Happy 2013

I want to wish you ALL 

a very very Happy New Year!

I pray it brings us all

Awe

Bravery

Contentment

Discovery

Enthusiasm

Faith

Greatness

Health

Integrity

Joy

Kindness

Love

Movement

Networking

Optimal Living

Peace

Quiet

Respect

Success

Thankfulness

Use

Victories

Wealth

X-citement

Yippees

Zeal

Clever, huh?

My 2013 Alphabet of Dreams.

Truly, have a beautiful 2013!

Thankful...

Truly so much to be thankful for!!

TRULY!

Here a few I am thinking of this week:

Thankful for the beautiful sunny weather we have been having to start the month of November.

 Thankful for hockey and the lessons/hard work/dedication it is teaching the boys. 

(and way to go Xander on scoring your first goal ever!!!!)

 Thankful for our home...for the warmth and protection it provides.

 Thankful for my sweet kiddoes....they make my life so full!

 Thankful for puppy snuggles for all of us...

even Steve...he loves a little Gregor snuggle! :) 

OK maybe not but watching Gregor and Xander love on each other 

makes me very happy...so sweet!!

November is the month that we focus on all that we have to be thankful for...

but these are things I am thankful for year round.

I am very blessed and so very thankful...

I would really like this to be my focus every day. 

What are you thankful for today?

Hello Monday

Hello blogging it's been a while.

 Hello to life with our sweet new puppy Gregor.

Hello to my last week of training before my first marathon.

Hello to last week (only a day an a half) of school for the boys.

 Hello days spent with Macey - we love having her home.

Hello scrapbooking...getting ready for Feeling Scrappy's class if fun!!

Hello family made Chinese Dinner plans...Egg Rolls, Crab Rangoon, Chicken Fried Rice,
Generals Chicken and Hunan Beef...will let you know how it turns out.

And as always a big thank you to Lisa Leonard for such a fun idea! 
How is your Monday looking?

Hello Monday...

Hello snow and cold....burrrrr!

Hello cozy fire in my fire place...love the warmth!

Hello sweet lazy dog lying at my feet.

Hello Building a Creatively Made Business course...hoping this will help with focus and direction...and I do love Jeanne Oliver.

Hello three Canucks losses...not good and so not a happy triple C...let's get a win tomorrow boys!!!   YOU CAN DO IT!  :)

Hello aromatherapy...it is interesting knowing where it all stated. 

Hello week 13 of training.  This weeks long run...18 miles...getting closer and closer!

Thanks as always to Lisa for such a great idea!

What does your Monday hold??? 

Whatever it is I hope it's splendidly grand!!

Hello Monday...

Hello to a wonderful new thought...

 “I’ve always been the opposite of paranoid. 

I operate as if everyone is a part of a plot to enhance my well-being.”

- Stan Dale

Stan Dale you are a smart man - think I will follow in your foot steps!!

(Thanks Rhonda for the heads up)

Hello mapped out vision board.

Now let's glues it down and start making things happen!

Hello week 6 of training...87 miles down...425 miles to go.

Maybe I should stop adjusting my training schedule so it actually feels like I am making progress.

Hello Life Organizer...looking forward to this new approach.

Hello tidied desk - boy were you a mess.

 Hello Bead Soup mix I really need to wrap you up...you are due on March 3rd!!!

Hello great win yesterday for Wild Bantams!!  Such a great game!!  

Bantams I am so glad Connor is a part of your team!!

Hello new completed work.

Hello Lightening Label...big moment for Star Hitched Wagon

Hello Tangerine Tango...let's jump on the band wagon!!!

 Hello last week of hockey for Xander...let's take state!  :)

Thanks as always to Lisa for such a great idea!
How's your Monday looking?

One Dumb Thing...




This weeks Burning Question....

What's one dumb thing that you used to believe in? 




That I wasn't an artist...

because I wasn't educated or trained as an artist...

because someone didn't come a long and give me the title

and a badge that said Your Are An Artist...

because others doubted.

But then one day I realized I get to decide...

and I decided that yes indeed I am an ARTIST.

Yes I get to decide.




Hello Monday...

Hello lazy sleep in kind of Monday...

would be about perfect if only we weren't missing Steve and Macey.  

Hello week 5 of training...hope to get another outdoor run in this week...

my awesome new shoes are ready.

Hello coffee and homemade scones for breakfast...yummy...would you like the recipe?

Hello sunny skies...love that we are getting close to spring!  

Yesterdays snow won't stick around too long if you keep shining.

Hello lovely natural curl and wave and body...

why can't I harness you and have this style while looking good...

instead of you just presenting yourself when I let you air dry...

oh yeah and could you move around to include the back as well!

 Hello messy piles of creativity looking forward to finishing my first vision board.  

 Hello wonderfully relaxing music...love this newly created station on Pandora.

You are perfect to listen to while I work on my vision board.

Hello to all the wonderful new blogs I clicked 

through too this weekend...you are fueling my creativity, my dreams

and just how I can bring you to reality:

Tenacious Leigh

Jen Louden

Louise Gale

Danielle LaPorte

Christine Cane

Tiny Buddha

just to name a few I could go on and on...so much goodness out there.

Hello lists...please help me stay on track this week.

Hello new recipe - hope the boys like you.

Hello Aromatherapy Class....I really do promise to get working on you...I will post abou you repeatedly until I am a certified Aromatherapist!!!

As always thanks to Lisa for such a great idea...keeps me present!

Totally Random Thursday

From 7:35 am to 9:27 am I put 12.5 miles on my vehicle and I didn't really go anywhere.

I also expect to add at least 20 more miles on that number today...WOW!!! 

I know I know many of you are saying - ha that's nothing. 

BUT I do not work at one of the mines and I do not live in a big city...

so it seems CRAZY how many miles I travel each week. 

Moving on...I washed my car today for the first time in I don't even know how long...

and when I say I

well I really mean that big machine.

Yes it did and I sat and texted in my car - tough work I tell ya. 

Anywho...by the time I got home you would NEVER know I made a visit to the car wash. 

So tell me again why we wash vehicles?  (Steve and Dad pretend you didn't read that last statement)

I am hopelessly and shamelessly ADDICTED to Pretty Little Liars. 

Thanks a lot Macey.  No but really I am. 

I have watched 12 episodes in the past 2 days while scrapbooking. 

Stacey + Ezra = TRUE LOVE 4EVER. 

Ok I sometimes have the mind of a 14 year old. 

And I might have replayed his make out session 427 times,  but probably not.  

 HOT!!!

I have scrapbooked 18 pages in the past 24 days!  And that's the real number!!

I am so super excited about this because I didn't even scrapbook that many pages

in the entire year of 2011.  Yay ME!!!

I started marathon training on Monday.  Crazy I know. 

It will be my first and I am actually REALLY excited. 

I will be running the Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon on June 3rd,

along with my really hot hubby.  Well I won't really be running along side him or anything. 

By the time I finish the marathon he will have finished his marathon, showered,

had a couple of meals, drank a few beers and lots of other stuff.

I have never been to interested in speed...finishing is my goal. 

With this being my first marathon my goal is to finish before the 7 hour cut off time. 

If it takes me 419 minutes and 60 seconds I will be so super thrilled that I accomplished that!!! 

And another member of our family will enter the world of running.

Xander has taken an interest in running.  He has been "training" for about three weeks now.

He is really excited about it.  He will run at least 25 miles over the next few months

and then finish the final 2k of the marathon at the Mickelson Trail the day before Steve and I run.  AWESOME!!  So proud of him!

I LIVE in yoga and running clothes - 96.4% of the time and that number may be low.

The old gear wasn't looking too pretty so I may or may not have purchased $8641.23

worth of new gear from Sierra Trading Post.  I didn't say I spent that much but it was worth

at least that much!  Seriosuly do you all shop here???  If not your CRAZY - CRAZY I tell ya.

The bargains are unbelievable.  (They are offering an addition 20% off orders over $100.00. 

Coupon code: SITETHUR112)  My new gear consists of Columbia, Mountain Hardware,

Royal Robbins, SmartWool, J-41.  And not one thing was over $40.00!

In fact $40.00 was the most expensive item and I cringed a little...most things were 12 - $30.00!

Even then shoes!  Score.  Now I am comfortable but at least I look somewhat put together! 

Hey I said somewhat.  And now I am even a runner again so I have an excuse - right??? 

Now I just need to work on getting back into Yoga.  Which reminds me....

Dear Gillette,

Please offer mid-morning yoga classes for people like me.  I do not like Zumba...well let me re-phrase...my body can't move like is required in Zumba.  And I am not looking for spinning

or cardio fit right now.  So please a 9:00 am yoga class would be awesome!!!  And I'm not a senior or a kid - so those don't qualify.  Thank you.

Sincerely, Desperately Seeking Yoga Classes 

Hmmmm...what else can I bore you to numbness with....let's see here...

Totally in love with:

The Civil Wars

Andrew Belle

 And I CANNOT wait (Thanks Jamie for the heads-up) to see this:

Love me some Channing!

OK that's it!! That is all I've got...gotta get back to watching some Pretty Little Liars

and perhaps drool over Ezra!!!  And scrapbook, of course!!  Have a BEAUTIFUL Thursday!

New Outlook...

I have been scrappin away these days!  LOVE it!!

Decided to have a go at the My Mind's Eye Blog Challenge #31.

I LOVE how this one turned out!!!  But boy did I have a hard time getting here.  The sketch had three circles - and boy did they have me STUCK.  So I decided to check out what the other participants were doing - sometimes you need just a little extra inspiration. 

I came across a fantastic layout by Wendy Smith - just love her take on the sketch.  It reminded me to think outside the box when it comes to sketches.  So with that I decided to move away from the circles and used the rectangles...love it!!

Everything (except for the ink) on the layout is My Mind's Eye - from very old cardstock from a paper pad that I have had FOREVER to the more recent Lost & Found line.  Oh I did use dies from Stampin Up to cut out the heart, brackets and rectangles - but using My Mind's Eye paper of course!!

Hello Monday...

Hello nice lazy Monday - no school for the boys means sleeping in and taking it easy.

Hello time to scrapbook.

Hello day 5 of my beautiful Shellac'd nails!  LOVE!!!

Hello beads - what shall I send Marie Jane Dodd for the 5th Bead Soup???

Hello little bowl of dark chocolate chips - my excuse?  It's good for my health.

Hello treadmill and elliptical...love having you at home.

Hello sweet little birdies - oh how I love seeing you.

Think I might try to make some friends for you this week!!!

Hello new snow.

Hello gorgeous roses!  You make me happy and still look beautiful on day 5.

Hello Battleship with my favorite 11 year old!!

Hello yummy Banana Bread baking in our over!  Smells delish!

How's your Monday looking??? 

Thanks to Lisa Leonard for this fun idea of Hello Monday!!!

A Little Fun...

A little blog post about my studio - over at Where People Create!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE looking at other peoples creative spaces!  Such awesome ideas out there!  Many of the ideas I have incorporated into my own studio have been "things" I have spotted in other peoples spaces!!

Ann has some great spaces featured!!! So go over and check it out - comment if you'd like!  And be sure to check out all the other spaces Ann has featured.  Very cool stuff!!! 

Hey and if YOU have a fun creative spaces - email her - she is looking for spaces to share!!  You might just inspire some organization for another creative soul!  :)

New studio....

So I did it!!

I moved the studio up from the dungeon!!! 

All by myself.  OK not entirely true...

Connor helped me with the three big pieces of furniture.

Just couldn't drag them up those darn stairs without help. 

If I could have I would have.  I promise. 

 Now it sits prettily upstairs

(P.S. Want a pair of these wings?  Contact Shelley and see if she's game!!)

SOOOO much better!  I am so lucky I had two spaces to pick from.

The ONLY draw back is that there is no over head light so I need to

invest in some good task lighting so I can see what I'm working on 

when it's gloomy out and at night!  But that's easy! 

Love it!

Oh and what's really cool is that since it is connected to the

dining room if I ever have friends/family over to craft or scrap

we can use the dining room table to spread out and won't have

to run up and down the stairs to get supplies!!!  Nope!

This also means there will be plenty of room for X-Man 

to work on homework, puzzles, drawing, or other projects he's working on.

All close by!  Just in case he wants to visit or he needs my help.

Yay!!!

From this:

(which was very nice)

to this:

(which is just plain awesome)

So much happier.

Only thing left to do is hang up all my fun art work and shelves!!  

Steve??  I need your help on that one.

Now no excuse to not make lots of creative lovelies.

My One Little Word...

When I started seeing people talking about picking their words for 2012 

I felt a bug PULL towards really commiting this year.  

I have picked words before but really had to think hard about the word.

It was more or less just a word.  

They didn't have as much meaning to me.

And I didn't do too much to make it a part of my life.  

This time around two words came to mind immediately - without much thought.

Those words were:

TRUTH and REAL

Both completely related.

As I have mentioned in many a blog posts

us moving has brought a lot of changes

it has sent me reeling a bit. 

My ego is getting the best of me…

I tend to make assumptions about situations, people, etc…

and what I am realizing is that they are not factual, 

not necessarily real or the truth.

And sometimes I am not realistic about

what I need to do to achieve desired outcomes.

I make excuses about why things might not be happening.

It's time to get real.

I really want to focus on what is true.

So my word will be...

  re·al, real/ˈrē(ə)l/, /rāˈäl/

1.  true; not merely ostensible, nominal, or apparent.

2.  existing or occurring as fact; actual rather than imaginary, ideal, or fictitious.

3.  being an actual thing; having objective existence; not imaginary.

4.being actually such; not merely so-called.

5.  genuine; not counterfeit, artificial, or imitation; authentic.

How perfect is that?

That is exactly what I'm talkin bout!!! 

To see what is REAL about all situations.

To be REAL about what is needed for a desired outcome.

To be REAL with where I'm at.

To be REAL with my intentions.

To be REAL towards others.  

To show the REAL me.

To be the REAL me.

Be REAL.  See what's REAL.  Feel what's REAL.

It's that time of year...

...for goals!!!  

I really need to get me straightened out.  Too much to be happy about!!

I think I might be a little cranky these days.  Oh how silly silly silly that is!!

Time for change - time to kick that ego to the curb.

Here are a few things I am thinking about:

Working towards living a life I love. 

As I think I have mentioned before this move has left me rather topsy turvy and stuck. 

Not doing nearly as much as I can to feel good about me and life.

And that's just plum silly - too much too feel good about!!

Create more often!

I want to paint and get messy!! 

I want to sew!  

I want to play with clay!

Get my business up and running full steam ahead.

Will my labels ever be finished?  Oh yes and they will be gorgeous.  

The bath and body product will be perfected and I promise you will love it.  

Because I love it!

And of course lots more jewelry - really want to work more with silver.  

Judge less - love more.

Kick my ego to the curb.

It really get's in the way and trys to hold one down.  

No thanks!!  I've had enough.

(thanks Oprah and Eckhart Tolle)

Keep working through Oprah's Lifeclass

Get real - see the truth - be true. 

Make friends.

Yoga, running, walking, lifting or elliptical every single day of the week!!!

Run a marathon.

Yell less.

Be happy, smile and laugh and sing and dance!! ALOT!!!

Scrapbook.

Thinking

Week in the Life

One Little Word

and

Project Life.

Dream big and work hard to achieve.

Blog.

Wish me luck!  :)  

How about you?  

What do you want to happen this wonderful 2012?

My New Year's Wish for You...

 Comfort on difficult days,
Smiles when sadness intrudes,
Rainbows to follow the clouds,
Laughter to kiss your lips,
Sunsets to warm your heart,
Hugs when spirits sag,
Beauty for your eyes to see,
Friendships to brighten your being,
Faith so that you can believe,
Confidence when you doubt,
Courage to know yourself,
Patience to accept the truth,
Love to complete your life.
-Anonymous

My friend Shelley Kinnison posted this wonderful poem...

I thought it was too perfect no to share.

Christmas was a good one....

...a very good one!!

And now I feel like I can say goodbye to it.  

The decorations have been taken down.  

My girl is safely back in Omaha!  :(
(happy she's safe...just would have loved more time with her here in Wyoming)
Now I'm ready for the fresh start that 2012 will bring.

But before I say goodbye completely, how about a few (or a TON) pictures of

my favorite moments and my favorite people.

 Macey was home for three whole weeks.
How fun it was to have her here for three whole weeks.
It was nice just bumming around with her.
And I found out she's very crafty - like me.
love love love this little tidbit.

Love that we only have to travel 3 hours to get back to my home town.
It soooo beats the 12 hour drive we used to have to make from Omaha.

We celebrated my sister's 40th birthday.
A surprise "Look Who's Turning Awesome" party.
Lots of fun!  And boy was she surprised!  Love it!

 Christmas Eve mass with the family.
Love the comfort that the (mostly) familiar brings.
Love that Joy to the World!

Christmas Eve festivities at my sister and brother in law's home.
Family, friends, YUMMY food, and very thoughtful gifts.
(More on one very special gift later)

 
Christmas morning at Mom and Dad's.

Up soooo early to open those gifts.
Such excitement!!
Wondering if Santa's made his visit yet and if so what he might have left.
Again with really thoughtful gifts!

A scrumptious Christmas feast - eating too much!
A little after dinner napping.
A little dancing with the XBox - oh the laughs.
Mom, Carol, Jo - you rock those dance moves!!!

And that oh so fun game of Quelf.
Have you heard of this?
Definitely a fun one - would be worth the purchase. 

Goodbye Christmas 2011!

It was a good one!
A very very good one!