tagged for life.

liv’s newness today are these fabulous fabric tags.

(say that five times fast.)

as you can see, I am still incredibly in love with the woodoodled papers too..

(click on the layout for full list of credits.)

I am still just so in love with this pic!!

I did touch it up, just a smidge.  like removing the speakers that were in the background..  I am a little anal that way.  it was a spontaneous shot, I didn’t want it to be too posed or orchestrated, so those things that end up bugging me when all is said and done need to be dealt with afterwards.

it’s the way I am.

I have this relationship with photoshop that I thought I would never have.  I was SO AFRIAD of it!!  but I can tell you, that getting my feet wet with photo editing was what got me comfortable and excited.

I think we all know that I got that start at jessicasprague.com.

(and if you didn’t know that, well, welcome to my blog!!)

jess is doing her yearly free class, to help us all learn, for the experienced ones, it helps us to get excited, for the newbies, it helps show them that this is possible!!

I have signed up, you should too!!

among other things going on here..

I am up to my neck in soccer stuff.  I am the newest (insert title here that has to do with age group coordinating) with our region AYSO board.  my two youngest love soccer!!  it takes involved parents to make it happen.  seriously, in EVERY SINGLE AREA.  if you have kiddos who love something, get involved.  it makes their experience so much better.

we finished our last day of little laker cheer in prep for the parade tomorrow. 

yesterday, peyton wasn’t really much about the whole “participation” thing, aside from clapping. 

today I might have bribed her with a slurpee if she would just raise her hands!!!

she did.

lynn was selected to be the filer for their little stunting group.  she loves it.  all she has been doing for the past 24 hours now is cheering.

she is sad that today is the last day.

we’ve also had a couple of days of dam fun.

and the bathroom re-do has begun.

it is such a wonderful sight to look up, and have WHITE ceilings!!

that’s right, there is an “s” on the end of ceiling..  I decided that while I was at it, I might as well tackle the ceiling in our master bathroom too.  I mean, I did do our bedroom last summer.  it might be about time..

I only wish I dared (i.e. had the energy) to paint ALL of the ceilings white…  6 down, 6 more to go?

so we are saying farewell to “botany beige” (we won’t “miss” it, since it is ALL OVER THE REST OF THE FREAKING HOUSE.  (someday…)  and hello to “turquoise mist”.

we are having so much fun this summer!!  I am so happy with how slowly it is going.  I just love having the girls all home, having non-stop fun, and little drama.

we are making the most of it, and wearing ourselves out  most days..

(if this post seems a little dejavu-ish to you, well, that’s probably because you saw all of this already on instagram, and I would apologize, but hey, now you have the story to go with it, right?)

(you’re welcome.)

the most perfect family photo (and a very merry christmas to you).

 

(card credits:  main card background: Purdue Avenue Etsy shop; frame: kitschy digitals; leaves and red gems: design by dani.)

almost a month ago, before sickness and the hecticness of the holiday season bombarded our home, we sat down one sunday afternoon to take a candid family photo.

how did I do it?

well, for starters, I begged my family.  told them it was all that I wanted for christmas.

then I told them that they could wear whatever they wanted.

then I told them to bring something to do.  bring a book to read, a toy to play with, or a doll to hold.

I wanted candid…

then I set up my tripod, put my remote on my camera, checked the settings, then had to add my bounce flash to get the lighting just right.

then we were in business.

106 pictures later…

we got it.

and by “it”, I mean four that I could stitch together to make my perfectly candid family photo.

took merrill from here:

took lynn from here:

(the peyton + me combo here was a close second for the final cut..)

took ashley from here:

(for the record, this is the most pleasant expression I got out of ashley the whole 10 minute ordeal.)

and, well, peyton and I were perfect together here:

and we got this masterpiece:

(you know, after photoshop magic…)

and for your enjoyment, consider it a christmas gift from me to you, a couple of outtakes:

because sitting on the couch is SO overrated.

from my family to yours:

Merry Christmas!!!

hello again.

so it’s been a while.

how are you?

good.  good.

whelp, we’ve been busy.  we’ve been thoroughly enjoying summer, trying to live as distraction free as possible.  but, I have been making a mental list of things to note here.  and in some cases, I even have pictures!

- merrill loved his father’s day gift.

he also got a hammock, and that my friends, is a story itself.

(let us just say it doesn’t take as long to put together as it states in the instructions, when you have 3 adults and 3 kiddos.)

- lynn, ashley, and peyton, are amazing at their tumbling classes.

- ashley will not answer to “ash”.  she will either correct you, or follow up your “ash” by adding “lee”, or ignore you altogether.  oh, and a dirty look will  most likely accompany any of those options.

- I painted our room.  I also sewed curtains.  I even hung them.  no, there are not any pictures.

(yet.)

- I have been loving zumba.

(I am sure I am quite entertaining to watch.  sadly, I have no pictures of this to share with you.)

- we went camping for a week.  it was what heaven will be like, I am sure.

have you ever slept with a screech owl around?  neither have i.  they are loud.

who’s kid is she?!

we were unable to have campfires with the dry conditions but you know us, we mad the best of it.

- we have been swimming, a lot.

- we have visited the dam, and told “dam jokes” on our way there a few times too.

(what is a “dam joke” you ask?  well, here’s a dam joke for ya:  what did the fish say when it swam into the other fish?  “dam fish!”)

(I know..  you are laughing so hard it is painful.)

 

- merrill has been crazy busy at the hotel.

- we have set a record for number of popsicles eaten.  that record will surely be broken before the summer’s end.

- we had a couple of tenants we didn’t know about in our basement come out.

(no, they are not “bad” spiders.  just giant house spiders.)

(yes, we are all still alive, the spiders, not so much.)

- we visited “this is the place” a few times before our pass was up.

(why this picture you ask?  why, this is what I dream to have my kitchen counter look like.  that is why.)

- we had a lagoon day thanks to our sister-in-law britney.

- we almost died (according to ashley) when we jumped on our trampoline during a lightening storm.

(all 5 of us on an 8 foot round trampoline, touching the ground..  pretty sure the manufacturer would not be happy about all those rules being broken.)

- we have even seen a couple of movies, IN A THEATER!! 

(that is not common for us homebodies.)

- we introduced the girls to slurpees.  we are awful parents in that we didn’t do it sooner.

- I had a project launch in jessica sprague’s “project plaza”.  kind of exciting!

- have been reading like crazy!!  I have lost count of how many books I have read, but can tell you that my two favorites are:

“these is my words”

and

“the book thief”

(you are welcome.)

- we have also been trying to keep our yard alive-ish during our very dry summer. 

(that is not so fun.)

but my biggest accomplishment of the summer was earning tan lines in this pattern:

(I know, I know..  you are jealous and all.)

that is just a small sampling.  I didn’t want to bore you to death on your first visit back and all.

annular eclipse.

we don’t get too terribly geeked-out about many things here, but when it is something that hasn’t happened for 20 or so years, we get into it as much as we can.

merrill got out his welding helmet, and we dragged the kiddos outside to see the eclipse.

it was pretty cool.

first up is ash (cause you totally know that is her, right?) and lynn, with her poor bear, lancelot (you know, from “labyrinth”?)  his retinas are burned severely now.

 

and peyton’s turn!!

darn clouds…

this was more towards the beginning of the eclipse.  we didn’t get to see the “ring”.  we are too far north or some junk like that.

we called our friends over so they could see it too, and while waiting for turns with the welding helmet, they played “sun, moon, sun, moon, eclipse!!!”.  pretty cute and awfully creative.

I feel like I should have made cupcakes or something…

this was the best it got for us, just a crescent of the sun.

and darn those clouds again.

so until 2023….  this is the best we’ll get!

add one more to the tally.

12.

it has been 12 years now that I have been married to this guy.

our 12th anniversary didn’t start out in any particularly exciting way.

it was a little before 6 in the am, I woke up because my neck hurt (again), and my hand was asleep (again).  my best 4 year old bed buddy was crowding me (again).

as I lay there, trying to get comfortable, and trying to find sleep, I heard the “vvvvvvvtt, vvvvvvvtt” of a phone vibrating.

I blamed it on merrill, he is the one who normally gets texts and phone calls at obscene hours of the day.  well, except for that one time, when I won a wal-mart gift card.  (scam.)

that time, and this time.

it was my phone.

and my dad.

he is new to the world of cell phones and texting and I think it is rather cute.

as was our conversation:

dad- happy anniversary!!  twelve years or thirteen?

me- twelve thank you!

dad- that is what I thought but at my age a memory can’t always be trusted.

dad- by the way, what are you doing up sooo early?

me- I don’t know.  I think my phone started making noises or something. no, really peyton came and climbed into bed with me.

dad- it could be a lot worse.  you could have a st. bernard dog that does the same thing!

me- would it suck it’s fingers noisly?

dad- depending on whether it is a male or a female dog, it might make a lot of noise licking other body parts.

dad- go back to sleep!!

me- I am trying.

at some point during our early morning text-a-thon, merrill asked from the other side of our dark bed, “is someone dead?..  is someone dying??”

to be honest, I was quite thankful to still have my dad and that my dad was so sweet, to be the first to wish me a happy anniversary.

at 6 am.

forget sleep!

the rest of the day we spent together as a family.

we took our darling girls to this is the place for the first day of baby animal season.

we naively thought that it would be a pretty quiet day there.

not.

those were the biggest crowds we have ever seen there.

lynn was the only child brave enough to cuddle the baby animals, I guess ashley and peyton have issues with strange people watching them hold baby animals?

they did run around and have a pretty good time.

peyton thought she was “word girl”.  the cape went everywhere with us.

since most of our favorite activities still being closed, it was a fairly short visit.

we did get our treats (small selection) at the zcmi store, and rode on the train.

we saw an amazing antique quilt display at the old deseret hospital, and that got me excited to finish a quilt that is still going, so I can start more.

we visited the new city creek center after.  that was amazing.  didn’t buy a thing!  but seriously, shopping for that kind of stuff is not on my mind lately.

I am dreaming about my bedroom…

we enjoyed a quiet dinner, just the two of us, and called it a night going home to torture merrill by taking a few pictures.

really, it wasn’t bad.  he didn’t complain and even manned the remote, taking pictures at the most awkward moments, like when I was right in front of the camera adjusting the tripod (snap boobs), and more than a few as I was walking back toward him (snap bum).

then we wasted an hour, more than an hour, watching “incredibly loud and extremely close”.  I wish I could get that time back.  it wasn’t as good as people said it was.  there were good parts, but those were few and too far between.

I love reflecting back on these last 12 years, so many good memories, and so many blessings!

sure, we are older, a little grayer (and now I am adding to that count…), but wiser, closer, and comfortable with our little life.

just have to say how much I love you merrill.  thanks for continually putting up with me and my shenanigans.

we <3 the planetarium.

once again, the perks of being related to a member of the state legislature, are kicking in.

last week we went to the clark planetarium. 

dude, our kids love it there!

everything from the dome theater, where we get to explore the galaxies, and laugh about different constellations, to the IMAX flicks, the free exhibits, all the knowledge!  we just love it.

this time, the girls enjoyed a demonstration with liquid nitrogen.  (let’s be honest, merrill and I did too.)  amazing.

peyton made a request for this for her birthday..

ashley looked forward to this favorite at the top of the stairs.

and the dome theater.  she loved seeing betelgeuse (pronounced: “beetlejuice”) again.  she looked forward to the dome theater the most.

she liked the IMAX too, but something was off about it all….

lynnie-lou loved the IMAX flick the most.  ashley was so-so, it was way over peyton’s head.  it would have been better to see “born to be wild” but we got there just as it was going to start.  “space jund 3D” had to be it.  it was quite interesting.  free popcorn and drinks helped the less-interested of our party.

this pic is so blurry, but I love it!  I took in in the dark, so I couldn’t really see what I was doing, it was like pointing the camera in that general direction and praying.  it was so dark.  but look at how into the movie she is.  I love it.

lynn lifted a meteorite or two.

then peyton saw “newton’s daydream”.

she was in her own daydream enjoying this.

when she initially saw it, she said, “mom, I wish I was one of those little balls in there…”

but, really, everyone loved it.

and then we walked on the moon and mars, and went home.

so thankful that my kids get these kind of opportunities.

we are already planning a trip back.