Together Is A Great Place To Be

Well, as promised I am back!
And I made a page too!
Dare I say, my mojo has returned?
I think going through my scraproom
was just the kick in the pants I needed.
When everything is put away in drawers,
I forget what I actually have.
And I love this Cosmo Cricket
"Togetherness" line.
The colors make me happy.
I paired it with (what I believe to be)
a stunning photo of Ryan
with her 2 best friends from last Mays
Junior prom. They all looked so beautiful.
And now that they are seniors,
and looking to go in different directions
next year for college,
they need to know that even though
the miles may separate them,
when they do come together,
nothing will have changed.
I think I just made myself cry :*(



I'm looking forward tonight to a rare night out
with friends from work, should be a blast.
Tomorrow, I will be watching #2 and the husband
earn their first karate yellow belts.
Hopefully a great photo-filled weekend!
Enjoy yours!
-Jody

What's New? Knot Much.

Hey there...it's been awhile.
Not much new around these parts.
Busy decluttering a little
of my house everyday.
Even got into the scraproom.
There is SO many things that I just
am never going to use.
A lot of dated things,
and I have only been scrapping for
almost 4 years, it's a such a shame.
While going through things,
I found this Making Memories
Easter die-cut paper
and knew I wanted to use it
with an older photo of #3
When I took this photo of her,
almost 2 years ago,
I knew that I would be using
the word *knot* in the title.



School is out for this week,
so we have been busy with
sleepovers, movies, etc...
I took #2 to the movies
last weekend to see the Justin Bieber flick.
It was her 3rd time,
and she's not even that big a fan.
I will admit, if I was 13 again,
I would be all about that boy.
I didn't catch the Bieber Fever,
but I guess I have a little cold. lol



Been watching a lot of TV of late,
and I am shocked that I like
American Idol more now than ever.
I knew I would like J-Lo,
but who'd a thunk I'd love Steven Tyler?:



Have a great day!
-Jody

Big Time Crush

Once upon a time,
there was a sweet little girl named Erin.



She loves music and loves to watch the Nickelodeon channel.
Her favorite show is "Big Time Rush"
She loves all 4 members of the group,
but her absolute favorite is Kendall Schmidt.
She talks about him all the time,
reads all the magazines and watches the shows
over and over and over again.
She hoped that someday, she would get to meet him.



Through the eyes of my daughter,
I wistfully remembered what it was like
to be a star-struck little girl and to wish
for your dreams to someday come true.
Recently, her older sister Ryan had heard the group
was going to be at our local radio station.
So I called my boss,
who happens to know everyone and has a big heart,
to see if he knew anyone who could help.
And like magic, my boss was able to grant Erin her wish.
So last night, I whisked Erin to the studio,
where not 10 feet away from her the group performed
an intimate 2 song concert.
With only the help of a guitar,
these boys can sing, for sure!



During the songs, Erin kept whispering,
"Do you see him keep looking at me?!"



Afterward, they posed for pics taken by
the professional photog at the studio.
We were told that was it,
they wouldn't be able to pose for personal photos
with all the fans that were there.



But the group was in no big-time-rush to leave (get it?)
so we walked back to where they were standing and
snapped a couple more photos.
Here is Carlos:


And Logan:



Sadly, James was very busy, so Erin approached Kendall.
As she walked up to him, she told him,
"I am your biggest fan!"
And hearing that, Kendall swept her up in his arms
and said, "No, I'm YOUR biggest fan!" :::sigh:::



He then put her down and told her he liked her hat,
she wears them all the time because he wears them.
And then he took the hat off of his own his head
and put it on her:



And with that, he hugged her, told me she was adorable.



I thanked him profusely for making her dreams come true.
These young men were so personable
and made themselves so available for their fans.
It was such a beautiful thing to experience.
As we walked out of the studio,
Erin turned to me and said,
"I feel like I just touched God."
I hope this Valentine's Day will stay with you forever
my sweet angel.
Thank you, Kendall Schmidt.
And thank you, Big Time Rush.

-Jody

To: You, From: Me

A New Page? Say It Ain't Snow!

It's the weekend,
and I am in the middle
of decluttering my entire house.
I have made lists of every drawer,
cabinet and closet in every room
of the house and when I accomplish
cleaning each one, I cross out the task
and feel REALLY good about it?
Is that so wrong, how much pleasure it gives me?

I spent one day last week
taking photos of my little nephew ski racing.
Oh, did I mention my little nephew
is now 19 years old and a man?
When the heck did THAT happen?
It was so cool seeing him in his element:



Remember the Pledge public service announcement
I made a few blog entries back?
Well, I am back with another P.S.A.
for you, my dear readers...
My wrist started hurting really badly
from being on the computer for so long at a time
attached to my mouse. Who me???
Anyway, while shopping at Target (<--happy place!)
I bought an ergonomic mousepad a.k.a. w/ memory foam
and it is like my wrist is being cradled by a cloud.
Ok, I am over-embellishing a wee bit, but it feels so good!



Something really cool is happening
on Valentine's Day for my #3.
I can't go into details until after it happens,
but check back on Tuesday,
by then I should have a story and photos.
I am so excited for her!



Speaking of #3, she loves playing outside
in the snow, usually by herself
because her older sisters could care less.
So I just take a bazillion photos of her
and call it a day.
Here is the latest page:



So have a Happy Valentine's Day on Monday,
and come back Tuesday and I hope to have
a feel good story to share with you all!
-Jody

Shocking!

Happy Friday to you!
Back in September,
just 1 day after Ryan was diagnosed
with cancer again,
I had a non-invasive foot surgery scheduled.
It is called shockwave treatment
and you are put in a "twilight" sleep
(sedation ala Michael Jackson,
but this time the correct dosage)
Anyway, back in Sept. when I woke from the procedure,
they gave me the bad news that
the shockwave machine was broken.
Huh???
Anyway, long story short,
it's come full circle that
I just had my foot surgery yesterday
1 day after Ryan was diagnosed cancer-free.
It will be shocking (get it?)
to walk without pain,
for it has been YEARS
since I could say that.

I have begun to dig out older photographs of mine
and am editing them because 93% of my pictures
that were taken before the year 2003
were taken with a disposable camera.
:::hanging head in shame:::
I have always loved taking photos
and have at least 12,000 photos
in chronologically ordered albums to prove it.
But now, looking back, so many wonderful memories
are dark, blurry or just pathetic :(
Case in point, this photo of baby Erin
was just plain crappy:



Loaded it up at Picnik.com
and this is what a little editing can do:



And then made it a b&w photo to scrap:



And then actually scrapped it!
Shocking, I know! ;)



Now mind you, my husband bought me Photoshop Elements
at least 18 months ago.
I installed it and it still sits untouched in my computer.
If anyone knows a website that literally walks you through
the basics (and more importantly, how to load/open actions)
This girl would be forever grateful!

Have a great weekend!
-Jody

Forevermore

We celebrated tonight with a cake/cupcakes
because Ryan is once again cancer-free.
May she stay this way forevermore.



Thank you all for your
tremendous support and love.
Be back very soon!
Love,
Jody