Where's Mom?! 10/52 Photos Of Me!!

Are you a mom? Are you missing from the picture? Most moms I know are, but here is a great meme that gets us moms out from behind the lens and into the spotlight! Carin from Forever in Blue Jeans is the hostess for this year long picture project! It is lots of fun and just think, at the end of the year, you will have at least 52 pictures with YOU in them! It can be scary, but com'on...give it a try! It's easy, all you have to do is hand over the camera! And the best part is, you can jump in whenever; for me, this is my 10th week!

These photos are of me and Brendan working on his April book report. Every month he is assigned a book report with a different genre and a unique style...this month the genre was Folktale and the style was a scrapbook page. H.E.L.L.O. I heart scrapbooking!! Brendan's eyes were so wide with excitement when I brought out all of my tools! We sat down and read the folktale he choose, The 3 Little Javelinas, which is an adaptation of the 3 Little Pigs, and got to work!
Photos courtesy of daddy.

In the pics, it looks like I was doing all the work, BUT we worked on it together with Brendan using as many of my tools as I would allow!! He had a lot of say in where things went and was pictures we used as well as the color combination! He did most of the writing too!The finished report...Great Job Bren!!

(and shush...but his teacher already told me that he got 100%!!)

It's so easy...give someone else the camera, say cheese and join the fun!

WW~A Game Handed Down from Daddy...Dice Baseball Anyone?!

Crazy Eights!

I saw this over at MiMi's and thought I would do it since I ran out of time to post for today!

Here is how it works...mention the person that tagged you; well she really didn't tag me, I kinda stole it, but I got it from He & Me + 3! Anywho...

Back to this tag...

Mention the person that tagged you ( or you stole it from) ~ Check

Complete the list of 8's ~ Check

Tag 8 of your bloggy friends ~ Um...Yea...If you want to do this...please do!

Go tell them that they were tagged ~ How about you tell me that you played along and I will come and comment?!!

8 Things I Look Forward To...

1. Being face to face with Jesus

2. Summer Vaca

3. Trip to CO

4. Trip to MI

5. Baseball season ending!

6. Football season starting!

7. The day I am no longer mourning the fact that I can't get preggy anymore.

8. Hopefully adopting a baby girl one day...

8 Things I Did Yesterday...

1. Woke up..(that is a great thing!)

2. Talked to my mom...they made it back to MI safe and sound

3. Took Brendan to baseball practice

4. Watched the movie Sabrina on AMC

5. Worked on my Career Ladder Notebook (pay for performance that our district does)

6. Blogged

7. Changed my entire class' behavior cards to yellow...they were naughty!

8. Ate pizza...YuMmY!

8 Things I Wish I Could Do...

1. Lose weight

2. Be more patient

3. Be a better blog commenter!

4. Cook

5. Sew

6. Have the time to scrapbook again!

7. Volunteer in my boys' classrooms

8. Exercise everyday (that would probably help with the whole weight thing too! To bad I am that lazy!)

8 TV Shows I Watch...

1. Friends

2. Real Housewives

3. Grey's Anatomy

4. House Hunters

5. Food Challenge

6. Ace of Cakes

7. Unwrapped

8. Project Runway

i heart faces ~ Reflection

i heart faces is a photography blogsite that hosts weekly photo contests of faces for both kids & adults. This weeks contest theme is "Reflection," and since I always have my camera in tow & I love to take pictures of my kids faces this is a wonderful & easy contest for me to enter. To join in the fun & enter just visit their blog here.

This is a picture of Colin's reflection looking out of his window. I caught him in my side mirror and was able to snap a picture while I was stopped. He thought it was the funniest thing ever and must have laughed all the way home!

Where's Mom?! 9/52 Photos of Me!

Are you a mom? Are you missing from the pictures? Most moms I know are, but now there is a great meme for just us moms so we can come out from behind the lens and into the spotlight! Carin from Forever In Blue Jeans is the host of this year long picture project! It is lots of fun and just think...there will be at least 52 pictures with you in them to hand down! It can be scary, but com'on, give it a try!! It's easy, all you need to do is hand over the camera! And the best part is, you can jump in whenever; for me, this will be my 9th week!

This photo is from last Saturday when the boys were fooling around with my camera! (the same day that this photo was taken, if you missed it!). This is me and Brendan, taken by Colin, while we were waiting for Ryan to come out of the house! We were on our way to football registration! The life of sports! The boys (all 3 of them) had so much fun playing around with my camera! I found lots of funny pics, including the one from yesterday's Wordless Wednesday, when I was down loading them! Too funny!

It's easy...give someone else the camera, say cheese and join the fun!

WW~ There are NO Words for this Self-Portrait!

Birthday Came Early...for Colin!!

This past weekend, my birthday wasn't the only thing that was being celebrated! Colin's true birthday is not until May 10th, but since my parents are snowbirds and only spend 6 months a year here in AZ, we celebrated his birthday on Saturday night as well! My parents will leave this Saturday to go back to Michigan until Halloween, so this was his special birthday weekend too!

Present #1...Coyotes t-shirt and black shorts...LET'S GO COYOTES!
Present #2...Wii game; so much fun!

Thanks Grandma...

Thanks Grandpa...

Birthday dinner at Red Robin...where else?!...

What a fun-filled Saturday!

And to all my bloggy friends...THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THE WARM BIRTHDAY WISHES YESTERDAY! I FEEL SO LOVED! YOU MADE MY DAY!

Happy Birthday to ME!!

Yes...that's right, today is my BIRTHDAY! I am now on my downhill slide to 4-0! OH MY GOSH!! I am actually 36 today, but 40 is going be here before I know it! Since my birthday is on a Monday and BOTH boys have baseball games (same time, different fields) we celebrated this past weekend!

Our Saturday started out with baseball pictures for both boys and then home to change quick and head to football registration! That's right, we are not even done with one sport before the next sign up...lucky me (the foreshadow of what is to come!) We stopped for gas and this was my hubby playing around with my camera!

On our way home from football registration, we stopped here for lunch...YUMMY!

I had the chicken parmesan...and the best part is, I have lunch for today! After stuffing ourselves, we came home and chilled out until late afternoon when my parents came over to help celebrate! I was able to open my presents before heading out to eat again, this time at Red Robin, another YUMMY!

Opening presents from my parents

They got me this really awesome cross made from nails that has a crown of thorns in the middle of it! I love it! I collect crosses and can't wait to find the perfect place to hang it up.

Thanks Mom and Dad! (for the present, bday $$ and dinner!)


So after opening presents, we headed here for more eats! I had my usual...just-in-quesadilla with no tomatoes! They sang to me too!

Then we came home and went to bed and got up and went here for breakfast before church...can I get another YUMMY!! The boys and I had the waffle with fresh strawberries! Our friend Roger is the general manager, so this meal was on him for my birthday; Thanks Rog!

After church, we got a car wash and stopped at Target to do some shopping and then headed here with friends for yet another meal! This was a SERIOUS YUMMY!! This was the first time was have ever eaten there and boy was I impressed! I had coconut shrimp and they sang to me too!

So on the day of my REAL birthday, all of the teachers in the district have a professional development day, which means there are no students, but lots of boring meetings! And then both boys have baseball games, same time, different fields! Such is life...it does not stop just because I am turning 36!

Playing Hooky!

On Friday the boys and I played hooky from school! It was so much fun! Friends from Michigan were here for their spring break, and are every year, so we took the day to go and see them. They stay with family about an hour or more away so it really does take the whole day!

This was at the end of the day, but it made me laugh so I had to put it first...it is a pic of the boys being silly after they had been good for a billion and one pictures!

This is Sean and Brendan. Sean's mom, Grace and I have been friends since before we both got married, so 11 years now! We were both teachers together in 1998 and then we both got married, a month apart, the summer of '98 and then we both go pregnant at the same time, summer of '99 and then we both delivered 3 weeks apart spring of '00! So needless to say, Brendan and Sean have been friends even before they were born! And it doesn't matter that they only see each other once a year...it is like old times!

Here is me and Grace, picture courtesy of Brendan!

When we got to Sean's grandparent's house (where they stay), the boys played while Grace and I chatted. After about an hour, we packed up a picnic lunch and headed to a park for some play time!
Here are the boys playing and being silly on the teeter totter! Grace's in-laws live at the foot of the Superstition Mountains, you can see them in the background...absolutely beautiful!

Striking a pose...David (5) at the top, then Brendan (9), Sean (9), and Colin(7) at the bottom.

Brendan and Colin trying out their tottering...although it was a challenge since Colin now out weighs Brendan by 15 pounds!

Hey boys...try looking at the camera next time! I did have another shot where they were, but I really liked the angle of the one!

After our picnic in the park, we went back to the house and while the boys played, Grace and I talked and talked and talked! Before leaving we had to have one final group shot so here we are posing in the backyard. Not only do they live right by the mountains, they live on a golf course too!
This has become a yearly tradition and I look forward to it each spring!
Until next spring, take care Grace, Sean, and David! We will miss you!

I'm Gonna Miss This...

Last Saturday, the boys and I spent the afternoon dying Easter eggs. They had so much fun deciding which colors they were going to use, how to mix them, what colors to use with what colors...it is all science! I loved spending the time with them. I sat across the table, camera in hand, just watching and listening! It was such an amazingly fun time!

Getting ready...

Working closely together to get just the right combination...

Brendan getting it just right...

Colin so proud of his egg...

I know that soon, these all too eager boys will be too old or too busy to spend an afternoon dying Easter eggs (or hunting them for that matter!), so for now and the next few years, I will sit back, camera in hand, smiling, listening and loving the fact that they are so careful at picking and choosing the colors they will dye their eggs!

Join Pam for more You're Gonna Miss This.

Where's Mom?! 8/52 Pictures of Me!

Are you a mom? Are you missing from the pictures? Most moms I know are, and now here is a great meme that brings us moms from out behind the camera and puts us in the limelight! I know it can be scary, but it also can be lots of fun! Just think of all those pictures you take and there are none of you to be handed down to your grand babies! Carin over at Forever in Blue Jeans created this fun, year long meme that brings us out and makes us put on a smile (well most of the time, anyways!) It's easy, give someone else the camera, pose (or not!) and then post! And the best part is that you can jump in whenever you start! This is my 8th week of this fun challenge!

This week I decided to post a family picture. We are at church after Easter service posing in front of one of the 'Flowering Crosses'. I dressed everyone matchy~matchy knowing that I wanted to snap a few pics somewhere on our church campus!

It's so easy...give someone else the camera, say cheese and join the fun!

'Egg'cellent Pictures from Easter!