Free Jessica Sprague Digital Class!

For all of you who have thought about getting started but just didn't want to spend the money, Jessica Sprague is currently offering a free get "get started" digi scrapping class! She is actually offering two, the other one is a Hybrid scrapping class. To get to the digi class you will need to scroll down the page a bit. So now what is your excuse!? You can find the free class here. Let me know how it goes!

So Much Fun!!! (And a Font Tutorial)

Have I said how much fun I am having with Digi Scrapbooking. Here are some of my latest layouts.

I am hooked on fonts! I love that there are endless options and styles all free for the taking. My favorite site is dafont.com but there are many others that I have found simply by Googling "free fonts." If you need a font that looks like the font used in the CSI TV series (Day Camp:) just Google it, and there you go. (The best CSI font is called Clicker...I know you were just dying to know that)
To add a new font to your computer find the font you want and click download. When the next screen pops up click on save. Click on your desktop icon so that your font is being saved there. Click save. When the font is done downloading click on close. Now when you go to your computer screen your new font should be saved right there next to all your other icons. It will be a zipped file so using your mouse, right click and choose extract file. You will see a second icon of your font pop up on the screen. You may now delete the zipped file. Go to your control panel click on appearance and personalization. Click on fonts. Click and drag your unzipped icon into your font window. You are done. Your font is installed. You may now delete the font icon from your desktop. Depending on your computer your steps may vary slightly but not by too much.

Jessica Sprague's classes are worth every penny! I have played with Adobe Elements for over 6 years and she has taught me more in two classes than I learned in all those years! This Water Park Page is one of the layouts you make in her second class. She walks you through step by step instructions and every little detail is explained. It is amazing. You can sign up for her classes at http://www.jessicasprague.com/

I think I will finally get some of my pages printed. I had been holding off, just having way too much fun in the creating department. But as I was showing John my last batch of finished layouts he said, "Why don't you actually get some of those printed off?" Well you heard what the man said, "Go spend some money!" I think I will do that today!

Take Your Kid to Work Day 2009

Today was Take Your Kid to Work Day and since my kid's Dad has a suit and tie, meetings with parents, I'm bored out of my mind, job...they go spend a day at Grandpa Mathews' Auto Body Shop. This year Cayden got to share the day with his cousin Easton.

I always send the kids with my spare camera and I always enjoy their take on a day at Grandpa's Shop.

Photos by Cayden (age 11) and Easton (age 9)

Cayden "driving" a totalled car.

_______________________________________________________________

Ok... so this picture just cracked me up.

_____________________________________________________________

Ummmmm....I think we will have a little discussion about this one. Maybe a Family Home Evening lesson on the Word of Wisdom is in order.


______________________________________________________________


So they actually did get some work done.

_____________________________________________________________


Ok, maybe not.

_______________________________________________________________



I think Uncle Max was a bit risky letting too cousins who are prone to goofing off wash up this rig...but very cool picture Cayden.

_____________________________________________________________



Very scary boys...blast us with your dangerous blow gun that isn't even hooked up to the air hose.

_________________________________________________________________

That's better...at least the spray gun shoots paint.
______________________________________________________________

Every year Uncle Max or Uncle Ryan let my boys build something cool in the shop. It appears that this year's creation were metal initials.

Ahhhhh...that is why Cayden came home with a huge tear in his sweat pants. A metal sander will do that to you.
_______________________________________________________________- Is a blow dryer really a cool, manly tool?
________________________________________________________________

I think Cayden is a bit excited that the only cash I had to give him for lunch was a $20.
_________________________________________________________

Uncle Max and Uncle Ryan (or Dad to Easton)
____________________________________________________________

Of course, every year, there is a gorgeous picture of an engine.....
________________________________________________________________

On their trip home...the Blue Bridge over the Columbia River.

____________________________________________________________

I think they had a good time.

Sydney's First Piano Recital

She played Freight Train & The Greatest Show on Earth

Mrs. Larson, her great teacher of one year!

Before the recital...nervous, but ready.

Sydney with Grandma and Grandpa Mathews. Grandma and Grandpa Cazier were there too but had to leave early for a funeral.

Funnies from the Past

(June 5, 2002 Anderson age 6)

Mom “Grandpa Mathews called and wants to know if you and Cayden want to make some money this summer.”

Anderson “Sure, we could do that. It’s made out of paper. I just don’t know if we have the right color.”

--------------------------------

December 2006 Sydney age 5

OK, so Sydney was driving me absolutely nuts with her out of nowhere oddball questions! I decided to take a different approach (I was completely ignoring her or shrugging the questions off with an "I dunno"). I began to write her questions down but sad to say many of them were still answered with "I dunno". But really...is there any other way to answer some of these!?

What happens to the sun when it gets really windy?
When were you last married?
Why do we wear underwear?
Would you still choke on a toy if you chewed it up first?
Does that long stick thing in your body hold up your brain?
If people are frozen can they still move their eyes?
If Anderson died with his cap on would we leave it on or take it off?
(Plunking on the lower keys at the end of the piano) Are these keys to play bad music?

------------------------------------------
(Cayden age 4 or 5)
When Cayden was little he was crying and when I asked him what was wrong he said that he didn't know what he was going to be when he grew up. I told him that was fine, he had a long time to think about it.

Cayden: No..Alex already knows what she is going to be.
Amy;: She does? What is she going to be?
Cayden: (still sobbing) A shark!

-------------------------------------------

(January 15, 2002 Cayden age 4)
As he was throwing up with the flu…
“When I threw up my flu shot came out.”

Works for Me!

After nearly 14 years of trying charts, lists, and all kinds of bribery I think we have finally found a cleaning system that works for the Cazier family. We have used the new "chart" for several months now and the "newness" has not worn off. I have to give full credit to John since he was the mastermind behind the idea.

Each Monday a new piece of paper is taped up in the kitchen with the words "KEEPIN' IT CLEAN" at the top. Below these hopeful words are the following:

Anderson $10.00 Cayden $10.00 Sydney $10.00


Each of the kids has the opportunity to earn $10.00 each and every week of the month. "Holy Cow," you say? Yes, that is a lot of money. But we have yet to pay out $30 in one week...far from it. Every time mom or dad has to "pick up" after one of the kids they lose a dollar. For example, if I go into the New Room and gather up Anderson's socks, baseball hat and an X-Box Controller--Cha Ching...he just lost $3.00 and is down to $7.00 just like that.

The only rules are:
1. The item has to be picked up and put away by mom or dad to be deducted off the list. We can't say, "Sydney pick up your coat" and then charge her $1.00.
2. Books do not count. If you leave your book on the couch to read later that is perfectly fine, but Sydney isn't allowed to leave an entire stack of Little Critters on the floor...Novels only.
3. If your bed isn't made and your room needs tidying mom will charge a $1.00 cleaning fee.
4. Arguing will only cause mom or dad to deduct another dollar.
5. No adding money onto your list if you find something of mom's or dad's lying around.

I love this system. Not only do my kids have the chance to make some money but on the way to church every Sunday we figure out how much tithing they need to pay for the week.

The house stays clean.

The kids make money.

The kids pay tithing every week.

There is no whining! I just deduct a dollar and jot down the item that cost them their precious money. I don't care if they don't pick it up, I put it away and it saves me $1.00...a dollar that they want!

All it takes is a quick reminder in the morning, "Do you want to pay mom $1.00 to clean your room today?" or "Better take a quick peek around the house to see if Mom's gonna make some cash today." Just watch them scramble.

I LOVE IT!

YeeeeHawwwww!

Exactly 2 seconds after this photo was taken Branson was bucked off the Little Red Pony.

Anderson's First Tennis Match

Now Why Didn't I Think of That Sooner?!

Dinner time means crazy time. Homework, Piano practice, basketball practice and tennis practice, fussy time for toddlers (and moms) and everyone is hungry. Trying to make dinner between 4:00 and 5:00 is pretty near impossible. My first thought was that I would make dinner earlier in the day, that didn't last long. I have finally found two things that work for me.

1. I make triple the amount of food. When I make dinner I add three times the amount the recipe calls for, and depending on the dish I either freeze two of the three helpings or I cook them all and then freeze them what we don't eat that night. My family is none the wiser and I have homemade meals in the freezer, ready to go. Hmmmm....what should we have tonight? Spaghetti or vegetable beef soup.

2. The second thing that I did was get the kids cooking in the kitchen. Sydney was most excited about this one. It kind of happened by accident. I was chopping up veggies for soup when I looked at the clock and realized that if I didn't get the cornbread made soon it wouldn't be done in time for dinner. I called Sydney into the kitchen,

MOM: I need you to make the cornbread for dinner.

SYDNEY: Really Mom, or are you just joking? (I had been joking but I thought "What the heck.")

MOM: Really.

SYDNEY (who is 8 1/2): All by myself?

MOM: All by yourself. I'm too busy cooking dinner.

SYDNEY: No way! Cool!

My cornbread recipe is from scratch and all I did to help Sydney was to glance at her measuring cups and spoons as she checked with me to see if they were the right ones to scoop the ingredients. Oh, and I also pulled the super hot bowl of melted butter out of the microwave for her.

Her cornbread turned out delicious and I had not seen her that proud in a very long time. It reminded me that I need to trust my kids to harder tasks and let them go it alone sometimes.

Since then she has also made 4 cakes (complete with frosting) and snickerdoodle cookies. She is on a roll and only one cake (I didn't double check the measuring cups) turned out a bit weird.

Going Green

So Washington State has been working towards banning the sales of any dishwasher detergent that is not completely environmentally safe. They started a test run in the Spokane area and only Green detergents can be sold. The complaint is that non of them work and the dishes are coming out with gunky food and crud still glued to them. Well Branson has come up with the perfect detergent. Made of all natural materials and quick dissolving we introduce you to......

~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~
~

The Snickerdoodle

For best results use only a half eaten, manhandled cookie.