Lemonade Stand

Today was our first lemonade stand ever. I don't even think I ever had a lemonade stand as a kid. If I did it wasn't a very memorable experience. But Brooke has been bugging me for a month or more to have a lemonade stand. She has been making menus of all the food which included candy, cookies, brownies and chips. I quickly cut that list to just brownies and thankfully it didn't even phase her. I think she enjoyed the planning of the stand almost as much as she enjoyed running it. She is definitely her mother's daughter. For the rest of the details you'll have to read the journaling from the page below:

Journaling: Your first lemonade stand. You’ve been asking for weeks
to have one - ever since your friend Mary Everett had her
lemonade stand. I’ve been putting you off because I
thought it was too much hassle, but since Daddy was home
today I thought we could tag team this project. He made the
signs and I made the lemonade and brownies. You dressed up
and ran down the street to get Mary Everett. You had such
high hopes for this lemonade stand. You just knew that every
car that passed by would stop to buy a cup of “pink or yellow.”
It was sad for me to watch your face fall each time a car would
pass and you would yell, “lemonade stand”, or “pink or yellow”,
but the car wouldn’t stop. They just waved and kept going. I
thought to myself, “How selfish and uncaring. Are people just
too busy to pay attention...are they too self-absorbed to take
just a moment to make a child’s day a little brighter?” Just as
these thoughts entered my mind though, I was greatly relieved
that customers began stopping to buy a cup or two and then
giving you tips because you both looked so cute! Pretty soon,
though, the excitement wore off and the customers stopped
coming. Mary Everett went to play with Connor but you stayed
at your lemonade stand, determined to sell a cup or two more.
People would walk buy and ask if you were selling alot. I’d try to
put a positive spin on it but you aren’t one to embellish the truth.
You replied, “Not so much,” to their question making it very
clear that they should buy a cup to help your flagging spirits.
I have to give it to you, Brooke, you really impressed me today
with your presistence and determination - even in the face
of discouragement! One day those characteristics are going
to serve you very well, so don’t ever change that about yourself.
And remember...if life gives you lemons, make some
sweet lemonade! 2007.July.2

Text: Garamond
Kit: Summer Flutter by Brenda Kempf

I know, I know, ... it's been a while since I posted a layout but in my defense it's been a pretty busy summer and I've just had very little time to scrapbook. However, last weekend I got together with some girlfriends to scrapbook and I started on this LO. It took quite a while to get anything going but once I started back in it just seemed to flow.

This layout is of a day that we spent at Glenn and Tish Goodwin's farm in Mt. Juliet. They have a wonderful pond where the kids just had a blast fishing. This was really Connor's first time fishing and I think he was born to be a fisherman. I only caught one little fish but he sat patiently with Nolan, Glenn and Tish's son, for more than an hour just waiting on a bite. It was so cute! Brooke of course was all caught up in the excitement. It was so funny to watch Glenn who isn't used to active and dramatic little girls. Brooke was running, screaming and hollering with excitement all the while Glenn was tiptoeing around and whispering so as not to scare the fish away :) However, for all Brooke's antics the kids and their friends caught several fish that day.

Journaling:
From L to R:
Brooke had no qualms about sticking her hands into a bucket of dead bait fish. I thought it was pretty gross myself but I certainly didn’t want to inhibit her with my qualms!

Mr. Glenn teaches Brooke the fine points of fishing. He thinks she's a real country girl.

Credits:
Papers and Elements: Jessica Bolton's Home Life Kit
Font: A Little Pot

Easter Eggs

This year Mom and Ken were here for Easter so they got to go with us to the Easter egg hunt, watch the kids find their Easter baskets and color Easter eggs. Ken actually headed up the Easter egg project - he and the kids had a great time! He has a lot of patience - probably because he has 4 kids of his own who are grown. But, it didn't matter the mess that they made, they had a really great time anyway.

This was the first year we attempted to dye eggs and Brooke and Connor really had a ball. It was a really fun family event.

Credits:
Template: Heather Manning's Multipic Template Set 2
Paper's & Elements: Miss Mint's Cutsey Doodle Doo & Sweet Easter Kits
Torn Paper: me

Journaling:
This is the first year that we colored Easter eggs. Grandpa Ken and Grammy were here and so we had fun doing this little project with them. Grandpa Ken was especially helpful! He knew just how it was supposed to be done - I guess he’s had lots of practice with his four kids when they were little. Brooke and Connor really had a fun time dipping the eggs and waiting until they were just the “PERFEGGT” color to pull them out.

Brothers

We recently went to Tinkerbell park and I have some fantastic photos from that day, so here they are...

Credits:
Papers & Elements: Jackie Eckles Ceres Spring Kit @ digishoptalk.com - May kit
Template: Karen Aiken @ Scrappersguide.com

Journaling:
BROTHERS...What a big word this is...full of such import. Being brothers is about being buddies... sharing, fighting, loving, wrestling, playing, rivalry, bonding, mischief, fishing, sports, loyalty, friendship, giving, taking, teasing, protecting, practical jokes, and so much more. But no matter what, most importantly it’s about always being there for each other. Of course, at 3 and 1 you really don’t know about any of this yet. Connor, all you know is that sometimes you have to take Liam’s hand and lead him along, and all the while Liam looks at you, his “Bubby”, with complete adoration! My hope for you both is that as you grow into your relationship with each other you will always feel blessed that you have a BROTHER.

Mother's Day 2007

Sundays are really crazy for us being that we are a "parsonage" family. We leave at 7 am to go into church with Dale and I dress the kids there. So, anytime there are "special" Sundays such as Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Christmas...you get the point... pictures are not on the top of the list. Taking pictures after church is useless because everyone is tired, wrinkly or asleep on my shoulder (that would be Liam). And taking pictures before church is nigh to impossible because Dale is rushing around with many tasks to complete. So, this Mother's Day, I took along my camera knowing that I probably wouldn't get a picture but hoping nonetheless. Well, Dale did find the time to snap several pics but they were all so bad I had to do some close cropping and Photoshopping on them.

At first glance I was pretty disappointed - especially in the ones of just the kids because there are none of them that show them as the perfect angels they are :) But then, on second thought, I decided they were perfect because these are my kids - this is how they are all the time! Certainly not perfect angels but full of personality!

Credits:
Template: Heather Manning's Multi-Pic Template Set 1
Papers and Elements: Michelle Shefvland's Shabby Flora
Lace: me
Font: Brock Script, Georgia, Garamond
Journaling: "Dissect a mother's heart and see
The properties it doth contain -
What pearls of love, what gems of hope -
A mother's heart beats not in vain.
- Caleb Dunn

Thumper p2

Here's the 2nd of my 2 page layout of Thumper. The journaling reads,
" As adoring as Brooke and Connor are of Thumper, Liam is quite the opposite!
He is very intrigued by him, a little scared of him and maybe even a little
jealous when he sees his Mommy holding this furry, little creature. When we first got Thumper, Liam would walk by his cage andthen about jump out of his skin because he forgot that Thumper now lived there. Liam probably actually terrorizes Thumper a little. He chases him, “pets” him and squeezes
him if he can get his little, fat fingers around Thumper’s body. But mostly,
he just cackles and laughs at him for no apparent reason. "

Credits:
Template: Heather Manning's Lot's O' Space Template 4 (digital-scrapbooking.org)
Papers and Elements: Jan Crowley's Jolly Brolly and Oribtal kits (OScraps.com)
Funny Bunny stamp: Miss Mint's Sweet EAster kit (Peppermintcreative.com)
Font: Arial

Wascally Wabbit

Well, it's been a few days since I've added any photos but I've been a little busy lately. We've had company, a graduation and graduation party, a wedding invitation addressing night, and two wedding showers besides the normal day to day changing poopy diapers and cleaning up rabbit poop. At any rate, I took these pics the other night and I thought they were so sweet so I just had to scrap them. This is going to be a 2 page spread so the 2nd page will be up hopefully before too long.

This page features Connor and Thumper Jr - read the journaling below and you'll get the whole story of Jr. Thumper Jr, Thumper for short, has many names - some of which are Wascally Wabbit, Bunny Foo Foo, and "Fumper". He has made himself right at home in our family. Brooke has informed me that she loves Thumper as much as she loves me, and the rest of the family - even God. She sincerely believes that Thumper is as much a part of our family as any human family member.

The journaling on the page reads,
"Actually, this is Thumper Jr.named in memory of our dear little
Thumper Sr. who died after we had him for only five days.This was
quite a traumatic experience for me since I took him to the vet
for a check-up with all three kids in tow.I had no idea he was
really sick until the vet informed me, 'Thumperis a very sick bunny
and he’s going to die.' Needless to say, we left the vet with me
and Brooke boo-hooing. Connor,on the other hand was blissfully
ignorant! Once we got our new Thumper Connor attached to him
completely, but he still wants to know where Thumper is
(the dead one, that is). Connor is so sweet and gentle with
“Fumper” as he calls him. I’ll swaddle Thumper in a towel to make
it easier for Connor to hold him and he will sit and pet him
for what seems like hours. He truly adores is 'wittle wabbit.'"

Credits:
Template: Heather Manning @ digital-scrapbooking.org
Papers and Elements: Jan Crowley's Jolly Brolly kit @ O.scraps.com