Lainie's First Day LO

I've been scrapping up a storm lately. So last night I took the pictures of Lainie's first day of school and combined it with the poem I found on digishoptalk.com to make her a page of her first day of school.




Paper:
Sock Monster Finds 2nd set of solids girls by Jen Wilson (JenWilsonDesigns.com)
Frames:
Stacked Photo Clusters by Katie Pertiet (www.designerdigitals.com)
Flowers:
Happy kit by Julia Makotinsky (littledreamerdesigns.com)

Journaling:
I Trust You'll Treat Her Well
Author: Victor Buono

Dear World:
I bequeath to you today one little girl...in a crispy dress...with two brown eyes...and a happy laugh that ripples all day long.. and a flash of light brown hair that bounces in the sun when she runs.
I trust you'll treat her well.

She's slipping out of the backyard of my heart this morning...and skipping off down the street to her first day of school. And never again will she be completely mine.
Prim and proud she'll wave her young and independent hand this morning and say "Goodbye" and walk with little lady steps to the schoolhouse.

Now she'll learn to stand in lines...and wait by the alphabet for her name to be called. She'll learn to tune her ears for the sounds of school-bells...and deadlines...and she'll learn to giggle...and gossip...and look at the ceiling in a disinterested way when the little boy 'cross the aisle sticks out his tongue at her. And now she'll learn to be jealous. And now she'll learn how it is to feel hurt inside. And now she'll learn how not to cry.

No longer will she have time to sit on the front porch on a summer day and watch an ant scurry across the crack in the sidewalk. Nor will she have time to pop out of bed with the dawn and kiss lilac blooms in the morning dew. No, now she'll worry about those important things...like grades and which dress to wear and whose best friends is whose. And the magic of books and learning will replace the magic of her blocks and dolls. And now she'll find new heroes.

For five full years now I've been her sage and Santa Claus and pal and playmate and mother and friend. Now she'll learn to share her worship with her teachers ...which is only right. But no longer will I be the smartest woman in the whole world. Today when that school bell rings for the first time...she'll learn what it means to be a member of the group...with all its privileges and its disadvantages too.

She'll learn in time that proper young ladies do not laugh out loud...or kiss dogs...or keep frogs in pickle jars in bedrooms...or even watch ants scurry across cracks in sidewalks in the summer.
Today she'll learn for the first time that all who smile at her are not her friends. And I'll stand on the front porch and watch her start out on the long, lonely journey to becoming a woman.
So, world, I bequeath to you today one little girl...in a crispy dress...with two brown eyes...and a flash of light brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs.

I trust you'll treat her well.

"Our life" scrapbook album

THIS IS AMAZING!!! I am so going to "scraplift" this idea!!!
She made a scrapbook out of a LIFE game board. You could absolutely find one of these at a thrift store or garage sale. Hmmm . . . I'm going to make a mini album for the school charity auction. Maybe I should make this . . . I think it would get some bids . . . I'd bid on it anyway :)




Here are the instructions to make it.

Sisters LO

Paper
Sakura Spring kit by Annie Manning ~ Paint the moon designs (Oscraps.com)

stitches
Essential Stitches 1 by Syrin (catscrap.com)

Ribbon
Ultimate Flat Pack by cinnamon designs (cinnamon-designs.com)

Font
CK DOuble Mou

Frame:
Stacked Photo CLusters #2 by Katie Pertiet (designerdigitals.com)

title alpha:
scratchy alpha by cinnamon designs (cinnamon-designs.com)

Photos:
by Jen Stewart Photography

Journaling
She is your mirror, shining back at you with a world of possibilities. She is your witness, who
sees you at your worst and
best, and loves you anyway. She is your partner in crime, your midnight companion, someone who knows when you are smiling, even in the dark. She is your teacher, your defense attorney, your personal press agent, even your shrink. Some days, she's the reason you wish you were an only child. - Barbara Alpert

Unbelievable LO

Paper
These Little Moments kit by Lisa Sisneros (littledreamerdesigns.com)

Stitching
Essential stitches 1 by Syrin (catscrap.com)
Stitches shapes by Syrin (catscrap.com)

Title
Crackled Alpha by Aja Abney (scrapartist.com)

Flowers
Beth Kit by Cori Gammon (designerdigitals.com)

Paint
Messy Paint Smear by Michelle Martin (scrapartist.com)

Staple:
RAD collection by Kim CHristensen

Journaling:
Do you know how amazing you are.
Truely?
Do you know how your inner beauty shines through in everything you do?

New Year of school , New Glasses and new music

In anticipation of school starting we always go through all the exams. The kids see the doctor for their physicals, they see the dentist for a cleaning and they do their annual eye exam in the weeks before school starts. This year Alorah was complaining about headaches when she reads so I made sure to mention that to Uncle Terry (Our optometrist ~ a very close friend of Ev's dad's). Uncle Terry said Alorah had a TAD bit of far sightedness, so small that he said we could either choose to get glasses or see if it corrects itself. Since I've been hearing the headache complaint for quite awhile I decided we should do the glasses and see if that helps, because she would only complain when she was reading a book for a longer period of time. The glasses have helped her and she is thrilled with them. She picked these pink frames that I just think are adorable on her!

As you read in the post below, Wednesday was the first day of school. We always get new shoes for school and a new outfit, and then the morning of, we take pictures out by the post in the front yard. Apparently the tree out front grew by leaps and bounds this year because the morning of ~ the tree blacked out all the kids and the pictures turned out horrible. So I made Ev climb up and pull down the branch so it didn't block the kids faces. He moaned and complained about it but did it, so now the kids are all squinting into the sun :) I really need to learn more about metering . . . JEN???

Here's Isaiah all spiffy and shiny in his new clothes, shoes & bookbag (more on those later)
Here's Isaiah's first friend that he ran into from last year, T.
Alorah all pretty in her new dress, shoes & spiderweb hairdo.
Seeing one of her best friends first thing that morning.
The 5th grade girls (quite a few of them)


Oh and as for the new music, I posted some new songs over on the right ~ for those of you that groove to my tunes. For those of you that don't . . . too bad for you :)

My Baby Girls First Day of Kindergarten

Today was my baby girls first day of kindergarten. I thought it would be a very sad day but I was fine. I didn't cry as we took her to classroom. I didn't cry when I left her sitting at her desk as she waved goodbye and gave her daddy a thumbs up sign. I didn't cry as I pulled away from school. I was fine all day and even laughed as I picked her up from school. I asked her if she loved kindergarten and she replied "not really". Then she changed her mind and filled us in on her day. I did great today until I read this poem. Then the reality sunk in that she was no longer mine, that I was now sharing her with the world, and I sobbed.


I Trust You'll Treat Her Well
Author: Victor Buono

Dear World:
I bequeath to you today one little girl...in a crispy dress...with two brown eyes...and a happy laugh that ripples all day long.. and a flash of light brown hair that bounces in the sun when she runs.
I trust you'll treat her well.

She's slipping out of the backyard of my heart this morning...and skipping off down the street to her first day of school. And never again will she be completely mine.
Prim and proud she'll wave her young and independent hand this morning and say "Goodbye" and walk with little lady steps to the schoolhouse.

Now she'll learn to stand in lines...and wait by the alphabet for her name to be called. She'll learn to tune her ears for the sounds of school-bells...and deadlines...and she'll learn to giggle...and gossip...and look at the ceiling in a disinterested way when the little boy 'cross the aisle sticks out his tongue at her. And now she'll learn to be jealous. And now she'll learn how it is to feel hurt inside. And now she'll learn how not to cry.

No longer will she have time to sit on the front porch on a summer day and watch an ant scurry across the crack in the sidewalk. Nor will she have time to pop out of bed with the dawn and kiss lilac blooms in the morning dew. No, now she'll worry about those important things...like grades and which dress to wear and whose best friends is whose. And the magic of books and learning will replace the magic of her blocks and dolls. And now she'll find new heroes.

For five full years now I've been her sage and Santa Claus and pal and playmate and mother and friend. Now she'll learn to share her worship with her teachers ...which is only right. But no longer will I be the smartest woman in the whole world. Today when that school bell rings for the first time...she'll learn what it means to be a member of the group...with all its privileges and its disadvantages too.

She'll learn in time that proper young ladies do not laugh out loud...or kiss dogs...or keep frogs in pickle jars in bedrooms...or even watch ants scurry across cracks in sidewalks in the summer.
Today she'll learn for the first time that all who smile at her are not her friends. And I'll stand on the front porch and watch her start out on the long, lonely journey to becoming a woman.
So, world, I bequeath to you today one little girl...in a crispy dress...with two brown eyes...and a flash of light brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs.

I trust you'll treat her well.

All about US album

I've gotten a few requests for info on my All About US album that you can see here on Jen's blog. Some of you want the questions from the album. You set up the album with two sets of the questions, the page on the left "His" and the page on the right "Hers". The questions were inspired by Lisa Bearnson and a CKC album she did a few years back. Just copy and paste if you want to use them :)

PAGE TITLE: Vital Statistics

Full name:

Date of birth:

Place of birth:

Current occupation:

Height:

Hair Color:

Eye Color:

Secret birthmark/mole:

Shoe size:

Favorite color:

PAGE TITLE: Let’s Get Personal

Cutest nickname:

Random act of kindness:

Favorite inside joke:

Ticklish spot:

Words I love to hear:

Quirks:

Hidden talents:

Bad habits:

Pet Peeves:

Best feature:

PAGE TITLE: LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

The Details:

What I really thought:

PAGE TITLE: Playtime

Best party ever:

Favorite plaything:

Favorite play place:

Most expensive toy:

Favorite funny face to make (see picture):

Favorite play clothes:

Favorite dumb joke:

Favorite board game:

Sport I’m best at:

Sport I’m worst at:

PAGE TITLE: WE ARE IN THE MOOD FOR FOOD

Favorite late night munchie

Favorite fast food

Favorite ethnic food:

Most romantic restaurant:

Mom’s best recipe:

Favorite guilty pleasure:

Favorite food on a stick:

Yummiest candy bar:

Favorite cereal:

Worst Restaurant:

Strangest food ritual:

Favorite Drive thru:

Food that reminds me of me:

Food that reminds me of you:

PAGE TITLE: World Records

Longest time one of us kept the other waiting:

Most expensive traffic ticket:

Longest time apart:

Longest day:

Shortest night:

Scariest close call:

Most embarrassing moment:

Best apology:

PAGE TITLE: Stranded on a deserted Island

Book I’d miss the most:

Food and drink I’d crave:

Cd I’d hate living without:

Friend I’d want to talk to:

Hygiene product I’d miss:

Who I’d want to save us:

What I’d like best about it:

What I’d like least about it:

Tool I’d need most often:

Magazine I’d want:

What I’d be most afraid of:

How long would I be stranded:

What would get on my nerves:

What I’d do when I first got home:

PAGE TITLE: Favorites

Favorite holiday:

Favorite book(s):

Favorite Tv show:

Favorite movie(s):

Favorite song(s):

Favorite website:

Favorite thing I ever made:

My favorite thing to do when it’s quiet:

Favorite weather:

Favorite car:

PAGE TITLE: Little known Facts

Jobs I’ve had:

What I always wanted to be when I grew up:

One thing I’ll never throw away:

Something I wish I could throw away:

My most treasured personal possession:

Something that triggers a memory:

Something I’m embarrassed to admit I like:

My favorite thing about my spouse:

My dream vacation:

PAGE TITLE: Stepping out

My idea of a perfect evening:

Couple we enjoy doubling with:

Favorite “stepping out” attire:

My idea of a classy place:

My idea of a real dump:

My favorite public display of affection:

I’m never too tired to:

My favorite way to start the evening:

My favorite way to end the night:

My idea of staying out late:

I use a program called ACDSee 10 Photo manager to organize my 47 gigs of digital scrapbooking supplies. This program is amazing. I allows mt to place tags on each piece of my kits ~ brads, paper, stitches, frames, etc. Then rather than weeding through 47 gigs to find a purple brad or a staple. I just click staple and they all come up. Amazing program, but it takes quite a bit of time to create your system and then file all your product into that system. I THINK i'm done!

All of it tagged :) Now there's no excuse not to scrap!

My New Baby

I just upgraded my Canon XTI camera to a more advanced SLR ~ the Canon 40D with more features that I am ABSOLUTELY in love with. I sold off my XTI and a few accessories on Craigslist so this baby was almost FREE! The camera strap that I also LOOOOOOVE, was one of my anniversary presents from my darling husband.

Invitation to the Tea

At our school we have a tea for the mothers and the teacher before school starts. It's a time to meet the other moms and review Mrs. O's expectations for the year. This year as the room mom I am hosting the tea. Here is the invite I just sent out. Pretty Happy with how it turned out.

Car Wash, at the Car Wash Baby . . . (yes, I'm singing)

Last weekend we spent some time scrubbing down Ev's truck which was FILTHY! Everyone got into the task, especially since it was a paying job and they're all saving up for a webkinz. I helped too, but because I'm always behind the camera, you just can't see me :)