Don't be doubtin'

Aha! Y'all didn't think I did any Alaska pages, did you? I actually got 32 mostly done, except for journaling. This album is going to be super simple, just photos on white cardstock. I know, right?? It's a scrapping travesty. But it will be done and I can move on with my life. Speaking of the white cardstock, I ran out and drove 75 miles to the scrapbook store today to get more. Naturally, they were out too, since white Bazzill is such an esoteric item and nobody ever asks for that so why would we keep it in stock?? I ended up buying a pack of cheap white cardstock at Michael's but I feel sure it is going to be an unsatisfactory substitution.

About the journaling. Ron and I were determined to keep notes about the trip while it was happening, so we summarized each day on the laptop. Ron did most of the typing, and his writing style is, shall we say, very detail-oriented. Here's an actual excerpt from his recounting of our first evening:

"We were pretty hungry, so we asked at the desk for a casual place to eat and they suggested Keg Caesar’s, which is a steak and ribs place a block from the hotel. We hiked over and had a wonderful meal, along with several glasses of water and half a liter of red wine. I had roast beef; Cyndi had a grilled chicken and seafood dish. We walked back to the hotel and turned in."

Several glasses of water?? I would have written "We had dinner and went to bed." Something in between the two is what is required, since my style is boring and Ron's would require several volumes. So that is my current challenge, editing the journaling to something manageable and hopefully maybe even interesting.

I was a bad, bad scrapping mom in Knoxville and didn't take a single photo. We took the kids to tour a local dairy (very cool) and Mary Beth and I went to see Mamma Mia (LOVED IT!) and had a kids-free dinner thanks to MB's sweet husband Brad (who also won Annamarie over by showing her surgery photos on his iPhone). Mary Beth, I have just three words for you: MOVE BACK HERE. What were you thinking moving so far away?

Michele has asked me if Annamarie drove me crazy talking on the 7-hour drive, but she is a surprisingly good traveler. She brings her iPod and a big bag of jewelry, hairnets, a stethoscope or two, a stuffed horse and wolf, 64 ink pens, and she entertains herself. I won't say that I never ordered her to please just stop talking until the clock says 7:15, but mostly she was great. It helped that there was no brother to fight with, but she missed him too. (Michele, I am too old to text with one hand so I couldn't respond to your texts well while driving 80 65 on the interstate.)

And we're off again

Annamarie and I are headed out to Knoxville, TN (about a 7 hour drive) to spend the weekend with my BFF Mary Beth and her family. MB and I are planning to do some scrapping, so I will publicly announce my goal: I want to make some serious headway on my Alaska album. We took this trip three years ago and the sheer number of photos we took, about 4000, has overwhelmed me. I finally narrowed it down to just over 200 and had them printed, and it's time to get crackalackin' as my kids say.

Somebody needs to hold me accountable, so ask me next week how many pages I got done, OK? Have a great weekend!!

Meme me

My friend Michele pointed out that my blog posts have been few and far between recently. I'm afraid my life at the moment is just so routine that I even bore myself, but that is actually a blessing compared to many of the alternatives. I give you a meme passed on by BooMama, and if you feel called to use it to avoid actual writing on your own blog as well, have at it.

What were you doing 10 years ago?
Ten years ago we had just adopted Thomas from Bulgaria. He was the most beautiful, happy, delightful little 28-month-old boy, and I was having a ball with him. I had left my job to stay home with him and we were having a grand old time playing in the sandbox, swimming in the neighborhood pool and playing with friends.

Favorite Snacks
Believe it or not, I am not a big snacker, but at night I do love to have microwave popcorn. And wine.

To Do List
1. Laundry
2. Pack for Knoxville
3. Go to the post office
4. Clean my scrapping area
5. Listen to Beth Moore CD

Jobs I Have Had
Babysitter
Record store employee (Way back when there were actually records! Vinyl!)
Video store clerk
Room service captain/front desk clerk/night audit supervisor at a Marriott Hotel
Front desk manager at two different hotels in Orlando
Assistant to the president of a manufacturing company
Conference planner for a nonprofit professional association
Mom (I was really good at all my previous jobs. I am very glad that this one does not require annual performance reviews.)

Places I Have Lived
Charlotte, NC
Raleigh, NC (college)
Orlando, FL
Charlottesville, VA

Bad Habits
procrastination, yelling at my children, eating too much, exercising too little, impatience

5 Random Things People May Not Know
My husband and I met on the internet way back in 1992 when it was just text on a screen. I wasn't looking to meet anyone, but he was.

I have been to over 100 concerts and met lots of famous people back when I was young and (relative to now) hip. As a scrapbooker, I cringe when I think about all the concert ticket stubs I didn't save and the photos I didn't ask someone to take.

I teach 2nd and 3rd grade Sunday School at my church.

I have terrible social phobias, but people say I hide it well. I would rather swallow a spider than go to a cocktail party full of strangers.

I have a weird talent for remembering song lyrics. My friends used to tease me about it and now it amazes my son.

CDs I would want if stranded on an island
(naturally, this answer might be different next week)
John Mayer, Continuum
Colbie Caillat, Coco
Eric Clapton, The Clapton Chronicles
Kenny Chesney, Live Those Songs Again
Sade, Diamond Life

What I’d Do if I Were a Billionaire
Buy my sweet husband an airplane (He used to be a private pilot but can't afford such an expensive hobby now.)
Build clean, cheerful, modern orphanages for the children left in Bulgaria
Buy my mom a Jaguar
Repaint every room in my house, but I don't think I'd move
Give loads of money to our church and to Smile Train
Travel, travel, travel
Buy matching albums to replace my hodgepodge of scrapbooks

Mixed Up Mini Album

I bought this cool Mixed Up album from Magistical Memories a while back and finally got around to creating something with it. I used photos and MOO cards from three years' visits to the Virginia State Fair. My favorite embellishment is the star tag on the cover, which came off a pair of Converse sneakers.