Today I became an aunt to my sweet new nephew, Cooper.

My little brother Seth, such a sweet Daddy:

Kristin and Seth looking at all of Coopers little features minutes after he arrived:

What an amazing day!

I am so grateful for the little miracle called Cooper!

My sweet Izabelle has the two most adorable little friends, Marianne and Alecia.  They call themselves “The Three Musketeers”.

When Izabelle found out that she was going to miss Musketeer Marianne’s Birthday Party while we’re in California next month, she was more than a little sad.

I decided to take The Three Musketeers to “R-Jump” – a bounce house HEAVEN!   The girls were SO excited and Izabelle named me “Mom of the Year”.  Not a bad title for an afternoon spent watching them bounce around like crazy monkeys.

I picked up a dozen doughnuts (Marianne’s favorite) and made up these little favors for the girls:

They loved them!  It’s pretty easy to please little girls.

Where we’ll stop nobody knows…

Warning:  This is sort of a LONG POST

I’m back (to state the obvious) from my trip to Salt Lake/Provo. I have so much to share.

First of all…

Well…

Let’s back up slightly.

Before I left town, my cute little friend, Courtney came over to get some help on a layout.

This is Courtney:

Told you she’s cute!

Courtney really likes the new Graphic 45 “A Proper Gentleman” paper, so that’s the paper we used for her layout.

Here’s a peek at her finished project:

The cute men in the overalls are Courtney’s husband, Travis and his Grandfather Orville.

Here’s one of the little details that I helped her with:

Courtney is such a talented little thing.  She offered to help me sew a purse (I’m not that great a sewing).  If you want to see some of Courtney’s many, many creations – here’s a link to Courtney’s Blog.

OK.

Now, back to my Utah trip.

During the drive there, I took a few photos from the car window:

I’ve always wanted to take photos while driving in the car. This time I actually had my camera handy.

Before you get the wrong idea, I wasn’t actually behind the wheel while taking the above photos. Silly you for thinking that.  I was in the passenger seat while my mom was driving about 80 miles per hour (while many, many people passed us going goodness knows how fast).

Eh hem. Anyhoo…

Saturday I spent 9 hours in a line in front of this building:

But that’s another story for another time.

On Saturday night my Grandparents took my mom and I to see Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” at BYU in Provo. I really enjoyed it!  Oh boy those kids can act!

My Mom and I spent all day Sunday with my Grandparents.  It was so fun to be able to spend some quality time visiting with them. I always feel like I learn so much from Grandma and Grandpa every time we’re together.

…And it’s just an “added plus” that my Grandmother is a fabulous cook!

My Mom and I did sneak out for a minute on Sunday to take some photos of her old stomping grounds (from College days).  I think Mom had fun:

She looks pretty happy, right?

On our way home to Idaho, Mom and I made a couple stops before I had to get back to work (thanks for letting me be a little late for work Dad).

We found A fabulous Boutique and Bistro with treasures galore called, My Dear Lizzie in Highland, Utah. I’ll share some of my finds later but for now, you should definitely click on THIS LINK.

We also stopped HERE, which is a blast and a half – a “must visit” if you’re ever in Clearfield, Utah!

Sigh.

I’m home now and all is well and crazy-busy as usual.

A couple of shameless plugs:

THIS project of mine is now for sale at Scrappy Gourmet:

I’m also finished creating the Graphic 45 “Beach” Layout Class that I’ll be teaching at Paradise Scrapbook Boutique in California next month.  Can’t wait!  Can’t wait! I’ll share a peek or two of the project after I snap some photos tomorrow.

I seriously can’t wait.  PSB is my favorite place on earth!

So, now that you have tons of little links to check out…go, run wild (click wild?) and be free!

Earlier in the week my mom, my sister and I invited some lovely women over for a baby shower.  My sister-in-law, Kristin’s baby shower!

I made a simple banner for Kristin’s shower using the Making Memories Just Chillin‘ Line. The banner came together really quickly:

My mom and I also put together  a little diaper cake for Kristin:

It was our first time making one, and I can say that it seem as though it would’ve been a lot harder making one alone.  It was nice to have four hands instead of two, especially when were were putting rubber bands around rolled up diapers and tying ribbon.

We made little roses out of wash cloths:

I loved the monkey on the top…Kristin is decorating the baby’s room in a Jungle Theme.

Here’s some of the goodies we made:

Cherry Chip Cupcakes…

White Chocolate Peanut butter Krispie Cookies (yum):

Sweet and Salty Popcorn (made with sugar, butter & vanilla…ooo la la):

We had tons of fun!  I think Kristin liked it to…

You can barely see her baby bump in this photo (it’s hiding behind her knees).  That’s my nephew in there!

From our family to yours,

May your new year be filled with love, joy and blessings.

I’ve been busy crafting, shopping, wrapping, working, stitching, reading, loving, singing and tonight…a family tradition: Baking!

I wish I could share my holiday projects but I have family members who read my blog…so, I’ll only be sharing little “sneak peeks” here and there.

I hope you’re enjoying this wonderful time of year!

xoxo, Christie

Can you believe that I did not bring my own camera to my sisters wedding? Not that I didn’t want to. Yep, my camera is still with Nikon hopefully being repaired as I type. But enough about that…on to the good stuff:

I woke up at 5am December 5th so that I could be at Emilee’s house by 6am.  It was my duty, as the Matron of Honor to be at her side all day long.

Every second that I was with her was a special second. I feel very honored and blessed to have such a beautiful, sweet, sister.  To be present during her sealing ceremony was something that has touched my heart in a way I had never imagined it would. Witnessing her marry her sweet husband, Jordan for Time and All Eternity was so special and tender.

Tears of joy filled my eyes more than a few times throughout the day.

Fun, family, love, and laughter filled the entire day…and into the next day…around 2 am.

The decorations were amazing, the food was fantastic…all of it perfect.

But pictures you ask?

Jaclyn took this photo:

I did grab a friends camera a few times (still waiting for the photos) and Emilee’s photographer, Jaclyn was amazing, she was constantly shooting photos.  Jaclyn has promised to email me some photos for my blog (can’t wait, can’t wait)!  So, in turn, I promise to share the photographic memories of Emilee’s wedding as soon as I can get them (I know some of you are anxious).

Ah, my baby sister is married. I still see her as a little 8 year old.

Just to put things into perspective for you…the following photo was taken in 1996, at my wedding. Emilee was 8 years old:

I love that girl.

September 23rd is my Grandmother’s birthday.

This beautiful woman is so very special to me.  There are so many wonderful things to love about my amazing grandmother…I could go on and on.  My Grandma Crabtree is fabulous!

I made this little wall hanging for her and shipped it off in the mail.  I thought she might get a kick out of her new wings.

And let’s not forget her crown…for she is the queen of so many glorious things!

I thought this quote said it all:

“It is not in the face. It is a light in the heart.  I will let my light shine.”

My Grandma Crabtree’s light shines so bright, I feel the warmth of her sweet spirit whenever we’re together.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Happy 9th Birthday Belle!

You deserve a crown of flowers and wings to fly!  Today you start a new adventure, it’s called: Nine Years Old.

Being nine years old is lots of fun.  Nine years old means: Fourth grade, horseback riding, story writing, dog loving, picture drawing, running outside, riding bikes, playing with friends, baking cookies, reading books and so much more.

You are the sweetest, most special little girl in the world.  I absolutely love every.single.thing about you.

Happy Birthday!

Love, Mom

________________________________

Want to see more Fancy Pants?  I made THIS with the same paper last year.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Love, Christie

I’m a little behind in posting.  I have a lot to share.

First of all, over the holiday weekend we stayed at the Crabtree Family Cabin (my Mom’s side of the family) in Island Park, Idaho.  We had a blast with the Wolfe Lighting crew (work).  Dan and I enjoyed some time outdoors with Parker and Izabelle.

We had a blast hanging out, riding the four wheeler, fishing in the pond, exploring, hiking around, playing cards, golfing, and spending time with friends and family.

Did I mention that EVERYONE brought their dogs?  The final count was TEN DOGS!  Craziness! They almost outnumbered the humans.  It was amazing that they (the dogs) all got along.  No dog fights.

Alright, back to posting pretty paper projects!