Liptacks and Ladybugs

Been a busy beaver....

2009-08-15T00:36:00.000-07:00

I have had tons of photo shoots (4 last week and 1 this week) and I have 11 booked in the next couple of weeks. I love it but there isn't enough time in the day to get everything done...why do we have to sleep?

I started a new photography blog too, so I can showcase my most recent clients. Of course I am behind on that too but that is ok. http://www.elisemarieliptackphotography.blogspot.com/

I am also on Facebook which has been great for advertising. I have received several inquiries through facebook! Become a fan there too!

Elise Marie Photography on Facebook

And we are having too much fun with our new kitty....Akiko. He is really Hailey's cat but he has us all wrapped around his little paws.

I know I get the lame blog award!!!

2009-07-22T14:35:00.000-07:00

It has been over two months since my last post....and I have struggling with whether or not I should keep this going since I am so busy with my new adventure as a photographer. I have decided that I want to continue though, because my scrapbook habit has ceased and I realize the blog is my only reference to our life right now. So I am going to try to continue but it may be a little sporadic on the personal life stuff!

I can't believe it is already almost the end of July but we have had a busy eventful summer so far.

Here are some of the highlights:

-My photography business is in full swing and I have been busy photographing seniors and families. I have a bunch of sessions scheduled for the end of this month and the beginning of August so I am just thrilled at my progress so far! And did I say I am having so much fun! I think I finally found where my creativity and job can match up!!! Yeah! My website is still a work in progress and I am also developing a blog to along with my website as well, but between photo shoots and editing, business details, the blog is a work in progress also:), but check out the website for updated photos galleries http://www.elisemariephotos.com/. Here is two I did recently of Hailey and Kyla that I really like....

-We went camping in Leavenworth over the 4th of July with a group of our friends and had a great time!

-We saw family that we haven't seen for awhile to celebrate my grandmother's 87 birthday

-Hailey is gone for about two weeks right now for ASB camp this week and Cheer camp next week.

-We are redoing both the girls bedrooms right now, so that has been keeping us busy..... but Kyla painted her whole room all by herself and did a fantastic job! I will get pictures up as soon as the final transformations are done.

-This past weekend I went down to Battleground, Washington to go to the Barn House Flea Market(http://barnhousebh.blogspot.com/) and met some of the "Vintage-Artsy" gals in person whom I have only known through their blogs. I came home with some great photo props and antique camera also!

I was excited to meet Deb of Retreat (http://retreatdesign.blogspot.com/). I just love the way Deb and her husband take the "0ld" and remake it into something new and fresh! You might remember I made some Valentine decorations back in February when I bought some of her vintage goodies...see my blog posts in February (http://liptacksandladybugs.blogspot.com/2009_02_01_archive.html).

I bought a few more kits to make some summer decorations also....I just need more time;)

I also ran into Jana, from Joyworks (http://joyworks-shopgirl.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default), my favorite store in Snohomish!!!! If you are ever in Snohomish....well visit me (I live in the next town over) but also go see this store! It is so much fun with great stuff!!!!

Well I wanted to make this short (not!) but I will be back to post things I missed sharing in the past few months (so I can keep a record of it to show the grand kids someday). I guess they will be able to look at our life through the 20 odd scrapbooks I have done in the past and the rest will well be all digital:) Just not enough time in the day to get it all done! I wish I only need four hours of sleep a night but unfortunately I am one who needs more like 10! Oh, what I could do with those extra 6 hours!

Hope all is well with my blog buddies....and yes we are still in the waiting game with the adoption.

Hope there are not too many typos....I wrote this really fast and Kyla is bugging me to finish so I can take her to her friends house...bye, bye and happy summer!

The news I have been wanting to share....

2009-05-22T13:16:00.000-07:00

Exciting new adventure to feed my creative soul......

Check out my new website.....EEEEEEK! So excited!!!

http://www.elisemariephotos.com/

Thanks to everyone who has encouraged me to go for it!

Also on the family home front we are busy winding down another amazing but full school year.

In the past month Hailey tried out for MHS cheer squad again and made it. She also ran for ASB Senator of next years Junior class and won. She applied to be a "Link Crew" member (helps the incoming Freshman class) and was picked. She was inducted on Tuesday into the National Honor Society. We are so proud of this crazy busy teenage girl of ours. Next week she turns "sweet 16" so the next hurdle is passing her driving tests. Mom will be thrilled to not have to drive Hailey to all of her many activities....but then again is scared to death to let her out on the road alone.

From Tuesday night's ceremony.....

Kyla is sooooo excited to be leaving middle school behind her. Some other parents and I have been planning the all 8th grade "moving up" party at the high school next month. She has her new Bearcat class of 2013 sweatshirt and t-shirts to wear. Next weekend she will be at a waterpark all day for Christian concert and then she will help celebrate her sister's big day on Sunday. She can't wait for summer because she gets to sleep in, play tennis, go to summer camp and the major highlight of the year is the 5th row tickets she snagged with friends to go see her favorite boys.....

The Jonas Brothers on June 28th.

Summer is not quite here but we are all pretty booked with lots of activites and camping trips so it should be a great one! The weather is beautiful this weekend so we are getting a sneak peak at what the next few months will hopefully be like. So ready for that!!!!

Yeah for flip flop season!!!

I Love Taking Pictures!

2009-05-02T13:46:00.000-07:00

So we took advantage of two very sunny days......MY GIRLS are so grown up...where did the time go???????????????????????????

I am working on a new adventure....can't wait to share:)

Having fun with textures and layers....

2009-04-23T19:24:00.000-07:00

Ellie Belle

2009-04-21T21:14:00.000-07:00

Today I met my sister and my niece, Ellie, in Snohomish because it was so lovely out...rain is coming back tomorrow:( . We took advantage of the sunshine and I shot these cute little pictures of Ellie and I just love how they turned out....doesn't hurt when your model is just too stinkin' cute too!!!

Here some cute shots with Ellie and mommy too......

What a great day!!!

More from Hailey's February photo shoot and Tolo pics.....

2009-04-18T12:33:00.000-07:00

When Hailey and I went to take pictures in February, the sun was beginning to set, so we went into one of our favorite stores in Snohomish, Joyworks, and took some really cute photos in their darling displays. Here some of my favorites.....

Also in February Hailey went to Tolo with a big group of kids from school. They rented a bus that drove them around Seattle and to dinner and then ended up at the high school for the dance which was a masquerade. Here are those fun photos....
Finally but most importantly my friends daughter, Maddy, who has Leukemia is back in the hospital for her chemo treatments before she has her bone marrow transplant in about 6 days. Please pray with me that she does well during the treatments and that her transplant is successful for her and her brother (the donor) as well as a complete healing from this! Thanks so much!!!

Good Friday

2009-04-10T17:32:00.000-07:00

Today we remember what He did for us....the ultimate sacrifice!

Have a joyful and reflective Easter weekend!

More of our Twilight Tour....

2009-04-10T15:18:00.000-07:00

Like a talked about in my last post, I promised more pictures of our little trip out to the Olympic Peninsula to visit the town of Forks as well as LaPush to see where the Twilight books and movie were based on. It took 4 hours of driving and a ferry ride but it was worth the travel time. I had just seen the movie and began reading the series the week before so I was interested to see these places in person. LaPush really reminded me of the time we lived on Vancouver Island when the girls were little. The smell of ocean, the moss covered trees and hearing the waves crashing brought me back to the simpler days of living on our little island in Bamfield.

Hailey had started reading the books last year and loved them but was disappointed in the movie a bit. Kyla saw the movie in the theater first and then began reading the books and she seems to be more into it now that Hailey. I was concerned about them after we had a discussion regarding the popularity of the books and movie in our "Parents of Teens" class at church a couple months ago. I realized that I should have been paying more attention to them because I think they actually create a great opportunity of discussion about obsession in relationships and other topics that the storyline explores. I love fantasy but sometimes it is hard for teenagers to separate reality from fiction. I am now using these books as tools to discuss with my daughters certain behaviors that can be healthy and unhealthy in relationships.

We had fun doing the sight seeing tourist thing though and so here are some more pictures from our fun day......

In front of the Twilight store in Forks

The girls with our tour guide

Guess who else was sitting on the bus.....

Sitting in front of the high school doors......At the Cullen's House...The note they left visitors....

In front of Bella's house.....At the Forks police station...

In front of Jacob Black's house.....

Our tour bus parked at the beach in LaPush....

And we finished our fun day at the perfect time.....
Twilight of course:)

More photo shoots and spring break fun....

2009-04-08T13:46:00.001-07:00

So after I took pictures of Miss E in the morning back in February I continued on to 3 more shoots that day. It was chilly but perfect weather for picture taking. When I went to pick my friend's daughter, her older sister was babysitting this little cutie and I knew I needed to snap a few cute ones of her. Isn't she just adorable!?!!!
Here is her sweet little face in color.....And in black and white...

Then we set out to a nearby nursery to take pictures of Miss O....

After I photographed Miss O we came home so we could make a cute little Valentine present for her parents. We had so much fun!!!!

When we finished up Hailey and I decided it was too nice of an afternoon to not take advantage of another photo shoot. The sun had come out but it was late afternoon so the lighting was just perfect....while it lasted. I loved how they turned out and was so thankful I took them because a couple weeks later she cut her hair off.

We saw this neat old green bug parked and new that it would make the perfect prop. Hailey loves anything vintage right now....so it was perfect!

I still have tons more pictures of Hailey's photo shoot but I will have to post them later....wanted to share a more recent adventure. Last week it was spring break and the weather was awful and cold. When I saw there was sunny day coming on Friday I asked Kyla (major Twilight fan) if she wanted to take a road trip to Forks where the story takes place. I didn't even have to ask....she was so excited. She brought her friend Taylor too and we ended up having a really fun day and it was beautiful out!

Off from a blogging break....

2009-04-06T21:44:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a long time since my blog post but life was a little crazy over the past 2 months (I know, when is not crazy?) but I do have a lot to share and thought I would try to catch up this next week.

First of all thank you to everyone who has been praying for my friend, Sue and her daughter, Maddy. She is doing very well right now and awaiting her very important bone marrow transplant. She has a little cold right now so her procedure has been delayed by a week but I know Maddy and her brother (her bone marrow donor) would appreciate more prayers for them in the coming weeks. Hailey, Kyla and I were able to see them both last month when we volunteered for an American Girl Fashion Show which benefited Children's Hospital and Maddy was the special VIP for the show we helped out with. More on that later....but I will continue to post any prayer requests for her over the next little while. I really believe God can do amazing things and Maddy's healing would be such a blessing indeed!

Right after my last post I had a couple of photo shoots to practice my new photo skills from the class I took this past fall and winter from Karen Russell. I am loving this new passion and I hope to start a little business of it once I feel my skills are at a more professional point. I am going to be setting up a photo blog soon too so I can post only my photography there. Watch for that....

In the mean time here are some of my favorite images (they were done the day before Valentine's Day, so many have that theme to it) but I loved doing them. First I am posting pictures of my favorite young family and I had the pleasure of photographing their beautiful little girl. Her daddy used to be Hailey's middle school block teacher and her mommy was Hailey's youth leader too. You might remember when we had a surprise shower for her almost two summers ago.... see here.

Enjoy these and I will post more photo shoots later....

More photos and Liptack happenings to come......

Please Pray....

2009-02-12T14:03:00.000-08:00

JESUS is indeed "able to do even more than we ask or imagine" Eph. 3:20

I recently became aware that one of my friends, Sue, from my sorority pledge class has a young daughter, Maddy, who is really ill and receiving treatments for a rare form of leukemia. I know a lot of my readers are faithful prayer warriors and I would love it if you would add this family to your prayer lists.

She gave me some specific prayers that can be lifted up to our mighty and faithful Lord.

This what she wrote to me:

"I am a big believer in specific prayers. We would love all the prayers we can get for continued COMPLETE remission (she needs to be in complete remission in order to get the transplant) and that the transplant is successful and CURATIVE. As we figure out more of the details about the transplant when we meet with the team at the Hutch I will be sending out word for additional prayers for Jack (her big brother who will be her donor) as well as for Maddy to tolerate the treatments."

Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that very hour. (Matthew 15:28)

Thank you so much!!!

Creating Continued.....

2009-02-08T12:55:00.000-08:00

Well last night I was able to get my creative soul revived. Actually, Hailey and her friend, Britney, joined in my artsy evening. We got a lot of very cute valentine projects done to spruce up the piano we inherited a few months back. I am so excited that it is all vintage inspired since the piano comes from Mike's grandma (Gigi) and was a gift to her from Mike's grandpa early in their marriage. We don't have any piano players as of yet but I definitely plan to have Gracie take some lessons so this beautiful family heirloom gets some use for the next generations. The other cool thing is that we used other items which we inherited from Gigi this past year when she moved out of her home in a nursing home. I love that we get to use these beautiful items and I can't wait to send some pictures to her to see how we love her beautiful things in our home.

My first project was creating a valentine collage with some of things I found in the "Tickled Pink" package I bought at "Retreat" on Friday. I also used some red glitter that I bought to use at Christmas and never used. As well, I used ribbon and buttons that I had stashed away. I just love how it turned out and the fact that the base of the collage uses piano sheet music and the Valentine vignette is displayed on the piano.

I also had some cute little nests left over from another project and I placed little pink and white buttons in them.

This little metal cash register was also something that came from Gigi and Mike remembers playing with it as a kid when he would visit his grandparents house. I thought it would be a perfect addition to the little display. I used more buttons to fill the resister compartments and added a little vintage flower and another nest to cutie it up a bit.

This little vintage book page was also in the little bag of goodies I bought and so I embellished it with some little buttons and silvery glitter (hard to see but it is on the flowers in the illustration). Then I glued it to a piece of vintage paper and folded it in half to make a little tent so it would stand upright.

When I was in Snohomish I picked up a few more vintage valentines to add to my collection. I used a little card holder that I had in my cupboard and then placed in yet another Gigi "hand me up". It is red glass candy dish which I stuffed with some of the vintage ribbons that were in the goodie pack. This was so simple but made such a sweet little decoration!

The next little goodie was made by Hailey. I found an old box of chocolates in the cupboard that had never been opened. I know pretty gross but I threw out the chocolates and then Hailey made this adorable vintage inspired cover for the lid of the chocolate box. She used some of the vintage paper, french language cards, buttons, and little vintage flower. So adorable!!!

This last project was my favorite and it looks way cuter in person but hopefully you can imagine how it looks for real! I found this cherub angel figurine for really cheap at one of the antique stores in Snohomish on Friday and then I adorned it with a simple red ribbon sash. In the bowl that the angel is holding up I placed another nest and I then adorned it with red glittery little eggs (which Britney glittered), pink rick rack ribbon, another vintage valentine and used a cut up old school book vocabulary page and made little flags with them and stuck them into the nest.

When Mike saw the red sparkly eggs he said he had never seen those kind of eggs before and was wondering what kind of bird layed those kind of eggs. I told him the "love bird" of course!!!
I attached another french language flash card and disguised the meaning on the back side.........of course when you flip it over it is the perfect kind of language for Valentine's day.

I also tried to use words that created a mood for Valentine's day for the little flags too!!!

I only spent 2 hours on these little projects and the result was so amazing!!!! Perfect for our upcoming annual "Romantic Family Dinner" for Valentine's day.

I love to decorate for the holidays and the house always gets a change over around the holiday of love. Here is some other areas in the house that I have made perfect for the season...

Our little table in the corner of our family room....

I had pictures taken of the girls a few years back and they are brought out just for Valentine's day. Decked out in a big red wooden frame they are both holding up a large candy heart. I love 40's and 50's vintage and so a couple years back I was in heaven when I found cute little ceramics at Target that were inspired by this era of Valentines.This cute little Valentine house was one that I got from a friend who was selling Dept. 56 when they had their home sales business going. When I saw it I knew it was perfect to go along with my other vintage decorations. I just love the little kid figurines in front presenting their little valentine goodies to each other. It kind of reminds me of when I was in kindergarten. I had this little boyfriend and I will never forget bringing into class on Valentine's day a basket full of red heart candies all individually wrapped with cellophane and adorned with red curly ribbon (which of course my mom put together) and I will never forget the look on my little boyfriends face...he was so so excited.I love this valentine platter that I got at Target...I can't wait to take it out every Valentine's day.Another thing I love to do is put my vintage valentines underneath the glass in the table. They look so cute against the red check table cloth that decorates the table.The valentines are just so adorable and funny. They don't make anything like this anymore. Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong era.I use the rest of my Target valentine plates in a plate rack that I change up every month or so.More cute valentine decorations on a little metal shelf in the family room.Finally, the mantle gets a face lift too. Just little valentine frames and more vintage inspired cards and little match boxes that I found a few years back a Joyworks. Also, a cute little valentine heart banner that I made with the nieces when they came and played with me on Fridays two year ago. The hardest time for me is right after Valentines. It is not quite spring but I just can't seem to get inspired to decorate for St. Patrick's day. What is a creative girl to do????

I am glad I got the projects done last night because today I have really felt under the weather....perfect for blogging though;)

Needing to be Creative!!!

2009-02-07T14:56:00.001-08:00

I have been feeling the need to create lately. I find if I am not using my creativity in some way my soul aches. Yesterday I spent a few hours in a little town nearby, Snohomish, poking around in a couple of my favorite shops, Joyworks and Retreat in Faded Elegance and today I am going to create something with a few things I picked up and some things I have stashed in the craft room. Stay tuned for what I come up with....
PS. It is sunny out too!

My sweet baby girl turned 14 today!

2009-01-27T16:10:00.000-08:00

They grow up too fast......

January 27, 1995....our first glance into each others eyes!

Fourteen years later.....

My baby is growing up!!!! Happy Birthday Kyla!!!

State Cheer Competition

2009-01-26T12:25:00.000-08:00

Hailey's high school cheer team made it to the finals in the Washington State High School State Championship this past weekend. This is the first time in history that her high school has ever competed in competition cheer so that fact that they made it to state and then onto the finals was quite exciting for them!

In fact the state competition was only the 3rd competition that they ever did....and they have really only been working on their routine for the past 2 months in between cheering for basketball, wrestling and jr. cheer clinics. I really don't know how they did it.

They ended up coming in 8th in the state in the small varsity category....way to go girls!!!!!

They were also featured in the paper:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28837275

January is almost over.....

2009-01-21T15:18:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast the time is passing by. Good with the adoption wait but I am freaking out that Hailey is already half way through her sophmore year. I just don't want her to leave the nest but I can see it coming upon us way too fast. I am afraid if I blink she will be gone!!!

This past week she went back to her elementary school to teach the younger kids cheers to perform at the high school Friday night. I went and helped out and her teachers could hardly recognize her. She is so tall now. She was measured last week in gym class and she is now 5'9". She is not to happy about it but I keep telling her she will be so glad later.....the boys just need to catch up to her and then it won't be so bad.

It was so fun watching her work with the younger girls though. I swear it was just yesterday that she was the jr. cheerleader being taught by the high school girls. When she made the team last spring she said doing the jr. cheer nights were thing she was looking most forward to. I think I see a teacher in the future!!!

Hailey when she was a Jr. cheerleader.....

Hailey with her Jr. cheerleaders.....So cute there was one boy and he was in Hailey's groupI wasn't able to make it the game on Friday night because that was the same night as my annual PJ Palooza at our church. I am still the Mother-Daughter Ministry Coordinator and I am having a ball serving moms and daughters. This year it was a great outreach too as many people brought friends and neighbors.Kyla is getting a little old for the PJ Party but I was still thankful that she was willing to come help with some of her other friends.My cute teen helpers....I have my "The Princess and the Kiss" class starting up next Monday so I have been busy getting that all together as well I am planning a new event to serve younger girls (3-7 year olds) and their moms. Plus, I am still working on my photography class which I am WAY behind on!!! Never enough time!!!

Happy New Year 2009!!!

2009-01-01T15:17:00.000-08:00

Well, I know I haven't been blogging a lot lately. I still read a lot of blogs but I just haven't been much in the mood to post. So I figure I will post some highlights of the past couple of weeks in bullet post form and then add a slide show of pictures to make it easier:

-We got hit with a two week snowstorm that added a half of a week onto Christmas vacation for the girls and for Mike. (If it hadn't been vacation though they probably would have 2 weeks of snow days to make up in the summer).

-Because of the snowstorm lots of events we were looking forward to for Christmas were cancelled and about half our Christmas deliveries came after Christmas day.

-Because of the snowstorm we experienced the first "super" white Christmas ever which made for a beautiful backdrop to Christmas morning activities.

-Because of the continued snowstorm on Chrismtas day early (2am-on) my family wasn't able to make it over for our annual Christmas day dinner at our house.

-The snow didn't keep Hailey and Kyla from leaving on a trip to Mexico last Saturday with my parents.

-Since Hailey and Kyla are in Mexico with my parents.....Mike and I don't know what to do with ourselves.

-Since Hailey and Kyla are in Mexico we finally figured out we could go on a date to Seattle to visit the Pike Place Market, the original Starbucks, eat at a romantic Italian Resturaunt and Mike even indulged me in shopping at my favorite store, Anthropologie.

-Rang in the New Year playing Scrabble with Ryan Seacrest, Kelly Pickler, Taylor Swift, The Jonas Brothers and of course Dick Clark counting down the ball drop in New York City.

-Right now we are watching the Rose Bowl getting excited that new UW Huskies head coach's, Steve Sarkisian, current team USC, is dominating the game.....we have some hope now!

Merry Christmas!!!

2008-12-25T16:09:00.000-08:00

From our snowing home to yours.....

We have never had a white Christmas in the coastal NW like this before....more details to come but enjoy the peace, love and reflection on the true meaning of Christmas that this day brings!

The Birthday Girl

2008-12-15T13:56:00.000-08:00

Today is a very special day...

Little "Barbara Ann Bayles" is sensational at 60!!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Yesterday afternoon we celebrated the big occassion with a luncheon at our house with the family. Mike and I made a minature snow house replica of her childhood home in Upper Michigan complete with a little snowman that she may have built when she was a little girl.

I also made the birthday girl some cute birthday accessories to wear to her party.

Thanksgiving is gone and now onto Christmas...

2008-11-29T23:16:00.000-08:00

We are back home after a few days in Spokane to spend Thanksgiving with Grandma and Grandpa Liptack. We also were able to celebrate Gigi's 91st birthday. She is such an amazing woman and I hope I look as good as she does when I am in my 90's.

We actually had two Thanksgiving celebrations this year. The Friday before the holiday we spent it with my family so we could enjoy Turkey day with them before we all traveled to different parts of the country. It was such a surprise to see my cousin ,Mike, who flew in from Austin Texas. What a treat for us and for his mother, my Auntie "Soup";)

My dad getting ready to cut up the gobble, gobble...

I think was a little too excited about it though....

My Auntie Sue and grandma...

My cousin Mike with Gran Gran...
No surprises here, Connor and Joe were playing on the computer....
Kim, Stephen and the kids pose for the camera....
We even had time to take the posed Thanksgiving family picture....

With all the grandchildren in one spot my parents were able to get a picture for their Christmas cards....

Emma was having so much fun taking pictures that I was able to pick up a cute little Disney digital camera for her in Spokane to give at Christmas....my little "fellow foto friend".......

Now it is time to pack up the pilgrims and start trimming the tree.....Yeah, it's Christmas!!!!

Creative Happenings.....

2008-11-24T23:46:00.000-08:00

Go look here to see what I have been up to:) So much fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lots to share...

2008-11-17T12:39:00.000-08:00

Lots of happenings in the past couple of weeks....

Hailey's cheer team entered their first cheer competition two weekends ago and did an amazing job!!! They came up with their routine and stunts in about 2 weeks time and then placed 1st in their category! We were so proud of them!!!

That same weekend I hosted a girls weekend for some of my bestest girlfriends that I have been friends with since 7th grade. Julie flew in from Juneau and then Inger, Shauni, Terri and I got to hang with her for a whole weekend! It was so great to relive old memories and catch up with everyone! We also had pedicures, went shopping, had a cheese fondue feast and a girls slumber party in the bonus room! Thanks girls for such an amazing weekend!Shauni, Terri, Inger, Julie and MeSlumber Party Time!!!
That same weekend (after the girlfriends left) our small group hosted our annual "Operation Christmas Child" party. After chowing down on pizza we all gathered together to wrap shoe boxes filled with goodies to send to kids all around the world....we always have such an amazing time!

Then.....this past week I worked on finishing a canvas backdrop I was asked to make for Santa pictures at our church's Christmas Bazaar. I decided to do a fireplace scene so I sketched out my ideas on paper then blow it up with my projector and then painted away. In true "Last Minute Lesie" style I painted from 10pm on Thursday evening until 10am on Friday morning to get it done for hanging that evening! Even though I did it all last minute it still turned out pretty good and I was even able to get a cute picture of Mike and I in front of it after we hung it at the church. I can't wait to see the Santa pictures my friend, Cheryl, took with the backdrop! In my garage after I finished the painting a close up of the mantle

all set up at the church

With my "Santa" baby;)

Abigail...two days in a row!

2008-11-03T11:54:00.000-08:00

This past Friday I was able to finally meet sweet Abigail who has been home now for about a month already. Between illness and the craziness of life we have not been able to make it work until now. The exciting part was that I got to see her two days in a row! What a treat! Ruth and Abigail came over for a visit on Friday so we could discuss the whole process in China. They spent 4 hours visiting and it seemed like they were here for only minutes. The time just flew by! She is such sweet and happy little girl! Very smart and inquisitive about everything around her. I had so much fun getting to know her and it made me long for our little Grace that much more.

Then on Saturday Ruth, Abigail and her brothers all came back for a visit so Mike, Hailey and Kyla could meet her. We all had such a wonderful visit and I was amazed at how well the big brothers were so attentive to their little sister needs. They are going to make great protectors for her over the next few years. (Brian we missed you...and we hope you are feeling better)

Here is a little slideshow I made of our two visits...ENJOY!!!

How it all began......

2008-10-29T11:40:00.000-07:00

*Last night Mike and I celebrated the 20 year anniversary of our first date together. We decided to reenact some the past and it was so fun! We were able to find people to get the kids to and from their evening activities so we could head to Seattle where are relationship started. We first decided to hit the sorority house where we met. In the fall of 1988 Mike had recently come back to Washington (from New Jersey) to re-enroll at the UW and connected up with his high school friend, Matt, who had also enrolled at the UW that fall.

*Matt had come from New Jersey earlier and found a job which happened to be a house boy at my sorority, Pi Beta Phi. When Matt picked Mike up from the airport he told Mike about a job available at the sorority for a weekend cook. With suitcases still in the car, Matt introduced Mike to Don, the head cook, and Mike was offered the job on the spot. Mike having just arrived told Don that he would think about it and Don said "OK, but let me introduce you to the ladies." As we were in the middle of Rush at the time, everyone in the house was looking their best, so when Don said to all of us at lunch, "Girls, I want to introduce you to your new weekend cook.", we all said "yah!!!!!"....Mike knew he wanted the job;) (Weekends spent with over 100 young ladies....he wasn't crazy).

*A couple of days later while Mike and Matt were working I asked them both if they would like a tour of the "winter wonderland" that our sorority had created for one of our rush events. That was when our friendship began. Mike and I started hanging out at the coffee shop often while I was sketching for my art class. We would talk for hours and we instantly became the best of friends. We both were very cautious about making it anything more than friends but as the weeks progressed, I knew there was something very special about him (and he was thinking the same about me). Finally, on October 28th of that fall our relationship changed. We both attended a Halloween party together and hung out all night. When he took me back to the sorority, after we had a few minutes of that awkward gazing, he reached in for that first kiss:) At that moment we had moved from friendship to a romantic relationship and we both were happy for the change and have always been glad that we connected as friends first.

*A couple of weeks later we had our official first date as a couple at "The Deluxe" on Capital Hill in Seattle. At dinner it took us almost an hour to finally order because we were so entranced in talking that we kept forgetting to look at our menus. Our frustrated waitress kept coming back to our table asking if we were ready and we kept having to apologize for constantly being distracted.

*It was obvious to both of us that night that our connection was a strong one. We both proceeded very cautiously in the relationship over the next few months because we both had wounded hearts that needed healing from past relationships. As time went on we began to trust one another more and more and by the following summer we both knew that we would be together forever. We were both so young but our love was so strong!

So last night we decided to take a trip down memory lane. We first hit the sorority house where we had one of the current Pi Phi's take our picture outside the annex where we had our first kiss. She was so sweet and loved hearing our story too. The house looked just the same from the outside but unfortunately she said the annex next door was not being used anymore. Since it was still standing we were able to get the photos anyways.

The Pi Beta Phi house...still looking as beautiful as ever!!!

Right where we had our first kiss....20 years earlier.

*After we left Greek row we headed up to Capital Hill to eat dinner at the Deluxe, which was still there and hadn't really changed much at all. We were seated in almost the identical location as 20 years earlier and the waitress loved hearing all about our history as a couple and snapped another couple of photos for us. It didn't take quite as long this time to look at the menus and order our food;) For some reason we know each other a lot better now:)*I had so much fun writing about the past I have decided this will be a regular feature on the blog. I would love to have this history down for the kids to have someday and since my scrapbooking was non-exsistant during those early days....this is the perfect way to get the facts down. Hope you enjoyed some of "Mike and Elise" history;)

20 years ago today.....

2008-10-28T12:47:00.000-07:00

Mike and I went to a friends Halloween party together....that evening our friendship, which started a month and a half earlier, tranformed into something more. When he kissed me goodnight at the doorway of the annex of my sorority I knew this man (almost a boy at 20) was different. So much more mature, kind and connected with my values than anyone I had ever met or dated. I didn't know at the time but he was the "one". The one that God had picked just for me to spend my life with. I can't even imagine what life would have looked like if that night never happened. I am so thankful that we both listened to the voice inside us telling us to move forward in our relationship. It took almost a year before we truly opened up and revealed who each of us were to one another. We had both been wounded from past relationships but God knew he had a better plan for our future. We both never looked back and I am so happy we didn't. I couldn't have married the most perfect man for me! He is so special. Not only is he an amazing father, provider, protector and spiritual leader but his sense of humor always can cheer me up on the gloomiest of days. Thank you Lord for this amazing man in my life.....he is such a blessing to me!

Look at those babies....Mike was not even 21 years old yet in this picture. This was the night of the party....and to this day I don't know how I even got a picture from that night. Those were the days before I became snap happy....I don't even know if I had a camera. We are planning a date to reinact that time of early dating. We will have dinner at the restauruant, The Deluxe, where we actually had our official first date and then we are going to go the sorority house and kiss at the doorway once again for old time sake.

Homecoming Part 2...and lots more!

2008-10-20T12:55:00.000-07:00

(Warning....long post)

This has been once again a most busy week indeed! I think it will finally slow down a bit around here....of course I always think that and it never does;)

The week started off as usual but it quickly ramped up when on Monday after hours and hours of calling the radio station Kyla won tickets to go see a private showing with only 50 fans of a band she likes (Panic at the Disco) at the top of the Space Needle. The concert was to take place on Tuesday at 3pm so I arranged to get Kyla and her friend Taylor out of school early so they could make it downtown in time. The girls got all gussied up and off we went.

While waiting at the base of the Space Needle for a couple of hours I spoke with some of the radio station staff and was able to snag 4 tickets to the bigger concert that the band and four other bands (The Cab, Dashboard Confessional and Plain White T's) were performing at that evening at the Everett Events Center. When Kyla and Taylor emerged from the show they squealed with delight that the fun wasn't over. As Hailey was still at cheer practice I arranged without her knowing that I would pick a friend of hers so she and her friend could go also (and I was just praying that they didn't have too much homework since it was a school night). This also made me feel much better since there would be four of them together at the concert since this was the first time they would be going alone to concert.

We battled with the rush hour traffic but made it home right about 6:30pm to pick up the other two girls and we raced to get to Everett by the 7pm start time. I decided to stay in Everett just in case so I did a little shopping and watched a couple episodes of Hero's which I had downloaded onto my Zune. The girls emerged from the Arena at around 11pm after having an amazing time and we headed home for some sleep.

Meanwhile while we were at the concert Mike was at home getting ready for his annual trip to Boston to race at the Head of Charles. He was leaving very early in the morning and was trying to wrap up work stuff while trying to pack. He took off and the week continued to be busy!!! Wednesday afternoon Hailey and I were in charge of the face painting booth at the Homecoming Rally and powder puff football game. Plus she was starting her first Driver's Ed Class that evening. We were able to juggle it all but during the rally the heavens opened up and there was a huge downpour and the face painting booth got a little soggy.

Thursday I was getting decorations ready for the homecoming dinner (hence the glittered pumpkins). Hailey and her youth group friends were all going to homecoming as a group and the boys were looking for an affordable way to do dinner so the parents put heads together and created a "restaurant" for them. Our friends just bought the most beautiful Tudor house on Main Street in our town they wanted to it fix up and rent it out for events. In two weeks they were able to redo the whole downstairs (painting, refinishing the floors, install all new appliances, and replace all the plumbing) so that we could get it ready for the kids to use.

The parents did the decorating and the cooking while younger siblings did the serving so the kids didn't have to have the parents around spying. We stayed in the kitchen and only peeked once in awhile;) One of the moms even made menus and the kids were able to choose from two different entrees. It was just perfect....the kids were blown away at how perfect it was and they didn't feel at all like they missed out of the restaurant experience. The yard was the perfect place for all the photos with the gazebo and the fall foliage and the weather was amazing!!!

The Friday night homecoming game was so much fun and Nana, Papa and Connor were able to come and see Hailey cheer. The team didn't do so hot this week but it was still fun anyways since it was Homecoming. One of Hailey's friends was one of the senior princess' in the homecoming court and she looked just beautiful! Kyla missed this game since she was at a birthday party for friend Taylor (who she had taken to the concert) but thankfully she was able to spend the night so I didn't have to juggle getting her to and from the party. After the game Hailey and I came home and went right to bed so that we were rested for another busy day.

Saturday we ran around getting nails, toes, hair and makeup done (three of Hailey's youth leaders did hair and makeup (two of them are beauticians and one of them was her 6th grade teacher) and we finally made it to the meeting place with all the families at 4pm and Kyla to another birthday party at 5:30pm (thanks mom). It was like a red carpet event going on there was so many cameras clicking. All the guys looked so handsome and the girls were breathtakingly gorgeous!!!! Everyone looked so great but most importantly they were all so polite and the guys were being so chivalrous. The guys surprised the girls by taking them to the Carillon Point water front on Lake Washington for dessert so they could still go "out" somewhere. I wasn't there (and Hailey was thankful for that) but I heard from the other parent drivers that the boys gave up their coats to keep the girls warm, offered their arms, opened doors and were all around perfect gentlemen. The parents said there were other groups there from other school's homecoming events and there was a real difference in the way our group and others carried themselves. Hopefully it wasn't just because our group had parents around but it really represented their true character.

The kids made it to the dance back in Monroe at about 9pm and danced the night away. They ended the evening with an after party at our friends home and I was able to bring them all a group picture that I printed on my computer while they were at the dance. At 2pm the boys and girls separated into two different houses. In the morning our church was having our final building campaign Sunday with an all church service and breakfast at the fairgrounds in town. The boys were in charge of parking and they were so cute because the were still wearing their tuxedos and were directing traffic. The girls all slept very carefully so their hair would remain in place and they came to the service all decked out in their gowns.....it was so cute!

After church we came home and crashed! We are still recovering and missing Mike terribly. He missed his daughter's first formal dance but he was there in spirit and he even called her when we all had gathered for the pictures. I snapped a few pictures of them talking to each other on the phone. Mike had raced that Saturday morning and once again his boat placed 12th and were ranked high enough to be asked back again for next year's race. Next year they will be finally in the master's category (40+) and they will be hoping to medal. 12th place against mostly college crew boats and national team members is nothing to be upset about. They were by far the oldest racers in their division and they still were 12th out of 43 boats and like I said most of those boats consist of guys in their twenties. For example the boat that came in 11th was from North Carolina State University. I am so proud of them! They were 15 seconds faster than last year and they also had a head wind. Way to go guys!!!! Check out the result here http://regatta2008.hocr.org/regatta2008/official/HOCR_2008/HOCR.html?eventID=13816

and for information about the race check here http://www.hocr.org/competitors/default.asp

Shots from last year's race in Boston....

Now here is a slideshow of the homecoming festivities so daddy can see everything he missed...Mike, enjoy your time visiting the Liptack's in New Jersey! We miss you and can't wait to see you in a couple of days!!!!

Homecoming Part 1

2008-10-19T01:54:00.000-07:00

Tonight was Hailey's first homecoming dance (well actually yesterday since it is now almost 2am) and it was the most fun day...I wanted to share a few photos for now but I will post more after I get some shut eye.....Enjoy!!!!!

When the boy's away the girl will play.....

2008-10-17T00:18:00.001-07:00

...with glitter that is:)

Getting ready for homecoming...

The fairygodmother is getting the pumpkins all ready for the ball!!!!

October already!!!

2008-10-02T12:55:00.000-07:00

Well I don't know about you but September went by like a flash! Here I thought I would have a slow beginning to the school year and BAM I was slammed with too much to do! Then this week when things were light again.....I GET SICK! For the last two days I have been layed up in bed unable to move because of a fun flu bug that has been going around. Poor Mike slept on the couch last night just so I wouldn't contaminate him. I am just thankful that this little illness came this week and not last week when I was busy coordinating our church dinner, going to football games and all the other craziness of life. That would have really been a disaster!

Also....

We went to meet the Webb's at the airport on Saturday morning only to miss them since their flight came in an hour earlier and we didn't know......sorry we miss you guys and we can't wait to meet Abigail when we are all healthy again!!!!

In the middle of all the madness Mike's department took all the families up to the Suncadia Lodge for a day and night of pampering and fun for shipping their recent products and we were able to squeeze it in. I was able to enjoy the spa with a much needed facial and massage. We took some pictures from our room before we headed out to dinner.

And finally the biggest news of the week is that someone in our house who has had her braces on since 3rd grade (6 1/2 years), finally gets to show off her pearly whites again! The tops came off this week and the bottoms come off over the next two weeks as they prepare for her retainers.

Look at that beautiful smile:

Before:

This shot was taken about a month before she got her braces put on....isn't she little!

After:

Worth the wait!!!!!

They Won!!!!

2008-09-26T16:31:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the votes...tonight the team will be featured on KIRO 7 news at 11pm. You can also catch them on their website at http://www.kirotv.com/hsfootball/index.html!

Now I'm off to get ready for the big game!!!

Go Monroe!!!!

2008-09-20T12:10:00.000-07:00

Last nights game was another amazing win for our team. At half time we were behind 6-21 but the second half we dominated! We ended up with a 39-27 win! It was so much fun and a much needed evening of fun for me!

Hailey's cheer squad is up for our local news "cheer team of the week" for our area. We need lots of votes so they can be futured on the news website and maybe tv????? Help their team win and go vote....it just takes a couple of clicks on your computer and they would be so excited to win! I figured my blog friends could help too!!!!

The voting boxes are located on the right side of the page....and while you are there maybe you could vote for the Monroe football team too!!!

Don't they look like a team that should win for spirit!!!!:)

http://www.kirotv.com/hsfootball/index.html Vote, Vote, Vote....for the Monroe Bearcats!!!

Thanks bunches!

Things are much better today....

2008-09-19T18:18:00.001-07:00

....I got the tasks I needed to get done... I am showered...and I am heading to a football game!!!!!

I can't believe I am still this busy....

2008-09-18T13:39:00.000-07:00

I was hoping now that is school is done for me I would have some time to get things done around the house. No such luck....my closets, pantry, cabinets, drawers and craft room are still a total disorganized mess! I also wanted to take some time to learn my new camera and Photoshop cs3 that I purchased but I feel like my head is swirling with to do lists and responsiblities! I won't go into too much detail but I am helping to plan a dinner for 300 people for church, decorating all the tables, and the event which will occur next weekend. My mother-daughter ministry programs start up next week and I will be teaching those classes every other week. I said I would I could lead a table at Women's Bible study (mainly to keep me accountable for the study) but I feel the pressure of that too! There is tons more and there are times I just want to go climb back in bed and forget about it all. I know I will get through it and just like always but I selfishly was hoping to do a few things this fall just for me. I hope I don't sound like I am whining because I know how unbecoming that is;)

Kyla just walked in and said, "Mom, your so lucky to still be in your pajamas!" I barked something back about not being lucky, I would much rather be showered and doing other things! I shouldn't even be blogging right now but I needed to vent! Wow, I really sound like a whiner!

Sorry for the rant....I usually want to stay positive on this blog but just needed to express how I feel today! For those of you with major issues in life....I really apologize for petty complaining.

Abigail is with her family....and another birthday (another year older)!!!

2008-09-16T16:02:00.000-07:00

Darn it I couldn't get this picture to move down below with my birthday pics....but skip right ahead to the more exciting news (getting a year older is fun to celebrate but in reality I am another year older).....

Praise God whom all blessings flow....

These pictures say it all!

Check out more on their travel blog here....http://6000milestoabigail.blogspot.com/ they have the most wonderful videos uploaded too!!!

Couldn't be happier for this most wonderful family!!!!

Last night my wonderful husband and kids took me out to dinner for my birthday in Seattle on the waterfront. It was a beautiful sunny day and perfect to watch the sun set along the water!

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday on my blog and on Facebook!!!!

Another fun week!!!

2008-09-13T13:44:00.000-07:00

Recap of the fun we have had this week....

Last Saturday Mike and I attended a very exciting Husky game and we get to go to another one tonight!!! Then out for a dinner date!!!!
Then again last night we prepared for another fun Bearcats game. Here is a picture of Kyla and her friends all decked out before the game.
Mike and I found the perfect spot in the stands to watch the action!!!

I took lots of pictures of Hailey again but I love this one showing her enthusiastic spirit!!!
Finally my brother was flown to New York last week to work on a project with the amazing Michael Phelps. That is my brother on the far left. He works for a design team that created three commercial spots with Michael in them. Joe was the creative director on the project. So cool for him.....
Here are the three spots that he worked on....he was also an extra and can see him in some of the spots!

More pictures from the shower....

2008-09-08T10:42:00.000-07:00

The shower was so special. I truly felt the love of Ruth's friends and family and how excited everyone is meet Abigail. Every detail of the shower was so thought out and meaningful, from the cherry blossom cake that was hand made by a friend, to the Chinese themed meal and the Chinese take out boxes filled with beautifully decorated fortune cookies. The hostess' did an amazing job explaining all the little traditions around Chinese adoptions from ladybugs, 100 good wishes quilt to the red thread legend. Tears were shed when Debbie, one of the hostess', read "Shoey and Dot", the sweet story about Chinese adoption seen through the eyes of an adorable ladybug. The most amazing time had to be when we all gathered around Ruth and prayed for her and her family and baby Abigail. I was just touched by the faith and love I felt.

Now they prepare to take off for China on Thursday....you can read about their amazing journey on their travel blog here. http://6000milestoabigail.blogspot.com/

After we got back from the shower we needed to quickly get the boxes of peaches and pears we had brought back with us from Eastern Washington last weekend. It was our first time canning but even though the fruit was a little too ripe, I think we did a pretty good job. At least all the lids sealed for us, so once we open up our first jar we will really know if it was a success.

This canning experience was pretty fun and not too hard....I think we will be doing this again! I just I wished I lived on my own farm so I could grow my food and can it too! Of course then I wouldn't have time to blog;)

What happens when you are paper pregnant for 924 days!!!

2008-09-07T23:20:00.001-07:00

You look like this.....

Today I got to share in the joy of the upcoming adoption of Abigail! The shower for Ruth was perfect in everyway and I can't wait to share more photos of the fun event!

But it is late and we just got finished canning are first batch of fruit...so needless to say I am pooped!

Just loved the photo I snapped of Ruth when she entered the shower! It was so hilarious and truly represented the length of time she has been waiting to bring her baby home! See her boys peaking in from the doorway...love it!

I will have to remember that one! Nighty night!

Back to books, pep assemblies and fun fall football games!!!

2008-09-05T23:23:00.000-07:00

Phew...what a couple of days! The girls had a great start of school this week. Hailey a sophmore in high school and Kyla in 8th grade and her last year of middle school.

Today Hailey had her first pep assembly as a representative of the cheer squad. They did great at their performance in front of the school and got the student body pumped for the first football game later in that evening.

Their first game was an away game but you wouldn't have known that by the crowds and the spirit. Our side of the stands dominated with a sea of black and orange.

Last year the football team didn't do so hot....they actually lost every single game. But there was hope for this year's team since a new coach was hired and players were ready to win!

Hailey and her cheer team did their best to encourage the crowd and the players throughout the game!

Kyla and her friend Abby hanging out in the stands.

In the end the evening was a total success! Our team scored 20 points and their team scored ZERO!

Now that is the way to start of a new season!!!!

Way to go BEARCATS!!!

It has been so busy I have lots of fun pictures to post of our trip to Spokane last weekend but I will have to catch up later. It is after midnight and everyone is in bed and I should be too!

Have a great weekend!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

2008-08-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

Fun summer pictures that never got posted.....

Phew...I can't believe it is the end of summer. The girls go back to school next week and we have been busy gearing up for that. We are taking off for Spokane this weekend to visit Grandma, Grandpa and Gigi and then summer is officially over. Sad!

I have lots of fun projects planned for the fall and winter, so I do have something to look forward to since I am done with school. One of those is to finally finish Gracie's room and start working on her 100 good wishes quilt. I have had all the quilt squares for 2 years now and they are gathering dust. Hopefully those things will get me feeling like the adoption will really happen.

Have a great weekend!!!

BBQ with Adoption Friends....

2008-08-27T12:46:00.000-07:00

Monday evening we had the pleasure of hosting a BBQ with Abigail's Family and with K1 to celebrate Abby's referral and upcoming trip to China. It was fun to hear all the details that go on once the referral actually happens. It is like wait, wait, wait.....then a mad dash to the finish. Hearing all the preperations has gotten me excited again about the adoption. I've had to put much of the adoption stuff on the back burner because it was getting too painful to be to involved. Having the chance to experience the process with new friends has been so wonderful and gives me hope.

We all had a great time and the night went by way too fast. Not to worry though, I get to attend the baby shower in couple weeks and then I will be at the airport when they arrive! Thanks Ruth, Brian, boys, and K1 for such a great evening....and for fitting it into your crazy schedule right now.

My girls and Abby's brothers got along great too....what a treat!:)

Now I am REALLY Done!!!!!!!

2008-08-21T11:18:00.000-07:00

YIPPEE!!!

I know I posted my commencement photos from the graduation ceremonies in June (like the one above). I walked through the ceremony but I still need to take 3 classes during summer quarter to recieve my diploma.

Last night I turned in my last paper and did my last presentation! Today I am officially done!

It was tough this summer. I took a full load and the kids were home and the quarter is shortened but the workload stays the same. I feel exhausted and there is only a couple weeks before school starts and we need to do school shopping and all those back to fall activities. I need to catch up with all my friends that I have missed during my busy life. Hopefully, they will all forgive me for being MIA for most of these 3 years.

I was able to maintain my good grades but unfortunately the house is messy, laundry is piled up and there is no grocries in the house. I told my family that after 3 years they were going to get their "normal" mother and wife back. After a little rest of course.

Mike and the girls have been gone all week at youth group camps so I am headed out to meet up them...Mike is doing the cooking but everytime I talk to him he is either up a tree hiding or out playing games. I think Mike is reliving the youth group camps he experienced when he was younger. I am just glad they are all having fun....but I miss them so I am outa here!

I will checking in with all my blog buddies in between the laundry piles when I get back ;)

See Ya!

A New Look at our House

2008-08-13T08:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Kyla got a new look......

Before

After

Now she really looks like a teenager!!! I think she looks pretty darn cute with braces:) Now we have about a month or so to have two children in braces. Hailey gets hers off very soon. At least we are used to the orthodontic payments.

Celebrating Today!!!

2008-08-12T12:14:00.000-07:00

Xiu Hua Qiu

Just look at this face....it just melts my heart!!! Congratulations go out to the Webb family! We are so happy for you and can't wait to meet your precious daughter! I am going to love watching Abigail and Grace grow up together. I am already imaging playdates, sleepovers, birthday celebrations and all the childhood activities that we will share together with our daughters! I am so glad that we met over the internet and that we live so close so we can share in each others lives!

Your referral of Abigail gives me a glimpse of what is to come for us! I am so giddy today!

Tick, Tick, Tick.....

2008-08-11T09:01:00.000-07:00

Today is a nail biter for my friend Ruth ( http://abigails-journey.blogspot.com/) and her family. Their referral should be here anytime as China sent a batch of referrals over the weekend to waiting families! I am praying for you Ruth!!! Can't wait to see your sweet little ladybug! And.....watching the Olympic opening ceremony was amazing....we have it watched 3 times! Having the Olympics in China right now is making me just ache to be there! Can't wait to see the beautiful sights, smells and people that make China the most awesome place!

And...wasn't this litte boy just the cutest!!! What an inspirational story and a courage little soul!

2 Whole Years.....

2008-08-01T13:00:00.001-07:00

Today we celebrate (or cry) that we have now been waiting 2 years for our referral for our little Gracie. Some days it feels like time has just flown by and then other days not so much. We are resolved to wait as long as it takes because God placed this special plan on our hearts and we know it will all be perfectly worked out in the end. I have learned a lot about being patient and dissappointed but honestly I think that has been good for me, even if it is hard at times.

I am excited to have my first baby home with us today after a fun and exhausting week at cheer camp. They did so well with leadership awards, blue ribbons and the spirit stick awarded to them througout the week. Here is a picture the cheer coach sent us this morning with their spirit stick!
Also, has anyone heard about Blurb....I saw this on someone else's blog and am so excited to try out their blog to book software. I feel so guilty at times for rarely scrapbooking anymore but I have all the major events on my blog. Now....with this program I can actually have the blog tranfered to hard book form. It is very reasonably priced too! Sooo cool. Now I have more excuses to blog stuff.....sorry honey;)

Hope you all have a great weekend....last month of summer!!!

Long Time No Blog........

2008-07-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy and fun couple of weeks....

On Sunday we came home from our trip to CreationFest....it was hot, hot, hot but totally amazing! So many fantastic bands!

We saw...

Newsboys - Switchfoot - TobyMac - Kutless - David Crowder - Jeremy Camp - Skillet - Flyleaf - Hawk Nelson -Barlow Girl - Family Force 5 - Leeland - Ayiesha - Mike Farris - Group 1 Crew - Lincoln Brewster - Sanctus Real - Thousand Foot Krutch - Pillar - The Afters - Washington Projects - Seabird - Paul Baloche - 10th Avenue North - Phil Wickham - Steve Fee - Britt Nicole - Disciple - Red - The Myriad - Superchick - Stellar Kart - Inhale Exhale - Fireflight -
Future of Forestry - Dizmas - Eleventyseven - Run Kid Run - Children 18:3 - Ruth - Worth Dying For

Some of our favorites....

Flyleaf

Skillet

David Crowder Band

We really had a blast! Each of the girls brought a friend along and some friends of ours let us use their trailer so the camping experience wasn't too bad. With almost 25,000 other people camping for 4 days at the Gorge in George....the event was quite a feat to pull off. Between taking showers on a semi-truck and using a Honeybucket for 4 days, I am thankful for the comforts of home.

When we came home we went to a family Cheer BBQ and then Hailey went off to Cheer Camp bright and early the next morning. Last night a couple of moms and I drove back across the mountains to watch them at Monday night live at their camp. Busy...busy...busy!!!

The team at the BBQ

Showing their parents the dance they are doing for camp....

The camp gear and uniforms....

The girls had a fashion show of all the mom's uniforms from the past....

Carly wearing one of my uniforms and Hailey wearing another mom's.....

Two of the girls modeled the new uniforms for 2008-2009 season....

Hailey at home after the BBQ trying out her new uniform....
Last night at the camp performing their routine....

Celebrating....

A birds eye view...

House full of artists.....

2008-07-11T09:55:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share my sweet Hailey's newest passion.....painting! It thrills me to no end that she has become so passionate about art. Kyla has also been having fun drawing and painting this summer and the house feels like a little art studio. As well, I have been taking an art class this summer so my paint brushes have been busy also. I love sharing this with the girls and seeing them learn, experiment and grow in their skills and creativity.

Here is a little sampling of what has been produced at the Liptack studio......

Hailey's art....

This was her first canvas that she painted. She made it after going through some stuff with friends and boy.....It really blew me away and I have it displayed in the family room.

She made this one as a gift for her friend Maddy. I just love it!!!!
A page out of her sketchbook....
Kyla's painting....

Finally, this past week I did a painting for class....the assignment was to do self rendered piece which had to do with our life. It had to have a part of ourselves in the painting as well as symbolism that relates to something important or meaningful in our lives.

I call this one "All Tied Up"

Fun on the Fourth!!!

2008-07-08T11:15:00.000-07:00

The short trip camping went by fast but we had fun.........with exception of the one night Mike and I had to sleep in the car because we got rained out of our tent.

Since our trip was a last minute plan, Hailey was not with us. She had already made plans to spend the 4th in Chelan with her friend Britt. They had fun but it was weird not having all of us together. I guess as the girls get older this will happen more and more:(.

Britt and Hailey in front of Lake Chelan on the 4th.

2008-07-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

From our family to yours!!!!

We are off camping for a couple days....hopefully we get some sunshine. This morning it has been pouring and hailing!!! Crazy!!! It has been nice all week and soon as we are ready to camp, it starts to rain. Hopefully it will be dryer on the other side of the mountains where we are going.

Have a safe and sane holiday weekend!

Happy Canada Day!!!!

2008-07-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

Wishing all of our Canadian friends and family a happy Canada Day!!!!

Many of you already know that our daughters were born in Canada when we were living there in the 90's while Mike was in graduate school in British Columbia. They both have duel citizenship so we enjoy celebrating their Canadian roots by hanging their flag in front of the house on this special day!

Our little Canadian Girls!!!

Summer!!!

2008-06-27T14:45:00.001-07:00

This weekend we are going to set record heat....just like a lot of the country I am sure but I am so ready for summer! Next week we are going camping over the 4th with our church and it should be fun and warm there too. Even though I am in class over the summer I am going to try enjoy the warmth and the weather. I will be bringing my books to the beach for sure:)

Tomorrow the girls and I are hosting a garage sale so we can earn money to go to CreationFest at the end of July. The girls are going to set up a stand selling Italian Sodas and Iced Coffee. Hopefully sales will be good since it is a nice day.....but then again everyone might be off at the beach too!

Last weekend we celebrated Father's Day for Mike since he kind of got missed the week before because of the graduation celebrations. The girls took him on a afternoon bike ride and then we made a special daddy dinner for him. This was a picture I took (with my new camera) right before they took off. I can't believe how tall the girls are getting just seeing them standing next to their dad. I will definately be the shorty in the family;)

More graduation photos......

2008-06-17T12:39:00.000-07:00

I am in that big crowd somewhere....there were almost 800 graduates from the UW Bothell campus but I think something like 12,000 UW students graduated over the weekend. They held the big graduation in Husky stadium on Saturday and over 40,000 people attended. Now that is a big graduation. I was excited to actually graduate at the Seattle campus since I started there after high school. Mike and I met when we were both students (he was the weekend cook at my sorority).....I ended up not finishing my degree in the 80's but will finally finish at the Bothell campus on August 22nd.

I actually got to sit next to my good friend Kristy. Our daughters have been friends for about six years now and she went back to school about the same time that I did.

The day really meant a lot to me. When I was a student out of high school I really didn't have any motivation for school. I was in a very BIG university and was completely lost. I was having a rough time back them with self esteem and school just made it worse. I wasn't doing well academically and this really made me feel like a failure (even though in retrospect...crazy thoughts). Deep down I wasn't career oriented but wanted to be married and a mom. When I met Mike my life completely changed for the better but I still was unhappy with school. I decided I needed a break....not realizing it would be that big of a break. My life turned around at that point for the better, marrying the man of my dreams, supporting him with his dream of earning a PhD., living in British Columbia for 7 years, giving birth to the most wonderful girls, moving back to Washington, starting a decorative painting business, volunteering for PTA, Girl Scouts and all those mommy jobs. The one area I still felt insecure about was my education. Since I was floundering back then my GPA was not that great, I was very motivated to prove to myself I could do better. I enrolled at a UW satellite campus three years ago since I didn't want to drive the hour it would take to go back to Seattle. Plus, the class sizes were much smaller and I knew this would be key to my success. I actually will be graduating with a degree and half worth of credits;) My first day back to school three years ago was SCARY....I literally prayed the whole ride there and I am surprised I did not throw up. I sat in the class just panicking and all those yucky self esteem issues came back. God was so good and encouraged me with peace and love. I made it through my first class and received a 3.9. I was totally shocked but ecstatic. Each class I was less and less nervous and I slowly proved to myself with work and determination that I could do this after all. I still have 3 classes to finish up this summer but my grades in the last three years have averaged out to be a 3.89. My overall GPA is much lower since they combined with my earlier UW grades but in the end I have put those ugly thoughts about not being smart enough to rest.

If there is something holding you back from fulfilling your dreams or a demon to conquer from your past....take it from me.....you can do it! And it feels so good when you do!!!!

With my grandma....

My wonderful family....Joe the youngest (who started Kindergarten the fall that I started UW in 1985) he graduated from Seattle Pacific University 6 years ago, my dad (another UW alum), me with my mom and finally on the end my sister, who graduated from Washington State University 9 years ago.....I still love her even if she is Coug;)
Reminiscent of our first kiss which I received from Mike at the very same campus (at the front door of my sorority) 20 years ago this coming October. The three people who put up with me the most over the past three years. My husband and editor man as well as the daughters who let me nap in the afternoons after pulling the all nighters.To put this all in perspective of how long this has taken me, I graduated with one of my flower girls at our wedding. Mikaela on the right was the youngest flower girl at 4 years old and her sister, Brittany, on the left was only 6 when we got married. I actually had Mikaela in one of my classes and that made me feel really old;)
Here I am with the same girls 17 years ago...Mikaela is the one with her finger in her mouth.
It was special for me to graduate but it really meant a lot that I could set this example for my girls. Now they know that they can do it too.....even if it takes until your middle aged.

After the ceremony my parents had a little party (also to celebrate Father's day and a few family birthdays).

It was actually my mom who did the beautiful party....busy day for her but she made it so special!!!

My sister (the Coug ....husky state rival) bought me the alum sweatshirt, wrapped in purple and gold and with a husky card. She said it was really hard for her to do but she made an exception just for me;)

The family pitched in and got me the most amazing present. This is the camera I have been wanting for a while now. They didn't even know I had been longing for this exact one but that is what they picked out. Totally excited!!! Hopefully this won't distract me too much this summer;)

My aunt Sue with my grandmother........

Even the biggest husky fans I know interrupted their Father's day fun to say hi and congrats....that meant a lot to me since Jay, on the far right (remember the wedding last summer) , was also my ring bearer at our wedding all those years ago.

Finally my dad......

....even though he had to share Father's day with me I think the graduation was a pretty neat gift for him too. I am the oldest daughter and only child for nine years. I was the first to start college but the last one to get her degree. I remember walking around the same campus with him as a little girl when he got his accounting degree from UW in the early 70's.

It is never too late:)

A day I have been waiting for.......

2008-06-16T00:28:00.003-07:00

....more later but it is after midnight after a very long but exciting day!

Almost done......

2008-06-10T14:12:00.000-07:00

My Senior Seminar Class on our last day of class

Last night I finished with my Spring finals.....and yesterday morning I turned in my senior thesis paper...phew! The paper I finished after three months of research, drafts and edits was on eating disorders and how the media's influence contributes to the problem. I researched prevention programs and highlighted a program on media literacy for teens called GO GIRLS! and discussed the positive and negative elements based on prevention research. I was so excited to do a project that was actually applicable to my life. In my ministry, I teach girls and moms about how the advertising industry changes how they feel about themselves and their bodies. I have struggled my whole life with body image problems and so this issue was close to my heart.

This coming Sunday I get walk through commencement at the University of Washington Seattle campus, where I started my college degree almost 23 years ago. I have a couple of classes to finish up this summer.....but I am almost done!!!!!!

Special Night....

2008-06-05T16:10:00.001-07:00

Last night Hailey was baptized by her youth leader during a special youth baptism service at our church. It was so special to listen to her beautifully honest testimony and to hear that Jesus is the love of her life. I was completely blown away at her eloquence and sincerity. At times I just can't believe she is actually my daughter. She is so much more mature than I was at her age. I am truly thankful but I know it is her relationship with God that has made her who she is.

What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord. Acts 22:16

We are so proud of her and can't wait to see what else God has in store for her life.

Fun Weekend for the Birthday Girl!!!

2008-06-02T13:32:00.000-07:00

So.....Saturday was Hailey's birthday. The silly girl didn't want to have a party this year (what is mom the party queen to do?), I kept trying to convince her it would be fun but she wouldn't budge so I gave up. Also, one of her BFFs, Maddy, was having her birthday party the night of Hailey's birthday. Maddy and her mom even tried to convince Hailey they could do a double party since they have all the same friends. Well.....stubborn girl;) was adamant that Maddy have her own party and that she didn't want to take away from her celebration. Then on Friday....my motherly sense could tell that Hailey really didn't want her birthday to go by without any fun with friends........... so at 9pm after a very busy Friday afternoon running kids from here to there and there and there and there and back again, I planned an impromptu surprise birthday breakfast for her with some of her closest friends. I was so thankful that most everyone could make it on such short notice. I ran into the $ store right before they closed and found some cute goodies and fun plastic Hawaiian plates. Mike was in charge of food and I did the decorating. Some how we were able to get all her friends into the house without her knowing on Saturday morning. Although, I did have to tell her we invited her friend (our neighbor) Britnee for breakfast so I could get her out of bed. She was totally surprised when Britnee brought her down the stairs and she was very happy to have her special day start out this way.My last minute table decorations and goodies bags.....
Totally surprised and enjoying time with her best friends......

Adorable shirt she got from Maddy.....

After the breakfast Hailey and I headed out for the mall to meet Nana for some birthday shopping, a make over at the MAC counter, and a delicious lunch.....After shopping I dropped her off at Maddy's party to celebrate Maddy's birthday with 23 kids from school and youth group.......great way to end the day!!!

Thank goodness this all occured last weekend since this week I have my last week of classes, finishing up my senior thesis paper, and finals next Monday......ok back to the books;)

Someone is turning 15 tomorrow......

2008-05-30T13:29:00.000-07:00

My heart is breaking for them.....

2008-05-22T13:52:00.000-07:00

Just read this story:http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hCX0xYfGnwKXZ56bJKPQoZGnyBKgD90QLK081

Heavenly Father,

I pray for the Chapman family and their grief at the loss of their youngest daughter. I can't even imagine what they are going through right now. At a time when they should be celebrating their oldest daughter's engagement and their son's graduation and yet they are experiencing a tragedy that no one should ever have to go through. I know You are surrounding them with your love and peace but it still seems so hard to understand. They have done so much to honor your kingdom and live for You! Protect their hearts and I especially pray for their son. He needs to know this really was an accident. I know they trust in You and feel comfort that Maria Sue is wrapped in your warm embrace in heaven.

Amen

Sunny here but tears are raining in China....

2008-05-15T13:06:00.000-07:00

Each day the death toll grows and it breaks my heart for those who are suffering right now. I am currently finishing a book called Wild Swans and I am reading about this part of China right now. The people of China have been through so much suffering through the years of Mao and the Cultural Revolution, and now this. They need our help and it so saddens me that many of the babies and children in the orphanages are needing just basic supplies like diapers, formula and clean water. The Rumor Queen has current reports on individual orphanages in the Sichuan province and listed places to help those little children on her website. Our agency, CCAI, is also getting involved in the effort to help the orphanages specifically. They sent us an email today and have set up a relief fund that we will be donating to. If you feel called to help you can donate here.

I wish I could jump on a plane to China right now......praying for all the people of China.

Remember this from a couple weeks ago....

And now this......

Bring on summer!!!!

Amazing Restful Weekend!!!

2008-05-12T12:21:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my husband and kids for making this the best Mother's Day weekend ever!!!

I was spoiled....that's all I can say!

Some of the men and kid's from our church got together and planned a fun weekend....where the mother's got to enjoy their families and friends without cooking, cleaning or any other kind of chores....we truly were treated like queens (I even got scolded for coming into the kitchen to get my own coffee)! We left Friday afternoon to spend the weekend here at the Mountain Springs Lodge and the dad's had done all the shopping, arranging and activity planning. There was six families with a total of about 32 of us.

We hung out and talked, did board games and puzzles, played flag football, the mom's and daughter's went horseback riding...

we went on an afternoon couples hike....
the dads and the kids put together an evening talent show....

and we finished the weekend with a wonderful brunch on Sunday in the main lodge with lots of yummy food!

Here are a couple great pictures I captured of some of my friend's with their kids.....

Thanks to everyone who made this so special to all of us moms!!!!

We were truly blessed!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

2008-05-09T15:30:00.000-07:00

We are off on a surprise Mother's day family retreat! The men of our small group have planning it for the past month....and the ladies didn't even catch on, well until this last week at least.

Can't wait to share the fun when we get back:)

Here is a picture of me with my wonderful mother and her with the girls, who made me a mother and I think that is just wonderful;0)!

Happy Mother's day mom....can wait until our special day on Tuesday!

Happy May Day!!!!

2008-05-01T12:12:00.000-07:00

April showers (some snow showers) bring May flowers and a big batch of referrals????? Especially for you Ruth!

2 posts in one day????

2008-04-29T16:50:00.000-07:00

Just needed to share.....my girls each have a myspace account, it is set to private and they are allowed to have one if I can have access to it at anytime, so I can make sure they are safe. To tell you the truth it has really been a great window into their lives. You know teens....if you ask them how their day was they say "fine" and that is about it. I am not spying because they know I look...I really love it actually. I can also check out their friends (boys too;)) and make sure they are all behaving;) Well this afternoon I was checking on their accounts and look what Hailey posted on one of her sister's pictures.

"ohmygoodness....little kyla sue is all grown up!man... the little sister with blond curly hair and all of her funny faces is all grown up...and beautiful!gosh... the younger sister is always the pretty one...:)i love you so much kyla!i know we fight but you are always there for me... even if it is only because you have to be. i know i can always tell you anything and it will be safe.you know exactly how to cheer me up when ever i am down and have always been able to help me through anything!i love you as a friend and as a sister.:)i can't wait to watch you grow up to the amazing woman god intended you to be.-hayhey:)"

How sweet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They really do love each other! Sometimes I wonder. They were so close as little girls. They are only 20 months apart and they would just play and play and play. They had other friends too but they just loved being with each other. The last couple years they have been fighting a lot. I guess this is normal since they are teens but I just loved reading that precious post Hailey made to her little sister. They are upstairs right now giggling and hanging out with other friends...but they are all together. They have even shared a room for more than a week now....and no drama yet! I will just enjoy it while it lasts:)

ThE cRaZy WeEkEnD

2008-04-29T13:14:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was our church's annual "Women's Tea" and this year I didn't decorate and I didn't host a table but I was able to enjoy the day as a guest with my two daughters and my good friends and their daughters. It was such a refreshing day among my busy life right now! I even won a gift basket that was themed in the same colors, birds and bird houses that I decorated the tea from last year. A coinkie dink? I think not;) What a blessing!

This is the beautiful box with some of the decorations I used for the tea last year....cool, huh?

Then on Sunday night (rather Monday morning) it was the annual cheerleading kidnapping. The senior cheerleaders do this each year with the new girls for next year's squad. I knew about it...Hailey had some idea about it....but she was sound asleep when they came charging into her room at 12:15am...yes....AM. Thank goodness I was up doing homework but the rest of the family was awakened by screaming, clappers and silly string. They whisked her away in the night to have an all nighter playing games, eating junk, and bonding. We were a little unsure about the whole thing until I found out they were staying with a family who we used to teach Sunday school with at our old church. I knew there wouldn't be any shenanigans going on and they would all be safe. She had a great time but she was soooooooo tired when she got home from school yesterday and a little grumpy, I am sure it will take a few days to catch up with her sleep. I took some pictures as they entered her bedroom. Last weekend, Kyla moved her bed into Hailey's room so they could try out sharing a room together (probably won't last too long) and Kyla got to experience the screaming cheerleader alarm clock also.

The girls took a picture with Kyla while Hailey packed up her things....the least they could do for waking her up;)

In one of the cars off to celebrate........

Teenagers....

2008-04-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

Sometimes they crack me up....

these were all pictures I found in their folders on my computer;)

...somethings change and somethings stay the same;)

63 days until summer??????????

2008-04-18T18:30:00.001-07:00

What crazy weather we are having.........

It has been snowing, hailing, and raining on and off all day. But it has just been snowing for the last couple of hours. Isn't it the middle of April????? I don't think I have ever seen cold weather here this late in the spring. Sometimes we only got a light dusting once or twice in the winter....so this is really weird!

To make things even weirder last Saturday it was almost 80 degrees. On Sunday morning half the congregation at our church was sun burned!

Here is proof of that...Hailey and her friends last Saturday night were out playing at the park in the early evening, it was dark but they were all wearing shorts! They were so excited to get in the mood for the summer season...

...sorry girls, it looks like we all will have to wait a little longer to put away the scarves and gloves.

My poor spring plants might not survive either. They were doing so well....especially with the heat of last week but now they are shivering to death! The tulips just popped out and now they don't know what to do!The only flowers that I think will survive are those hiding under the protection of our porch....so sad:(
My "friday friends" were with me today though and it was so cute how they went running into the closet to get out the scarves when it started snowing....they said they wanted to be snuggly:)
Since today was definately an "indoor day"....we weren't going to let the weather get us down. Since the flowers were dying outside we figured we could make some pots of flowers that could survive any kind of weather.

Emma made one for daddy and Ellie made one for mommy. Nothing better than lollipop flowers!

I got the idea here at LillyBean's Paperie.

We had so much fun with that we thought we would do more crafts. I didn't get much else done but hey....we had fun!

Pretty Princess hats

They each made a sparkly, jeweled cross. Perfect for princess' of the "Most High King"

Go Hailey Go!!!!

2008-04-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

***warning...proud mom moment....some mommy boasting ahead:)***

This past week (in the middle of Hailey being sick from her trip to Nicaragua) she tried out for her school's cheerleading team. I was just so proud of her efforts since the tryout was on Wednesday and that was her worst day of stomach cramping. You wouldn't have known that from her tryout.

She did an amazing job considering what she had been going through with her illness, having a whole week without practice while in Nicaragua and having to tryout alone in front of about 25 judges and around 80 parents in a huge high school gym. It was scary just to watch....I don't think I could have ever done that! I kept telling her how proud I was of what she accomplished regardless of the outcome and I knew it was going to be a close one because there were a lot of talented girls trying out. Plus there were 18 positions but 9 girls were returning from last year.

Well on Friday evening we found out she made the squad....Yeah!!!!!!!!!

She was so excited that several of her friends made the squad too!!!

Five of the girls are in Hailey's youth group at church. They are such a nice group of girls so I know Hailey is going to have a great year!

Britnee and Hailey

Jodi and Carly

Erin and Kendra

Alecia and Hailey taking their cheer boxes and goodies after the celebration dinner tonight.

Jenny the coach

Celebration cake

She has been dreaming of becoming a high school cheerleader since elementary school when the cheerleaders would come to her school and teach the younger kids dances and cheers to perform during the high school basketball team's half time....it was called "spirit night".

Hailey in January 2002 (look how little she was)

I always thought it was such a nice way to get the younger kids involved and to have role models from the high school. It made the kids in our community feel like they were a part of something bigger and exciting. Now, she gets to teach the kids around our town at the different elementary schools the same thing and be a role model for those girls to look up to! I was looking back on scrapbooks of the pages I made of the "spirit night" outings we made with the girls a few years ago and it was fun to see my little girl come full circle.

Hailey getting her t-shirt signed by the high school cheerleaders after the game....

2002

2001

It has been and exciting but emotional weekend for me since I am realizing my "baby" is turning into young lady and doing the same fun things that I did back in high school! I am just thrilled for her and all the fun this is going to be as well as all the wonderful memories she will have of high school!

More of Nicaragua...

2008-04-10T15:15:00.000-07:00

Hailey and Kyla are better now but earlier in the week they came down with stomach bug, probably from the trip....but they are trying to get back into "normal life" again!

Home Safe and Sound....

2008-04-06T01:33:00.000-07:00

It is 1:30am but I just wanted to post that the girls made it back from Nicaragua safe with lots of wonderful stories to share....they are pretty tired but tomorrow I will hopefully get a total recap of the week. Here are three of my favorite pictures that Kyla took with her camera! So glad they went but soooooooooooooo glad to have them home!

20 months LID...and sick!

2008-04-01T15:23:00.000-07:00

Today marks our 20 month LID anniversary....hmmmm we are celebrating here...not! Actually Mike and I are both sick. He didn't go to work today....which means he really isn't feeling well. I am not as sick as he is but I can tell my body is fighting something...achy, a little congested but hopefully I won't get the full fledged flu like he did because this is my first week of spring quarter and I can't be really sick right now! I don't have class today so Mike and I have been hanging out on the couch...trying not to cough or sneeze on each other.

Since I don't have too much homework the first week of school I have been browsing the net and I found some fun new blogs, here, hereand here...that spark the creativity part of my soul that has been a little dormant lately...hopefully I can get some inspiration to do something fun this spring. Some of my other favorites are also... Shabby Miss Jenn, Love, Elsie, Artsy Mama and Simple Things.

How cute is that????

I am taking a Modern China class this quarter and I was so excited to see that one of my books on the wish list at Amazon was a required read for my class!!!! I have read through half it already and it is sooooo good! It is a great representation of China from a woman's point of view in the last century and it is all a true account but it reads like a novel. I highly recommend it!

Also, I have to write a final paper in the class and my professor is excited for me to research and write about China's one child policy. So if anyone knows of current reports about how China may change this....I would love any links you come across:)

Finally, we have only heard one report from Nicaragua that they all made it down there safely....but I can't help but just wish for one little phone call from my girls to hear how they are doing. I know the schedule for the last few days has been for them to work on painting the school and playing with the kids who live in the dump....so they are busy doing the work they went there for. Tomorrow is about the half way point of the trip so maybe we will get a call.....they said they could call at least once, so I am hoping.

****Update***** The girls just called....they each had three minutes to talk so we only got some of the details. They are having a great time, it is very hot, Kyla said there are a lot of big spiders and scorpions (yikes) and the family that they are staying with have a pet monkey that they love. They have been painting the school but mostly loving on the kids and each of them have a child who has become attached to them....so cool! Hailey was already talking about how she is going back as soon as she can save up enough of her babysitting money (she is going to be the missionary in the family I have a feeling). So far they have stayed pretty healthy only Miriah (Kyla and Hailey's friend) has gotten sick and Mac (their youth leader sprained his ankle). Hailey said she didn't bring enough clothes but she was able to do some laundry today. Wow, that was perfect timing for their call.....I have been missing them so much but I am so relieved that everything is going well!

Here is a picture of Kyla and Mariah back in August....please pray that Mariah gets better and that the others don't get sick and of course Mac's ankle heals quickly!

Off to Nicaragua....

2008-03-28T05:16:00.000-07:00

Bright and early this morning the girls left for their mission trip to Nicaragua. I was excited for them but of course a little nervous sending them off so far away but I know that God will take good care of them! They are going to have such a great experience even though sometimes they might see things that are hard and uncomfortable. I am proud of the women they are becoming and pray that God will use them in mighty ways this next week!

The send off.....

Two of my good friends are going on the trip so my girls will have good "moms" to take care of them! Thanks Kimberly and Kristie!!!

And off they go.......

Easter Celebration!

2008-03-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a beautiful Easter celebration. In the morning the weather was rainy and very un-Easter like but after the beautiful cleansing showers cleared, we had a glorious day of sunshine....a feeling of renewal. It was awesome. After a beautiful Easter service at church we came home for Easter preparations for a family dinner. My family came over in the late afternoon and we had a scrumptious dinner together.

Here's some fun pics from the day....

I had some fun decorating the table with my favorite Fitz and Floyd bunnies, beautiful light pink tulips and the soft colors of spring.....

I even set a special table just for the littlest girls....they loved having their own special place with bunny dishes and their own bunny salt and pepper shakers. So cute because they ended up at our table eating off the rest of our plates and we couldn't figure it out until we cleared their plates and noticed they went a little crazy with salt and pepper:)

Trying out their special little girl table....

The rest of us at the "big kids" table....

He has Risen!!!

2008-03-23T00:53:00.001-07:00

An Easter Wish

Author: Anonymous

May the glad dawn

Of Easter morn

Bring joy to thee.

May the calm eve

Of Easter leave

A peace divine with thee.

May Easter night

On thine heart write,

O Christ, I live for thee!

Happy Easter!!!

The "teens" are not much into sitting on the laps of rabbits anymore but at least mom has pictures to reminisce with and to get her by until she can take another little one to see the "Easter Bunny"!

Spring Break Baby!!!!

2008-03-20T13:43:00.001-07:00

I just completed my finals on Tuesday evening for winter quarter and I have been catching up on some much needed rest! I had a crazy month! Some how I planned on having the concluding ceremony for a class I have been holding for the past 2 months for my mother/daughter ministry right smack in the middle of finals week. Not the best planning on my part but I made it through with out having a mental breakdown.

The ceremony was held this past Saturday for nine girls who have been attending "The Princess and the Kiss" class at our church with their mom's and it was just an amazing day. God truly gave me the energy I needed to make the day special for these beautiful "princesses" and I was so blessed to get to know them and their moms these past couple of months.

Here are some pictures of the ceremony but I needed to blur the faces of the girls since I didn't get permission to post their pictures on my blog but the program is amazing and I wanted to post about it because the study is so great about planting seeds of purity in the hearts of young girls, while helping them to realize that even though the world is not necessarily a "fairytale" they ARE PRINCESSES of the MOST HIGH KING! You can find more information about the book and study at the author's website by clicking here.

I went through the program with Hailey and Kyla about 3 years ago and it was such a great way of connecting with them on such an important subject. I just can't believe how much they have grown up in three years but they will always be my little "princesses":) Here are some pics of their experience with the program.....

Now....I need to go clean my distaster of a house! Things around the homestead have been little messy lately and I can't stand it!

Also, Hailey and Kyla leave for a mission trip a week from Friday. They are going to Nicaragua over their spring break and I need to get stuff ready for that trip too!

Still lots to do but I hope I can catch up with my blogging and do a few fun things in the next week before it is back to the books for spring quarter. I'm almost done though! Yeah!!! 5 classes left and then I finally graduate!!!! It has only taken me 23 years to complete but hey...who's counting! (Of course there was a big break in the middle to raise my kiddos)

Happy Spring everyone!!!!

My Friday Friends....

2008-03-07T11:20:00.001-08:00

On Fridays I watch my nieces...today they are sitting at the table coloring and playing with toys we got from the dollar store this morning. I decided to make a couple of scrapbook pages of all their funny expressions I have stored on my computer...they have so many and their little comments are always cracking us up!

I will probably be absent for a couple of weeks....I have my last week of winter quarter next week and then it's finals!!! Bring on Spring Break!!!! So ready for some warm weather!

Have a great weekend!

It's about time!!!!

2008-03-03T22:22:00.000-08:00

CCAA finally makes it into 2006! Congratulations to all the families who had LID's in 2005....now it is our turn! Yeah for all the fellow 2006ers!

Tick....Tick....Tick

Weekend Recap

2008-02-27T11:16:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Hailey and her friends went to their first Tolo. The theme was "Famous Couples" so Hailey and her friend, Jesse, went as "Malibu Ken and Barbie". The other couples in the group were "Clark Kent (Superman) and Lois Lane" and "Peter Parker (Spiderman) and Mary Jane".

I don't know who had more fun the kids or all the parents taking pictures before they left?

Panda Cuteness!!!

2008-02-22T20:11:00.000-08:00

Sigh.....I can't purchase anymore cute baby clothes since the drawers are overflowing but I wanted to share the good deal I found on these little panda cuties! Way marked down at Gymboree in the Baby Girl section. The bigger sizes are going fast....but the cute little hat is marked down to $3.99, the sweater is ONLY $6.39 (it was originally $30) and those fun little overalls are only $14.39

Darn it.....I wish I hadn't even looked....hmmmm...maybe just one more outfit;)

Silly Signs.....

2008-02-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

It just cracks me up how the girls started posing with these silly faces and signs (I think they are related to gang signs but they don't know that)....I know kids all over are doing it but now that we are copying them they don't seem to be doing it as often. I made a little slideshow of all the poses I could find on my computer. Check our grandmas doing it.....cracks me up!

Lainey is with her forever family!!!

2008-02-18T10:34:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Randy and Donna (who share our LID date) and our one of July DTC buddies. They are in China right now and have just met their beautiful daughter, Lainey!!!

You can check out their journey at http://www.handsful.com/

God is good!

A BIG DAY!!!

2008-02-16T11:41:00.001-08:00

My main man finally catches up to me......

You've come along way baby....

and I just figured out that I met you when you were 20, so we have been together for half of your life!!!! I am so glad to be celebrating this day with you! The best thing in my life for sure!!!!

Happy 40th!!!!

Won't you.....

2008-02-14T13:24:00.000-08:00

Forever.....and ever!!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day to the best sweetheart a girl could ever dream of!

Finally the show I have been waiting for!

2008-02-08T13:24:00.000-08:00

I was so excited when I turned on Nick Jr. this morning for the nieces and saw that Ni Hao, Kai Lan premiered this week. It was so cute and perfect for us to watch on a rainy day! I can't wait to watch it with our little Gracie too! Someday.......

Happy New Year....Year of the Rat!!!

2008-02-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

Hot off the press....

2008-02-01T09:56:00.001-08:00

We have now officially been in the huge stack of dossiers in China for 1 and 1/2 years...hopefully the pages haven't yellowed or the pictures faded yet.

God is faithful and our day will come.

Officially Two Teens in the House!

2008-01-30T13:21:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we celebrated our youngest daughter becoming a teen officially (I think she has been acting like one for awhile now;) We hosted our first boy-girl party for her and we were so proud of how well it went. Adding boys into the mix is new for us but they were all wonderful and very respectful! Yeah! They danced, played silly games and had fun with our newest purchase "Rock Band". Some of the boys and girls have been in school with Kyla since preschool and it is so much fun watching them grow up together.

Sweet Niblets.....

2008-01-23T12:41:00.000-08:00

Where did the month go??????

I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post but it has been a busy one and unfortunately computer fun has been put on the back burner.

Our trip was wonderful....lots of sun and sea....and Cabo was the perfect temp! So wanting to be there right now....one casuality though...."Nana Got Ran Over By a Towel Cart"...but despite a few days in a wheel chair...I think she still had fun:)

We got back on the 7th and we were all back to school and work on the 8th. Between unpacking, laundry, and cleaning up all the Christmas decorations and January obligations.... the time has just whipped by.

Mike's grandma (on the right with my grandma) fell this week and broke her hip. The surgery went well but she just turned 90 and we are all praying that she can make a full recovery. She is such a wonderful lady and we would appreciate any prayers for her during this time.

Thank you

Hope to catch with everyone in blogworld very soon!!!

One Christmas Celebration Down....

2007-12-26T17:23:00.001-08:00

and two more to go.....

We had a great Christmas celebration with my side of the family. Now we are preparing for Mike's brother and his family who are coming from New Jersey. We will all celebrate with Mike's mom side of the family tomorrow and Friday. Then with Mike's Dad's on Saturday. Then on Sunday we head down to meet up with my family in Cabo San Lucas for sun and R&R and ring in the New Year. I hope you all had a great Christmas!!!!

Santa is coming....

2007-12-24T13:08:00.000-08:00

but Jesus is the real reason we celebrate the season. Celebrating the birth of our Savior!

Merry Christmas!!!!

Finals are over!!!!! Let the season begin!

2007-12-20T12:37:00.000-08:00

Well last week was a rough one! Between finishing all my final projects and papers and completing finals I was dog gone tired! It was all worth it though as I received A's in all of my classes...yipee!!!! You see this was a huge step for me. I did not do great when I was in college after high school. I always had a complex about school and about the fact that I didn't finish my degree. I have been taking one class at time these past two years so when I would get an A I would always think "well I can do that when I am just taking one class but if I take more I shouldn't have such big expectations". After taking a full load for the first time since the 1980's I finally can say I can do it well....no more excuses. I hope you don't mind me sharing in my accomplishments a little bit. I hope I can inspire others to not let their insecurities get in their way. If I can conquer this demon so can all of you!!!!

Now....off to catch up on shopping, cards, wrapping, baking, cleaning, oh and having some holiday fun!!!!!

Another Crazy December!!!!

2007-12-04T13:57:00.000-08:00

I know we are known to be a rainy place but come on! Yes, it is wet here in the NW but usually we are dreary and misty not full out down pour. It started snowing over the weekend and then by Sunday night the heaven's opened up and the rain just kept coming and coming. I went to class yesterday morning and half of the freeway that I travel on was already flooded. I should have gotten a clue from that. There was an announcement at school that campus was shutting down (they never shut down) and that should have given me another clue that this was big! I started to head home but I didn't get very far. I inched along the highway and it took me an hour and half to get from one exit to the next. We were detoured off the highway, which was now completed shut down because it was under water. As I got off the highway I looked to the right and this is what I saw.....

I couldn't believe it! I got a little panicky. What else was going on and would I be able to get home? I kept the radio on and I was able to work my back home through back roads that seemed to be OK. It took me 2 and 1/2 hours to finally make it home on a route that would usually only be 20-30 minutes.

Unfornately, because of all the flooding we missed out on Mike's grandma's 90th birthday celebration. We really wanted to spoil this special lady but we had no choice but to stay home where we were safe.

This picture was taken on Mother's Day. Doesn't she look fabulous? I hope I look that good if I make it to 90! Happy Birthday Gigi!!!

As I am posting this I can see a beautiful rainbow out the back of my house. Maybe that is sign that the weather is about to change for the better.

Will this go on forever?????

2007-12-01T13:36:00.001-08:00

I wish I had answers for myself and for everyone else. I have been getting a lot of questions lately on why we don't have our daughter yet. Is it me or is it so hard to explain? I feel like I am repeating myself but they still don't seem to get it. I even find myself irrated and I know that is not fair to them and I probably be sad if they didn't ask. I am of course busy but the time seems to just slowly tick along with regards to the adoption.

On a happier note our friends are leaving on Tuesday for Korea to pick up their son. It took them a long time too and then it just seemed to move so quickly. I am so happy for them and that they get to have him home for Christmas.

Bring on Christmas!!!!

2007-11-24T14:01:00.000-08:00

Last weekends trip to Portland was a blast. It was an amazing event and I can't wait until next year. I loved hearing Natalie Grant speak and she is the most beautiful singer. When we got back our small group got together for a Samaritan's Purse wrapping party and the kids had a ton of fun putting together boxes for Operation Christmas Child.

We had a great Thanksgiving and then yesterday we went to get the tree and last night we decorated up the homestead for the holidays. I have a crazy couple weeks ahead with final projects and final exams. I am so looking forward to my Christmas break so I can relax a little. I feel like my life is just one big whirlwind these days. Hopefully I can catch up with all my blog buddies when I get some free time:)

Thanksgiving Family Photo

On the hunt for the perfect trees!!!!!

Gotta go do some studying before we watch the Huskies stomp on the Cougs in the Apple Cup tonight. Sorry Cougchic.....red is my favorite color but my husband has demanded that we are only to see purple in the house today.

Go Dawgs!!!!!

Turkey Time!!!!

2007-11-21T22:43:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Off to Portland.....

2007-11-16T09:18:00.000-08:00

Totally excited! Today the girls and I are going to Portland with some other moms and daughters to attend the Revolve Tour and on the schedule are some of our favorite artists!

Natalie Grant

Hawk Nelson (we saw them last year in November......they are soooo fun!)

and KJ-52

Have a great weekend!!!!

Disney on Ice...

2007-11-11T22:07:00.001-08:00

Tonight I took my niece, Emma, to Disney on Ice Princess Wishes. I lucked out and was able to find seats right on the ice so the view was fantastic and it made us feel like we were part of the show. I had bad luck with my camera batteries so I borrowed a couple batteries from the gal sitting next to me but every shot I would take of Emma she would close her eyes. Just like this!Oh well....it will just have to live in our memories. My sister did get one shot of the two of us when we got back home so at least I have that for the scrapbook.
Plus, I was able to download other peoples photos that they posted on line of the actual show. I just love the internet!!!!

Fun times!!!!

A New Perspective

2007-11-06T09:44:00.000-08:00

I have been so overwhelmed lately with school, my job at the church, being a mom, wife, etc......I was feeling sorry for myself and then I got an email this morning from a friend who just got back from a trip with two other of my friends. They went to Bangkok and Cambodia with World Concern and specifically were there to educate, help with the problem of child trafficking (child sex slaves) which is rampant in that part of the world and share the love of Jesus. Talk about I needed that slap in the face this morning. It is so amazing to me how God's timing is so perfect. I need to stop complaining about my little worries and focus on my blessings and how I can make this world a better place when I rely on my amazing God. To hear the stories about people who have so little, have endured so much pain (many of their friends and families murdered in the 70's) and yet they are thankful and are truly dependent upon God. If you want to hear more about their trip with a lot of amazing pictures click here.

Oh happy 15 months LID???????????

2007-11-01T12:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!!!

2007-10-31T00:06:00.001-07:00

Taking a break from the books....no wait it's after midnight, bedtime????? Midterms!

Have a great time with your little goblins.....save some candy for me:)

Miss you all!!!