It's been a while...

...since our last family update. Actually, it was last year...last decade even! LOL! Anyway, we've been busy but good. We had a wonderful quiet Christmas at home with 2 sets of missionaries over for dinner. The kids enjoyed the break from school and we did some fun family activities: dollar movies, science center, and library. Some friends from church came over for a New Year party with games, food, and a dollar store gift exchange. In January we broke several records with a few weeks of lows in the teens, and had a much hyped up and highly anticipated "snow day" (school cancelled) that turned out to be a disappointment.

Derek:
1. Arranged for some weatherization home improvements through a government program--insulating floors, better weather stripping, insulating attic and crawl space doors, etc.
2. Installed lights and additional shelving in our closets.
3. Worked on various grants and publications.
4. Visited the University of Utah to give a talk and discuss possible future appointments.

Me and Derek: Cheesy Self Portraits

Me:
1. Teaching classes and doing more design work for the local scrapbook store.
2. Enjoyed singing "Mary's Lullaby" at church for the Christmas program.
3. Participating in a Book of Mormon reading challenge with the boys.
4. Had a wonderful trip to Los Angeles with Faith to visit Grandparents and attend the Craft and Hobby Association trade show. (Read all about my trip HERE.) While there we drove up to Santa Barbara to visit my brother Jeffrey who I hadn't seen for a few years. He also got to meet Faith for the first time.

Grandma & Grandpa Keeler, Uncle Jeffrey, and Faith in Santa Barbara, CA

James:
1. Earned 1st chair in the french horn section at seating placements.
2. Had a great 12th birthday party playing paintball with Jeffrey and a dozen other boys.
3. Writes a bit more in the sci-fi book "The Bermuda Triangle" he's authoring every day.
4. Enjoyed his first trip to the temple, and a few invitations over Christmas break to attend activities with the youth (Jeffrey, too).
5. Favorite Christmas present: Electronics kit.

Jeffrey:
1. Earned 2nd chair in the larger trumpet section. First chair is a girl who's been playing much longer than Jeffrey. He was pretty excited.
2. Won a school-wide essay contest. The prize was a spa day for his English teacher--lucky lady!
3. Enjoys passing the sacrament on Sundays with James now that they've both been ordained as Deacons.
4. Was very reponsible (and excited!) about taking care of a friend's lizard over Christmas break while he was out of town (as did James). They even earned some money!
5. Loved attending the PapaJohns.com Bowl with Derek and James.
6. Favorite Christmas present: an R/C tank.

Ashley:
1. Babysat a few little girls while Derek and the missionaries had a discussion with their parents. She was thrilled, and did a great job!
2. Did a beautiful poster project on the planet Venus.
3. Holds Faith for long periods of time while I'm cooking/cleaning, etc. Faith LOVES it, and so does Ashley.
4. Enjoyed going out to lunch and dinner with Me and the other girls while Derek took the boys on a few outings.
5. Favorite Christmas present: a new bike.

Lexie:
1. Went ice skating with some friends from school over Christmas break.
2. Was thrilled that Faith and I attended her class Christmas party at school. Faith was the most exciting event at the party!
3. Did an awesome poster project on snowy owls.
4. Is my regular dependable bath helper for Faith. Has dubbed herself the bath expert!
5. Was very sad while Derek, Faith, and I were out of town.
6. Favorite Christmas present: a 2-wheeled scooter.

Faith:
1. Was 26.5 inches long and weighed 13 lbs 13 oz at her 4 month check up. Got a small fever from her shots as well.
2. Smiles big and often. Laughs only ocassionally for short periods--she seems to have a sweet soberness about her. (We need that at our house!)
3. Grabs on to whatever she can reach, including hair, noses, lips, dinner plates, toys, etc.
4. Prefers to nap in our bed and falls asleep better with someone snuggled up to her. Is getting back to a better sleep routine after getting off kilter from our trip.
5. Her little personality is starting to shine through more, and we love it!
6. Favorite Christmas present: a high chair from Grandma and Grandpa.

Watch Me Grow!

A Plea for Help

The First Presidency (the Prophet and his two couselors) of the church I belong to (LDS church) issued a plea for donations to help the people of Haiti, as well as prayers for God to send a sense of peace and calm over them during this terrible time. You can read this statement HERE.

Our church has an amazing system of welfare and humanitarian aid that is funded by donations as well as the tithing (10% of income) paid by members of the church around the world. What I love about this humanitarian aid organization is that 100% of the proceeds goes directly to providing basic life sustaining materials during disaster recovery (ie water, food, clothing, medicine, blankets, hygiene kits, infant formula, diapers, etc.)

If you have not had the opportunity to donate yet and are interested in doing so you can CLICK HERE to read more about this organization, and you can CLICK HERE to make a donation online.

Every bit helps.

Free printable valentines!

Valentine's Day is coming up quickly, so I thought I'd get a bit of a jumpstart and make some class valentine treats with my girls. I designed these, printed them on white cardstock, trimmed them, and then added them to the goodies. If you head over to the Scrapbook and Cards Today blog you will find full instructions, and you can download a free printable sheet of the lollipop labels and the chocolate wrappers as well. Enjoy!

It's February!!

And you know what that means. A brand spankin' new gallery at write.click.scrapbook!

This month's theme is scrapping the men in our lives, whether that's husbands, sons, boyfriends, grandpas, fathers, or the milkman. LOL! Here's my contribution to the gallery. Click HERE for full credits and notes:



Anyway, in addition to the amazing new gallery, Ms. Jody Dent-Pruks (AKA Aussie Jody) will be hosting the blog this week. Be sure to check her out--her simple yet stunning style is so inspiring!

Favs and Fads from CHA

I had such a whirlwind trip to CHA--basically 5 hours to see everything I needed to see--that I hardly took any photos. So I will be borrowing photos from some online friends, giving proper credit of course. But I did see some things I LOVED and I also noticed a few trends as well. First I'll start with my personal favorites in no particular order:



1. Dear Lizzy by American Crafts:

(photo by Ashley Harris)

I got to meet Elizabeth and she is just as adorable as her new line is. So talented.

2. Studio Calico's Anthology:

(photo by me)

I love the soft colors and the cool patterns in this line. And those fabrips? Too fun!

3. Cosmo Cricket:

(photo by Tina Cockburn)

I honestly LOVED everything Cosmo put out this time. I didn't think I'd like some of their lines until I saw them in person, and now I'm a believer!

4. October Afternoon The Thrift Shop and Fly a Kite:

(photo by Paula Gilarde)

These lines are too cute!

5. And possibly my favorite...Core'dinations Coordinating Embossed Cardstock:

(photo by Paula Gilarde)

There are packs of this lucious cardstock to match Jenni Bowlin, Cosmo Cricket, and Jillibean Soup lines. What a brilliant and creative idea! I can't wait to get my hands on some.

Now a quick run down of some fads I noticed. I'm not going to take the time to find photos for all of these, but you'll get the idea:

1. The handmade homespun movement has made its way into paper lines. So many manufacturers came out with lines that surround the sewing, domestic, and homemade theme. Some I recall off the top of my head: October Afternoon, Cosmo Cricket, American Crafts...and there are many more.

2. Pennant banners and mobiles were everywhere! Several manufacturers had these in their decor and in their new lines.

3. Fabric, fabric and more fabric. Several manufacturers debuted new fabric lines at this show. Hmm...could this have anything to do with #1?

4. Some manufacturers are expanding beyond just scrapping products to draw in a more diverse market of crafters. For example #3 above, and jewelry to name a few. Just good business I guess.

5. Cute and kitschy are in. Many manufacturers debuted lines that make me feel like I'm back in 3rd grade at my favorite Hallmark store in the Hello Kitty aisle buying mini pencil kits and clear plastic mini lunch boxes filled with mini erasers. So fun!

Well, that's all for the CHA report. I had a great time and came away super inspired. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to get my scrap on...