Metal Tray Transformation

Well, I got crafty this past week. I have been planning on doing this project for like 2 years now and I just barely did it! It was well worth it too! I posted the inspiration which came from a how to in Somerset Life (winter 2008 edition).



Here is MY finished project. Now mind you, my photos are not as good as the ones in the magazine, but I do believe I did alright with this one. It was super easy and pretty fun! I love when a project comes together just the way I want it to!

Before
(metal serving tray from Goodwill for $1.50)

After
(2 coats baby blue spray paint and a rub of black ink)

Sunburned

Well, even though we thought we wouldn't get burned in San Diego with all the clouds... we were wrong. We are both quite pink! We even talked to each other on the beach about how we should put sun screen on even though it was cloudy... because we KNOW that the UV rays still come though the clouds. Oh how silly we feel now.

With Love from San Diego!

Well, this past weekend, Harrison and I took a quick trip to San Diego. We went for a couple of reasons. 1. To see my cousin, Andre, get married. 2. To hit the beach. 3. To get out of the awful heat here in Vegas.

First stop: The San Diego LDS temple, where my cousin was married to his beautiful wife, Andrea. It was the first time Harrison and I had been to this temple. It was just beautiful.

The theme of the wedding was very cute... CARNIVAL! The girls' outfits were super cute (red and white striped tops with light blue tulle skirts)! Their bouquets were also very cute.

All of the girls in the wedding party wore different red shoes. This was probably my favorite part!

The guys in the wedding party wore red and white, or blue and white striped ties, and these awesome pinwheels for boutonnieres.

This is a photo of my Uncle Ron (the groom's father) and my Uncle Dennis (my mom's brother)

The Bride (Andrea) and The Groom (Andre)

I love this photo of father and son!

This is my Aunt Dixie, Andrea, Andre, and Uncle Ron.

After the wedding, we went to California Pizza Kitchen for the wedding luncheon. We got a shot of the car before they left!

After the wedding festivities, Harrison and I went back to the hotel to rest a season. We went exploring around Coronado Island to scope out a spot where we would hang out on the beach the next day. This is a beautiful place! It is now on my list of places to live!

Us at the beach.
It was SUPER cold when we first got there. The sun was covered by fog and clouds. As you can see, I have sweats on. The water was WAY too cold to even get into!

While I napped, Harrison made a frog out of sand! FUN!

After we took a stroll around the beach and ate lunch, the sun poked out. The weather was BEAUTIFUL the rest of the day. The water was still too cold to go into, but we had fun standing with our toes inside and people watching from our beach blankets.

Library of Congress

Jaala and I have been seeking out photos to put on our walls. While we are too poor to get any framing done we still want decorations because our walls are so bare. I have recently spent much time on the website of the Library of Congress. Which is where they keep copies of pretty much any historical photo you could ever imagine, and most of them are in High Resolution which makes for easy printing.
So thanks to the taxes we all pay Jaala and I have been able to get some pretty cool and meaningful photos at no charge (at least besides printing on our computer). Here are a few of them.

Rio De Janeiro RJ Brasil-in the early 1900s, a special place for both of us.

Peach pickers in Delta, CO in the 30s-I was a peach picker one summer after high school, and Delta is only about 50 miles from Grand Junction, CO where I grew up and Jaala and I met.



Shiprock, NM-Near Farmington, NM where Jaala was born. The navajo people are very important to Jaala's family, her Dad grew up on a reservation (despite being 100% white) and Jaala thought he was part Navajo for many years.



Old Timey photo from old times.- it is called the Moonshiner's Daughter.- This is just a style that Jaala really likes, but the woman looks quite a bit like Jaala's mom.




This is a haystack in Delta, CO in the 30s.-part of a series by a photographer as part of the WPA. The famous posters of which the LOC also has copies of.




A fair in Pietown, NM-another in the WPA series from the 30s. I can't believe the clarity of these photos. Being from the 1930s they make the people seem more real since their colors are so vibrant. I have always had a problem imagining things from the past as real because of poor image quality. These images however help to make those times more real because they are such high quality.

So go to the Library of Congress website and do an image search for anything you wish to see. Chances are they have it and you don't have to pay anything for it.
http://www.loc.gov/library/libarch-digital.html

Clubbin' til Sunrise Manicure

I love this color. It's name is perfect! I also LOVE OPI polish. Anyway- just thought you should see it!

Something Pretty

Hey Everybody! Well- I wanted to share this with you! My sister in law, Robyn, has a super cute blog all about crafting and cute stuff! I freakin' love it and I am getting ready to make a few things from it.

Take a look and enjoy! (jut click on the little buttom below)

Sleep- How I Have Missed You

Oh gosh! I have had a little too much stress in my life the last few weeks... and I started to loose sleep the last week or so. The insomnia is back! AAHH! I have been getting between 2-4 hours of sleep and it has really been taking a toll on me and my life. Well, last night I just couldn't take it anymore and I went to bed at about 8:30ish and slept until about 7:00 this morning! I got up once and was awake for about an hour... but I went back to sleep!

Praise be! Glorious sleep!

GJ ALL THE WAY!

Well, this weekend we get the chance to take a weekend trip to Grand Junction, Colorado. Pretty fun! We will be spending most of the time in the mountains at Harrison's family's cabin. It will be a nice break from the 112 degree weather we have been having here in Las Vegas. It will be the first time in a year that Harrison, his brothers, and their families will all be together. A little family reunion of sorts. We sure love it up there and it will be good to be together and spend some time together. Here are some photos of trips past to the cabin:

Happy 50th Grandma and Grandpa

Well- Harrison posted a little while back that we went to see my grandparents a couple of weekends ago for their 50th wedding anniversary. It was super fun. Well, being with family was fun. The drive from Las Vegas to Kirtland, NM is not my idea of fun... but what can you do. Here are a few photos from the event:

My Grandma and Grandpa (my Dad's parents)

Most of my extended family on this side (minus about 8-10 people)

My sisters and I singing with our Pop for my Grandparents (its a tradition)

My 4 youngest brothers lip-sync-ing "Dude Looks Like A Lady" for some entertainment. It was a surprise performance and VERY funny!

It was so fun to see my family and to be a part of the celebration. There was a picture montage of photos from my grandparent's life. It was so cool to see. I will see if I can upload it. There is a lot of history in those 50 years. 7 children, 26 grandchildren, and 4 1/2 great-grand children (one is still on the way).

I sure love you Grandma and Grandpa!

New Manicure

OK- so I am really getting obsessed with this whole manicure thing. I have painted my nails like 5 times in the last 5 days. I am having so much fun! Harrison thinks I am going to wear my nails down to nothing... he is probably half right. Well- these are my nails from this morning. My phone doesn't take very good pics, but you get the idea.

LOVE PEACE AND NAIL DESIGNS (ok... that was just corny)