So Sleepy Today!

It's been a busy weekend here. Soccer practice and games, Alex has a stomach bug, my friend Jennifer's 30th birthday party, MOMS Club BBQ, the list goes on and on. I bought the flowers for Mass at St. John Vianney and dedicated them to my mom. Today is the 25th anniversary of her death. It is surreal to me. 25 years that she has been gone. I've been having a little bit of a hard time with it. There have been years that have gone by where I haven't even remembered that the date has passed, but I guess since this is a milestone year, it has really been bugging me. Plus, I have read so much sad news about people I don't even know - children that are sick or dying... Ugh. I'm not even PMSing and I just want to cry all the time!

On a happier note, I was finally able to go through some vacation pics and post them to Shutterfly. I'll try to post them here, too. Let's see what happens. Got some great ones! We had such a blast. We will definitely be returning to Horseshoe Bay. It was only about an hour away. The hotel was more like an apartment. We had a full kitchen and the suite had two levels and two and a half baths. We got a really great rate. The resort had 4 pools and a beach. We rented a ski boat and went tubing. I don't think I've ever seen Colin have more fun in my entire life! He was so happy!! Alex had such a blast in the pool. He got sick on Monday but he was still able to enjoy most of the vacation. He is a real trooper, that kid!

There were beautiful Oriental Gardens with Flamingos and Parrots. Water features and fountains were everywhere. The place was pricey, but it was well worth it. Sometimes it's just worth it to pay the extra money and be surrounded by the beauty and not have to be stressed out about where the kids are going to sleep and what you're going to eat, etc.

5 Years Ago...

I remember it like it was yesterday.... But it was 5 long years ago. My sweet boy wasn't even born yet. I wasn't yet a Mommy. My life was so different. I was so fearful then. And now I just feel profound sadness. And such anger. I can't believe we have such a moron as our President. I can't believe I married a Republican. But I love him anyway. I really think I'm getting through to him, though. He's starting to listen to me. At least he agrees that this Administration does not know how to communicate.

I really resent it when people question my patriotism when I disagree with the President's politics. Or say that just because I don't agree with the war that I don't support the soldiers or the soldiers' families. That is not true. They are totally separate issues. I believe we were brought into this war on a lie, and that is not the soldiers' fault. It is their Commander in Chief's fault. As an American citizen, it is my duty to not blindly follow my leader. I am being patriotic by questioning authority and exercising my right to voice my different opinion!

I am so sad for all of those who lost loved ones in the tragedies of 9/11 and the war... I grieve along with you today. Here is a page I did a few months ago about the attacks:

On another note, here are some pages I've done recently:

Using Jen Wilson's New Attitude Papers and Elements



Using Maya's DigiPickoftheDay Freebie:



Using Jessica Bolton's Signature Collection Freebie:



Using Gina Miller's Exclusive DST kit:

Using AngeDawn's Fourteen Kit:

I Am Crying My Eyes Out

I felt this urge to go into my coat closet and pull out this scrapbook of my mom's that I haven't looked at in YEARS..... And I mean years and years... Last time I looked at it, I wasn't a scrapbooker and I guess I didn't really mind that it was MOLDY and falling apart and had water damage. And this time, I looked at it and I just started shaking and sobbing and bawling because I saw how much work it is going to take to restore it. But what kills me is that so much of it is irreplaceable and priceless. My mother was an artist and it is full of her little doodles and artwork, drawn directly on the crumbling pages. She also wrote directly on the pages, and some of her journaling is so water-damaged it is illegible. There is so much mold on some of the pages that it has blackened out whatever writing was underneath. Of course, some of my tears are falling because of my grief over losing my mom in general. It's been 25 years and I'm still not over it.

This is also agonizing for me because the theme of this scrapbook is my mom and dad's courtship and their engagment, wedding planning, and the early days of their marriage. It is full of their love letters and photos of little day trips they took together.

Well, I don't know where to even begin restoring this. If anyone has any suggestions, please help me!