document life now

a little random

Just pulling a few photos off Facebook/Camera + to share here...

Got my order from Doctor Sweet Tooth yesterday. I finally ran out of my former scent -- Rock Star -- and wanted to try something new. I ordered a little sampler of scents and Mykiah and I had so much fun trying them. I kept coming back to Fizzy Pop. So did Mykiah, but she has so many sprays and scented bath items that it's ridiculous. I tend to be crazy loyal to one scent for a long time, then eventually try something new. Rock Star and My Boyfriend's T-Shirt had been my scents for at least three years, so it was time.

Fizzy Pop is a bright, happy little scent. I spray it and I smile. That's what I was looking for in a scent.

And maybe I'm a little crazy about this whole "signature scent" thing. But I'm seriously trying to cut out the negative and find the positive in my life. If a scent can make me smile, I'm buying it. In giant size.

Speaking of finding the happy, I'm sick. I'm trying to pretend I'm not. Faithfully taking cold medicine every 4-6 hours around the clock to drive up my sinus and prevent a sinus infection. Drinking a lot of water. Going about my daily routine as if I'm not feeling like walking death. I'm almost tricking myself into thinking I feel fine. Until I get all cranky, and then I know it's not working. So glad to have a weekend to rest and get better. I do not want to lose my voice before conferences next week. 

This was taken at one of our favorite walking places. In January, I have logged 45 miles walking. 45 miles, people. 

And speaking of New Year's Resolutions I didn't make, I've also kept up with my picture a day app. At least one photo every day so far this year.

I may have lost a little weight too. 

I'm doing pretty good for a person who didn't make any resolutions, huh? 

a few layouts

This weekend while I was messing with Photoshop, I got to do a few layouts. I love how Lynette's templates always inspire me to think outside my comfort zone. So much fun for me...

You can pick up these templates -- plus one more -- at Nettio Designs. Special sale pricing for a few days, too. 

life's a happy song

A silly little song from The Muppet Movie has become our family theme song. I don't know... there's just something about Jason Segal and a bunch of muppets that makes my heart happy. And I just can't read the song title without launching into song. 

I really believe life should just be one big Muppet movie. I'm seriously thinking of turning Hayden into a Muppet.

Anyway, this weekend I worked a little bit on putting things together for my Disney album... you know, the album for a trip that still five months away? Anyway, I decided I wanted to use the Project Life format/binder/page protectors to scrap the trip. I want it to be a combo of digital journaling and actual memorabilia and embellishments, and this offers me the most flexibility and opportunities for creativity.

I spent a good few hours browsing the Project Life products (I already have a bunch of the original page protectors since I'm lame and never finished last year's project) and choosing which color scheme I wanted to use.

Turns out I want to use the Cobalt edition. I went ahead and downloaded the digital edition from Jessice Sprague.

And then I played. And played some more.

While I was browsing, I found some downloadable Project Life wallpapers for iPhone. 

So I played again....

That's my lock screen. I selfishly wanted pictures of me happy, so that every time I unlock my phone, I remember my word -- magic -- and I know to find my happy place. 

I'm working hard this year to keep myself on track and making progress through my goals. Every little piece -- including iPhone wallpapers -- helps. 

for the love of keurig

For Christmas, my parents gave Brady a Keurig.

That thing is getting a serious workout. 

Brady loves to brew tea. He drinks English Breakfast Tea every morning. He's a frugal guy and can't see paying for K-cups when the machine will dispense hot water and he can drop in a tea bag for 1/4 the price. So he buys boxes of tea and just lets it steep. I did buy him a tea sampler pack, so he sometimes brews that. And he loves the Cinnamon Pastry coffee K-cups. 

Now Mykiah... she's become a coffee drinker. She brews herself a cup every morning. She likes it bold and without sweeteners. 

Ches makes hot chocolate or apple cider. Dan drinks the occasional cup of coffee or hot cocoa as well. 

Me? I'm not a huge fan of hot drinks. It freaks me out a bit to drink something hot. I know... I have issues. However, I did manage to buy myself a box of Perfect Iced Tea (unsweetened... because sweet drinks also freak me out a bit). Nothing I like better on a Saturday afternoon than to fill a cup up with ice and pop it under the Keurig and come away with strong, brewed iced tea in under a minute. 

So far our favorite K-cups seem to be Nantucket Blend, Gingerbread coffee, Pumpkin Spice coffee and Cranberry Green Tea. Any other suggestions? 

recipe: Tortellini Soup

Since my son has become a vegetarian, I've sort of been trying to broaden our horizons to include a few more vegetarian meals. Brady's OK with making a separate meal for himself, but it really doesn't hurt us to have one vegetarian friendly meal a week.

This week's recipe was Tortellini Soup. I found the recipe on the internet (actually I think it was on Facebook). I altered it to suit our tastes and decided to make it on Monday night. Baked some Schwans cheese and herb biscuits with it and it was a meal.

Tortellini Soup

4 cups tomato juice (or V8 if you really want to veggie load)

1/2 cup water

2 cans vegetable broth (about 4 cups) -- you could use beef broth here if you're not a vegetarian

1 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp black pepper

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables

1 bag frozen cheese tortellini

some parsley flakes

Bring tomato juice, broth, water, basil, oregano and pepper to a boil. Add vegetables and tortellini. It will take quite a while to return to a boil (5+ minutes). Once it's back at a boil, turn the burner down to a simmer and let simmer about 5 minutes to cook the vegetables.

Serve warm with some nice crusty bread. Or cheese and herb biscuits. 

It was a hit. Mykiah, who has never eaten filled pasta, liked it. We all ate a big bowl and we had enough left over for Brady to eat the next day (when we had BLTs). Thumbs up to tortellini soup. 

a quickie photo shoot

Wanted to get a few shots of Chesney and the new outfits she got for her American Girls...

blow out the candles

Chesney was quite insistent that we had to sing Happy Birthday at exactly the time of her birth. I even set a timer to remind us.

It was about 3 minutes early but the frosting was demanding that it be eaten.

She may be a year away from being a teenager, but she's still a little giggly girl inside.

cupcakes!

We debated what to do for Chesney's birthday cake. I usually remember to start thinking about that during the week between Christmas and New Year and this year was no exception. 

Ches finally decided that she'd just like some cupcakes. She picked some fun liners and sprinkles and Kiah and I found a new recipe to try. 

For Christmas, my mom gave Ches a pancake/cupcake pitcher. It makes it so easy to get batter from the mixing bowl to the griddle or cupcake pans. 

I made my famous cool whip frosting and we all had fun sprinkling and eating.

Happy Birthday to Ches!

Friday night, Chesney got to choose where we went for dinner. She chose Applebee's, which I've decided is just not on my list of places I want to eat. I couldn't decide what I wanted, I just said the first thing I saw when it was my turn and it came out all cold and flavorless. 

But that's beside the point. Ches had a bacon cheeseburger and loved it, and we were there for her. 

When we got home (after a stop at the grocery store to buy ice cream and cookies in lieu of paying Applebee's way too much money for dessert), Ches opened her gifts. She had 3... 1 from me & her dad, 1 from Mykiah and a box that turned out to be from Grandma. 

She's fairly easy to please. Monster High Draculaura (to replace the one that fell apart over Christmas break) and some new American Girl things. And money. My kids do love their money.

TGIF and other things

This has been a long week. Stomach flu to kick off the week, busy at work every minute, just a very full week for us.

Friday the 13th used to be my favorite day. It was my good luck day. I'm just going to go with that. This can only be a good luck day.

Tomorrow is Chesney's 12th birthday. My baby is twelve. How crazy is this? I have one more year until I officially have 3 teenagers. I'm not even counting it because if you ask me, Ches already has the hormonal swings and drama that comes with being a teenager.

Kiah had me take this picture earlier this week. Ches is officially at least an inch taller than her older sister. She has shot up this school year... thinning out and getting taller. It's a little freaky. Mykiah has graciously accepted that she's going to be petite, and I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do with such a tall girl child. It poses a problem when it comes to finding clothing. She's not got the figure for adult sized clothes, but she barely fits in child sizes anymore.

The celebration will start tonight. She has already picked where we're going for her birthday dinner. Then tomorrow we'll cook her home birthday dinner, make cupcakes and she can open her gifts. Should be a fun weekend!