FOBTY

I have made a determination to do the whole Sweet Shoppe thing again. So, we will be having the "From our Blog to Yours" entry's again. This weeks is to post a Layout on your blog that makes you happy. The one that I Love is one that I posted a few months ago but it still makes me very happy.



This LO really does make me happy. These were our engagement photos that Caleb took which we put into our Announcements. The journaling is the song "Only Time" by Enya which Ben had playing in his car when he proposed to me. It had just came out and I Loved that song, and still do because of the memories it brings to me.

Since I had already posted that one LO I will post another one for ya. It was from a visit from Sarah and Mike. Jesse had a muddy accident where Ben had to hose him down.



Just to let you know I did get two LO done yesterday! Yay, go me! I don't know when I will be on again, I have work and my other pressing engagement, LOL! Type at you all later.

Anna M.

Exciting stuff

Pregnancy would not be the answer to the statement above, I think that that would be more than just exciting, it would be like over the moon, can't sit still, calling everyone ecstatic stuff. But this is still cool. Ben has been on a buying frenzy lately and I feel a little left out :) So, I have been talking for a very long time, probably since we moved in to the house that I wanted a freezer. Ben has never said no or wait until this... I have always put it off I couldn't put it off any longer. I ordered this beast yesterday and it will be here Monday.



Now we have to clear out a spot in the garage for it. I had to call Becca since she got hers a couple of months ago and see what she found out about them. She was VERY helpful. I really would have ended up with something wrong if I hadn't have called her. It is Frost Free, so I won't have to defrost it every once in a while. I finally made this decision after I bought a pack of pork chops from Costco and am not able to put it in the freezer because it is ssssooooo full. (Don't worry the chops will be eaten on Sunday so they won't go bad.)

For the past couple of days I have been working on backing up all of my scrapbooking stuff, 16 DVD's later I am completely caught up with backing up. I think that I might need to back off on the stuff and increase my productivity towards the actual goal of scrapbooking. Since that is what I am supposed to be doing, not just buying. Did you know that? So, today it is my plan to scrap at least two pages if not more. I think that the task of backing things up was what was really stalling me from scrapping because I didn't want to make something else and then loose everything.

I guess that this statement now will only be for Ammy and me but anyways. Only TWO whole days to wait until Breaking Dawn comes out. I am VERY excitied about this. Ben is not :) I will be of no use to anyone until I finish that book. The bad thing is, is I have to work on Sat so I won't be free to read it, but I will have it. Jade is getting our copies at 12:01 on Sat and dropping mine off at the door. Woo-Hoo. Great friends! I couldn't pre-order it because I didn't want to wait until the mail man came or until after work or if it somehow didn't get here on Sat and waiting until Mon wasn't an option either. Anyways enough rambling hope everyone has a great day. Type at you all later.
Anna

Two posts in one day!

I had more to say but didn't want to add it into that post, I left that as a picture post. So all my worries about Monday being crazy weren't too valid, of course it went by without a hitch. I got up walked the dogs and got out of the house by nineish, went to Fresno Ag and got some canning supplies, A cookbook, pitter and a lid rack. I got my TB test read, for all of you that were worried, I don't have TB, just an awful bruise since the lady sucked at giving the test. Went to Costco with a Budget of $100 came out spending $99.92!! I even commented to the cashier that I only wanted to spend 100 and I had eight cents to spare, woo-hoo, go me! Made plans with Heather to go swimming at like 3-4pm. My mom came out and helped me can the peaches, it was very messy to get those things peeled and done. I have 11 jars of peaches and 9 jars of Peach freezer jam. We were done with that at about 2pm, I got everything cleaned up, Ben came home and we went out to Heathers and swam. It was a lot of fun. We stayed until about 10pm. Ben was upset that it was too dark to go ride his Bike. He is like a little kid he really wanted to ride his bike, he is having allot of fun with it.

Tuesday I Cleaned and Cleaned. How does this place get so chaotic with only two people living here! I really don't understand it. I try sssooooo hard to keep up with everything but it seems so helpless when I turn around and it is a mess again within minutes. I don't know. I already have a list of things that I want to get straightened up and they were straight yesterday.

Wednesday and Thursday I Worked, I had my assistant and so I was bored out of my mind on Wed. Thurs I brought a book and got 100 pages into it by the end of the day. It was and an unusually calm assignment.

Friday I finished the book, Ben stayed home and went biking with Gabe. We had dinner at Tacone Flavor Grill, I compare it to Chipotle a little confusing the first time you go but very good sandwiches and I love their Chips and Salsa. We had their Chick-a-boom sandwich. I just love to say the name of the sandwich. Chick-a-boom. We then went to Clovis Farmers Market. I was unsuccessful in finding stuff for my canning recipe but I got some Cinnamon Chip Bread from the Great Harvest Bread CO. So Delicious.

When we were eating Ben got a call from his mom saying that they were having some computer probs so, at the last minute he decided that he would go check it out. We walked in and Ben says to me, "Good Luck." HUH!?!? They were having network issues, I am the wireless network guru between the two of us. I have set up our network more than once and I set up theirs. So, after determining that their wireless network card wasn't responding to anything, I wanted to reinstall the drivers. I spent another hour searching for the driver on the Internet. I then looked at a desktop icon and remember that they had this networking program. I click it, there is a screen that says resolve network problem, I click it. A minute later the network was working!!! Everything was fine. I spent two hours searching when it was a minute fix. That sucked, oh well, it works.

Today, Ben is out biking with Mike. I like to go biking, but it has to be EASY trails. He likes the harder trails. So it isn't so much fun for me, so I stay home and doodle, and I have quite a bit of doodling to do. I hope to get a couple things on the Comp done, clean up, go grocery shopping, but he might be home soon so I should get going since it is noon. Hope all is well. Type at you all later!

Anna

RAW and a Tag

No, that wasn't supposed to be ROAR, it's RAW. RAW is a way your camera captures pictures. JPEG is the finished product of what you just shot. RAW is right before that and it has alot more editing capabilities. I have just taken my first ever pictures in RAW. I pretty much love it. Here are some comparisons and it also goes along with the tag that Ammy did. It took me awhile to make time to do this but it was fun.

The rules are you have to take 10 pictures of the following things and you have to do it right away. No straightening, cleaning or wiping your child's nose. Then you tag five others.

1. Closet


2. Laundry room


3. Fridge


4. Kitchen sink

(RAW image developed with Lightroom)


(Straight out of Camera Jpeg)


5. Favorite room


6. What your kids are doing now (Uuuhhh, no kids, how about dogs)

Cocoa (Please, throw the ball!)


Bruno


7. Toilet


8. Favorite shoes
(RAW)


(JPEG)


9. Dream vacation (my dream vacation is Hawaii with clear beaches)


10. A self portrait. (Just got home from walking the Dogs, My Shirt says "Nurses Rock" :) love it)

I tag...

Becca
Erin
and
Amy

Pina Colada

The past two days at work I have heard this song and it makes me laugh every time I hear it. It always reminds me of when Erin was here in March. That was when I really listened to the words and when I fell in love with it.

Escape (The Pina Colada Song)

(Rupert Holmes)

I was tired of my lady, we'd been together too long.
Like a worn-out recording, of a favorite song.
So while she lay there sleeping, I read the paper in bed.
And in the personals column, there was this letter I read:

"If you like Pina Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.
If you're not into yoga, if you have half-a-brain.
If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape.
I'm the lady you've looked for, write to me, and escape."

I didn't think about my lady, I know that sounds kind of mean.
But me and my old lady, had fallen into the same old dull routine.
So I wrote to the paper, took out a personal ad.
And though I'm nobody's poet, I thought it wasn't half-bad.

"Yes, I like Pina Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.
I'm not much into health food, I am into champagne.
I've got to meet you by tomorrow noon, and cut through all this red tape.
At a bar called O'Malley's, where we'll plan our escape."

So I waited with high hopes, then she walked in the place.
I knew her smile in an instant, I knew the curve of her face.
It was my own lovely lady, and she said, "Oh, it's you."
And we laughed for a moment, and I said, "I never knew"..

"That you liked Pina Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.
And the feel of the ocean, and the taste of champagne.
If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape.
You're the love that I've looked for, come with me, and escape."

"If you like Pina Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.
If you're not into yoga, if you have half-a-brain.
If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape.
You're the love that I've looked for, come with me, and escape."

I am trying to figure out what I am going to be doing tomorrow It is just easier to write it all out and have a list so then I can feel accomplished. I love lists. I love to check things off.

~ Heather is in town maybe just until tomorrow and so I want to see her and the kids. I don't know when I will see her after this visit.
~ I have 25 lbs of ripe peaches on my counter that I need to get canned. I really don't want to have 25 lbs of rotten peaches on my counter.
~ I have to go to work and get my annual TB Test read by 11:30
~ If I am in town I might as well go to Costco and I have some coupons that I want to use.
~ What's for Dinner?
~ The Lawn really needs to be mowed
~ I used the rest of my gift card to sweet shoppe this weekend and I really want to do some scrapbooking. I got these kits. Lil buddies, Sunday Afternoon, and He said/She Said.
~ I am going to go biking around the neighborhood with Jade, she wants to go ten miles, I hope I will make it on to my bike.
~ I really should call some people and see how they are doing.

Who knows what I will get done but at least I have an idea of what I want to do.
Type at you all later.

Anna

What's Up

This has really been quite the busy week, I didn't think that is was going to be but life happens. Last weekend we went down to see Caleb and help him on his house, Yes it was my birthday and I was working like a mad dog but it was fine I had a good time. There is not such thing as a master bedroom and bathroom there that's for sure. We went out to Buca di Beppo and it was so delicious we ordered spagetti, A pizza, and cheese ravioli's. Everything was so good. Ben got an Ice Cream Cake and when they asked what color to write my name in he said pink. He knows me all to well, I would have went for pink or purple. We made some dinner and cookies on Sunday at Micah and Jennifers and then headed home.

Monday I worked and I so thought that I had to work on Tuesday too, but as I was getting up in the morning and thinking about it my schedule seemed off to me so I looked at my calendar and I had Tuesday off, I called work to make sure and hopped right back into bed. It was great to have a day off when I didn't expect it.

I ended up doing quite a few errands on Tuesday and got these from my mom.



All the typing that is on there is for my photography class, but the point of this was that on Wed and Thurs I canned! Jade, my friend from church, has been really bored and needed something to do so she wanted to can and looked it up on the internet bought a pressure cooker and started to do it. So, Wed we canned pears and Thursday my mom came over and helped us can nectarines. It is messy and sticky but alot of fun. Of course when my mom came out on Thursday she said well did you do this... or did you try this... This is what i have done... It all made sense but I only remember my mom doing some freezer jam when I was eight. I have no Idea what I am doing so it was great to hear her "Sage Wisdom" as she called it. What is so great about the jars though is that with the fruit in them they look so cool that I will probably put them on the top of my cupboards for storage and decoration.

Today Ben offically got the papers for the dogs and they are ours. I need to figure out how to call and get that chip switched though so they don't call the previous owner of them.

I really hope that all is well with everyone else. Type at you all later.
Anna

ShaZAM

At Jessica Sprague's blog today she posted about editing Photos in Photoshop. She does this quite regularly this one just interested me. So here are some before and after's for you viewing pleasure.

Here's Eden



David and Erin



Erin and me




I did quite a bit of editing on this one. Most of the stuff I had never done before, but it was fun and I LOVE how it turned out. I hope you do too Erin. I think you look beautiful.

Hope that everyone has a great weekend. It has been Miserably hot here, and with all of these forest fire around it looks foggy even at 7:30 at night. Way gross. Type at you all later.

Anna

Dogs...

Here's the story. Remember we went to the vet and got the chip read in the little one and the owner was notified but we haven't heard from them. Now we come to Friday. Ben opened the shed Friday night and forgot to close it (by the way they both didn't even flinch during the Fireworks and watched them with us). Saturday Morning we woke up to my kneeling garden pad being destroyed. I also had a 2lb box of Bone Meal (flower food) that I had only used a cup of and the box was destroyed. We didn't think much of it until Saturday night when the little dog started wigging out and couldn't walk straight. We took him in to the ER and nothing was really figured out they just said to watch him and make sure he stools. We think he ate the bone meal box all by himself since his stools have been white, but he seems pretty well back to normal.

Sunday we get a call from the ER saying they have contacted the owner and he should be contacting us. We learned that he had been in and out of the hospital for a month and his ex was to be watching them, they took them to her house in Sanger then to a Ranch where they escaped.

Monday we finally talked to the owner and didn't really seem interested in keeping the dogs the little one is chipped because he paid $3500 for him because of his pedigree and they are both Chocolate Labs and they are about 5 years old. Hopefully we will be able to soon get the paperwork for them from the owner so that we can re-register the chip in our name and get the other one chipped too.

I am pretty glad that we have spoken to the owner because that would have been worrying me if they really wanted the dogs and just hadn't found them yet. Hopefully everything will get resolved soon.

I am at work the next couple of days. Hope all is well with everyone. Type at you all later.

Anna

I am so not here

I really have not wanted to do anything but read and watch movies these past few weeks. I think I will be snapping out of it soon. At the very lastest Aug 4th. Things have been getting done around here but very slowly and when I am not glued to a book. So, this is just going to be a ramble of stuff.

The garden is growing even without me doing stuff to it. We need to change our watering system though we thing that the plants need more water. We have some tomatoes and I can see some corn ears starting to show. I guess I need to figure out when to pick the corn.

I am working tomorrow and so I won't be doing the family thing but we will be watching the fireworks that go off at the high school. last year it was fun to watch it from the backyard. You could even hear the music.

My photography class started on Mon and she has given us some tips on taking pics of them. So, we shall see how that turns out. This weeks lesson was shutter speed. I have to take some action shots. So, I will get Ben to do something tonight.

I have finally decided that when I start printing my scrapbook pages they will be 12x12 and I will have some pages in the album for the pictures that I didn't scrapbook, if I scrapbooked everything, nothing would be done. I guess I just need to start pringing them. It is a little duanting when I have quite a few pages completed and a ba-gillion more after that not done. I have to take it a few at a time, not looking at to whole picture is better.

Last night Ben and I went on a date. We went to dinner and a movie. The best part was it was from gift cards. For Christmas we had a Tahoe Joes gift card and a Visa gift card that we haven't used (I know, Why Not??) I finally remembered that we had them so we had a great dinner and we went and saw Wall-e. It was a good movie. I did think that it was a little erie what the storyline was, Earth being uninhabitable, everyone out on this space ship not knowing what was really going on, robot everywhere. A little weird. There was the happy ending of course, I won't spoil it for you though.

In case you were wondering last Friday Jade and I watched Sense and Sensibility, my copy came that day and since we were on the Jane Austen kick we watched it. It was great fun. Well, I think I am going to leave you now with a couple parting gifts though

What Your These Fireworks Say About You

You are focused, single minded, and intense. You don't let others see your intensity often, and when they do, they are quite surprised. You burn brightly, but you also burn steadily. You have the endurance to get the one thing you desire most.

The Fireworks Test

Type at you all later.
Anna