Summer Camp Send Off

It's so hard to believe how quickly kids grow up.... just yesterday it seems I was changing diapers and burping them and in no time they will be enlisting in the Navy or graduating from college, or something else very adult-like.  Today, unbelievably, we dropped them off at camp where they will be away from us for several nights.  I don't know where the time has gone, but as they were running away to meet their new friends in their cabins, I felt my heart sink a bit!

I've been glancing at the clock every hour or so, pausing to wonder what they are up to.  I am sure they are loving every second of it and having a fantastic time -- making wonderful summer time memories!

When we dropped them off, we walked them around to see where their cabins where, add money to their Camp Store account and check in with the Camp Nurse.  I could see they just wanted to go.... go and have fun and talk to the other kids.  So I kept the goodbye brief and happy, sent them off with a hug and kiss and they took off before I could think of anything wise to pass on to them.

So now I just have to figure out how to spend all my free time....

From the Crafty Corner

One skill that I've really developed since moving to the country is quilting.  I have managed to make a few quilts and I am learning new, regular sewing skills as well.  Not only is it relaxing, but it's brought me into a whole community of ladies who share the same love of fabric.  I am fortunate to have a room dedicated to my office work and crafting work -- it's my studio.  You'll often find me in there with either FoodNetwork in the background on the tv or Pandora streaming Adele type music from my computer.

Lately, I have been doing a lot of work from the studio.  As I finished up my second semester at the college, I was offered an opportunity to be a part of the new web community being started here in the Flathead Valley.  The site takes a local approach to social networking and offers people a place to go for wellness, sustainability and personal growth.  The founder has amazing plans for the site to grow and I was brought on to be a graphic designer and help manage the web content.  It's still in it's infancy, but I can see a lot of potential with OpenDoor. 

All of that to say that I spend lots of time at the computer doing work for this opportunity as well as the other freelance design jobs I have been fortunate enough to stumble upon.

When I manage to break free from the computer work and other work isn't beckoning me, I enjoy spending time with my sewing machine.  I am in the process of making two quilts, one each for the boys.  Once in a while, though, I need to get my hands on a quick project that can be started, finished and cleaned up in just a couple of hours.  Here is what I was able to do today:

I found the tutorial for this here and I had the fabric as part of the stash I inherited from a dear friend.  It was quick and easy, and I might even consider making several of these to sell at our little town's quilt show next year.  I wanted to show you how it looks when on, so I bribed a reluctant model to show how nice this sits when tied around the waist.  There's not such a great bow when it's tied around my waist!  (Faces have been cropped to protect the innocent.)

It's easy to get lost in work, chores and other obligations, regardless of what our daily responsibilities are.  I think it's important to find little pockets of time to do things that we enjoy.  Hobbies are good -- whether that means sewing, scrapbooking, playing a round of golf, going to the movies -- whatever gives you a break and is something you enjoy!

After one year in Montana....

So I guess if I were going to win any awards, I might be in the running for "Worst Blogger Ever" based on my frequency.  You may have been wondering if I were eaten by a bear by now, but I'm happy to report I am alive and well here in Big Sky Country!
It's been a crazy busy year, but I am rededicating myself to keeping in touch through blogging.  I hope some of you have stuck with me and are glad to get an update.  I have to admit, though, that this revisiting of the blog came with a bit of encouragement from a couple of my friends after a recent visit to California.

After so many months, I don't exactly know where to start, so I will keep it simple and to the point:

• Boys:  good, growing like weeds, loving Montana and all it has to offer, asking for a dog on a regular basis.  Jacob will be heading into 3rd grade, Connor will start his 5th and final grade in elementary school.  They both loved their first year at this school!

• Hubby: good, busy learning orchard and bee stuff, fixing everything that constantly breaks, loving Montana.  He's decided that maintaining the property is a full time job in itself.

• Me:  good, one semester left of school but already doing lots of graphic design/web work, doing lots of laundry (socks get extra dirty in Montana), sewing and papercrafting, warming up a lot to Montana and still trying to be a good sport about the whole thing!

The boys are out of school and in full Summer vacation mode.  As soon as school was out, we headed down South for a three week visit with Grandma and Papa.  The older folks around here go to AZ in the winter to escape the socked in snow and cold, but noooooo, we wait and head down when it's breaking 100 degrees on a daily basis!  While in AZ, hubby and I slipped away for a long weekend to Temecula.  We were able to check on our house we left (with renters in it of course), visit with friends, drink some wine with said friends and I also managed to incorporate some work into the visit.  I have continued working with my former boss in Temecula and have since rebuilt their website and continue to work on optimizing it -- if you want to see some of my work, check it out here.
After our getaway weekend, we celebrated Jacob's 8th birthday and headed for a day trip to the Grand Canyon.  It was as beautiful as it was 25 years ago when I last saw it, and hubby & the boys enjoyed their first look at the Natural Wonder!  The funniest part of the trip was on the way home we visited Bearzona - a Wild Life drive through park just outside of the Grand Canyon park; it's main attraction are black bears.  Yes, you read that right.... I left Montana to visit bears in Arizona!

It really is a beautiful sight!  If you haven't been, I highly recommend it.  You could actually spend several days adventuring through the park.  Jacob was quite disappointed we didn't ride the mules down.

Boy, do they look thrilled or what?  Jacob is still in the fake grin phase, but Connor has clearly moved on to the "really Mom, can we just get this over" phase!

We came back to reality and luckily the weather had improved with our return.  (It rained the entire time we were gone -- even a freak hail storm that broke all the vent covers on our camping trailer.)  Now it's sunny and warm, but not too warm.  The garden is starting to blossom, cherries will be ripe soon and there's a baby fawn that I can catch a glimpse of often from my master bedroom window.

For now, that's the update.  I'll be back soon as I prepare to send the boys for their first week of away Summer camp.  They are so excited..... I am freaking out a bit!  -Amber

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And so the snow begins....

My Saint of a husband decided it would be a good idea to head out Sunday and find some snow to practice driving in.  Sure enough, we didn't have to travel far and we found ourselves in at least 4 inches of fresh snow, with more falling.  Being a first time snow driver, I was terrified, but soon enough came to appreciate my front wheel drive and brand new studded snow tires.  I was stressed though, but Ray kept his cool and was so patient with me.... hence his title of Saint. 

 

When I felt a little comfortable and was able to relax a bit, we pulled off to the side and let the boys play around a bit too.

The look on Connor's face sure makes me think he was planning on doing something unwise with that snowball.... luckily he changed his mind!

Thanks to hubby's good thinking because this is what we woke up to this morning.  I had one practice under my belt and headed out for the long drive to classes.

Even my favorite regular wildlife visitor came to see me off and wish me luck!

I'm happy to say I made it to classes and back with no problem, and no dents or insurance claims.  I am becoming a real Montana woman!

Quilting and Basketball

I thought the warmth of the laptop would feel nice now, so I decided an update was a good idea.
Things in Montana have been good.... cold and busy, but good.  I've discovered two activities that are really big around these parts.... quilting and basketball.
I joined the local quilt guild, and despite not have many members in my age bracket, it seems like a great group.  There are a lot of events and projects to participate in and it's good activity just for me that doesn't involve children, bookwork homework or cleaning.... so sign me up!  I joined up just in time to attend a weekend workshop where we learned one piecing design and made placemats.  Luckily my sewing machine was one of the items I thought of to move with me, rather that pack away in storage.  My heavy coats were packed away, but I kept my sewing machine and fabric.... you can certainly see where my  priorities were.
Anyway, here's a picture of one of the two placemat tops I've finished.  I have 4 placemats to go and then will quilt them to the back and finish them off.

Another activity that is huge around here is basketball.  People take is seriously and start them out young around here.  "Little Hoopsters" is a program for K-5 kids to teach them fundamentals of the game and get them out on the court.  The kids are coached by the high school basketball team, so it's a great opportunity for the teens too.  My boys are loving it and both are showing some real skills at the hoop!  Here's the photo that was shot of all the teams in the program.  Jacob is in the front row in Navy and Connor is in the third row in Orange.

So now Thanksgiving is just around the corner.  My parents will be coming up for a visit very soon.  Just in time to help hang the kitchen cabinets and get the appliances in.  We are so close to moving in I can almost taste it....
As soon as I can get some good shots of Ray installing the flooring, I will post them, along with some of the kitchen tips for handling Thanksgiving.  Until then, Happy Veterans Day to my fellow Veterans and military spouses! 

A Vampire and a Zombie

Happy Halloween.... however you may celebrate, there's no getting around the fun of this candy filled holiday! We got to experience what trick or treating is all about here in Bigfork and I have to say, it was so much fun.

The boys got decked out in their costumes and we drove down to the village where all the shops are up and down the main little drag.

All the kids in town gathered and traveled up and down the street collecting candy from the local businesses. It was great and definitely the hot spot for the evening.

 

After about 45 minutes, the boys were loaded with a bag of loot and we headed home for pizza. Because we live off the beaten path, no trick or treaters made their way to our door. Lots of fun and a change from Halloween's in the past. I hope your Halloween was fun, a little scary and loaded with candy corn!

A Digital Crafty Creation

I mentioned the other day on my dashboard post that homework has been a little overwhelming. While that's true, I have to be honest.... I am loving every minute of it. Maybe I'm a freak, but I love the challenge of the homework in my graphics design classes. It's challenging and stressful, but because it's so relevant and not just junk I have to remember long enough to pass the final, it's fun too.
I will show my works as they progressively get better, but I wanted to pass on a fun little project I worked on for my Photoshop class. Our assignment was to create a desktop wallpaper and have it available for different size monitors and even the iphone. While I haven't received my grade yet, I feel good about the way my wallpaper turned out. What does all this mean to you? I am going to share it with you and if you like it, feel free to save it to your computer and enjoy it.


I put the month of November on there so a calendar would always be handy on your computer.  It's only for November, it won't change months, but maybe I'll have another to share by December.

If you'd like to save the wallpaper and use it, visit my google site and click on the size you want.  When it opens in a second window, just right click on it and save it as your background or desktop.  Easy peasy....

My dashboard says it all......

An Update and a Money Saver

Okay... so it's been a little while since I've posted.... here are a few of the things I've been up to, in no particular order...

• Corn harvest.... we had to pick, shuck and process all the corn in one day.... about 170 ears
• I turned 40
• Classes are crazy busy.... lots of projects to try to keep up with
• I got 10 new gray hairs
• Flew down for a weekend visit to Temecula and had a great time with my friends Teri and Suzy
• Laundry
• Suffering dissapointment with the news about remaking of the movie Footloose... some things just need to be left alone....
• Packing away my flip flops and capri pants
• Shopping for long underwear and snow boots
• Thinking about all the things I should be blogging about
• Getting ready for a visit from my friend Lauren

So, if you can imagine, I've been a little busy.  But I had a break in the action this afternoon so I thought I'd catch everyone up.  Actually, my break isn't long.... just long enough between loads of laundry, but I'm making the most of it.  Before the break, I was busy making sandwiches and I thought I'd share my strategy for saving time and money when it comes to lunches for school.

My boys love peanut butter sandwiches in their lunch box, whether they are made with honey or jelly, they love them.  They always ask for the Smuckers Uncrustables but it pains me to pay $5.00 for 10 little sandwiches, so I came up with an alternative.  Here's what I do:

Start with bargain bread.... either use a coupon or find a thrift store.  It just so happens I had a coupon for a free loaf of store brand wheat bread and was also able to pick up a loaf at the thrift store for .68 cents.  Each regular size loaf should make 10 sandwiches, more or less depending on the size of the loaf.

Spread half of the pieces with some peanut butter, then drizzle on honey (or spread jelly).

Top with the other piece of bread and squash it like a bug.  Then cut off the crusts and crimp the edges with a fork.

Put each sandwich in a ziploc baggy and then pack them all back in the loaf wrapper.  Since they are compacted, you should be able to get all 20 sandwiches into one wrapper.  Then put it in the freezer.  Each morning, just grab a sandwich for the lunchbox... it's thawed and ready to eat at lunch.

I figure each sandwich cost me .05 cents in peanut butter and nothing in honey and .03 cents in bread, so easily under 10 cents each.  It's a great deal and with about a half an hour on one Sunday to knock out 2 weeks worth of sandwiches for my boys, it's really a time and money saver!

This week I have some other good posts for you.... an update on the basement and some tummy-warming Fall recipes!