Stampin' Up! and other activities

Many of you may know that I have been a Stampin' Up! demonstrator for the past almost 4 years. More like 3 1/2, actually. Before I moved to Indiana and met my wonderful friend Heather, who introduced me to the Stampin' Up! world, I wasn't into this type of thing. I considered myself "not crafty". I enjoyed looking at people's scrapbooks and thinking that I would love to create something like it someday, but never had the desire. When at BYU, my mom would come to visit and drag me around to the different scrapbook and craft stores, but I was immediately overwhelmed by it all, and never thought I could do anything like it.

One of my first memories of Heather was from an opening social to welcome new members into the ward. Heather and her husband had just bought a house in our ward, so we were visiting. I guess she had just recently signed up to be a Stampin' Up! demo, and began asking me about it. I had never heard of it. She was so excited about it, and she dragged me out to her car to show me a stack of paper that she had stamped to make background paper for scrapbooking. I was actually amazed! I had no idea that you could create something that looked so real! I mean, it actually looked like she could have bought it at the store.

Eventually, I decided that I would try to be ambitious and "crafty" and attempt to make my own Christmas cards. I looked through the catalog and found a stamp set with the matching card sample, and thought it looked simple enough to duplicate. I got together with Heather at her house one night and we worked on our cards together. I was so excited about it! That would of been Christmas of 2002 I think, so some of you were probably lucky enough to receive that creation.

After that, I decided to brave it and join a monthly card exchange that Heather hosted.Some of my first cards were definitely from someone inexperienced, but overall I think I was doing fairly well. It was fun for me to get cards back from other, more "experienced" card makers so I could learn from them and get ideas. It was also really fun to have a nice stash of cards when an occasion came up.

In May of 2004, Logan was born. I quit working full-time and began my new stage in life of being a stay-at-home mom. When Logan was almost 7 weeks old, I lost my little brother in a 4-wheeler accident. My life was turned completely upside down, and nothing that I knew and was familiar with was the same anymore. Usually having a new baby is an exciting time, but for me it was really hard to enjoy it while grieving. I do think that if I didn't have a new baby to take care of, I am not sure what I would have had to hold onto to keep going.

Anyway...enough of the sad story. When Logan was about 9 months old, Heather convinced me to sign up to be a demo. I was very doubtful of my abilities to do such a thing. I almost felt like an imposter, since I was so new to the "craft". But with a lot of encouragement and helpful information, I decided to do it.

While the option of making some money was definitely intriguing, I was first drawn to the cameraderie and fun community that involved other demos. I finally had something that I could be a part of, and involved in. I was involved in things my whole life! I took dance classes, voice lessons, piano lessons, was in choir and drama in school,and participated in church programs. When in college, I joined the Folk Dance team and had that fantastic experience to be apart of, from the classes, to the club activities, to the performances and rehearsals, to the friends (and how I met Tony!) It was something I was involved in and loved. Once we graduated and moved away, I had to find my involvement when I was working full-time. It wasn't quite as much fun as my past activities, but it sufficed. I was contributing,and involved. Everything about my life changed when Logan came along, so the idea of having something like this to be involved in again was very appealing.

Eventually I gained more confidence in my abilities, and really enjoyed doing workshops for people. It was fun for me to meet new people, and of course, get out of the house and socialize. I loved creating something and being able to look at it and say "Wow! I made that!" It was fun for me to see people new to the "craft" get hooked as well.

When we moved away from Indiana, to Kansas, I was in the middle of my pregnancy with Avery, and trying to adjust to a new area. I have such a fear of talking about being a demo to people, because I know that home sales parties and reps get such a bad rap from people, and I don't want to come across as being the "pushy home sales rep". Needless to say, my "business" has not gotten off on a very good foot in the last two years.I don't have any social network outside of church right now, and I still don't feel quite as comfortable with my new friends here, as I did in Indiana. I have had two parties, and a class. I have a few people I know enjoy this kind of thing, but I have yet to get the guts up to encourage it more.

Anyway...the sales part isn't the point of my post. My point is, that I really, truly enjoy doing this. I love getting the ideas, and seeing ideas, and still being part of something. I really enjoy showing people how fun and simple it is to create something to be proud of and share with others. I have often though that maybe I should just quit, as I can't make my minimum on my own. But, I am not ready to give it up yet, so I am going to keep on trucking and hope I can find some fellow "crafters" who will want to learn and create with me.

I do have a business website, and soon people will be able to place orders directly from my site. This I am very excited about. I am hoping it helps. I will also soon be introduced to fellow pre-school and soccer moms, so that might give me some options outside of church. I have let things slide so much lately, but I am ready and gung-ho to get back into things.

I just wanted to share my feelings on this subject, as it is a part of my life right now, and I rarely talk about it.I have also contemplated taking voice lessons again, and maybe even a dance class, or pilates class, or even working part-time at Bath and Body Works, since I love that store. It's just hard to figure out how I would do those things and what I would do with the kids.That's why Stampin'Up! is nice. I can do it when I want, and when it works best for me and my family.

So, what kinds of things have you all found to be a "part" of? Is that even something that is necessary or important to you? Or is it just me? please share! I would love to know!

When the cat's away...

So, finally more about my summer trip! On my drive to San Diego from SLC, I stopped outside Cedar City to stay at my brother's house. Unfortunately, the timing was off, and my brother's family left for Lake Powell the morning I was coming. I was sad that I wasn't able to see them, but it was nice to see their new house. They moved away from California last summer. It was nice of them to let us stay at their house even when they weren't there.

I got there about 4 hours before Tony and the kids, so when they finally arrived the kids were anxious to get out and stretch their legs. I hadn't seen my family for 5 days, so it was fun to see the kids reactions to seeing me again. It's amazing how much they looked like they had grown...just in 5 days!

So, the kids had to test out all the sleeping accomodations to figure out which was the best choice. This post is mostly for my brother's family! These pictures are to show you what went on while you were away!



Avery had a great time in her cousin Tawni's room!Did you find anything missing Tawn? I think Avery found your stash!Jackpot!


Woo-hoo! Fun pillows to throw!


This fabric is so soft!


Where did my binky go?


Ahhh! This is sooo relaxing!



I don't know what to do with myself!


I guess I will just roll around on this slippery blanket!


Wee-ha!I'm sliding!



After little Miss Aves had her fun in Tawni's room, she moved on to see what other fun she could find.


This chair is just right!


Wait! Who is that I see peaking out from Kellen's bed full of animals? Is it Logan? Hi Logan!


The kids soon discovered another fun way to get their wiggles out before bed. This bed has excellent bounce quality!


This is fun! Weee!


This bed is big enough for the both of us!


We've got to get in our morning cartoons to start our day off right!



Thanks Colton, Tawni and Kellen for letting us have fun at your house!

Soccer Mom

It's official. I have entered the world of the mini-van driving soccer mom. I just registered Logan today for soccer. He is soooo excited! He will be playing micro soccer, which is for four year olds. We get to spend 6 Saturdays starting Sep.6th, on the soccer field. I wasn't sure I would be too thrilled about this, since I am sooo not into sports, and honestly know nothing about soccer, other than you kick the ball into the goal, and can't use your hands. That's about it. You would think I would know more about it after having brothers and nephews all play, as well as a few friends in HS who played as well. What kind of a mom am I? Hopefully after this 6 week season is over, I will have picked up a thing or two. Anyway...I am actually getting a bit excited about it! I think it must be the proud mother who is thrilled to watch her little dude starting to do big boy things.Ok, I am sure I will be a bit emotional too. I am such a baby. My little guy will be starting pre-school and soccer all in the same week. Wow! I can't believe how fast he is growing up!

Since I don't have any pictures of my soccer boy yet, I thought I would share a few pix of the kidlets for fun. This one is of Logan, aka wagonmaster, taking his sister for a ride in a covered wagon. This was at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Visitor Center in Independence Missouri. We went there a few weeks ago when Tony's brother Andy and his wife Alicia were here visiting.



I love this one of Avery! She's like "Hey...get me out of here you crazy driver! If I lose my binky you are in big trouble mister!"



And this one is so cute too. Just the kidlets out on the deck enjoying a popsicle on a hot summer day!Notice the super cute bib on Avery? It's my SIL Jody's design! I seriously LOVE her bibs...they are the best! I recently gave some bibs and matching burp cloths to a friend for her baby shower, and another girl there said they were like "a scrapbook page on a bib!" So cute! I think she is working on getting an actual site up to sell her bibs, and other fun things, so I will for sure share the link when I get the info!

Perfect Angels

So, this morning I watched my friend Hillary's kids while she was at an appointment. Last night I had actually tidied up before our Home Teachers came, so the house was in good shape this morning. I have a Relief Society group tomorrow night, so I was hoping to keep it as tidy as possible until then. Of course, it isn't easy, or expected for things to remain tidy with 6 kids ages 6,4,4,3,18 mos, and 17 months around. Naturally, the living room and dining room (aka toy rooom) were strewn with toys.

Hillary called when she was on her way home, so I very excitedly called all the little children to hurry and help me put away the toys before she got here. I was amazed when there were children running around putting things away as fast as they could. It was great! I told them they were such good helpers, that I wanted them to come over all the time to help me clean up!

Anyway...I thought it would be surprising for her when she got there to see the house so tidy. Usually, I don't care too much when they make a mess, since most of the time it is that way to start, so they are simply re-arranging the mess, rather than creating it. So, I had a funny idea. I told the kidlets that it would be so funny if they all went and sat on the couch as good as could be for when their mom came. That way it would look like they had been the perfect little angels the whole time...ha ha! Actually, they were very good anyway. So they thought it was a good idea too and dutifully lined up on the couch to wait for their mom with big smiles on their faces. It was the cutest thing ever!

So, this is what greeted Hillary when she finally got there.Cute, huh?

Summary

I really need to get back in the habit of blogging! I am soooo behind!

So, I thought I would just give a brief overview of what's been going on round here lately!

1.A few weeks ago we had a surprise visit from our good friends from Indiana...Gigi and Craig, and their little people that are the same ages as our little people! Logan and Logan are about 2 weeks apart, and Avery and Bergen are a week apart.It was such a fu surprise and we had a great time! It made me so sad that we can't get together more often.Thanks for pro-longing your travel time to stay with us!

2.Only a few days after their visit, we were lucky enough to get more company! Tony's brother Andy and his wife Alicia came to visit for the week-end. We had so much fun having them here, and the kids loved their Aunt and Uncle being here to play with! Logan was so sad when it was time for them to leave, becuase he wanted them to live with us.

3.Last week, I had the good news (to me) that some good friends here in my ward weren't going to be moving after all. Even though they really wanted to go, they felt it wasn't right at this time, so they are staying. As selfish as it may sound, I am very glad they are staying!

4.My friend Hillary(see #3) and I went to see Mamma Mia! It was so much fun, and a really great, happy-feeling movie! I have had the songs in my head ever since (even dear, sweet Pierce, in all his effort!) There were only a few downers, when there were some things they had to throw in, that of course didn't need to be there. I don't know why they ruin such good things like that. If it wasn't there, absolutely no one would miss it. I really don't think people would leave the theater saying, "You know...that was such a a great movie, but it would have been much better with "this" thrown in, or if so and so were to do "this", or if they said "this". Nope...no one would have ever known it was there. It does nothing to add anything to the story, there is no point of it at all. That's really disappointing to me. But, anyway, it was still a fun movie overall.

5.Friday night I went to a "Twilight" party, and then a few of us went to the midnight release party for "Breaking Dawn" at Border's. I got home around 1:30 a.m. and stayed up until about 4 a.m. reading. I basically read all day Saturday, and finished up the book Sunday night. My eyes are tired!

6.Sunday was Avery's first official day in nursery! I have taken her in the past two Sunday's to get her used to it, and Tony and I took turns staying in there with her. Yesterday, we were subbing in Logan's sunbeam class, so we couldn't stay. I stayed for the first hour, and then snuck out to go be in class with Tony. She was perfectly fine! Yippee!

7. I made a pretty tasty recipe for dinner Sunday night. Honey-Lime Chicken Enchiladas. I thought they had a really good flavor, and were definitely different than the usual.

I have my enrichment night coming up this week, so once that is over, hopefully I will be able to get caught up again!