Barefoot in the Grass

Recap of last few months...

Hi all  :)  Back once again for a recap on the what we have been up to the last few months!  Things have been so busy (as is for most of us, right?) yet good and wonderful at the same time.  I thought I would post a slew of pictures to catch up and hopefully stay more on top of things on a daily basis from now on!  Here we go:

Spent a lot of time at the pasture riding horses, watching Dad work with the horses, or just exploring and enjoying the out-of-doors:

 

Having fun at our little home-town carnival:

 

Going to Sam and Owen's soccer games, after soccer game, after soccer game, after game, after game, after...

 

Watched Dad work with the draft horse team and hitch them up to the Manwill's wagon:

 

 

Took a preschool field trip to the pumpkin patch:

 

A bumpy hay ride at the pumpkin patch:

 

A Fall photo shoot:

 

 

 

A trip to St. Louis (the arch is in there somewhere, lol):

 

A birthday party for a cute little kid:

 

One of our families' favorite outings - took many, many trips to cut wood (click on this picture - you gotta see Sam's face up close, that is so typically Sam - such a goof.. oh, and notice the PINK gloves... No one else would wear them but Sam was secure enough with himself that he had no problem at all using them!  LOL):

 

Unleashed a bunch of Ninja's in our neighborhood on Halloween night:

 

Made gingerbread barns at Grandma Huff's:

   

Decorated for the Church party with a bunch of wild and crazy women (SO fun!!):

 

Saw Santa when he came to the Church party (the older boys were SOoooo stressed about what to say they wanted for Christmas... Blake just didn't understand why HE wore glasses but the Santa that came to his preschool didn't):

 

Went to Temple Square in SLC to see the lights (and FROZE):

 

Can you see how happy Greg is? hehe

 

And that about wraps it up for now - TFL if you made it this far in this post, lol!  It has been a busy time, yet we have had lots of laughs, worked hard, played hard, and are so excited for Christmas in just a few days! 

We drove around tonight looking at Christmas lights, singing Christmas songs along with the radio, and were feeling so blessed!  It is such a wonderful time of year, I am really trying to slow down and enjoy every moment because it goes by WAY too fast.  Greg and I were looking at these pictures tonight amazed at how it all seemed like just yesterday.  It is so fun to look back and remember the good times and happy memories... And it is such a good reminder to do all we can to keep making more! xoxoxo

 

Goodbye Fall...

Every year I am alway so ready to take down the fall decorations after Thanksgiving and get ready for Christmas -- down with the orange and up with the red!  However, this year I felt a twinge of sadness as I began taking things down...  So, I decided to take a few pics of some things that made me happy this fall before I broke out the red and green... I might even make this a tradition every time I decorate for the holidays to remind me of the festive, warm feelings at the time:   :)

Hanging leaves from my pots and pans rack in the kitchen:

   

Owen's little turkey that ate with us every night at the dinner table:

 

Our basket of fall books - the boys would each pick one to read every night:

 

I love anything wheat-y... SO miss the Palouse in WA!

My pumpkin garlands all over the place:

 

The orange against my black furniture such as our secretary always made me smile:

 

And this pretty much sums it up for me :)

 

Ok, time to break out the red and green!   xoxoxo!

 

 

Quiet Sunday night

So, kids are in bed, hot chocolate is warming up, and we are getting ready for watch Monarch of the Glen, and Sherlock Holmes (our favorite PBS shows Sunday nights lol) and I had just a second to post the last day of Owen and Sam's spirit week costumes...  They had to split up the one pirate costume we had between the two of them:  Owen got the hat and shirt, Sam got the silver teeth (with a gem on the tooth), and pants.  They were a couple of swashbuckling mateys by the time they walked out the door:

So there we have it - we gave it a good go and had a little fun while we were at it.  Tomorrow they will go back as regular school children dressed in regular uniform.. But Halloween is near and soon we will have four ninjas (yes, ALL of them wanted to unite and be a gang of ninjas together) running around the house throwing chinese stars at each other.  Never a dull life!

Amongst all these shenanigans, I did manage to do a little designing!  I made a small add-on to our Halloween kit, because, yes, I just could not help myself.  I love making Halloween stuff.  I mainly wanted to scrap last year's Halloween, but found so many things lacking in our current kit, I had to make and add a few things.  Here is a layout I made for the Monday challenge on the blog:

 

I did a different version that I actually like better, but this works for the challenge :)  I also thought it has been a while since I did a freebie or gave something away, so I am going to do that soon! I actually just finished another kit last week that will go in the shoppe this Friday, so maybe I will give away a couple of those!  :)  hmm.. we shall see, sounds fun to me!!  :)

Ok, well, I am off, hot chocolate is ready, and I promised myself I would get some sleep tonight, and go running in the morning!!  So I better do it.  :)

Have a wonderful evening!! xo

Rock Star Day

The kids are off, and after rummaging through our costume bin and closets all morning, the boys are now Rock Stars for the day.  I have decided our household certainly lacks Rock Star attire (thank goodness), there were no gold chain necklaces or tight leather pants to be found.  Owen did insist on a wig, however, while Sam opted for a short, and pretty much unnoticable mohawk with a headband.  We found the only black t-shirts in the house, add some ripped up jeans, and voila, instant rockstars:

So that will have to do.  Tomorrow is pirate day, oy!  Or shall I say AAarrgh!

I am off to make my 10-of-the-same freezer meals for my freezer meal swap (help!) so we will see how that goes.  I am a little nervous, needless to say, to cook for 9 other families in my neighborhood.  I also know my kids are going to have a hard time eating other meals that they don't normally have, but the idea is to have at least 10 good homecooked meals a month.  So it shall be interesting, to say the least!

Between cleaning, soccer games, and the usually hustle and bustle of the day, I hope to get some designing done tonight as I have a fun new (MINI) kit coming out soon.  I have decided that I am going back to designing around photos as I scrap, doing mini kits, just to keep things interesting!  I am doing a large holiday/winter collection, so until that comes out I am going to try and get out a few smaller and random things just for fun  :)

Well, I am off, happy Wednesday!!!  xo

I am JUST doing it!!

Here I am!!  Writing a post!!!!!!  Why can't I just pop in and touch base - I have procrastinated writing on my blog for the following reasons (of which I am going to try very hard to overcome):

1-I feel my posts need to be entertaining, and a lot of my life isn't very exciting, you know.. laundry, dishes, etc.. lol.. A mom's job.. BUT it CAN be full of joy - that is the key!  To find JOY in the journey, right??

2-I always want to have some sort of a freebie for you all, to let you know how much I care!!  But those will come, my posts don't need to wait until I have one done, does it-- not sure why I always feel like it does!? lol!

3-I have tried and tried and tried to find the color of my @%^&#@ living room paint so I could answer you dear ladies that asked about it, and it is lost in the abyss of our garage and the myriad of projects we have going on, so I promise when I find it, I will let you know!!!

4-My time is never my own.  There is ALWAYS someone needing something, hungry, tired, something to do, a mess/disaster that needs cleaning up, something to design, etc, etc... But I know I need to take a few minutes every morning and just touch base with ME and express my gratitude for the many wonderful blessings in my life!  :)

5-I am a huge time waster online, and that is going to stop!!  I WILL have an agenda when I am on the computer and that will be 1-touching base with this blog, 2-updating my Facebook (if you would like a friend on Facebook, my profile link is http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1060066132&ref=name 3- answering W&W CS emails, 4- and of course designing!!!

I am sure there are many other reasons for my absence on this dear blog of mine, but I will stop there.  Having said all that, I am also renewing my commitment to My Project 365, and going to journal my life through a picture a day.  So... todays picture:

Nerd day at school today!  :)  Owen was so excited and worked hard to get his hair to stand up in the back, while Sam was a little nervous at not being 'cool,' lol!  But they both went off happy and rarin' to go!  I can't wait to hear how it went!

As a sidenote, I got up this morning and felt very inadequate and like I was failing at not getting everything done that I wanted to.  I have always felt like I am a jack of all trades, master at none.  How can I be a mom to four boys, housekeeper, cook, AND design all the things I have in my head that are just screaming to come out?  I see so many new kits out there and wonder how in the world these ladies have the time!   It is killing me not doing a Halloween kit, but alas, I have had to start my holiday/winter collection for the Digital Artists Magazine and have had to skip The Ol' day of Trick'or'Treating kit this year.  I have seen such cute Halloween kits out there and want to cry!  Just wish there were more hours in a day!!  How does one do it all without just giving up? lol.. If you have the answer, please let me know!!

Well, off for now to... you guessed it... do some cleaning, take kids to the dentist (ack, after all the Halloween candy this year already!) and other wonderfully exciting things!  If you are still here, thanks for listening, and I will ttys!!

xo

Back to blogging!!

Hello all!!  :)

So I was talking to my sister Amy the other day, who is starting a new blog, and realized it had been a very, very long time since I have posted here.  I used to enjoy it SO much, and it is kinda sad I have let life get so crazy that I couldn't keep up with something I loved to do!  So I woke up this morning and decided it was time to blog!

The last few months have been crazy insane, from kids, to designing, to keeping up a house and home - I have hardly had time to think straight!  Just to give you a quick run down of the last few months here is a little illustration as to a few things our fam has been up to:

A Vegas Trip for Greg's Continuing Ed. (for Vet. medicine):

I painted my living room:

We rode the horses:

Owen was baptized:

We put in our vinyl fence:

   

Rode again:

I ran my first 5K:

Planted and worked in our garden:

I started my rose garden (carrying on the Huff tradition):

Played at our fave spot up the Canyon:

Went on a zoo field trip:

Went Camping:

   

And fished a LOT:

Got hay for the horses (a big 3-4 day ordeal):

The kids loved it:

And rode again:

And lastly, my latest obsession, the P90X fitness program (www.p90x.com):

So that is a quick rundown of a few things we have been up to the last few months.  Now that it is summer, I have realized I need to get myself moving and shed a few pounds so that I can face the dreaded swimsuit!  So, my latest obsession has become the P90X program, which is so very cool, and I am hoping it will keep me motivated to work out more!  I love running, and I do whenever I can, but just needed a little bit more of a push!  And it has gotten Greg's attention and approval, he is doing the program with me!  :)

So this morning I made a little wordart to give myself a little motivation and encouragement to keep going and wanted to share it with you as a Freebie Challenge! (for those of you that are still with me after this novel! lol)  So here is the wordart:

And all you need to do to snag this freebie is to tell me something you want to accomplish!  Sometimes all it takes is a little remembering what our goals are to get us back on track!

Then download HERE!

So hope you like it and I can't wait to hear what it is you want to set your mind to!!! hugs!!!

Prima Grand Opening and Store-wide Sale TOMORROW!

Hello everyone!!  Previously we mentioned Prima having a grand opening today (the 30th), but it has been changed - here is the NEWS:

We hope you will enjoy the celebration we have planned on our Grand Opening January 31st!

25% Off EVERYTHING at the shoppe! See new kits from your favorite designers and check out the growing selection of Physical goodies too!

• Enjoy a chat on Jan. 31st at 10pm EST in the DigiShopTalk Chat Room to learn all about PrimaHybrid and ask questions. You might find a freebie too!
• Participate in added challenges! Prizes of both digital and physical products.
• In the shoppe, pick up your Free True Love Candy Wrapper from Iron Orchid Designs. This is just de-lish!

We will have lots of new things in the shoppe, and will be also be having a W&W sale, so don't miss this great event!!!!

hugs !

Blinkie Contest!

(click image to enlarge!)

Prima News, Gift Card Winners, and a Freebie coming soon!!

Hello all!!  I hope you have had a wonderful January so far, things have been busy here as always.  I  have been designing like mad and I am so excited to show you my new kits and I think you will LOVE them!  I am so happy with the way they are turning out!  They will be done by the end of this month as Prima (if you haven't heard the news, check out our W&W blog!) is having a Grand Opening on the 30th!  So look for lots of fun new things and sales that weekend!  You won't want to miss it!!  :)

I do want to say this about Prima:  For those of you that are not into hybrid, never fear!  Prima Hybrid is opening a new market to paper scrappers that are looking into the digital aspect, and is gearing a lot of their tutorials and physical products towards them.  For those of you that are strictly digital, we are doing the same fun digital kits and products as before.  The only difference is some of our products will be sold at two different stores.  ALL our products will be shown at our W&W store, but some will have a link to the Prima store.  This is because we have agreed to design some products exclusively for Prima, and can therefore only be purchased there.  The other designers at Prima are very talented also, we are thrilled to be a part of their team.  So, it should be a fun, good change!!!

And now to announce the winners of the Gift Card blog challenge!  I have held off giving these out for 2 reasons:  1) I wanted to wait until the Prima store opened so winners would have the choice of getting products there, and 2) I have lots of fun new products coming out by the end of this month!  Winners will have their choice of receiving Gift Cards at either Prima or W&W, or a combination of both!  I also decided to pick SIX winners, instead of THREE like I said.. so...  drum roll please!  The winners were picked by random numbers by my hubby.. and they are............

Teresa (fergta97), Jan (jbullington), Janet (mjmcbride), Cher (cmoynihan), Liz (mybandito), and Brooke (stransurf)!  So congrats ladies, you will have received your emails by now, so have fun with your moolah!!

There will be lots more opportunities for more Gift Certificates and challenges at the end of this month around Prima's Grand Opening, so check back often!

I also have a really fun freebie I am working on for you to thank you all for your support and kindness.  You all have been so wonderful - I have enjoyed your comments and thoughts.  Thanks for your emails and words of encouragement.  It is so rewarding to design for such a lovely group of ladies!!

I am off to make pancakes (I promised the boys I would today!) I hope you all have a wonderful Saturday!!

Project 365

Welcome to my Project 365 page!  If you are wondering why I am doing this, or what it's all for, click on this link. If you would like to do this also, or, if you are already doing Project 365, leave me a link in the comments so I can check out your pics too!!  :-D

I now have a gallery for my Project 365 so go check it out HERE!!