a new album in progress....

2008 Captured in 8 little photos a month. The paper line used is Providence by Scenic Route. Thanks for looking!

Spring Layout - and the Classic Car detail Girl

A fun layout that I created as a "practice page". I haven't scrapped in a few weeks so I thought it would be fun to create a layout with some pictures that I wasn't afraid to alter. The nature photo was taken by Matthew (9) and I used it to make my tree. The trunk was cut from chipboard. The photo of Zak and Stripe had a distracting background, so I just them out of the picture. This was so much fun to make! I love making my own handcut embellishments like the big tree.

A bit overcast in Calif. today so my photo is dark....so much brighter in real life. I sure hope our sunshine returns soon.


Earlier today, I spent some time working on some detail pieces for the '68 Camaro. Ssssh, don't tell Richie that I do enjoy getting to help with the detail work. His interior restoration is almost complete. This is a photo of me cutting some wood grain contact paper for the console pieces.

Easter

An Easter Bouquet from my little boys:

Happy Easter!

(photo by my friend Leah at Magic Moments in Clovis)

From my Family (including Leah's rabbits: Gizmo and Thumper)
to your Family........ Many Happy Easter Blessings!!

Love,
reen

Wise One!

I just adore owls, I think they are gorgeous! I used to be afraid of them, but now I'm kind of facinated with their beauty and that they somehow represent wisdom. I just truly love them, such remarkable creatures. Here's my favorite photo of "Scott" from yesterday's visit to the zoo. Isn't he just handsome?

whoooooo whooooo!

Playdate/Easter Egg Hunt

Nothing could be more fun than organizing a day of play and an Easter Egg Hunt for 15 energetic little ones! We're having an awesome Spring Break! Just wanted to share a few pictures.

Happy March, Happy Spring!

Open House

Sharing with you what the kids have been up to.
From Second Grader - Zak

The Pond Study


"I have a Dream" project - scrap paper pieceings art





From 4th Grader - Matthew
The California Mission Project
Team Building Project








Ansel Adams inspired photography - Flower

The boys are having a great school year! I love the ages they are right now, if they could just stay 7 and 9 for a little bit longer :)

Thanks for visiting me.
reen

Conversation with a 7 year old

I love picking my kids up after school. I would hate to miss those little moments when they reconnect with me with thier little converstaions. Like the one we had today, just me and my Zak.


Zak: Mom, do know Mother Necessity?

Me: Oh, yeah..... ;)

Zak: Well her kids invented a lot of things

Me: Really? ;)

Zak: She had a lot of kids.....they invented the airplane and the light bulb and a whole buncha things.

Hmmmmmmmmm so this means that "Necessity really is the Mother of Invention"?

hahahaha!! The things kids say!

:)

Signs of Spring!

Strawberries, one of the earliest signs of spring! The first strawberry crop of the season has arrived! Fresh from Driscoll in Watsonville, Calif. These are so delightful and sweet, the best in the world! So wonderful!! A sweet little Spring pleasure that just makes me happy!

The Easter bunny has been busy at my house. Little surprises hidden away for Easter Sunday. Another little Spring pleasure that makes me giddy!

Spread a little sunshine today, smile :) and make someone happy!

Borders Challenge

Becoming a new Mom of two little boys, I always had a story to tell. I used to share cute little things that my boys would say and do. My friends and mother-in-law, used to say "you should write it down". I took a little offense to that advice at first. I thought they were just saying that so that I would just stop gushing and sharing my "new Mom" type stories. For whatever reason they gave me that advice, I did it! I found myself over the years grabbing an envelope, post-it note, or scratch pad to write down the little stories. I'm so glad I did!

I kept all those little notes that I had written over the years. I thought maybe someday I would type them all out into a journal and make them look all published and pretty. Well, I finally realized that "real Moms" don't have time for that!

This week, I compiled all my little stories and notes into a simple album. All the little scribbles that a frantic, happy Mom would write down are in this book. The emotional memories I saved and whispered and wrote to myself in the wee hours of the morning are archived here.

Why wouldn't a Mother keep a note that said, "Mommy are we going to take that baby back to the hospital"? I'm sentimental, I couldn't bear to toss out a little handwritten quote from a 4 year old boy that said, "a miracle is like a flower". So I put them in here in their original form, with coffee spills still in tact. I love this book! It's personal, it's my own journal, my own diary of my precious days as a stay-at-home-mother. It reminds me of some of the happiest times in my life. This is a memory book of those special days I spent with my babies at home and the sweet little conversations we shared.

So special thanks to Ramona for all the challenges this month. I think this one was my favorite out of all of them, just because I ended up with a precious treasure.

Have a happy day!

reen

Weekend Creative and Bold Challenges

I do love it when there is time in the weekend for a little scrapping :)

A new layout that I call "Sweetheart of a son". This was inspired by Ali's weekend challenge to use tone on tone or to layer an open pattern the same color. In layering white on white....I thought "blah"! but then I started to appreciate the mood that the technique created....something kind of sweet, innocent about using white on white, clean and simple. I kind of like the white space.


Honestly, That was a little too clean for me! I much prefer the bold and grungy look of this "Rock Stars" layout. I used an old iron on patch to make the heart. Added a few strips of color and a blingy skull. What a fun challenge. These pictures are my boys on a typical Saturday morning, playing "cops & robbers" and also rockin' my house down to the 80's music from Guitar Hero.

Love this layout, it just captures them doing what they love at this age. I would love it if my boys stayed this age forever! They just wanna have fun!




Thanks for visiting. Happy Sunday!
reen

Quote of the week....

Photo by Matthew:



Today, on a "nature walk" with Matthew....we snapped several photos. I love this one of him walking next to the path of trees in bloom. The blooms are gorgeous right now!
What a great Mother/Son time we both shared. We had time to talk, just hang out together. I love that.


When we got back from our walk, we had lunch and I started to scrap and organize. I found this little treasure!! It's a note from Jess and Jill. They sent it to me when they celebrated their first year anniversary at DML. and how ironic that the photo is so similar to the one I had taken of Matthew earlier in the day. I'm so glad that I saved it, because I LOVE the quote on the front cover. Something so beautiful!

"what lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us".



Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!
reen