My last two Lo's from the weekend.

River pictures...

Just a few pictures from the trip to the ELk River this past weekend. It was a beautiful day and we had an awesome time!

Scrappy Weekend!

I had a super busy, but productive weekend! Friday night was Scrapbook Generation's Scrap Pink CropDebbie and Karin outdid themselves, it was really fun! I haven't actually been to a crop since the retreat in the spirng and i did get some LO's done and it was for a good cause! Karin made pink cupcakes and cookies and they gave away lots of pink prizes. I was also participating in a online crop ove at Scrap4life.com Kazan Clark was the host this month and she put up some great challenges. I only got 4 of them done, but I was happy with the LO's I did. I have been competing in a design team search atScrap4lifeand I did advance this week! It went from 27 to 16 this week so I am thinking about the challenge for this week, we are supposed to do a paper piecing on our page, I have had a crab pattern layed out on my desk for a few weeks to do a lO of the kids crab hunting at the beach, so I am excited to get that started.

The boys and I went with Katie and her kids and Mom to the River on Sunday. The weather was beautiful and the kids loved getting to spend some time floating in the river, collecting rocks, and tadpoles and crawdad's. katie and Griffin brought home one of the tadpoles and are hoping to see it to maturity. She researched online last night and found out they eat dry dog food, simple enough right? We'll see! here are a few of the pages I did this weekend, I have a couple more, but they need the journaling yet.

Challenge 1

Scrap4life.com is hosting a design team search contest. Last week the challenge was to use circles for your background. This was my entry. I love these pictures of Brian and Taylor. The most recent one where Bub is holding Taylor was the start of this LO, it cracks me up! I was pretty happy with the finished project. I used the new My Minds Eye Paper.

A Tail of Puppy Love

Thisis a mini album that I am teaching at Scrapbook Generation tonight. It is super cute, featuring a cover made from a transparency and a fun bone shape made with the cricuit. Each page features a quote about dogs and our relationships with them. There is room for about 3 2x2 photos on eage page. Of course mine features the lovely Daisy dog! It is a pretty full class so I am excited about that! Gregg is meeting me in town after for a dinner out, just the two of us. We are actually going to Red Lobster his favorite. We never went out for our anniversary, so we are using that as an excuse to share a nice meal, that I didn't have to cook!

She may look like a sea dog...

but she's not! We spent the weekend at Stockton Lake, we camped and fished and just had a great weekend. Saturday we were all out on the boat, Daisy included. It was cloudy and cool when we headed out onto the lake so I had on Capri pants and a t-shirt, not intending at all to get in the water. The sun did come out after we had been on the water for a while and i got kinda hot so I decided to hang my feet off the edge into the water and cool off. Daisy does not like the water, she likes the boat and is perfectly content to lay on the deck and nap. When the boat is in motion we make her wear a life jacket, but when we are sitting still I take it off. We had been in a cove for quite a while so she didn't have her life jacket on. When I decided to hang my feet over, she was on the front deck, she decided to come sit next to me, only she took the faster route over the top cap of the boat. Those of you who know us know how much time Gregg spends washing and waxing the boat and vehicles, needless to say the top cap is very slick. Daisy went in and went under, from where I was I was not convinced that she was going to make it back up on her own and so I jumped in, fully clothed, and the water was not warm! By this time, gregg and the boys are laughing their heads off, Daisy is fine and I am soaked! Are dogs born knowing how to swim? I don't know and i still don't know if she can actually swim. Oh well, I was cooled off and Spent the rest of the afternoon laying in the sun trying to dry out! My camera battery went dead shortly after I took this picture so I have none of the two of us after the trauma, but I can tell you we both needed a nap!

October Classes

In October I will be teaching 2 classes. The first is a Disney album class, using the Maya Road binder album. the cost will be $18. The second is a single page Halloween Layout. Usually I wouldn't teach a single page, but this one has quite a bit going on, lots of distressing with sandpaper and ink and paint. I am using the Little Yellow Bicycle line. the cost will be $8. I am not sure of the dates yet, they will be in the SG newletter or you can always call the store and the girls there will hook you up with the information.

Just a few pictures...

Not a whole lot going on, just a busy week! I am working on some scrappy stuff for classes at Scrapbook Generation I am competing over at scrap4life.com in a contest for their design team. These are pictures from Bubba's birthday party. This is Katie, my Aunt Glenda, and Me. These two happen to be 2 of my favorite people and I enjoy being able to spend time with them, we always laugh and have such fun together!This is Taylor and Glenda...the boys are lucky enough to have two awesome grandmothers and they also got Glenda. From the time they were born she has been a big part of their lives. I am so blessed to have had her in my life growing up, as an adult and now to share in the lives of my boys!This picture totally cracks me up...Bubba and Taylor have a very special relationship. At Bubba's party we watched a video that had many pictures of Bub and Tay together and it prompted this picture to be taken, mind you the last time Bub was holding Taylor in a picture he was about 2.

15 YEARS!!!

September 11, 1993 I became Laura Parks! I have said in earlier posts that it does not feel like 15 years, the time has flown by. I remember the morning we got married, it was cool and a little overcast as I got ready, we were having an outside wedding, so I was a little concerned. As the morning progressed the weather did as well and the sun was shinning bright by the time my dad gave me away. We were lucky enough to have both of Gregg's grand mother's and both of my grandfather's present at our wedding, since then we have each lost one. We were surrounded by family and close friends for the day. It wasn't a big wedding, it was simple, which perfectly describes our life. We like the simple things. We love each other and we laugh a lot. We get mad at each other, but we quickly make up. We support each other, and not just when it's going well. We have difficult things that we deal with each day, Gregg's health tops the list, but we do it together. When asked how we make it work these are the things I tell people. Seriously laughter fixes alot, even if you are laughing at each other! You may have heard the expression..."You Might be a redneck if you had a dog in your wedding party", well,we did. Our dog wizard was just about a year old when we got married and yes he was in the wedding, and he was really good through the ceremony! Have a great day!

Almost 15 years...

Well tommorrow it is official....15 years of marriage. Wow! It doesn't seem like it has been that long. We got married. Celebrated our first anniversary when I was 7 months pregnant. By the time we had been married 3 years we had a full house, our family was complete. I have said before that this is not the life I imagined. My LO for today is about just that, it sums it all up. And no if I could do it over I would not change a thing. It is not aways easy to be married. IT's work to live with someone else. Unfortunately our society has mad marriage disposable like so many other things. It seems that people think if it works out great and if not that is fine too! It's not fine. When you get married and have children you learn to compromise, you learn to adjust and learn to work it out. I can't always have my way, although I try hard to convince anyone who will listen that i should. I have been blessed for 15 yearrs to be married to gregg and I look forward to many more and I know that there will be many more compromises on his part, and some on mine. I hope that our boys learn by watching us that it's okay to disagree, and that working it out is half the fun! I hope they see that it's not all bliss, but that evry moment is worth it, even when you don't get your way.

The first LO I want to share today is just a simple silly one of Gregg at his birthday party a couple of years ago...he is so silly sometimes, we laugh alot!

The next Lo is of Tucker and Gregg at the beach about five years ago. It is actually a candid moment that I caught when I was still using a camera with film. I remember the day that the film was developed looking at this picture and almost crying, it is still one of my favorite pictures of all time and hangs in our dinning room. It is so perfect because Gregg does take the TIME to sit and listen and talk to the boys...who knows they could have been making fun of someone, but I prefer to think he was telling him something important, one of those things that you lock away to use later!

Posed or not...

Do you like pictures that are posed or just candid shots the best? This was a question on one of the message boards I cruise every day. My answer was both. I do like posed pictures, I think they serve a purpose especially when you want to get a group shot. For example every year at my Grandpa's birthday we take a group photo, I think it is so cool to look back and see how our family has grown and see how much it changes in just one year!




But I love a great candid shot. While on vacation this summer, my brother's girlfriend captured a moment between my brother,sister and I that I love. None of us are looking at the camera. It was when we very first arrived at the beach....Bubba was already there and katie and I got there and we were all just looking at the water and you can almost here us *sigh* as we let go of everything else! I can't wait to scrapbook this picture. Now there are some pictures that are kinda in between posed and candid....like this one of the three of us and our cousins in the dugout at royals stadium, my sister was definately posing!
So which do you like best candid or posed?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUBBA!!

My brother turns 40 today! We celebrated over the weekend with a shrimp boil at his house, really fun! His name is Brian, but when my oldest was a baby we started calling him Bubba and he has been that to all of us ever since, it suits him. So here's to hoping you have a great day,BUBBA, we love you!!!

More about the man I LOVE!

I can't seem to post everyday so I am going to post a few LOs today to catch up. From the previous story you know that I never intended to date this man let alone marry him, he knows it, but he knows that I am so glad I did! I knew after our first date That he was the one for me, I know people say that, but I really did. We clicked immediately. He is very close to his family, like I m mine and he likes to do the same things I do...well maybe I like to do the same things he does! I knew he wanted a family, he was clear from the git go however that two kids was what he wanted. We have been blessed with two boys. The first LO is from a mini album "Just Us" it features one of my favortie picutres of him...he didn't know I was taking it, it was at my nephews birthday party and I was across the yard from him, I just love it! The next two are from a mini album about our vacation to Hawaii for our 10th anniversary. I do not like to have my picture taken, but I love to have pictures of us together, doesn't make a lot of sense. The last one today is of all 3 of my boys. This is so them...he is such a fun dad. He loves to play and be silly and he truly enjoys being their dad! I am so very lucky.

Just for fun!

I found this on someone else's blog....copy and paste it to yours and highlight the things that YOU have done!

Have you ever...(if it is bold I have)


1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given to a charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Held a lamb
25. Gone skinny dipping
26. Taken an ice cold bath
27. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
28. Seen a total eclipse
29. Ridden a roller coaster
30. Hit a home run
31. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
32. Adopted an accent for fun
33. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
34. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
35. Loved your job 90% of the time
36. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
37. Watched wild whales
38. Gone rock climbing
39. Gone on a walk on the beach
40. Gone sky diving
41. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
42. Bench-pressed your own weight
43. Milked a cow
44. Alphabetized your personal files
45. Worn a superhero costume
46. Sung karaoke
47. Lounged around in bed all day
48. Gone scuba diving
49. Kissed in the rain
50. Played in the mud
51. Gone to a drive-in theater
52. Done something you should regret
53. Visited the Great Wall of China
54. Started a business
55. Been in a movie
56. Gone without food for 3 days
57. Made cookies from scratch
58. Won first prize in a costume contest
59. Got flowers for no reason
60. Spoken more than one language fluently
61. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
62. Bounced a check
63. Read and understood your credit report
64. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
65. Called or written your Congress person
66. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
67. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
68. Helped an animal give birth
69. Been fired or laid off from a job
70. Won money
71. Broken a bone
72. Ridden a motorcycle
73. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
74. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
75. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
77. Had your picture in the newspaper
78. Read the Bible cover to cover
79. Changed some one's mind about something you care deeply about
80. Gone back to school
81. Changed your name
82. Eaten fried green tomatoes
83. Read The Iliad
84. Taught yourself an art from scratch
85. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
86. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
87. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
88. Been elected to public office
89. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
90. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
91. Dyed your hair
92. Rocked a baby to sleep
93. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four
94. Raked your carpet
95. Worn a mood ring
96. Ridden a horse
97. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
98. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
99. Buried a child
100. Gone to a Broadway play
101. Been inside the pyramids
102. Shot a basketball into a basket
103. Danced at a disco
104. Played in a band
105. Shot a bird
106. Gone to an arboretum
107. Tutored someone
108. Ridden a train
109. Brought an old fad back into style
110. Eaten caviar
111. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn't need
112. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
113. Published a book
114. Pieced a quilt
115. Lived in a historic place
116. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
117. Asked for a raise
Made a hol118. e-in-one mini golfing
119. Gone deep sea fishing
120. Gone roller skating
121. Run a marathon
122. Learned to surf
123. Invented something
124. Flown first class
125. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury hotel
126. Sang a solo
127. Gone spelunking
128. Learned how to take a compliment
129. Written a love-story
130. Seen Michelangelo's David
131. Had your portrait painted
132. Written a fan letter
133. Spent the night in something haunted
134. Ran away
135. Learned to juggle
136. Been a boss
137. Sat on a jury
138. Lied about your weight
139. Gone on a diet
140. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
141. Written a poem
142. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
143. Gotten food poisoning
144. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
145. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
146. Gone to the opera
147. Gotten a letter from someone famous
148. Worn knickers
149. Ridden in a limousine
150. Attended the Olympics
151. Can hula or waltz
152. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
153. Been stuck in an elevator
154. Had a revelatory dream
155. Thought you might crash in an airplane
156. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
157. Saved someone's life
158. Eaten raw whale
159. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
160. Laughed till your side hurt
161. Straddled the equator
162. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
163. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
164. Sent a message in a bottle
165. Spent the night in a hostel
166. Been a cashier
167. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
168. Joined a union
169. Donated blood
170. Built a campfire
171. Kept a blog
172. Had hives
173. Worn custom made shoes or boots
174. Made a PowerPoint Presentation
175. Taken a Hunter's Safety Course
176. Served at a soup kitchen
177. Conquered the Rubik's cube
178. Known CPR
179. Gone fishing
180. Found a long lost friend
181. Voted for a contestant on American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance
182. Successfully convinced someone you were of a different nationality
183. Received a promotion
184. Movie-hopped (Gone to two movies in a theater and only paying for the first movie)
185. Planned a surprise party for someone
186. Beaten all levels of a video game
187. Driven more than 2,500 miles on a cross-country trip
188. Cried yourself to sleep
189. Stayed awake for more than 24 hours
190. Crossed a national border by car
191. Been to an island
192. Been completely out of debt (student loans, house, and all)
193. Read a book from the Twilight series
194. Traveled to Italy
195. Given birth
196. Found a bra that fits perfectly
197. Learned to meditate
198. Owned your dream car
199. Learned to love eating raw vegetables
200. Seen all 50 states

Football Season, Fall and Falling in Love....

Well Football season is upon us! Last night was the first "real" game of the season. I am not that huge of a fan, I watch, i could take it or leave it, but this is not the consensus at my house. The 3 boys that i live with LOVE football, it begins in August with preseason and the drafting of their Fantasy Football teams, and continues until the final celbration of the superbowl. I know that not everyone agrees, but where I live, by that i mean my house, the Superbowl should be deemed a National Holiday. In my little world Football Food is it's own food group! Oh well, there could be worse things they love! In honor of Kickoff weekend I drug out a coupl of older LO's that feature MY Fans. They are die hard CHIEFS fans, winning or losing they cheer for the Chiefs!! Who do you cheer for?


The last few days it has rained and been chilly and dark, but today the sun is shinning and the air is dry and cool and I can feel Fall coming. We have the windows open on the house and are loving the fresh air! This morning I baked a loaf of poppyseed bread and a loaf of Pumpking bread, so now not only does it feel like fall, but it smells like it as well. I don't know about you, but fall means baking at my house. The summer months it's too hot and I hate to heat the house up with the oven unless I have to, so not a lot of baking gets done. The boys love it, because it means muffins and bread for breakfast, and cookies after school!! What do you like to bake in the fall?

I said in my last post that I would post a LO a day in honor of my 15th anniversary next week. I did not get one posted yesterday, but today I have one. This is one of my favorite ones I have done of Gregg and I. It was for a challenge several years ago to make a top 10 list. I like the picture of us...kinda simple, but that is who we are! I challenge you to make a list of the reasons you love...it could be anyone or anything, it's just kinda fun!My list reads....1.I love that you are my best friend, there is no one I trust more.2. I love that you love the beach as much as I do. There is nothing like sand between your toes. 3. i love how you are with the boys. i see your influence in the choices they make each day. 4. I love that you make me smile when I'm mad at you. Sometimes it makes me more mad, but I still Love that you can do it. 5. I love that in fifty years it will still be you that I go to sleep next to at night and wake up next to each morning.6. I love that you choose to coach the boys ball teams. You could be at the lake, but you choose to be on the field o on the court. 7. I love that you remember our first date as well as I do.8. I love that we laugh together.
9.I love the way you swat me on the rear when you walk past me in the kitchen. 10. I love that you take our life seriously but don't let it make our lives serious.

This and That..

Well, we had a beautiful weekend at the lake. The Weather could not have been more wonderful. It was so nice for a change to go to the lake and actually have SUNSHINE the whole time we were there! The boys had a great time fishing. BY the time we left on Monday they had cought between the four of them almost 200 fish, now bare in mind that some of the fish were about 2 inches long, the largest was a keeper small mouth that Taylor caught, probably about 3 pounds. They jsut fished off the bank and really enjoyed it. We could hardly get them to do anything else. We did manage to pull them away long enough to got to Celebration City on Friday night and we all enjoyed some time in the pools, and laying by the pool reading. I read Nora Roberts, Tribute. It was good.

Todya we are getting lots of rain. We needed it and right no it is nice gentle rain, soaking in!

In honor of My 15th wedding anniversary next week, on the 11th, I thought I would post Layouts between now and then of me and Gregg. Today's is one of my fav's.

The journaling reads..."I never date my brother's friends..."
Summer 1989--I had just graduated from high school. My brother was home on leave from the Navy. This particular summer Braian's friends were hanging around our house all the time. One night Gregg was over and he and I got to visiting and He asked if I wanted to go out sometime. My response was, "I don't dat Brian's friends."

Thanksgiving 1991--I was working in Kansas City and Brian was stationed in Washington State, we both were home for the holiday weekend. Brian and some friends were going out for the night and Brian asked if I wanted to go along, I said no. Later ther night Brian said, "Gregg Parks wants to know if you will just go out with him." I said i would. That night and for the next two years I dated my brother's friend.

September 11, 1993--my wedding day. I married my brother's friend!!