xoxoxo

I had grand plans for Valentine's Day but as with most of my big ideas lately I didn't follow through. I took pictures of the kids with the intention of doing cards. Didn't happen but I still have some cute pictures to share.

And even though I didn't send the cards, I still celebrated the fact that I have so many wonderful people in my life. I thought of you and felt so very blessed.

no 9-5 around here

Yesterday Dave left for work at 7. Did not come home for lunch. Came home at 7:30 pm. Left to go back to work at 9:30 and came home at 1 am.

Today he left for work at 7. Came home for lunch at 12. As of 11:36 pm he is still at work. Part of the reason is the weather. We are in the middle of a crazy blizzard and the road he has to take home is closed at least at the freeway exit. However, it is really because he needs to work. He isn't in Boise (thank goodness) but these hours are nuts!

still rockin'

I'm in the third of four weeks for my digital scrapbooking class. I am learning a ton. It will be interesting to see if I can translate any of the techniques into layouts I do on my own. I am finding the hardest part is choosing the pictures! Jessica Sprague's style is not totally in sync with mine but I still like the layouts I've created.

One more to go.

snow day

I didn't think it could happen in Utah but church was actually canceled today. Dave has been out shoveling for two hours, first our driveway and now he is helping the neighbors. Emma, Slade and Nathan all bundled up and went outside. Nathan lasted for about five minutes but Emma and Slade had lots of fun.

Emma said, "This is the best day. Well, maybe not the best because I can't play with friends but I am having so much fun!"

another tribute

This is BYU's tribute to President Hinckley. It is full of his great wit, humor and testimony. Plus it has the most adorable picture of Sister Hinckley. Enjoy. I sure did.

BYU Tribute

farewell

I haven't written a farewell to President Hinckley before now because I just wasn't sure what I could say. I loved my mom's tribute and the many others that I have read on friends' blogs. Tonight I came across Glenn Beck's tribute to President Hinckley and it really touched me.

I loved this man. I was neither shocked nor saddened by his death but I will miss him. I believed he was a prophet of God and have been inspired by his counsel so many times. What a gift to the world was Gordon B. Hinckley.

now i'm rockin'

I am taking an on-line digital scrapbooking class from the ever so fantabulous Jessica Sprague called Now We're Rockin' with Photoshop. I know a lot about using Photoshop for editing pictures (though there is still tons to learn) but I am enjoying learning tricks for scrapbooking. Click on it to see the layout bigger.

This layout took me WAY too long to make, mostly because I am a perfectionist. I had to have the perfect photo so I spent hours looking through photos. Then I decided I had to try to personalize it so I spent a while playing with the papers only to decide that I didn't like what I was doing. I used the original papers, colors, basic layout design and just decided to get it done! I haven't completed a page in a really long time so I am feeling good to have done something. I completed this page but there were also two challenges and a mini album that I didn't do yet. Slowly but surely...

spt-what's in a name

Today's assignment was so simple. How could I not do it? Lelly asked why we chose our blog name. My simple answer is because "Color Me Red" is just so me!
My favorite color is red. I have red couches, red curtains, red dishes, red towels. I love to wear red. Having my world colored with red just makes me happy.

Also, in the color coded personality test, red is definitely my dominant color. I have mellowed out quite a lot over the years but I'm still a red--logical, practical, conservative, traditional, rule-following, confident, organized and often seen by others as a bit too domineering.

Red suits me so very well in both taste and personality. Knowing just that little tidbit of information actually tells you a whole lot about me.

oh henry

I took pictures for my blogger friend Lucy on Saturday at Wheeler Farm. The whole thing was mostly a bust because of the cold. Sad. I didn't get much but you can see a few pictures here.

goop

We are discussing states of matter for Science. Today we played with the ever so easy but so much fun goop concoction of 2 cups cornstarch and 1 cup water. As you play with the mixture, squeezing it into a ball, it takes a solid shape but as soon as you open your hand it turns back to liquid. We have done this several times before but my kids were still fascinated for a good chunk of time.
I left the kitchen to go and look at the lesson assessment on the computer. I swear I was only distracted by the computer for 5 minutes! So much can happen in 5 minutes! I came back to find this.
Goop mess all over the counter and all over the floor. Oh, isn't learning fun!

twelve on the twelfth

I used to be a scrapbooker. I still completely believe in the idea behind it--remembering stories, capturing moments of time, recording your own history. My kids really enjoy looking at the scrapbook albums I managed to create once upon a long time ago. Anyhow, I really loved an idea I read in Simple Scrapbooks to create an album in a year. They presented four different ways of doing it. The one I liked best was from Stacy Julian and said to pull out your camera on the 12th of each month and do a bit of list-style journaling. So of course, I totally forgot to do this. I didn't actually get twelve photos but rather than give up before I start, I can at least do the list. Someday I might even manage to turn this post into a completed page.

--My mom and dad are in town for the baptism of my brother's roommate.
--Although I planned to go with Mom, she forgot her recommend (again), Dave and I were able to go to the temple together this morning.
--I came home and gave Mom a tutorial on using her new camera (a Nikon d50 like mine). I also managed to learn a few things myself which was awesome.
--Sawyer did a bit of modeling for us while he was in his chair and couldn't get away. He is starting to have such a range of adorable expressions. I especially love his "cheese" smile with his scrunched up nose and eyes. Cute!
--Dave took Emma in to work with him for a couple of hours. She thought that was so cool!
--I saw Lisa Bearnson, scrapbooking celebrity, coming out of the grocery store. She's tall!
--I had a lunch date with my mom and sister at a hidden Chinese restaurant. We enjoyed good conversation and decent Orange/Sesame/Spicy Chicken and fried rice.
--Keri slept on the couch while the rest of us watched and thoroughly enjoyed Stardust.
--Nathan is doing really well wearing underwear. He's got the one part of it completely down. Unfortunately the other, rather messy part is not going so well. Yuck. Why is that so hard!? We bought him a green light saber for when he goes a whole day without any accidents.
--Emma went over to Grandma and Grandpa Daniel's house to help make pillows for Katie's baby bedding. Katie is expecting her fourth girl (fifth child) so the Daniels and Heather are making new crib bedding. I wasn't asked to help so I guess I will have to think of something else to make her. I'm thinking personalized onesies.
--Keri, Mom, Emma and I checked out the 75% off clearance sale at Old Navy. I managed to find a few things even though I went last night with Dave. My biggest find was a lovely $14 winter coat for Emma. It was the only one on the rack so I thought it must be in the wrong place.
--I won a game of Ticket to Ride with Mom, Dad, and Dave. Then Mom beat Dave and I quite handily in a game of San Juan.

getting there

We were out of diapers for Nathan so I decided, since it was well overdue, that is was time to get him into underwear. This week just proves that it is so much better to just wait until they're ready because it has been relatively painless. Oh sure, there have been accidents but it hasn't been too bad. Today there has only been one!

hello, young lovers

I took engagement pictures for my beautiful cousin Laralyn over at Gardner Village on New Years Day. It was great because it was closed so no one was around. I am having a great time editing their pictures because so many turned out! Go me. Check out a few more here.

happy new year

I am slowly digging myself out of the backlog of my attempt at "daily december". Such a laugh. I thought about blogging daily but definitely did not actually do it. Instead I enjoyed lots of family, watching movies, eating junk, reading and all around laziness. The holidays were wonderful. Since I am not a purist, I will got back and blog about my December days because I want it for journaling sake if for nothing else. You don't have to read it though!

I was able to fulfill about half of my resolutions for this year. I started a blog, started Kids Company, and studied photography. I did not attend the temple monthly, lose weight or start getting up early. I have a feeling that last resolution might remain on the resolution list indefinitely.

This year I haven't settled on my resolutions yet. What I'm thinking about accomplishing includes starting a photography business, entertaining more often, attending the temple, visit teaching every month (with a more willing heart), and exercise three times a week. It is all doable, I think.

daily december: 31

Last year we hosted a large gathering on New Year's Eve and had intended to do it again this year. Everyone else had a different idea and one by one abandoned us for other things. In the end, it turned out really well. We have hosted so many gatherings this week that it was nice to have it just be us for a change. Dave took the older kids to see a movie and to pick up some treats. We just relaxed, folded laundry and watched TV. Ratatouille about five minutes before midnight. Perfect. We watched the ball drop and toasted the new year with sparkling cider.

Not very exciting but a perfect way to end the year for us.