Scrapbooking Weekend Update

We had a wonderful weekend scrapbooking from Friday to Saturday night. I finished journaling our San Francisco album and got all the page protectors put on. I'm ready to give it to Big P for his birthday today! :) He'll be really excited. I think we'll sit down tonight with a cup of coffee and enjoy it together - relieving that time together.

A.2m.B. was a heavy sleeper on Friday night, but I had a pretty hectic day on Friday and couldn't get in the mode for scrapbooking. So, I just enjoyed chatting with my buddies. :) I also learned about digital scrapbooking and will share that in my next post. Oh, I'm so going to be gangbusters on this one.

I was trying to my the computer journaling work and just gave up on that one. Too much trouble to format everythign perfectly to fit on an already made page. I just shortened things a bit. I actually came to our Alcatraz pages and said "what am I supposed to write? it was a prison!" This is definitely an area that C.12.B. could have elaborated in, but they were gone and having fun!

My mom wasn't able to come on Friday night because my dad wasn't feeling well, so she came on Saturday and we had a good time.

Ate too much food :(. I've repented and am starting a fresh. Got up this morning and had some quiet time with the Lord and worked on my Bible study - The Lord's Table. I'm stillll working on Lesson 4. It's a lot to digest.

Came home last night to an empty, hot (I had turned up the air to save electricity) house. It was pouring and I waiting in the car for a while so that the baby and I wouldn't get struck by lightening. LOL

I've been just vegging this morning, looking up all kinds of stuff on digi-scrapping and downloading all sorts of freebies. Wow!

Big P and the older 4 kidlets are on their way home after having a great weekend with Grandpa. They spent time at the beach, the Lexington aircraft carrier, the Corpus Christi Aquarium, and Sonic. They were going to the Original Whataburger and Big P's old house this morning before heading home. It will be a loooong time before their home. :(

Onto another post...

The Highway Option

You know the saying "it's my way or the highway!" And if you've seen The Pacifier then you probably remember Shane saying "no highway option!" Well, I'm coming to realize that there is a highway option when it comes to our journey in Christ. And it's not my way, it's God's way. I truly believe there is ONE way to interpret the Bible, but dozens of ways to apply it.

There are so many variables in life that we aren't all on the same journey, all at the same time. We are in various seasons of life and God is calling us to different things at different times. Now, when I say there is a highway option, I don't mean that it's okay to disobey God - exactly the opposite. When God has called you to something, you'd be better off to do it. But, some reading my blog may misinterpret my excitement for something as me condemning their way. I'm not. I'm just excited about what God is calling us to now, and the road He has asked us to take. In the practicalities of living these convictions out, we may not be on the same highway. But I do believe we all need to be heading in the same direction - Heaven bound! Living for His Glory, not our own.

So, all that to say that if you are choosing a different path for health, homeschooling, having babies, adoption, curriculum, country life vs. city life, etc. - not a problem. I pray that you always seek the Lord in whatever you do. And remember to be open to Him!

This is the road we have chosen. Or should I say, the road we feel has been chosen for us. We are just trying to go back to the ancient paths. But, we fall EVERY DAY! It's only through Christ's redemptive blood that we get back up and keep moving forward on this journey called Life. May you find true joy in your journey.

Scrapbooking Weekend

I'm so excited! I'm about to put my stuff together for a scrapbooking weekend. My really great friend, put together a small scrapbooking thing for Friday night and all day Saturday. We are splitting the meals up and my mom and I are doing breakfast on Saturday. I'll be working on the journaling for our San Francisco album - that I completed (except journaling) forever ago. I realized while thinking about what I was going to work on what my deal is. I love to handwrite my journaling, but if you have read much of my blog, you can see why it would take so long. So, I've decided that I'm goign to start typing most of my journaling and doing handwriting on some of the shorter stories. I'm a story writer. My albums are FULL of journaling that my chidlren love to pour over! It doesn't matter to them how "great" I think the page looks, if it has a story on it, they are captivated. So, with my printer and laptop in tow, I'll be heading to scrapbook for the weekend.

I'm also going to take the photos and album for our recent trip to Missouri with me, in case I just whiz through that journaling. I can type much faster than I can write and I can stop and start at the conversations dictate. So, I believe I'll have time to get started on that other album.

I will have A.2months.B. with me, so that will be a bit more to handle than if I were by myself.

Big P and the oldest 4 children will be in Rockport visiting Grandpa! They are staying in a little cabin at the RV park and plan to see the Lexington and possibly the aquarium. They are going to the boardwalk to have Baskin Robins. They are also planning to go in Corpus to pick up a Whataburger where DH used to go all the time growing up.

Big P's birthday is on Sunday!!! He'll be 36. I can't believe it! We've almost been married 12 years. He's as much of a doll as he was when I married him and growing old together is bliss!

New Blog Design

Oh, I'm so extremely pleased with my new blog design. Amber at The Shabbee Chick Designs did a wonderful job. She sent me a questionnaire with several questions about me and my blog, colors, things I had in mind, and asked me to list other websites that I liked and which elements I liked best about them. Then she came up with an incredible design. She is definitely an artist. If I had to sum up what I really love about this design, it would be that it looks like a scrapbook page that I would create for our family album. I really really love it.

Thank you Amber!

ps. I even have this cool signature line!

Some fun family pics

Just some things that go on at our house, day to day....

This is a paint by number that P.9.G. did the other day. It was a gift that she received from her Grandma and Grandpa. We were very impressed! She added the flowers and the shading on the trees herself - without instruction to do so! We got a frame for it and it will be going up on the wall soon. Big P is supposed to hang things tomorrow, but it may have to wait for Monday.




Then one night we had a "campout" for the big kids. They tossed down some blankets on the floor and ate marshmallows and played Uno. It was fun to watch them. Then P.9.G. asked us to tell scary stories. So, we were going along telling these goofy stories and she wanted to hear more scary stories. So, Big P comes out with this really creepy one that apparently he had heard in high school and really got her worked up. I knew that was a bad idea!! She started asking us to keep our bedroom door open, were we going to be up late, could Big P work in the living room, etc. Won't do that again - at least the scary stories part!





This afternoon, while we were all working on something, we looked over and saw B.4.B. crashed on the couch! I had read 3 stories to him and he had a great time with that. He had played on the floor with his bus, train, and cars and was just tuckered out!



And this is the pic of my big boy - C.12.B. He is a history buff! You can check out his new blog at Wrapped Up In History. He's having a great time writing and tweaking his blog. He would like to make it look like a newspaper. This pic is for him to add to his blog.

My baby is 2 months today

Can you believe it???? I know I can't. Wow, time is really flying with our little bitty one. He's so precious. Car rides are getting easier. We haven't hit the 3 month mark where they seem to stop the crying fits EVERY time they are in the car seat, but we are headed in that direction. He's content for longer periods of time and easily entertained. If I can get him into the seat while he is sleeping, he usually stays asleep and thus doesn't cry.

He is a little bundle of joy, though - crying and all. He's starting to smile and coo and watch his brothers and sister. He loves to just lay on a blanket on the floor and look around at us. You can show him things and he will follow them.







A.2month.B. still loves the SlingEZee and I'm still as impressed as I was the first time I put it on - more so, I'm sure. It is the most comfortable sling I've ever worn. We took him in a couple of weeks ago and he weighed in at 12.5 lb. I'm sure he's put on at least a pound since then and it's still very comfortable. He likes sitting in it facing the front at times.



Haven't figured out a pretty way to put these pictures on here, but wanted you to know that I'm so very blessed!!!!

Coming soon...

to Mama's blog - a new blog design!!

I'm so excited. Amber at ShabbeeChick Designs is almost done with my design. It is looking gorgeous and soooo me. She'll be finishing it up tonight and installing it. I'm very impressed with her professionalism, her work and design. She has a real eye and made my thoughts come to fruition. Her price is impossible to beat, as well.

Oooooh, just can't wait!!

In His Grip,
Christine