Even more layouts

 Just a quick check in to post what I finished last week.  The lake had a rough ride in 2015, it got crazy high the fourth of July weekend for storms and again in December/January.  I have been going to the lake all my life and never saw it this high.  It was pretty cool to visit Bagnell Dam and see all the flood gates open and the water just pouring out.

 Ashley learned to ski this summer!!!

Ashley started serving at our church, what a great way for our kids to learn service.  She has served quite a few times since and even has served with our bishop.

Banana Seat Bikes

A quick layout with Ashley on my old banana seat bike.  Those were the best!

Super Saver Layouts

This weekend I sneaked away to my local scrapbook store Scrapbook Generation to do their super saver layouts.  Then, the best part, I got to put photos to them Sunday afternoon.  I typically don't have photos from Valentines Day so pictures of my girls seemed perfect for these pages.

Float Trip

Last summer we took the big kids on their first ever float trip. We decided to do the Black River versus the Current River since you could do a shorter float and the Black does not have as fast a current.  It was a beautiful day and I think everyone had fun...well except for maybe Abby.  I will never forget the look Abby gave me on this trip!  We were bungeed three wide and Abby and I were in the front on the outside.  We were coming into a turn in the river that we were going to have to paddle hard thru to keep form being pushed into the cliff.  As I was instructing Abby to row she looked at me in full terror and screamed "We're going to die!".  We weren't really in any danger and of course we made it thru with no problems.  The best part Megan was sitting on a cooler behind us munching on cheese puffs like nothing was going on.  Love those kiddos!

I wish we could have gone this year also, but weekends are hard to come by in the summer.  Look out 2016 WE ARE COMING BACK!!!

Tractors and Summer smiles!

The annual steam engine show is still one of Dave's favorite.  I picked up some papers at my LSS Scrapbook Generation that I knew I could use for this page! Nothing too exciting but it's one for the books!

Trying to make up for doing a bunch of Allison layouts all in a row.  Ashley gets to steal the show with Brogan, what a fun day!  Again I just picked up these papers to get some summer layouts done.  I used a layout by Libelula for inspiration.

P.S. It's the most wonderful time of the year....Baseball playoffs....Go Cards!

Ski

I had scrapped quite a few layouts of Allison so Ashley was due for one of her own.  So proud of this girl when she got up on water skis for the very first time.  She has really turned it on this summer and is even asking to go skiing.  I hope that this is the start of something fun!

Best Friends

This was a two page layout from Scrapbook Generation that I broke up into singe layouts.  One of Ashley and a best friend form school and one of me with my best ladies!  Love them both...into the books they go!

Six Flags

This layout is a stash buster, I just used what I have here. A little bit of Studio Calico, Jenni Bowlin, Sassafras, Basic Grey and much more.

The past two years Wendy and I have taken Aidan and Ashley to Six Flags at the end of the summer.  It is a reward for summer reading.  It is so fun to watch them grow to love roller coasters.  The Mine Train and American Thunder are favorites.  They also will do the Screamin' Eagle.  Ashley is already talking about this year!

Fun Day

Another quick layout using a CKC STL Embellish It class kit.  CKC STL was this past weekend, I don't think I have been in at least 3 or 4 years.  I kinda miss it, maybe I miss the girls getting together more!

Every once in awhile Ashley will spend the day with Aunt Donna and Uncle Scott when she has a random day off school and we have to work.  Donna always has something fun planned (breakfast, tea room lunch, shopping etc.) and on this day Ashley was in full control of the camera.  Love to see her perspective!

Ashley Dawn

Another quick Scrapbook Generation super saver layout of my most favorite seven year old ever.

Ashley  at 8 years old

• Reading and loving Harry Potter (on the 2nd book now)
• Learning times tables in 3rd grade
• Rubbing her belly button
• Loving gymnastics class
• Hunting doves with Dad
• Watching Full House (still!)
• Talking all.the.time.

Ashley's Photo Walk

Another quick layout this week using my Studio Calico October kit The Underground!

When Ashley has a day off school and we have to work I usually ask Aunt Donna if she will take Ashley for the day.  That way she doesn't sit around all day watching TV.  Last October for Fall Break Aunt Donna gave Ashley a camera and they walked around taking pictures.  Ashley loved it so much, she wants to do it again this year.

Berries

A quick and easy layout using my Studio Calico September kit Poet Society.  Ashley and Allison too,  love love love to pick the strawberries and raspberries from the garden.  It is unusual for us even to take a bowl since the girls will eat them right off the plant/bush.  How convenient that I took almost the same picture with both berries!

Gymnastics

I actually got away for a short time this last weekend to attend a super saver class at my local scrapbook store Scrapbook Generation.  I did some shopping too which earned me a free page kit....which I used on this lovely layout of Ashley doing some gymnastics.  I love it when a layout is pretty much laid out for you, all you need to do is some cutting and gluing.

Six Flags

 A two pager!!! We just went to Six Flags this past Friday soooo it made me want to get this one in the books.  Someday maybe I will get caught up and be scrapping current.  I used my Studio Calico July kit Penny Arcade.

Wendy and I only took the big kids to Six Flags.  The older kids are over 48" which opens up a whole lot more fun things to do.  The littles will get there chance in a few years.  Ashley and Aidan pretty much rode everything they could (there are a few 54" rides).  Their favorites were the Mine Train and America Thunder roller coasters.  I don't think they liked the Screamin' Eagle because it is pretty rough.  All in all we had a great day!

1st tooth

My Studio Calico August kit Penny Arcade has been sitting on my desk all month.  I just didn't feel inspired to scrap with it.  Two night ago I just dug in and came up with this lovely layout.  It's amazing what a new kit on the way will do to motivate you.  I also have a second layout in the works right now.

Ashley is up to a total of seven teeth lost.  She lets them hang on for a long long time.  She will let Dave pull them if he first numbs her gum.  She is a wimp.  But the first was pulled by the dental hygienist.  For the longest time Ashley wanted me to make a dentist appointment every time she had a loose tooth.  No way kiddo!

Friends

A quick layout I finished last night with my Studio Calico April kit Bluegrass Farm and this layout by Maggie Massey for inspiration.  My May kit arrived this week.  I need to get crafting with my April kit so I can dig in.

Baby boy

After four girls (Ashley, Kaitlin, Hannah and Allison) the Cowan family welcomed the first boy!  Mind you this was last November but we were so excited when Susan and Chris found out they were expecting a boy.  Baby James as we all call him has lots of big sisters and girl cousins to mother him.

I used my Studio Calico August kit Marks & Co. and this layout by Valerie Bishop for inspiration.

2nd grader

Back to School! Ashley started the second grade today.  I can’t believe we have a second grader in the house, it seems just like yesterday she was starting kindergarten.

Ashley at 7.5 years

•   Loves to swim (swimming without a life jacket in the pool, swimming underwater, jumping off the high dive)
•  Learning to water ski (mastered the tube and tried knee boarding)
• Reading chapter books (Junie B Jones is a favorite)
•  Favorite TV show is Full House
• Loves gymnastics (cartwheels, handstands, back bends all by herself, just moved up one level)
• Whines (ugh!)
• Helps her Dad in the garden
• Plays fairly well with her sister (but they have their moments)
• Chores include setting the table, dishes to the dishwasher, collecting trash, taking out the recyclables, gather laundry and helping sort, fold socks, feed Trinity
• Girl Scout Brownie
• Wants her hair long (no cutting allowed)
•  Doesn't listen (does this ever stop???)
• Loves crab legs, salmon, steak (high dollar foods!)
• Best friends are Aidan and Abby

4 wheeler

It's sketch week on Allison Davis blog and I played along again this month.  I used my March Studio Calico Neverland kit.  This is the second go, the first set of background papers I started with just wasn't making me happy so I switched up to these lighter colors.  Much happier.

Ashley got her pink 4 wheeler from Santa three years ago and she just keeps getting better and better with it.  Last year she mainly road it in Grandpa's hay fields just so she had lots of room to master the steering, throttle and breaks.  This year she follows David on the trails around our house.  I think she actually enjoys it, because she asks all the time to ride.  Go Ashley Go!

Summer

A fun layout I did last week but am just now getting to blog.  The kids really took to tubing last year and we spent many of weekends watching them tube.  Just this weekend Dave had to pull Ashley and Aidan outside of the wake to beat them up more so they would want to stop :)...and it worked.  I used my Studio Calico June kit Roundabout and this layout by ania-maria for inspiration.