Tonight's Entertainment: Josh Groban at Omaha's Qwest Center...WOOHOO!

Leaving for Omaha in about a half-hour...can't wait for the concert tonight!!! The ONLY thing that bums me out a bit is that cameras are not allowed in the arena...so no pics of Josh for me...and none to share with you :-(. Oh well, I'm still sure is going to be a GREAT show!

In the meantime, enjoy:

A Soccer Star in the Making...

I signed Kaitlin up for her first 'team' sport - soccer. The whole soccer thing has been a hit before she even hit the field. We went shopping for shin guards, new tennies and some shorts/shirts the other night and tried on the whole outfit once we got home. She would have slept in it if I would have let her!

Kaitlin had her very first soccer practice tonight. #1 - stretching is very important.

#2 - Kicking the ball with the side of your foot isn't as easy as it looks...especially if you are actually wanting the ball to go straight.

#3 - Having a good practice partner is also very important. This is a little boy that Kaitlin has gone to daycare with for about four years. They are quite good buddies...but Kaitlin insists they are 'just friends'. Hmmm...not sure what all their hand-holding is about then! :-)

#4 - Wind up (Is that the correct term? Side note - I know NOTHING about soccer.) is key.


#5 - Follow through after contact...


I guess the first practice was a little rough...look at Kaitlin's friend (had to the forehead)! :-)

I love how he's nonchalantly offering her a drink...how gentlemanly...

Updates to come...their first game is next Tuesday.

Celebrity Chat with Cathy Zielske

I just took part in my first-ever online celebrity chat over at Scrapper's Bliss - and it was with Cathy Z - one of my all-time favorite scrapbook artists!!

I wasn't sure at all what to expect, but I have to say it was really cool and probably the fastest hour EVER! I couldn't believe how quickly it was over. While chatting, Cathy answered some great questions, both personal and professional, and it was very enlightening. She even responded to BOTH of the questions that I asked which was SUPER COOL!

I have been reading Cathy Z's blog, Bits&Pieces, for quite some time now and have always enjoyed her down-to-earth attitude.

I encourage you to head on over to Scrapper's Bliss and check out the chat logs and if you decide you need more of Cathy Z, read more on her blog!

i ges i kan spel...

I Scored a 100%!

SSFS #29 - Top 5 Favorite Flickr Friends

For this Sunday Spur for Scrapbookers, we're focusing on inspiration for improving your photography for use in your scrapbook pages. I have recently discovered the joy of Flickr...I am already amazed at the quantity and quality of the photos there. It has been a great source of inspiration for me in my own photography. Here are my top 5 favorite Flickr friends right now:

#1 - *Pretty in Pink* - She lives in Montana (in other words...beautiful scenery) and has the cutest little girl. These two facts in conjunction with her stellar skills as a photographer make for some GREAT photos. I go to her often for inspiration for photos of my own daughter...

#2 - toddlertoes - Her real name is Heleen and she lives in Europe. Again, great skills. Seems to primarily shoot toddlers and nature type shots and I LOVE the creative angels she uses.

#3 - princess poses - From her profile: "I am a SAHM and RN with a love of capturing my children's everyday moments. They on the other hand are not always so fond of it. Now that my princesses are getting a little older it is allowing me some time to focus on what I like to do. Photographer is one of them. I love being able to take photos for family and friends just to see them enjoying the moments captured in their life."

#4 - Wynona R - A photographer from Salt Lake City, Utah who has an amazing talent for unique composition and lighting! Her photography business website has more great examples of her work.

#5 - NicholeVan - Gorgeous use of lighting...in her profile, she states that she owns no professional lighting and uses only natural lighting - AMAZING. I am also in love with her use and fascination for rustic/grungy/vintage locations for her photos...so 'moody'. From her profile: "Ok, so obviously I'm obsessed with faces, minimalism and my own kids. I love simplicity. Clean, crisp lines that allow you to focus on one idea, one person." Her professional photography site has oodles of breathtaking photo samples.

I would love to be able to post some of their pictures here, but don't want to infringe on any copyrights...so, I guess you'll just have to visit their Flickr pages to see how wonderful they are. Of course, my favorites mainly involve photos of people, especially children, but there are photographs and photographers of EVERY kind on Flickr, amateur and professional.

YOUR CHALLENGE(S) THIS WEEK:
*If you're ahead of me (which I suspect many of you are) and have already discovered the joy of Flickr, share 5 of YOUR favorite Flickr friends with us in the comments here or with a link to your own blog.
*If you haven't yet discovered the joy of Flickr, head over there NOW and create your own account, upload a few photos to share, and start building your favorite Flickr friends list.
*If you'd like to visit my Flickr page while you're at it and offer some praise and/or constructive criticism, that would be great, too!

My Fishergirl - Catcher of 21 Fish!

Justin finally took Kaitlin fishing today! It was a long-awaited treat for Kaitlin. And this girl surely doesn't get squeamish around worms (definitely an attribute she did not acquire from me).

She was even pulling them apart for Justin to put on the hooks.

It seemed like Justin would no sooner bait her hook, cast her line and within minutes (sometimes seconds), she would be reeling in a little bluegill.




She was quite proud of her first catch, but then there was another...

and another...

and another.

I actually quit counting when her catch hit 10. The funniest thing was that all this time, Justin had been fishing, too, and he hadn't caught even one!! He teased Kaitlin that it must be her Barbie fishing pole...it MUST be 'lucky'. So, they switched. Guess what, Justin still didn't catch a fish...but Kaitlin did...on her Dad's pole. I guess it's not the Barbie fishing pole...

I think Justin did finally start catching a few towards the end of our outing and would pass it on to Kaitlin to reel them in. Kaitlin says she caught 21 fish and I don't think she's too far off...quite a bit better than her dad's two or three. I guess I've got a little fishergirl on my hands.

A Review of "Find Your Groove" by Kitty Foster & Wendy McKeehan

Find Your Groove: A Guide to Discovering Your Scrapbook Style by Kitty Foster & Wendy McKeehan

Amazon Description:
*First book on the market about a hot topic--identifying your scrapbook style is a regular topic of threads on scrapbooking message boards
*Inspirational artwork illustrates a variety of styles
Once a scrapbooker knows her style, scrapbooking becomes easier and more focused. In Find Your Groove, authors Kitty Foster and Wendy McKeehan take readers on a journey of discovery with fun exercises, prompts and lots of page examples. This inspiring guide takes readers by the hand with engaging writing, insightful sidebars, and examples of art from a variety of designers to help them find their own unique and distinctive scrapbooking style.

MY REVIEW:
Although I'm not sure I buy the Amazon's claim that is the 'first book on the market' on the topic, IT IS A GREAT BOOK! It is divided into 6 chapters that cover discovering your own personal style (including a FUN QUIZ) to stretching yourself beyond your personal style and finding inspiration in your own and other styles as well. The book outlines 9 common styles:

1. Clean Lines
2. Graphic
3. Eclectic
4. Classic
5. Shabby
6. Old World
7. Hip & Trendy
8. Anything Goes
9. Journalistic

With over 120 layouts, the book is high on inspiration and if I were to classify its 'style' based on their descriptions, I would have to call it a Eclectic/Hip & Trendy combination. the book is well-organized and full of fun swirls and doodles and well as lots of many illustrations with a hand-drawn, water colored look.

Honestly, I can't really think of any 'CONS' for this book. It was informative, inspirational and FUN!

MY RANKING:
5 STARS!! Worth Every Penny!

"Canned Meat" - Tuesday Twosome Meme

I found this meme over at Tuesday Twosome entitled "Canned Meat" interesting and decided to participate:

Do you check your email once a day or more? More Explain: I am a slave to my email...I have my work email up at all times and check in NUMEROUS times per day. I check my personal email at least twice per day.

When you receive SPAM emails, do you just delete them or take the time to mark it as SPAM? DELETE Explain: I used to mark them, but, honestly, I don't think it helps much.

When a friend/acquaintance emails you a “forward” email like a joke or chain letter, do you forward it to your friends or just delete it? DEPENDS Explain: I almost NEVER forward the chain letter type forwards...I hate those. Sometimes I will forward a forward if it is especially funny or cute, but overall, I don't forward forwards very often.

Who are two people whose emails you look forward to receiving? Julie, Rhnissa Explain: Two friends who live far away and we are all busy and don't email each other often, but when we do, there is usually lots to catch up on.

Do you believe that email has completely replaced other forms of communication? Not completely...I still send Christmas cards w/ a letter. :-)

"Dad...Mom thinks Shane is cute!"

We had a great weekend with Riverboat Days. One of the highlights was certainly listening to Brule yesterday. I got some great pictures, too, which is always good.

This is Paul LaRoche. He's the one that started Brule and he has quite the history. He was at a young age and didn't even find this out, or that he was actually Native American, until his adoptive parents passed away.

This is his daughter, Nicole. She is quite the flutist...

This is Paul's son, Shane...and yes, I think he is cute. Kaitlin is quite perceptive...but not very discreet. As soon as we got home yesterday afternoon, she was telling on me (hence the title of this post). It turned out okay though. His response was, "Well, I think Nicole's pretty cute, too."

Here's the whole group. I really liked how I got the Meridian Bridge in the background of these shots.

They had some Native American Dancers join them for a few of their sets. They had some beautiful costumes.

This is Moses Brings Plenty. He plays percussion and has been in quite a few well known movies such as Hidalgo and Pirates of the Caribbean and is set to play Crazy Horse in an upcoming TV movie.

As for the next two photos, all I can say is "I'm jealous!!" (especially the one with Shane!)

SSFS #28 - Three Things Quiz

Here's a great little quiz for your Sunday Spur this week to give you some journaling inspiration:

THREE THINGS
Three things that scare me:
1:
2:
3:

Three people who make me laugh:
1:
2:
3:

Three Things I love:
1:
2:
3:

Three Things I hate:
1:
2:
3:

Three things I don't understand:
1:
2:
3:

Three things on my desk:
1:
2:
3:

Three things I'm doing right now:
1:
2:
3:

Three things I want to do before I die:
1:
2:
3:

Three things I can do:
1:
2:
3:

Three ways to describe my personality:
1:
2:
3:

Three things I can't do:
1:
2:
3:

Here's my answers:

Three things that scare me:
1: rats
2: state of the environment
3: war

Three people who make me laugh:
1: my 5 year old daughter, Kaitlin
2: my brother, Lee (when he's not crabby)
3: Mike Rowe (from Dirty Jobs)

Three Things I love:
1: family
2: scrapbooking
3: taking pictures

Three Things I hate:
1: not having enough time for the things I love
2: bills
3: swearing

Three things I don't understand:
1: any language other than English
2: my husband :-)
3: why the government doesn't pass more laws to help the environment

Three things on my desk:
1: phone
2: files
3: laptop

Three things I'm doing right now:
1: um…answering these questions
2: sipping on tea
3: listening to Daughtry

Three things I want to do before I die:
1: she my daughter grown up and happy
2: travel
3: and travel

Three things I can do:
1: scrapbook
2: take good photos (but still have a lot to learn)
3: flare my nostrils

Three ways to describe my personality:
1: friendly
2: reserved
3: helpful

Three things I can't do:
1: ice skate
2: play the piano
3: ballroom dance

Your challenge: Take the three things quiz, post to your blog and leave us a link...then go create a great new all-about-you page!

Yankton Riverboat Days Fireworks

The fireworks were great last night...it was uncharacteristically chilly for August in Yankton, but nonetheless, great. Kaitlin happened to run into some friends of hers and they helped to keep each other warm during the show.

Here are a few shots I got:

Looking Forward to Riverboat Days

I'm thankful to be at the end of one very busy work week. This time of year is always pretty hectic in the Admissions Office at MMC, so I'm really looking forward to taking some time off from responsibilities and enjoying the festivities with this weekend's Riverboat Days here in Yankton!

It begins with fireworks tonight...hoping they don't get rained out. It started raining pretty heavily just as I was leaving work, but it seems to have tapered off pretty quickly. Hopefully that's the end of it.

Tomorrow morning I'm helping with the Mount Marty hosted 5K Walk/Run and as soon as that's over, I'll be finding my sister and Kaitlin along the parade route.

The rest of the weekend, I hope to enjoy the crafts, food and music down at Riverside Park. Brule/AIRO is going to be here again...so glad they keep coming back! I love listening to them...and Shane's not bad on the eyes either! :-) Here's a couple pics from last year:



AIRO is Shane's band (his father's band is Brule.



Kaitlin likes listening to them, too. We've went and listened to them for at least a little while every year since she was born. I'm sure that Kaitlin will have a great time, too! One of her highlights last year was getting this butterfly painted on her face:

Hopefully, I'll have some new fun photos to share after the weekend is over.

A Couple More Photos from the Beach

Just working on a few photos tonight and thought I'd share a couple I've been playing with. I really like the effect that this filter has on the photos.

What My Pizza Says About Me

Just a fun little quiz for today...actually quite accurate for me. Click on the link at the end to see what you pizza of choice says about you!

What Your Pizza Reveals

Your appetite is pretty average. You don't go overboard - but you don't deprive yourself either. You consider pizza to be bread... very good bread. You fit in best in the Midwest part of the US. You like food that's traditional and well crafted. You aren't impressed with "gourmet" foods. You are generous, outgoing, and considerate with your choices. You are definitely unique and artistically inclined. You should consider traveling to Prague. The stereotype that best fits you is guy or girl next door. Hey, there's nothing wrong with being average.

What Does Your Pizza Say About You?

On Hiatus...

I've been on hiatus from blogging for a few days now. I actually totally spaced my Sunday Spur yesterday (sorry, Sunday Spurers...it will be back next week). Between work really picking up (as it always does a few weeks before school starts), my grandmother being in the hospital, a concert and a two-day rummage...life has been quite crazy lately!

As you already know from my post on Friday, the Daughtry concert was great!!

My grandmother is doing better...bit by bit. However, she and grandpa will not be able to return to their home and they actually got set up in the home in Tyndall, SD today. Hopefully, it all went well.

Our rummage was a HUGE success...almost $1,600 in sales with my hubby and I accounting for over a $1,000 of that. Definitely happy...too bad we've already got 'un-fun' places that the money needs to go. Oh well...at least we have a little more room now.

Daughtry ROCKS!!

So, I attended my first concert in about 10 years last night (yes, I know that's really sad...) and this is what I saw:

Is this guy straight out of HEAVEN, or what!? If you need a bigger hint:




I LOVE Daughtry...it was a little surreal to have watched his entire season of American Idol and then see him perform in real life. It was an awesome show! My ticket was my birthday present from my sister (love you, Lynnie!) and we had a great night together. My only complaint is that it didn't last long enough...this coming from a working mom who's usually quite content to snuggle up with her 5 year old and read a story by 9:30 p.m. For this guy, I could have stayed up all night...well, at least till midnight! :-)

The show was in Sioux Falls, SD as part of the Sioux Empire Fair and there were over 11,000 people there.

This picture isn't the best, but it gives you an idea. This is only about half of the grand stand area, which was entirely full, and Lynn & I were in the general admission area in front of the stage, which was also packed. It was awesome! I will definitely go see him again if I have the chance!

We got home late and had to get up early to take part in our town's city-wide rummage! We had a great day of selling and have one more to go...hopefully tomorrow is just as successful!

A Review of Scrapbooking the School Years by Memory Makers Books

Scrapbooking the School Years by Memory Makers Books

Amazon Description:

*Features artwork created by talented commissioned designers working in their natural styles to create first-rate example pages and ideas for scrapbookers at all skill levels
*Features bonus paper crafts--ideal not only for traditional scrapbookers, but for teachers looking for new projects for their classrooms

Spanning the school years from the first tear-filled day to
the cap-and-gown finale, Scrapbooking the School Years offers tremendous value to parents wanting to preserve mementos of their children's school-year milestones and accomplishments in a colorful, fresh and contemporary way. Projects and example pages will inspire the reader to create original scrapbooks encompassing everything unique to the school years--teachers, classmates, academic achievements, sports, band, theater, art, field trips, and much more. The reader will also enjoy the Memory Makers artists' paper crafts--featuring fun ideas for showcasing school portraits, report cards and other memorabilia--in addition to extra tips, tricks and sidebars sprinkled throughout.

MY REVIEW:
This book contain 4 sections covering every level of schooling from preschool to Senior year! With a daughter just about ready to enter Junior Kindergarten, I can tell that this book is definitely going to be a great resource for me for many years to come as I record the highlights of her school years.

Includes:
*Over 110 layouts for inspiration by 21 different artists
*Numerous great crafting project to help you further utilize your stash including ideas for locker accessories, teacher's gifts, learning aides and more
*Checklists offering some unique ideas for photo opps, interview questions and memorabilia to commemorate on your layouts
*A fun artist section at the back sporting school days photos of the contributing artists (quite brave on there part, I would have to say!)
*Great organization and detailed listing of supplies

MY RATING:
4 1/2 STARS

A Sad Day...

Today, my 92 year-old grandmother, had a stroke this morning.

I went to visit her after work today while the rest of my family was there and it was very strange to see her that way. She has always been relatively healthy and always a hard working woman. We don't know much yet really and the doctors say that there isn't much they can do other that give her aspirin. At this point, she is not able to communicate, but is able to move the left side of her body.

This day has me thinking about a visit that I had with my grandparents and my aunt several months ago and just collected some memories and old photos for our family history. I'm glad that I took that time.

She gave everyone's hand a tight squeeze tonight before we left the hospital and we all just praying for the best.