Thankful Thursday

FRIENDS...

1. Friends who help
2. Friends to encourage
3. Friends to share with
4. Friends who are creative
5. Friends of long standing
6. Friends who have become family
7. Friends who remind me how BIG my God is
8. Friends who check up/ in on me
9. Friends who challenge me
10. Family who are friends

We love our job-pt 4!

Jill called after finding us on the internet. Could we fit her into the schedule? Oh and since she is coming from Longview, could we also possibly fit her boyfriend for portraits too?
Well, sure we could....





And since we had them both there....

We love our job-pt. 3!

Teresa didn't have senior portraits done, so since she is about to graduate college this was the time to have them taken. Good thing she has lots of energy, she will be a 3rd. grade teacher.

We love our job-2!

Katie came to us from the Longview area. She said she loved how our portraits were "different." With only one main photographer in her town, she was willing to travel to Vancouver.

We love our job!

This is Casey-he had his portraits done because his mom wanted them. I think we got some that even the artist in him couldn't refuse...

loved the hat he brought back from a trip to England.

Monday memories

I have a copy of this image in my kitchen...it is of my brothers and I. We are in my grandma's kitchen lickin' beaters and bowl, probably from cake frosting! I love this photo for a lot of reasons. Mainly because we got to spend a lot of time with grandma (who loved to bake) because my mom was a single mother and gran helped her a lot. I love that we are all toasty brown with our hair kinda bleached out, so it must have been summer. The lovely wallpaper, wooden high chair and the yellow stool. And we are all so intent on what we are doing...what a great way to spend an afternoon in summer!

Thankful Thursday...on Friday again!

1. Business is up
2. Opportunities to help friends
3. Sunshine-I love ya
4. Getting the yard spiffed up
5.Tulips are blooming
6. Planning colors to paint the outside of the house
7. Online bible study class
8. Honest people
9. New haircut
10. Thrift shop finds

Gettin' scragly...

" Your hair is gettin' scragly"...that is what Gary said to me on Sunday...
Took care of that today-
**************BEFORE:

***************AFTER-I'm stylin' now....

Monday Memories

A few years ago we decided to try for some family portraits...we all had fun, some of us more than others!!

I am so glad my kids grew up to be great friends...they actually always enjoyed each other and played together all the time. I'll look for some pictures for next time to show you....

Watch this

Dreams are a grand thing...

Thankful Thursday

I just realized I wrote my list yesterday but didn't post it...silly me....

1. SUNSHINE
2. Friends who call to chat
3. Etsy.com-great inspiration
4. Having supplies to create art
5. Jo-Ann coupons!
6. Crystal Light Grape flavor
7. Customers calling
8. I get to work from home
9. the roses Amy brought me
10. Day all to myself!

Inspired!

So after perusing Etsy, an online store of all handmade items, I found a few pictures I really liked. I did a rough sketch and then headed out to the craft cottage. This is what I got done yesterday and I have another one I want to do today....after looking at these for awhile last night I have decided they need a bit of tweeking but I am happy with them overall.

Now, if the rain would stop so I won't get soaked going out to the cottage!!!

Saving the economy-3 stores at a time...

As a small business owner who works with brick and mortar small businesses daily which includes everything from galleries, grocery stores, bookstores and everything in between, I hear daily that people have just stopped spending or severely limited their spending. I'm sure there are a variety of reasons which include unemployment, credit, bills etc etc. I also think that another reason is fear. Fear is a very powerful and motivating emotion and the press seems to be thriving on it lately which only compounds the problem.

Anyway, I checked out the post on the

Always Upward:the blog.

~Here is an excerpt from the Always Upward blog,written by Cinda Baxter, founder of the 3/50 Project.
~~

A friend turned me onto a great piece about strengthening the local economy by patronizing local brick and mortars. Written by Rieva Lesonsky (Consulting Editor at BizWomen.com), the post "Support your small local businesses" touched my retail-lovin’ heart in a big way.

(Her article sprang from a customer service-related

experiment last summer.)

In that case, a guy decided to purchase goods and services only from businesses whose owners he’d met. Before long, he was frequenting the same three restaurants repeatedly, which inspired Lesonsky to twist the concept slightly, then consider the implications of her own shopping habits:With more and more small businesses on the edge of survival, I’ve been thinking about which three stores I would most hate to see go out of business, and howI can support them with my dollars.Puts things in pretty clear terms, pretty quickly.And this got my wheels spinning.Why not build a campaign tieing this three-door concept to the

$50 Retail Challenge?
Call it the 3/50 Project, supporting local business in small, easily consumable bites.The goal is simple:

Ask consumers to frequent three local brick and mortar businesses

they don’t want to see disappear,

and to spend a very affordable $50 per month doing it.

Could be those three.

Another three.

Doesn’t matter.

It’s about funneling revenue back into local business.

You know-—the folks that pour money back into the community via commercial property taxes, payroll taxes, sales tax, and salaries (not to mention all that good will by way of volunteer time, silent auctions, sponsored softball teams, workshops, book signings, etc. )

Here is a link to the actual project outline
http://www.the350project.org/home.html
Please spread the message by word of mouth, website or blog. Small businesses and your local economy is the glue that keeps this country moving.

God Bless

So in the name of the economy-get out there and shop!!!

Monday memories

I was going to post these for yesterday, but forgot...
********Easter 1985
********1990

******1991

Just love seeing little kids all dressed up!!

The Wonderful Cross with amazing photos

May you have a blessed Easter.

Thankful Thursday

Daffodils
*Tulips
**Camellias
***Hydrangeas
****Peonies
*****Lilacs
******Roses
*******Johnny jump ups
********Clematis
Allergy pills and sprays

I want...

TWIN BEDS!

I want my own bed! So then I don't have to fight for covers and I don't have to listen to someone breathe and make those nighttime snorts right in my ear... It is so annoying to listen to your partner breathing calmly away when you are trying to clear your mind so you can go to sleep. Also DH likes to have his covers all untucked and I like mine tucked. It would make things simpler...they could always be pushed together for cuddling!
Sorry you have to read my sleep deprived rant...just being real....

Drive bys...

One of the blogs I frequent, but I can't tell you which one because I go to so many-often posts photos of houses she passes. Well on my way home from the doctor's office I decided to drive down Buena Vista here in Vancouver. The backs of these houses have views of the Columbia River. Here are a few of my favorites:

My question is....what do these people do to afford these humble? abodes?????

Memories...

My friend Dorinda had a post today showing an archived photo of her little girl meeting her new baby brother. So I decided to do the same thing-creative huh?
This photo is part of an older scrapbook page of mine which is why the pictures are cut all weird...I don't cut my photos into shapes anymore!!
She still gives that look from time to time when her brother is around her!!

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for :

1. I know my Redeemer Lives
2. How great is His faithfulness
3. Amazing Grace
4. There is Power in the Blood
5. It is well with my Soul
6. What a friend we have in Jesus
6. Our God reigns
7. He watches over me
8. His strength is Perfect
9. I do Believe
10. I'm Back in His Arms again

Public service announcement

Today's "public service announcement" is brought to you by my dad-well in a way.
He was shopping for a lawnmower at Sears yesterday and passed out. He got a lovely ride in an ambulance and when the doctor finished his examination he said Dad was dehydrated. I've told him he needed to drink water!

He's okay, but I thought I would give you a few reasons of why it is important to drink water...a good reminder is always appropriate!

Why drink water??

Weight loss. Water is one of the best tools for weight loss, first of all because it often replaces high-calorie drinks like soda and juice and alcohol with a drink that doesn't have any calories. But it's also a great appetite suppressant, and often when we think we're hungry, we're actually just thirsty. Water has no fat, no calories, no carbs, no sugar. Drink plenty to help your weight-loss regimen.
Heart healthy. Drinking a good amount of water could lower your risks of a heart attack. A six-year study published in the May 1, 2002 American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than those who drank less than two glasses.
Energy. Being dehydrated can sap your energy and make you feel tired -- even mild dehydration of as little as 1 or 2 percent of your body weight. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated -- and this can lead to fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and other symptoms.
Headache cure. Another symptom of dehydration is headaches. In fact, often when we have headaches it's simply a matter of not drinking enough water. There are lots of other causes of headaches of course, but dehydration is a common one.
Healthy skin. Drinking water can clear up your skin and people often report a healthy glow after drinking water. It won't happen overnight, of course, but just a week of drinking a healthy amount of water can have good effects on your skin.
Digestive problems. Our digestive systems need a good amount of water to digest food properly. Often water can help cure stomach acid problems, and water along with fiber can cure constipation (often a result of dehydration).
Cleansing. Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body.
Cancer risk. Related to the digestive system item above, drinking a healthy amount of water has also been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer by 45%. Drinking lots of water can also reduce the risk of bladder cancer by 50% and potentially reduce the risk of breast cancer.
Better exercise. Being dehydrated can severely hamper your athletic activities, slowing you down and making it harder to lift weights. Exercise requires additional water, so be sure to hydrate before, during and after exercise.How to form the water habit.

So you're convinced that water is healthier, but you'd like to know more about how to make drinking water a daily habit.

How much water? This is a debatable question. What's clear is that the old recommendation of "eight 8-ounce glasses a day" isn't right, for several reasons: that amount includes all dietary water intake, including food and non-water beverages; it also ignores a person's body weight, which is an important factor in figuring the amount; it also varies if you are sick or exercise. It's also not good to just drink when you're thirsty -- you're already dehydrated by then. Best is to form a routine: drink a glass when you wake up, a glass with each meal, a glass in between meals, and be sure to drink before, during and after exercise. Try to generally keep yourself from getting thirsty.
Carry a bottle. A lot of people find it useful to get a big plastic drinking bottle, fill it with water, and carry it around with them all day. I like to keep a glass of water at my desk, and I drink from it all day long. When it's empty, I fill it up again, and keep drinking.
Set a reminder. Set your watch to beep at the top of each hour, or set a periodic computer reminder, so that you don't forget to drink water.
Substitute water. If you would normally get a soda, or an alcoholic beverage, get a glass of water instead. Try sparkling water instead of alcohol at social functions.
Filter. Instead of spending a fortune on bottled water, invest in a filter for your home faucet. It'll make tap water taste like bottled, at a fraction of the price.
Exercise. Exercising can help make you want to drink water more. It's not necessary to drink sports drinks like Gatorade when you exercise, unless you are doing it for more than an hour. Just drink water. If you're going to exercise, be sure to drink water a couple hours ahead of time, so that it will get through your system in time, and again, drink during and after exercise as well.
Track it. It often helps, when forming a new habit, to keep track of it -- it increases awareness and helps you ensure that you're staying on track. Keep a little log (it can be done on an index card or a notebook), which can be as simple as a tick mark for each glass of water you drink.

So this is the end of the public service announcement-I'm off to fill my water glass....