FINISHED!!!

The one with the bear is Josh's and I LOVE how it came out.

BUT I think that Macs' might be my all time favorite! I can't WAIT to fill these with treats this Valentine's Day! I'm super excited to get goodies that we will all LIKE!! If you want to see them all together... you can look at them HERE.
In other news... TallyScrapper.com is having a CYBER CROP!! You really should check out the site. Lots of prizes being given away, all weekend long, and you don't have to be there the whole weekend or even be scrapping to have a good time!!

© Rachel Whetzel

Day 29 and 30

Day 29, for Overlooked, we were asked to photograph a collection. This is my button collection.

Day 30 This is for Christine's theme for her circle journal. Her theme is She woke up one day and threw away all her excuses. It used to be a coffee mug. :)

© Rachel Whetzel

Goodies

A gift for a friend...

A page for my Tally Art Journal. Because I feel like there are at least three people who didn't think I was as fragile as I am.

Travis' Valentine's Day box...

Chocolate Chip Mint Meringue cookies... I bought two boxes and they are GONE...

Snow today!! Poor little chicks and hens.

Overlooked...

My page for the Flickr Challenge group I have chosen to take part in... OVERLOOKED.
I used more from the FEB KIT from TallyScrapper.com!! The kit will be released on Feb 15th!!

26 of 366 and some TallyGoodness

He says to me... "Look mom! I made a Mustache!!" This is my PADI WHICH I cashed in on yesterday!! lol no photo for me.

My kit from TallyScrapper came today!! You are gonna LOVE the yumminess that is coming Feb 15th!! The scalloped paper, the grey paper, and that CUTIE TOOTIE pin up girl are all from the kit! The rest of this is all from my ORDER. Got my very FIRST American Crafts Scrapbook, and I had SO MUCH FUN covering it!!

Ian's Valentine

Still have three to go, but I got Ian's done!! I used paints for the blue band around the lid. Mixed it all to match it to the paper on the lid, and I think it looks pretty cool!

Getting ready for Valentine's Day

One of my TallyScrapper.com friends, Tami posted a little tidbit of genius that she and her family have every Valentine's Day. They reuse their Valentine's Day heart boxes. I think that is the coolest idea ever. She and her hubby fill their children's boxes with fruits, and snacks, and a few sweet treats. Last year, I looked for boxes to use at our house, but I never found any that didn't have plastic liners in them. So this year, I bought five round "paper mache" boxes to alter for my family. I thought I would share my first one. This one is mine. I bought different papers for each person, so none of them will be just a like.



I really love the way it came out, and I'm looking forward to filling it with candies that WON'T be like playing the chocolate lottery. Sorry Forrest, we WILL know exactly what we're gonna get in our box of chocolates...

Yes. It really WAS him.

Not that you'll recognize him here, because he's got a MAN neck starting... *sigh* He's as tall as me now. I'm 5'10"... he's almost 14.

This will be my photo for Day 23 on Photo a Day ISH... it's drift wood. I love drift wood.

Got a few other nice shots, so I thought I would share.

Ian is loving the fact that I got my new camera because that means HE can use my old one... and it's not a bad camera.

On the way to Groceries...

This is what I see... and EVERY TIME I see it, I am happy. Today was no exception. Day 21 and I haven't missed a day!! I'm super stoked! AND I'm loving the new camera.

On another note, Ian has short hair again! I hardly recognize him!! He's getting so grown so fast.

20 of 366

My NEW new camera. Poor point and shoot Kodak was just not up to snuff. Especially in low light situations, which, seeing as I take most of my photos in the evening in my house, I HAD to have. So, I sacrificed higher MP for better quality presetting photos. This one is 7.1, so it's still higher than my older Kodak Z740. I like this camera MUCH better, AND.... since I still want to be able to carry my camera in my purse, I guess I'm looking for a bigger PURSE. I took this photo in the mirror, and then flipped the image so that the words weren't backwards. So I took this WITH the camera that is in the photo... I don't know why I've never thought to do that before in mirror photos!

God Reads Backwards

I have this idea in my head... and it's pretty simple. God and I are reading the same book. It has clear pages. The only thing is, that while I read my story from it's cover toward the back, God reads it from the back to the front. He already KNOWS how my story ends. He looks at my pages, and sees the completed work. He knows my ending because He's read it already. Meanwhile, from my view, reading my story from front to back, I sometimes see what looks like an unfinished story. All the tape and backs of papers show. It's messy and looks ugly in places. But one day, when I turn the page, I will see the side that God read. It's completed. It's got sparkle. It's not so messy. So I have to trust. That God is creating a page in my life that will have beauty. That I will turn this page and see. That my story was not so ugly after all...

Everyone needs their own jar of Dirt.

I collect dirt.
I know.
WEIRD. I'm OK with that. In FACT... if you HAPPEN to read this, and live in GERMANY for say, the year... and you are booked for a photography session with me when you get BACK to the states...
You don't HAVE to,
but I'm just saying...
I collect Dirt.
I really like dirt from other countries.
Dirt would be a GREAT trade for some pictures...
Just sayin'.

You may have seen this...

But THIS is how I plan to stay CRAZY this year....

~On my Lunch Break, sit in my parked car with sunglasses on, and point a hair dryer at passing cars.
~Every time someone asks me to do something, ask "Do you want Fries with that?"
~Call my house and ask for myself. Don't disguise my voice.
~In the memo field of my checks, write "For Smuggling Diamonds"
~Finish all my sentences with "In accordance with the prophecy..."
~As often as possible, Skip instead of walking.
~Order a Diet WATER when I go out to eat, and keep a straight face.
~Specify that my Drive Through order is "TO GO"
~Have my friends call me by my wrestling name, THE BALL BUSTER...
~When my money comes out of the ATM, scream, "I WON!! I WON!!"
~When I leave the Zoo, run through the parking lot screaming "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!! THEY'RE LOOSE!!!"
~Tell my children, "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go...."

17 of 366

Still learning my camera... so it's a little blurry. But I still love it.

15 and 16 of 366!!!

See that nice little 10 next to the words MEGA PIXEL!?!? OH YEAH, baby. Got my 10MP camera. I love it. It's not got the Zoom of my old Kodak,(which I took this photo of the NEW camera with) but it's nice and compact, and I love that. Can't wait to get familiar with it.

AND
It takes pictures like this one!! I love love love it.

Be Careful, I'm TOXIC...

You say on your blog that one of your New Years resolutions is to "Foster the friendships that are meaningful and forget ones that are harmful and toxic to me..." and we haven't spoken since before Christmas. We used to talk just about every day. I haven't been able to reach any of the three of you. I've called you all and left messages. I've run into you together at the store. It's clear now, you were avoiding me. So my only conclusion is that I must be one of the toxics.
If
Coming to your house and taking your baby for the day so you can rest from a rough pregnancy...
Meeting over coffee just about everyday of the week...
Listening when you have hard times you need to talk about...
Being with you in the emergency room...
Helping you move your son...
Staying with kids while you and your daughter try to recover her life...
Helping you look for a husband that you can't find...
Watching your children so that you can go to the ER...
Laughing with you over barbecues...
Helping you design and landscape your yard...
Loving you no matter what...
Spending days together on the beach...
Helping write letters to people who can give your daughter/granddaughter a chance with a dog...
Calling to check on you when your mother has been told she is very sick...
Having you over for Thanks Giving Dinner...
is toxic... then I am guilty.
I never wanted ANYTHING in return, other than friendship. Something that I thought and trusted I had. Something that I counted on. Something you've suddenly seemingly ripped away from me...
Now my ability to trust friendship is poisoned. You have affected not only me. How can explain, when I don't understand myself, to my kids when they ask to play with yours? My ability to worship and find comfort in my church home has been taken from me. You have done so much damage... It's becoming increasingly clear that maybe the toxins don't lie with me...
Because now I think,
it's
YOU
who have become toxic to ME...
I wish you hadn't done this. I still hold out hope that this is some mangled mistake, but as each day goes by...
I see more clearly...
that you have abandoned me.
In poison.

Scrapping the Music

Go on over to Scrapping the Music!! I had a FUN TIME making this LO for the song for this week! How can you look at Travis in that Batman mask and NOT laugh!? Used yumminess from the upcoming JAN. Kit from TallyScrapper.com!!