Hello April!

So... April just snuck up on me and now it is the middle of April and here I am with my first post of the month! EEK! Where does time go? I am always so busy and so this is one of the things that gets squeezed out when I run short on time. I do enjoy blogging. It helps me keep track of the things I do, and remember the good times I have with family and friends. It is fun to look back and see what we were doing a year ago. I have always been sentimental like that. That is why I love to scrapbook so much, to record memories. I have always done it, even when I was a kid. I loved to look back and see what I did the year before or the birthday before, etc. I also love to write, so this is a combination of both. So that's just me in a nutshell. I get so busy living life that sometimes I don't have a chance to record it, so here I am now catching up in one long post!

How are you?? I hope you didn't give up on me, those of you who do read my blog. I hope you will stay with me because eventually I will always be back to update.

So here's what's been going on...

Sammie finished up her ballet and tap class with Ms. Tina and started a new one called Princess Dance at the Freckled Frog. The ballet photos are from her last class mini recital. They did a little show for the parents and then each child got called up to get a goodie bag and award certificate. This is her preschool friend named Hayley. They have fun together. Sammie takes horseback riding lessons from Hayley's aunt, Victoria. Hayley likes horses too.

The princess dance class is cute. The girls wear a princess dress each week, dance with ribbons and wands, do a craft and listen to a story. It is a lot of things in 45 minutes but very well organized and well-paced. She is enjoying it. ( she is in the pink dress)

Speaking of princesses, here are some cute Disney pics. We went right after her princess class one day.

Here is something unusual.. We were out in the front yard and some ducks flew by and landed in the street right in front of our house. Not something you see everyday. They must have been heading to the nearby lake but stopped to say hello and eat some bread at our house.
We finally got to see Jennifer and Julia after a few rescheduled plans. We went to Color Me Mine and the kids painted pottery. ( it was very expensive) Sammie made a unicorn and Julia made a birthday cake.

I finally got to scrapbook at Christine's crop to benefit Autism Speaks. It was a successful event and many wonderful prizes were donated by popular manufacturers. Here are some of my recent pages.

It was a fun day and I got to spend time with my friends Christine, Donna and Jennifer. Christine raised about $600 for Autism Speaks. WHOOO HOO!! I am getting ready to join her in the walk for Autism on April 25th. This is the 3rd year I am walking with her. If you would like to sponsor me I would appreciate it. You can click this link and go to "support a walker" and type my name to find my page. All donations are for a wonderful cause and are tax deductible.

I finally got to go on Sammie's preschool fieldtrip. They went to Tanaka Farms to pick stawberries. It was a lot of fun and the kids got to taste fresh veggies from the garden. ( romaine, carrots, radishes, cilantro, sugar snap peas,) and of course all the stawberries you could eat!! They do the tours year round and change it seasonally. I want to go back in the summer and do the watermelon tour! YUM!!

In other news, I have had a bad pain in my neck for a few weeks. I tried EVERYTHING I could think of to help ease the pain, ( tylenol, motrin, muscle relaxers, heating pad, ice, jacuzzi tub, even a massage) and nothing worked. When the muscle relaxers and tylenol, etc. did nothing, I knew there was something going on. After talking to a few people and getting suggestions, I went to a chiropractor. I was pretty skeptical but figured I should give it a chance since nothing else was working. In 2 visits after having electro-therapy, ultrasound, and spinal manipulation, I began to feel better. He took x-rays of my neck and determined that I have a reverse curvature of my neck which is the beginning of spinal degeneration. ( sounds terrible but it is treatable) One of those "turn 40 things"... It was sort of shocking to hear that though. Anyway.. I have been going several times a week and it is helping tremendously. I still have the pain but it is not like it was. I started to realize that my hip was hurting on that same side and that because I sleep on my stomach with my leg pulled up ( like a frog) it puts a lot of strain on my neck, back, etc. I have been trying to sleep on my side but still wake up on my stomach every day. uggghhh Anyway... it all makes sense now and I am glad that it isn't as painful. I couldn't even turn my head when backing up the car or changing lanes. Now I am able to turn quite a bit before I feel the pain. The doctor may send me for an MRI if it still doesn't improve soon. He thinks it could be a pinched nerve.

Well I have more to ramble about as always but this is getting long so I will stop for now and hope to be back soon. Meanwhile, say hello and come back again because I will try to write again soon!

Kindergarten Shots!!

Poor Sammie had to have Kindergarten shots yesterday. She had 5 shots a TB test and 1 finger prick to test for anemia. She was not too happy about the whole thing and was quite a fighter in the doctor's office. She got through it and is fine now except for a soreness in her arm. She talked about it again this morning and said "Kindergarten shots are not fun." I guess I have to agree.

We just got back from Las Vegas. We had a lot of fun. We went to the marina to watch the boats and feed the giant fish. They are amazing to watch. There are hundreds of them competing for popcorn and sometimes they jump on each other and splash to get to the popcorn first. It is quite a feeding frenzy! We also went to the Children's museum which is fantastic! They have wonderful exhibits and a cool science show using liquid nitrogen. We were amazed. There was a special Clifford display while we were there with a lot of fun play areas for Sammie. A kitchen, dinosaur dig, sand, music, bubbles, water.

The best exhibit was the grocery store with cash registers and the auto shop garage. She loved putting on the mechanic clothes and working on the car. Now that I look at the photos, it looks very realistic!!! The blue car is just a picture on the wall but the red car has all kinds of things to take off and put on the car. It makes noises when you put "antifreeze" in or check the oil. The tools make noise and there was even a magnetic "job chart" to organize the work jobs and pretend clipboards to do the service orders. ADORABLE!!

There was even a basketball court and someone had a lot of fun teaching Sammie how to slam dunk!!!

Of course we had to snap a pic of this mural! Hmmm.. I wonder why???

We also went to a carnival for St. Patrick's Day. We had a good time riding rides and playing games. There was an Irish dancer teaching the kids to play the drums and dance. Sammie went up on stage and we couldn't get her off!! Then they had a dance off with all the kids and she was the last one left and won some leprechaun trinkets. It was quite entertaining. I think she truly takes after her great-grandfather Sam! He would get up in front of people and play his harmonica and sing. Not a shy bone in his body!

In other news, I am getting ready to participate in the walk for Autism Speaks. This is the 3rd year that I will be walking for this cause and to support Christine and her hard work to raise money for Autism which of course is near and dear to her heart. The walk is on April 25th at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena (Los Angeles) If you would like to support me you can click this link and click the "donate" tab and the menu will say "support a walker". Type my name and to go to my page. Thanks!

For all of you scrapbookers out there, on Saturday, April 4th there will be a crop at the Scrapbook Oasis to also raise money for Autism Speaks. It will be a great time with FABULOUS goodie bag and raffle prizes! Lunch will be included in the crop fee of $25.00. Check it out!

Don't forget to stop by Scrap it forward and do this month's challenge to benefit Project Cuddle. There are only a few more days left and the prizes are SUH-WEET!!

Snow much fun!

Sammie got to experience snow for the first time this weekend. She has been wanting to go for a long time and we told her we'd take her after her birthday since every weekend in February was busy. She kept asking and asking and even said "it is already past my birthday now", so daddy took her to the mountains for the day while I sold some scrappy stuff at a garage sale. She had a wonderful time playing in the snow. She said to daddy, "this is my luckiest day ever!"

Here is a scrappy page I made for a scraplift challenge at Scrap Whispers. It was a fun page to make. Speaking of scrapbooking, check out the Scrap It Forward blog. The new challenge is up so give it a whirl!

I will be walking again this year to support Autism Speaks. Click here to check out my page and/or make a donation to our team. I am walking with Christine.

My scrappy friend Alicia nominated my blog for the "spreader of love" award.

I have to nominate 5 people and tell why I nominate them. Alicia is a wonderful crafty gal. I met her online at tallyscrapper. She makes me laugh all the time and if she lived here, we would be great pals. She loves to make cards and shop!

I nominate these people to receive this award:

Jenn... She is a truly giving person. She is amazingly talented at paper crafts of all kinds. She is creative, kindhearted and fun and easy to talk to. A true friend. I am so glad she is my bud.

Dawn.. Another amazingly talented scrapbooker and baker too! I met Dawn at a local crop and had a lot of fun with her. She is a super nice girl. I had a blast hanging out with her at CHA too.

Erika ...I know Erika several different ways. I met her from OC Peas originally and then we hung out at Gymboree play class, local mommy and me classes and I see her often at scrappy events. She is a sweetheart.

Susan ...I met her online at tallyscrapper. She is easy to talk to and a kind person. She loves cardmaking and scrapbooking. We have fun giving out tallypoints to each other and we have the same birthday!

Lydia ...Speaking of the same birthday, Lydia and I also have the same birthday and we both have a daughter, Samantha. I met her online as well and I love to see her scrappy creations. She is a very talented scrapbooker.

Now here's what you all have to do. Nominate 5 people to receive this award and tell why they deserve it. Then link them to your blog and leave a message to them letting them know you gave them this award! Thanks and have fun!

I guess that's all for now. I'll be back again soon. Now go check out Scrap it Forward.

Happy Birthdays!!

Wow.. I am behind on my blogging but it has been a busy birthday month! We have a lot of family birthdays in Feb. ( my nephew Jason, Sammie, my brother, my sis-in-laws, Nana and then Brad sneaks up on March 1st.)

Sammie just turned 5! It is hard to believe how fast time goes. This picture was taken on her first birthday.




Here she is on her 5th birthday enjoying some cake!!

She had many celebrations this year. At school she got to be the helper and line leader. "Betty Birthday" came out to sing to her as well. It just so happened to be letter "Hh" week and hat day so she was very excited to wear this horse hat on her birthday celebration day at school.


Here is Sammie as she began her love for horses. ( this isn't her first pony ride either)

Riding Joey at her horsey birthday party. She had so much fun at her birthday celebrations! This year we had 2 parties since we usually have such a big group. We had a family/friend party and then a horse party with the friends in her preschool.

We also went for ice cream at Baskin Robbins. Her favorite flavor suits her perfectly.. "Wild and Reckless"

Sammie is very excited to be 5. Happy Birthday Sammie! We love you so much!

Here is some birthday wisdom right from the little horse's mouth:

Sam: "Mommy, when I grow up and get married, I'm gonna be nice to my kid and when she bees rude, I"m not gonna put her in her room, I'm just gonna talk to her".

hmmmm what is she trying to tell me?? LOL!!

Yep, I can't wait for her to turn 13!!

This weekend we celebrated Nana's 95th birthday. My parents came in town and we went out for dinner at a yummy restaurant. (Blue Agave) Everyone enjoyed their meals.

Today we clebrated Brad's birthday at Disneyland. This year eveyone gets in free on their birthday and if you are an annual passholder, you get a merchandise certificate for the value of a park admission.. That was really nice. Sammie went shopping and got 2 sweatshirts, an autograph book and a robot dog. It was crowded but we still had fun.

Happy birthday to you all.

This weekend there are a few scrapbook garage sales

I am hoping to sell some of my retired scrappy goodies. Stop by and say hello!

1. Residence: 533 San Miguel Dr. Corona

2. Scrapbook Oasis: Skypark Circle ( Irvine) **see link at the right... \

That's all for now.. be back soon!

We love Dr. Henry!

Samantha had a dentist appointment today and she was so excited!! Now I don't know about you but when I was a kid, the last place I wanted to go was to the dentist! She actually loves it. When it started to rain I said, "awww... today is a stay home day" and she said, " But we are still going to see Dr. Henry right??" The crazy part is that yesterday when she was brushing her teeth, I looked in her mouth to check her work and I saw 2 molars in the back of her mouth half way up to the other molars. I did a double take and then went on the internet to read about these "six year old" molars. Sure enough, they are her 6 year molars. She is only 4 soon to be 5.

I asked Dr. Henry about this today and he said, the average age for these teeth is 6 years old, and he has never seen any kid have them this early. YIKES! She got her first teeth at 4.5 months which is also early. I guess she is on the early path. ( I was too so it could be genetic) Anyway.. this is last year's photo but I wanted to share a pic of Dr. Henry who is incredibly nice and patient, and who Samantha adores as her dentist!

He puts these glasses on her when he uses the light to look in her mouth. The pose is all Sam's doing!

Right after she finished she went into the toy cupboard ( she remembered where it was from last time) and got out the doodle toy and drew a picture of her visit. It is Dr. Henry with the spikey hair, Sammie with her bib on and a heart which looks like a tooth. I thought this was too cute not to share!

She was an awesome patient today. Got x-rays taken, flouride, brushed, and flossed and came out with a smile! I took her to lunch afterwards as a reward.

Last week, when we had lunch with Irene and Betty, they gave her this Valentine craft project. We had fun assembling it the other day, and of course Sammie had to "make it her own" by adding a white and pink horse!

Here is an example of my everyday "Ponyville".. This happens to be in my bedroom, so now I have outlawed "PONYVILLE" in my room. LOL
This is an acrylic album I made and will be teaching as a class soon. It has lots of sparkly embellishments and was a ton of fun to make!! Check back for class details.

By the way, there are only a few more days to do the sketch challenge on Scrap it forward. There are some great prizes so give it a try!

Lastly, Tracy P tagged me on her blog to answer these questions using my first initial which is quite challenging since it is "I". I just happened to come across "Diva Scrapper's" blog whose real name is Ivon, and she did the same post. It gave me a few ideas.. Anyway.. here goes:

Rules: It's harder than it looks! Copy your own note, erase my answers, enter yours, and randomly tag 10 people (including me). Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real... nothing made up! If the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. You cannot use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/girl name question.
Whew... Here goes:)

1. What is your name: Illyse
2. A four Letter word: Ipod
3. A Boy's Name: Ian
4. A Girl's Name: Irene
5. An occupation: IRS agent

6. A Color: Indigo

7. Something you wear: "in fashion" clothes
8. A Food: ice cream
9. Something found in the Bathroom: insects???
10. A Place: Indiana
11. A Reason for being late: Insufficient sleep

12. Something you Shout: IDIOT

13. A Movie Title: Indecent proposal
14. Something you Drink: Iced Chai Tea
15. A Musical Group: INXS
16. An Animal: Iguana

17. A Street Name: Imperial hwy.
18. A Type of Car: Infinity
19. Something Scary: I-V ( as in needle in the vein)
20. Ice Cream Flavor: pralines IN cream??? ( that was a stretch)

Okay.. now i have to tag 10 people to do this..

1. Christine

2. Erika

3. Jennifer W

4. Dawn

5. Michelle

6. Susan

7. Alicia

8. Lydia

9. Tracy P.

10. Jenn K

Have fun!!!

Ice Skating

Yes, you read that right, I took Samantha ice skating on Sunday. ( anything but watch the super bowl! LOL!) I was supposed to see my Nana that day but she wasn't feeling well so Sammie and I went to the ice palace for some fun. I haven't skated in YEARS... I can't even remember the last time and don't think it was even in California.. I used to take lessons when I was a kid. You don't really forget how.. but i still managed to fall. ( only once but hard enough for a few bruises!) Sammie did great. It was her first time and she caught on quickly.. She fell again and again but laughed and got right back up and did it again. The kid is determined!!! She has been wanting to skate ever since we saw the psuedo rink at the irvine spectrum during the holidays. Ice palace has open skating on Sundays and it was something fun and different to do for 2 hours. She wants to go again. I had to switch halfway though the session from the cute "girlie figure skater skates" to the "man hockey skates" They were much more comfortable for my wide feetsies..

Saturday was a blast.. Tammy I got a bunch of girls together to crop at The scrappin table. We had a great time and I got several pages done. Christine, Donna, Jenn and I all scrapped together.

Here are some of the pages I made..

Ah yes.. just a little more about CHA.. Loved it. It was a great show and so much to see even though it wasn't as crowded as last year. Owls are big this year so I thought this sign was cute.

On Monday, the 2nd day of CHA, there was a fire alarm activated ad we had to evacuate the show. It was really strange. The alarm was sounding and no one was moving. It took an announcement that said, "Emergency.. please exit immediately" before anyone decided to leave. We all looked around to see what everyone else was doing and everyone was just standing around until they announced for us to leave. How scary that people don't take is seriously because we are so used to false alarms. This one turned out to be a false alarm but better safe than sorry.

Here is a pic of Melody Ross, Dawn and I. Melody is the designer/owner of Chatterbox. I remembered her for her "Journaling Genie" stencils from long ago.. She was very friendly and sweet. It was fun meeting her.

I think my favorite new line from the show was this one from "My Little Shoebox" I love the bright, fun colors and all the embellishments to go with. This owl one is adorable!! ( difficult to see in the pic but super cute in person!)

Another cute line by My little shoebox.

How could I miss the opportunity to take a picture with a PINK crayon??

Monday I had lunch with some special friends of mine from my previous school, Irene and Betty. They are both retired from teaching and we get together about once a month or so, to catch up. It is always great to see them. They are so good to Samantha and bring her presents almost every time.. She is special to them.

Well, now it is officially February and someone is going to be turning 5 pretty soon. She is very excited. ( I am a little bit sad at how fast the time has gone.. but excited to see her continue to learn and grow.) She thinks she is going to kindergarten NOW since she will be 5 but i have to keep explaining that it is next school year. Be back soon with a birthday post. :)

Quickutz ROCKS!

Christine won this at the Quickutz booth at CHA today!!! This was the grand prize.. a brand new Silhouette electronic die cutter!!! She was soooo excited and shocked. I am so happy for her.





More good things.. Christine designed this book for Best Creations and they had it on display in their booth. Of course it is near and dear to my heart because it is starring my Sammie!

We had a great time seeing all the new products at the show.

This is an art project I did with Sammie. We had so much fun. She really did most of it. I only cut out some of the tricky shapes like the ribbon scarves, snowman hat, noses, stick arms, dog ears, and I made the fish and fishbowl. Sammie did all the cutting and gluing. It was her idea to make our "snow family" which is why she added the dog and her fish, Belle. Oh, and the horse stickers along the bottom for her "someday horse". The snowpeople/dog are Brad, Sammie Naomi and I.

I just may have a future scrapbooker on my hands.. she enjoys arts and crafts just like I do.

That's all for now. I'll be back soon with more updates!