Tagged Again

1. Where is your mobile? In my purse
2. Your Partner? At work
3. Your hair? Kinda limp today
4. Your mom? At work
5. Your dad? At work (any one noticing a pattern here?)
6. Favourite thing? My Family (possession: camera)
7. Your dream in the last night? Dunno...can't remember
8. Your favourite drink? Venti, Iced, Sugar-Free, Cinnamon Dolce Latte, Non-Fat, No Whip
9. Your favourite Car? Audi TT
10. The room where you are? Church Office
11. Your last partner? Jeff, for life
12. Your fear? Something bad happening to my family
13. What would you like to be in 10 years? Happy
14. With whom did you spend the yesterday evening? Addison
15. What are you not? Quiet
16. What was the last thing you did yesterday? Turn off the TV to go to sleep
17. What are you wearing right now? Faded Jeans, Colorful Shirt and Flip-flops
18. Your favourite book? Anything by SARK
19. What was the last thing you ate yesterday? An apple
20. Your life? Just how I want it
21. Your mood? Pretty good today (subject to change) :)
22. Your friends? A blessing to me
23. What are you thinking of right now? Thinking I should be working on what I want to see when I go to New York Thursday
24. What are you doing right now? Filling out this questionnaire
25. Your summer? Working, trying to come up with stuff to keep Addison busy
26. What plays on your television? Supernatural, Two and a Half Men, The Shield
27. When did you laugh the last time? Last night
28. When did you cry the last time? Last week
29. School? Last photography class was 2 days ago. Boo-hoo
30. What are you hearing right now? Me, pounding keys (as my old boss, Don Phin would say)
31. Favourite weekend activity? Scrapbooking
32. Dream Job? Being good enough to be a pro-photographer
33. Your computer? Dell
34. Outside of your window? Big Palm tree and the Fellowship Hall
35. Beer? Amber
36. Mexican food? Just about daily
37. Winter? Love it
38. Religion? Religion - not so much - God, Jesus, Holy Spirit - ABSOLUTELY!
39. Vacation? Count the days until it's here
40. On your bed? Sheets and a quilt
41. Love? Life is not worth living without it

Ok, are you sick of hearing stuff about me yet? I know I am. I'm gearing up for my trip to NY with Melody. I am starting to get excited about it now. I finished my photography class on Tuesday, so I'm excited about getting some good pictures while I'm there. I think I'm getting a polarizer for Mom's Day. (Whoo-hoo!) My mom, grandma, aunt and their two friends are coming down this Saturday. Mark Roberts is going to be in town signing his fairies. My mom loves his fairies and has a pretty good collection of them. So we're going to go down there and to a couple of other collectibles shops. It should be fun. I hope everyone is well and has a Happy Mother's Day!
Blessings,
Aubrey

What'd you do today?

My day consisted of work (we had two folks pass away at the church this week - which means two more funeral bulletins to prepare). Past that I came home and did a little photography homework. That class is so cool!!! Love it. Love it. Love it. Today I worked with white balance. Some time this week I'm going to have to spend 30 solid minutes photographing a single flower. (We'll see how that turns out.) I'm hopefully going to get to go with my friend, Melissa, so if we're doing it together - hopefully we won't look SUPER silly photographing the same flower for 30 minutes. (Maybe if there's two of us, they'll think twice before calling the guys with the white coats!) I've been having a blast doing that "her space-my space" challenge. Have you guys checked it out? If not, you should - so many cool photos. I love learning new stuff. Working that brain. Feels great to put that big sponge to work God gave us. I'm going to post some of my photo class work on my other blog. You can check it to see what I learned last week. Fun!
Blessings Everyone.
Aubrey

Vanda tagged me! 7 Random Facts About Me

I've never been tagged before, but one of the wonderful ladies who participates in the "her space--my space" blog just tagged me. Here's the rules: Start with 7 random facts/habits about yourself. People who are tagged have to write their 7 things on their blog. Then choose another 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment to tell them they have been tagged and to read your blog. Ok, here goes...

1) I grew up on a cotton ranch in AZ. (My first paying job was at 13 - chopping weeds out of the cotton field.)
2) I have 5 dogs, 1 guinea pig, and 26 chickens.
3) I've been friends with my best friend for more than half my life. (Hi Ginnie!)
4) I have so many first cousins that I don't know all their names. (True story)
5) I was once timed as typing 174 words per minute. (Are you sure?!)
6) I love to travel. (If the car is moving I want to be in it.)
7) I look just like my great grandma Suzy. (Never met her, but the photos say it's so.)

I'm tagging Diva KMM, KelliDarr, Johanna Peterson, Leah Fung, Jess (A Mile In My Shoes), Melissa Ross, and Ginnie Baker. This was fun - can't wait to read the little snippets about each of you.

Blessings to you,
Aubrey

Scrapbook Lifestyle

The designers at Scrapbook Lifestyle made a heritage album for my sister and me. Yesterday was the beginning of our "airing" week. I have 3 friends that are designers are the show: Leah Fung, Johanna Peterson, and Melisa Sanchez. So it made it extra special knowing that my friends would be there. My sister and I had a lot of fun going up and shooting this. We spent the day together driving up to LA. We did a little shopping, I had my hair done - we had lunch together. It was really a fun - wild day. Here's a link if you're interested in watching. As I said, it will run this week. Each day has a new video that's 3 minutes long. They start off showing how the album was created and then Jennifer and I will be on Friday for the "reveal" when they give Jennifer the album. Hope you enjoy. (Thanks my friends for this great experience!) http://www.scrapbooklifestyle.com.
Aubrey

Lessons?

I know yesterday I was a bit preachy...life is what you make it...blah, blah, blah...and I still 100% believe all of that is true. But what I'm thinking is not only should we believe it, but we better make sure we're living it. You guys know that I recently lost my friend Ray. Well today as I was walking into the church office (unlocking the door) an accident happened on the road right beside me. I saw it out of the corner of my eye - the collision was SO loud, it sounded like a gunshot going off. I stood for a moment, just kind of paralyzed and speechless. A white van had smashed into this little white Honda Civic type car. She was sitting at a stop sign and the white van swerved and smashed into her so hard it picked up her little car - lifted it over the sidewalk - and bent it around the telephone pole. I just was stunned. When my brain started functioning I thought, do I run over? Do I call 911? What should I do? Right then these two guys are running down the sidewalk (they were on the correct side of the street), and they ran to check on the people. One guy screams - "HE'S HAVING A HEART ATTACK". They were trying to get the guy out of the van, but his doors were locked. They were pulling on the door trying to yank it open and the guy inside the van is slumped over. The poor woman in the car was trapped between the telephone pole and this guy's van (it had rammed right into the driver's door) - she couldn't even open the door. They were still trying to get the guy out but all his doors were locked, people were pouring out of buildings, there's shouting "FIND A CROWBAR, BREAK THE WINDOW". The scene held me captive. I felt like I couldn't move, like I couldn't hardly breathe. Finally an ambulance came, fire trucks and police came. They got the old guy out. I don't know if he made it or not. They worked on him for a long time. I prayed everyone would be okay. I just think - you never know what's going to happen. I mean even if you aren't the guy in the van having the heart attack you could just as easily be the woman T-boned between the van and the telephone pole. (Here's a picture of the scene - both vehicles are behind the firetruck.) LIVE life every day. Tell family and friends you love them. Try to do good works and things that make you happy. Live a Good Life.

Life Is What You Make It

I woke up this morning with a huge headache. I didn't want to get out of bed, didn't want to move, or even open my eyes. But I thought...this is ridiculous. The sun is shining. There's things to do today. So I got up, got myself going. And I was blessed with a husband who brought me a glass of cold water and some aspirin. I was blessed with nice comments on some things I had posted yesterday. I was blessed with a phone call from my best friend Ginnie. See the day is what you make it. I've decided mine is going to be a sunshiny, friendly, fun day (even if it involves a little aspirin taking). I hope you've made your day a good one. Remember don't let the bad gunkie get at ya and you're good. I remember when I was in Jr. High my mom was watching this preacher on TV and he said "Don't let the devil steal your joy." Sometimes it's not the devil. Sometimes it's a jerk on the freeway - or some old lady who swipes your spot in the parking lot - whatever it is, whoever it is - they only have as much power as you give them. It's just as easy to wish them a good day - turn up the stereo and keep going. As my friend Ginnie says, "Smile and Proceed."
Blessings to you!
Aub

Wanna Know What I Was Given?

Hi guys!

It's such a beautiful, cloudy, overcast day. I love those - they're my absolute favorites (besides rainy days of course--nothing is better than one of those). It must be a product of growing up in the desert and only having 3 days worth of rain that would happen during monsoons in May. That's all we'd get for the entire year. Rain was definitely celebrated...I've jumped in my share of puddles. Anyhow, I digress. Do you want to know what I was given? Can you guess what my Aunt Cindy nabbed for me? A library card catalog file cabinet. My terrific mom was nice enough to keep it for me until I could come pick it up. I love it. I just thought I'd share a picture of it and send a shout out to my Aunt thanking her for my new treasure. I love books - and the fact that this little unit held the key to finding so many different places one could travel to on a page - I just think that's cool. I'm excited to have it around - inspiring me. I hope you have a blessed day!

Aubrey

Guess What Tomorrow Is?

Tomorrow is my first day of photography class! Yippee. I'm taking a course at the Community College. It's not a super heavy duty class, but it's designed to help you learn to use your DSLR. If you're a beginner (like me) in the manual photography area it's supposed to get you through that. It's also supposed to help you be able to know the difference between an ordinary shot and an extraordinary shot. I'm really excited about going. I've never taken any manual photography classes (or ANY kind of photography class for that matter). I'm hoping to get a lot from this class. It's going to be for 4 weeks. One class each week, each lasting 3 hours. I'm super excited! Wish me luck!

A Great Man

I got news yesterday that I lost a very good friend of mine. His name was Raymond Schellenberg. He was 43 years old. He suffered a massive heart attack Saturday and was on lifesupport until he passed away Monday night/Tuesday morning around midnight. Ray was a friend to anyone who met him. He was genuinely a nice person. He loved the Lord and it was evident in the way he lived his life. I feel blessed to have known Ray. I know my life was enriched for the time spent with him. He contributed a great deal to making the world a better place. How lucky we were the Lord shared him with us for as long as he did. I know life is precious and the "here today, gone tomorrow" saying is true. Stop and take the time today to tell your friends and family how very much you love them. Leave someone a hidden note telling them what they add to your life. I talked to Ray right before he went to the hospital and I told him that I loved him. I love all you too my friends & I think the Lord each day for you. You help to make up what my world is - a rich, warm, loving, environment. Thank you for that.

May your day be blessed!

Aubrey

Not Much to Report

Hello All!
Not much to report on my end but I'm bound and determined to post at least once a month - who can't stop and do that? (Obviously me - but I'm making an effort now to try and pay attention!) Hee hee.
Well let's see, what's happened since I last wrote? There certainly hasn't been any more snow. And as a matter of fact, when I got home from work that afternoon, at about 1:30 all that beautiful snow had already melted. God just gave us a quick snow flash that morning then took it back. What a tease He is. It's been hot lately. Cold in the mornings and hot in the afternoon. It's nice though, I'm actually enjoying the sun this year. Since I got diabetes (or maybe it's that I've lost 60 lbs.) I get cold. I've never been cold in my whole life. But I totally get cold now. I actually have a space heater I keep next to me when I'm working. What's THAT?! I was kind of mad about it at first, but "life is like an onion donkey - there's many layers" (said in my best Shrek voice) and I guess I'm just working on another layer now.
The scrapbook part of my life has been exciting this year. Jenn and I just went up and filmed a segment for the Scrapbook Lifestyle series. I'm not sure when the webispode is coming out - but we had a lot of fun. It was neat because three of my friends are designers on the show and I got to see them all at the studio that day - how cool. They're all so different but just really fantastic people. They created a heritage album for us - I'll be sure to let you all know when to tune in. I am now creating layouts for Current's scrapbook sales catalog "Times to Cherish". I'm getting to do that with my sister and friend's Krissie and Crystal. It's been a lot of fun so far (some challenging - but mostly fun)! Then I'm going to Heidi Swapp's Creative Escape in September. I'm going with my aforementioned friend, Krissie. She's going to fly down and then we're going to drive to Phoenix together for the event and she'll fly home to Colorado Springs from there. I can't wait. I'm so excited. She's so much fun and we get along so great - I know it'll be a blast. It also looks like I'll be going to Canada with my friend Leah in October. She's such a wonderfully nice person. I can't wait to go.
In other travel news - I'm going to New York in May (17th - 19th). I had the opportunity to go to New York once before with my friend Ginnie - neither of us had any desire to go there so we didn't go. This time one of the girls at my church won a radio contest for an all expense paid trip to New York to go see Omarion in concert (no clue who he is). She gets to go on a private jet and go back stage and meet the guy. Only thing is - she's 17 so she needs someone over 18 to go with her. She asked me if I'd please go. How nice to be asked! I better try and get some photography lessons in before then!
Ok, I've rambled on long enough. Drop me a line - let me know how you're doing.
Hugs!
Aubrey

It's a Snow Day

Hi Guys,

It's officially a snow day. Well not here of course. My sister has the day off work and her son has no school due to snow. We had snow on our mountain though when I woke up this morning. Here's a picture of it. Sorry it's not the best picture. I snapped it as I was running off to work. It's still really cold and the wind is blowing a bit but I love this kind of weather. The rain has been wonderful! Pretty soon everything is going to be all green and pretty again. Well, I'm going to keep this one short. Oh, I added a link to my Two Peas in a Bucket gallery off to the right. Feel free to check it out. I try to remember to post every now and then.

Hugs!

Aubrey

More New Things!

Hello all!

Ok...I've been trying to do a better job on keeping this thing current - aren'tcha proud of me! :) It's been so busy here I haven't stopped to return calls, e-mails, etc...but it doesn't mean I don't love you all! I got a new haircut. My friend took a picture of me (I was told I needed a new avatar) so I finally changed it. You can see it listed under my Profile. That's the new haircut me.

And in sadder news my little red car died. I actually cried. I took a lot of teasing for loving that little car like I did. It was a 1997 Ford Escort (nothing fancy) but I liked it for a lot of reasons. It was always a very reliable car. It was my first new car that I bought myself. (My Grandpa went with me to help me get it and he co-signed for me...Grandpa's gone to heaven now.) I don't know...lots of reasons. I really, really liked that car. It will be missed. In a little happier news this means we got to get a new car. We got a new Ford Fusion. (My girlfriend Krissie's husband, Mike, works at Ford and we get a special "friends" discount). Whoo-hoo! Here's a picture of the little beauty. This isn't a great picture. There's actually lots of shadow on the car so you can't see the true color but it's really very pretty.

For my third new: have I told you all about Duke yet? I hate to admit it - and I'm only admitting to being a "foster" but we have another dog. Duke. Duke was found outside our home - wondering the neighborhood. I believed he was "dropped" off and left. His hip bones were showing he was so thin. You could tell he had worn a collar but he didn't have one on. So I saw him out in the yard and I gave him a bag of dog food and he was in our front yard when I came home from work so I gave him another bag of dog food & some water and he's just sort of stayed. He's pretty cute and what a nice dog. However, I don't want to be the lady with 5 dogs!!! Man! Here's my favorite picture of him and Hanna together.

I guess that will wrap it up for me. I know this was kind of a lengthy one. I hope everyone has a great day!

Aubrey

New Things!

Well Spring isn't quite here, but I've had the pleasure of encountering more "new" things than normal in the last couple of weeks. First I got to go to CHA (Craft & Hobby Assoc.) show in Anaheim with my friend Crystal at the end of January. This is where all the new craft & hobby merchandise is showcased by manufacturers and retailers purchase it. I was so excited to see all the new scrapbook stuff! We got a few "free samples" [Crystal remind me to give you yours!] -- we got to do make n' takes, see the scrapbook "celebs" etc... We had such a good time. Here's a shot with me & Elsie Flannigan! Isn't she cute?

Along the line of new things: I got new babies (chicks that is). I ordered them online and the post office called this morning at 4:30 AM and said, "This is the US Post Office. We've got your live chicks here." Jeff said, "Ok, I'll come pick them up." He was half asleep - we couldn't figure out why they called so early then it hit us - he said, "You could hear your birds chirping in the background." We have 27 new babies. One passed away this afternoon. Pretty little girl - she was so nice, but she was weak, and just didn't make it. On the up side - the rest are thriving and running around and eating - I can't wait for them to be big enough to be out in the coop. They're so great. We'll have plenty of fresh eggs in a couple of month - let me know if you want any!

Hope you enjoy all the new things to be found this season!

Love,

Aubrey

That Kinda Day

Hello All!
It's that kinda day - I've decided I'm not having it! I woke up with an incredible headache (it's actually the same one I went to bed with) and I was freezing so I thought I'd stop and get a hot latte, it'd be yummy, hopefully help with the headache - warm up my hands, etc...however I get there, stand in line, place my order - and as I'm getting my drink, realize that I ordered the iced version - what a TARD! Anyhow - it was time for a little Metallica - (I really needed a hit of Kid Rock but I couldn't find my CD) so James is taking care of me this morning. I put in my "Load" album and I've been jamming all morning - "Ain't my bitch" "King Nothing" - AWESOME songs for days like today - I'm totally in a better mood! Here's wishing you all good moods too!
Aubrey

New Year

I just looked at my blog and realized it's been October since I've posted! To tell the truth I've written plenty and it's just been hiding in the "Draft" folder. I said I wouldn't post again without having the pictures to upload at the same time because I always talk about stuff and say I'll come back and post the pictures and never do. So I guess that means I didn't post anything about the last quarter of the year. Oh well...it was sorta just the same ol' stuff anyway. How was everyone's Christmas? I had such a good time. I was ALL over the place. I was back and forth to AZ 3 times in a week; but on one of the those trips I got to see my best friend Ginnie Baker. We've been BFs for 20 years now (more than half my life!). She lives in MO now so I don't get to see her too much. It was so good to see her and the girls. The girls have grown up so much and I really wanted Addison to get to meet them. He and Kira got along really well (when she wasn't attacking him!!) :-)

I got to go to the Hobby Lobby. Have you ever been there? It's an amazing store. Crafts - decorations - etc... I love it. The first time I went was in Arkansas when I went to visit my Granny, but they never had them out here. Now there's a brand new one in Phx. on 99th Ave. and McDowell. Love it!! I read on 2Ps they had a coupon out last week and I'll tell you I seriously considered driving down for the sale (how sick am I?)

In recent evnts - Friday I scrapbooked with Addison and one of the girls from the church. (I'm going to try to get a few more to come.) I got this book about 2 months ago called "The Self-Centered Workbook" - I never would have looked at it - Jeff actually pointed it out to me. It's really very cool. It's designed to help you create a "Book of Me". And I got to thinking and thought, how cool would it be to work with teens and let them answer all the questions in this book - and essentially do a little inward reflection and then creatively express all the things that are important to them and help make up who they are. The first session was really cool. The layouts turned out great and we had such a good time. We started with our opening sheet which was really just a single picture and some vital statistics. Addison wanted a current picture for his LO so I snapped a couple of quickies out in the yard at the church. Here they are!

I'm so proud of him and the weight he has lost. He's worked really hard at it. He's joined track this year - and anybody who knows Addis knows that he's had a hard time running since he was a small boy. He broke his leg when he wasn't quite 2 and I'm not sure they set it right - he always had a hard time running after that. (He also has Scoliosis and that may contribute to the hard time running thing.) It used to frustrate him that the other kids could run fast and he couldn't. He'd go out in the front yard and run drills - just to practice running, hoping to get better at it. And I've got to say he's done it. He did his first track meet this year. He ran representing the 8th grade boys and he did his mile and a half in 11 minutes 2 seconds. I thought that was great. Well I should get back to work. I get to go to CHA with my friend Crystal in a couple of weeks - I know I'll have plenty to write about then! Until then - God's Blessings on you all! Aubrey

YARD WORK!

If a yard ever needed work it was ours. We are refinancing and needed to do a little yard work to get it up to snuff. Monday we threw out 4 garbage cans and 14 bags of yard waste. I went home yesterday after work and started raking. Jeff started bagging when he got home from work. So by the end of last night we had another 13 bags of yard waste. These are the full-size hefty yard bags. Man...and believe it or not there's plenty more to do. And this is just the front yard! We bought lots of little decorative things for the yard - it looks a million times better already. Mom came down and really helped put it all together. I'll try and go home today and take a picture and post it.

New & Old

Well, it's been about as busy as it can be here. There's been so much going on and it seems like there's a lot of changes. In the "New" category: Addison has gotten a couple of yard jobs this past week. He's worked 3 times and made $56 - he's so excited. I hear he's a terrific worker. I'm so proud of him. He's excited to have money to put into his savings account to - I think he's saving to get an IPOD. He's really into music right now. I went and got my hair cut. It was at an "Aveda" salon on University. When I was in beauty school one of my girlfriends worked for an Aveda Concept Salon in Phx. She was awarded the "Aveda Makeup Artist of the Year" Award that year. She was a very talented esthetician. It just kind of made me miss her walking into that salon and seeing all the product. It was kind of wild being back in the serious "salon" mode...I missed it for a bit. Even thought, geez, maybe I should get my license in CA for just doing nails - and stick with just doing manicures and pedicures - all natural - no acrylic. Ahhhh...doing nails all day in a fancy salon...doesn't that sound like fun?! Fun hair cuts - fun people - I really do love the salon environment. Oh well...in the "Old" category I've dropped 40.8 of my old pounds...hopefully to return no more. I need to keep going - I can't believe I'm doing so well...it almost feels like I don't have to think about it too much anymore. I skip aisles in the grocery store that used to be my old haunts and I don't even miss them. I don't feel like I'm being cheated out of anything - it's just that I don't really want that stuff anymore. I'm so glad I finally got it together and started doing this. I'm so proud of every pound my family has lost. Jeff has lost 40 lbs., Addison has lost 17 lbs., mom has lost 51 lbs., Jenn has lost 23.9 lbs., I'm not sure how much Aunt Cindy or Margie have lost - but I'm so excited for everyone - everyone is looking terrific. I hope whatever you're doing today - you can do it with a smile. I wish for you wonderful, peaceful, rests on a wonderfully shaded hammock above a thick, cool, lush, bed of grass...(that wish of course comes equipped with a wonderful novel and a terrificly cold glass of tea!)

We're Back

Ok, we survived it. Actually, we LOVED it. Vacation was awesome. We always have a great time on vacation. We're the type who get excited about seeing the "World's Largest Rocking Chair"...if you are too, you can see it just outside of Canon City, CO. We went and spent a couple of days with my girlfriend Krissie and her husband, Mike. What fun! I miss that chick already - wish you could all know her - she's a blast. On our trips I love to take pictures of all the old barns we pass on the side of the road - I love them. I got a ton on this trip. I'll try and get some pictures up soon. Since we've been home we've been working on cleaning out the house - throwing stuff away. So of course the scrapbook room is being worked on again. It's been rearranged and gone through. I am actually getting to the decorating portion now. Whooo hooo! Word is my sister is coming down for Labor day - can't wait. I've only seen her once this year - doesn't seem right! Well hope this day is a productive one for you all.
Love,
Aub

Vacation Countdown

I CANNOT WAIT FOR VACATION!!! I'm so ready to be out of here. Out on the road. Seeing the sights. Taking pictures. Enjoying God's country. It's going to be great. Everything at home is plugged in being charged. Cameras, game players, music players, etc... I need to stock up on magazines and books for our trip. I think we're going to try to make it very picnic style if we can. It should be a lot of fun - I'll be sure and share pictures as we go.
Aub

Get Up - Get On Up...

It's a James Brown kinda day. I couldn't sleep at all last night. I finally napped around 4:30 AM for a little less than an hour - and when I did wake up it was with James Brown's song "Sex Machine" in my head. You know the one...

Get up, (get on up)
Get up, (get on up)
Stay on the scene, (get on up), like a sex machine, (get on up)

And then, shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker,
Shake your money maker

So I've been Shaken my money maker over and over in my head! Ughh! "Right on! Right on!" All that being said, I get to church this morning to count the tithe and Buffy is there to help and I keep singing/humming that song and by the end of counting she says "Oh great now I'm singing it too!" Oh well, at least it's a good song (Don't know that it's church office appropriate but oh well.) At least today is cooler. It's almost 10 AM and it's 75 degrees out. Not too bad considering what it's been lately. I hope everyone is "Getting On Up" today and doing something worthwhile!
God Bless You!
Aubrey