BOO!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!


Have safe and have fun! BOO!

BONUS MONKEY CHALLENGE

OMGosh this was a FUN challenge.........it was for a contest on the Monkey Chat message board, I sponsered the contest, so this LO is not 'eligible' for entry, but I wanted to join in on the fun anyway!! The three elements we had to use were to make our own flower, to make pocket journaling and to stamp on the page. The flower is cut up bits from my own patter, crinkled and sanded, with a awesome clear button in the middle. The pockets are put together with hand sewing and brads and then I stamped the names and 'sister' label for the photo. This is a pix of myself and my 2 sisters, we are very close, I journaled our similarities and differences! Thanks for looking!!!!!!! Darla

Finally, I am BACK!

Tiffany 1st day of school


Neice Mindy Blue Eyes


and Dani for fun...






This is what I have been up to the past few days... trying to catch up on my scrapping, my house, my kids, and life in general. We have been chasing the sickie germs out of here, but not fast enough obviously, as we spent the better part of the wee hours of the morning at the ER last night ... Dani had a cough that would not stop, long story short, we had to go in for breathing meds and so forth. LONG night coupled with the time change and well, I am all behind again. Oh well, I have all week ahead of me to get things in order and get into a better routine.

That is about it for me, just life and kids and house and scrapping. Yup, that is it. Hmmmmmmmmmm

long long long week

just a quickie note.... I did a great big long post with cool photos and all the other day and POOF! it was off into cyberspace somewhere.......sorry.

now I dont' have time for another long post but i was sure you were all sick of looking at the last one so a quick update that I most likely won't be on much till' Monday.

don't miss me too much!

Layout for today.....

Just a quickie note, I did this layout today of dd Dani... it was fun and fast and I LOVE how it came out. The photo is a sepia tone one from a mini photo shoot I did of Dani and her cousin a few weeks ago. I liked how the shadow crossed her face in this particular picture. The page itself is really simple, used up some scraps, inked everything, a few simple embellishments and a jotted down phrase journaled around the photo. LOVE this page wayyy much!

Darla

Want to share.......

My sister goes to Curves Woman's Fitness Centers and brought this home the other day. So touching in so many ways. Love the two sided way it hit me. HUGS for a good weekend! me







I'm Not Finished With Me Yet
------------------------------
When you take a look at me
If you don't like what you see
Just remember in my ways I am NOT set
And if you don't think that I'm
Always perfect all the time
There's no need for you to get upset
For I'm changing every day
In the things I do and say
And my attitude and thinking better get
So please be merciful and kind
And keep just one thing in mind
Just one truth: I'm not finished with me yet

When I take a look at you
And I don't like what you do
I'll remmeber in your ways your'e not set
And if I don't understand
Every little thing youv'e planned
It may not be my business
So why should I get upset?
For your'e changing every day
In the thinsg you do and say
And your attitude, like mine
I hope will better get
So I'll be merciful and kind
And I'll keep just one thing in mind
Just one truth: Your'e not finished with you yet.

WHY settle for less, when you can choose to experience so much MORE - BETTER - GREATER? - Dr Zonnya

Busy weekend!

First off, dd Dani IS A STAR!! Or at least for a day! Dani was in the Missoula Children's Theater production of "ROBINHOOD" yesterday. It is a traveling theater group that was sponsered by our school dist and the majority of the parts are done by local kids. Tryouts were all afternoon/evening on Monday, practices Tues-Fri afterschool/evening and then 2 performances on Saturday! LONG week for her! Dani had originally been casted as an assis director but on the first day of practice they moved her to a part as a Merry Man..... she was a 'bad actor' .....meaning that was her PART in the play. SHE did a fabulous job and has really found her nich'e in things...... she is a great singer and oh so dramatic anyway, Drama is definatly a good spot for her! We were very proud of her and she will surely be doing some future theater. (pictures to share later)

Bizzario weekend for me. Lots going on, but everyting sort of jumbled and out of sorts. Felt like I was going in circles with nothing really getting anywhere. Hmm. Just weird. Did a lot of running, taxing kids, all the normal things, just felt like I was not getting anything really done, everything is very incomplete to me right now. House is a mess, despite cleaning, planning is written out but I dont' know what I am doing. Hope I am just out of sorts for the moment. LOL

Layout at the top of the page was a creation from the other day. REALLY liking it a lot. Was not too sure the colors and elements would 'work' but I think they did in the end. I am really finding some satisfaction in my scrapbooking lately and need to get my nerve up and start doing the submissions I keep saying I am going to do. It is a lot of work, really it is, but I know it will be worth it. I wonder if the fear of rejection or lack of recognition is hindering me subconsiously... who knows. I just need to DO IT.....and soon. I made a promise to myself that I would do this when school started and yet here I am 2 months later. Ha ha! Kick it in gear Darla!!!

Well, I guess that is all in my wild and wacky life right now. Need to get moving, Church in a couple hours and have not even hit the shower yet. Oh and a lesson to plan too! oops!

Until next time. me

HOLY MOLY what a day! Yes, it was indeed a FRIDAY around here! I am sooooooo totally wiped out today, not sure exactly "why"?? but I am. Had a bad food day on my 'dieting' and now I am paying for it dearly, my belly feels like I have 101 lbs of wieghts sitting in there....ick! So, I did this LO of Micheal yesterday.......love the citrus like colors. Love the photo too, one that I actually took myself?! WOW! he hee. I really like how it came out, bright, fun, cheery, so fun.

Big weekend plans.......dh is work work working and will be very busy, also dd Dani will be doing her performance in the play ROBINHOOD two times on Saturday. SO exciting for her. I am proud of her too. Big time fun stuff!

Kitty kitty kittens are getting SO silly fun. They are a month old now, running ALL over teh place, pouncing, playing, rolling and tumbling! SO CUTE! I'll post some pix this weekend for you. Don't know how we are going to deal with getting rid of them....all the other cats (not mamma) are getting quite attatched to them! LOL

TOTALLY slacked off today. Did not do a lick of housework...lazy, I know, but somehow this day just flew by and suddenly I was cooking dinner in a dirty kitchen...ick! So tommorrow will be catch up day around here, hope to get some yardwork done as well... supposed to snow next week so I need to get this stuff DONE while I sill can! yikes! Feeling rather guilty too for slacking off all day when dh worked OT all day today. Just had no get up and go left after lunch time.....and after making crappy food pix on top of that, well, my mojo was gone. SAT is the day, HOP HOP HOP (Hour of Power) for DarlaLOU!!

Until next time....... Darla

A page to share...

I have been trying to get quite a bit of scrapping done lately... I am finding a new 'nitch' that I am really happy with. Sometimes I worry that all my pages will start to look the same, same design, same elements, blah blah boring. Last night I realized that even if I DO use alot of the same stuff, each page is unique even if only in the fact that each photo tells a story, shares a memory, leaves a legacy for my family. I recently discovered that I really love to use FABRIC on my layouts.... ohh yes, a whole new wide open world of colors, prints, designs....just like pattern paper only much more readily available and it is EVERYWHERE! Fortunatly I have a huge storage bin full of fabric and I have been taking swatches and bits from there..... but I see a new facination coming I fear! LOL

For some reason, the ding dong photo of my most recent 'creation' will not post here so I will link you to it..... http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i21/DarlaLOU/?sc=5 It is the one titled "monkey challenge #17 " if you want to look. With this one I merely used the fabric as 'ties' on the edge of the page, just like we often do with ribbon. Other times I'll use it as a mat or do die cut shapes with the fabric. Just makes me giddy with excitement that there is just a huge palate of color and design out there for the taking!

Hope to be able to share more soon! Until then, enjoy the upcoming weekend! HUGS Darla

Lots of LITTLE stuff today.....

FALL is definatly in the air. Crisp, cool days, wind wind wind (right in Idaho fashion) and leaves changing colors. Love this time of year. So fresh to me, I enjoy it all. I can't wait for dh to get our Halloween goodies up outdoors! FUN time of year! We never let the neighbors down. :O) We'll miss our big old creepy house/porch for decorating this year for sure, but NOT the creepy old neighborhood! LOL

In other news, kids are all super busy, school, church, activiites and so on. Oldest dd tried out for a play yesterday, didn't get a part but DID get the Asst Director part.....going to be a busy week for her! Oldest ds will be trying out for the HS JV Basketball team soon too.... last year was a bummer as the coaches were MORE than biased in choices so I hope to see better luck for him this year. I really think he has the talent and potential if they will give him a chance. All body parts crossed for him.

Sunday we went to a family get together.....my cousin and her dh and family have been stationed in Equador for a few years now with the Air Force. We had never seen her children so we had a family 'mini' reunion for those who could come. SO nice to sit and visit and catch up. My Dad's side of the family are very close, it is special to be with them. So odd to see my aunts and uncles age.....and they remind me SO much of my Daddy. :O( My one aunt made comment that Dad had been gone nearly 6 years.......lol, I chuckled, no Aunt Dee, it will be 10 years THIS month. She looked so shocked. Rough stuff. All my aun'ts have lost their husbands and I have one Uncle left... he is the 2nd to youngest in the family and it is hard to bear to see him he looks so much and reminds me so much of Dad. On a happier note, our oldest ds had a fun time holding the new baby there at the party.....he sat right up on his lap and shared a story book! The little guy was grinnin' EAR TO EAR and giggling and just loving up the attention. We were all loving watching a 15 yr old boy interact with a little baby like that. So cool. :O)

Thinking I might need to pick up a PT job over the Holidays to get us through. Things have been so tight the past few months and with Christmas and the other Holidays coming I don't see an end in sight near. *sigh*

School is driving me NUTS right now. This past week they have been out more than they have been IN and it is nuts! They just started school and all this time off already? Last Th-Fri off, early release Mon and Tues this week... always something. Another 6 days off in Nov too!? Jeesh!

OK with that, I am done rambling. Just had lots to say LOL I am taking some scrapbook time for myself today before the kids get out early again and then I will clean house. Need a creative downtime. LOL Also have a soccer game this afternoon.....playoffs for my nephew, Ted's soccer team from Twin Falls.... can't wait to watch as they are playing OUR HS Soccer team again, last game was a GOOD one!!!

GO BIG BLUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO SKYLINE GRIZZLIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO GRIZZ! GO BIG BLUE! WE BLEED BLUE! OH YEAH!!!

Last night was the HUGE rivalry football game between SKYLINE HIGH SCHOOL and the (icky) IF Tigers
SKYLINE is my own High School and now my oldest ds is going there as a sophmore as well. I am a HUGE HUGE HUGE fan of the school and the town's rivalry against the tigers is one of the hugest HS rivalries in the nation. Affectionatly named "The Emotion Bowl" the big IF/SKYLINE football game has been going on for 41 years now and every year it seems to be getting bigger and better. Last night was one heck of a game with a tied score of 7/7 in the opening, then a jump right before half time to 7/21 ..........we missed most of the last half of the game but in the last 5-6 min or so SKYLINE came back with 2 AMAZING interceptions and scored and scored and scored BEATING IF with a final of 21/28!!!!!!!!!! The goalposts at the stadium are now BLUE! Whoo whooooo! ( the two teams share a stadium and the winner of the Emotion Bowl each year is given the honor of painting the posts either orange or BLUE and this year they are BLUE!) Very excting times..I look forward to my other 3 kids also attending SKYLINE and being able to do this victory dance for the next 12 years of my life!!!!!!!!!! LOL GO GRIZZ! BLUE AND WHITE FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Weirdness ? Oddities? Strangeness?

5 WEIRD THINGS ABOUT ME?

OK OK I got 'tagged' by another blogger so here goes:

1. I am freakishly afraid of pennies.....they gross me out BIG time.

2. I read the Obituaries before anything else in the newspaper.

3. I love spinach! Cold, canned, cooked, on pizza, in pasta.....all of it!

4. I was an 'orphan' at the age 25. Mom died when I was 5, step mom raised me, and Dad died when I was 5 mos preg with my 3rd child. I was only 25 yrs old.

5. Speaking of being preggo........my first baby was born 9mo and 5 days after my wedding. Hmmm I'll let you figure that out.

OK that was , um, weird? I tag, Karalyn/ArtsyK, Cynthia/RNJetta, Dolly/dolly scrapper and Holly/farmscraps

Enter! SUBMIT ? Join ! TRY ? CONFUSED!!!!!!!!!

HOLY COW I AM GOING CRAZY these days.........I promised myself that once the kids started school and I had some time "ha ha" to myself I would really focus on my scrapbooking as a more serious matter. I have been strongly involved in this hobby...ok, obsession, for nearly 10 years now and it is time to do something with my talents (ok, I think I have talents here) and get with the ball game. So, I have been scrapbooking A LOT the past month or two, well really, since CKU back in May, but more seriously since August. I have ideas and dreams and goals.......yet I am SO afraid of being rejected I just can't stand it! I entered ONE simple online contest and it broke my heart that I didn't make it through the first cut. Did I let that ONE instance shatter my whole plan? Or am I jsut being lazy or procrastinating??

So, the big problem now, is joining Design Teams and doing contests and challenges and new message boards and so forth. Getting out there.....gettting noticed......getting attention. SPENDING HOURS ON HOURS at the computer. I have been trying to spend LESS time at the computer so now I am really flustered and all of a sudden today I found out there are literally hundereds of possibilities out there in the cyber scrapping world......I just need to grab a fishing pole, bait up my layouts and designs and throw them in the pool! Tick tock tick tock.....MORE time at the computer. Sigh.....
So now the game begins.......what to do what to do? Guess I need to weigh my options and like any other important decision, see what is best for me, my family, our lives as a whole. MAN... and all this for SCRAPBOOKING?! OYE!

Eey' Matte'!!

AREN"T THEY CUTE??!! Hee hee gotta love em'............