Project Life 2013: weeks 3 & 4

It's been yet another small eternity since I've blogged. I know. I'm sorry...again. I really DO want to do better with keeping up on this stuff for you. To be truthful, I think blips and blurbs on facebook have taken the place of my blog. I'm not okay with that, though, because truthfully my blog matters more to me than updating my facebook status.  One is definitely just quicker & easier than the other. But I will try. From this point forward, I will try to get back to some quality of blogging. Because it matters to me. So there. Enough said.

Anyway...

I'm still doing pretty well with my Project Life for 2013. So far I've gotten through week 4 done. Yea me! I've shared weeks 1 and 2 previously.  Moving forward -today I'll share weeks 3 & 4.


A couple random thoughts about my Project Life so far this year.... First, I've noticed myself using a TON of neutral backgrounds in my scrapping lately. Mostly just white or gray or some shade very close to white. I'm just drawn to the cleanness it gives to the page. This has been a shift for me from my historical way of building a page, but right now it makes me happy, so I'm going with it.
Another observation about this project for me... In years past, I've struggled with the format - all digital? paper? use the standard templates? use the actual PL products? photo pockets? page protectors?  Seriously, WHY did I make it so complicated? This year I've gone back to what I know and love. I've just decided to plop the pictures on a (digital) page in whatever layout strikes my fancy at the moment (using that phrase makes me think of my grandma *lol*). And so far I like the look. Nope, there's no continuity from page to page and week to week - not in color scheme or layout format or anything. But really, that's pretty appropriate for me, I'd say.

So for those of you tackling this for the first time, or considering it but standing back out of feeling overwhelmed, take heart! You can do it however YOU feel like doing it. Just do SOMETHING with SOME of your stuff. It's better than nothing. And perfection is NEVER the goal... being DONE is.

Okay, on to the layouts...


WEEK 3: We finished the first round of puppy classes. Lucas left for Ohio for the week. And Isaac spent the night with one of his friends while Sebastian, Meagan and I headed to Chicago on Monday for the Windy City meet.

(Click to view full credits)

Why is it that every picture of Dublin looking at me sort of looks like he's a possessed zombie dog? Really, he IS a cute dog, but he sort of always looks a little off his rocker in photos!! Ha!!
Oh, and this was the kids' first encounter with Starbucks. They got steamed milk with syrup. And whipped cream. And they were happy kids.

(Oh and one more thing, that's NOT our dog. :)  He's a sweet doggy named Abner, who belongs to our trainer. The kids were so happy to finally get to pet Abner once the class was all over because he was finally a 'free dog'... no longer on teaching duty!!)

 WEEK 4: Meets, meets, and more meets. I've really not been doing a great job of taking photos all the time. But I'm okay with that. Sometimes our life is pretty repetitive, and I don't need 700 pictures of us in the van, or the kids doing homework, or the dog playing with toys. It's all kind of the same. Sometimes, it's okay to let myself off the hook and just get the highlights. That's what happened this week. It was another week of Lucas traveling, and I was just busy. Not a thought was given to photography, except for at the meets.

Meagan had a meet on Saturday, and Sebastian on Sunday. One in Indy, the other in Cincy. Lots of time traveling and sitting on uncomfortable bleachers. The tough thing about meets is that you sit for SOOOOO long to watch a sum total of about 5 minutes of action from your own kid. That's just the way it is.

(Click to view full credits)

In my journaling, I did document some of the other things that happened during the week.

Originally with this second page, I wanted to just highlight some extra photos of the kids from their meets. But as I was looking through the pictures, I was really struck by how very different their gymnastics experiences are right now. Meagan is struggling. She's not scoring anywhere NEAR what most of her teammates are scoring. On any event. And she's struggling to get the minimum qualifying score for state (which is a 32.0). This particular meet was her 2nd to last attempt at getting the 2nd 32 of the year so she would qualify for state. She missed it by about a tenth. She was so discouraged at the end of the day. It breaks my heart to have these conversations with her - conversations about trying and keeping a good attitude, even when things don't go your way. I mean, they are great life lessons. And I'm sure God will use these to temper her and to shape and mold who she is. Still, those realizations don't make it any easier to see the hurt in her eyes. I just want to hug her until it's okay. But I can't make this okay for her. She has to work through it on her own. 

That, in contrast to Sebastian, who is having a stellar competition season. So far he has won all-around at every meet he has participated in. Translation - he's getting lots of medals, while his sister gets few or none. It's been a bit of a challenge to navigate through these waters. Thankfully, Meagan has a great heart, and she IS genuinely HAPPY for her brother when he does well. It's simply that she wants to also be doing well. 

So, my page 2 morphed from a few extra photos to a documentation of this experience. It's part of our life - a big part - right now, and I thought it was worth noting.

Also this year, I'm going to throw in extras. I want to have more of a comprehensive album when I'm done, rather than just a week to week to week. The plan is to try to stick 'regular' layouts, as well as documents (like report cards, art work, and other such goodness) into the album as well. True, this may require more than one physical album to get through the year. But in the end, it will all be in one place, and I will give a happy sigh.

This is one of those extras I'm planning to include. Because a book about our life is NOT complete without Dublin. This dog and his outside play time!! He LOVES it! Loves to run and chase down the frisbee. As to whether or not he'll give it back to throw again, that's a toss-up. Sometimes it turns more into a game of keep-away than fetch. It's all good. As long as he's happy, I'm good with it.

Back to Back to Back

We have had our fill of gymnastics meets in the past 2 weeks! Last week was Circle of Stars, and both Meagan and Sebastian competed on Sunday. Meagan had a milestone meet!! For starters, she got her roundoff back handspring and was able to compete floor!! This was a first for her this year! And then, on top of that, she got her first of the two 32.0 all-around scores that are required to qualify for the state meet! Now she just needs to have one more good meet to get her second 32!!  Sebastian competed in the evening, and did very well! He placed in every event and won first place all-around!

Then, this weekend Sebastian had another meet. This time in Chicago. So Sunday, Sebastian, Meagan, and I (Isaac stayed the night with a friend, and Lucas stayed home with the dog because he had to work Monday morning) hopped in the van and trucked it up to Chicago. We stopped at IHOP for dinner on the way (sshhhh!!! don't tell Isaac he missed out on IHOP!!).

We stayed at the Hilton Chicago, and can I just say that the kids had sticker shock of sorts! Sebastian kept ogling at the chandeliers and the marble and blah blah blah. Let's just say it was a bit fancier than the Holiday Inn Express that we usually stay in when we travel. Our room was on the 22nd floor and looked out over Lake Michigan and Navy Pier. Beautiful! I only wish it hadn't been so polar outside so we could have walked around and enjoyed it a bit. As it was, we had to settle for our view of the 5 degree night from the window of the hotel room.

At night... Navy Pier all lit up...

And in the morning... this is looking the other direction, toward the museum and out over the water.

There was a shop in the lobby that served Starbucks. After all the driving and the freeeeeezing cold weather, a chai tea sounded delicious!! So the kids and I headed down to the lobby for a warm drink (they got steamed milk with caramel flavoring) before bed.

 And we headed to the meet bright and early this morning and had a full day of competition.

Again, Sebastian had a pretty good meet! He had a few hiccups, but still ended up placing first on p-bars, 2nd on floor, pommel horse, and high bar, and first all-around! Great job buddy!!

It was good to get home and relax after a lot of traveling. Now, apparently, the kids are on a 2-hour delay for tomorrow morning due to cold temperatures...????

Now I'm off to watch the new show on Fox - The Following... we'll see how it is, but it sounds intriguing. So have a good night!!

Project Life 2013

In 2012 I tried for a second time to complete a Project Life album. And for a second time, I did not finish when the year finished. In 2011, I was doing alright until our move, and then I fell off the wagon. In 2012, I tried to take a different approach, and I'm fairly confident that it was the approach that tripped me up. I had tried to do a paper approach, printing out the photos individually and all that jazz. Clearly, I am not a paper kind of girl. Digi is my thing. I think it's best if I stick with what I do best.

So this year, I'm going back to what comes easy to me. We'll see if I can keep up a little better. Because I have this funny feeling that keeping up is the key to actually finishing! *lol*

There's been a lot so far. A lot I haven't shared on here, as I've just simply been trying to live through it and wade through it all.

So here's what I've got so far. I'm 2 weeks in, and so far, I'm up to speed.

Intro page...

week 1...

week 2...

Meet Schedule Updates

I've updated the meet schedule page, and also the meet schedule facebook group for those of you who are affected by that.

Sick Day Snuggles

I shared these pictures right after I took them, but I finally got around to putting them into a layout. I used a bunch of TLP products mixed and matched. You can click here to view full credits. I used this layout that I had pinned on Pinterest as inspiration for this layout.

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Sunday, Snowy Sunday

I think our Christmas celebrations are officially over. This Friday, we drove to Ohio to have Christmas with my parents and brother and sister and their families. It was great to see everyone and spend some chill-out time with them. We even took Dublin with us, and he did a great job! We were pleasantly surprised with how well-behaved he was for being such a puppy!

Today we woke up late, so didn't make it to church. Still, we spent a relaxing day together as a family. One thing Isaac had asked for for his birthday was to go see The Hobbit, so we did that today. Surprisingly, it held everyone's attention - even Meagan's! We were entertained the whole way through, and didn't mind the length of the movie at all. The Hobbit was our dinner conversation, and the kids are excited to read the book together as a family... maybe that will be our evening reading tonight.

After the movie, the kids took the doggy out to play in the snow again. None of our kids seem to be able to get enough of being out in the snow! It's great, although we have no more pristine pretty snow... it's all stomped and squished and demolished... but it's played in, just as snow should be.

Of course, they each had 2 cups of hot chocolate when they came inside, and then plopped down in front of the fire to finish warming up! I'm so glad they have had a winter this winter... especially over their break from school!

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A Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That

As Christmas inches its way closer, I'm slowly checking things off the list! Tonight we accomplished puppy Christmas shopping, and can I say, this is one spoiled puppy! After his training class (which consisted of loose-leash walking, greeting people and dogs, and 'leave it'), we perused PetSmart and picked out his gifts. He got a giant bed that was $30 off, a few toys, and a few treats.
The classes must be working because he was an absolute angel in the store while we were shopping. Seriously. It made me so happy to see him behaving so nicely!

I've got everything stuffed in his stocking and ready to go.  He will be one happy puppy come Christmas morning!

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While we're on wintery topics, can I just say that it makes my heart happy to finally finally be seeing some snow! I was beginning to wonder if we would ever see it again. And it makes me laugh to watch Dublin out in it. He can't decide whether he loves it or hates it. Funny stuff! Unfortunately for him, he's getting his snip job tomorrow, so he won't be feeling much like romping in the snow when he gets home. Hopefully there will be more of it over Christmas break so we can all go out and play!

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Working backwards...I told you about today's puppy class and shopping trip... yesterday was Meagan's music program at school. It was called Christmas in the West, and -  you guessed it - she had to wear western gear. Prior to this program, she has never ever had anything even remotely "western" in her wardrobe. But, planning ahead for the program, she picked out a pair of boots, and she has worn said pair of boots every day since getting them (see photo above *lol*). For Christmas, Grandma & Grandpa H. got her a new pink pair of boots and a cowboy hat to match! Of course, she went with the fancy pink ones for the program! And she looked super cute!

 

  

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 Tuesday was Isaac's 10th birthday!! Two kids in double-digits! Yikes!
He had a great birthday.  For starters, his teacher sang to him in front of the whole class, which he would like to pretend meant nothing, but he LOVED. Then he got the best. gift. ever (according to him), which was PS3 Battle Royale, which he got to open right after school and play with his friends!

And THEN he got to choose anything he wanted for dinner. He chose Applebee's (which would not be my own personal choice, but it's his birthday, not mine). But really, who doesn't love the appetizer sampler, right?! He and Meagan shared it. She eats the chicken chunks and celery, he eats the quesadillas and mozzerella sticks, and they share the spinach dip. Perfect!

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For some of you, you might have seen this on facebook already, so this will be redundant. But I thought I would share videos of Sebastian's first meet. He had a great day, & did really well. After being sick for the latter part of last week, he made the decision to take out a few of the bonus elements from some of his routines, and he did make a few mistakes... but he wasn't derailed by them. We talk often about moving on past the stuff you can't change, and not letting one mistake carry forward into the next thing you do. I think he did a great job at staying calm & focused. I was really proud of him for that!
The meet results: He won first in all 6 events and all-around! His age group was rather small, so that's not to say that this is indicative of how the whole season will be for him. But I'm one to take the good when you can, so we'll play up the win and let him enjoy it!

Vault: score - 9.5

Parallel Bars: score - 10.8

High Bar: Score - 10.6

Floor: Score - 9.2

Pommel Horse: Score - 10.7

Rings: Score - 10.1

My First Christmas

I have a backlog of layouts I've done but have not shared. I have a backlog of  lot of things I've done but not shared, now that I come to think of it. One thing at a time. I'll start simple and work my way back into things.

 

I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to snag this picture of Dublin in front of the Christmas tree. If I were on top of things enough to actually do Christmas cards this year, maybe this would have been our card photo. As it is, though, I can't seem to even accomplish simple daily tasks on a regular basis, so I'm certainly not interested in complicating matters with extras like cards. It's just not going to happen.

 

click to view larger image

Anyway, I used a bunch of TLP goodies from the December BYOC and the December 'Document Your December (DYD)' collection. You can click here to view full credits.

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Sebastian's First Meet

This Saturday is Sebastian's first meet. For those who are interested, I've updated the meet schedule page with the address and competition time. From what he says, I think he's mostly ready, but has a few trouble spots. He's worried about his high bar dismount - a fly-away this year. And on floor, his handstand pirouette is giving him troubles. And maybe a handstand on parallel bars? Although I think he said that was getting better. Either way, we'll go and cheer him on, no matter what. I'm excited for him to get back into competition... he's been missing it! Plus, I think he wants to add to his medal collection on his bedroom wall. Uncle Shane made him such a cool medal display rack, that he wants to get it filled up. Love it.

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On another note altogether, Meagan is home AGAIN today. *sigh*  I got home from a meeting last night at about 8:15, and she was already sound asleep (and had been for some time, according to the boys). I went in to kiss her goodnight... she was burning up, so I checked her with the ear thermometer. She was almost 102. Eeep. Not going to school again. So she slept in until about 8:30 this morning. Still won't eat breakfast, and she's coughing like a maniac. But she seems to be in good spirits. We'll see how the day goes. Keeping my fingers and toes crossed that she is better by tomorrow.

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had to add...

I just had to add a few more pictures. They're so snuggly... and just about asleep.

 




Notice she flipped out the recliner so there was room for both of them. This is what happens when your hippo-sized dog thinks he's a lap dog. She doesn't seem to mind, though.

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It's a Snuggle Day

It's day 2 of having Meagan home from school with a fever and cough. While I hate that she's sick, and I feel bad calling off of work, I have to admit it was nice to be able to get some stuff done around the house yesterday. Today I'm thinking I'll focus on laundry. Other than that, I might just play a bit.

So, this is how sick days are spent around here, now that Dublin is part of the family.

 He's getting so big that he barely fits in the recliner, let alone both of them. But they still find a way.

 It's shaping up to be a day much like yesterday... lay on the couch and watch cartoons. She discovered that a new season of My Little Pony has started, so she's patiently waiting for a new episode to come on.

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Over the weekend (while everyone was still healthy-ish), we got the tree and most of the Christmas decorations up. I really wasn't in the mood to do it, but I made it through. Meagan was so excited to get the tree up...I couldn't disappoint her just because I was feeling Grinchy.

 I admit, the colorful lights do have a soothing effect. Something about them just makes me feel happy.

 This year Meagan wanted to help me put the lights on... not an easy task. I'm pretty particular about the lights. I don't like to see all the wires everywhere, so I wrap the strands around each branch so that they lay along the branches. I showed her how, and she did a few branches. The tree is pretty scratchy, though, so she didn't last long. She said, "I'm done now. That looked more fun that it really was." Don't I agree!! *lol*

 So this is what our living room looks like with all the Christmas explosion of stuff.  See, we got it all painted!! I love not seeing white walls anymore! The fireplace wall & the back wall are both a dark brown, although with the light coming in from 3 windows, it lightens up quite a bit in the daytime.

And we moved Dublin's crate from the eat-in dining area to the corner of the living room. Now, not only is he more in the center of family activity, but his giant bulky cage isn't the first thing you see when you walk in. Win, win.

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Updates:

We didn't win the lottery. Life continues as usual.

I'm on round 2 of antibiotics from the bug I mentioned in my previous post. I can't wait to feel better. This is just no fun.

Our house is a mess. Seriously. Not only have I neglected things like the laundry (which has exploded all over the upstairs, apparently), but we then added to it by taking everything off of the walls so we could paint.

With the exception of the tiny hallway by the garage door, and the little half bath in the same hallway, we have painted everything on the first floor. It feels SO nice to finally have color on the walls!! Now to get everything put back together... sigh.

We are on a break between gymnastics meets. For those of you who are interested, Sebastian's first meet is coming up 9 days from now. He will compete bright and early Saturday the 8th in Champaign, IL. 

I haven't taken many pictures lately, so I don't have much to share with you that is visually stimulating. I'll see what I can come up with for another post soon.  I've been working on my Document Your December album for 2011 December, so maybe I can snap a few pics of that and share. I'll do my best.

Gotta run...breakfast time is over, and I have to make sure Thing 2 and Thing 3 don't miss the bus. Have a great day!

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