Wow - a day totally to myself!

OK - so here I am in Provo! The flight out was nice - met a lot of people from SLC who all had suggestions about what to see & do - I had no idea that Utah had so much to offer.

So our flight lands about 20 minutes early - which is nice because that meant that I could get my bag, pick up the rental car & get to the hotel before it was to late (I'm still on Eastern time - 2 hours later). We all get to the baggage claim - out of the 4 huge carousels, there is only one that is active. There is a huge crowd - probably 6-8 people deep around the carousel - I can't actually see the carousel, just the blinking sign above that is flashing flight numbers for the - wait for it - TEN flights worth of luggage that are all on this single one! Needless to say, that blew my gained 20 minutes & then some.

Then I realized how spoiled I am to live in a city with a huge international airport- with well-lit and well-marked signage to find things like where the freakin' rental cars actually are! So after wandering around & asking several uniformed people, I found it - across two streets in this dark and un-marked building. Maybe the nice SLC'ers don't really want to many tourists clogging up their pristine National Parks, etc.?!

Got the car, piled in all the luggage & headed South to Provo. They are doing work on the highways so traffic - even at 1opm (MT) was really clogged.....sigh.....

Found the hotel - it's not in the greatest of neighborhoods - but at least I have a rental car. Heather at the desk - maybe the first Goth Mormon I've ever met - was extremely nice getting me checked in.

So - here I am - it's 6:30am (MT) and I'm off to the Concierge Lounge for coffee and b'fast. Then I may do some yoga or swim or workout or stay in bed all day reading - who knows? I can't remember that last day where I truly had nothing I had to do or anyone to be with or take care of....it's sort freeing and paralyzing all at the same time. Just shows how much I need this week!

Look out Provo - here I come!

I can't believe it's finally here!! The scrapbooking event that we've been hoping for & dreaming about for ages - especially after CKU Houston Annette let it be known that some kind of all or mostly digi scrapping event was in the works - I'm going to Provo TODAY!! Well, tonight, actually....but still!

The first few days will be SpragueFest - where some wonderful people who know each other from hanging out at JessicaSprague.com will be hanging out - shopping, talking, eating, laughing...and taking LOTS of pictures!

I hope to post at least once a day - pictures & blurbs so that I can put it all in a digi scrapbook - so, happy reading & next time - come along for the fun!

You gotta love all things Jessica Sprague.....

OK - most of you know that my new love (OK, obsession) is digital scrapbooking and my hero in this area is the amazing Jessica Sprague. Well - it is even better today. RUN - don't walk - to register for the FREE photo editing class at her website www.jessicasprague.com. Her classes are awesome because you have access to the class videos & materials FOREVER.....how cool is that?

Plus - this week, they are celebrating their 2-year anniversary - so stick around for the daily freebies & the Birthday Bash - woo hoo!

So - have an awesome Monday & be sure and "friend" me at JessicaSprague.com - see you there!

Easter alpha digi freebie & more!

I love this time of year! Despite the pollen (yes, here in Atlanta, the rain is sometimes yellow due to all the pollen), I love the flowers, the new green leaves, the birds singing & the return of our adorable hummingbird families who squeak & dive bomb each other over the feeders mounted outside our kitchen windows.

But - my favorite part is Easter. My faith is important to me and the remembrance of what this time of year is all about goes far beyond the pretty dyed eggs and chocolate bunnies for me. I hope that you all have that sense of comfort from your faith - if not, let me know and I'll be happy to share mine with you.

I also love to digiscrap layouts of my family all dressed up in their Easter finery. With that thought in mind, I have created this set of Easter alphas for you in purple/pink, green, blue & yellow. They have just a little sparkle thanks to the awesome actions of Atomic Cupcake. Plus, I have included a picture of some gorgeous dyed Easter eggs....hope they add lots to your LOs! Click HERE or on the image above to download.

Also - I wanted to say thanks again for everyone who took the time to check out my friend, Lucy Adams' book - If Mama Don't Laugh, It Ain't Funny. Lucy has managed to combine the Southern humor of Jeff Foxworthy with the all-too-true witticisms of the ultimate mom, Erma Bombeck, into what may be the funniest book about raising kids in the South that I have ever read - if you want to know more, check out the posts below. I'm still donating all the proceeds from sales through the links on my blog to the 3-day Cancer Walk.

So - I'm off to Augusta on Wed with 3 kids and a bearded dragon lizard (new pet) and no hubby! He's staying here to install 4 new toilets....sounds like a humor book there, doesn't it?? Hugs!! Meg

It's HERE!! Check it out to win a free book or cap!

So - I have this friend from high school, Lucy Adams, who wrote this amazing book - called "If Mama Don't Laugh, It Ain't Funny" which may be one of the most hilarious books I've ever read. Run, don't walk, to get your copy - my husband laughed so hard that he literally fell out of bed one night....I think some of the stories might have hit a little close to home for him...if ya know what I mean??

See - Lucy is an awesome Southern Mom who actually remembered to write down all the side-splittingly funny things her kids did (and continue to do). Imagine that Jeff Foxworthy & Erma Bombeck got together on a book about raising kids......it's THAT funny.

Here is a fabulous excerpt from If Mama Don't Laugh, It Ain't Funny:

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I am blessed with (and tortured by) children who think profound thoughts. They never ask uncomplicated questions like why the sky is blue or endeavor to discuss the Big Bang
Theory.
No, I’m hit with musings like, “What’s worser, Daddy gassing or being in love?” Not an easy one to answer, because it depends on when you ask me.
I find comfort in knowing that they do it to my husband, too. One morning, as the noise level around the breakfast table skyrocketed, my husband calmly walked over to the radio and shut down the commercial announcer in midsentence. He then breathed a huge sigh of relief. Our two year old daughter queried as to why he wouldn’t let her listen to the music, to which I responded that her daddy felt over-stimulated.
“By what” said our eight year-old, “diagra?”
Yet, inopportune comments at inopportune times often endow me with an opening to teach values and to put life (usually, my own) into perspective. My children’s questions and observations compel me to see the confusion of the world through their eyes. How lovely to spend my spare time wondering if I’m invisible in camouflage pants or considering what’s scarier, a T-rex or a tornado?
My children enrich my life as they press me into saying what’s more “importanter,” wearing shoes or wearing underwear? I would much rather focus on that intense and
timely issue, than perusing my stock portfolio or planning my work day.
After all, what does the tooth fairy do with all those teeth? And who would win a fight, a centipede or a scorpion? And what is the difference between the white sox and the red
sox, besides their socks?

(Excerpted from If Mama Don’t Laugh, It Ain’t Funny (Palm Tree Press), by Lucy Adams. Repreinted here by permission of the author.)



If you leave some love, I'll also send you the link to download this awesome quick page tag album - this beautiful tag album is made my Katie Pertiet & I added papers by Carrie Stephens from her Spontnaneous Delight Collection. This album prints perfectly on the Avery 53215 printable tags!


You can buy a copy of Lucy's awesome book now (they make great Mother's Day gifts!!) by clicking HERE or on the image of the cover above. I've given several of these out & everybody tells me that they went back & bought more to give to their mom or to other women they know & love. For all sales made from this link, I'm donating all proceeds to charity!

Leave some love for Lucy to get a freebie - and one lucky person will win a signed copy of the book & another will win a cool hat!

Take care, Meg