It's a Hot One Today!

Vegas highs this time of year are in the 100's, and boy is it hot. You always hear people say, but it's a dry heat.... I don't think it really matters, it's still HOT! It was in the 90's before it ever tu rned 10am. This morning we went walking with my Grandpa and his walking friends (he does this every morning, it's his social network, and they are a great group of people with quite a variety of pasts). The ladies really enjoyed Dane, and he was still jet lagged and slept most the morning! Then it was off to grandpa's house for family time. Dane looked like he was heading to Hollywood in his cool sunglasses. My cousin Broc got himt these sunglasses today along with the loudest rattle he could find!! Lucky for me it isn't too loud! Dane had done so far so good, he slept most the night and morning with very little schedule changes! This eveing we headed to the Monte Carlo casino (not for gambling, but for dinner). My cousing Broc lives in Vegas, too, and works at the House of Blues, which is in the Monte Carlo. He got us a room with a large table and super comfy chairs (sorry not photos) and we all ate dinner together. My dad's cousins joined met up with us (they were in town for Granny's memorial service, too). It was great food, spectacular atmosphere, and great companionship. I broked my meatless diet and splurged on BBQ ribs, which were fantastic. At the end of dinner we got to sample several desserts... and my fave was the chocolate cheesecake.

Dane Takes Flight

Not even 5 months old and Dane took his first airplane ride. Needless to say, the other two kiddos were a bit jealous! Myles really wants to fly, but see, Dane was free for me!!! We headed out to Vegas this afternoon to visit with my Grandpa and attend my Grandmother's memorial service (she passed away this past Christmas). Dane did great taking off, duration of flight, and even landing with very little crying! It was nice to have relief with holding since my mother and father sat next to me! We were able to sit in the very first row, with ample leg room, thanks to a young man who gave up his primo window seat so we could sit as a group! I simply asked and he said okay! The floor had so much room, I was able to lay down Dane! Now, the big questions is... how will Dane react to a three hour time difference! My grandpa (aunt and cousin, too) were waiting for us at the airport! So nice to see family, especially my grandpa whom I haven't seen in some time. They moved to Vegas almost 8 years ago, and my visits are few and very far between. After visiting for a little while, we checked into our hotel, the Residence Inn. I love Residence Inn's because they have mini kitchens, small living rooms, and lots of space, and of course a yummy breakfast in the morning.

Aunt Sarah and time in Fort Wayne

July has simply been a blur of events (hence why it has been so difficult to try and blog everyday as I had intended at the first of the month! We have spent more days away from home than at home! Yeah for summer road trips. Much of the first week and a half was at Lake Santee with my parents... and several days of the last three weeks have been in Fort Wayne with my in-laws! It has been busy and full of fun! I'm amazed the kids are still going with all the excitement and events. The last week, however, was spent with their Aunt Sarah at Grandma's house in Fort Wayne. They absolutely adore their Aunt Sarah, and their Aunt Sarah loves them so much!! She was in visiting from Texas (which she moved there after graduating college and getting married last summer). She was able to stay at our house a few days last week which allowed for a trip to the Indianapolis Zoo, and then she and Grandma toted the kids to Fort Wayne in which they attended the Allen County fair, a day at Pokagen in northern Indiana, an afternoon at Crazy Pins (arcades, beach volleyball, bowling center)and lots of other fun things! Grandma Taylor splurged on a blow up slip n slide, and what fun that has been! Sarah even managed to squeeze in some shopping time and purchased Myles a super cool pair of Sketchers for back to school! Which is approaching so quickly... I sure hope you all have taken advantage of the low priced crayons, markers and glue sticks! We have our art cabinet stocked with the goods, who can beat 15 cent crayons and 79 cent washabled markers (I couldn't believe this one when I saw it, the limit said 10, so I got 10!). And the next few days are expected to be busy, too... we are on the down swing of summer, as school starts in just 12 days and that, my friends, are 12 days too soon!!! Back to our visit in Fort Wayne, yesterday, unfortunately Sarah had to fly back to Texas, she will be missed by all of us! She is such joy to be around. She has such a knack with the kids and loves them dearly! And of course the kids love her so, so much! Oh, and I must add that our visit in Fort Wayne has allowed us to spend some time with our Fort Wayne friends, Gina and Carter. We attended their neighborhood dinner night, what a great concept. Once a week they go to another families house for dinner and once a month they host the dinner for everyone else. How nice is that, that three times out of the month, you don't have to cook dinner! Gina is so fortunate to have such wonderful neighbors! I chose to come up a few days ago so I could see my kids a few days before heading out to Vegas... they will stay in Fort Wayne since I need someone to watch them while my husband works and I am out of town. It is back to Indy for me today to pack and anxiously await flying with Dane tomorrow.

Okay, after much thought and pondering...

As for the Sidewalk Sale at Logan Village Mall, I am going to stay home... there is a slight chance of afternoon showers, so I don't want to take a chance and ruin all my stuff! Of course, my luck it will stay nice and sunny! Oh well! Outside events are always uncertain! And baby Dane would be with me, so he wouldn't allow for quick pack up!!! Thanks to all of you for hanging in there and checking to see if I was planning on attending! For those of you reading this,use code 25OFFSALE on my online store www.projectscrapbook.net for my own At-Home-Sidewalk-Sale-Online!!!! Coupon will be valid until the end of the month! Remember you can now pay by credit card through Paypal with or without having a Paypal account, just follow the prompts as if checking out with Paypal. Or you can choose to pay when you pick up, if you decide to pick up at a local crop (the next one is August 14 & 15).

My new Favorite place...

Since my big plans for yestereday got washed away, I decided to do some much needed shopping!!! I leave for Las Vegas at the end of the week and have nothing to wear, we all know how this goes.... and after babies and changing so many sizes so frequently I have banned shopping for clothes at the mall! Whatever I buy now, I know won't fit in a couple months (lets hope anyway)! So, I decided to try my hand at Goodwill, and it was a sucess. I was amazed at the name brand jeans I was able to find! On particular pair of jeans, I almost paid $30 for at Target earlier in the afternoon, and found at Goodwill for only ! And I'm almost certain the jeans are practically new! I found two shirts, still with store tags! And I even found a pair of jeans for each kiddo at 1/8 the price I'd pay at retail! I was very happy with my purchases!!! And my other shopping was for back to school supplies, can you believe it is that time of year already! I sure cannot.... I do love the great deals on crayons, gluesticks and markers. I am always sure to stock up on enough to last me until this time next year!

Sidewalk Sale Cancelled for Me

After driving to Noblesville the weather still looks bad and have decided not to set up my stuff. Stay tuned for updates and future events. If weather is good tomorrow I may give it a shot. Sorry, for the inconvenience.

Packed and Ready to go

Okay, I am heading up to Noblesville as soon as my babysitter arrives... so I should be set up and ready to go shortly after 10! Hope to see you there... again the place is Logan Village Mall, 977 Logan Street, corner of 10th and Logan in downtown Noblesville!

Am I a lucky girl or what....

For once in my life (okay, so maybe that's a slight exaggeration), I felt like such a lucky girl! Recently I attended an open house at Creative Hideaway in Fortville, and entered my name into a drawing, and to my awesome surprise, I won a weekend for two at the Scrapbook Retreat! I asked my friend Vicki to join me! And this weekend was my weekend! Yeah for me! First, I must say I'm lucky to have a gracious husband who stayed home with all three kids all weekend. I did go home each night to feed Dane (who of course still doesn't sleep through the night)! And then I'm also lucky to have such a wonderful scrapbook space (my own 6ft table) and hostess (Angie_) for the weekend. And the weekend was filled with wonderful companionship (thank you Vicki and the new scrapbook friends I made)! I was so relaxed and motivated all weekend long! I am thrilled to share my progress with you!
Enjoy and I hope they inspire you to take some time for yourself and do something you enjoy!

My Croppin Weekends

July 1oth/11th, 2009. I always look forward to my weekends that I have crops planned.... it becomes such a great way to get out, socialize and get some scrapbooking stuff done! Oh and of course it is alwys fun to share my new store items! Today I was fortunate to be able to leave the kids with my brother, Brian so I could head to set up earlier than 5! And not have to take all three kids with me! I did take Dane, and that didn't work so well. He was a out of sorts! The evening went quick, even thought I didn leave a bit early, however the ladies stayed and cropped until past midnight! What a great group of people! And Saturday, I looked forward to going back, without Dane! This will be the longest he and I have been apart. At first I was a bit sad and missed my baby, but then I was thrilled to not have to be on demand the whole day! Oh and of course I did get some personal scrapbooking done! I do not do much for myself at home anymore! MOst stuff I do is for my website and kits! So I always look forward to crops, so I can get out my own pictures and work on my stuff! Saturday went by too quick! It was filled with great conversations, yummy food and lots of scrapbooking! And I was thrilled to come home to a husband who was awake, this meant no unloading alone! He did all the work for me, and I had gracious helpers pack up! What a great end to a great day!

A trip to the Lake

This morning the kids and I headed down to Grandmas. What is up with this weather? Rainy, cool temps have been the forcast all month, and today was no different. It was rainy and cool most the day. However, the kids didn't care too much, they were thrilled to see their cousins again! Robbie and Lexi were at Grandmas. We did get to enjoy many of the lake activities (sun or no sun). Boating, fishing, swimming,trips to the beach, and Myles even went tubing! The evening ended with a hotdog roast over the fire pit for dinner! The kids were thrilled with this adventure!

On a side note, I was a fortunate child to have grown up on the lake. At my immediate pleasure in the summer was endless skiing, swimming, boating, and fishing! Growing up I don't think I appreciated just how fortunate I was to have such fun activities and a great source of exercise! I know I enjoyed many times skiing during the evening hours and then heading in for dinner after the sun went down or tubing and having my dad whip the boat around and around and around. I think one time, he continued to go in circles for at least 15 times trying to get me to fall off the tube! I had such a grip that and weight position that allowed me to stay on forever! As a kid it was fun to lounge on rafts and swim at the beach! Most kids participated in sports leagues like softball, but I had the gracious opportunity to swim and ski as a child and young adult. I do often think it would be nice to be able to ski like I did a few years ago! I would have to regain some arm strenth and maybe lose a few more pounds before I could pull myself up! But there is nothing more exhilerating than skiing behind a nice ski boat in and out of the buoys on a salolm course!

I dislike Mondays

Mondays are the worst days of the week.... I enjoy the weekends because Seth is able to help control the chaos of three kids! I must say initially I transitioned well into having three kids, now, not so much! So when Monday's come, I am alone with the three kids all day, with no help again until Friday! I do enjoy play dates or chit chatting with neighbors as that helps the sanity! Not too many people are at home moms in my neighborhood. However, I'm hangin in there, but am exhausted by days end! Today was a relax at home type of day! I did run some errands with the kids in the am, not too many as it is a lot to get everyone out the door and in and out of stores! I actually find myself wanting to run errands less or only when I can leave a few kids with Seth! We did venture to the library to redeem some books for points,and Myles reached 600, which is the maximum! Way to go Myles... he's been so busy reading to himself, Dane, Elliott and me! I was thrilled to pick up a chick flick 'He's just not that into you.' This afternoon I had reached my limit with dealing with the kids toys. I tried to get Elliott to pick up something and she refused, so I took all the toys out of their bedroom (they share a room) and left only the kitchen stuff, babies and Myles legos in the loft. I brought them out to the garage for some major sorting and eventually garage saleing or donating! I can't get too frustrated with the kiddos since it can be overwhelming to pick up ALL the toys! So we are going to limit what is out for the kids to play with! Hopefully this will make it a little less hazardous when walking upstairs!While I prepared dinner Seth set up the water bucket outside for the kids to soak themselves, quite the different temps than the weekend was! For dinner I made something new, avacado and tomato egg salad, and it was yummy! Seth even made a comment about the taste! I am enjoying my adventure into becoming a vegetarian! I've gone two weeks now without eating meat! Cooking is a bit mroe adventuresome and way more colorful!!! After the kids went to bed Seth and I enjoyed watching the movie I got, and it was a good one, too. It explored all different levels of woman and men dating! A great ending to a long day!

July 5, 2009. Okay, so today started out much less rainier (if that's a word) than yesterday! The kids were thrilled to be at Grandma's since their cousins were still there! This morning we had to get up and go for Molly's Christening! Then we gathered with our family and Beth's (my sister in law) family to celebrate the occasion! Of course Molly slept through most of the celebrating (she's only seven weeks older than Dane, but a lot larger, especially in the legs)! The kids did get to go swimming today with a peak of sunshine. And when it came time for us to leave, that is the first time the sun shined through enough to warm us up! Back to Indianapolis! My good friend Gina was in town from Ft Wayne, she had to fly out in the am. We were able to get some scrappin in while her son Carter played with my kids! They were so funny, they were playing house and sleeping one of Elliott's baby cribs! Oh the imaginations kids have! That's this day in a nutshell!

Happy 4th of July

What was so happy about this day??? Definitely not the weather! I cannot remember a time in history in which the celebration of the 4th was so dreary and rainy! It rained all day and evening. We leisurely got ready this AM, so easy to do when you are down by 2 (Myles and Elliott were at Grandmas house)! And we made it to Grandmas house in time for lunch. So nice to see the kids again! They were having such a great time with Robbie and Lexi, they don't get to see them very often so each and every visit is special! The rain and gloomy skies didn't stop Seth and Myles from swimming, they each went swimming a few times throughout the day. SEth even tried to fish, but the weather wasn't too cooprertive for fishing! Getting rained on while swimming isn't too bad - you are already wet! Grandpa still was able to fire up the grill for some yummy grilled sweet potatoes! I'm amazed at just how much their diet had changed in the last few years...a couple years ago you would have never heard sweet potatoes come out of my dad's mouth, but now it's a weekly addition to their dinners! I'm so thrilled at their approach to a healthy lifestyle! The evening found us taking the boat out and catching the fireworks. It was a bit rainy,but with the awning up on the boat, sweatshirts, and towels we remained somewhat dry! No one complained, and that's more important than anything! At first Elliott was scared of the booms and bangs, but once she realized they were pretty far away, she enjoyed the show!

July 3, 2009.Most days begin with somewhat of a plan, but never anything precise. I think this is because I can barely focus long enough to complete one task to move onto another! My sleepless nights are making an impact on the tiniest of details! Dane does sleep for 8 hours at a time most nights, but it usually begins at 8:00pm and I am never ready for bed at that time!!!Today was no different! Myles was excited as one of the first things he told Elliott this monring was that they get to see Robbie (who happens to be visiting from Ontario). I found myself fixing a dinner for a friend who just had a baby first thing in the morning. Also, I had an unfriendly moment with a neighbor who's dog was loose running around my house making my dog bark which made Dane cry. After she escorted her dog off my yard, I got to thinking maybe I was a bit rude. So the kids and I walked down to their house and I apologized, as I may have been a bit too rude (even though her dog wast he one nudging my screens and making my dog bark. It turns out she has a four year old little girl, who Elliott instantly became friends with! I did get some releif this evening as the kiddos went to my parents for time with their cousins Lexi and Robbie. I would have gone with them, but had no clean clothes to pack, so I spent all afternoon doing laundry and other household chores. My husband was impressed and asked 'did you clean the bathroom' in a super shocked tone of voice! I also get some more scrapbook stuff done, look for additions soon at www.projectscrapbook.net. And my husband and I were able to follow through with Friday night Movie night and watched Yes Man, which was a great movie. It is a funny make you feel good movie! And just amazed as to just how true it is that if you simply answer Yes to most questions, you definitely have more possiblities than providing no as answers!

Thank Heavens for Play Dates

July 2nd, 2009 Thank heavens for play dates! Myles school friend Mason came over today and brought his two sisters who just happen to be four and five! Wow what a great bu ddy for Myles to have. The mom came, too so we all had someone to hang out with (except Dane of course, but then again, he can’t talk yet!) The girls played doll house and barbies and babies, and the boys played legos and kidnmapped the babies and the girls would scream. And then we had pizza for lunch, and every kid had seconds! Wow they worked up an appetite. The afternoon found the kids loungin watching a movie! I try so hard to not have the TV on at all during the day (not evening the morning news, and my trashy soap opera doesn’t come in sincewe don’t have cable and since the digital switch I don’t get channel 8, bummer), however, often times at noon time (which used to be nap time) the kiddos get to watch a movie.  I amamazed at just how little TV we watch, and the kids don’t mind at all. The kiddos also had a great time playing in the driveway with boxes. The neighbor so nicely brought us her water softner box, and the kids love to make them their house! Seth was late getting home today, he was treated to a nice dinner down town with some people working on the construction of the new hotel cluster downtown. So it was Quesadillas for the kids and Enchiladas for me, easy dinner. Seth came home just in time as I was about to use the last diaper! I tried to go out earlier in the day but couldn’t find my keys - I hate that when that happens! And then back home and early to bed, I’ve been so exhausted with all the activity during the day... I must say I did get some scrappin in! Yeah for the new Rusty Pickle pattern papers for this months kit club!

Day 1 of my 30 day challenge

A few years back I was on the Design Team at Scrapbook Corner and we had a challenge to scrapbook everyday for an entire month, and I was looking at it the other day and though 'what a great concept.' So I am choosing this month as a my month! And I thought I would share my events with all of you!

July, 1st 2009. Just another day in the Taylor household....I get up around 6ish and the kids follow at 7:30ish! I do enjoy not having to rush anywhere or get Myles ready for school! Today we had errands in the am, I attempted a little shopping at Archivers, but that didn’t work too well. My two older kids were obnoxious! But then again, I know better than to go shopping at the noon hour! I did treat them to lunch at Qdoba! I just love their vegetarian nachos! And then it was home for the afternoon!  Myles found a new place on lego.com where they post challenges. The challange was to create a monument! So we decided on the Washington Monumnet and Myles did a great job looking at the photo and recreating the model. So we took a photo and uploaded it to lego.com. He was thrilled. Then for dinner I attmempted to hand make ravioli with Ricotti and Spinach. And it actually turned out really yummy. Seth and I are iconsidering becoming vegetarians! We rarely eat meat, so we have some new cook books for different recipes and helpful hints on eating vegetarian, so we’ll see how it turns out! This evening found me running to the grocery store for some much needed items like milk and eggs! And of course I splurged on ice cream, what atreat after the end to a long day! Dane went to bed peacefully. Elliott took a nap midday, so she wasn’t too interested in bedtime! Always a challenge.... to let her nap is to take a chance, but then to let her stay awake is to have to put up with her crankinss. She is in between needing one and not needing one! Myles is usually easy to get to bed as long as someone is upstairs with him! A few books and he’s content!

One in a Million shot!

Okay, so it has always been a dream, desire, and a want to become a part of something great! A great design team for a great scrapbook company! So here goes! Cosmo Cricket, which happens to be a favorite paper company of mine, has a call out! I'm sure they get hundreds of entrys, but I suppose you have to begin somewhere. I am posting some of my favorite layouts using Cosmo Crickets pattern papers! Enjoy!

This is the beginning page of my most recent vacation (May 09 believe it or not) and it's actually completed! This layout uses the super cool Snorkel collection (featured in last months Kit Club).

I just love the vintage feel of the Earlybird series of pattern papers (also featured in last months Kit Club). The elements make easy titles or journaling spots!

An oldie but a Goodie line of pattern papers, I just love this 'Family' tree (it's my old work family from Cord Camera).

The primary of this collection is great for this photo of Myles on the computer! All there patterns are full of vibrant colors and patterns, perfect for a variety of photos and events!

And of course the awesome Mr.Campy! What a great pattern for Fall and lots of other outdoorsy activities!