My new obsession, the reason why my laundry is piled up!  Like I need a reason.  I have been crocheting a lot lately.  It tends to make less of a mess and I can bring it with me when I need to be out and about.  Heaven forbid I just sit, it makes me uncomfortable.  I am sure they have a medication for that.  Anyway, I have a few hat designs that I have been working on but this one I am super excited about!  I have it listed in my ETSY store. You can change out the band!  I know, I squealed too!  I can make these in any color or size.  So, this is just one of the reasons why I have been MIA to my blog.  I promise to post my other hats soon!

This time of year makes me crazy in the best way crazy can make someone.  I think I proved my point with my opening sentence.  Between photo sessions and crafts, I don't manage to accomplish anything else.  Please don't tell my husband that my money earning distractions are fun.  I think he would jealous!
I have been updating my Totally Rad Crafts blog with lots of goodies and plan on keeping up with it.  I have lots and lots that I have planned to post so stay tuned.
To all of my Meridian friends, I am going to be back the weekend of the 22nd.  I have just a few openings for photo sessions so it you want to get scheduled in, just let me know.  That weekend is one of the most beautiful in Boise/Meridian!
I am also bringing my beads.  When the sun goes down, the bead goddess comes out!  I have one party scheduled already and have Sat. night available if you want to play beads with me!
I have found such a fun addition to the watch bands.  It is a flower that can be used instead of a watch face.  I LOVE IT!  It is nice just to wear my bands as a bracelet sometimes.  Then I can get crazy and wear it on my RIGHT hand.

Mady got her hair cut when we were in Meridian.  One of my sweetest friends Angela is so talented and makes us fabulous whenever we need her.  I wasn't excited about cutting it cause it was so long and beautiful.  We were able to cut enough to donate it to Locks of Love.  Now her long hair will live FOREVER!  I love her hair short.  It matches her personality perfectly, she is such a sassy little 6 year old!

More Ethan... I can't help myself.

What is the best part of Ethan?

When he is walking away from you.

Um, HI!  It has been a few months since I last bore my......wait wrong venue.  It has been a few months since I have posted!   We have been busy little bees trying to work, do school and solidify our business.  Our poor children are REALLY bored!  You can only ride your bike around the park so many times without it feeling like a punishment. 
SO!  We have put our vendor booth together and have had a PARTY doing so.  My husband is crazy creative!  It is amazing how such a big guy can really "work it" with the designs of our displays. 
We are going to be in Smith Park on most Thursday nights while they have Concerts in the Park.
We are also going to be in the Farmers Market.  And we are also going to be out and about during the 4th of July celebration on the 3rd.  What a great day to spend my 32nd birthday! (cards, candy or gifts can be sent to 131 W. 2nd S. Rexburg, ID  83440)
This is keeping us busy!  We have been able to hand make everything and still want to double our inventory.  What a great way to earn money, beading all day every day!

We could not have done this without the help of our friends, the Williams.  You guys have talents and skills that blow my mind.  Thank you for giving up food, sleep and business time to help us!  We kinda think you are swell.

The other day, Ethan snuck some bologna out of the fridge.  It is quite the accomplishment since we finally got a door latch to keep him OUT.  He stalks everyone and waits for them to  open it.  Mady opened it and Ethan swooped in and started to grab for the first thing he could see.  Well, when you work THAT hard for a slice of bologna, go for it, you earned it.  He did his little happy dance, took a bite and then slapped it against the fridge.  Apparently, it sticks REALLY good to the side.  He ran off, came back a minute later, peeled the bologna off, took a bite and then slapped it back on.  Normally I would have stopped it but I couldn't help be proud of my little heathen.  So, if you ever find yourself craving a slice of bologna, don't think you have to eat it all at once.  Just slap it to the fridge and save it for later.

AND THE WINNER IS..................................................................................


























AUDRIE!  Email me your address and what kind of hat you want.
scrappinskills@gmail.com
thanks for playing!

Yesterday I had a few minutes before my photo session started and wanted to make sure that everything was ready.  I got all three kids to hold still for enough time to take the pic.  Never mind that face that they all have homeless people hair, they are looking in the right direction and aren't crying.  We will always remember taking this pic on Spencer's 32nd birthday.

Want to win one of my hats?  Take a look at my newest ETSY listing.  I should have taken more time to get a nice pic taken but I was going to wet my pants and I wasn't going to allow myself a bathroom break until the pics were taken and uploaded.  It is REALLY strict around here.  Time is money people.
If anyone has any other summer fruit ideas that I can turn into a hat, I would LOVE to hear them.  I will enter the comments and suggestions into a hat and pick one! That person will be getting a free hat of their choice.  Don't all post at once now.   I will pull the winner next Tuesday.

I just got these cute little chicks yesterday and will be bringing them with me to Meridian. If you want to book a $25 quick chick session contact me and we will see if we can meet up!

Poor Ethan. If he wasn't such a brat, I would have had my niece come over and model for me. He totally deserves 2 year old pics with a girl hat on for all of the crap he puts me through. I may not get the satisfaction of his embarrassment today, but I am pretty sure it will still feel good later on.

I LOVE the hats with ears on them! If I knew how to read crochet or knitting instructions, I am sure I could figure it out, but I can't. I figured out how to do this and it kinda works! I have a brown one that is SUPER cute with my flowers pinned on. It is in a boutique right now so I will just have to make another to show you!

K, so it has taken me FOREVER to get this stuff together. I could sit and make these all day long. Getting the pics taken and ready is another process that is always a bit of a nightmare when Ethan is awake.
These are my new flower clips. They are pretty cute right? I don't really know how to crochet, so I learned a basic stitch and came up with this flower. I kinda love her. I have flowers that are two colors ($3) three colors ($4) and four colors ($5). The best thing about these is, you can use them in hair of course AND they clip on to my ear flap hats too!
I am also making headband ear warmers and have been putting little animal/bear ears on my hats. They haven't made it to the photo shoot yet. I can't wait to post them!

STAY TUNED! Later on today or tomorrow I am going to be showing off what I have been doing for the last couple of months. I have a new hat design that is super cute for the little ones. I also have flowers I adore so much that they dance in my dreams. Am I a little dramatic, yes, but that is why you love me!

I still feel like I am moving. You know how you feel when you have been driving in the car for a VERY long time and when you stop, you still feel like you are moving? You do? So do I. We went to Santa Barbara then over to Mesa, stopped in Utah and then finally made it back to Rexburg. It was an awesome trip with 80 degree weather, it was heavenly!
It was a ton of fun to be around Spencers family. They are pretty amazing people and I always feel like I need to be doing more to be better. It is done in a way that doesn't make me feel bad, I just always leave them wanting to be a better person. It was so fun to talk with some of the cousins. When they found out that Ethan is almost 2 they would ALWAYS say, "Isn't this such a fun age?" I followed up with a look of wonder and would say no, have you met Ethan? He is a crazy crazy little boy. Our first day back home and he had A LOT of exploring to do. I have to take back my dirty looks and comments about not having fun with Ethan. He is a funny funny little boy. When I am not wanting to velcro him to a wall, I am laughing and wishing that everyone could see how funny he is.
Today he snuck a VERY yummy treat that we got when we visited our friends cafe Sweet Cakes. He came walking into the living room with his hands behind his back. I got up to take whatever it was away and sure enough he started to run away. The funny thing is, he keept his hands behind his back. I laughed when I saw what he was doing and then of course had to grab the camera. I wanted him to run away from me but he was keeping his eyes on me. I knew that if I opened the front door he would bolt and i could get a picture of him from behind. Thankfully, I know him all too well and it worked out great! I am SO sad that he wasn't wearing jeans because the pic is a little confusing but it doesn't matter, it is still going up on the wall in the kitchen!

Last weekend after a quick trip to Meridian, we also went to Provo. Spencer's side of the family meets up for BYU Homecoming every year. We get to see Grandma and Grandpa Ray and about half of his 88 cousins, with their spouses and occasionally a child or 35. It is a fun get together with all of the "graduated from high school" cousins. It gets bigger and bigger every year! We were lucky enough to stay with Jared and Tamara. It was fun and comfy. We love you guys!

One of the highlights was being able to do some work. I was able to snap a few shots of his cousin Jenica and her fiance Josh. I can't wait to post those. I dropped off my beads and supplies to a new BFF and they had a "Time to Bead" party on Saturday. Thanks Lyric for hookin' me up! I also got to see my work up in the new restaurant in Provo. It is called Pizza Pie Cafe. It is a chain from Craigo's in Rexburg. If you have been over to my site, you will be able to see all of the yummy food that they have. I was SO thankful to be on the maintenance faze of my diet while I took all of those. They have really yummy pizza, pasta and salad buffet that is delicious! I also took some candid shots for them and they have them printed all over the restaurant. I am probably the world biggest nerd because it lit an excitement in me that still has me beaming. It wasn't like they are amazing and stunning shots, they are just what I was able to produce. My favorite is the 3 foot by 6 foot canvas that they had printed up. I love it and am so excited to have been able to be a part of their decor.

Thanks to my little brother Kent! You are the best. Thanks for the opportunity and life time supply of pizza. MUAH!

I just had the MOST fabulous weekend in Meridian! I had 4 bead parties, a craft show and 5 photo sessions, it was exhausting and exhillerating! I can't thank my friends enough for being so supportive of me and my family. I don't have words that will do justice to have much I love and adore my Meridian friends. I love you SO much that I am coming back on Thursday. This time is a quickie but don't worry! I will be doing a wedding during the day on Thursday and that evening at Hayley Horning's house we will be doing a bead party! This is a fun time to get together, socialize and poke fun at our OCD friends. If anyone has any questions or requests, get them in now! timetobead3@gmail.com

If fells like we JUST got back from California but it has been a week and a half! With everyone getting so sick, it feels like we are finally getting into the swing of things. Funny thing is, I leave tonight to go to Meridian for 4 days BY MYSELF. You should all start praying for Spencer now.
So, our reason for the trip to CA? Jared married his adorable sweetheart Tamara. I was lucky enough to be able to be their photographer. When I first met Tamara, she walked into a house of 20 people she had NEVER met before, 2 days before her wedding. She was super shy and didn't say much. Well, she is NOT LIKE THAT AT ALL! She is just as funny and crazy as Jared which makes it very easy to fall in love with her. She was so fun to take pics of as a bride. I didn't get any serious bridal shots because it just didn't seem to fit. She isn't very good at not smiling, I love it!
So, here are some of the highlight shots, aren't they adorable together?

As promised, the pictures you have ALL been waiting for. I don't think I would have gotten around to editing these but I kinda have a HUGE crush on my hairdresser Angela. We even stayed in Meridian an extra day so that we could all get fabulous via Angela. Seriously, I love her.
She was brave enough to take on Ethan the heathen. Luckily she just had to get rid of a few whispy hairs and tada, he looks like a little boy now. By the time he was done, I was in NO mood to get an after picture so you will just have to check out my little big boy in the Disneyland pics that I will post soon.

I am alive and kickin'! The kids start school next week and we are all very excited. The schools here are different, K-4. That means that Carson is the second oldest in the school. It feels kinda wierd but we will get used to it. I would just rather be back in Meridian before he attends middle school as a 5th grader.

I wanted to post this pic of my boys. This was a few days before Ethan's first hair cut. Those pics will be posted next.