I blame it on Monica!!!

I saw this cute little thing on Monica's blog and just HAD to try it! But I think that site is addicting... I made about 5 versions before I finally quit and closed that site!

Here's one with all the accessories... even a glass of wine & a tiara... and one without all the bling!

My new photo blog!

Just so Monica doesn't delete me from her blog, I wanted to let her (and the rest of ya!) know that I started a blog just for my photography! I will post at least one entry per day... on this blog or the photography blog. I'll even make an effort to post on BOTH as often as possible! :)

So, check out { shashin } Photographs by Dorothy... 2007 if ya want!

And, just fyi, "shashin" means photograph in Japanese... so it seemed quite fitting as the title of my new blog!

Working hard...

Doesn't it look like rough work?!

Tom (right) and another guy on his crew... taking a break, waiting on cargo to be loaded. In all fairness, his work starts after the plane is loaded! :)

I will only admit here that it freaks me out to see my husband wearing a body armor vest. Really. It seems like just yesterday he was teaching students in Texas... now THIS is the picture I get. :EEK:

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Stay safe Tom. We love you and miss you at home.

Almost forgot to show our tree!

Well, actually... trees! Here's the bigger tree in the living room and my little 3' pink, girly tree in the front entry hall:

These pictures make them look like the same size!!! But... the green tree is actually 7' tall and the white tree is only 3' tall! The little tree is in the hall and I couldn't back up any further because of the wall! The big tree is in a corner of the living room so I had lots of space to get the picture!

The white tree has mostly pink ornaments, with some special ones from friends at ScrapLove and a few of my own "unique" ones... a Starbucks coffee ornament, an iPod ornament and pink bead garland that I made last year!

The green tree is a mix of all sorts of ornaments! We buy the boys a new ornament each year & had to start our collection all over again two years ago, so we went a little overboard with them since then! Tom has a few military plane ornaments and I just bought two Japanese ornaments! There are also some ornaments from spouse group ornament exchange parties. I got a really cool chicken ornament this year!!! I think it's my favorite on the whole tree!

Had a good Christmas!

I was really worried about Christmas this year since Tom isn't here with us, but it actually went very good. The boys loved their presents and my parents are here so that helped. I'll admit, I wasn't very "jolly" this year, but it was better than I expected.

Dewayne got a digital video camera that he REALLY wanted... this is the reason he cut his hair a few months ago! He also got a new skateboard (well, all the parts for him to build his own skateboard!), a backpack, new skateboard shoes, some shirts, some video camera tapes and some cash & yen!

Andrew got a samaria helmet & two samaria statues that he was begging for back in the summer when he first saw them! He also got a bunch of GI Joe collectibles, some books, some clothes, 2 video games, 3 computer games and some cash & yen!

Noah made out like a little bandit! He got an art desk with paper/paint/ crayons/markers & a big dump truck from Santa. From Grandma (in Ohio) he got a Play-doh desk with a bunch of accessories for Play-doh, a bistro grill... it's like a huge play kitchen... with all sorts of food items to go with it, a Little People pirate ship & a BUNCH of wooden toys including a paddle ball that is GREAT fun!! From Grammy & Papa (visiting us from Florida) he got 2 packs of Hot Wheels cars, Rescue Heroes fire truck, Leapfrog alphabet magnets & a learning Leapfrog stuffed toy, a fireman dress-up set and a piggy bank! And from me & Daddy he got 3 puzzles, 2 books, a Little People zoo set with animals for each letter, Legos & K'Nex, Whack-a-mole game, Leapfrog "Learning to Write" electronic learning toy, a wind-up flashlight, Bob the Builder toys (3 different tractor things!) and a stuffed Bob the Builder!!

I got a leather purse and some $$ from my parents, some iPod accessories from the boys and my mother-in-law sent some $$ so I could get the amazing green tweed coat I was drooling over!! I also got a stocking filled with some great girly stuff & scrap stuff from Aimee in Alaska for the stocking swap on ScrapLove! And... by way of the US Postal Service... I got a beautiful pearl necklace from my husband! He purchased it while in Thailand & mailed it to me on his way to his deployment location. He has amazing taste in jewelry! I love my new necklace!!!

Tom hasn't received his package yet... so I won't tell what he's getting! ;) And when he returns home from this deployment, he'll get the rest of his presents. Some things just can't be mailed to him right now! Tom had a pretty good day too... he got to spend part of the day/night/whatever with KID ROCK!!! He was in the area to spend Christmas with the troops and caught a ride on the plane with Tom & the guys. Tom said he's a great guy and even sent me some pictures of him & the crew with Kid Rock. I'm glad there are good moments while he's there... just so it's not all the "work" stuff, ya know?!

(Tom w/ Kid Rock.... the whole crew with Kid Rock)

l-r: Brian, Fuj, Karl, Kid Rock, Tom, Jeremy... and Brian in front!

All in all, it was a good day. Not great... because I really missed having Tom here with us... but the kids enjoyed it so that's all that matters.

Never thought I'd say...

MY PARENTS ARE IN JAPAN!!!!! They arrived on Wednesday, December 20th, and will be here for THREE WHOLE WEEKS!!! I am so excited for them to be here. I really, honestly never expected them to come all the way to Japan... and I'm SO SO SO happy they are here!

Mom is just in awe of the city... Tokyo is quite impressive! And seeing Mount Fuji is like nothing anyone can describe! Pictures just don't do it justice either. I think she's just in love with the tiny little cute cars here!! :)

Dad is just happy to be here with the boys. He's even been brave enough to ride in the car with Dewayne a few times!!! hahaha!!! I've had a few conversations with him about Japan and the culture/history here. I'd forgotten how little I get to really talk to adults lately!!!

I'll have to add some pictures of them later... since they each have a digital camera, it's going to take a little coordination & thinking to decide which pictures to upload! :)

My favorite photo!

I think this may be my favorite photo ever! I'm going to print it for a frame.

Christmas Party for the kiddos...

We went to the squadron children's Christmas party last weekend. Noah had SO much fun. He decorated Christmas cookies, made a candy cane ornament, colored, made a snowman goody bag, made magic reindeer food and even watched Santa arrive via a C-130! :)

I didn't think he'd actually sit on Santa's knee, but he did! And smiled really big for pictures too! Santa delivered books to all the kids and got a huge list from them all!

Here are a few pictures...

one of Noah & Tom watching the C-130 land,


one of them watching it fly over before landing,


and one of Noah with Santa!



And since this party was just two days before Tom left, I am adding one of Tom on the morning of his departure. It was early & still dark so the picture isn't the greatest, but you get the idea.

Family pics are in!

Our family portraits are back! Getting one decent picture of the five of us was nothing short of a miracle... especially since Noah was determined to act like a complete maniac! He spied this little fire truck ride-on thing the minute we walked in... and that's ALL he wanted. Getting our group picture first was nearly impossible. And then when we let him get pictures on the fire truck he didn't want to look up at the camera. He only wanted to pull the string that rings the bell... *sigh* Just wish he'd gotten his hair cut BEFORE our portraits... but I learned to pick my battles a looooong time ago! ;)

So... here's our group family picture:



Here's Noah in that @#$%#%^$^& fire truck ;)



And here's the first professional picture of my husband & I alone together since our wedding...



Then... the photographer kept snapping when we were acting goofy... I like these pics best! :)



Noah... being Noah! Just look at the way he's looking back at the photographer! The guy was trying really hard to get him to smile, squeaking some little rubber toy... and Noah was looking at him like he was a complete idiot!

Monday's 5 Good Things

1. Noah slept till 9am today!
2. The zit on my chin is gone!
3. My oldest took out the trash without being asked!
4. Tom cooked dinner!
5. I'm the new president of the basewide Enlisted Spouses Club!

Hope the rest of my week is this good!!! It's gonna be a BUSY week with several meetings but it's at least off to a decent start!

This picture...

DESERVES A POST OF IT'S OWN!!!!!

When she went to shampoo his hair, there were about 20 "capes"... and she just happen to grab the ONLY pink one for my 16-year-old boy!!!!

heehee... I laughed... out loud... and so did half the salon! ;)

THE HAIRCUT!!!

Dewayne got a haircut!! Now that you've all recovered from fainting ;) here's some pics!

BEFORE:



AFTER:



Here's him on October 28th for Homecoming:



And now:

ARRRRRRRRRRGH!!!!!

Our little pirate!! I'll add details when I get a chance!

My skater kid in a tie!!!

I'm just gonna throw some pictures on until later when I have time to type! I'll try to give details when I get time to post!

Thursday's 5 Good Things

I am struggling to find 5 good things today... it's been a VERY long week with Tom gone. He comes home tomorrow so my list will be easier!! :)

1. It's not raining today. (trust me... that counts here!)
2. I talked to my mom... even though it's gonna cost me LOTS!
3. The huge clock I ordered from JCPenney arrived today!
4. Andrew entertained Noah so I could take a REALLY long shower & do my hair.
5. The salon on base had a cancellation so I made an appointment for a haircut tomorrow!

From the moment I woke up...

Ever have one of those days where you knew it was going to suck from the moment you woke up? Well. Today was that day for me. Seemed like it was non-stop: my phone rang constently all day, was late for TWO meetings, burnt the appetizer I was supposed to take to a spouses group function, our cable company shut down tonight... so that means no internet phone (thank goodness the DSL company allows me to keep regular internet!) and no cable tv channels.... complete & total chaos pretty much sums it up.

Yup. Today was one of those days... awful from the second I opened my eyes.

... and it's now 3am... and I'm still awake. I guess Thursday isn't looking so great either.

My Power Color is...

Your Power Color Is Red-Orange

At Your Highest: You are warm, sensitive, and focused on your personal growth. At Your Lowest: You become defensive and critical if you feel attacked. In Love: You are loyal - but you demand the respect you deserve. How You're Attractive: You are very affectionate and inspire trust. Your Eternal Question: "Am I Respected?"

What's" Your Power Color?

Just something a little fun today. I saw this test thing on another blog & gave it a try. Not sure if I agree 100% with the answer, but it was fun to try it! Maybe I'll have time later to really type something!

Last day of soccer...

Today was the last soccer day for Noah. Maybe next year he'll grasp the idea of "team sport"! ;) But he sure has fun running around & kicking the ball! Here are a few more pictures... I'll be updating & adding more as soon as I get time. I took over 500 pictures... it's gonna take me a while to sort, crop & edit the rest! :)

He finally sat still for 2 seconds!

Now THAT is concentration!

GOAL!!!

Drills... he loves stopping the ball!



Daddy and Noah had GREAT fun at the water cooler AFTER soccer was over!! Both of them were soaked by the time we left the field! Tom finally had to grab him & carry him away just so the water would quit flying! But, I think Noah enjoyed this as much as throwing the water at Daddy!

Busy Morning....

Today started out VERY busy. Got up early to make sure Dewayne had breakfast & left on time since today was the PSAT testing for 11th graders. Cleaned bathrooms, vacuumed, swept & mopped, picked up scattered toys & washed Noah's sheets. Got a quick shower & headed off to the food court for a lunch meeting with the Enlisted Spouses club to plan for our bazaar in late November... where I volunteered to be the "bazaar manager" on that weekend because the person actually organizing the event will not be here that weekend. (not sure what I've got myself into... but oh well... it's done!)

As soon as that meeting was over, I rushed to drop off a Stampin' Up! catalog to a lady that called me this morning about ordering.... then rushed home to meet a friend at my house. I'm babysitting her son on Friday while she goes on a field trip with her older daughter. We thought it might be good to have them over so he wouldn't freak out on Friday! Her son, Seth, is just a little younger than Noah and they play soccer together. I actually met Nanette at the very first spouse's meeting I went to... then again at the parents' meeting for soccer. She's nice and Seth is adorable! Noah thought it was pretty cool to have another little boy here... and neither of them wanted Seth to leave. :) But... he'll be back on Friday!

Now we're just sitting around watching some cartoons... mainly so I can rest! I still have to go to the post office, the commissary, the video store and the furniture store. Tom is flying this afternoon/evening so we're on our own for dinner... wonder if the kids would mind if I just ordered pizza?! hahahaha!

Monday's Good Things:

1. Tom only had to work half the day.
2. I got scrap stuff in the mail today!
3. I got pictures of all 3 boys in the backyard working on a project together.
4. The whole family watched a movie together tonight... even the dating teenager!
5. Noah went to bed at 9:15!!!! I consider that a small miracle!

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!?!

I actually scrapped!!!! I bet it shocked me more than anyone! :)

When I saw the first challenge for the SYTYCS contest at ScrapLove I knew what I wanted to do... the picture, the quote, the feel of the layout. All I needed was a paper that would go with the orange requirement AND the gray of my picture. TADA! Junkitz Earth collection! I saw that quote on an embellishment tag thingy in the ScrapLove store... a My Mind's Eye product. It's a quote from Harriet Tubman... and really fit this picture perfectly! I am super impressed with myself actually! I had this pictured in my mind... and it came out just like my vision! That rarely happens!

And the little picture of the C-130 aircraft... I took that picture as Tom's plane was landing one afternoon! So... my little guy wearing Daddy's helmet... and a pic of Daddy's plane!

I plan to complete the challenges for every week... and the regular challenges posted too. I want to see just how far I can go... to prove to myself that I could have done this... and been good enough to compete with all of this talent even though I'm not in the contest! :p

Today's 5 Good Things!

I missed posting this for a few days, but I haven't stopped thinking about my 5 good things!

1. I got to sleep in this morning.
2. My husband cooked a wonderful brunch... & cleaned the kitchen!
3. I am scrapping tonight.
4. All of the laundry is done.
5. Right at this moment, I hear the most hysterical laughter coming from upstairs... Noah & Andrew are playing. Whatever it is, Noah thinks it is REALLY funny!

Our little soccer player!

Noah has always been very picky about what he wears... especially socks & shirts... so I figured there was very little chance he'd wear the soccer pads/socks. He complained about the soccer jersey when we first got it. He didn't like that the sleeves were down at his elbows because of the band around it. *sigh* My picky kid... but... today he saw his soccer socks... and wanted to wear them!!! So, we got all outfitted for soccer... and played in the yard! Daddy even got in on the fun for a little while!

Here's our little soccer player!! And for the record, he was quite the little ham... posing for my pictures... between kicks & running around the cones! But the pose with his foot up on the ball... that one took some convincing!! Let's just all hope he is this excited about those soccer clothes tomorrow... when he is SUPPOSED to wear it! :)

Now I can't wait to actually scrapbook these pictures & the others I took this week!

My *fabulous* scrap space!

The Get Organized Week was a HUGE success! Lots of ScrapLove ladies worked really hard and made some GREAT improvements to their scrap areas. I am very impressed with their spaces! Thanks to each & everyone one of them for all their work. I know they helped keep me motivated so I could finish my own space. I am SO happy with the way it turned out! I must say a special thank you to Amy for all of her amazing help with the Get Organized Week challenges and assignments. I couldn't have done it without her amazing ideas and support! THANK YOU AMY!!!!

My Store-in-Style cubes are arranged in the closet near the front entry of my house. I removed the closet doors so I could convert it to a dedicated scrap area! I added a desktop and made an L shaped work surface. Can you believe I still have empty space on the shelf above?! Now I just need to scrap this weekend!! I actually want to do the weekly challenge at ScrapLove. I really like this one! It might be just what I need to start scrapping again... clean & organized space AND a challenge that is right up my alley!

Monica inspired me...

I was reading Monica's blog this morning and it really hit home with me. I have been in quite a funk lately... and her lists of 5 good things per day was inspiring. So... I'm gonna totally steal her idea! I'm hoping it helps me get back to enjoying my days... and away from being so negative.

Ok... here's today's 5 good things:

1. Noah didn't wet the bed.
2. It's a good hair day.
3. I really like my new curtains. (see picture below!)
4. The weather is nice today... really pleasant.
5. My back ache is gone.

Wow. That wasn't difficult at all! Thanks for the inspiration Monica!

*#3... my new curtains... ignore the stack of stamp sets on the coffee table! ;) I was cutting stamps while watching tv!

I'm still a complete clutz!!!!

This morning Noah woke up at 5:30 (no idea why) and went halfway down the stairs, to the point where the stairs turn, sat down & started crying. I think he was still half asleep... but anyway... I went to get him & when we started back up the stairs, I tripped & landed on my right knee at the top of the stairs. We have these "tread" things on the front edge of each step to keep you from slipping on the tile steps. I caught my toe on that on the next-to-last step, and that caused me to go forward. It scared Noah, which didn't surprise me after our last fall... when he ended up in a cast for 5 weeks. :) I hobbled in & got Noah back to bed... then went back to bed myself. When I woke up 2 hours later, my knee was a little swollen and all purple & blue. Tom made me go get it checked out. It's fine... just sore & bruised... but the doc told me to take it easy today. That means I won't get in any exercise for the challenge. And I'm thinking we're gonna have pizza delivered for dinner!!!

So, I've got this friend...

... and apparently she wants me to blog every day. About anything. About nothing. But right now I truly don't know what to say. I'm speechless. Did ANYONE think this day would ever come?!

I guess I'll post this and come back later... if anything worth writing pops into my brain.

Proud Wife Moment!

I have to brag just for a minute... this morning my husband was promoted to Tech Sgt... and I am very proud of him! He has had a really tough year... training for a new career, starting out as the "new guy" here, and learning all the aspects of this new job... plus he tested and was promoted! I rarely get to attend the ceremonies at the base but I am so happy to be at this one!

Now, granted, I was also a bit upset with him. Last night at 9:30, he decided to tell me that I was one of the two people to "pin on" his stripes... meaning I had to get up in front of that whole room full of people. :EEK: I nearly had a panic attack just thinking about it! I was planning to wear denim "slacks" and a nice shirt... but knowing I had to get up in front of everyone, I scrambled to find something nicer that would fit me. I couldn't believe he's known this lil bit of information for two weeks & waited till the night before the ceremony to tell me about it!!!

And I just have to share...

his shoes WERE shiny! teehee

Guess it was a good thing I stopped typing & went upstairs to check, huh?! :rolleyes:

umm, yeah... I need organizing help!!

I think I need the upcoming Get Organized Week tips and challenges more than anyone!!! My scrap space is a serious disaster. I really haven't taken the time to REALLY organize since we moved here. I'm kinda excited about the challenges... but I'm so embarrassed to show them all my messy, messy space!

This picture is just the table top... and a little bit of the closet showing in the upper right corner. *sigh* I am a slob!