Time to enjoy some CAKE

It's July and that means the height of summer festivities, including Independence Day. This month's CAKE (create a kit event) at Digitals will be sure to fuel your muse for creating those special summer pages. The colors of this month's cake are perfect for Patriotic layouts or just those fun summer pictures that are begging to be transformed into memorable scrapbook pages.

See all of the pieces of cake here: 

http://digitalscrapbookpages.com/digitals/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=333_340

A Fun Family Weekend

Well, we had a pretty good time this weekend. On Friday we simply went out to eat as a family. This was nice because it was something that we really haven't been able to do lately.

Then on Saturday we went to a friend's house that we've known for years, but we don't get to visit with nearly often enough. This wonderful family was all in our wedding eight years ago, Mom was a bridesmaid, Dad was a groomsman and son was our ringbearer. It was actually quite amazing to see them again because their son has just finished sixth grade and it turning into quite a handsome young man (I'll have to remember the camera for the next time we go up there). It's hard to believe that his voice is starting to change now when I remember him as a toddler that would stay up all night long dancing to music. Paul absolutely loved it because he doesn't get to spend enough time around boys.

Today I did a little bit of scrapping and fiddling around on the computer before we went to Mom's house so that the kids would be allowed to go swimming. They love going over there because of the pool and their three cousins, but the girls actually didn't get home until we were getting ready to leave. It is okay though because they did get to enjoy some quality time with Nana.

And my product of my weekend's work is this fun layout with pictures that I took of Paul and Tom on his first Mother's Day. Tom really wanted to show us the reason that he believes overalls were invented.

Yes, Paul and I did take some pictures together on his first Mother's Day, but he has always been a Daddy's boy and Daddy couldn't help but show us all the reason that he thought overalls were invented.

For my layout I used That's My Daddy by Cindy Ritter.

This Week

This week has actually been pretty quiet around here. I didn't go and get the kids because their Dad said that they could stay with him and we are actually pretty tight on money so I really couldn't afford to do some of the things with them that I really want to do with them before school starts in the fall.

So, instead, we spent some time keeping the house clean and also going over to Nana's house so that we could go swimming. I've also been dedicating some time to getting rid of things that we really don't need, like our third vehicle (looks like it is headed for the scrap yard, it needs work and I'm not getting any interest on Craig's List). Tom's moped (since he got his VW bug back) and also other various things that we don't need here anymore. I'm determined to get us out of our financial mess one way or the other. It will only be at that time that I will really start to feel better.

Oh yeah, and Father's Day was really a pretty quiet affair around here. We did end up going to the store to get some things that we needed and also bought the kids a new game for the Xbox. And ended our day out with dinner at Logan's to celebrate Dad.

Here are some pictures that I took of Kathryn and Paul with Daddy on Father's Day:

Despite the fact that for the past year it has been difficult for Tom, he is feeling better now and Kathryn and Paul are really getting to experience what it is like to have an awesome Dad.

For my layout I used That's My Daddy by Cindy Ritter.

Welcome Summer

Well, summer has offically arrived on the calendar, but I think it has actually been here for a couple weeks now. It has been hot, hot, hot which means that we've been spending a lot of time at my mom's house in the swimming pool.

And during the day when I don't want the kids to get too much sun exposure, I've been scrapbooking while they've been playing video games and watching television with some bike riding and playing with their toys thrown in somewhere too.

This is a page that is full of wonderful summer memories when my friend Erica's parents still lived in Lexington and we would get together during their summer visit to let our kids all play together. Grace and Kathryn got along wonderfully despite the nearly two-year age difference. I love seeing how cute they were together. We haven't gotten to see Erica and her family in almost three years and her family has changed a lot since then. She now has six children instead of the three and expecting (she ended up having twins) that she had the last time we were together. I miss her a lot, but we still do talk to each other regularly via facebook and I'm hoping that next year we will be able to make a trip to visit her family in Texas.

Kathryn with Grace (the oldest daughter of one of my best childhood friends). Though the girls seldom got to see each other, they always had a great time when they got to play.

For my layout I used Vintage Spring Garden Club by Tammy DeYoung.

The eve of Father's Day and some CAKE

This year, I believe that Father's Day is going to be something really special for Kathryn and Paul because this year it is like they've gotten their Father back after he'd been gone for a long time. In just the last month it really is like Tom is back with us even though he has been here with us in body every day. I don't know that we will have a gift for him, but we will all be spending some time together and I know that I will be taking some pictures of the kids with their Daddy on Father's Day. I'll also be picking up some of the Digitals CAKE pieces to scrap some of those pictures with.

Be sure to check out the sale:

Tomorrow is Father's Day, so what better time to scrap the important men in your life with the masculine June CAKE (Create A Kit Event) pieces on sale for $1.50 a set now through June 19.

This is your chance to build your own custom mega kit with these manly and outdoorsy colors. Choose from tons of different papers, elements, clusters, quickpages, word art and more, all in coordinating colors. We have lots of styles to suit your personal taste, and lots of general designs that you can use in almost any type of layout.

Be sure to pick up a bundle at the low price of just $1.50 per set! And look for our next CAKE featuring patriotic colors starting July 14.

Kids, cancer and a little bit of scrapping

Well, June has been quite an adventure here at Casa de Winburn. It started out with Tom having his six month follow-up appointment with Dr. Hayslip (six months out from his lymphoma treatment). On the day of the scan he got a call back from the oncologist's office letting him know that his PET scan looked good. However, they saw a change in his kidneys that they did not like and they were adding a kidney CT to his scheduled CT the following week. This led to a lot of anxiety for us while waiting to hear those results.

In addition to all of that stress, my roommate also ended up having to serve some jail time for a probation violation (long story short, she is not a bad person at all, she made a mistake that a lot of people made regarding check scams and her difference was that instead of depositing one of the scam checks into a checking account, she cashed it at a convenience store and they prosecuted her instead of the scam artists). So, when that happened, I was left with her three wonderful children through yesterday when they went to spend a few days with their step-father. Let me tell you, going from two children that I take care of on my own and three that she took care of was quite a change and very stressful for me. It made my life for over a week all about kids and about having not a moment of time that belonged only to me.

Well, then we had the oncologist appointment and I'm happy to announce that Tom is cancer-free at this time. This means that he doesn't have to see his oncologist for the next six months and he will be able to have his port-a-cath removed next month. We could have had that scheduled sooner, but I wanted to make sure that we would have childcare for the procedure.

And of course there has been keeping the kids entertained. This could be something that would be very expensive, but I'm lucky that my mother has a pool in her backyard and that will keep all of the kids entertained for hours. We've been at her house nearly every afternoon and when we haven't been there it has been because Paul had his last few baseball games of the season.

This is the one page that I've really been able to create this month so far. Rayne is one of the three children that I've been taking care of while their mother is away. She is a very special little girl and I do love her to death, despite the fact that she does have a fiery red-headed attitude.

This is one very special little girl. She is the daughter of my best friend and so beautiful and photogenic.

For my layout I used Vintage Spring Garden Club by Tammy DeYoung.

Why I Scrap

Through the five years that I've been digital scrapbooking I've heard a lot of different reasons why people choose to use this medium. For me, I know that the reason that I do it is many fold.

The first reason that I chose digital scrapbooking is because it is really easy to fix a mistake, whereas with traditional scrapbooking, this really wasn't something that was possible and I was scared to death that I would ruin a picture when I was working on a page.

However, more importantly to me, the reason that I scrapbook is because I want my children to know the who, what, when, where and why of the pictures that I've taken of them over the years. For me, I have to say that most of the pages that I create have a lot of journaling on them. As I think this is one of the most important parts of scrapbooking.

The page that I'm sharing today, however is a rare journal free page from me. It is one of my favorite pictures that I've ever had of Kathryn and the beauty of the picture negates the need for journaling in my opinion.

This is one of my favorite pictures of Kathryn when she was younger.

For my layout I used Bundle Sweet Castle by Pati Araujo.