Birthday Surprise for Mom

To celebrate Mama's birthday today, she asked me to come to church with her since Daddy was away. So I did, and I also called a couple of her oldest and dearest friends, Judy and Lillian, and asked them to help me surprise her at lunch. I was so happy when I got there and they had already arrived! Judy and Lillian were the friends we ALWAYS visited when I was growing up and today I got to see pictures of their kids' kids and show off pics of my kids. It was great seeing them and I hope it was a good surprise for Mama on her special day.

I thought I would also share this picture I took in Savannah this past summer in honor of Veteran's Day. Mama's church, Trinity Baptist, did a wonderful job saluting our soldiers today and I just felt moved to add my two cents worth. Thank you to the millions of men and women who served in the military over the years, to those who died to secure my freedoms, and to those fighting the war on terror today.

Happy Birthday, Mama

To the BEST MOM IN THE WHOLE WORLD! I love you! See you soon!

2.6!

2.6 pounds gone! I weighed in again today and I lost again. That is 29.5 pounds since August 23! I feel so good about the Weight Watchers plan because I really feel as though I have changed the way I see food - mostly seeing it in smaller portions. Frank is such a wonderful cook and we love to eat out. But I have learned it is okay to leave stuff on the plate and when I am at home, Frank now lets me plate my own food. It is amazing how much I was eating, sometimes 3 and 4 servings and not even realizing it. It has also been good for me to report it here. Each week, I am held accountable for what I have been up to, and so far it has all been good. I know, though, that it may not always be lost pounds, so I have promised myself that even IF I gain, I will report here. Because I have to be truthful with myself. Well, going to run now, I had to take a benadryl because of an allergic reaction I had to my flu shot and I think it is kicking in. . . zzzzzzzzzzz!

The Gutter Ball Classic 2006

The Gutter Ball Classic 2006

Last night I got to play on one of the bowling teams from work at the Gutter Ball Classic, a fundraising event for the Chamber of Commerce. These are the pictures from the event. By no means did we score well, but we had lots of fun and when the music started, we really got in the groove. Especially Bob (green turtleneck) - his first game was nothing to brag about, but his second game, the one that started with AC/DC's "Back in Black" was rockin'! His only open frame that game was when the music was off. Needless to say, we were begging for the jukebox!

3!

Yeah, I lost 3 more pounds - that is a total of 26! I got a 25 lb. magnet and a 10% Goal Keychain! Can't talk now though, work to do! Happy, Happy November 1 for me!

Life's Treasures

Here are my three treasures: Amanda, Amy & Matthew in 2003 at our Lanning Reunion. I can't believe how much they have grown. Amanda looks like she is posing for a magazine shot with that hair flying. Of course Amy always photographs so well and my, oh my, I would have to say Matthew has changed the most. He must be twice this size now! How time flies! As for the page, I used the new line from Cosmo Cricket and I used liquid chalk to distress the photo to match. I also sanded all the edges of the papers and the photo.

Bulls kick off season tonight so as you might guess, we will be glued to the TV for a couple of hours. Of course, the DVR upstairs will be working overtime to record my Gilmore Girls and Boston Legal. Guess those are two of my favorite shows, add in Grey's Anatomy and the new, Men in Trees, and you've probably got them all. Oops, I forgot, I also like the new Brothers & Sisters on Sunday nights. Anybody out there want to add their favs? Just leave me a comment below. Love to hear from you.

Frank found us on Google!

I know it might be kind of hard to see, but look what Frank found on Google Earth today. It is our apartment with my van and his truck and Amanda and Amy's cars out front. Their cars are easily seen, they are the white dots closest to the blacktop. Cool, unh?

Good Morning!

This morning, Frank & I were listening to NPR and we heard a cool little story about a man in Georgia who won the lottery. First, he found out he lost his job because the plant he worked at was closing, then he went into the gas station, paid for his gas, bought a lottery ticket, the lottery ticket was a winner, $225,000 I think. He was so excited that he drove off without getting the gas he had already paid for! Anyway, I thought it was cute and so nice to hear something good happen to someone after they lose their job!

So far, the weekend has passed pretty slowly, which is nice for a change. Yesterday, we all celebrated Helen's birthday at the new Carrabas in South Asheville. I had the Trout Wulfe and garlic mashed potatoes! Delicious. Helen was very excited about the new laptop she got from Art. She is very new to the computer so it should be exciting to hear about her progress. I remember when my mom first started on the computer. It was a good way for us to spend time together and talk on the phone. I couldn't always help her, but most of the time she figured it out anyway. Now she is a pro, she emails, attaches, and prints pictures, she makes beautiful cards for family and church members, and she keeps up with addresses using Word and Merge commands for Sunday School. A wiz, I tell you! I am proud of her for learning something so new!

Well, today is grocery day, so I better get running. Hope you enjoy today's scrapbook page. It is from Joanna & Ethan's wedding. I am doing an album for them, so that maybe the subject of a few pages for your viewing. TFL!

Gesundheit!

Here's a page for one of my challenges using a foreign language in the title. I thought this one of Harmony sneezing while I took pictures after the wedding was so cute. Of course, the Gesundheit is German for Bless You!

Happy Birthday, Helen

Happy Birthday, Helen! It's so nice to have someone as nice as you to celebrate today with. (See you're special - yours is a blinky!)

4.6! Yeah!

Yeah! Today was weigh in day and I tell you I was a little bit nervous. But I am happy to report that I lost 4.6 pounds! That was over a two week period as last week I didn't get to weigh because Frank & I were in Georgia.

Well, I must say I think I have been watching way too much television. The political ads are really getting to me. Last night I had a dream with Heath Shuler in it. Now don't get me wrong, seeing Heath Shuler is not really a bad thing, but in your dreams? I guess I should be thankful it wasn't Charles Taylor! Even though I am a Republican, you have to admit the democratic candidate is a lot easier on the eyes than the republican! Anyway, I will be glad when the election is over!

A New Grandpa is Born

Here is Del holding his brand new grandson, Aiden Edward Brookshire. I know everyone is this new family is going to try to soak up as much as they can of this new baby's love. Nathan, Nicole and baby Aiden will soon be moving to Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

A Very Scrappy Sunday

Today I have been working on some scrapbook pages. I have all these great pictures now so I decided to get back into the paper side of it all. Hope you enjoy!

Little Princess

So isn't this adorable? I am going to have so much fun making this wedding album for Joanna & Ethan.

12 of 12 for October 12, 2006

This is a layout of 12 pictures I took on October 12. The journaling reads: 12 Highlights of My October 12 ~1) On the road to Brevard - foggy sun did make it out toshine on 2) autumn trees and3) pretty wildflowers; strip pic one includes 4) the time I got home, 5) Brandon and 6) Ben, two people I work with, and 7)Duane’s keyboard covered in cobwebs because he obviously does not work enough; pic strip two is the 8) scrapbook store I drive by everyday (my favorite), 9) my bike surrounded by fallen leaves, 10) my almost gone mums, 11) political signs (a sure sign of Fall), and 12) my boyfriend opening his new dehydrator that I gave him 6 days early! 10.12.06

The Happy Family

Four Generations of Harmony

Frank, Harmony, Joanna & Art - Great Genes!

Another Fine Looking Group!

From Pawpaw Art & Grandma Helen to Joanna & Ethan - continuing the line of great love affairs in the Conrad family!

Hey, You Can Dress 'Em Up & Take 'Em Out!

Tiffany, Shawn, Ethan, Joanna, Seth and Andrea - They look pretty good all dolled up!

I think she had a good day!

Joanna with brothers, Nick & Zack

And now, the most kissable one of all

Our little fairy princess, Harmony.

You May Now Kiss the Bride, III

Frank & I had to get in on the action, too! Isn't she a lovely bride?

Enough with the Kissing Already!

Frank & I enjoyed the spirit of love we were apart of this past weekend.

You May Now Kiss the Bride, II

Mr. & Mrs. Brookshire: Nathan & Nicole in a lovely backyard wedding.

You May Now Kiss the Bride, I

Mr. & Mrs. Seagle: Joanna & Ethan in a beautiful mountain-top ceremony.

Playing Catch-Up

Well, it has been a week since my last post and I have tons to catch up on. I'll start with today and go backwards. There is no weightloss to report this week because yesterday was weigh in day and I took Frank to Helen, Georgia to celebrate his birthday! It was a beautiful day and we walked in and out of shops all day and sampled German bratwursts, knockwursts, weinershnitzels and spatzles. All so delicious.

Over the weekend, we went to Nate & Nicole's wedding which was very calm and casual. I took pictures and most came out pretty well. I will publish in separate post later today. Also, we need to congratulate them again, as their son, Aiden Edward, was born on Tuesday, October 17!

Joanna & Ethan had a beautiful ceremony on Sunday at the Hickory Nut Gap Inn. The owners, Bo & Courtney, were great, the food was delicious, and everyone in the family was really nice to each other! And boy, does Frank look good in a tuxedo! Most guys hate those, but Frank actually asked what he could do for a living that would allow him to look that "hot" everyday! Any ideas? We've ruled out hitman, but if you have other ideas let us know. When you see the pictures, I am sure you will agree. Look for them later tonight or early tomorrow.

Aren't These Adorable?

Took these last week as practice for wedding pictures with Tamara's digital camera. Harmony is such a good subject. I wish I had this same technology when my kids were little. I think back on all the cute shots I missed of them. Oh well, some day they will have kids as cute as they were and then ... watch out! I can only imagine how many pictures I will be taking then! Hope you all enjoy the pics. Have a great day - it's going to get chilly soon! Welcome Fall!

Sitting Still

Seating still has never been one of my strengths. I like to be doing something. Well this week, I must have been pretty still because I didn't lose an ounce! On the flipside - I didn't gain anything either so that is pretty awesome, too. Still looking for the .8 to get to 20 pounds ~ maybe next week.

Things are starting to pick up around here. We have Nathan and Nicoles wedding on Saturday and Joanna & Ethan's on Sunday. I can't wait to see Frank in his tux (I know it's Joanna's day, but it is going to be cool to see everyone so dressed up!) I have to take pictures at both events. Should have some for viewing by mid next week.

The layout above is a Lifetime Moments Challenge to let someone else write your journaling. These are the answers Frank gave in August to one of my quizzes. The layout looks a little feminine with all the flowers and pinks, but I was trying to match it up to all the parrots swarming Frank in the top picture. The middle picture is from 5th grade and the bottom is from when we went to see Cirque du Soleil.

Flower Child

Here is another one of Harmony - such a good subject! It seems like I have a lot of her, but it's just because September and October are full of birthdays in this family. We have one every two weeks beginning with Harmony's on September 15 and ending with mine and Justin's on the 26th and 25th of November.

Now and Forever

I did this one for an "ad layout" challenge. I took all the photos at Tamara & Del's Wedding three years ago. She and I made her a scrapbook with most of these pics, but I wanted to use them in a single layout and I wanted to do a layout with no people in it. I like it, hope you do, too. Let me know - leave some comments once in a while - I like hearing from you. And if you have anything you would like to see a page of, let me know that, too.

Scrappy Weekend

Today, I am working on some pages for challenges at some of the websites I have been lurking in. Here is one of my nephew Luke. It is from Amanda's birthday party in 2001. I think he would have been about two here.

This pic was taken last weekend on Art & Helen's new property on Deep Gap. The journaling under the photo reads, "We've known each other for nine years now, and even though we argue a lot about who is right and who is wrong, you're still ..." My Mr. Right!!

I did this one after Harmony's birthday party in September. Joanna just looked so pretty that day, I wanted to scrap the picture.

Happy Anniversary

I want to wish my sister, Angie, and her husband, Gene a very Happy Anniversary! They have been married for 17 years! WooHoo! Hope you had a great anniversary! I love you both!

2.6 More Pounds!

Today was WW weigh in day - I lost 2.6 more pounds! Now I am .8 from the magical 20 pound mark!

Now to recap the last couple of days: On Monday, Frank and I went for a nice one mile walk after work at Patton Park. The evening was cool and it was quite pleasant. Tuesday, Frank came home and announced we were going bowling across the street. That was a nice surprise (the fact he found our bowling balls was an even bigger surprise!) So we changed and headed on over. Our first game must have been (re)beginner's luck, he bowled a 157 and I bowled a 150! The games went downhill from there, but I did get two or three strikes each game, the problem was that they were always followed by one of my mis-stepped only three pin shots! I ended the night with a 98! UGH!

Today, Frank was off and he worked on dinner all day, starting with a trip to the Fresh Market and ending with a beautiful chorizo stuffed pork chop and polenta topped with mussel sauce. So yummy (your mouth is watering)!

Pictured above is Harmony showing me how she can "fly" in her pretty fairy princess dress. She is going to wear this in the wedding on October 15.

A Wonderful Weekend

What a wonderful weekend we had! On Friday, my manager gave me the day off early as a reward for working on the Chamber Event the day before - I don't think anyone has ever done that before! Frank and I started the weekend at the grocery store as the pantry was getting kind of bare. We ended the evening with some chinese food from Beijing. We originally stopped at China Grill on Highway 25, but decided to get home, unload and have someone deliver to us, turns out that was a good idea, as China Grill was robbed shortly after we left. YIKES!

On Saturday, we got up early (4:15 am), Frank made French Toast (my WW lite version) and around 9, we went for him to be fitted for the tux for Joanna's wedding. That was a hoot! The guy at Mac's Menswear on Main Street has been doing this for a hundred years in a store that seems even older! After that we went down to another old establishment, Sherman's Army Store. There, we tried on camoflage overalls and coveralls! We decided to get the coveralls for Art to wear on his new property! Saturday was his 61st Birthday so after our shopping we headed up to see the new digs and have a little party. He and Helen have bought land next to Shawn and Tiffany and it is a beautiful piece. They are surrounded by wildlife! We had lots of fun!

On Sunday we rode the motorcycle to the Flat Rock Playhouse to see "Leading Ladies," a hilarious play starring Scott Treadway. He was so funny, his comic timing is spot on. We laughed so hard we were both in tears. Afterwards we took Little River Road over to Price Road and around Big Willow. It was a beautiful afternoon for a ride. We stopped for gas at Mr. Pete's in Etowah and Frank bought me some lottery tickets. We won $25! So instead of coming home and eating we rode on up to Hawg Wild. Frank had their delicious smoked chicken and I had grilled trout from Morgan's Mill in Rosman.

We rode home in the chilly air and settled in for the evening. It really was a great weekend! Frank's next weekend off is WEDDING WEEKEND MANIA - most of us will be attending two weddings that weekend. I will be taking pictures at Nathan and Nicole's wedding on Saturday in Fletcher and at Joanna and Ethan's on Sunday in Chimney Rock. Sounds like another good one!

By the way, either the kidney stone has passed, disolved, or just decided to give me a rest. I feel much better and haven't had much pain at all since Saturday. Thanks for all the prayers!

Long Days, Short Nights (2!)

Today was weigh day again and I lost 2 more pounds! Yeah! It was a great moment on what has been an awful last two days. I have a kidney stone and it hurts like crazy - it's too far down to zap, so I am just doubling up on the water to try and flush it on out.

While sitting here now, I just glanced at the clock and hit me - why do we have to spend more hours of the day working than we do relaxing or being creative? I hate that it is already 9 pm and I have just too busy a day tomorrow to stay up late "playing or scrapping" tonight. I wish the night would go just a little slower and the day a little faster!

I have joined a new digital website called A Cherry on Top ~ it is really neat. Above is one of the layouts I did over the weekend for their Fall Festival Crop.

Fairy Tales

Another layout for the online crop this weekend at www.acherryontop.com. This one was for a challenge using three of my favorite scrapbooking companies. It also used everyone's favorite little princess, Harmony.

The Leaves Are Starting to Change Already

Not sure why, but the leaves seem to be changing colors a little early this year. Today I found this really pretty pink leaf on the tree behind our apartment. It was really sticking out among the mostly green leaves. I had to scrap it with the poem I had read earlier this morning. I think this is my favorite time of year for taking pictures.

I hope

A layout challenge I did - It says EVERYTHING I truly felt when I got this picture back after Harmony's party.

My journaling reads:

I hope the doctors were right this time
I hope you feel better soon
I hope the treatment worked
I hope they find a cure some day ... soon!
I hope you will live for many more years
I hope you can be yourself again
I hope you will enjoy Frank’s cooking again
I hope you can feel our prayers

Most of all ...

I hope you know
how very much
we all love you

Wooten Family Reunion Photos

Wooten Family Reunion

Sep 10, 2006 - 36 Photos

Click this picture to be linked to an album with the pictures from my daddy's mother's family reunion. We went to Camp Hope on September 10. The groups were big so I had to take some of the pictures in sections. I welcome anyone viewing to send the names of the people in each photo if you know them.

Harmony's 3rd Birthday Party

Attack of the Mums!

  
We planted these last year and they took up less space than a coffee can, now they are above waist high. Frank has had to tie them up to keep them contained. Everytime it rains they go into leaning mode. I probably should cut and vase the yellow ones. I can't remember what color the three are that are yet to bloom. Frank says once they are gone, they are gone. Next year he gets it back for an herb garden. I can deal with that - fresh herbs on fresh Frank cooking - sounds good to me!

2.2 More!

So today was weigh in day and everyone laughed at me because I wore this suit that I had not been able to wear in two years and because it was heavier material than I usually wear, I changed into my "Weigh Day Dress." And it worked, I had lost 2.2 more pounds for a total of 14.6. Crossing fingers to go over the 15 pound mark next week! I did celebrate a "fabulous moment" for that suit. It was a suit I bought in 2004 and immediately regretted buying because even then the skirt was a little tight. It was hanging in the back of the closet and I decided what the heck I would get it out and try it on and to my surprise it fit beautifully. It felt really good to wear it today! When I got home I tried on several other things and they are still a little snug but it gives me something to look forward to and something on which to gage my progress. At WW they call it "Going Shopping in Your Closet" I like that because I have plenty of pretty things that have hardly been worn and it saves money, too!

Happy Birthday, Harmony

Harmony, Frank's granddaughter, turned 3 on Friday and on Saturday we celebrated - Princess Style! She is adorable! She had three little girlfriends there along with great & grand parents from three sides of the family! Harmony was dressed as Cinderella when we arrived and she was happy tooting around on her new recorder. When she opened her presents, she found more princess things - wings, crowns, jewels, a "Belle" gown from Beauty and the Beast, and a purple "Princess Harmony" gown. Looks like she will be playing dress up for a while. I remember how much fun it was to play dress up at my mamaw Burnette's house. I can't wait to get my pictures from the party back (THREE rolls, the girl is a camera hog!) Grandma Helen also got her a Raggedy Ann (my favorite) outfit, she looked like a clogger or a little danish maid.

After Harmony's party, Frank and I came home and had wonderful homemade pulled pork bbq - he is such a good cook - this meal set me back 17 whole points - for one meal! I still managed to stay within in my limits so let's up that pork doesn't show it's face on the scales at WW on Wednesday!

On Sunday, we went scuba diving at Jocassee. The drive was quiet as we were both trying to wake up. When we got there, the lake was down over 20 feet. The ramp was really long and you could see islands in the water that aren't usually visible. We took our time getting ready and finally got in the water. It was warm but very murky. In fact, I don't think we have ever been when the vis was so bad. We made our way over to the skeleton and the boat and followed the line down a bit further, maxing out at about 60 feet. At that point it was just to dark to see anything and we headed back up. At about 40 feet, I felt narcosis, which is usually reserved for about 80 feet, so I motioned to Frank that we should surface soon. He wasn't feeling too good either so we started our ascent. On the way up, we found a plane wing which we had not seen before and there was one place that seemed to be bubbling a milky white substance from the rock. We made it back to shore and packed to come home. It was good to get the practice, but needless to say, it will not be remembered as a "good" dive.

I wanted to thank Halle, Lynelle and Shelly for having lunch with me on Friday at Hawg Wild in Brevard. It was nice to see each other again all together. Lunch was good and the fellowship even better. I only wish Matt and Clint could have been there ... and Jay, too! Maybe we can plan a reunion again soon!

Well, that's my lunch break, back to work now. Today we are learning about a new online advertising opportunity to present to our real estate agents and car dealers.

5!

Wow, I weighed in again today and I had lost 5 more pounds! YEAH! I was kind of shocked, actually was shaking with excitement. This past weekend I went to a family reunion and there was a ton of homemade food and desserts. I had smoked turkey and tons of my mom's delicious green beans and two of her bbq meatballs. I wasn't really sure how to count points for the meatballs, so I just guessed and did the same as a small hamburger. I also picked the KFC mashed potatoes, gravy and cole slaw because the points are easy to figure with my dining out point guide. I actually ate a roll, too, which was more points than I thought they would be. I had one bite of mom's banana pudding (from Matthew's plate) and when I added up the days points, I had stayed under my total. More good news about that day - I wore shorts, NOT OVERALLS, shorts! Some that I had not been able to get into since last summer! Weight Watchers plan is working well and it helps to have so much support. There are 3 ladies where I work also doing it. Today we added it up and between us we have lost 90 pounds. They are very encouraging! Tonight, Frank made burgers and fries - not as bad as you think though - it was a Boca Grilled Veggie Burger on Thomas MultiGrain English Muffin with lettuce, onion, fat free cheese slice, ketchup, and mustard - and I counted out the fries. It was really good!

"MEMORY is a way of holding onto things you LOVE"

I found this Template by Erica Hernandez and I just loved the layout. It came in as a bright pink and I changed the color to match the picture of Frank. The journaling reads, "I love the way your eyes look in this photo - it's a lazy day, you're my sweet, "I love you" look - and it makes me smile :) !" And it does. I took this on Easter Sunday in 2001 and I have always wanted to scrap it. I think it is perfect for this layout.

Feeling Better Now?

Yes, I did have a much better day yesterday than the two days before. I was able to get all my ads proofed and into the first edition of the TNW-Brevard. I am really excited about taking that publication to all the businesses on Tuesday. Kevin is going to go with me and I hope we will make a good impression on my hometown.

Yesterday, I picked up Matthew and Zak at ASI. They are doing strength training there and I think they are actually adding some muscle! Matthew now tells me he needs a tan because then his muscles would look bigger! I think my son is growing up. One of the girls that works with Amy told me yesterday my son was gorgeous - I should have taken it as a compliment but instead I was like, "Back off, girl" that's my baby and yes, he is cute, but let's not go making him grown up gorgeous yet. I think that "mama's little baby boy" instinct took over! It was a side of me I had not seen. Weird!

Amy came home from work and as usual she was most helpful. I was tired and went to bed pretty early and when I got up this morning, the kitchen was spotless. I don't know where her energy to work all evening then come home and CLEAN (ugh) comes from. Oh wait, yes, I do - her dad! Thank goodness I was smart enough to make my children's dad an organized clean freak! LOL. It's nice to know all my kids won't grow up to be as messy as their mom!

Hoo Hoo

Night before last, Frank and I were leaving for the grocery store and we heard faint sounds of hoo-hooo as cars were passing by our house. We stopped to listen more closely and realized it was the sound of an owl ... actually two owls. We could tell that one was on the right side of the drive across the street and the other a little further down and on the left. One would hooo hhooo hhoooo and the other would sound as if it were almost chuckling and respond back with a hoo hooo hhoooohhhooo! It was mesmerizing. We were both caught up in it - amazed that here in our little city world, we were able to hear sounds from the country. I wonder what they were saying to each other and if they could hear us? (Picture from Halle's Mom's Collection - See Comment)

All Dressed Up

This is a picture from the 1950's of my mom and her sister, Sandra, and my grandparents, Scott and Pauline. I think they all look so pretty and it looks like spring. Althought there is not writing on the back of the photo, I get the feeling it might have been an Easter Sunday. If you look closely at my mother's face you can see that she has not changed a bit! I love this picture of her family.

A Little Modern Art Departure

My latest page. I did it for a challenge that encouraged you to think out of the box. I like the filter on the picture of mattew and from there just decided to do something really different. The lady running the site thought it was way cool, too. I hope you all enjoy it. The picture was from Matter's last basketball game at Rugby - it was the game where they recognized the 8th graders. He just strolled across the court and smile as he gave the guys the high five! So calm and cool. He really looks happy!

3 More!

Today I went to WW again and I had lost 3 more pounds - Yeah! A day to celebrate! The excitement was short lived though as reality checked back in when I went home for lunch. Some days you just can't do ANYTHING right it seems. Have you ever been accused of something you didn't do and you just wish you had done it because at least then you wouldn't be doing the right thing and still getting yelled at? That is what this day that seemed so wonderful ended up being. Hey, not all days can be happy days I guess. Kind of sad writing from the one is supposed to be so optomistic. Oh well, I am human, REALLY human as I have been reminded over and over again this evening. On the bright side, (see I am still in here) I handled it without eating to cope. I was tempted mind you, I went to the grocery store to get bread and the chocolate bars and goldfish crackers and peanut butter ice cream were all very tempting but instead I bought a scrapbook magazine - which I admit I need probably even less than I need the chocolate bar - but hey, I am not going to screw up two weeks of dieting just because I feel about two inches high. The scrapbook magazine was the best choice and I must say that putting pen to paper, eh, fingers to keys is also very therapeutic. Think I will go read or do a scrapbook challenge from one of my new favorite websites - www.scrapartist.com. TTFN

Almost Over

My Labor Day Holiday is almost over. Three day weekends just don't seem that long anymore. Maybe it is because we haven't been on vacation in two years. I sure do miss getting to go to Jamaica again this year. We missed last year because I broke my shoulder and this year they are renovating the resort where we like to stay.

We didn't do much at all this weekend. Nick stayed with us and he and Frank played tennis for 3 hours on Saturday night. Yesterday, Frank and I wore up really early and laid back down for a nap. We didn't get up until 2 pm, making it hard to go to sleep last night.

Realizing it just wasn't going to happen for me, I decided to roam the internet. I went in and out of forums all night long. Most of them were about scrapbooking and graphic design, but a few were quite interesting. It is amazing all the different people in this world. It seemed like a lot of the blog sites were being put up as part of classroom curriculum. I think that is pretty cool. I probably would have journaled more in high school had there been a medium like this then.

Today I have been locked in my basement trying to finish a scrapbook for one of my friends at work. It is of her son, Duncan. She is expecting her second child anyday now and I really wanted to have this one finished for her before she takes leave. I should be finished by the weekend. I got about 4 pages done today before I was sidetracked by Joanna's upcoming wedding.

She and Ethan are getting married October 15 at the Hickory Nut Gap Inn. I looked it up online and it is a nice rustic place. She is going to ask her dad to walk her down the aisle (can't wait to see him in a tux!) I, of course, will be taking the pictures. Sure wish I had that Nikon Digital. I hate the thoughts of using film and ending up nothing. Everyone is really excited about it. Harmony is going to be dressed like a little fairy princess, wings and all. It should be sweet. If we can only find someone to officiate. It seems that getting married on a Sunday afternoon is making it hard to find a preacher. I have put Lynelle to task. She knows a lot of ordained ministers and I am crossing my fingers she finds one soon.

We will be celebrating Harmony's 3rd birthday in two weeks! Yeah. More photo ops!

Sisters & Brothers

I just love this picture of Joanna and Nick. I think this is probably the third or fourth time I have used it in a layout ... but it's the first time in digital format.

The picture was taken at Nick's 14th birthday party at O'Charleys. Joanna, Harmony, Tiffany, Grandma, Mom, Del, Dad, Paula, Dee, Rebecca, Matthew, and Corey were all there to help celebrate.

The journaling also mentions how much we missed PawPaw, who was still having a pretty rough time of it with his cancer treatments. We did indeed miss him. "Thangs just ain't the same without Pawpaw!" Thank goodness he is feeling better these days. 

Our Sympathies

Art writes, "The sad news I wanted to relate is: Shawn's Grandma Joyce died yesterday after a month in the hospital following heart surgery, She had some complications and Wednesday they decided to operate. When they went in they found cancer had taken over her body. They closed and told the family they would send her home. She did not ever get to go home, she died yesterday in Mission Hosp.. May God accept her soul.

Shawn our family member is devastated. He has lost both his maternal Grandparents in less than a year. Any comfort you can afford him will be most welcome. He is actually a very fragile and uncomplicated soul and we all love him."

Yes, Shawn, we do love you. As one who has also been so readily been accepted into this Conrad Clan, I am sure you will find comfort from this side of your family as you deal with this loss. Our prayers are with you and with Tiffany, who I know considered your grandparents as her own. I know you are both hurting right now as Frank and I did when Pop passed, but in time you will have only happy memories to recall and you will laugh once again as you remember all the sweet ways they touched your lives.