Simply put...this is me

New Blog :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 05:46:00 +0000

Hello hello...anyone out there still??!! :-P Ummm yeah a year plus later right?!?! :-P

Posting for anyone who still checks here to come see me over at my new blog which I've been busily updating :) - I'll be leaving this one active with my older entries, but here is where I am as of the New Year...come check it out! :)

http://annamarie-mondro.blogspot.com/

Ohhhh YEAH baby!!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 02:12:00 +0000

The trailer for New Moon premiered last night - it totally rawks - SIGH is it November yet??!! ;)

Lookie lookie :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 01:14:00 +0000

I was thrilled to find my "little monkey" LO featured on the blog entry here - scroll down about halfway to the kit member spotlights - and thanks Laura for making my day! :)

Check out those catchlights!

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 31 May 2009 21:34:00 +0000

I will be back to update with Detroit Zoo and other fun pics but had to quickly post this awesome pic of Miss Abby :) - it was a quickie pic I took of her outside with my little point-and-shoot...seriously, those eyes of hers blow me away everytime - check out the amazing catchlights!!

If you click on the image to see it slightly larger, you can see the reflection of both me and Lucas mirrored in her eyes - WOW! :) (and on a sidenote...doesn't Abby have the CUTEST smattering of freckles on her adorable face??!! :))

Update on May - Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sat, 23 May 2009 04:56:00 +0000

So what else has happened this month??

Abby lost another top tooth - that makes #8 total. :)

John celebrated his 42nd birthday on May 14th :) :) - his special dinner request was Jambalaya, and even though it was my first time making it, it came out AWESOME! Even the kids loved it - YAY!! :)

I also was thrilled to find out last week that one of my layouts was featured on the Label Tulip blog as part of their Member Gallery spotlight...now if you're wondering why when you click on that link, the image has been temporarily removed from Label Tulip's blog entry, it's because on Monday night I got an e-mail request from Scrapbook Trends to publish SAID layout in their October issue :) :) :) so I had to ask Cathy the owner to remove the image temporarily. Not a bad reason at all, eh??!! :) :) WOOT-WOOT - I am being pubbed by ST for the second time....SO freakin' EXCITED!!! :) :) So be on the lookout for that one in the Showcase section of the October issue!!!

John has been finalizing all of his unemployment paperwork and requirements, no new updates on the job front - please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we work through this challenging time...

Ok last update with pics and then I think I am caught up with this month so far ;).....PHEW!!! :-P I took the kids last weekend to an Open House at Hell Creek Corral Ranch in Hell, MI- they had a GREAT time, complete with free pony rides, games, food and refreshments, and a wagon tram tour of nearby TMZ Buffalo Farms where we got to ride right through the field where all of the buffalo were grazing - the kids LOVED that!! :)

Look at the CRAZY fly-away hair that Lucas is sporting! :-P

Update on May - Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sat, 23 May 2009 03:22:00 +0000

Ok I'm back....I've got some pics and updates - going to break them out into a couple entries here. ;)

Some random pics of Sophie :)....

She was super proud to show off this banner she made at Religious Ed :)...

And here it is up close...SO awesome to see my child proclaim her faith proudly!!! :)

And some random shots of Lucas engaging in some of his favorite activities :)...

...splashing in puddles (and on a sidenote, aren't his shoes the CUTEST??!! :))

...playing soccer (as you can tell, he has become influenced by his soccer-loving big sister Abigail! :))

...or just being a devilish little BOY! :)

Other updates for the month....

On May 8th, I got to enjoy a very awesome Mother's Day Program presented by Abby's 1st grade class - have you ever read Robert Munsch's children's book Love You Forever?? Trust me, the tears were a-flowing BIG-time listening to our little ones singing the song from the book! :) And they also presented us with these wonderful projects....

And then...seriously....the best gift EVAH ;)....look at what Abigail has printed as my weight....and *forever* laminated at that weight too, I might add!!!! What a girl - she scored big with mommy on that one! Heeeeee! :-P And of course, the rest of it is pretty cute too. ;)

Earlier in the week, I had also organized a collection and presentation for Abby's teacher on behalf of us parents in recognition of Teacher's Appreciation Week, so we snuck that in on their teacher while we were all gathered for the Mother's Day Program - and yes, there were more happy tears shed by all!! :) One of the highlights was the scrapbook I made with each child creating their own "page" for her by writing/illustrating why they love their teacher - my only regret was that I didn't get any pictures of it OR of the kids gathered around their teacher each of them pointing out their pages to one another!!

Sophie's class didn't do anything formal but her class did make some wonderful Mother's Day presents as well :):

Did you see the coupon for cleaning her room??!! I told her that I was redeeming that one right away!!! :-P

Unfortunately the uplifting day was brought down more than a notch or two when John called me at the end of the day and told me that he had been officially laid off from his employer. :( :( I ask that you PLEASE keep us in your prayers as we meet this new challenge in our lives and try to remain faithful, hopeful, and optimistic...

The next day, May 9th, John and I celebrated our **17-year** anniversary...while the news the day before wasn't the most positive thing to have happen right before our special date, I AM very proud to say that I know my husband is a man of strength and faith, and I am SO incredibly blessed to have been married to him over these 17 years - and I continue to cherish every moment of our married life, and look forward to many many MANY more years to come! LOVE YOU John!!!! :) :)

And May 10th of course was Mother's Day and I have to say my kids are the BEST! Not only because they are such really AWESOME and GOOD kids who make me proud and happy everday as a Mommy :) :), but also because they took such pride in shopping and picking out gifts for me. :) Such GREAT kids and I am so very blessed... :) :)

Are you still with me out there??!! PHEW!!! Onto the next entry with more updates! :-P

Another drive-by post...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Wed, 20 May 2009 12:24:00 +0000

Gosh has it been over 2 weeks since I last updated this blog?!?! YIKES! Lots going on over here...some good, some not so good :( - I'll try to update more later on...

For now, let me leave you with this week's contributing Guest Designer LO for Valerie's Got Sketch? blog - this was a super fun sketch to work from, and you can check out what the other talented designers did with it here! :) This was also my first time using a kit from A Kiss on the Chic kit club, and most of what I used below is just a small sampling of the coloful and fun and plentiful (!!) April Childhood Boy kit - I was especially drawn to the mix of Prima and Sassafras Lass papers (specifically the whimsical Bungle Jungle and Anthem lines)...they went perfect with these pics I got of Lucas enjoying the moonwalk/bouncehouse on his 2-yr b-day! :) (and on a sidenote....how can it be that he will be turning *3* in less than 3 months??!! YIKES!!! :-P)

Thanks for looking! :)

Quickie Layout Share :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Wed, 06 May 2009 12:35:00 +0000

I was asked to be a Contributing Guest Designer this week for Val's Got Sketch? blog - this week's fun sketch is Sketch #82, and I LOVED using it with the new Basic Grey Lime Rickey line...the bright colors go well with these "sportin' some 'tude" photos of Lucas, don't cha think??!! ;) LOL! And be sure to check out what the other talented Guest Designers did with this sketch - it was definitely a fun sketch to work with! :)

Thanks for looking! :)

ETA: Yay!!! I got an e-mail tonight that my LO was selected to appear in Basic Grey's online gallery! :) :)

Sassafras Lass and Vintage Yummy

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 02:31:00 +0000

I love Sassafras Lass but have always been sooo intimidated to use it because of how PURTY it is ;) ...however the Vintage Yummy line has been calling my name :) and I finally got a chance to dig into my April kit from Little Red Scrapbook which is filled with all sorts of delicious SL product! You know how much I love bright, colorful, and whimsical!! ;)

Thanks for looking! :)

She loves it...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 13:30:00 +0000

Soccer. LOVES LOVES LOVES it. It's sooo awesome to see her enthusiasm!!! :) :) And she is *really* loving outdoor soccer - of course it doesn't hurt that we had GORGEOUS weather for the first game! :)

Some quickie shots from the first game...

It's getting to be old hat around here....

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 19:03:00 +0000

...pulling teeth, that is! ;)

Abby lost another tooth late last night - here she is the next day modeling her new gap (after her first outdoor soccer game.) :)

Easter Day 2009

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 03:44:00 +0000

Picture-heavy post from early Easter Sunday (following church) - pretty self-explanatory....enjoy! :)

Little man was super-duper tired after the long Easter Sunday Mass and crashed on the couch after we got home! :-P

Ummm yeah Sophie reminding me that I promised she only had to do "one more pic" before releasing her to go blow bubbles outside... ;)

More from our day at Kensington...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 04:16:00 +0000

Egg Hunt at Kensington Metro Park

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 04:01:00 +0000

Since our plans to go up north for Easter weekend fell by the wayside because of John suddenly having to work (grrrrrrrrrrrr, not to mention two VERY upset and sobbing little girls who have been counting down the weeks to visit with their Papa :( ), we scrambled to salvage our holiday weekend by first attending an Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday afternoon out at Kensington Metro Park.

I thought it was chaotic and sorta lame :-P but the kids LOVED LOVED LOVED every minute of it :) :) - especially Abby who totally abandoned her siblings to get as many eggs as she could :-P (but true to form, shared generously with them upon her return - especially when she saw how filled her basket was in comparison to theirs! ;))

Here are some random shots....prepare to embrace the direct sunlight, over-exposed shots LOL!!!

New Layout

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:20:00 +0000

I did this one for a scraplift challenge over at Lifetime Moments using my yummy November kit and add-on from Studio Calico - but sort of took off in my own direction with the scraplift (about on par for me - I can't seem to do anything *literal* these days! :-P)

Thanks for looking! :)

Shout-Out for Lynn :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 14:47:00 +0000

My dear sweet friend Lynn is not only a wonderful mommy of two beautiful boys, but also happens to be an AMAZING scrapper who is lately getting all the recognition she DESERVES - and then some. :) She was asked to be the April Guest Designer over at Kraft Girl Kits, and I must say she totally *rawked* this month's kit (which is FABULOUS btw! :)), including a BEAUTIFUL LO featuring a photo I took of my sweet girl Sophie (says this super SUBjective mommy of said subject ;)) - you can check it out here, and don't forget to leave her some LOVE while you're visiting her blog and checking out all the eye candy! :)

AWESOME job Lynn, love ya girl - and thank you for scrapping my Sophie!! :)

Drive-By...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 03:41:00 +0000

I took these last week and forgot to upload them - enjoy! :)

Today they shared their big moments...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:40:00 +0000

So we found out that Abby failed her vision exam at school -which was a TOTAL shock cuz she has never complained about her eyes before. :-o A follow-up appointment with an optometrist indicates that she is far-sighted and in need of glasses (and again - TOTAL shock because the kid is such an avid reader and her reading level as tested by the school is OFF the charts - it's hard to believe that she has tested so well in reading *despite* the far-sightedness...and a bit scary that she might excel all the more *with* the new glasses on!) :-o

Fast-forward to today...Abby got her new glasses and LOVES them!! :) :) She is awestruck by how much clearer things appear. :) Here are a couple pics of her with her new frames (and yeah I'll be on a learning curve with the camera and her glasses for a bit, I ask that you please bear with me! :))

And.....not to be outdone by big sis :) :), Sophie decided to "let me" (after I bribed her with sour gummy worms! :-P) pull out that other bottom tooth (only 4 days after losing the one next to it - her first! :-P) after school today - it literally was crooked and at a 45-degree angle, and I told her there was no way I could continue looking at it like that for the rest of the day! :-P

So more toothless wonder pics with another trip from the tooth fairy tonight!! :)

Lookie what I have....

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 05:17:00 +0000

....in my hot little hands!! :)
And if you haven't gotten your copy yet (RUN!!!! don't walk - hee hee!!), Target has an exclusive 3-disc deluxe edition of the DVD for $17.99 which includes an iTunes download of the movie plus BONUS content (conversation with Stephenie Meyer, Robert Pattinson on "Becoming Edward," Kristen Stewart on "Becoming Bella," Catherine Hardwicke’s vampire kiss montage, Bella’s lullaby remix music video, and Edward’s piano concert!) :)

Notice anything missing? :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 16:59:00 +0000

Hmmm noooooooo you say?? Well here let me help you out with another pic or two: :)

Pretty clear now! :) Yep my sweet Sophie lost her first tooth this morning! :) :) She is OVER THE TOP excited about getting her first visit from the tooth fairy tonight! :)

I knew we were in trouble when...

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:05:00 +0000

...her own Daddy looked at my laptop screen and asked "Who is that?" :-o :-o Ummmm YEAH dear that is without a doubt our *7-yr-old* daughter who is growing up WAY too fast on us. :-P

Got Sketch?

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:30:00 +0000

I am always happy to return as a contributing Guest Designer for Valerie's Got Sketch? blog :) , and Sketch 76 proved to be a wonderful challenge for me, as it's been a very LONG time since I've done a multi-photo LO!

I just LOVED the design of this sketch, and found that it worked out beautifully for me to *finally* scrap these pics of Sophie I took last September after she attended a friend's princess fairy birthday party AND to also dig into my Basic Grey Euphoria stash that I've been hoarding for-e-vah, hee hee! :)

Ohh and speaking of Basic Grey.......I got an e-mail this afternoon that they also accepted this same LO into their online gallery - WOOT WOOT!! :)

Thanks for letting me share! :)

DST

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:08:00 +0000

Daylight. Savings. Time. is. SOOOOOOO. kicking. my. BUTT. :-P :-P :-P

Guest Designer :)

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:50:00 +0000

I was thrilled and honored to be asked to contribute as a Guest Designer over at Lifetime Moments this week. :) The theme for this week's LM Style newsletter is "Musical Influences", and I must say that I am pretty happy with how my LO's turned out for this assignment - and that is something, coming from me. :) You can also see the rest of the beautiful LO's created by the Design Team here, and if you don't already receive the weekly newsletter in your Inbox, you definitely need to sign up for that here. :)

Thanks to Lifetime Moments for the opportunity, and thanks for letting me share! :)

Blech

noreply@blogger.com (AnnaMarie) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 02:40:00 +0000

Abby was up in the middle of the night on Tuesday morning crying and complaining about ear pain. :( I kept her home from school and dosed her with Motrin and Benadryl per the ped's office - she slept pretty much throughout the day, but everytime the Motrin wore off, she was complaining of pain again. :( I decided to take her to Urgent Care after John got home from work...by the time we checked into UC, she had a temp of 103 and pain in BOTH ears. :(

Diagnosis: double ear infection :( - she's on antibiotics, alternating doses of Motrin and Tylenol, and ear drops to numb the pain....she'll probably be off school the rest of the week since she still has a fever of about 99.5/100 this evening (she had to miss Girl Scouts meeting) and can't return to school until she is fever-free for 24 hours...and already was scheduled to have Friday off for a records day at school. :-o Fortunately her teacher has been sending home missed work and homework with Sophie who is enjoying being the important delivery girl this week. :-P

My poor girl - I sure hope she is feeling better soon, she has been so miserable! :(