HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Just wanted to pop in and say Happy Halloween!!
I hope your weekend was spooktacular!
Brodey had a fantastic time! We just got back from Holdenville so I won't be posting pics tonight!
Today is Sketchy Sunday on the Inky Fingers blog! If you need a little scrappy inspiration check it out!
I'm headed to bed!
Nighty Night!
LUV APRIL :)

I am Iron Man

Every time Brodey puts on his Iron Man costume I hear I AM IRON MAN by Ozzy. Haha!
He was pretty excited about wearing it today! We had to practice pulling it up and down so he could go to the bathroom. I didn't want a text from Mrs Tuck to bring pants and underwear to school!
At Woodall they have a little Fall Festival in the gym for all the kids. The older students put it on to raise money. Brodey got to play all sorts of games and win prizes. Actually you got a prize whether you won or not and it didn't really matter if the kids had tickets. They all got to play! They also had ice cream and popcorn! Yum!
Brodey had a blast! He ate candy, popcorn, cupcakes and cookies all day long. You are only a kid once, right!?
I took a ton of pics, but I'm not even going to edit them right now! This one was taken with my phone before he somehow got his costume filthy. Boys!
Since he wore Iron Man today I guess he will be Luigi tomorrow! I have to figure out some stuffing for a belly! He looks really funny as Luigi!
Well I'm going to make dinner! I hope everyone has a safe and FUN Halloween!
Eat lots of candy!
LUV YA!
April :)

Break Room

I want a break room. I'm not talking about a room with a table, water cooler, and microwave. I want a cement room that has all sorts of breakable things in it so that when I get angry I can take a break, go to the break room, and BREAK everything. It would be very satisfying. I think it's a grand idea. I could have used it today!
I had trouble with this and that and to top it ALL off AT&T called me up to inform me that the DSL Internet I have been looking forward to isn't going to happen. The two other people I talked to were wrong. I cannot get it at my address. So instead of telling off Hughes Net I want to tell off AT&T. I am so beyond disappointed. I know that there are important problems in the world, but I can't tell you how excited I was to be getting REAL Internet. Ah well. My goal next week is to see if an actual person will come and make sure I can't get it. There was a little issue with my address showing up incorrectly and I won't leave it alone until a person tells me to my face that I cannot get it. So there.
I had to take Bro to the doctor today. He started wheezing last night again. The doc says he has seasonal asthma and it is to be taken seriously. He says if it isn't treated it can cause health problems on down the road. We came home with some new breathing treatment stuff and I hope that will help!
We acquired two new (allergy free) pets tonight. I will post more on that tomorrow.
Mrs Tuck sent me this pic of Bro at school gutting a pumpkin.
I said "Wow! I can't believe he is actually sticking his hand in there!"
She said "Oh he was totally grossed out!"
When I got to school I said "I was pretty surprised he stuck his hands in there! He's the kid that refused to tear up his first birthday cake!"
She said "Oh yes he said this is totally disgusting!" Hahaha! That is so him!
His hair was pretty crazy that day. He needs a haircut so it sort of looked like an older lady right out of the beauty shop! ;)
Today was spirit day so they had to wear their Woodall Wildcat gear. It's so fun to see all the kiddos walking into class with their orange on!
Tomorrow is the big class Halloween party! At Woodall they actually get to wear their costumes to school! So fun! He can't decide on whether to wear Iron Man or Luigi. I'm thinking he will choose Iron Man because that will be more fun to play on the playground! ;)
Too bad I don't have that break room built yet. I just spent forever editing a new video for Inky Fingers and the program locked up. Go figure. I'm giving up for tonight.
At least Real Housewives of Beverly Hills was on. Dishing about it with Keysha helped put me in a better mood!
I sure hope tomorrow is better! I'm probably being too optimistic to hope that when I come in here in the morning my video program will be working again. Ha!
Hope your Thursday was better than mine! If not I'll send you a personal invite to my Break Room when it's finished! ;)
LUV YA!
April

7 Days

No I haven't been watching that stupid Naomi Watts movie, The Ring. Teehee. When my sister and I DID go to the movies and see it (it was NOT my idea) as the credits were rolling after it was done my cell phone rings. VERY loudly. It was my mom, thank goodness, and not the creepy voice saying "7 Days."
"MOM!?!!?!?! WHY are you calling me!?! GEEZ! You scared the crap out of me!"
She's like "Why would me calling scare you?"
"Oh nevermind." I look around and everyone is looking at me like OH you are SO next! I haven't watched a VHS tape since! ;)
Today was crazy hair day for Brodey at school. He looked cute and I would share with you but my internet is not cooperating. In 7 days I will have DSL. I am beyond happy. It is finally available at my house. That means I will be able to do things on the internet like normal people. Oh and I can tell HughesNet to....well I'll censor that.
Another reason I am super excited about this is that I have started my new blog Inky Fingers! Weird name, right? You get it if you have ever taken a papercrafting class of mine or been at a crop with me. When I do anything scrapbook related my fingers are stained with ink for a day or two! I always say "we aren't having fun if our fingers aren't inky!"
Ever since I moved from Edmond in 2008 people have been requesting some sort of online class. Well it's finally time! At Inky Fingers I will be sharing more How To's, sketches, videos, kit classes, and much more!
It doesn't matter if you are a beginner or an expert! This is for everyone! If you have always wanted to start papercrafting, but didn't know WHERE to start I have you in mind! I will be sharing basic beginner How To's just for you! So check it out if you are interested! Inky Fingers is also on Facebook!
I'm very excited about this and had to share!
I'll post Brodey's funny pics tomorrow!
Hope your Wednesday was extra fab!

PJ Day!

It's Red Ribbon week at Woodall school! Don't ask me what that means because I'm not 100% sure. All I know is Monday was hat day and today was PJ day.
All of the photos are from my phone, so they aren't the bestest quality. Actually I didn't notice Brodey's eyes were half closed in the photo above until it was too late. We were in a hurry to get out the door this morning.
Brodey was VERY excited to wear his Halloween PJ's. I get him a pair every year, but he has never been able to wear them outside of the house! Haha! All the kiddos at school looked so cute in their PJ's! They were so proud!
They were even MORE proud of this "limb" they found! Haha! Mrs Tuck sent me this photo this morning. It looks more like a TREE to me, but okay! It must have blown down from the crazy wind yesterday.
In case you don't know I HATE wind. It freaks me out. I actually sleep with shotgun earplugs in on nights like last night. I know it's dumb to live on a hill when you hate the wind, but I had no idea it would be so much worse up here. I think we need one of those huge wind things that generate electricity. We could supply an entire city with electricity!

So I didn't have to cook dinner tonight! I love to cook but I HATE to clean up. Who does? We ate at Ted's. Brodey chose. As soon as he found out we were going to Tulsa he starts asking to "go to that one place with the chips and cheese sauce." He was so looking forward to it that I was afraid we would get there and we would have to wait. I'm not so patient when it comes to waiting to eat somewhere. I was very happy when we didn't have to wait!
The photo is at Ted's and it's with Eric's new phone. He got the new 4, 4G, whatever it is. He ran over his and that is what he gets. If I had ran over my iphone I would have another Razor! Oh well. At least he promised to get me the new one when I'm due for an upgrade. Secretly the only reason I want a new one is because of the new camera. It has one on each side so you can actually see yourself in the pic. That's Bro and I testing it out. Hehe!
Well I'm headed to bed! Thankfully it will be a quiet night! No earplugs! Wahoo!
Hope your Tuesday was terrific!
LUV APRIL :)

ETA: So my bud, Keysha, reminded me that Red Ribbon Week is drug free week! Thanks Keysha! How I forgot that I'm not sure, but JUST SAY NO kids! ;)

Just Beautiful

I just had to share the beautiful view from my front porch.
I was frustrated because I can't get my blog header to center and I looked out my window to see that. I couldn't find my big camera so I had to grab my smaller one. I'm just glad I caught it. Sunsets change so quickly.
I'm still frustrated about my blog header, but I'm grateful to have enjoyed such a beautiful Oklahoma sunset!
I hope your weekend is going great!
LUV YA!
April :)

Persistence

Ever wonder what an IPhone would look like if it got ran over? Me neither...but that's what it looks like.
Eric went to the gym last night and called around 7 to say he was headed home. Around 7:30 I got worried. At 7:35 I called his phone and it went straight to voicemail. I thought it must have gone dead because if he were on the phone it would have rang THEN gone to voicemail.
About 5 minutes later the home phone rings and it comes up on the caller ID as 4 Mile Stop. (That's a quick stop about 4 miles from my house.) I'm a little freaked out thinking great is he okay? Did he get into an accident? Nope.
"Hello"
"Hey um I'm at 4 Mile and I stopped to get gas at Kum and Go in Muskogee and I put my phone on the running board of the Jeep and I forgot about it and I drove off."
I'm not at all surprised. "Well okay did you go back and look for it?"
"Yes I think it fell off at the gas station and someone got it."
I'm like "Well that is hard to believe since I just tried to call you and it went straight to voicemail. I'll bet it fell off in the road and it got ran over."
"You think?!?! Well can you call and turn it off in case someone took it?"
So I let him go and I call and disable it. I also call Kum and Go and ask them to call if someone happens to return it.
He gets home and AT&T tells him they can't track it unless he has some app on it. Surprise! He doesn't have the app.
When he gets home he looks all in his car to make sure it isn't in there and we decide to go back and look for it. Bro falls asleep in about 5 minutes and Eric looks all around Kum and Go with a flashlight and it isn't there. They are doing construction on highway 62 towards our house and I drive until a car comes and then I pull over by the cones. Eric looks all around and doesn't see it.
I drive towards home and I am so focused on the road and trying to see it I've given myself a headache. Finally at 2 mile road (over 6 miles from the Kum and Go) I think I see something.
"Hey I just saw something. I'm gonna turn around."
"Really? There's no way! Do you really think it could have stayed on the running board that long?" Says the eternal pessimist.
"Well sure I don't know why not. I'm still going to turn around."
I go to the next turn around and it isn't far enough. I go BACK to the turn around again and when I drive passed it I'm like "Well I'm not sure if that's it, but it looks like it had a flap." His phone cover is a leather case that flaps open.
So I go back to the turn around and stop in the turning lane. Eric gets out and run across the highway. I see him pick something up and he runs back to the car and he's like "Wow I can't even believe you saw that."
It was his phone! Well an annialated phone.
"Don't mess with it!!! Just put it in this bag! MAYBE they can recover your SIM card!"
We still can't believe that it rode on the car for that long OR that I even saw it. Persistance paid off! The phone doesn't work but at least we know it wasn't taken!
I have to say that this is totally typical of Eric. This is the third time he has left a phone on his car and drove off. Once the phone was lost forever and the second time he realized it quickly and it was still there. Just Monday when we went to eat in Tulsa with his brother and sister he left his phone on the table at the restaurant and I had to go back and get it. Oh and he also left his car keys in his brother's truck and I had to take him to work the next morning. It's crazy.
Sadly enough this probably won't cure his forgetfullness. I think about how many times we have found other people's things and returned them. You just have to hope if it happens again someone will be honest enough that we will get it back!
Makes me think of this quote. I love it.

People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway. — Mother Teresa

Last weekend was WAY fun! We went to a fun wedding, had some great cake and had fun with friends. We then continued the fun at Max's in Muskogee. Here are a couple of pics from the wedding.
Me and the Mr.

Me and Kelly A.K.A. Aunt Georgia! Love you Kelly!
Those are the only pics I got. I didn't want to lug the big camera around so I just took the baby camera. I should have taken more, but I'm glad I got these two! The last few times Eric and I went somewhere together we didn't get pics together! Geez I know!
Well I'm not sure what the plans are for this weekend. If there are in fact plans I don't remember what they are. ;) I know it's going to rain here so I'm sure we won't be outside! We still need to take Bro to the pumpkin patch! I haven't decided where we will be going yet.


Happy Friday!
I love you all! Have a fab weekend!
April :)

Dessert: Butterfinger Cupcakes

Oh yes. You read that right. If you are on a diet do not go any further. Just close this window and walk away. If you are not on a diet you HAVE to make these!
I LOVE to cook. LOVE it. I especially love to bake. The thing is, though, I get sick of what I bake. I want maybe one cupcake after I'm done baking it and I don't want to see them again for a while. I want to see OTHER people enjoy them. That's the fun part for me! That's why only two of these little gems are staying in my fridge tomorrow when Eric takes the rest to work!
So next weekend when your kid dumps his cute little plastic jack-o-lantern full of candy out on the floor grab about 6 fun size Butterfingers when he looks away! You won't be disappointed!

Butterfinger Cupcakes

You will need:
- 1 (18.25oz) Package Milk Chocolate Cake Mix
- 2 (2.1oz) Butterfinger Candy Bars OR 6 Fun Size Butterfinger Candy Bars, finely chopped
- 1 (14oz) Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 1 (12.25oz) Jar Caramel Ice Cream Topping
- 1 Container Cool Whip (I used the larger one. Not sure what the ounces are)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13x9 inch baking pan with nonstick baking spray or line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
Prepare cake mix following package directions. Add chopped Butterfinger to batter and stir well, reserving some Butterfinger for garnishing. Pour batter into pan and bake as directed on the package.
Let cake cool for 5 minutes. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, poke holes in cake in 1 inch intervals or into the center of the cupcakes, only poking halfway through the cake. (I also took toothpicks and poked holes around the outside of the cupcakes.)

Mix condensed milk and caramel topping. Pour mixture evenly over cake or pour onto cupcakes. (I had a ton of this mixture left with the cupcakes. When I make the cupcakes again I will only use half of the condensed milk and half of the caramel.)
If you are making cupcakes the topping tends to soak the cupcake liner. I just put an extra liner on each cupcake.
Spread Cool Whip on cake or cupcakes, sprinkle with crushed Butterfinger, and chill until served.

Well I hope you like them! I know Eric and Brodey did!
Let me know what you think or if you have any questions!
Hope you had a great Wednesday!
LUV YA!
April :)

One Proud Momma

Brodey was recognized yesterday for Student of the Month! It was fun! They had an all school assembly and all of the Students of the Month for October were called up and received their certificate!
The pic on the right is with my phone for Eric. He didn't get to come because he was at work. Thank goodness Brodey was better by Monday! It would have been sadder than missing the zoo to miss that!
Sunday night I warned Bro that he would have to go in front of the school to receive his certificate.
"Will I have to say anything, Mom? I don't want to say anything. I will walk up there...I won't be shy but I don't want to talk."
I'm like "No you won't have to say anything, Bro." I'm thinking crap I better ask Mrs Tuck because he will never forgive me if he has to talk.
Thankfully he didn't. He is like his Daddy. Eric used to hate to speak in public. In fact he took Sign Language in college to avoid Speech. It took some time, but he's fine with it now.
That morning I confirmed with Mrs Tuck that he did NOT have to speak. I was so glad. I knew he could do it if he was expecting it, but not by surprise!
After the assembly they had all of the kiddos line up for a group pic. After they were done another teacher took Bro and Tessa back to the lunchroom. I was sort of spying on Bro (as I tend to do) and he went to run out of the gym with the other kids but stopped when he realized Tessa wasn't with him. He stopped and walked back to Tessa and walked with her. Every time he would get ahead he would stop, look back, and wait on her. SO SWEET! It didn't surprise me, though, because when their names were called he waited for her, grabbed her hand, and they walked up together to get their certificates. It was so cute! Yes I got a pic and YES it is so sweet. Makes me one proud Momma!
I took a ton of pics, but I'll be doing a layout about it so I can't post all of the pics! :) I took pics of Tessa because her parents couldn't be there and I also took pics of a couple of other kids whose parents I know.
Once I got home I edited the pics and wanted to print them and take them back to school with me to give to the kiddos. (If I didn't do it then I would totally forget to do it.)
So I get online to Walmart.com and I can't find the photo center link anywhere. I go do a Google search and find it. I go to log in and it will NOT let me log in! Come on I have been printing pics with them forever! It won't even recognize my email! I'm like what in the world! Maybe they changed up the site!
So I re-register, get all the pics uploaded, go to check out, and I have to choose a WalMart to pick them up at. The only problem was it wanted a PROVINCE. WHAT!?!?! A province? I'm like this is weird...until I realize it's CANADA WALMART! I didn't even know there were Walmarts in Canada! It takes forever to upload anything with my not so great internet so I was pretty frustrated and feeling pretty stupid. I still got everything printed, though, before school was out. The kids were very excited about the photos so it was all worth it!
It finally rained today! Yeah! I was very happy about it until I realized that it hasn't rained in over a month and today is the day I have to take the dogs to the vet. FUN! Wet dogs stink...in case you didn't know.
Well I'm off to start dinner! Chicken Enchiladas!
Have a wonderful Tuesday!
LUV YA!
April :)

Fading Away

For some reason when I typed that title I got that song in my head "Sailing Away" from the 80's. Remember that song?

Anyway! Brodey's crazy bad Amoxicillan rash is finally starting to fade away! Thank goodness! You know as TERRIBLE as it looked he really did okay with it. There were times when he would get itchy, but for the most part baths and cream knocked it out.
He still has spots but they aren't the angry red ones from yesterday. They are just light pink now. I'm so glad I took pictures because there is no way you can explain to someone what that looked like! CRAZY!
I got to get out of the house last night and I was SO thankful! GNO(Girls Night Out) was last night! SO SO SO much FUN! We did Wiggin' Out and it was hilarious! Many photos were taken, but none by me. I forgot my camera in my mad dash to make it out of the house before the boys tied me up and made me stay home! ;) I'll be posting some pics soon!
I got my wigs from Wal-Mart. They had an entire Lady Gaga section which was hilarious! I would totally go as her if I had a party to go to! I only got one pair of Gaga glasses and Brodey thought they were hilarious this morning! Hahaha!
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is on my DVR waiting on me to watch it. I had a dream last night that I was on the show. Ya right! I caught little tidbits last night while it was on at GNO and those ladies are beyond any other housewives. I cannot WAIT to watch it while I eat lunch today! Yippee!!!
Thanks everyone that posted about Brodey! I really appreciate your well wishes!!
Well I'm off to re-clean the house after the boys were left alone last night. Crazy how quickly they can destroy it.
Have a wonderful weekend!!!!
LUV APRIL :)

Poor Kid

Wow. Brodey actually looks worse today. It's like the larger spots morphed together to form even larger spots. Now he looks more like what I do when I get my random rashes.
Eric's right. We pumped him full of the Amoxicillin for a week. Now it just has to get out.
I keep taking pics of him, but I can't quite capture what he really looks like. It's crazy.
As terrible as these photos look it's WAY worse in real life. His meds are kicking in again so he's feeling better.
Yesterday at Eric's office they had potluck lunch. I was supposed to make something, but I didn't know if Bro had Chicken Pox. I didn't think anyone wanted to eat anything coming out of the pox house so I didn't send anything. Once we found out it was just an allergic reaction I knew I wanted to make the Pumpkin Creme Pies that I linked on Facebook. OH MY GOSH.
These little gems are with Eric on his way to work as I type. They are SO good. I tried one last night after I made them and the cookies were good enough on their own. Then I whipped up the creme part and oh my goodness they were awesome. THEN I let them set in the fridge all night and when I tried one this morning I just about passed out! I told Eric no one would believe I made them. They are ridiculous. I'm glad they are out of my house! Haha!
Thank goodness Bunco/GNO is tonight! I can't wait!
Well I'm cleaning my house today. We should be at the zoo. It's a perfect day so I hope that Mrs Tucks Pre-K class has a wonderful time! Wish we could be there!!
Have a fantastic Thursday!
LUV YA!
APRIL :)

BAD Amoxicillan...BAD!!

Well I was so thankful today when Dr Cole told me that he did NOT have the chicken pox that I cried. Literally.
All I could think was that these nasty red things all over my poor kid will not be turning into scabs and scars. SO thankful. I was really freaking out. He was itching in his ears, his eyes and his mouth. I was thinking good grief how are we going to do this for 7 to 10 days?!?!

Apparantly he has an allergy to Amoxicillan. He has taken it before and last night was his last dose, but the doc said it can happen to anyone any time they take a medication. Brodey asked "why am I itching so bad mom?"
I said "Well Bro your body just didn't like those antibiotics you were taking."
"Oh the bubble gum one? That's too bad because I liked that one!"
Stinks cause that's the one that tastes the best!
Eric is allergic to penicillan. I haven't found anything I'm allergic to. For a long time I thought I had a nut allergy. I would get crazy hives and the allergy specialist said it was stress or just in my head. Who knows. I haven't had them in a while...thank goodness...but I totally understand how Brodey feels. It's happened to me about 5 times.
He gave him a steroid and said to keep out of the sun and no school the rest of the week. Brodey has done okay with understanding why he can't go to the zoo. He's bummed, of course, but understands why.
So everyone is talking about the big earthquake around OKC. Does anyone else remember when this happened in 1998? I was actually taking Earthquakes and Volcanos at OU and we had an earthquake around Norman. It was crazy because I was home alone at my parents when it happened and ran outside. It freaked me out! I had no idea what it was! It must have been a big one (I can't remember exactly how big) because my parents live 80 miles from Norman!
Did it happen early this morning? I ask because Brodey woke up at 6 and we went to the couch. Around 8 or so the decor on top of my tv cabinet shook and I thought it was Eric walking around. (Our house has a crawl space and you can hear when people walk around) He was in the shower so it wasn't him. I thought it was the huge helicopters that fly over frequently but didn't see any when I looked outside. That would be crazy if it was from the earthquake. We are over 2 hours away from Norman!
Well I'm going to let Bro soak in the tub for a bit. That Aveeno Oatmeal Bath really helps!
Poor kid. Doesn't he look terrible! Makes me itch just looking at him!
Have a great Wednesday!
LUV APRIL

You have GOT to be kidding me!

So today I drove around the state and back to get my hair done. SO worth it.
I also got flipped off by an elderly gentleman who thought I had cut him off. I'm pretty sure he had his bifocals on because I was nowhere near the poor man. I got a big laugh out of it, though, which I'm sure made him even more angry.
I also had a mild panic attack that started with Brodey coming into the office saying his leg was itching.
"Look mom. What's this on my leg. It really itches."
"Oh it looks like a few bites. Where in the world would you get bites?"
I pull off his pants.
"Oh well you have them all over your legs....and your butt."
Don't panic don't panic.
I raise up his shirt. "Oh gosh they are all over your belly." OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH
I take off his shirt. "WHAT THE!?!?! Oh crap Bro! What in the world!?!? I think you have the chicken pox!!!"
Seriously!?! Didn't we just deal with pnuemonia. Which as while I'm panicking I'm of course I'm Googling it and something about pnuemonia and chicken pox and I'm having a mild PANIC ATTACK!
I'm thinking okay Eric has had them for sure....have I HAD THEM!?!?! AAAHHHH!!!!
I call my mom. "Um okay mom. So Bro has these red dots all over him...literally all over him...and they look like flea bites...so um...do you think that maybe just maybe it could be the chicken pox!?!"
She laughs.
"Mom this is serious I'm freaking out. I mean didn't he have this vaccine!?! Why does he have them!?! Did I HAVE THEM!?! Am I going to get them!?!"
She's like "Well remember you had them when Shan had them. Right? No wait that was Ally. DID you have them?"
"Oh my gosh mom!!! Are you serious!?!?! I have to go I have to call the doctor."
I call the doctor and they can get him in at 10 in the morning. Thank goodness. I'm like well what in the world do I do until then? They tell me to just give him Benadryl orally and the cream. Okay.
I call my mom back.
"So between me and Meme we figured out that you DID have them."
I'm like "Okay well I don't remember! Was it a mild case!?!"
"Well yes but you shouldn't get them again. Send me a photo of Brodey."
I send her one and she looks at it and LAUGHS again!
"Yep that's what it is."
GREAT! Just great! We are just getting over pnuemonia. The zoo trip is Thursday. The only thing I can think is thank goodness it's not Halloween yet!
After I calmed down I stuck him in the tub. He feels much better. He's VERY VERY good about not scratching. I explained to him about scarring and how they will be scabs.
Is it stupid to hope that when I take him to the doctor in the morning they tell me it's an allergic reaction or something?!?! I can hope, right?
Wow what a month. Poor kid. I feel for his poor little body. I hope that he will be okay since he has been sick! :(
Okay I'm off to apply more Benadryl cream.
I hope your Tuesday is better than mine!
LUV YA
APRIL

Back to School...Back to School...Mondays Are SO Not Cool

Well the Bro man went back to school today! He was VERY excited! As soon as we walked in the door all of his little friends were like "Brodey! It's Brodey! Hi Brodey!" So cute! Needless to say he had a wonderful day despite having to sit out during PE.
I'm surprised we even made it out the door this morning. Geez. It was one of those mornings.
Last night I asked Eric twice if he gave Brodey all of his meds. He said yes. I asked him if he gave him his nose spray. He said yes. So I went to bed and didn't worry about it.
This morning I woke Bro up to get ready and he seemed fine but as soon as he took a sip of his chocolate milk he started coughing. I was like WHAT!?!?! He hasn't been coughing at all! I thought it had to be from drainage because the milk triggered it. I asked him if his nose was runny and he said yes.
"ERIC!!!"
"Ya."
"Did you give Brodey his nose spray last night?"
"No"
I'm like "WHAT!?!?! You told me you did!"
"No I gave him his other meds but I guess I didn't give him his nose spray."
I'm like fantastic! The morning he is to go back to school and he is coughing. Sheesh!
I give him his nose spray, breathing treatment, and antibiotic. The cough syrup he prescribed makes him way drowsy so I didn't want to give it to him. I thought since I'm literally three minutes from school Mrs Tuck can call me if he starts to feel bad. Right!?! Decisions like that make me crazy because I don't want to be the mom that sends he sick kid to school, right!?!
So since I don't want to be turned in to DHS it took me a while to decide to send him to school. Because of my indecisiveness we were running late and as we are walking out the door I think I should give him the Mucinex to break up the drainage! Perfect! That always helps!
Bro is already in the carseat so I run back into the house and pour some up. I run back out and hand it to him and he has some little Mario Brothers toys in his hands. He tries to grab the cough syrup while still holding the toys and, of course, he spills it all over his jeans and all over his carseat. Perfect. Happy Monday!
We go back in and he gets changed and off we go to school. Like I said he was thrilled to be back and his friends were glad to see him!
It was cool this morning so I wore a little sweatshirt jacket to take him to school. I stuck my carkeys in my jacket pocket and zipped it right up. As I'm walking back to the car I try to unzip the pocket and it's stuck. After the morning I had I laughed a little. Well until I realized it wasn't coming undone so easily. So there I am standing outside my car pulling and tugging on my jacket. Finally I had to take it off. By this time my fingers are red and swollen, it isn't so funny anymore and I'm thinking if I only had a knife. After about 5 minutes I finally get the stupid pocket unzipped and I get in my car and leave. I made it home without further incident and the rest of the day went fine. Well I better not jinx myself. It's only 5 o'clock.
So the moral of the story is make sure you give your kid all of their meds, don't give them cough syrup in their carseat, and by all means DO NOT put your car keys or any other important items in a zipper pocket!
I'm signing off now. I hope your Monday has been incident free!
LUV YA!
APRIL :)

Happy Friday to Ya!

Well it's finally Friday! This week has gone by very slowly.
We had fallen into a routine and it got all messed up with Brodey home from school.
He is feeling much better. I think the meds are kicking the pneumonia's butt! The breathing treatments help a lot. I only had to give him cough meds once.
He hasn't been able to run around or go outside and that has been really hard on him. He is VERY active and it's funny because every time he starts to run I hear him say "no running no running" under his breath. LOL He is focused on getting better for the big zoo trip next week at school. The doc said he should be okay to go, but we go back to see him before then. He hates the nasal spray, but has been a champ about all the meds! About every five minutes he looks outside and says "I hate being sick." Poor boy! Don't we all!?!
Not much to report around here. I did see a lonely little hummingbird at the feeder today. It's the first one in about a week. I'm leaving a feeder up with fresh food for the little travelers stopping by! I think my hibiscus must look like little red beacons to them flying over. They are all bloomed out like it's spring or something!
Well I'm off to cook some dinner!
Have a wonderful weekend!! If you are in Oklahoma the weather will be beautiful!
LUV APRIL :)

How To: Basic Tools for Scrapbooking

What tools do I need to start scrapbooking? What tools do you use? I get those questions quite a bit. That's why today I'm going to tell you about the basic tools I use and the ones you will need to begin scrapbooking!



Paper Trimmer:
I would not be able to function without my paper trimmer. I could cut my paper with scissors, but I wouldn't have a perfect edge every time. That's why it's important to find one that's right for you!
I have been using this Cutterpede since 2006. I have tried other trimmers and I always went back to this one. The replacement parts are inexpensive and I love the decorative blades you can buy separately. My favorite is the scalloped edge blade.
I use my trimmer to rip paper, measure, trim photos, trim paper, and add a decorative edge. If you are wondering how I use my paper trimmer to rip paper, I will be sharing that How To soon!

Scissors:
I have tried MANY different scissors. I have narrowed it down to three different pair that I switch back and forth from.
The ones in the photo are my Tim Holtz nonstick ones. LOVE them. You can use them whether you are right or left handed and the handle is comfortable rubber.
My other faves are the basic Fiskars scissors. I have the larger fabric ones and the smaller micro tip ones. I believe I bought both pair at Wal-Mart. They are super sharp and stay that way forever! That was my biggest pet peeve with other brands. I would have to buy a new pair every few months because I use mine so much they would dull quickly.

Adhesive:
This has been my go-to adhesive since 2006. I love it. I couldn't live without it.
Adhesive is like everything else in scrapbooking. Everyone will have their favorites. This is mine.
I have used this on everything from ribbon to chipboard to paper. You can use it on a narrow surface and then fold it back to hide it. It goes on sale at Hobby Lobby frequently. It's quick to use and my favorite thing about it is that isn't permanent but I can still remove things without damage. I tend to change my mind and want to move a photo or an embellishment. Or sometimes I will need to change something on a layout for publication.
Some people ask me why I use this instead of glue sticks or just regular liquid glue. Well those both have their place, but for basic paper and photo scrapbooking I prefer dry adhesive. Liquid glue tends to warp paper or photos as they dry. So does a glue stick, but above all else they are messy to me. I would have glue everywhere if I tried to use liquid glue!
The most important thing is to ALWAYS buy photo safe or acid free adhesive! If not your beautiful scrapbook pages will be brown and turn to dust in your grand children's fingers!
I do, however, use a glue stick when adhering chipboard letters or small chipboard shapes. I also use a glue stick when covering chipboard, but that's another How To for another day! ;)

Black Pen:
I have been using the ZIG writers by EK Success since 1996. It's inexpensive, lasts forever, and has two sizes on each pen. I love the way they write and their colors are beautiful. Everyone will have a different pen they love and use, but this is the one I use for journaling or dating on my layouts.

Cardstock:
You can use any cardstock you wish. There are tons of different textures and colors. Everyone has their preferences.
You can use plain paper, but it just doesn't look the same. Most plain paper is thin and you can see whatever is behind it.
You can get basic cardstock at Hobby Lobby or even Wal-Mart.
My favorites are Bazzill and Bo Bunny.
You use cardstock to mat photos, as your page background, for journaling, and just about anything else you can imagine!

Patterned Paper:
This is by far my favorite thing about scrapbooking. There are just so many different beautiful and fun patterns. There are so many things you can do with it. You can cut out designs from it to use as page elements or you can use it to make embellishments. The possibilities are endless!
My favorite paper companies are Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket, We R Memory Keepers , Bo Bunny, Crate Paper and tons more!
You can buy some of these brands at Hobby Lobby. If you don't have a local scrapbook store you can buy them online at Scrapook.com or Twopeasinabucket.com !

Extras:

Stamps:
Stamps are awesome. I might have a slight addiction to stamps. They are reusable and just a lot of fun! My favorite stamp companies are Technique Tuesday, Hero Arts, Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous, Inkadinkadoo by EK Success and so many more!

Ink:
I have several ink How To's already up on the blog. Their links are on the right side under How To's.
I use ink for my stamps, to ink my pages, and to ink embellishments. Ink goes half off quite often at Hobby Lobby.

Paper Punches:
I have a ton of these and I use them on almost every layout. You can use them so many different ways. I also have several different die cutting systems, but punches are easier and quicker. Hole punches are invaluable. I have about five different sizes.

Crop A Dile:
This baby is the mother of all hole punches. It also sets eyelets. I have used mine to punch holes in acrylic, chipboard, metal, you name it! I have had mine for years and it has been to many, many classes and it will still punch a perfect hole! I love it!



Well those are all the basics you will need to begin scrapbooking!
You don't have to have the Extras, but it makes it much more fun!
I hope this has helped out the new scrapbookers!
If you have any questions or suggestions please post a comment or send me an e-mail!

Happy scrappin'!
April :)

Sneaky Sneaky

Well pneumonia snuck up on us. It's pretty sneaky...that pneumonia.
This time of year Brodey's allergies flare up and when he runs around he gets wheezy. Usually the wheezy goes away after about an hour of rest and his previous doctors never seemed concerned about it. Well this time the wheezy went away but it came back after school on Monday.
When I picked him up Monday he seemed a little tired and he just sat on the couch for longer than normal. The cough he had had on and off got worse and by bedtime his chest didn't sound great. He barely slept the next night and his breathing seemed forced. I knew he would have to go to the doctor so I kept him home from school and that morning he told me his back and chest burned.
Yesterday afternoon we went to see Dr Cole and we were there from 2:30 until after 5:00. They did chest xrays (he was totally weirded out), told me he had pneumonia, told Bro he couldn't go to school the rest of the week, and sent me home with 50 prescriptions. He has breathing treatments, antibiotics, nasal spray, cough medicine, the works. I have to write it all down to keep it straight.
We have pretty much been on the couch all day playing Mario. He can't run around which if you have boys you know is VERY hard for them. But the meds seem to be working. The doc said he should be okay by the big zoo field trip next week.
By the looks of the pic at the top he is soooo sick! Hahaha! That's Brodey trying not to laugh. He did VERY well during our two and a half hour doctor visit. I was impressed.
Well I'm off to tie my kid to the couch and play another round of Mario.
Have a wonderful Wednesday! It's a beautiful day!
LUV APRIL :)

Lions and Tigers and SPIDERS Oh My!

Don't you just love The Wizard of Oz? I do! I do! I used to think that if you went to Kansas everything was black and white. It isn't. I also think that movie is part of the reason I hate storms. I always thought that if a tornado came my parents would lock me out of the cellar. We didn't have a cellar and a tornado never came so I'm okay! ;)
SPIDERS! We have been invaded with spiders! I have told Eric a million times to call the bug guy to come and spray! He keeps forgetting...
This weekend we went to Holdenville. We were supposed to go to Dallas, but that didn't work out. Waaahhh!!! (We missed you Jason and Destiny!)
Sunday night we were at Eric's parent's about to leave and George (Eric's dad) come freaking out trying to get something off his neck. He finally grabs it and throws it off and it's a pretty good sized daddy long legs. If you know George, you know that he HATES spiders. I mean HATES them. If one were on him while he was driving a car he would probably kill us all.
So I'm laughing at him (of course) and I go to grab it.
He's like "Don't drop it now!! Watch out now, honey! Don't drop it!!!" I'm just cracking up. I finally got it outside without dropping it. I'm sure he sprayed down every inch of that house with insect spray as soon as we left. Don't worry they are still alive I talked to them yesterday.
We finally make it home and I go into our bathroom to take a shower and glance down at the bathtub. The photo at the top is what I saw. I had to laugh because Eric hates spiders about as much as his dad does, I thought he would probably make me get it out, and I grew up in the country and we NEVER had a tarantula in the house! We had our fair share of scorpions, huge spiders, but never a tarantula.
I grab the camera (of course), take some pics, and then scurry happily off to tell Eric to come here. THIS will make him remember to call the bug guy for sure!
I'm like "Hey Eric. Come here."
"What April..."
"Hey come in here real quick."
"What April....HOLY BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP!!!!"
I'm cracking up of course.
He's screaming "How in the world did THAT get in HERE!?!?! That thing is huge!"
I'm like "I know hahaha! We NEVER had a tarantula in the house! Hahaha!"
"Oh my gosh are you serious!?!?!" I think that fact freaked him out.
I'm like "Ya it's a pretty big one. Want me to get it out?"
"Well NO! I'll get it...what should I use?"
I go get him a pitcher and he grabs a shoebox lid and I'm still not convinced he is actually going to do it. But he gets right in the bathtub...
"Gosh watch out. Those things can JUMP!" Hahahaha!
Eric can move pretty quickly if he wants to! He grabbed it and out it went! Poor little guy! I hope he doesn't end up in my pool. Good thing Brodey was asleep. He would have nightmares for weeks!
But poor Brodey had to deal with another spider last night. I'm in the laundry room and Brodey walks in there.
"Mom. There's a spider in my toy basket. He's pretty big. And he's looking at me."
He's is so serious but I'm laughing.
I go in there and dig a round a bit and finally see it.
"Wow that IS is a pretty big one Bro!" It was just a garden spider but it was at least a few inches long. Luckily his toy basket in the living room is right under the window. I shook it outside and that was that.
It has been the week of the spider. I had to put a big praying mantis outside earlier. That warranted another text to Eric to call the bug spray man. Maybe I should get a fake one and put it on his pillow! Hahaha!
Hope your Tuesday is great and spider free!
LUV APRIL :)