Lainey's Altered Ego

{i miss my blog...and a new exciting site}

sniffle, sniffle

school has started again.  and, as usual, i have started neglecting my blog.  i sincerely hope that after a few weeks i'll get back into the swing of things and start posting on a more regular basis.

please don't give up on me! :)

on a lighter note, check out this new site that i am just uber-excited about:

lain ehmann and angie lucas have teamed up along with a slew of talented ladies to bring us the eco-friendly and super-affordable ella publishing!  idea books at your fingertips - and nothing more than $6.99!  amazing, right?  stay tuned for the scrapbook ellaments ezine too...available tomorrow!

back to planning lessons...back soon!

{xoxo}

{our new fuzzy friend}

remember this?  jake was all ready for his new hamster before we went to florida.  it is meant to be his reward for cleaning out his room and keeping it up all summer long.  

well, the day after we returned from our vacation he wanted to go and pick her up...and we did.

meet wicket.

{for those of you that do not speak starwars-ese, "wicket" is the name of one of the little fuzzy ewoks.  quite a fitting name, if you ask me.}

she really is quite a funny critter.  and jake loves her.  not a bad deal.

today marks my last official day of summer vacation.  i start new teacher orientation tomorrow morning bright and early.  

my goal for today is to get down to the studio to get one or two things done so i don't feel like this week was a total waste.

{xoxo}

{construction, part one}

okay, so we've been back for a while.  we're still recuperating from our 12-day-long vacation.  why is it that i need a vacation from my vacation???

tons of pictures to scrap...this one will definitely get its own album.  i can't wait to share it with you as i work through it!

we started off with a bang here...and i mean that literally.  major construction going on at our house right now.  we have a teeny cape cod, and are having dormers put in the upstairs along the back of the house, a 16x20' family room on one side, and a master bath on the other.  so far, one of the dormers is finished:

it's amazing how much more space jake has in his room now!

see the green?  that's where the end of his room USED to be.  

and, yes, i'm aware that the carpet color is hideous...we were waiting to replace it until the construction is done. ;)

inservice days start for me on thursday...this summer went by SO quickly.  i plan on spending some time down in my studio today to get some organizing/scrapping done.  can't wait to share!

{xoxo}

{see you in a few weeks}

back on august 10th...be good while i'm gone!  i'll hug mickey for all of you!

{xoxo}

{ready and waiting}

jake is just too excited.

we promised him a hamster.  a cute little ball of fuzziness for him to take care of.

of course, we're going to disney on thursday, so we won't actually pick up the hamster until we get back.

but he's all ready to go:

now he just needs to decide on a name...we've considered several, including rhino {of course!}, hamlet {haha}, and pickles {???}.  but i really think we need to 'meet' her first.

we are definitely quite the zoo...2 dogs, 4 cats, and now a hamster.  

how many pets do you all have?  please, someone make me feel better!

{xoxo}  

{my baby is 13 today}

13 years ago we had no idea what we were in for.  

and now my first baby boy has surpassed our expectations - not only in height {he's 5'10" already!} but also in compassion and intellect.  i am so proud of him!

of course, we're entering the age when he would rather do this over spending time with us:

but i know that someday he will grow out of it {though probably not as quickly as he grows out of his shoes}.

for now, i'll just sit here and wonder how the heck i got old enough to be the parent of a teenager.

yikes.

{xoxo}

{new york was filled with...}

siblings...

strawberry shortcake...

birthday celebrations...

video games...

silliness...

and cousins...

it was a great trip!

much to my diet's dismay, however - we did have some stowaways on the return trip...

yikes.

{xoxo}

{back from ny}

well, i'm back...tired, but had a nice visit with my sister in new york.  her new house is so cute!  i have a few pictures from the trip and will post them later this week.

brett left for san antonio this morning for the college board symposium.  jake and i took advantage and spent the day at the zoo.  and wouldn't you know it?  i left my camera at home...grrr!  

thank goodness for camera phones, huh?

would you believe that the tiny branch in his hand cost me two bucks?!  but how could i resist?

well - mount washmore is calling me and i still haven't fully unpacked...but it's good to be home!

oh - and 2 weeks 'til disney!!!

{xoxo}

{goodie boxes}

seeing as we're driving down to florida in 2 weeks {!} i thought it would be fun to make up some goodie boxes for zack and jake.  brett and i have been collecting things all over and so far have this pile of goodies for jake...

my favorite part of this whole pile is the travel mug.  i found it at starbucks the other day.  the three body parts spin around!

he's going to love it!

zack is a little more challenging.  i'm getting each of them a new ds game, but other than that, i don't know what a teenager wants to play with in the car.  maybe i'll just get him a few dvds or a game to play on his computer...anyone have any suggestions?

{xoxo}

{a modest harvest}

a few weeks ago, jake and i planted some baby carrot seeds and green beans.  we kind of knew nothing would come of it - i don't have what you would call a "green thumb".  nevertheless, we checked on them periodically and hoped for the best.

the other day, we were able to harvest a bit and had ourselves a nice little snack!

maybe a little pathethic, but jake was happy!  next year we'll plant even more for sure!

take that, farmtown!

{xoxo}