FIRST Post of the Year!

I can't believe it's already mid-February! Where is the year going? I feel like I am already so far behind on my goals. I guess life as a Mom to a newborn makes the time just go by much too quickly. =(

Today was a typical work-at-home Mom type of day. Aside from taking care of baby, I had laundry to do, clients to call, office work that needed to be done, groceries that needed to be purchased, and a pot roast to cook for dinner. Whew!!! It's past midnight now, and this is when I get to relax and surf the internet -- and maybe even try to do some papercrafting.

I was going through some of my things and found some 8 x 8 sb pages I got from a swap two years ago. They are all ready to go -- just need pics! I wanted to share the page I created for the swap. I don't know why, but this is actually one of my favorite layouts. I remember being somewhat stumped for a little while because I don't normally do 8 x 8 pages. I don't remember where I found it, but I eventually used a sketch to get me going. I *heart* sketches! =)

I am pretty sure all the products used are American Crafts products. I really adore the man and woman symbols which I made with Quikutz dies! The picture template is on the page because this is just one of several identical pages I needed to create for the swap group. I like to make things easier for the recipient by letting them know what size picture fits best.

Anyway, even though it's an oldie, it's still a goodie in my book so I thought I'd share! Sorry the picture isn't any better. It looked okay on my point-and-shoot camera, but when I uploaded it, I saw otherwise. I hate when that happens. LOL Anway, hope y'all had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

XOXO
D~

10-10-10 A Very Special Date

My oldest daughter, Mikayla, was born on October 10th. Being that this year is 2010, it meant that her bday would be celebrated on 10-10-10. She wanted to have a bunch of friends over for a slumber party, scary movies, pizza, and cake.

Some of the things Mikayla loves are skulls and the color turquoise. She chose this design from Liliha Bakery.

No, she's not really 18. There was some confusion about the design, and the bakery put "18" instead of "14"!

The girls had a great time talking story, putting makeup on each other, and just being girls. We gave each of them a goodie basket with candies and little Halloween trinkets such as pencils, spider rings, etc.. as a thank you. I got these great buckets in bright colors from Pricebusters for 99 cents each. I really love these buckets. I'm thinking of picking up a bunch of red ones to use at Christmas time.

The great thing about putting these together is that Mikayla did most of the work after I did the first one. She even used the Cricut to do the lettering on the front.





That night, we made sure to log onto a website that displayed the time. We wanted to take a picture at 10:10:10 p.m. The timing was a little tricky with the camera, so I took several practice shots. I definitely did not want to miss a once-in-a-lifetime moment! Thankfully, I caught it on camera !!!

I'm BACK !!!

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted here. Unfortunately, I was just soooo tired during my pregnancy and, of course, after I gave birth, all I really wanted to do was concentrate on getting adjusted to life with a new baby and enjoying every moment with her!

So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce my little bundle of joy, Madison. She was born on Sept. 3rd after 22 hours of labor -- longer than when I was in labor with Mikayla! YIKES !!!

Words cannot express how much joy I feel everytime I hold daughter # 2 (as I sometimes refer to her, LOL). Even though I already have a daughter who just turned 14, I still can't get over the fact that this little human being grew in my tummy! I know that might sound silly, but I truly do find the entire process of conception and birth absolutely fascinating and amazing !!!

It's strange to have a little one to take care of after all these years, but at the same time, it seems so natural. Of course, it still took some adjusting, but I am very blessed to have such a supportive older daughter and boyfriend that both contribute a lot !

It's November 2nd, and Maddie is already 8 weeks old ! Boy, time surely is flying, and my baby sure is growing quickly ! She was 6 lbs. 7 oz. when she was born, but I am sure she has probably doubled in sized already! We'll know for sure when we take her to the doctor for her check-up this week. Her pediatrician already "suggested" that we cut back on her feedings being that Madison was gaining weight at twice the recommended weight. Her doc likes to see a gain of one ounce per day, but Maddie's been gaining 1.5 to 2 ounces per day. She's getting a little chunky!

Here she is with Mikayla on Halloween night. Mikayla dressed up as Alice from "Alice in Wonderland". She wanted to go trick or treating with friends, and that worked out fine for my boyfriend and I since we had the little one to take care of.

Wow, just looking at these two pics of Madison has me in awe at how much she has grown in just two months! I also can't believe how grown up Mikayla looks. This picture makes me feel somewhat bittersweet. I feel so happy and excited at the thought of all the memories I look forward to creating with Madison. At the same time, I feel sad knowing that Mikayla is not my little girl anymore. It seems like it wasn't so long ago that I was dressing her up in her first Halloween costume.

Well, now that I have another little one, I have another excuse to scrapbook! I actually have gotten some crafting done and will post about that next! Hopefully, with juggling work, a new baby, and possibly school next semester, I will have SOME time to myself to spend crafting. I'm so looking forward to it!

Rock Princess: Cricut August Release!

OH EM GEE !!!! I am so in love with the Rock Princess cartridge that is being released in August. Love, love, LOVE it! So does Mikayla. She can't wait to get her hands on it and start creating with it. If you haven't seen it yet, here is a link to pics of this cartridge as well as a few other August releases! http://www.cricut.com/(S(52dgiyvolr0mykra23guwnrq))/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=6864034&mpage=1

I've Been So Tired (Gestational Diabetes)

All along, I thought I was exceptionally tired with this pregnancy just because I'm older. I'm 38 now and was 24 when I had my older daughter. Well, my first glucose test at my 7-month checkup was high, so I had to go in for the 3-hr glucose test last week. This happened with Mikayla, so I didn't worry TOO much about it. Everything turned out okay with that pregnancy.

Unfortunately, this time around, the test results came back positive for gestational diabetes. If your readings are too high for 2 out of the 4 blood draws, you are classified as being diabetic. My initial fasting reading was only about 2 points over, I think. The other three tests all exceeded the maximum levels. *SAD FACE* So, I guess this helps to explain why I've been so tired on some days, especially after I eat.

I have to attend a consultation next week and then attend a four-hour class the following week. I need to make adjustments to my diet, mainly cut back on carbs and sweets. I will learn all of that at class.

The condition SHOULD go away after I give birth. Mainly, I'm just praying that the rest of the pregnancy goes okay, and that there are no complications. But, after I give birth, I'm definitely having some sushi and a sundae!!!

I'm Officially a Cricuteer !!!!!!

I did it! I broke down and treated myself to a Cricut E!!! YAHOOOO!!!! I had been thinking about getting either a Silhouette or a Cricut but was pretty torn. Without boring you with details, I decided that I would just get three diecut machines: the Big Shot (already got it), the Cricut E, and the Silhouette. Actually, I'm not positive about the Silhouette since I plan to get SCAL one day. I'll just have to see how SCAL works for me.

I had been stalking Craigslist for some time when I got lucky! There was a listing for a Cricut E and some cartridges. No prices were listed. I emailed my name and number. When the lady called me back, she told me she was selling her Cricut E for only $100 !!! Her E was about a year and a half old, and due to a separation, she needed to sell her craft supplies. I felt bad for her, but at the same time, glad I could help in some way.

So, I am now officially a Cricuteer! I still have so much to learn when it comes to my new toy, but since I will be on maternity leave for several months soon, I am hoping I will have some time to create lots of wonderful things!

Cheesecake Factory

UGH! I've been slacking in posting to my blog lately. Just been busy with some things going on at home -- and still really tired! I wanted to share some pics of a belated Father's Day dinner at Cheesecake Factory. We decided to go on the Wednesday after the Father's Day holiday because P had some things to do with his two older daughters on Father's Day.

If you've never been to the Cheesecake Factory, be prepared for a long wait (they don't take reservations). I can assure you though, that the food makes the wait worthwhile.

To kill time, we walked around Waikiki. We came across a guy with some parrots who was happy to let us pose and take pictures with them. The birds were so adorable!



After about an hour of waiting, our pager went off (YAY!). We didn't take pics of all our meals, but we did take a pic of Mikayla's GINORMOUS pizza as well as the delicious cheesecake we had for dessert!





P had the low-carb cheesecake with strawberries. I had the tuxedo cheesecake, and Mikayla had the red velvet cheesecake. Mmmmm...heavenly! Click on the pictures for an enlarged view of the Cheesecake goodies!