Guess what I got in the mail on Friday, just in time for the weekend?!!!!!!

This:




Who doesn't like something new to play with!? I have wanted to get one for a little while now, and wow! All I can say did I ever get it FAST, and it is soooooooo much fun to play with! Even though I got it on Friday, I was a good and restrained myself. So with school done, and a clean house........I played tonight with my two favorite sidekicks. They had so much fun with it too. DS just loved turning the crank, and DD's creative ideas were swimming in her head. DS wanted to make me a Birthday card (who cares if it was late, it was pure delight for me to watch him put it together!!) That was almost better than the card itself. Here's what he made tonight...



And the master genius who created it,LOL! Here he is all happy....



And DD played tonight too.


And since I spent a lot of time helping them...I'm off to play now that they are in bed.
Hope your night has the creative juices flowing!

Sincerely,
Sonja

This is probably more for me, than you....

but today was another beautiful September day. Yesterday I was out walking the dog, all the while wishing I had the camera. So today after we got out to the front of the house I remembered and sent one of the boys back in for it. I am so glad I did. Today was not as sunny as yesterday, however, some of us were still out in shorts and t-shirts. For our neck of the woods, it is delightful. Even though I know the good Lord created the snow for its purpose, I am not eagerly awaiting its arrival. So I snapped a few shots today, and I have a few favorites.
This is the bridge that the kids won't go over, but have so much fun going through the trenches. Thankfully there's no water and mud down there.


Following the "trench"...




"Over the river and through the wood....."






Then I told them to run up to the red bush. I was just in awe of the colors, and I managed to get this beauty......





I don't remember ever having such beautiful fall colors before! Aren't they gorgeous?






Just a few more of my favorties.






That was the end of our beautiful September afternoon walk.

Sincerely,
Sonja

Please welcome the newest member of our Family

I really don't know where to start this story of ours, and I certainly don't mean to make this too long of a post. However we are so pleased to have a new member in our home. Please welcome Caper.



Our children has reached over the fence and have enjoyed petting him for the last year or so. He is such a good dog, and we are so delighted to have him in our home. Probably one of the happiest is my Daughter. She has such a love for him and dogs in general. I am so pleased that the Lord provided this for her. We kinda thought this would be something that needed to wait for awhile. I am so glad the Lord thought otherwise. So she really thought she would have to wait a long time. So when this opportunity came up, she was thrilled and patient at the same time. She really amazed me. And you know, I didn't get the family shot I thought I would, but boy is this a beauty:



As for me, not growing up with dogs, and a few bad experiences has attatched a little fear in me that really shouldn't be there. But God is good, and I am so thankful that I followed the facts, and not my emotions. He has been trained well and I am so glad to have him. I get to miss all the house training stages, and I have four eager helpers.


And maybe you will relate to this, but there has to always be someone not looking at the camera. Here's that family shot that didn't exactly turn out like I wanted because Caper's not looking. But Oh well. Since we have him for awhile, chances are that we will have plenty of opportunities.


And as we speak, dog is laying on the couch next to DH, who by the way is pretty happy too.
As it turns out, it is his actual Birthday this week too. It's his 5th Birthday.
I only hope he is just as happy to be here as we are to have him.

Sincerely,
Sonja

Best way to spend Mother's Day

I have enjoyed getting ready this year for Mother's Day. Seems like we've been working on it for awhile. Had to collect the rocks (long walk down to the river-took most of the morning), had to wash the rocks,



then paint them. Wait for paint to dry and then paint again. I had so much fun watching them paint their rocks. It's a little hard for me sometimes to "let them at it". I tend to think it needs to be perfect and a certain way. But I reprogrammed myself and just let them have fun. It is the best way really, that I can think of, to celebrate Mother's Day. Just being together and celebrating that God has given me four WONDERFUL children to bless my life.
Here's how I am choosing to (hopefully) bless my mothers. One is for my Mom, and the other for my Mother-in-law. They both love their garden, so these are for there gardens, and the kids painted some rocks for them to put in there too.



Hope you all have a blessed Mother's Day!!

Sincerely,
Sonja

Items Used:

Foxglove Cottage by Cornish Heritage Farms
Climbing Leaves by Cornish Heritage Farms

Heritage Caps (now retired) Close to My Heart (GARDEN)
Hodgepodge Alphabet: Close to My Heart (MY)
Make it Count: Close to My Heart (magic moments)

Ink: StazOn Timber Brown and Cactus Green

Other:
Tissue paper, Mog Podge

Paint color: Pebble
Hope that covers everything

the night delights of a blogger, scrapping MOM!!

Tonight was just a hoot all around!! It was a good school day, and I was hankering to get down and "play" a little tonight. I had BIG plans, and wanted to get two ideas I had onto paper tonight. Did that happen? NOPE!!!! Am I happy, YEP!! Tonight turned out better than I had planned. {love it when that happens}. As I was pulling things out and getting things ready to get started on my ideas, I ended up taking a pleasant turn and changed my focus for the evening. I meant to do two cards, and ended up on a layout with pictures I didn't even have in my to do box. I needed to pause my work and go put my boys into bed. What a delight to put them into bed. Only Dylan would go to bed with knee pads on. He says he needs them just in case he falls out of bed,LOL. What's a Mom to do. Well, a scapbooking mom takes pictures of it and (desperately) intends on scrapbooking it. Here's the picture.....



And if you think that's funny.........after I got the boys tucked in and settled in...I returned to my scraproom where my daughter was. She was left with all my creations for this evening, (and because a true crafter will have many things on his/her table to create with} she had decided to play a little herself. Now, she's old enough to basically know how to play safe, lol. But this is what I came to on my page..............






Isn't that hilarious!!!! No harm done, gave me a good laugh though. Hope it gave you a jiggle too.

So I did manage to get it all done. These were pictures of me, (I won't say how many years ago) and I am pleasantly surprised how I can start out on one path and end up on an even better one.


Hope you have a fun night crafting too.

Sincerely,
Sonja

Summer can't come fast enough!!

I am longing for Long Summer Days, hot sun, picnics and everything else that goes with it. I've wanted to do this layout for awhile. And it's got me longing for summer. There are some of my fav's from over the years. And it feels good to have it done and in the album.

Sincerely,
Sonja

Around here........

things are never dull with four lively children!! LOL. (if you didn't know, we homeschool). I have one son who loves quiet, well, at least when he's doing his school work. With a younger 4yr old, not in school, he is allowed to play (as quiet as I can get him) while the rest of us do school. My four year old does fabulously well though for having to "stay put" and do his best to keep quiet. So my son decides that it is still too loud. He left the room briefly, and when he came back he had these on.........



Hey!! A boys gotta do what a boys gotta due!!! LOL

I give him credit though. He solved the noise problem well. Now, if he could only hear ME!!LOL

Sincerely,
Sonja

Before I call it a night.....

I want to share a layout I just finished. I love these pictures of my little darling. I remember back to these days. Those shoes, they were like a size 2 or something. SO small. She's in much bigger shoes now. These pictures just remind me of the priveldge and delight of being her mom.

{I had to incorporate the little buckle on her shoes somehow. So I took a chipboard ribbon slide from Close to My Heart and embossed it in silver. I think it did the trick.}

Have a great night, mine is ending.

Sincerely,
Sonja