difficult to photograph.


I wanted to be sure that I existed along with the rest of the family in photo albums and also on my own blog so I took this self portrait of Isa and I to be sure of it. No makeup, and hair just washed and blow dried, but for a mother of three with a part time husband I think I look pretty good. These days 5 hours of sleep is a good night. But my days are much more relaxed now that I'm not working, and I find that I wake feeling much more rested even with the night feedings than I did when I had to wake up to that 5am alarm.


At 2 1/2 months, Isabelle weighs almost 12 lbs now! I can't believe how quickly she's growing. Next to Tristan and Felicity, she still looks so small, but I know it won't be long before she becomes a little girl so I spend long moments throughout the day just looking at her. Trying to memorize what it feels like to hold this precious baby in my arms. Knowing that it will be some time (I hope!) before grandchildren.
I'm trying to work on a mini album about the changes in the last year or so. One of the blogs that I read 'A Spoon Full of Sugar' http://www.jessicaacs.com/ is hosting a mini album challenge each month. This month features 2 choices; a simple shape album, or one that focuses on change. With so much having happened in recent months, I felt the latter would be simple. The project is due end of September, so we'll see if I can make that deadline. I only get moments in the day to myself and find myself catching up on the computer at night. But I've already sketched the layouts and shopped for the paper and embellishments, so I'm hopeful.

Life Lessons

I saw this entry on a blog called Thynner.......All Tangled Up! http://www.thynner5.blogspot.com/ and thought each of her points was worth sharing with my friends and family so I decided to add the entry to my blog. (Hopefully she wouldn't mind) I know I need to remind myself of many of these lessons from time to time.




Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Challenge #8 ~ Life Lessons
My Dad sent me the following list of Life Lessons this morning and I wanted to share it with you. It is a wonderful, touching compilation that really makes sense in so many ways. This is something we should all read at least once a week Written By 90 year old Regina Brett.

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone....
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch 5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26.. Frame every so-called disaster with these words, 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Challenge: Use one of these Life Lessons on your next layout or card. There are so many to choose from. Email it to me at thynner5@yahoo.ca to earn a ballot for this month's blog prize.

Due: August 31stHappy Scrapping!

~Tara~

Isa and Her Big Brother

Isabelle loves hanging out with her big brother. She's always looking for him when she first hears his voice in the morning. Tristan thinks his new baby sister is "sooo cute" and enjoys holding and playing with her when she's not fussing. I don't know what I would do without his help. With Tristan and Felicity entertaining Isabelle, I am actually able to have a shower and shave my legs, and my house doesn't have that new mother disaster has struck decor.

I once worried that the age difference would be a problem, but I think big brother will be both protector and teacher to his new baby sister.


Isabelle does not enjoy the tummy time that is so important according to doctors to develop her arm and chest muscle strength so she quickly figured out how to roll over on to her back. Now every time I put her on her tummy, she immediately rolls over to where she prefers to be.

I can't believe how quickly she's changing. I want to savor every moment and stop her from growing into the little girl she will soon become. Her tiny "Agoo's" and little "Gee's" will soon be the endless chatter of a little girl who can talk about nothing for hours like her big sister Felicity.

He's At It Again

Tired of looking at the unused strip of yard down the side of the house, Kieth decided it was time to build that fence he'd been talking about for the last couple of years. So hear it is! He spent 5 of his 6 days off on this latest project, but the results are worth it. The fence looks great, and it gave us another place to hang some baskets of flowers.

I thought I would post a little video of Isabelle in her bouncy saucer so Grandma and Grandpa can see her in action.

Tristan is trying to make her laugh, but I'm not sure if all those noises are happy noises. Isa get board very quickly and won't stay in the seat for long. This is why Mommy has very little time to scrapbook! But that's OK as they are only little for such a short while. They grow so fast and move on with their own lives and then you have nothing but time to yourself. So I intend to enjoy her monopolizing my time while I can.

I'm woking on a digital mini album all about my life over the last 10 years. It's a lot easier to sneak in a few minutes here and there on the computer, and when you walk away, there is no mess to clean up.