first day of school

I'm now a mom of a 6th grader & a 3rd grader...

today is the first day of school for our boys.  they were up bright & early at 6 to get ready for their day. unfortunately their bus is scheduled to be at our house a little after 7, so school mornings are usually up early so we're not rushing around.  this is not really that big of change for us, the boys & I are early risers anyway {which I'm thankful of this time of year when we don't need to be dragging them out of bed}.  they both were bright eyed & excited to be back with friends {plus I think they just do well with a regular schedule}. thankfully this year the morning was cool & beautiful & they were more than willing to let me take pictures. last year was rainy & gloomy & I didn't get more than 3 bad photos.  Lydia insisted on waiting on the porch while her "boys" were waiting for the bus... hence the picture of her bundled up in the chair!  this morning we've been pretty productive so far, doing some cleaning while the boys are gone & just enjoying some time alone.  good luck Collin & Evan!  we love you & wish you a great school year :) <3 mom, dad & sis

{robyn}

it's almost time...

today is our boys' last day of summer.  tonight we go to school to unpack supplies & see their classmates & teachers.  I'm up to my ears in school supplies & just trying to keep Lydie from using them all {she gets it honest}.  I have to admit I had a little sad moment this morning when Evan came downstairs & I gave him a good morning hug.  guess I was thinking about from here on out, it won't be the relaxed, lazy mornings we've enjoyed the last few months, but the rush of getting everyone fed, dressed & out the door on time so the bus doesn't leave them behind.  for as much as they might have annoyed or made me think I couldn't wait for school to start again, I have to say I've loved having all my kids home with me this summer.  The house was messier & noisier, but I've enjoyed their company & it's been a pretty nice change from previous years.  I'll be enjoying days again with just me & the little miss, but she'll be at school 3 mornings a week starting next week too.  I guess I'll use that time to power out some work so I can spend some valuable time with the kids when they get off the bus.  the weather the last few days has me craving fall... I can't wait for more fall weather & all the changes that go along with it {like new cute clothes for us all}!

{robyn}

addicted

over the summer, the boys have been crazy for this online game called runescape.  Yes it has well surpassed their love for the wii or the ds.  They had started playing it when at one of their cousins house & couldn't stop talking about it & were playing the free version for a long time before they decided to buy their own membership cards.  Evidently having membership unlocks a whole new set of opportunities to make money, buy stuff, etc.  They just can't get enough it seems.  Collin & Evan start talking about this & that & I'm lost... but they get so excited about it.  I think it's sort of cool, though, because they can talk & play with all their cousins that are on at the same time.  We've been struggling with time, though.  The plan was an hour at a time.  One hour of play had to have at LEAST 15 minutes of reading time & a few chores thrown in there when needed.  Some days I'm better than others on enforcing that rule. Lydia just told them a little bit ago... "Evan, do you see what the clock is telling you?"  heehee.  I wonder where she heard that from?  

{robyn}

around here...

we're gearing up for a new school year starting next week.  

The boys start Thursday for 2 half days & Lydia starts preschool the next week.  Trying to get school supplies organized, making sure clothes fit, & that we have "real" shoes that fit.  We've been to preschool to meet Lydia's new teachers & although we knew who Collin's teacher was going to be, we weren't quite sure who Evan was going to have & were happy to get a note from his teacher this week!  I think it will be a challenging year, with Collin entering the 6th grade, he's just has one more year before he moves into jr high {really?} & with all 3 of them in school!  Somehow I'm not as sad about Lydia going to preschool as I thought I'd be.  I think it's because I see how completely excited she is about it.

We're moving the kids' rooms around.  

The boys decided to put the bunk beds up again that we had set up when we first moved in & room with each other again.  They're excited to make the room their own with a new color scheme.  This means that Lydia is moving into Evan's room & she'll finally have a real room with a closet {yay!} & a door.  Yes a door.  Oh & wall space {that I've already been informed will be pink} to hang lots of girly stuff on.  When we bought this house we thought we weren't going to have any more little  people besides the boys, but I guess someone had a different plan for us! This meant the only free room was my studio space, which was a wide open room at the top of the steps that really doesn't have a way to put a door on.  The room is big & I love it for her, but it's just not practical as a bedroom.  This room will again become my workspace, but will also become a family workspace, where everyone will have a desk or table space to do homework, projects, etc.  I think this will be nice & will hopefully keep our island & dining room table less cluttered {I can dream, right?}.

We're trying to get in the last of summer.

Trying to figure out how to stick a little more fun into the summer.  Hopefully we'll find a day or two to get to the pool before school starts.  Plus the boys are trying to get the most of video games, computer games, playing outside, riding 4 wheelers, relaxing on the couch... oh yeh, just not doing homework.  

Making lists.

Dan's got a list of things he wants to try to get accomplished around here over the next few months & a long list of things we need to try to complete this fall & winter.  He always has lofty goals of what he plans on accomplishing over the months when he has to be stuck inside.  Hopefully we can work together to complete several partially finished things around the house {heated floors, putting flooring down in the basement, trim, paint, etc, etc}.  

Getting ready for school/church sales.

Dan & I are on our final year of our churches God's Acre Sale committee.  It's been lots of work & lots of fun. All our local churches have these annual sales to support our church & Holy Trinity Schools {where our kids attend school}.  These sales are so great... charity auctions, great meals {ours is a yummy turkey dinner} & seeing friends & family that all come together for a great cause.  

Working, working, working.

Although I've been trying to spend some more time with the kids before they go back to school, I've been working hard on new digital products for my Etsy shop & new ideas for my blog/website.  The design work isn't the hard part... figuring out how to get people to the website & thinking about what advertising options are best are really what can be puzzling!  I'm sure anyone who has a website can relate.  I'm so thankful for everyone who has supported me so far :)  You're all the best.

Anyway... lots of work to get to today.  Cleaning closets & dressers & moving stuff around & hopefully some painting are in the works for this weekend!  Hope you all have a productive weekend as well.

{robyn}

it's all coming back to me...

my love for scrapbooking, that is.  It's interesting that when I started designing products for the scrapbook industry, of course I was scrapbooking all the time & was my favorite pastime.  I couldn't wait to get new pictures, new products & ideas flowed freely.  A few years in designing & it was harder & harder to find the time {or desire} to scrapbook.  I'm not sure if it was because I moved away from my own style or I just wasn't inspired anymore?  I've dabbled here & there with pages, but looking back in my pictures over the last weeks I've noticed how little I've scrapbooked over the last 5 years.  So many photos of the boys when they were not so grown up & the little miss as a baby that have maybe been put into frames, but as you all know... the photos that you capture that don't make their way to a frame are usually the most precious.  Well, I'm back people {in digital form now}... & I'm loving every minute that I can create a new page. I know to some it may sound silly, but I know you scrapbookers know what I mean when I say this is for my kids.  They'll have these memories of how I saw them, how I loved them & how important these little moments were to me.  So here you go, another page completed with photos that just melt my heart.  These were taken when Lydia was about 5 months old, Evan was 5 & Collin was 8.  They were soooo in love with their baby sister.

& here's the new kit that I used to capture this memory!  COZY. {I'll be putting it the store soon}

about the page:

layered template: guide no. 1: three paper peonies. {slightly changed}

all papers: cozy: pink trike design.

reads: i love the way you love her. 2+1=3. july 2007.

{robyn}