A long way from home...

Dutch Sunset
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

Well, this is interesting...when I log into blogger here {Egmond aan Zee}, the site translates itself to Dutch...hmmm. Well, I had a weather delay in Dallas & a baggage delay in London, but I finally arrived in Amsterdam around 4 (I'm 7 hours ahead of CST now). The long flight was so super crowded I couldn't sleep much - maybe 3-4 hours. Somehow I've had the discipline to stay up. I'm like the walking dead, but I'll thank myself when I'm in sync tomorrow.

I got to walk down to the beach after dinner & watched the sun set. It's been a reall long time since I devoted myself to watching a sunset. It was so calming. I have to sort out kit issues in the morning & start teaching tomorrow night - fun! Well, I better knock off...it's almost 11 here & my crocs are full of sand.

Blogging challenged...

I feel such blog-guilt. I know I have been slacking off lately with the posting, but maybe I can make up for it with some awesome posts from Amsterdam...I leave tomorrow. I run errands & pack in the morning. The shuttle comes around 3:30. I got an Mp3 player for my birthday & my cousin Meg filled it up with music to prepare me for the journey. I also downloaded some audio books for the trip - Blink, Stranger in a Strange Land and Pride & Prejudice. I'm also bring Olivia Joules & the Overactive Imagination. With layovers, airport wait, flying & driving time I'm facing a 17 hour trip tomorrow-Thursday.

Busted by the fuzz...

This was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I had to photo-document it. I had to. Let me preface this with the disclaimer that my mother-in-law is a do-gooder, law-abiding citizen, 99% of the time.

We were in the car with Elizabeth, when whoo-whoo we got pulled over by a Texas State Trooper. She was allegedly going 57 in a 50. At which point she argued that it really was 55, she was sure, because if it was 50, she would have been speeding on that road her "entire life" {wow, gutsy, that would not have been my choice of words to an officer of the law}. So, she didn't get a ticket, just a warning...but omg...we laughed SO hard I'm amazed we weren't asked to do a group sobriety test. Elizabeth's best friend, Kim, Tracy, Aunt Mary & I were all there to witness this moment. I was laughing too hard to take a focused picture & I was shooting over my shoulder to try to be "less conspicuous" {yeah, right}. Oh yeah, and we told everybody in the family. And I'm blogging about it. These are the moments that make life worth living...

Another beautiful graduate...

Well, Matt's little sister, Tammy graduated from high school down in New Braunfels last week. We are all so proud of her. I forgot/forget how hard it was to be a teenager & made the mistake of trying to force advice on her...I hope she knows that we really are all proud of her, happy for her & love her unconditionally & absolutely no matter what.

It was a lot of fun to have the whole

family together. It's been a while since we got to spend some serious time with Tracy & Rusty - it was great. Even Aunt Mary made the trip down.

We got to meet our newest nephew, Zachary Xavier. The girls were thrilled to meet their newest cousin. Look at those chubby little cheeks! He's a cute little chunk - it was love at first sight for us.

We laughed a lot and talked a lot. For some reason I thought their microwave was hilarious. I'm pretty sure it's older than I am. Elizabeth did a "Vanna" with it becaus she loves her "antique" appliance. More power to her - she was a great sport.

on the verge of Something...

I remember seeing the Spanish film "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" back when I was a senior in high school (1989) when it came to the deliciously retro Inwood Theater (I went with my best friends right after we graduated from high school. We sat through an all day double header watching Gone With The Wind complete with intermissions after the foreign film. We ended up having dinner at Celebration...what a fantastic day! I digress...). I don't remember much past the subtitles, except for the title. I always liked the title - and the poster (great candidate for a scrap-lift, don't you think?). I am not on the verge of a nervous breakdown or anything even dramatic or breakdown-like, but when life comes at you at this pace...it kind of leaves you breathless. Tomorrow we leave for Tammy's graduation in New Braunfels. Next week off to Scrap-a-Ganza in the Netherlands. Then teaching at Crop, Paper, Scissors in Waco. Then off to Anaheim for CKU. I guess I'm on the verge of a whirlwind...crazy busy {as usual} & still loving it!

CONGRATULATIONS AMY!!!

Amy graduated this weekend & we are all so proud of her...

A little office drama...

Did-you-watch-the-office-tonight?????????? Oh, wow...I am so looking forward to next season. If you're an office fan, be sure to check out Dwight's blog & Creed's brand new blog (and oh, yes, I posted a comment). Oh & I just found "Office Solitaire" - awesome! And for those Grey's fans out there...excuse me...nooooooooooooo.........it was not supposed to end that way. Thank heavens for the 4400 about to start up or I wouldn't be able to get through the summer without something to get all wrapped up in!

We'll always have Cheetos...

Look at us {right} - that was taken the day I met Ginger in 2003. I always say she had me at "Cheeto". She mailed me a case of Cheetos after we met at CKU Nashville & we've kept in touch ever since. She is a phenomenal designer, teacher, business woman, mother and friend. I am glad I had the chance to work with her & love that we had the chance to create together. I am very happy for her & her new adventure. Friends - what can you do? You can't sit on them, so I guess she's really going to go. And I know we'll still talk all the time, but still I will miss her. But we'll always have Cheetos....

Can you believe the then & now {left - fall 2006} pictures? We're a regular couple of hotties...

One more week...

Amy's baccalaureate was yesterday. She was selected to read a poem & did a beautiful job. I was surprised to see her in her cap & gown already, somehow I didn't realize they would all be in their get-ups.

This weekend I survived: much shopping, getting my hair done, cooking for a friend, singing at both church services, celebrating mother's day, my birthday with family, Amy's birthday & Jake's graduation, baccalaureate & grocery shopping. Yikes. And as I look at the calendar, it just keeps getting fuller for a while - such is life!

Actual graduate, discussing The Graduate...

Amy filled out her graduate book and wanted to share. Be sure and go to the Imagination Project website for the free instructions & printables!

The Graduate...

Well, it has arrived. My first IP online class. I created it to honor the two graduates in my family this month {Amy & Tammy} & to kick off the online class program, this first one is free! FREE!

There are downloadable instructions and a sheet of custom printables I designed on the Imagination Project website. If you want to purchase the kit to make the project it's only $10.90 and is available on their website as well. I even made a card that goes in it to explain to them how to fill it out and tells them how proud you are of them.

I wanted to create something that would turn into a keepsake of their senior year. I wanted to introduce them to scrapbooking in a non-threatening way. I wanted to make something that they could finish in one sitting. I wanted to make something black & white so you could add their high school colors & it could match anything. I wanted to create a more personal way to give a gift card. I wanted to show them that I saw them and valued them for the people they've become. And I wanted to share it with you.

If you know a graduate this year, take advantage of the class!

Checking the tank...

I got my pacemaker callibrated again yesterday. It's strange to think about the fact that I now run on battery power. For the first time I got to see my "gas gauge" {that's what the tech called it & I imagined the one on the left - of course it was just a bar graph...oh well}. I'm just above 3/4 of a tank, where I should be. However for the first time it seemed very real that this thing will need the batteries replaced {i.e. getting cut open again}. So we had a good talk about how the replacement goes. If I stay on track I should have almost another 4 years to go. Everything's going great otherwise. It's doing all of the pacing {no surprise there}, but my heart has strengthened to a point the device is doing >1% of the actual work. It's never gone off. My bp is down to 112/73 {in my heyday it was around 280/220}. Things are good. I'm a regular pin cushion, though - they're running a bunch of blood work so I've been poked a lot.

Extremely busy weekend......

Lots of great things happened this weekend - I had lunch with my dad & Sharon and they gave me an awesome tripod for my birthday. My friend Angie came over with her husband Steve & we had a visit and she gave me a copy of Rachel Ray's 365, No Repeats book which I really wanted to try. Amy gave her senior speech at Midway Hills - I cried so hard it was audible...that's a post for another time. I got some {a bit} of work done. Matt helped change his brother's brakes, locked himself out of the house without wallet or phone & broke back in, played golf on the course with friends and putted in our back yard. I bought 4 more black shirts {in a rut - I know} and I killed my black crocs {there was a shoe incident the day after the prom photo - they probably committed "shoe suicide" after being held up alongside such pretty shoes}. But in reality the big, huge ordeal this weekend was that it was my cousin Amy's senior prom.

Meg {a mere sophomore} got to go to thanks to their fabulous friend {virtually in the family by now} Jake, who asked Meg at lunch on Friday the day before! I ended up meeting the girls with their mom at the mall at 9:30 that night and got to check out the dress. Went to another mall the next morning to go accessory shopping. Ended up over at their house taking pictures like a crazed paparazzi. I took 367 pictures {whoa}. I was so honored to be a part of the whole process. Amy was born one week before I graduated from high school and I thought it was the coolest thing ever to finally get a cousin. It's so strange to see her graduating now. Good strange - I'm very proud of her. Can you believe she made it home by 12:30? She told me getting ready was actually more fun than prom {no offence to her date}.

Well, all is sorted into a giganto flickr album. They're beautiful. Wow, it's over. I still can't believe how much we crammed into a weekend.

Domo arigato, Mr Roboto...

Ever had a song stuck in your head so hard it hurts? Well...it's one of those days. Happy Friday. Here's my top 10 eye candy picks for the weekend.
1. Beautiful Decay - my favorite magazine right now, graffiti & other art crimes.
2. DesignSponge - the best design blog ever!
3. Oh Joy! - if you like DesignSponge, check this one too...
4. Etsy - the ultimate spot for handmade goodness. Try the color picker.
5. Delightful Blogs - there are currently 113 "delightful blogs" in the DIY Crafting section. They go through a screening process to make sure they are mainly craft oriented, updated often and are generally delightful {fun, funny, no adult content}. I am thrilled to be one of their delightful picks.
6. Decor8 - another home decor blog.
7. SmartPunk.com - punk {that doesn't make you feel too old}.
8. I Love Your T-Shirt - a T-shirt blog...yes, the net has something for everyone!
9. Shana Logic - great indie shop {formerly Pixel Girl}.
10. BlueQ - Ginger told me about this one. Not only is the stuff so much fun, I love their "about us" section!
Have a great National Scrapbook Day! enjoy...

Three important things...

Here are three things I wanted to share that couldn't wait until tomorrow:
1. Shimelle Laine is doing a project every day on her blog for the month of May. Wow. Shimelle rocks...
2. Great blog - On My Desk, the desks of creative people
3. There are a couple of new bunny movies

The ManHandled Moment...

I have to give credit where credit is due & I am really proud of my husband & his new little venture. A month ago my husband started his own Etsy shop, ManHandled. He is struggling through quitting smoking and was looking for something to keep him busy and distracted. He also wanted a hobby that would keep him indoors out of our brutal Texas summers. Matt used to make the most beautiful and elaborate model cars - custom parts, airbrush work, etc...so I had seen the creative come out in him before. He's also been a major part of the Christmas craft assembly line in our house for years. Let me tell you, the stuff he has been cranking out is awesome. I have done a little dabbling at his request, but mainly this has been his show. He's made 5 sales in 4 weeks and is pleased as punch with how it is going. He is also very happy that 29 people "love him" (it's kind of hilarious & cute).

He's mainly been doing spirals (he's commandeered my Bind-It-All) and fabric covered journals (see The Adventures of Punk Sally, upper left), and a few sewing kits (see Brunette Vixen, lower left). We made about 60 fabric journals Christmas before last and now I think we could both do them blindfolded. Well, he just bought a button maker and it's been so much fun over here. My cousin Meg has made so many she's launched MegHandled within the ManHandled store. We put up her first set last night (I Love Japan). She will have more awesome sets coming - she's really into recycled art & hand drawn pieces. And as she says in her description "I'm cute and extremely talented beyond my years and need money since I am still in high school and have no car and no job. " (LOL)

So, if you haven't looked, go check it out. Bookmark it & keep checking back because we're adding to it all the time. Thanks for peeking!

Finally well lit...

Wow - this makes me happy! A friend was selling some of her lighting equipment and I was able to pick these up for a bargain. Lighting is always an issue when I'm shooting a project and now it's like I have a portable sun!!! Kinda makes me want to go take a ton of pictures...

Taking one for the team...

I am the bee killer in our household. I know - it's probably wrong to kill a living thing, but when there's an attack on my personal air space I take care of business. Most importantly, Matt is allergic to bees. Go to the hospital allergic. And his epi-pen has expired (on my to do list for today). So I have to take care of my man.

SO...there I was in my kitchen on my birthday and from no where I had the sharpest pain in my side (much higher than my waist). I reach up under my shirt to feel where it was and I pull a bee out of me. Ow! So I put Matt on alert to stay out of the kitchen until I make sure everything's clear. I think everything's fine until I look straight down and there's a bee walking out from on my bra onto my shirt through where it was buttoned together. It's like a nightmare. My cousins were here and Amy tried to kill it (it's very hard to kill a bee on your own or someone else's cleavage without serious potential complications). She did end up knocking it off me without another sting and stomped it into its afterlife. So we're all screaming and Matt yells "My God, where are they coming from?" and the best I can answer is "my breasts, apparently". Which broke the tension...we never figured out how they got in, but there were no others that we have found yet. I am feeling very protective of my parts - there are some places I never want to be stung!