Weekend Wrap-Up

Ahhhh...Sunday has arrived...and I'm having mixed feelings here! On one hand, I am sad that it is Sunday, the end of the weekend, back to work tomorrow. On the other hand, I am EXCITED because it's football Sunday...Packers vs. Bears Sunday to be exact. As I write this, my husand is heading down the stairs, the chanting is about to begin and it's only 7:00 a.m....still seven (maybe long) hours until kickoff.  I've already warned Grace.

After a long week of dealing with the flu, a weekend with no obligations was a welcomed change. No rushing, no real commitments. Watched a movie (Social Network), did some reading (making good progress in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo), returned to the gym, planned my sunday school class, surfed and blogged a little, and maybe today I'll get some house stuff done.

Grace and I went to see the movie Tangled yesterday. Absolutely adorable, highly recommend! Dan, Grace and I took Sammy to his first puppy obedience class and he made us proud (of course). He was the only one in the class that did not poop! Grace also seems to have absorbed what the instructor was telling us during the course of the class as she is now correcting Dan and I at home. I have to hold back my chuckles because she is right, she gets it. This training is not so much for Sammy but for all of us. And, it's a family affair and that makes it twice as enjoyable. Sammy is just not a "pet", he is part of our family so it will be good for us to learn how to spoil him...the right way!

Daily life is slowing returning to our normal. Our Costa Rican Exchange student Bryan left on Tuesday and made it back home safe and sound, thankfully and my all-grown-up Chelsea returns to college today. This week is going to seem pretty tame compared to the last three! It's back to Dan, Grace, Alexa, Sammy and I.

Now I'm off to start our Sunday and the countdown...Go Packers!!

Have a great one!
Michelle

Photo for the day...



Sammy sporting a pink Favre jersey.
For today, we will imagine it as a green and gold #12!
If the Packers end up Super Bowl bound,
he gets a new green and gold to call his own!



Gift Exchange Layout

The Nommensen family Christmas can get pretty crazy. We have three gift exchanges, in one night- young, young adult, and adult. For each age group, everyone brings a gift and places it in the middle. Then each person picks a card (1 through ??) and gets to pick a gift when it is their turn. You can then swap your gift with someone else's and inevitably someone ends up with a gift that they do not want. Whatever happens, it is always fun and entertaining.

I wanted to do some layouts highlighting a few of the great photos from our family christmas so I decided to join in the fun over at Two Peas in a Bucket and partake in the January class, Products You Love Every Which Way with Shannon Tidwell where this month the featured product to use on a layout is border stickers. Here is the digital layout I created using some cute digital products by Cherie Mask, Rhonna Farrer, and Jen Martakis, including digital papers, digital brushes, a template and borders. Two Peas in a Bucket offers an awesome selection of digital kits, including a ton of fantastic freebies. I still very much love my traditional scrapbook papers, however, the beauty of digital products is that I pay for them once (or get freebies) and then get to use them over and over again, in many different ways!

Sketchy Thursdays Guest Design Team Member Challenge

New year, new ideas. Another one of my goals for 2011 is to (hopefully) get more scrapbooking layouts completed, 1-2 per month would be nice. Luckily, I discovered the site Sketchy Thursdays. This is just what I need to get me motivated...new and fresh ideas that inspire me sit down and scrapbook, even if it is just one page at a time. They are having a February Guest Design Team Member Challenge where they provide the sketch and you submit a completed layout following the sketch. If your layout is chosen as the winner, then you win a fabulous scrapbooking kit full of new goodies (that I didn't have to buy) plus the opportunity to be a Guest Design Team Member for a month. Not sure what guest design team members do, but I'm sure it's fun! I've never done anything like this before and I figure I have nothing to lose. If anything, I completed a new layout and that makes me happy! Here is the layout that I did...

Sketchy Thursday Sketch



My Layout: Have I Told You Lately?
Featuring products by My Mind's Eye, Designs by Reminisce, Daisy D's, American Crafts, Bazzill, Tim Holtz, and Etsy.

Wish me luck!!


Last Weekend

So, we are heading into the final weekend with our Costa Rican exchange student, Bryan. It has been a wonderful experience and we have very much enjoyed hosting him as Alexa's brother. They have gotten along so well which has led to this being such an awesome thing. He has warmed up to our home and family, even Callie and Sammy. Grace and Chelsea have also enjoyed him. They can all be quite chatty! It has been interesting hearing about the two different cultures, both similarities and the differences. He says he really likes it here and is grateful that he was chosen as one of the exchange students. (We are too!) He has come to think that the snow is "pretty" and has even gotten somewhat used to the cold temperatures. While on one of their shopping trips he bought himself a new iTouch (they are like $500 in CR!) and he came home beaming. He has used it non-stop to chat with his friends and family. I am glad that he has been able to stay in touch with his family. Thank goodness for Facebook and home wireless! He attended the Nommensen Family Christmas - I believe "that's crazy" was how he described it afterwards. Yes, indeed. I don't think he has family get-togethers like that! We are going to miss him and hopefully some day we can visit his country and family. Alexa is already planning her trip!

Looking right at home with Sammy and Chelsea



Watching Alexa and Chelsea play the Wii.



Nice and cozy...a blanket is required in our house!

Observing one of the three Nommensen gift exchanges.

One Chillin' Dog

I never really thought much about dogs and their personalities...until Sammy. He is our 6-month old Goldendoodle and he has it all. Maybe it's still the puppy in him. One minute he can be driving you crazy, the next minute you find him simply irresistable. It must be love!

Need to Read

I have such a hard time getting through an entire book that I just give up and never finish one! I try to read in the evening but I end up falling asleep into the first page so my goal for 2011 is to read all three books in the Stieg Larrson trilogy. It will take me all year that is for certain. I am into the second chapter now of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. I am also listening to an audiobook called Little Bee which I downloaded onto my iTouch. I listen to it while walking our goldendoodle, Sammy. I was not sure if I would like an audiobook but I do. It's a nice change from my music playlists. Time flies by and my walks are getting longer!

Christmas...Here and Gone

And then it was Christmas, so much to do, so little time, it's all such a blur. Spending QUALITY time with my family and SLOWING down were things I wanted to do most this year. All of our celebrations were pleasant, not rushed, and full of love and laughter. Christmas morning never gets old...no matter how old you are. It's magical for the kids. It's magical for Santa.

Those Christmas morning smiles still melt my heart...no matter how old they get!