Picaboo - how do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

I have been genetically altered. I now have a creative gene. And that creative gene is called the chromosome Picaboo.

My practice Picaboo book came in the mail yesterday. Remember how I told you I wanted to see how it would work so I would know for Carrie's sons graduation book? I figured I'd practice on a trip from days of yore. So I went back in the archives & dug up our Vegas pics.

The pic on the front cover is one I actually took of the 'Welcome to Vegas' sign. I could've put any web background on it OR I could've used the pic or the background AND added more pics on top of it. Be still my heart...I was also able to write whatever the heck I wanted on it. I could choose lotsa different fonts & colors. I could've even put something on the spine, but I didn't. I wish now I had...tear...This book is 6" x 8". I sat it on a piece of regular size paper for you to see the size. Brad was a little surprised at how small it was. He just imagined it would be bigger (don't all men?! :)I like how it has an inside cover - kinda like a real book. I just put a pic the resort took of us when we got there & put a little note about our friendship underneath with our names. For Carrie's book, I gave her homework after I left Sunday to write Tyler a note from his mamma. The inside cover of his book is a pic of them together when he was 4 years old on the left & then one from his 18th birthday a month ago on the right. It's gonna be epic! My favorite few pages are the ones from the Hoover Dam & Grand Canyon. On the left, I used a pic I took overlooking the dam. Then I added the words & more pics on the top & bottom. Same concept on the other side. I used a pic I took at the Grand Canyon as the background & added words & more pics. Voila!

On the left is a pic the helicopter place took before we went over the Canyon in that very helicopter. I just made it one whole page all by itself. This time I added no words & no other pics.

For the back cover, I used another pic I took from one of the cross walks looking down the strip.

Then I added the words for a personal touch. And of course, to give myself credit for all prosperity.

All in all, I'm pretty proud of this little book. It was really easy once I got my bearings. One problem I have that most of you won't is that it takes a helluva long time to look at the backgrounds on the web because of our slow internet connection. Plus there was NO way I could send the book to the site after it was done at home. I had to take it to mom's & mooch off her hi-speed wi-fi. (You download the software to your computer & you don't have to be on the internet to work on it. UNLESS you wanna look at backgrounds...) They are VERY customizable. There IS a small element of creativity involved, but not so much I felt an anxiety attack coming on like I did with the scrapbooking stuff. This is much cleaner & neater too because I had piles of little papers & such all over the place after working on the scrapbook. In my opinion - these are the new wave of the future. DIGITAL scrapbooks!!! And you may be wondering on the price? They have like 3 styles to choose from that aren't too expensive (there are some that are hundreds of dollars! gulp!) The book I chose was a classic custom hardback. It is size medium. It was $29.99 for up to 20 pages (mine was 15...). Each additional page is $.99. You can also get softback for $15.99. I paid a total of $39.98 after tax & shipping.

You can see the entire book here. You know you wanna... http://preview.picaboo.com/Webview/CoverPage.aspx?album=000000000007274799&user=0000000000072269BE

Hannah banana's birthday

We were invited out last night to Oliver's for Hannah's birthday celebration. She's the ripe ole age of 22 now...don't we just hate her?! It was mostly people from the motorcycle gang & some of her other friends came too.
Jeremy wore these shoes to my house last weekend & I was like, "Whaaaat are those?!" And he is at no loss for words like his sister & we had a 15 minute conversation about them. Apparently they are the "in" thing for runners. I don't run so I wouldn't know.... I think they look like he stepped in mud. But he did say, "Geez, everyone wants to take pics of my shoes..." But please note how he lifted his pant leg up. He enjoys the attention - he ain't foolin' me...

Ahh, the lovely photo bomb... I can't decide if Hoosier was photo bombing the pic or mimicking Brad's 'habit' of doing this weird thing with his tongue when he concentrates?!

Wonder what they're talking about? Motorcycles?! I remained pretty low key, like usual, where the motorcycle gang is concerned. I know, you're shocked. But I think I figured out what it is. They are all very nice & I DO like them, don't get me wrong. It's just that some of them act...uh...uhm...immature - silly - I don't know what the right word is?! Maybe that's how they have fun? I don't have fun that way... Jer says I don't have an open mind for the 'diversity of the group'. I say I don't have the patience for the 'diversity of the group'. I mean, I'm 33 3/4 years old. I'm too old for fake humping each other. I'm too old for standing right behind someone & acting like I'm going to lick them. I'm too old for jumping around & acting like a moron. Sorry, that's just how it is.

Maybe it's not patience I lack - it's just that I'm o-l-d?!

Dancin' my sweater off

Nancy & I went to a dance our line dance teacher from the Y sponspored in Salem Friday night. The theme was a luau. But I don't really have any luau-y stuff, so I threw on this lei that matched my sweater. That's as good as I was gonna get.But these ladies were totally able to dress for the occasion. Grass skirts, bright colors - the works...Obviously I didn't know all of the dances (I'm still a newbie...) , so I sat on the sidelines while Nancy was out dancing. Our teacher was really good about going through some of the dances before we danced them to refresh our memories. And I was even brave enough to get out there & muddle my way through some of them I didn't know. No one was watching me - what do I care?!

I got pretty warm with all the dancing & concentrating - I had to lose the sweater & the hair got pulled back! This is my kind of cardio - so fun!

Long awaited reward

Back when I started with Premier in July, our little group of jewelers announced a contest. If you had 9 shows in 45 days, you got to go on a 'Girls Day Out' with leadership. It was going to include pedicures & lunch...on them. Ya'll know I'm all about a competition, so I was like, "ok, I can do that! I totally wanna go on a day out with leadership to pick their brains...and suck up!"

So I did it. I made my 9 shows in the 45 day period. And apparently I was the only one from our group to do so - so they extended the time frame. I wasn't real happy about that - I'm not gonna lie. But - I shouldn't be such a brat. Others should have the opportunity to go too....

Welllll, even after they extended the time frame (I think they extended it another few months...maybe into December?!) STILL no one else did their 9 shows. Which, by the way, I find quite surprising. I am upset with myself if I don't have 4 shows a month!

So I was the lone wolf. Finally on Thursday night, all of us were able to get together to have our 'day' out...which really happened in the evening.

Here I am getting ready for my pedi!! I've never ever had one before - I'm cheap like that...Don't get me wrong, I like to spend moo-lah, just not on stuff like that. I sure did enjoy it though! Me & Gerilee, my Premier grandma.
And the lady had to talk me into getting the deluxe spa pedicure. I kept telling her no - but she just kept on with the hard sell. "It will help this dry skin on your legs." "Uhm, you can tell I don't really moisturize in the winter? No one sees my legs in winter, so whaddu I care?!"

Me, Gerilee , Brenda (my Premier mom) & Debbie.

This is the next step of the deluxe spa thingie. Nice shade of green, huh? And my legs were nice & soft when she got done.

Ahhh, this is the life...

The finished product!

This is Lenny. His mom & dad own the spa. He was TOO cute! He's almost 2. He ran around the shop & he would throw balls around & then he tried to help mom & dad with the pedicures!

Modeling our freshly pampered foot-sies.

We were SO excited we finally got our pedis!

Just in case ya'll didn't believe me!

I told you about how I was the top retailer in our little jewelry group in February here: http://thefarmingmcafees.blogspot.com/2010/03/reduce-reuse-recycle.html

And I also told you how I couldn't take a pic of myself because I was too busy standing at the head of the class...

Here's the proof in techni-color! I'm on the left with these silly dollar sign glasses they made me wear!! To the right is Nancy, she was the top sponsor for February so she got to wear silly stars. Next is Wilma who was the 2nd retailer & last but not least is Debbie. She was the 3rd retailer!

When the cats away, the mice will play

Brian & his fam & my in-laws are out in Vegas for Spring Break. And in this little dog & pony show we call 'the farm', Brian's kinda like, 'the drill sargeant'. I won't get on my soap box (in this post...) but Brian gets upset when Brad wants to take off to do 'things'. Yet, I can count on my fingers AND toes the times he has left Brad alone to farm while he has gone to one of the kiddos ball games or whatever. And here's where I get infuriated...we don't have kids - we're selfish, hello?! So we don't 'take off' to go to a ball game here or there. And when B-rad wants to do something for himself - I compare it to Brian taking off for a kid related function. Same difference, right? Who's with me?! Anyone?...Anyone?...Buehler?!

I had made plans to go over to Carrie's last night to work on the top secret picture project. And I got a text from Brad, "Wanna ride the motorcycle to Matt & Carrie's?" Uhm, whaaa? Hold up... I haven't been on a bike in 13 years. We used to ride his bike for hours & hours when we were in our late teens, early 20's. We were young & dumb - we rode with no helmets. Please don't judge us...I said we were young & dumb... One day Brad was riding home & he had to get close to the edge of the road & he got caught in some gravel & junk on the side of the road. He lost control & hit a tree. He was fine - he was wearing his helmet that day. The bike was totalled & I had the crap scared outta me. And since then - I haven't been on a bike.

So fast forward from early 20's to early 30's...Brad's got his bike obession back. I've been able to hold him off having me ride with him. Well Matt & Carrie ruined that because now he wants US to ride with THEM. I had decided that my butt was too wide & too old to be on the back of a street bike. Well B-rad had other plans...

And I was nervous, I'm not gonna lie. And B-rad got his feelings hurt - but it wasn't against him. I was scared that I would make him wreck us. So I nervously got ready for the trip. And I dug out my medical alert bracelet. Ya know - just in case. (B-rad wasn't very happy about that, either...) And now that we're older & wiser, we know we need to wear gear. So Brad gave me a choice of 2 helmets. One he & my brother have worn on the race track - which means they had been sweated in profusely. Even though I share dna with one of them - I decided against having his sweat drenched helmet on my non-sweaty head. So I chose a helmet just Brad had used. Then he got a jacket for me & I WISH I could've gotten pics of him getting me all zipped up. It was hilarious. I felt like a 5 year old having her daddy get her coat all zipped up & 'hat' strapped on!

I was ready to go!

Thankfully I survived the 20 minute ride there. Needless to say, it's hard on these 'ole knees having them up in my chest for that long of time. And my arms are sore today from holding on so dang tight. I was afraid Brad would do something silly & scare me. But he was a good boy & behaved - for the most part...

Since Brian was gone (wondering how THAT tied in to the story?!) - B-rad & Matt made plans to ride while I was helping Carrie.

So the street bike racer & the big bad son of anarchy were together at last.
These boys ain't like their wives...they can't make a decision to save their souls. They sat there in the driveway for 10 minutes trying to decide where to go. "Where do you wanna go?!" "I don't care - where do you wanna go?!" They finally came up with a plan & they were off. And history was made.... tear...

Carrie & I went inside to get started. I actually took a couple of pics this time. On the left are the baggies of pics for each year of Tyler's life. She had pulled out some more albums to look for pics.

And while I scanned - she was going through the pics to see if there were any more to add. We scanned from age 8-16 in about 2 1/2 hours. All we have left is ages 17-18 to scan & then we can really get working on putting them into the book.

The bike ride wasn't too bad. I just gotta get used to having my bootie on that tiny seat. I smelled like exhaust - which I didn't like. I knew I couldn't wear cute hoop earrings, so I put in little posts. Nu uh, that didn't work either - when I pulled the helmet off, they popped right outta my ears. No earrings? Oh the humanity...

Plus, if I'm gonna ride the bike on any sort of regular basis (ya know, when Brian's gone again...) I'm gonna have to get some cuter, more girly gear. Like a jacket & a helmet that actually fits my head. I'm thinkin' in a lovely shade of purple...

My very own 'sons of anarchy'

So the bff's came over Saturday afternoon to visit. Actually, Carrie needed to get her Mary Kay from me so that's why they came over. Details schmetails - my story is they came to see little ole moi & I'm stickin' to it.

Since I'm such a good bff (no takesie backsie's - ya'll told me I was!), I told them I'd go out & take pics of them on their bike since obviously they can't when both their butts are on it. See the big bad tough Harley mama putting her wussy Mary Kay baggie in the side box?! If I didn't know him so well, I may not mess with Matt when he has his Harley 'garb' on. But I know he's just a big soft teddy bear - I ain't skeered.

I can't believe I got a smile outta him. He NEVER EVER smiles in pictures!

And since SOME of you may not be television officienados like myself, 'Sons of Anarchy' is a tv show. Surprisingly enough, it's a show I don't watch. But apparently it's about a motorcycle 'gang' & I just thought Matt & Carrie looked like they belong in a biker gang... ya know, like Brad?!

One day, when Brad's not busy (Hahahahahaha, breath, hahahahahaha) he & Matt are going to ride together. Not like on the same bike, silly... Brad will ride his crotch rocket & Matt will be on his Harley. And it will be epic - 'cuz big bad Harley riders don't associate with other kinds of bikes. They're very stuck up like that. But I think these two are just the kind of guys to bridge the gap. Bring people together. City Mouse, Country Mouse. Tom & Jerry. Elmer Fudd & Bugs. Health Care reform & the 'rest of us'.

Ya gotta take the good with the bad... but I'm not so good with the bad...

So I've been working my little jewelry fingers to the bone lately. And I ALWAYS spread myself too thin. But hey, ya gotta make hay while the suns shinin' people.

Since this is Premier's 25th year in business, they are offering us MAJOR incentives to get out there & have home shows & touch lives. And since I'm all about a contest (I'm sorta competitive that way...), I am booking my boo-tay off to win me some free jewelry and perhaps... a CAR!!!

Here's the deal - in our little group of jewelers in Southern Indiana, at January's training, we set goals for the next month. And I stated my goals in front of God & everybody. Well, the little competitor in me came out & I said, "I SAID I was gonna do it. And I'm gonna do it!" So I had to book a certain amount of shows & share the business with a couple of people (Thanks Alicia & Denise! Practice makes perfect!). And boy was I glad I facebooked & emailed my way into 6 bookings in March because Premier offered us DOUBLE the incentive for jewelry sales in March. Woo to the hoo!

So Wednesday night I had a show in Pleasureville, KY. Now - if you don't know where that is - I didn't either. But it's about 1 hour past no freakin' where. Seriously - it took me one & one half hours to get there. It was 153 miles round trip (Thank God I can use mileage as a tax expense...). The girl is getting married next month. She was stressed about all that & she wanted to cancel about 2 weeks ago. But I talked to her & said, "Hey, if you cancel, you're going to lose the extra $25 free for having it on the original date." And I was honest with her & told her about my contest. So she said, "ok - we'll do it."

Now - I drove 1 1/2 hours to Pleasureville. She had 4 people show up. One girl was a past hostess that had an almost $900 show! Another one was a girl who is already booked on my calendar. So I knew my chances at getting 3 bookings (that's what the hostess needs to get another $25 free...) were slim to nu uh.

Her show was only $129. And I say only like it's a bad thing, but it's really not. She's going to end up with around $85 in free jewelry. Which is nothing to shake a stick at. And this is where I need to rely on FAITH (Gretchen & Jami Leigh Lee, what have I told you about my faith?!) that GOD will provide for me & I shouldn't be so darned selfish. 'Cuz after all is said & done - I still made around $50 bucks. Which is $50 bucks I didn't have before. I just get frustrated because I had to drive SO far. And it was a lonely drive (can you imagine me with no one to talk to for 90 whole minutes?! Oh, the humanity!!!) And I was SO tired at 11:00 when I got home. And I SO didn't wanna get up for work Thursday. And I was a LITTLE (thought I was gonna say SO? I was a tad...) cranky during the day. PLUS I had another show that night too. But there was a girl at the show in Pleasureville who was like looking in a mirror. She was spunky, talkative, funny & just outgoing. And while I was doing my jewelry talkin' thang, she was on her iphone - getting me bookings. She got 2 to be exact. Then SHE booked a show too. And just like that - I had my 3 bookings. The only down side? They're all out in forever away-ville. Sigh.... I'm such a brat... Faith, Jaime...faith. AND, she may be interested in selling it... be still my heart...

OK-so this leads me to my show last night in Sellersburg. WAY closer to home (30-40 minutes). I was still feeling all bad about myself from the night before. But I went into that show with a clean slate. Because if I've learned anything in the jewelry biz it's that it's ALL up to the hostess. If she wants to earn a ton of free jewelry, she's going to work HER bootie off to make that happen. All I can do is show it & talk about the company. I'm just the information lady.

So last night - 4 people. De ja vu?! But none of them had ever heard of or been to a Premier show. Whaaa?! And these girls came through for their friend. My hostess had a $460 show. That's freakin' awesome. And while I didn't get any bookings last night (they all had lotsa 'life' stuff going on... babies, moving...), one girl wants me to call her after the summer for a show. AND she may be interested in selling. Faith....faith....

So my worldwind jewelry tour continues this weekend with a show Saturday night in Salem & a bunco show Sunday afternoon at the girl who lives behind us. Then Monday another trip to Salem to get a catalog order. Wish me luck & pray for me that I trust in a higher power ... I struggle with that. I'm always interfering & trying to make MY own destiny...

And I know this sounds selfish, but pray for me that I know the right things to say to ladies who might want to sell. Because if Premier could meet a need in their life, I don't wanna screw it up...

Am I really THAT bad?!

I have been bothered by something. And normally I don't really care what people think about me - but a guy at worked asked me a question the other day & it got me thinking. He said, "How does Brad put up with you?!" Hhhmmmm?

Ok-here's the deal-io. I don't profess to be a sugary sweet angelic faced woman all the time. Heck, I don't even profess it for 50% of the time... But when I told this co-worker, "I DO have some redeeming qualities!" He said, "Like what?!" And I couldn't think of anything... gasp...

And this has been bothering me. Am I REALLY a bad person?!

And let me go back & explain something to you. When I say I don't care what people think? I mean people I don't like. I don't care what they think. I care what my friends & family think. Co-workers? I could give a crap less if they like me or not. But at good ole Jacobi Sales, women are considered second class citizens. We mean nothing. If you don't have a penis - your opinion, your work ethic, mean NOTHING. I know that's crass, but that's just how it is. And what I also find ironic? The men here can be rude & vile all day long to the women. But let THIS woman come right back at them? I catch crap for it all.day.long. Double standard anyone? They can dish it but they can't take it...

And that's another thing. I tell it like I see it. YES, my mouth runs faster than my brain sometimes & that does get me in trouble. But I'll tell you, again, how my life started for you to 'get' why I'm like this now. I was painfully shy as a girl. The friends I did have, were mean to me. I was left out of play dates. I was probably made fun of & didn't even realize it. When your dad tells you at age 13 (when you're getting chubby) that, 'boys are going to come to the door & ask to take out his fat daughter'. Tell me that doesn't hurt? How 'bout as a 33 year old adult, when carrying a box of donuts to someone else he says to you (in front of strangers no less...), "Like you really need those?..." No wonder I put up a freakin' brick wall!

And that's part of the problem. I REFUSE to be taken advantage of like I was when I was young. I was miserable & sad & I will not let that happen to me again. And because of my vow to not be walked all over - I sometimes go WAY too far to the other side & act like a maniac. As far as my dad? Sure, I can say I don't care what he thinks. And really, I don't...but when I'm posed with , "How does Brad put up with you?" all these insecurities rear their ugly heads.

I do NOT like to have 'smoke blown up my a**' (pardon the expression)... I am a very smart girl & I don't have the time nor need the 'bs' that comes with people telling you what you want to hear. We are all individuals. We have our own ideas, thoughts, opinions. And I do not get upset when someone voices their opinion that may vary from mine (Kate Gosselin anyone?...).

So I never really thought much more about how Brad puts up with me...because honestly, I don't know how he does sometimes. But ya know what? Sometimes I don't know how I put up with HIM. It's a 2 way street. And I'm betting it's that way in every relationship. There is good & there is bad. If I don't cook an actual meal every night, I'm sure I have something Brad can re-heat to eat when he gets home. I do the laundry. I clean the house (kinda...). I take care of all the money, the bills, the bank accounts. I re-new our license plates. I make doctors appointments. I make sure the loyal & faithful steeds are fed. I do ALL the grocery shopping... But no, I am NOT a mooshy-gooshy kinda girl. I don't run to his open arms when he gets home at night (hello? It's late - I'm in bed!)

But after my post about helping my bff with her book...I got SO many comments from ya'll about how 'I'm a good friend'. And that really touched my heart. I have tears in my eyes as I type. And I got to thinking, 'I wasn't asking for any sort of recognition for helping Carrie.' I was just helping a friend in need. And damn it, I AM a good friend!

I get accused of a lot of things. And some of them may be true (I've been accused of being dis-respectful to certain family members. I vehemently deny that one. I also think respect is a 2-way street... you've gotta give it to get it...). Yup, sometimes I'm a bitch (who isn't?), sometimes I'm rude (who isn't?), sometimes I'm impatient (ok, I'm impatient 99% of the time...). But I think I do have good qualities too! I'll do anything I can for my friends & family. (Just today I had to 'sing a song' on a Zelda game for mom to get her to another level on her DS! Sheesh!) I try to be honest. I'm funny. I have raised over $500 for the March for Babies walk in May. I'm DOING the March of Babies walk with Erin. I do anything I can for Erin, my nephews (Derik at Carl Casper, hello?!) or my great nieces (sure I may tell stories of how crazy it was when I babysit - but that'a mainly making fun of MYSELF!)

I can be your best friend or your worst enemy. You get that choice... I have a saying, "I try not to 'start' something...but if YOU 'start' it, I'm gonna finish it..." I don't like confrontation, but I will do it if it's necessary for the greater good...

Shew! I feel better. What a great way to get crap off your chest!

Reduce, reuse, recycle

Last night I travelled to Scottsburg for the jewelry lady training classes we have each month. It is always nice to get with my upline & my sister jewelers to kind of 're-group' & remember why I do this sometimes. Because it's easy for me to lose focus...

Normally my Premier Grandma, Gerilee, does the trainings. But she had just gotten back from a 7 day cruise to the Caribbean she WON through Premier. More on that later... When we walked in, the ladies that got the training together had put up 'curtains' so we couldn't see what was going to happen. They always do recognition first. They give certificates to the top 3 retailers for the last month & the top sponsor(s). Well, ya'll know I hate to brag, but I was the top retailer for the month of February... Of course, I was upfront getting my certificate so I couldn't take a pic of myself...

Last nights theme was 'going green'. Opal Winfrey-Jewelry was in the audience & she had 2 jewelry ladies on the show via 'skype'. The first one was my Premier mom, Brenda. She played the jewelry lady who had her business together. And she talked about how she reuses, recycles & reduces with Premier. I can't remember all the examples, but she talked about reducing financial stress with Premier, reusing folder & catalogs, etc. You get the drift....

They really went all out with it. It looked really good. Linda was in the office setting on the left & Donna Dontawanna was in a living room setting on the right. Complete with "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" playing on the tv. Be still my heart!
Donna Dontawanna was played by one of my sister jewelers, Debbie. And she.was.hilarious! It will be hard to 'get it' through the written word, but the way SHE recycles with her Premier business?! She used her jewelry lamp as a light in her living room & her cart for supplies to put her feet up on when she was watching tv.

She checked her mail & had lots of past due bills. So she shredded them. Then she had some green 'money' laying around that we use at shows, so she shredded that too. Then she thought it'd be a great idea to use that for grass in her kids' Easter baskets. She also used her 'necklace' stands to hold artwork her kids drew on top of the tv. Perhaps the funniest thing was with a binder. When you start with Premier, you get a "Jeweler Handbook" with lots of information about the business. She decided to re-use that binder. She yelled, "Kids... hey kids... I know you were wantin' another binder! I've got one here for ya!"

Gerilee got to go on a 'Designer Cruise' through Premier. They're always offering us incentives & contests. I don't know all the details, but I'm sure she had to sell a certain dollar amount of jewelry in a specific amount of time & sponsor people too. This is just one thing they got while on board -a beach towel with the name of the cruise & dates on it. And what I found interesting? The towels were shipped to the dock in Miami, but the boat took off without them. So ya know what Premier did? Instead of making everyone wait until they got back to Miami to get their towel, they had them shipped to St. Thomas for them.

Gerilee shared pics & video she took with us. I'm tellin' ya, the more I see of Premier, the more I realize they do stuff first class all.the.way. She said when they got to their room, there was non-alcoholic champagne. Every night they had some sort of 'treat' from Premier in their room (one night it was chocolate covered strawberries...). And when they got on the boat, they found out that the top 10 or so retailers for the cruise got upgraded to those fancy schmancy rooms that are as big as houses! How cool is that?!

So anyway, the moral of the story is, I like training. It gives me ideas to steal/use at my own shows. Plus, it's neat to hear stories of all the things Premier does for their jewelers. They really do care about us & our success with their company & I just think that's awesome!

Up to my eyeballs in memories

After lunch Saturday, I went over to my bff's, Carrie, to help her with a project she's working on. Her son, Tyler, is graduating from high school this year. She wants to put together a book for him from birth to age 18.

Carrie & her mom have been working on getting pics together & figuring out how old he was in each one. It is a major undertaking. They have 17 ziploc bags labeled 0-17/18. They put each pic in the appropriate bag. Saturday evening we went through all the bags & placed them in the order she wants them to be in the book. His birthday is in February, so each 'year' is going to start with a picture of him & his birthday cake. (And Carrie's mom is a major picture takin' kinda lady. So they have a pic every year of him with his cake...except 1.... & trust me - that year is haunting her as we speak!) But I told them they'd done a pretty darn good job with all the different pics they did have!

We finished putting the pics in order Saturday night. (Starting with his birthday pic, then springy/summery stuff, then fall, then Christmas... Carrie's kooky like that!) And she needs my help with the pesky computer stuff. So yesterday I went over to start the tedious task of scanning each & every one into her computer. We scanned up until age 8 because her mom has some of her pics on discs after age 9, so we wanted to wait to see what she had before we scanned anymore.

So here's where the fun part comes in. It took about 2 hours to scan 8 years of his life (of course if all your pics are in digital format - that parts already done for ya!) And then I wanted to go online & look at the different websites that you can upload them to to make the books. Just to get an idea of what we were getting into. Carrie had seen books her cousins wife had done & really liked them. They were from picaboo.com. You can choose soft back or hard back in different sizes. The pages are glossy too. If anyone has ever seen Alicia's blog books or her books from snapfish - same basic concept...

So we went there first to look at the prices & different layouts. And what I like about it is that it's not web-based. You actually download an application to your computer. Then you select the way you want the page to look with the pics. Like if you have 6 pics to a page - you have like forty thousand choices of ways to lay out them out. If you want words along with the pics - there are layouts for that too! And I was like, "This is gonna take us forever because there are too many choices!" But once we got our groove down, it went pretty fast. And it was super easy once I got my bearings & figured out how to do it. It's as simple as dragging & dropping...

We had been working at that computer for 5 hours. We got all the way up to age 4 put into the book. So we decided that we needed to wrap it up. But then we wanted to go & look at some backgrounds for a few pages. And THAT'S what makes the book awesome! You can go online & find free ones & just drap & drop them onto the page! And it hit me...duh! This is what I need to do instead of those silly scrapbooks. Because I can't ever decide what to put where. And the beauty about the picaboo software is that it does it FOR you! Ahhh, be still my heart!

And yes, they cost moo-lah, but if you think about all the little cutsie things you need for the scrapbook, it may just even out. PLUS, I don't have to cut & glue or use my brain! Perfect!!

After we got backgrounds added up to age 1, we stopped & called it a night. I know it sounds dumb, but sitting at a computer for all that time really wears ya down! And we are hella excited about how cute it looks with the backgrounds so far! I really think it's gonna look great & it will be something he can keep forever!

And I've been inspired to work on doing either our cruise that I was gonna scrapbook & started on but haven't finished yet - OR doing one for our trip to Vegas in 2005. Just to see what I can come up with & see how much it costs. (At one time I was gonna copy-cat Alicia & do a 'blog book'. But it was gonna cost like $100 just for a year! Hhmmm, think it's 'cuz I don't know how to keep stuff short & sweet?! PLUS - her blog is kinda like baby books for her kids. My blog? Not so much... mine is more of the entertainment variety. But I could totally take pics I've been taking for the blog & put them together in a book.) Eh, who knows?! I'll keep ya posted! :)

Heart attack:courtesy of Sonny

From my vantage point on the comfy couch - I can see out the kitchen window. And every so often, out of the corner of my eye, I can see a black figure walking past.

The kitties like to jump up on the railing of the deck. Today I saw Sonny sitting on the railing. And it's really high up!! Can you see the ground below him? That fuh-reaks me out!

Then he caught me looking. So instead of jumping down like a good little kitty, he decided to walk the railing like a trapeze & come over to the door. Doesn't he know that's dangerous?! Geez!!

And don't give me any of that 'cats land on their feet' crap. It's really high up - like 20' off the ground (according to B-rad...) If they jumped - they might land on their feet - but those feet would probably be broken...