Yet Another Brother Scrap

Uh huh....time for another brother scrap:

{PRAYING FOR BABY #4}
Journaling reads: It’s going to be baby #4 for Dic and Lai. Everyone is
happy to be having another baby in the family; at the same time, everyone is also praying that this pregnancy will be a safe one for Elizza. Although their faces portray happiness for this pregnancy, not everyone knows that there is something hidden underneath their happy facade. There is the fear that something will happen to Elizza. There is fear that something will happen to the baby. We share the hope of my Rondic and Elizza that this will be a normal pregnancy,with a normal birth and a normal, healthy baby. All of us will keep this baby in our prayers; we know that God will always be with our family and will keep everyone of us --- including baby #4 of Dic and Lai --- safe from harm.

Credits: QP - by me using Country Romance by Dawn Webb; fonts - Arial, Rockwell

{OTHER NEWS}
I am now HOME. Finally saw Japa and the kiddos. Thank goodness Ranger REMEMBERED me! He actually pointed to me and said Mama. Awwwww. :) Made my day.

That's all.

Featuring....Another Brother :)

Ok. Rodney's done. Let's go with.....Randy. Working up the hierarchy here, hehehehe. So the rest of you know the order eh? Here we go:

{THE CHANGES THAT LOVE HAS WROUGHT}Journaling reads:
The changes that love has wrought:
piano lessons
mass every friday
more time with nieces and nephews
magic cards sessions
art lessons
matching bracelets
mass twice on sundays
holding hands
happiness

Credits: QP - by me using Country Romance by Dawn Webb; toile alpha - by Shelly Greninger; antique beaded rose alpha - by Tandika Star

I enjoyed doing this layout. It was FUN to really list down all those changes! I am tickled that my brother is finally FINALLY in love. I mean...behavioral changes? What else is that but love?

Happy 38th Anniversary Mom and Dad!

38 years. Pretty long, huh? Hopefully, Japa and I will reach this point. At least. Here's to good health and long life.

{TODAY'S ACTIVITIES}
1. Woke up REALLY early because Dad was looking for his gift for Mom. This was at dang 630 in the A.M.!!! Ack!

2. Half awake, I had to have impeccable timing. Mom was awake, too and was in the bathroom. Handed Dad his gift to Mom. He turned his back and I quickly put Mom's gift for Dad on the table. Voila! Surprise! :) Hehehehe.

3. Mom accused Dad of not writing the anniv card. Dad was indignant and said that HE wrote it. This went on for about 4 times while Roc and I were in our beds TRYING desperately to go back to sleep.

4. Finally, Mom admitted that yeah, it was probably Dad who wrote the card (he really did). Dad took Mom's card as fact; Roc was the one who wrote it. Sigh! Go figure with Mom and Dad. Hehehe. It was funny to hear them bickering.

5. The gifts: Mom got a Ferragamo purse. Dad got a screaming Ferragamo wallet.

6. Went to Mass at the Cathedral at Fort Mall Street.

7. Lunch at Macaroni Grill at Ala Moana Center. Then shopping. Dad bought a couple more shoes, another Ferragamo and an SAS shoe. He didn't want to wear the new shoes because they were NEW. LOL! Only Dad. We finally convinced him to wear either of his new shoes (he ended up wearing the SAS ones) and we told him that his really old and ratty Dexter shoes are going to be RETIRED. As in, will not and should not be used by him anymore, whenever we can help it!!!

8. Finally drove back towards the hotel. We stopped over at the Waikele Outlets to get Malasadas at Leonard's. It actually a TRUCK, but they have the BEST malasadas in all of Hawaii. Malasadas are a cross between a donut and pandesal. Totally yummy! And to my siblings --- No, I don't think we're going to have room to bring you a sample.:)

9. Got back to the hotel, packed a bit. Got ready for dinner at ROY'S. Yuuuuuummmmmmm! Roy's was near the hotel too, as in 3 minutes away, so we didn't have to rush or anything. Nor did we have to worry about getting dressed since the dress code was "resort casual". Whatever. Hehehehe.

10. Back home now. Just finished packing a second bag (or is it the third). Have NOT scrapped in DAYS, but done with my shower AND updating my blog. Off to go to bed!

That's all.

A Scrap of Mama

Yup. Just one scrap for now. I want these few layouts to shine. Why? I used the album I actually MADE and that's up for sale at The Daily Scrap. I used Dawn Webb's Country Romance Kit.

{ZHARMAGNE & RODNEY}

Credits: QP - by me using Country Romance by Dawn Webb; fonts - Marketing Script, Marcelle

This is my brother and his girl. I really love the effect of Virtual Photographer's Romance filter. They look good huh? *wink wink*. LOL.

I'm sure Rodney won't see this, but I'm pretty sure Zhar will! :)

{BLOGGING NEWS}
I am slowly trying to convert my blog into a 3-column one. I finally found a template that I can use. Stella, if you're reading this, FYI. Hehehhe.

The end, a.k.a. That's All, according to The Devil Wears Prada's Miranda Priestly. Love that line :)

Aloha!...but I've been {TAGGED}

Amy Bleser tagged me! And it's a long one, too :) Ready? Here goes:

1. Have you ever been searched by the cops?
Nope! Not ever....knock on wood! :)

2. Do you close your eyes on a roller coaster?
Nope, I just scream my head off. Although the last time I was on a roller coaster was a few years ago. Dh usually rides with the kids now. I get too dizzy!

3. When's the last time you've been sledding?
I've NEVER been sledding! Would love to give it a try though!

4. Would you rather sleep with someone else, or alone?
With someone else. King sized beds get too big when I'm alone :)

5. Do you believe in ghosts?
Yup. Our whole family totally thinks we've got some in all our homes. No kidding!

6. Do you consider yourself creative?
Yes. Everyone tells me I am. Of course, they're all family, lol. But I've done paper scrapping and card making among other things, so yes, I'm creative.

7. Do you think O.J. killed his wife?
I'm a Trojan....so I'll say no :)

8. Jennifer Aniston or Angelina Jolie? (silly, I know ... but very "now")
Angelina Jolie.

9. Can you honestly say you know ANYTHING about politics?
Nope, I totally DETEST anything and everything to do with politics. I try not to get involved in it (other than voting of course) and I express my opinions on politics, too. Loudly. :) (to anyone who'd listen).

10. Do you know how to play poker?
Yup. With 4 brothers and dh, of course I know how to play poker! At least, the basics, hehehehe. I do know which hand is higher; but betting I do by gut feel ---which drives the boys crazy!

11. Have you ever been awake for 48 hours straight?
No, didn't get close to 48 hours. I treasure my sleep :)

12. What's your favorite commercial?
I like the sappy Hallmark ones :) They'd have me bawling especially when I was pregnant.

13. Who was your first love?
Hehehehe. I know dh READS my blog faithfully, so I'll say HE IS MY FIRST LOVE :) Ok fine. It's Pierce Brosnan, a.k.a Remington Steele.

14. If you're driving in the middle of the night, and no one is around you, do you run a red light?
Nope.

15. Do you have a secret that no one knows but you?
I would like to think I do. Again, running the risk of having dh read my answers.....he'd NEVER let up on me!

16. Boston Red Sox or New York Yankees?
Neither. Not a big fan of baseball. I'd rather watch (and play) football. The American kind, not the European kind :)

17. Have you ever been Ice Skating?
Yup, a couple of times. Both times I fell flat on my butt. In front of a lot of people. Oh well. Live and learn.

18. How often do you remember your dreams?
Sometimes. Depends how graphic the dream was.

19. What's the one thing on your mind?
Asking myself when I can get in front of my laptop and scrap and/or read through my scrapbooking blogs, go through my daily downloads, and read through the message boards.

20. Do you always wear your seat belt?
Yup.

21. What talent do you wish you had?
I wish I could sing. :)

22. Do you like Sushi?
Love love LOVE it!

23. What do you wear to bed?
Always a nightgown, never PJs.

24. Do you truly hate anyone?
No, but I could if I let myself.

25. If you could sleep with one famous person, who would it be?
Pierce Brosnan. Either as Remington Steele or James Bond. :) Hehehehe.

26. Do you know anyone in jail?
Nope.

27. What food do you find disgusting?
Anything Filipino. I know, I'm from the Philippines. But I truly truly DO NOT like our food. I'd much rather have Mexican or Italian anytime. You think my time in the States was a factor? LOL! :)

28. Have you ever made fun of your friends behind their back?
Nope. Most always to their face :)

29. Have you ever been punched in the face?
Nope. I think most people are afraid of me. :)

30. Do you believe in angels and demons?
Yup. I'm Catholic.

TOLD YOU guys it was a long tag.

Anyhoo, I tag Elizza (my SIL) and Laura Deacetis, both from Scrapmommies.

{SHORTER POST}
I am in Hawaii!!! A few more days and I'll be back home with dh and the kiddos!!! Yay!

That's all.

Freedom!

Freedom... The condition of being free of restraints.... The capacity to exercise choice; free will... Ease or facility of movement...

This was what I had for the afternoon. After a looooong mass at 12 noon, we had lunch at Tokyo Waco. Yummm...I had the 3-combination platter of chicken, steak and orange roughy. With fried rice of course!

Took everyone home, then Roc and I had our F-R-E-E-D-O-M. We drove back to Pasadena and went shopping. I started looking for stuff for Ranger's party in October. The theme: Cars, of course. That little boy loves the movie.....and everything about cars!

I went into Avenue and bought myself 6 shirts. 6!!! Yay! Sure, same style, but all the colors available in my size, I took :) Hehehe.

We then went to Borders where I got the kids a thesaurus. I had a 30% off one regularly priced item and I used it on the hardbound thesarus.

Next: dinner! A semi-party at home. Mom invited Hermie and company, and Tita Claire and Tito Lando. Tita Doris and Tito Jun were supposed to go (they were the original guests) but weren't able to make it. Ate too much, as usual....

Packed right after a little bit of chit chat. Still packing.....

That's all.

Packing Frenzy

Well, sort of. Trying to pack MY stuff and mom's stuff. And we're leaving for Hawaii on Tuesday. Sigh! As of this writing, I have packed 2 boxes and am halfway done with my duffle bag. Mom has packed 1 suitcase. I am also building a box of stuff for us to take home in December, hehehehe.

Anyway, whenever I pack, I "reward" myself with some time on the computer to scrap. I NEED my reward time!

Anyhoo, here are my scraps from the past couple of days:

{SCRAPS OF MAMA}

(PRECIOUS JEWELS}
Credits: kit - Springtime Doodlebugs by Melany Violette at Simly Clean Digi Scraps; stitches - Summer Beginnings by the Queens of Clean; laundry tag - The Good Life by Marsha Zepeda
tab, brads - Tropical Dreams by Melany Violette; torn alpha - Shades of Field Berries by Melany Violette; fonts - Marcelle Script, Arial, Pea Johanna Script

I think this is going to be one of my absolute fave layouts. I love how this one turned out! Thanks to Eve Recinella for the scraplift inspiration!

{YOUR SMILE MEANS....}
Journaling reads: I love seeing your smile. Your wide, ear-to-ear, gleeful smile. There are times that I think you’re thinking of something else when you smile that bright, flashing, show-your-teeth smile of yours. Your smile means you are a mischievous, frisky, frolicsome, impish little boy. Your smile means you are playful, naughty, happy, whimsical and lighthearted rolled into one little adorable package. Your smile means you can also be up to no good and will use your dazzling smile to try and get away with murder. Your smile means you are a charming, enchanting, intriguing, delightful child and I will always LOVE YOU!

Credits: kit - Freedom is in the Stars by Royanna Fritschmann at Divine Digital; font - Cheri, Bellerose; based on a sketch by Jen Caputo

This layout could very well be going into my fave LOs, too. I was hesitant to use red and turquoise on black for the text, but it came out pretty well, didn't it? Hehehe. Not bad journaling, too, if I do say so myself. The things a thesaurus can do! :)

And, dipping into my stash of older photos, I scrapped these:

{ROGAN'S FIRST CHRISTMAS}
Journaling reads: Rogan was all of 6 1/2 months when he experienced his first Christmas. His normally chinky eyes were very round as he tried to take in all that was happening, especially during the opening of gifts. Although he was uninterested in the big box from MamaLols, he perked up once she had assembled the car/rocker that was inside. He immediately demanded to sit in it. After an initial episode of him almost falling over (Papa had to grab at his rocker), he spent the rest of the time contentedly and quietly rocking the night away.

Credits: kit - Christmas in July Mega Kit at 3Scrapateers; font - Comic Sans; sketch by Jen Caputo

{CHRISTMAS 1999}
Journaling reads: Christmas 1999 was the year we celebrated the holidays with just 2 kids. Life was simpler, quieter, and cheaper! Also, it was easier for Santa to come into the house and leave presents without being seen!

Credits: kit - Jingle Jam Christmas Postcard Kit by Teri Hanson; fonts - Pea Johanna Script, Pussycat

{CHRISTMAS WITH THE NANNIES}
Credits: kit - Bit of Snow Mini Kit by DeDe Smith; fonts - Marcelle Script, Arial

Why all the Christmas layouts? It's Christmas in July over at Divine Digital :)

{MOM NEWS}
Mom had a reunion with her high school classmates. 9 of them showed up, which was a pretty good number I guess. Sounds like she had fun. Her classmate from San Jose, Lulu, is spending the night here and will be flying back tomorrow.

While Mom was out partying, we took Dad to Red Lobster and I feasted on Lobster and Shrimp Caesar Salad along with a Strawberry Margarita of course! :) Yummmmm!

{DAD NEWS}
Dad's blood sugar has been pretty high the past week. Maybe his body hasn't adjusted to the Lantus yet, but I think we will be adjusting it tomorrow. We will have to wait a week or 2 to see the effect of the adjustment in the dose. His blood sugar has been in the high 130s, sometimes reaching 200+! But he has been pretty good about his eating habits, which is good!

That's all.

Scraps of Mama

Today was pretty much an uneventful day. Took Dad to his diabetes doctor in the morning, then we had lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory. Yummmmm. Had my usual mizithra cheese, but the stupid waiter forgot to give us our order of mizithra cheese to take home! Man oh man! Grrrr.

Anyway, waited around the house for the Range Rover people to call me and tell me that the car was ready for pick up. Of course they called me at 430 pm! And they close at 6 pm! Hello!!!!! Another grrrrr!

The Range is now fixed, with new tires and new front brake pads. Oh, and the dang fan blower that started the whole Range-in-the-shop thing is also fixed. Apparently, the regulator literally blew and the coolant thingy was leaking. Whatever.

{SCRAPS}

{RAINE LOST HER 1ST TOOTH!}
Credits: kit - Blue Mountain: Girls CD Edtion by Melany Violette at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; red background paper - Vroom Vroom Beep Beep by Melany Violette; swirl charms and brads - Swirly Things by Melany Violette; flowers - Pretty Petals by Melany Violette; leaves, stems - Garden Girl by Melany Violette; fonts - My First Topher

This was a scraplift of Eve Recinella for the challenge at Simply Clean Digi Scraps.

Happy 6th Birthday Raine!!!

It's Raine's birthday today (Manila time)!!! Yay! Japa just emailed photos and I will be scrapping some for Raine's birthday. So far, she said she had a great day. She celebrated during recess at school. She had spaghetti and hotdogs and hershey's chocolate milk for everyone. Papa did an awesome job fixing everything for my baby girl!

The cake was INCREDIBLE!!! Gotta show you a pic of the cake, even if it's NOT in a layout!
Doesn't that look scrumptious! High School Musical to boot! Japa also emailed a video of the kids singing and dancing "Stick to the Status Quo" from the movie! What a riot! :)

{OTHER STUFF}
Took Dad for his LAST day of PT. He's happy, but he has also learned quite a bit of things to make him exercise and work harder to get better. Thank goodness for small favors. He was on the bike for 15 minutes and he was fine. Pleasantly tired, but he was ok.

Mom, Dad and I also saw Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest after lunch. Awesome movie, although of course Dad said it was "for kids". But he didn't sleep through any of it, so I know he found it exciting too, hehehe!

{SCRAPS}

{4 GENERATIONS}Credits: background paper - Americana Country by Royanna Fritschmann; fonts - Arial, My Own Topher

I've always wanted to scrap my 4-generation pictures, and this challenge from Divine Digitals was perfect for it.

To take some infamous words from Miranda Priestly of The Devil Wears Prada fame, that's all!

Updating my Blog.....Again!

I can't believe I haven't blogged for 3 whole days! And I have layouts to show off too! Hehehehe. Oh well. There's my excuse: I've been scrapping and having fun!

{UPDATE ON DAD}
Before the My Scraps, just wanted to let everyone know that Dad's gastric tube was taken out yesterday. He was SO excited, he got up from bed before 6 am!!! That's definitely a first for Dad :) When the doctor finally arrived at the hospital, it took her all of 2 minutes to literally YANK -- ok, pull -- the tube from Dad's tummy! Whoa! According to Dad, she wrapped her hand around the tube and just pulled. Yes, there was some bleeding, but nothing to be concerned about.

Dad rested at home for about an hour and then went on his physical therapy session. No sweat. The tube removal didn't even bother him, except for the fact that he hadn't eaten in 12 hours! He made up for that when we had lunch at 2 Guys From Italy. Yummmmmm!!!

{SCRAPS OF MAMA}
Okay, here we go. I've been busy scraplifting the Queens of Clean at the newly opened Simply Clean Digi Scraps AND combining some of the lifts with challenges at Scrapmommies :)

July 17 Scraps

{TIME COVER - Raegan's 1st Christmas}

Did this for a Jingle Jam/Christmas in July Challenge at Divine Digital.
Credits: kit - Joyeaux Noel by Royanna Fritschmann; barcode - by Carol Violet; fonts - Arial Narrow, Times New Roman; Inspiration from TIME Magazine

July 18 Scraps

{RAEGAN - 4 MONTHS}
Credits: kit - Summer Beginnings by the Queens of Clean (Melany Violette, Eve Recinella and Jennifer Layden) at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; glitter border - Glitter Girl by Melany Violette;
fonts - Beyond Wonderland, Monotype Corsiva; sketch - by Ginger Thibodeau at RUSquare.blogspot
By the way, this sketch made Ginger's blog :)

{A DOLL OF A BABY BROTHER}
Journaling reads: Before her baby brother arrived, we made sure that Raegan knew what to expect; that she wouldn’t be the only baby in the family. We bought her a Cabbage Patch boy doll with chinky eyes and black hair. We practiced calling him her baby brother and she followed along. She would bring the doll with her and would hug and kiss her “doll of a baby brother” whenever she could.

Credits: kit - Garden Girl by Melany Violette at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; frame - Natural Girl from the Girls' CD Edition by Melany Violette; tag - My Purple Butterfly by Melany Violette
glitter flowers - Glitter Girl Mini Elements by Melany Violette; flower brushes - by Melany Violette; fonts - Cheri, Arial Narrow

July 19 Scraps

{RAEGAN & MAMA}Credits: kit - Sorbet Blossoms by Melany Violette at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; stitches - Boys and Their Toys: Boys' CD Edition by Melany Violette; - Summer Beginnings by the Queens of Clean at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; red circle - My Sunshine: Boys' CD Edition by Melany Violette; alpha - Shades of Field Berries by Melany Violette; round tag - Garden Girl by Melany Violette; stick pin - by Gina Miller; fonts - Bellerose, FB Flamingo

{MY SON}Journaling reads: I love this picture of the two of us. It was taken a few hours after you were born. When my friend Margot saw it, she exclaimed “You had a shower, didn’t you?!?” And how right she was! I had taken a blissfully hot and much needed shower after giving birth to you. I needed that shower, and since I felt and looked clean (I even have earrings on!), I had Papa take a picture of the both of us. That smile on my face? Shows how proud I was for giving Papa a SON.....and how happy I was for being presentable for this photo!

Credits: kit - Wild Child Paisley by Melany Violette at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; alpha - Silver Alpha: Boys' CD Edition by Melany Violette; fonts - Bellerose, Marcelle Script

{THE PRICE OF BEAUTY}Journaling reads: Your first pair of earrings. June 15, 1998 was the date your ears were pierced. You were only 2 months old, but boy, did you exercise your lungs that day! I think you screamed more from being held fast, and not from the fleeting pain that the piercing gun gave you. Oh sweetheart...such is the price of beauty.

Credits: kit - Dreams of Asia: Girls CD Edition by Melany Violette at Simply Clean Digi Scraps; fiber - Pastel Petals and Paisleys by Melany Violette; tag alpha - Garden Girl by Melany Violette
Pewter alpha - Girls CD Edition by Melany Violette; fonts - Fiolex Girls, Gentium Alt

And that's it!

{EXERCISE NEWS}
Yes, exercise! I finally started on my Windsor Pilates DVDs. I did the 20 minute Circle Workout. It was ok, not too hard, not too easy. So I added the Buns and Thighs Workout. OMG!!! Need I say any more? :)

More Scraps

Oh yes! Definitely a productive night! Whoohoohoo! Got to scrap some more, using older pics of when Raegan was a baby!

{NINONG BOYDEE}

Journaling reads:(adapted from Bernadette Redmond):
My Ninong Boydee is one of a kind,
A little goofy but is quite a great find.
He likes to play the same silly games,
And is always calling me strange little names.
He loves to hug and kiss, tickle and squeeze,
And sometimes I even bounce on his knees.
I like it so much I can't help but grin
I know it's his heart I'll surely win.

Credits: kit - Girl with an Attitude by Amy Bleser at Scrapmommies; tag - Priceless Goods by Jen Wilson Designs; fonts - Pussycat, MA Sexy, Franklin Gothic;special thanks to Atomic Cupcake for the Pristine Chipboard action; Idea from Katie the Scrapbook Lady's July Month of Memories

{OUR SMILING GIRL}

Journaling reads: These photos are some of my favorite ones. This was the time that you actually LOOKED at the camera and SMILED that gummy smile of yours. In your carseat, with that plush Pooh cover, you melted our hearts with your beautiful smile. Keep on smiling, our beautiful smiling girl!

Credits: kit - Girl with an Attitude by Amy Bleser at Scrapmommies; stitched frame - by Kim Hill at CG Essentials; fonts - My Own Topher, Marcelle Script

Aren't these great, LOL! I love working with the older pics, the ones that I had scanned and digitized JUST SO I could scrap with them digitally. I am psyched!

Japa, if you're reading this, I'm hoping you found the pics of our Dragon Boat days....so that you can have them scanned and I can scrap them! :)

{OTHER NEWS}
Congratulations to Nino and Suzette on the birth of little Nicolette! Yeah! I'm sure Tito Obet and Tita Glo are ecstatic about their new granddaughter.

My Latest Scraps

Ok, mass is done, dinner is done. Decided to sneak upstairs to update my blog, among other things. It was a whirlwind day today --- although I didn't bring Mom and Dad to the doctor, I did drive ALL OVER town with Roc and Rejy in tow buying food for tonight's mass.

We started with Two Guys in Italy (or something like that) to order 2 16" pizzas. Yum. Check.

Then off to Pasadena to Bucca de Beppo....but it was closed for lunch, can you believe it?!?!? Sheesh! What kind of restaurant would be closed for LUNCH for pete's sake! Sigh! That kinda ruined our plans; we were supposed to have lunch there too! Grrr!

Anyway, off we went to the Old Spaghetti Factory for lunch AND for pasta and sauces for tonight. Yum yum! Check.

Costco was next in line where we bought the infamous 7 pound chocolate cake, 2 packs of rotisserie ribs and dinner rolls.

We needed some sort of main entree for dinner. Then it hit us: MACARONI GRILL!!!! Yeah! Off to Huntington Drive we went and got grilled salmon and chicken scallopine. Yum yum yum! Check. Wonderful choice! :)

{SCRAPS OF MAMA}
These are going to be a LOT. So here we go.....

{FIRST GRANDSON}

Credits: kit - Boy-Sterous by Amy Bleser at Scrapmommies; doodles - by Megan Leeson and Rhonda Stark for the Spring Doodle Collection at Digital Design Essentials; by Angie Briggs for Whimsy and Style at Scrap Artist; photo filter - VIrtual Photographer; font - Chiquita Banana

{ROWING FOR COUNTRY}

Credits: kit - Picnic Parade by Sarah Batdorf at ACOT; fonts - Arial, Marketing Script

{ALOHA}

Journaling reads: Ranger thoroughly enjoyed his first time in Hawaii. He had a blast splashing in the ocean; there was no stopping him! He would squirm when Mama would hug him for a photo of Diamond Head, he would grin with glee whenever he was in the water. We drove around the island of Oahu, stopping for lunch and some sightseeing. But it was on the beach of the HiltonHawaiian Village where Ranger jumped and ran in and out of the water, squealing with delight.

Credits: kit - Grandpa's Hawaiian Shirt by Amy Bleser at Sweet Shoppe Designs; font - Comic Sans

{TAKING ROGAN HOME}

Journaling reads: Only a mere DAY after he was born, Rogan went home. He had had a traumatic day at the hospital; he was circumcised. This rite of passage was done and over with. At least he wouldn’t have to suffer pain when he gets older. After the procedure, Rogan was very quiet. Maybe he could sense that he was going to be home and was cooperating with Mama and Papa as we flew about the hospital room preparing everything that would let us bring our firstborn SON home.

Credits: kit - Mello by V. Kim Smith at Digi Scrappin Kreations; fonts - Bellerose, Arial

{STAR PHOTOGRAPHER}

Credits: kit - Tunisia by Olga at SBB; fonts - Highland Perk, Beach Type, Arial

And there you have it. Pretty productive, eh?

Updating My Blog!

Eeek! I cannot believe I haven't updated my blog in 4 days! Four whole days! Whoa! At least I've been scrapping some, so I don't feel too bad. It has been a hectic week, in terms of shuttling Mom and Dad to various doctors' appointments. Also, my college friends from USC came and of course I had to spend a few days with them! Thank goodness Dad's appointments were a little bit less during Monday and Tuesday.

So THAT'S why I haven't been able to update my Blog! I was busy with Kathleen, Shannon, Amy and her 2 adorable little boys, Cameron and Henry! I have some pictures, but I won't show them here until they're on a layout or 2 or 3.

MONDAY DOINGS
After I had brought Dad to his doctor, I met up with my USC Rowing friends at Shannon's place. She lives in Highland Park, which is not a bad drive from Glendale at all. Anyway, from Shannon's, we all went to have lunch at La Taquiza, this Mexican restaurant near school on 30th and Figueroa. The twins have frequented this place I think, and it USED to be called Carmel's when WE were going to 'SC. All in all, the place looks the same, albeit a little bit more sosy looking, and the food was nice and yummy, with a few more variations on the menu than before.

We then went to visit the USC Campus. And OMGosh!!! It sure has changed! We were counting....and it's been 16 years since we graduated!!! Hehehehe. Almost a whole generation and of COURSE the campus has changed! While the old buildings were still there, there have been a lot of improvements. Tommy Trojan still stands at his spot, but the campus is just beautiful with fountains, hedges, green areas and even an infinity pool!

Our old hangout, Heritage Hall, where the office of USC Women's Crew was located, still stands. The trophy cases Heisman trophies are still out in full force, along with a couple of National Football Championship trophies. Ahhhh....it's awesome to be a TROJAN!

TUESDAY ACTIVITIES
Kath slept over and went with us to bring Dad to his doctor's appointment in downtown LA. After dropping Mom and Dad off, we decided we wanted coffee, i.e., Starbucks or Coffee Bean. It took us 20 minutes driving around downtown LA in our quest for coffee! Where is Starbucks when you really need it?!?!? Sheesh! Finally, after driving through the entire Jewelry District, we decided to head over to where the bank buildings were. Lo and Behold! In ONE intersection, there were 2 Starbucks AND a Coffee Bean in 3 of the 4 corners! Imagine that!

After our coffee fix, we picked up Mom and Dad, ate at Pat and Oscar's for lunch, then headed back home. We returned a rental at Burbank Airport then proceeded to Westlake Village to meet at Amy's Uncle Rudy's house after picking up Shannon.

It was a RELAXING and peaceful afternoon. We watched Cameron and Henry have a total blast with their Mom in the pool. We left Westlake at 7 pm and had dinner at Souplantation. Yummmmm!!!

The only glitch of the day: the Range Rover decided to eternally have it's fan/blower thingy on the whole time! Even when I shut down the engine! Sheesh! It stayed like that overnight, until it finally shut off sometime in the morning....because the damn battery was totally discharged!! Aaaargh!!!

WEDNESDAY HAPPENINGS
Dropped off Kath at Burbank Airport :(

Brought Dad to his appointment then called Roadside Assistance to jumpstart the Range. Nice guy, Gary, came over to get the Range going. Once it did, I jumped in and drove straight to Symes in Pasadena to drop the dang vehicle off and get it fixed. Turns out the hydraulics MAY need to be fixed, along with a tire that was bald. It was also time for the Range's 30,000 mile check up, so I told the guy to go ahead and do whatever was needed. Thank goodness they gave me a nice Kia Rio loaner, hehehehe. It's TINY and flicking GOLD. And everything in it is MANUAL. Sheesh!

THURSDAY EVENTS
The usual. Dad's appointment, lunch out at this quaint little restaurant called Camillo's Bistro over at Eagle Rock Blvd, another doctor's appointment.

Things are shaping up for our Hawaii trip. I made plane reservations for me, hotel reservations for everyone, tried to fix Mom and Dad's reservations (they'll end up flying a day after me), and finalized car rental reservations! Whoohoo! Pretty productive day.

AND, I scrapped!

UPDATED!!!!
Okay then, by blog is finally updated! Hehehehe :) I think I'll post some layouts tomorrow first thing. Not that I may get to do it. It'll be a busy day tomorrow since we're having Mass here at home.

And how was YOUR week?!?

Regular Sunday Stuff

Did laundry, went to mass (530 pm at Holy Redeemer where this AWESOME choir sings!), had dinner out. Tita Belen and Roc treated since they won a lot at Vegas, as usual. Had dinner at the Macaroni Grill....yummmmmmm!!!

And of course, I scrapped a page!

{RAINE & MAMA}Credits: kit - Grandpa's Hawaiian Shirt by Amy Bleser at Sweet Shoppe Designs; sketch template - by Jen Caputo; fonts - CK Holiday Spirit, Arial Narrow

I just love going through the older photos. I am SO glad I had them scanned in so that I can scrap them digitally. One of the best and wisest investment ever! I have a few more albums to go through before I can say my photos are fully digitized, but hey, I still have a lot of old photos to wade through! I'm taking them one day at a time, one layout at a time. It helps that I'm doing one photo layouts...with all the kits I'm getting from the various CTs I'm on, I'm going to be needing a steady supply of photos! LOL!

{OTHER NEWS}
I heard that Raine had fun over at Annika's birthday party. She was easily the biggest kid there, according to Roby, but she had fun. I'm glad she is not the shy type and can easily get along with other kids. I'm sure she blended in beautifully, being the maarte kid that she is! Hahahaha!

Zhar and I chatted just now and she was proud of the fact that Ranger finally kissed her! Hehehe! My little heartbreaker is starting early!

Scraps of Mama

Yay! Did another layout today, the second one for Amy Bleser's She's Got the Look Kit.

{MOTHERHOOD CHANGES EVERYTHING}

Journaling reads: MOTHERHOOD. It changes one’s life, doesn’t it. Irrevocably. Completely. There’s no turning back, once you become a Mother. It’s scary to think that this one little individual...this...BABY....will now completely rely on you for everything. Everything! You will never know how deep your capacity is to love until you become a Mother. There’s no hiding the fact, there’s no way of escaping it. Nor do I want to. Caring for someone, your willingness to fight everything to keep this little one you call your baby....that’s true love.

Credits: kit - She's Got the Look by Amy Bleser at Sweet Shoppe Designs; brushes: paisley stamp brush - by Sara Carling at the Digi Chick; flower brush - by Dana Zarling at SBB; swirl brush - by Anne Langpap at Two Peas in a Bucket; font - Arial

Got home from Vegas today. Man! It feels SO good to be back on MY bed!!! I scrapped this layout while at the airport, so I'm happy to be pretty productive during my waiting time. This LO was also for Scrapmommies' quote challenge, SBB's Mix and Match challenge AND the weekly scraplift. Is that productive or what? Hehehehe.

I Won!

I won a little bit! Gambled a total of $200 and won $350 tonight. Enough to buy me a nice new wallet tomorrow! Yay! A reward for me! Hehehe! It was good to win a little bit of spending money.

I also scrapped today, when I got links for Amy Bleser's She's Got the Look. Have a looksie:

Journaling reads: Rielle, Reese, Raegan. The 3 angels of Mamalyn, her pride and joy. The 3 reasons for her shopping sprees, her constant attention to clothes, shoes, and jewelry. Mamalyn at her best, reliving the glory days of frills and laces. Or at least, she tries to!

Credits: kit - She's Got the Look by Amy Bleser at Sweet Shoppe Designs; font - Bellerose; filter - Virtual Photographer

This is a photo from 1998, can you believe it?! I found the old photos I had digitized last year. I'm finally starting to scrap the old photos, hehehehe. This one shows Rielle, Reese and Raegan when they visited their Mamalyn at the office. Seems like such a long time ago, sheesh!

Happy 9th Year Anniversary

to Me and Japa! :) 9 years. Whoa. That's a pretty long time! And in all those years, this is the FIRST time we've spent our anniversary apart! :(

But it's warming to know that Japa didn't forget out anniversary. He sent flowers, a bear and popcorn to greet me today. The only thing is, I wasn't at home! I am in Las Vegas with Mom and Dad! My dear husband, not listening to a word I said.....hehehehe. That's okay, sweetie; I'll see your gifts in a couple of days, when we fly back to LA on Saturday.

Rejy took this today, when my gifts arrived:
and they're all waiting for me on Saturday night! :)

Here's a LO I did:

Journaling reads: 2006. This year marked the first time Japa and I spent our wedding anniversary apart. I was in the States, helping Mom take care of Dad, while Japa was in the Philippines, with the kids. This is our 9th year as a married couple. We’ve had our share of ups and downs, as normal relationships do, and we’ve become stronger as we’ve hurdled the obstacles together. Japa surprised me this year by sending roses, popcorn and a teddy bear to hug everything together. He may not have been here to greet me in person, but that teddy bear sure did make my day! Happy 9th Anniversary, Sweetheart! Thank you for making me happy.

Credits: kit - Flowers for Grammie by Amy Bleser; font - Bellerose

I just came from watching La Reve at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Awesome awesome show. I mean, I'd watch it all over again and I know I would never tire of it! This show is totally totally worth it!!!

{SCRAPPING NEWS}
I am a member of Amy Bleser's Creative Team as of today! Whoohoohoo! Love Amy's designs over at Scrapmommies, and now at Sweet Shoppe Designs too! Thanks for having me, Amy!

My First Ever Album Up For SALE!!!

Just a quick note to share my excitement!!! I created these 10 quick pages using Dawn Webb's Country Romance Kit and she's already put it up for sale at The Daily Scrap. Go check it out! I feel "professional". Hahahahahha!! I had fun making the pages, not very stressful at all, and it feels absolutely wonderful to see my name up there! Here's a preview:

So what do you think? :)

On the Road to Recovery.....I Hope

Well, it's been an interesting few days. For some strange reason, I was struck down by some....bug....virus....that totally MADE me stay in bed! Sheesh! It was an on-off thing and it was starting to get to me. Me, who NEVER gets sick!!! Guess I'm not superwoman after all; not anymore! Need to whip this fat behind into gear.

Which brings me to my next point. Roc, Rejy and I embarked on our 3-day diet to lost 10 pounds. Water weight, I know, but this was going to jumpstart our diet of healthy eating and whatever else we could think of to lose the weight that we want. Halfway into the first day, I got sick. I've been sick for 5 or 6 days! Can you believe that? I mean, I can't even believe I was down for the count for that long!

Anyway, because I was sick AND was on that stupid, gross diet, I lost somewhere between 8-12 pounds. Great, right? Sure...but I am NOT going to do this diet again. Ever. I think it's what made me sick, too! Not just me, but Roc was brought down too! I told her that our bodiers were NOT designed to withstand a severe lack of food in our system....no matter what the "chemical breakdown" is. Hah!

Anyway, I had a bit of a reprieve this past Saturday, which allowed me to participate in what was practically an all-day affair at Divine Digital.

{MY SCRAPS}

{BLOOMING IN THE LIGHT}
Credits: snaplet - by Laura Kockelkorn; doodles - by Caroline Bain; font - Gentium Alt

{DIVING DAYS}Credits: kit - Blueberry by Kim Christensen; tag - Celery by Kim Christensen; stamp - by Deborah Vessels; fonts - Marcelle, Times New Roman

{Q-T Pies}Credits: snaplet - Rebecca Ferraioli; tags - Tomatoes by Kim Christensen; fonts - Comic Sans, Chiquita Banana

{STOP &SMELL THE FLOWERS}
Journaling reads: You had such a fun time at the Flower Fields. You gleefully ran all over the place, stopping only when there was no grass or pavement; you didn’t like to get your hands dirty.. You attacked the flower maze behind your siblings before Mama or Papa could catch you. We found you by following your shrieks of anger and frustration as you stared into your muddy hands. You had fallen into a mushy part of the ground. Laughing, we picked you up and cleaned you off. The picture above was taken when you decided to take a breather.....to STOP and smell the FLOWERS. I hope you continue to do this the rest of your life. You will need it. After that moment of seriousness from you, you deliberately taunted Mama by taking your socks off and throwing them in opposite directions. Sigh!

Credits: kit - freebie from the Three Pieces Your Way Crop by Eva Kipler; fonts - My Own Topher, Highland Perk

That last layout of Ranger I was pretty proud of; our challenge was to take the 2 pieces of paper and 2 pieces of elements and make a layout with it. And that's what I came up with! Pretty good, huh? hehehe.

Ok. It's 3 am here now, and I really NEED to get to bed and rest. G'night all!