As April ends...

 Tough month, all the way around...even work has been tough.  But I can see a light at the end of the tunnel so to speak..and (knock on wood) will make my final deadlines.

This song has become especially meaningful to me right now...this, and Oceans by Hillsong.


Matt Redman You Never Let Go



As of this 'camerashot' I am going on my weekend crop.  Talked a little with Michael last night.  But I guess until I am in that car and driving, I am just going to keep 'fluid'...and let things happen.

I am also planning to work from the plant tomorrow morn...the kids are heading for a trip to Shasta...I have a stack of filing and some printing and archiving that needs to be taken care of.

Will be good to see Francine.  She is a good friend and coworker.  We have already planned lunch.

But I must be anxious, or something.  When I arrived at the kids' house this morning, baby is still sleeping, so I scrubbed their stove.  I only scrub when something is bothering me...I always say you can tell how happy I am by how dirty the bathtub is.  And with dh, these 32 years, my tub stays pretty unscrubbed. (won't call it dirty, cuz it is maintained, just not sparkling clean)   ha!!


Thank y'all for this month of blogging, Can't tell you how much looking at your creations has helped soothe me, especially this week....I'm off for more 'medicine'.  See y'all in May!

a memory and a fave pic...

I was not a calm young mother, I was a bit of a perfectionist...and it took me a while to understand that you could not control children to have the picture perfect family.   This was one of the rough days, I don't remember if I called my fil or he called me...but when I let him know all was not well, he dropped everything and came straight from work.  And he did the most perfect things, he took my kids for a walk.  That is all. 

 

Glad I had a camera, and captured this.  

When dd requested this pic, I knew exactly where it was.  See, it is not in a book, but is one of the layouts that I will keep on a wall in my Scrap Suite...once we get the  Ikea curtain rod with hooks out of storage.

Mil brought boxes of pictures to the house, we started sorting last night.  Difficult, Beautiful, Meaningful... Dh is going to make a video presentation for the service...I am going to make a memorial scrapbook for mil.  ( will copy original pics as there are many who want copies)

2 dozen red roses...

This morning I had the privilege of ordering 2 dozen red roses for my mother in law.

Today is their 61st wedding anniversary.  And this was one of my father in law's last requests.

Yes, last.  Yesterday morning we learned that he passed.   Where we thought he was recovering, and with some physical therapy he would be home...it was not to be for us.  Well, he went home, just not the home we were hoping for.

My father in law was a very complicated man.  Or a very simple man who made things complicated.
One of my fondest memories of him was a couple of years ago, when mil was in the emergency room...his asking the attending dr one question after another, after a while, fil told the dr...

  "I'm not trying to be difficult, I just am"

And that is how I would describe him.    He definitely made you think about what was important and why, because he asked the questions. And he could tell the stories.  His passing definitely leaves a hole in the family.  You may not have always 'liked' him, but you could love him and admire him.

Weds would have been his 83rd birthday.

My dh sent me a short bio asking me to write the obituary and one of the  eulogies for the upcoming service.

Mil is staying with us for now.  She is truly a woman you can admire.  I can see her love for him is genuine, her spirit is so giving.  I just hope we can be the support and give her the love she needs right now.

Taking care of her is the best way we can honor him.


4-27 edited to include pic...I started crying when I put in the order, and well, the florist gave us this....

more grandbaby bragging.

Since I am 'bragging' on my grandbabies, here is Jase Taylor...my daughter's first baby (#2 is on his way)...I refer to him as dgs#1.  My first grandson.

He is a good natured baby boy...except when food is involved.  Then he becomes a German yelling little monster...ha!  He yells 'Ein!! Ein!!!".   (really it sounds like German)  He is simple adorable.  

This is the little guy I get to babysit everyday.  I am just too lucky, LOVE this job, I actually smile every day as I drive to work.  My nicknames for him are Stinkerdoodle and Mr. Goofington...and of course, Precious Baby and Silly Boy.

For a long time I kept thinking he looks like a cartoon baby, but could not place it...till we walked into Togos and the gal behind the counter said "Jack Jack".  That's it, he is Jack Jack from the Incredibles!!

Birthday Party time....

Oh, let me tell you, it was  good day...but they had it at a park that is also known for motor sports...so MILES into the canyon.  It was nice, but the drive, on a windy road...I got carsick and I was driving!

Good party, it is interesting when you become grandma at these things...it is no longer you doing it, not in charge anymore!!  BUT opens you up to take pics and hold a baby or chase a toddler...so, no complaints.

So here is the birthday girl, my dgd#1 Adriana.  7 years old on Weds...this is the only pic I have of her alone and looking at me.  I made her stop for it.  I have noticed that the past year or so, I only have 'action' pics or where she is looking at something else.   So, this is my Missy.  We used to be so close, like bff's....but now she has moved on...and I am chopped chicken liver.   Well, sometimes we get to 'hang out' and it is like old times.  siiiiiiiigh, she is also my Caramel...We decided on nicknames based on personality...she is Chocolate Covered Sea Salt Caramel...cuz sometimes she is sweet, sometimes she is salty.   You know, the 7 going on 14 thing.  siiiiiiigh

Here is my youngest grandchild, at least till July.  Joshua...I call him Josh-i-pooh.  He is such a good natured baby, his mom calls him her 'little angel'.   My son calls him 'my clone'.  Yes, he is the spitting image of my son.   So, this is the one I refer to as dgs#2 (#1 I will introduce y'all to tomorrow).  He is fast moving...seems to be developing the physical stuff quickly (like his dad) Guess with 2 big sisters he has to catch up.

Oh, the pinata.  When ds pulled this out of the car, I gave him a hard time.  He assured me that the birthday girl did pick it out.  They even used one of their light sabers to hit him with.  siiiiigh, but the kids did have a good time with it.

and this is my little sweetie pie.  Kyleigh, or as I call her Kyleighbear.  She is my little Sparkle, for she sparkles from the inside out.  She was a 'prickly' baby, real clingy to mom...but I told her, "I'm not worried, someday we will be best friends" and right now we are. (prob till she starts school and I become chopped chicken liver) (siiiiigh)

   Now, there are some members of the family who call her Cobra, for Cobra Ky..siiiigh, just because she is a bit feisty and "on her own program".  Feisty is good, my dd was a strong willed child and grew up to be a wonderful, strong woman.  

I am one blessed grammy!!!!!

scrap space peek

On 2 Peas is a thread about how our scrap space looks, well, here is mine.  I got the in-law suite.  I was in a small room but was 'spilling out' throughout the house.  After 10 years in the house, we are in the process of remodeling...and DH said I could have the suite, IF I stopped spilling out into the rest of the house.  So, I even have my own bathroom!!  ha!!

Here it is right after the reno., when it was just set up....and clean!!! ha!!!

The Table in the middle of the room, is where I set up the 'current' project.  Now, it has been my grandson's book since the beginning.  and the small table is my dgd #2's station...she is into stickers right now.  

This is where the actual crafting gets done...the station facing us is mine...the one with the scraponizer against the wall.   And the side one (next to the puppy) is dgd #1's..  She actually 'designed' our work space.  I was going to have the 2nd workstation against another wall...I know, who lets a (then) 5 year old design your space.  Grandmas do!!!

And this is my space this morning...I am packing for a crop...teehee...

Another busy day, dgd #1's birthday party is this afternoon...  Gotta remember to bring the camera..and get the pics for the 2016 book.  Think I can call her mom and ask her to make sure Adriana wears a certain color to go with my new Webster's Pages Celebration paper pack???

hmmmmmmm

packing for a crop....help!

I have a crop next weekend, looking so forward to it.  It is a group of gals, @12, we rent a 'cabin' from a Camp in Northern CA...and enjoy a weekend of cropping, visiting....and bras are optional.

So, this week I have been watching youtube videos about packing for crops.  Would love to get some hints to cut my packing down.  I, as you can imagine, take way too much.

I usually pick a theme, like this year it is granddaughters...so I just bring kits, pads, embellies that go with the theme.   I even separate by day...what I will scrapbook Friday and Saturday, so part of it stays in the car...and I switch them out in the morning.  This works here as we are parked close by.

This is the view from the back of my car...not seen is another scrapbooking rolling case, a small rolling suitcase, my wagon and another of the gray holder on the bottom right.

I like to bring the tray table to hold my tools and cell phone while it is being charged within reach.  I don't usually take my cricut, but will take my slice for the occasional diecut, usually letters. Access to electricity is not a problem, I just bring an extension cord.

 Just a close up of the washi ring.   These stay on the ring, gives me a nice range of colors, just in case.

The 2 gray totes fit perfectly in my wagon..  I can use my wagon at Expo crops, it is my kinda under the side table catch all and storage...but it is not so good to sit at the cabin. takes too much room, so I take it back to the car after unloading.  

 I use this bag for my project life cards and kits and stamps.

So, this year I would love to make kits...then I won't need a seperate rolling tote for cardstock and pp.

This old black rolling case, was my cardstock case, but it leans...and is a pain in the "kiestah' so I bought a rolling crate...and hope to use this instead of the rolling suitcase for basic crop tools.  You know the shelf, crop cutter, extension cord, first aid kit, ott light.

One of the videos, the one linked on the 2 Peas Refugee thread that talks about packing for crops, by Inkie Quill, shows her packing up a Raskog cart.  That seems interesting...may have room for it where I usually put the tv tray...but how do you get a packed cart from the house to the car to the cabin?   

Okay, I guess instead of talking about it ,  I need to go in there and work on it.  I have a little over an hour before I need to go to work.   I know it is Saturday, but I work most Saturday mornings...not the Nanny part but the accounting part.  Little guy was not feeling well this week...a couple of days he took a good nap, but not yesterday...super fussy and did not want to be put down.  Soooo, gotta go in and finish one of the Company's reports.

Then, dh hired a young lady to help with the grout dust in the master suite and living room.  We will need to go from top to bottom...walls, every surface to clean that stuff off.   We do have dust masks.

So, gotta get to it.  right?