ScrapFest 2007

First and foremost I have to say thank you to Becky for helping me put together this fun surprise for my friends! For opening up her beautiful home, and helping us feel so welcome. The girls and I had so much fun and appreciate the fun memories we made!

Now for all of you who don't know what I'm talking about, let me explain! After annoying my husband trying to figure out what to do for ScrapFest 2007, he finally said just invite that famous scrapbooker you met at the airport to make an appearance at your party. I laughed, but after a little thought, decided maybe he had a good idea! So after writing and re-writing an email that I hoped she'd even read...then waiting 2 days to just press send (it felt awkward), Becky Higgins replied. After a few emails back and forth, she graciously invited the girls and I over to scrapbook. Can I just tell you, keeping that secret from my girlfriends was really hard! They all suspected, but weren't quite sure. We all met at Gecko Grill for a yummy dinner and I swear everyone was so nervous. Did anyone actually eat their dinner?!


As the plates were being cleared, I presented each girl with a gift bag.


In the bag was Becky's new Sketches book (if you don't have it, GET IT), and a little rhyme that said:

"We're going to Peoria, for book signing and more. Becky Higgins wants to scrap with us, need I say more?!"


After being a little too loud, we quickly paid and got the suburban all packed up (thanks Pam for letting me borrow it). We made the long trip (no joke it's totally on the other side of the valley...in the middle of nowhere) to Becky's.

After a few funny mishaps as we pulled up, Becky greeted us at the door, and introduced us to a few of her friends.


We all got right to work busting out some adorable pages! Becky shared a few ideas with us and the organizer in me was just screaming to pick her brain about a few things! The time went all too quickly, but every minute was worth it! Here are a bunch of pictures!









As we were packing up, Becky so generously gave each of us a rub on saying for our walls, and she let us take from her freebie boxes! Thank you, thank you Becky, the entire night was AMAZING!

Happy Birthday Phil

So yes, my hubby turned the big 30 today! Poor guy is absolutely freaking out about it! So in honor of my amazing husband I've listed 30 random things about him!

1. He is a hopeless romantic (he calls it hopeful)
2. He loves to be spontaneous
3. He is thoughtful
4. He is smart
5. He is always willing to help
6. No matter where we live, we always have an amazing home theater
7. He is obsessed with guns, whether it's shooting them, buying them, protecting us, or feeding us (hunting)
8. He isn't picky
9. He tells me I'm beautiful all the time
10. He supports my crazy scrapbooking habit
11. He is content playing a computer game while I scrapbook (then I don't feel so bad)
12. He likes to be creative
13. He doesn't care what other people think (although it might embarrass the heck out of me)
14. He is amazing with children
15. He collects childrens books for "someday" when we have kids, but reads to any kids that come over
16. He can fix anything
17. If he doesn't know how to do something, he figures it out
18. He loves to dance (scary yes - but he loves it)
19. He is a faithful friend
20. He likes to talk through problems (I'm like the guy and bottle it in)
21. He likes to read
22. He has cute curly hair
23. He always compliments my cooking
24. He swears no one makes chocolate chip cookie dough like I do (although it's my moms recipe)
25. He loves to sleep in and cuddle
26. He is firm in his convictions
27. He loves to do anything outdoors like camping and mountain biking
28. He is mindful of other peoples needs
29. He keeps in touch with old friends
30. He makes a killer lasagna that everyone begs him to make when we visit

Okay, well rattling off 30 things was easier than I thought. Man I had a whole bunch more. I love him to pieces though. We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for his b-day dinner and that's where I gave him his 49er tickets! He was soooo excited!

Time Out For Women

I was so excited to go to Time Out For Women! It was me, my mom, my aunt Pam, my aunt Sherlene, and my cousin Kristin (Pam's daughter). We had yummy food and stayed up late giggling and talking! The messages were amazing, and the music was enlightening! The first night we heard from Michael Wilcox. His message was on "How Many Is One". He talked about how "one" can be a multitude when we each do our parts. That doesn't even touch the rest of his talk (it's so hard to share even a tiny bit of what I felt), but at the end he said something so cool that I never though about. In the movie "The Wizard of Oz" when the Wicked Witch is dying, she says "Oh -- what a world -- what a world! Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness"?! I hadn't ever applied that part in a spiritual way. Neat stuff. Then we heard from an awesome, talented guy named Jason Deere. He sang the songs from his cd "Joseph: A Nashville Tribute." I've seen the cd a few times, but I always passed it by. I'm telling you my friends, BUY IT! I'll tell you a tiny bit about a few songs real quick:

He Walked A Mile In My Shoes - is about Christ being perfect, how can he know my pain...then at the end of the song it says from Gethsemane to Calvary he walked a mile in my shoes

Emma - is about how Emma lost her husband, burried her children, then everyone said she lost her faith (LOVED IT)

Brother I'll Follow You - is about Hyrum and his faith in following Joseph

Lamb To The Slaughter - is a tear jerker about Joseph knowing it was his time

Obviously my words don't do justice for these amazing songs! He also has one called Trek (but it was sold out). He sang a song about Brigham Young from it and it'll be a good one too. Loved how it stirred emotions about my testimony of Joseph Smith and the early pioneers!

We heard from Carolyn Rasmus (who wrote the book Simplify). Sang with Jenny Frogley! Love that girl. She was in our ward in Utah! Heard from Camille Fronk Olsen who suggested reading bible stories in a different angle, particularly the womens. Oh and we were graced with the presence of Merrilee Boyack! Holy crap that lady rocks my world! She wrote the books "Strangling Your Husband Isn't An Option" and " The Parenting Breakthrough." I desperately wanted to get the husband book, but it was sold out, darn it. I'm telling you ladies...this book will change your marriages! A must have! One thing I'll mention that she said is "when you put your kids to bed it lets mommys and daddys become husbands and wives." So true! Just thought I'd share that tip with my young mommy friends! And the closing speaker was Dean Hughes. BUT, I didn't mention that Michael McLean was our host! He was great as always, but after Friday night he declared that he and I were BFF (best friends forever)! I asked my aunt Pam to go ask him what cd the last song he sang was on. Then he came and found me and said don't be shy, we're bff. Then he went on and told us all about his new book. It's about infertility and adoption. So guess what, he did a few more songs from it for me on Saturday morning. Well he said someone requested/mentioned it and I was assuming it was me (haha)!

What an amazing experience though. Did I say amazing like 20 times in this post, because it was!

Scorpions

Okay so after seeing the scorpion at Sarah's, the next day while at my grandma's I had a feeling to turn on the light. Lo and behold, there was a scorpion right there on the wall by the light switch! And yet, 2 days later while staying at my moms, I woke up in the morning to go the bathroom and found ANOTHER scorpion! Wait...I'm not done! The very next morning Tim (my mom's boyfriend) goes into that same bathroom and finds...you guessed it, a scorpion! Am I destined to get stung this trip or what?!

Ewww, GROSS!!!

We had a little scrapbook party at Sarah's after convention was over to finish the projects from our classes that weren't completed. When we got back we found this HUGE ugly toad on her doorstep!


Our friend Molly forgot something and went outside to find a MASSIVE scorpion fighting with the frong. In all the years I ever lived in AZ I've never seen a scorpion! It was BIG! Molly saved us all by killing it, and petting the frog! Eww...GROSS!!!

Scrapbook Convention

Finally! After months of waiting and planning, we made it to Arizona! Phillip dropped me off on Thursday night at the Hyatt where I quickly checked in and rushed over to the convention center for Lisa Bearnsons Backstage Party! So fun to meet her in person. We did a really cute canvas project and I loved her "favorites" that she shared with us! When I got to to take a picture with her at the end, I mentioned that the picture was for my aunt Pam who went to school with her. She said Pam who?! I said Harmon. And she was like, oh her sisters were Lanett and Laurel right?! No way! She totally remembered them. So funny! Anyways, here's a picture from that night.


When I got back to the hotel the girls had all arrived so we went to Hard Rock for dinner. Sarah's sister came too and almost got us killed. She started harrassing this guy after he asked us for some food. He said God was gonna get us. Freaky!


Let's just say we had a little plumbing problem and had to call maintenance! This guy was so funny! He thought he was so cool because we asked for his picture. He said he was going to go home and tell his 3 legged cat!


Appharently though, we were too loud because the next thing we know there's a knock on the door and it's the cops! Go figure! I swear it always happens to us! We were explaining that the maintenance guy came up and we were laughing with him and the door was open. They said oh, you're the clogged toilet ladies! We asked for their pictures and they said no. But they did ask us what a convention for scrapbooking was about! We did eventually get to sleep, I promise.

I had a class the next morning at the crack of dawn. Again with Lisa B. I loved the project! It was called "My Simple Truths" and we even wrote a poem about ourselves!

Sarah and the girls met up with me for the Becky Higgins classes. Of course her Backstage Party and Sketches classes were great! Love that talented girl!


Now I have to explain the "Amy Head". Sarah and Twylla have this friend who wanted to come, but couldn't. So they took this crazy head with them everywhere! Here is the video Sarah ended up making her so she didn't feel left out!

Delayed Departure

We got done babysitting Sunday afternoon and decided to go up to Phil's parents house since the twins were home from college that weekend, and we hadn't met Rebecca, our new neice! The weather was so nice that we ate on the back deck. By 5:00, everyone was heading out, even Phil's dad who was going to Nevada to work for a few days. After a little contemplation, we decided to extend our stay with Phil's mom so we could spend our days catching up/getting ahead on homework! Not to mention the peace and quiet! We got her one on one attention, tips on gardening, and some yummy meals! Oh and I found a litle treasure...Phillip's picture box! I happenend to have my scanner there so (instead of school work) I started scanning in as much as I could! I found pictures from the day we got engaged that I'd never seen, along with birthday pictures I didn't even remember of us! So, so fun! Now, it's off to the sweltering heat of Arizona tomorrow!

Babysitting

So my uncle "Crash" called me and asked us if we wanted to babysit their boys while they went to California to the BYU game. We said yes because it was actually bigger than that! My Grandpa was turning 70 and all his kids from Arizona, Hawaii, California, and Utah were all going to surprise him and meet down in Cali for a whirlwind weekend! We had a great time watching their three youngest boys Justin, Andrew, and Carson. I have no clue how my aunt does it! She's got one with gymnastics a couple with flag football, someone plays soccer, they take piano lessons, oh not to mention she runs a dance and singing studio herself, which all her boys participate in also! I was worn out! But, we did squeeze in a few fun things! We took the kids bowling with some of our friends. The first picture is of Carson bowling. The second is of our awesome friends Geoff & Lori and their little girl. We miss them so much!



I couldn't let this last picture go. I needed to jump in the shower really quick and Phillip kept complaining that he was tired. So (as my aunt instructed me) I made the boys some breakfast, and put Carson in his high chair so he could watch cartoons. No joke, I take a quick shower, and when I come out of the bathroom, this is what I see. Happy Carson loving life, and my dear sweet (awesome helper) husband SLEEPING! Ahh! If you look past Carson you can see my husband catching some Zzz's.


One more thing about this crazy Carson! He ALWAYS smiles...and grunts. In the middle of the night, he would just grunt. But in the mornings he would crack us up because he would stare at you (his crib is next to the bed) and when you'd open his eyes, he'd smile HUGE and start jumping in his bed. He was so happy! We found out Andrew LOVES to vacuum! He was such a great helper. And Justin...he just has a TON of energy (exactly like his mom)!

Ugh!

First Day of School

The time has come...dun dun dun (meant to be sung).

School started today.

New Hardwood Floors

It was an easy decision for us to put hardwood floors down in the office/scrapbook room. Thanks babe, it looks amazing!

And now a little plug for my man. He rocks! He can fix and/or figure anything out! He redid the entire plumbing in the kitchen, fixed my shower and added an awesome shower head to boot. He laid the kitchen, bathroom, and office floors. I'm so glad he's such a handyman with all my crazy ideas. Now I gotta bribe him to build me some cool shelving! Love ya hun!

The REAL Deal

My friend Jill challenged her friends to post pictures of our homes...but it had to be what it looks like right now, not all picked up and staged for a picture. Now don't fall over from a heart attack because we all know I'm an absolute neat freak. This is where I'd normally say my mother would kill me if she saw this, but I'drather just kill myself! Keep in mind we are remodeling (literally gutting entire rooms) while living here at the same time. Ahhh...I can't believe I'm doing this!

Now everyone will be kept in suspense as they wait to see the before and after pictures (which at this rate won't be until October)!!!

My New Favorite Toy

This is the coolest house warming gift! Thanks mom! We love it!

HOME

After a LONG drive (picture of me and my aunt Sherlene in the car)...I'm home with my hubby (even though he has to go back to Colorado for one more week). I'll cherish the 17 hours we have together!

Lunch W/ The Girls

So my last day in Arizona ended up being really busy! I was so excited when my aunt Pam called and asked if us girls wanted to go to lunch. So me and my mom and my aunt Pam and aunt Sherlene all went to Crackers & Co. YUM!
Then me and my mom finished my trip off by shopping until 10 pm (gasp)! We loved every minute of it. We hit The Orange Patch, Michaels, Jo-anns, Mesa Sales, JCPenny Home Store, and plain old JCPenny (more clothes), we bummed at the mall, we went to Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, another Michael's, and last but not least we stopped by Dr. Staker's house to see him and the fam! I must say after all that shopping, I still haven't found fabric that I like for the curtains I need to make in my new house. Ugh!

Eating & Shopping

So every time I come to AZ there are a few things I "must do". So today my aunt and I went to Ned's Crazy Sub (15% since it was his 30th Anniversary), then on to Seagull Book & Tape to get a few books I've been eyeing! Of course later on after dinner my mom took pitty on me and took me back to school shopping and we scored at Fashion Bug! Two pairs of pants and six shirts all for under $100! They are having their 40% off the already on sale items. Shirts were like $4.00! Love it! Then we went out for frozen yogurt and to say hi to my cousins. I still need to hit up Scrapbooks Etc, Ribbons and Lace (where I used to work-need to stock up on bows for baby gifts), Sally's Fabric (stock up on fabric for Boppy's and blankets/burp rags for more baby gifts), and go see all my friends! It wouldn't hurt to go eat at Gecko Grill one more time before I leave (that's where we went when I first came into town)! Ahhh, I love visiting Arizona!

Just My Luck

So this morning as Phillip is trying to get me a functioning kitchen we start talking about what I can accomplish while he goes back to work for 3 more weeks in Colorado. I reminded him that the shower still didn't work. After pricing a rental car, I looked at flights to AZ and guess what...it was cheaper to just fly me to AZ so he can take our car back with him! So at about noon he bought me a plane ticket and I threw the few items I had in a small suitcase and we rushed to the airport. Mind you, I haven't showered in 2 days, I'm wearing pajamas (the only thing that was decent-still had paint on my pants) and I'm a site for sore eyes! Guess who's on my flight?! I saw her from a distance and recognized her kids from pictures. Anyways...Becky Higgins (a scrapbooker who's style I like)! I was mortified! She was so kind (as always). My pride went out the window as we talked. I only got embarrassed as she went to hug me and I'm like ahhh, I stink! When I come to convention in a few weeks Becky, I promise to have my hair and make-up done...along with real clothes and a shower! Thanks for chatting with me! So to all my friends who scrapbook and know who Becky is...here is a darling picture of her...and me at my absolute worst! (I didn't crop the picture, and of course I just did go-go gadget arm). I'm a freak, I just needed proof!

P.S. To all my friends here in AZ (who read my nutty blog)...let's get together! Ummm, Friday night crop?!

Recap

Okay, here's a little recap on the last week. We got to Logan at about 3:00 am on Monday morning. After 4 hours of sleep we were up and working on the house! Painting, cleaning, you name it! I made probably 10 trips to Lowes and Home Depot just in that first day! My in-laws were so gracious to help us for a few days! Without their help, who knows how big of a mess we'd still be in! Phillip ended up getting a few days behind on the plumbing in the bathroom do to a few issues that needed the proper fixing (no "making do") and a tiny flood. We decided to gut the entire kitchen. The colors rock and I love the stripes I did. I promise to post before and after pictures down the road. I can't believe how much we've done, but I will say I'm on a first name basis with everyone at Lowes and Home Depot! I go at least 2 times a day! We're still in a big mess, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel (we just can't quite see it yet)! Back to painting!

Moving Day {UGH}

Can I just say, moving has to be the suckiest thing ever! And moving without help from family is a totally different experience! Our original plan was to pack up the moving van, drive to Alpine, Utah to stay with Phil's family Saturday night and get up to Logan early on Sunday morning and paint, paint, paint (yes and break the Sabbath). Well since we didn't have much help (thank you to the missionaries and our 2 friends) we were running a little later than anticipated! So around 2:00 I called a lady in my ward and she said she'd hurry on over to help clean. She brought her daughter and her friend. When I saw her with a huge smile on her face I nearly burst into tears. And she kept saying thank you for calling me, this is so fun (I'm like you LIER)! Needless to say even with the help we got, we didn't pull out until 3:00 pm on Sunday. No matter how organized I was and had thoroughly planned it all out...I guess I wasn't prepared!

So then my oh so awesome husband thought of the coolest idea for our moving cards (yes I've been fretting about moving cards and designing them). All I can say is these 2 pictures will be included on the front of the card in black and white!