Adventures of a Boy

Last month I was selected to be on my very first Design Team!!  Woot!  Thank you so so much to San Jose's Scrapbook Island!  The following is one of my projects I completed for the store.  

It is a mini (5x7-ish) book by Farmhouse Paper Co.  There are eight neutral interior pages that were super fun to cover and embellish.

All of my papers and embellishments were from the About a Boy line by Echo Park Paper Co.  Love Echo Park.  Vibrant, diverse, and yet totally versatile.

Sewing on a page is my newest favorite thing.  I recently cleaned out my scrap desk and made a spot so my sewing machine can stay out all the time.  I really is easy - as long as it is just sitting there!

Keeping my space clean on the other hand... not so easy!


Lots of scrapbooking,
S-money

All About Me

Hi.  I am Stacey. 

Standard info:

wife (11 years)

mom (2 kids)

friend (as long as we can get real) 

child of God (Jesus is our great Redeemer) 

sister (x4 and 1 bro) 

cousin (mine are better than yours)

I can be a little loud, and I really like this hot trend of brightly colored jeans – you just can’t be too cranky when you look down on some neon orange legs! I could eat French fries every day, but I don’t because then I’d have to torture myself with more running.  And I started wearing fedoras this year.  It used to be intimidating, but why the heck not wear them (especially on a bad hair day)?!

It has been fun to see my scrapbooking evolve as well.  From cutting out my 110 film pictures with pinking shears to misting it up all over the place with some Mr Huey’s, this hobby has been more of a lifestyle.  You photograph, you print, you tell your life story.  It is so meaningful.  Give me a grid, some bright Crate Paper, and a handful of sequins, and I’m a happy girl.  Just don’t forget the French fries.

Find me on Facebook: staceycheathamwilson, 

Instagram: stacemaee, 

or (very) occasionally here on my blog: staceycheathamwilson.blogspot.com

Maybe more often.  Maybe.

Much love, 

Stacey

A remembrance of where I was last year: North Carolina

Hollah!

I am (finally) sitting down and typing up a few stories from my trip to North Carolina when I realized that it was LAST labor day weekend that I was actually there.  Oh, well.

The best/worst story is as follows...

I shall call it:

STROLLER STRUGGLES
  - or -
I LEFT MY BRAIN/HEART/STROLLER IN NORTH CAROLINA

How in the world does one lady (me) get two children, two suitcases, and two backpacks through two airports in one day.  A double stroller of course.  A wonderful, convenient, Phil & Ted’s inline double stroller.  The lovely baggage gentleman at SFO walked me through the check-in calling for a special circumstance after staring into my saucer-sized eyes upon his first declaration of the brand new airline policy that I could not take my stroller for gate check-in.  He was lovely.  Did I mention that yet?

Getting through the airport with 9 month old Clark and 3.5 year old Jane was a breeze.  The layover at Houston was equally enjoyable.  Take a tram? You got it.  42 Gates away?  No Problem. Cranky kids throwing a fit?  Strap them into the stroller:  A  total, easy-peasy breeze.

Reverse that situation coming from Fayetteville.  Picture this scenario:  After 17 days away from home, living in someone else’s house, taking care of double the amount of children that I birthed, and generally being completely exhausted… wave your sister away from the airport curb with a looooong sigh. 

THEN.  Oh, but THEN… Then the 18 year old check-in girl at the ONLY counter at the very small Fayetteville Regional Airport snaps her gum and says my stroller is not allowed for gate check-in.  Excuse me?  Come again?!  “yes, but I’m returning home.  I have no where to put the stroller”  or my kids.  or my brain.   THEN she pushes a piece of paper stating the new airline policy about big wheeled strollers towards me across the counter.  Sorry, ma’am.  –insert tear-  I begin to sweat profusely and wonder how I will carry both my sleeping children through Houston, much less San Francisco.  Did I mention it is 5:30 pm?  Did I mention we will be in Houston WELL past bed time.  Did I mention that we will land in San Francisco at 2:00 am Eastern? 

DID I MENTION THAT THIS GIRL HAS NOT MADE EYE CONTACT WITH ME ONCE?!?!

I am beyond bewildered, moving quickly past frustrated or irate, and headed dangerously towards the land of the crazy, frantic angry airport lady.  Too late, I am there.   I ask for a manager.  A sweaty dude who is clearly the baggage man (and has his name tag turned around so I cant read it) says he is the manager and sorry, there is nothing he can do.   Baloney.

I have to unload my two children.  Our backpacks.  My sanity.  I have to collapse my super-convenient-but-only-if-you-are-allowed-to-use-it Phil & Teds double stroller into a garbage bag that the one other employee in the place kindly procured for me.  I have to watch some lady with an infant unload her large Graco stroller system as a gate check (?!?!?!). I have to get on the plane without attacking the counter-now-ticket-taking girl just so we can just get home.

Houston was relatively easy.  Yes I had to carry Clark to find a late dinner and past dozens more gates.  But our next gate was only a couple over from a kids play area.  That is where I got paged.  Yup.  Over the airport-wide loudspeaker.  “Stacey Wilson, please report to Gate #blah-blah”.  Seriously?  What now?  I gather up all our stuff, both the kids, and schlep over to find a WHEELCHAIR waiting for me.  “Fayetteville called ahead for you to have assistance in boarding”  HAHAHAHAAAAAA (insert crazy manic laugh here).  Don’t you think I would have needed that wheelchair when I got off of my last plane?  Before the tram? Before the dozens of gates? Before the sleepy, hungry children throwing fits with no stroller?  SERIOUSLY?!

So we get on the plane from Houston to San Francisco.  We are able to find a row with three empty seats, and Clark falls asleep promptly.  Jane watches a movie and falls asleep maybe halfway there.  Both are sleeping so soundly that I just bewilderedly watch every last person get off the plane before attempting to carry them both – still asleep – off the plane.  A kind flight attendant offers to help me as far as the security checkpoint.  Her name: Grace.  Of course.  I jostle the two kids one on each hip, backpack on me, Jane’s on her, and struggle this way only 100 yards before we see Blaine waiting for us. 

What a long day/night.  Ah, but now we are home.  Only by the grace of God.

May your travels be light, or at the very least, may your stroller's wheels be small.

Peace out,

Stacey

Making Lemonade from Outtakes

I always think the outtake reels are super funny at the end of movies or TV shows.  Especially in cartoons, since of course there is no sound guy holding up a boom (hilarious!).   

I have always liked the saying "When Life Hands You Lemons, Make Lemonade".  It reminds me to lighten up and look for the "silver lining".

Sooooo..... when my face looked like THIS:

in many of our attempts to take a family photo, I figured I may as well just make fun of myself.



Of course, when I had a decent smile, Clark was trying to channel James Bond or something:

or, Jane was hiding:

or preening or something:

Maybe I just had to go to the bathroom?

Or try to catch the escape baby:

Jane!  Wake UP!!

Self: stop talking!!

Clark: get back here!

All this to say, we really are much cuter than the camera gives us credit for.

And, sometimes we are all smiling at the same time.

Just not on this day.




Better luck to you, my friend,
Always smiling in Salinas :)

Clark turned one in November. I uploaded pictures today.

Yes, it took me a long time.  Actually, Cousin Patty took the pictures.  All of them.  And then she uploaded them to my computer that same day.

It just took me this long to think about them again.

I need a scrapbooking vacation.

Desperately.

Rather, I HAVE been on a vacation from scrapbooking.  Maybe I should take a vacation from life & DO some scrapbooking.

Yes, that sounds nice.

Cute family, though ... am I right?



Fishing for compliments,
Stacey

Angry Birds Top Ten

Who out there knows what Angry Birds is?

So, it is this app for i-products.  Most likely for all-products.


It is a children's game.


Like Mario.


Or Sonic.


But they are Birds.  They are ANGRY because these green pigs stole their eggs.  So, they climb up into some high-powered sling-shots and launch themselves at the pigs.  ("they" being "you").  Get all the pigs, move onto another level.

But there are a ba-zillion levels.  The pigs just keep on moving the eggs.  It is, like, never-ending.


Which is part of the fun.



Did you catch on that I am the one playing this game?

Here are my top 10 reasons why:


1.  Emotionally: I can relate.  If anyone stole my baby I would be unrelenting in my attack on them, as well.  Absolutely no holds barred.

2.  Financially: I paid for this danged game, and I'm going to play it!

3.  Physically:  I am tired at the end of the day & I am not going to go out and play basketball or something crazy like that!

4.  Mentally:  It is a wonderful break from reality to slip into Angry-Bird land.  Just get  the pigs.  It is so simple.

5.  Socially:  I need some down-time, yo!

6.  Gastronomically:  My digestive system really enjoys the relaxing time of not moving for minutes (hours?!) on end.

7.  Philisophicaly:  Those pigs demand justice!  They can't just waltz in and steal from the poor little birdies.  This is America!

8.  Religiously: I need to play this game often.  That's all religious means anyhow.  Often.

9.  Spiritually: not good for me whatsoever.  Not really bad , but ....

10.  Silly-lly:  It is really silly that I like to play this game.  Furthermore, it is continuously silly that I am now taking time to write about it.  Totally Silly.



Attack!!!!

Your protector,
Silly Stacey

Totally out of order, but here is October!!!

Always an eventful month, October is my absolute favorite time of the year.  If you have ever lived here on the central coast, you know October offers the best weather.  If you like wearing a wig and crazy fancy false eyelashes, you know October offers Halloween.  And if you like getting older, well... hold on a second....  If you like celebrating, you know October is my birthday!!

So, here you have a visual representation of October:  

(in no particular order, of course)

Halloween!!  Jane threw this look together about an hour before trick or treating.  She said her Cinderella dress was too itchy.  I sported my wig and awesomely audacious feather headband (of course with my rad falsies - eyelashes people!).  Clark was the most adorable cow you ever saw.

So, my birthday was October 13th.  I wanted to have fun.  So we had a big party!  Blaine bar-b-qued (LITERALLY) non-stop throughout the night, beer pong contests got a little hairy (ha ha), and i, a-hem, did a keg stand.  It was the world record longest keg-stand.  Especially because I did not drink any beer.  Instead, I laughed uncontrollably while simultaneously popping every blood vessel in my face.  Ewwww.  But still really funny.

Jane continues to be the best big sister in the world.  She is kind and gentle to her brother, finding him amusing and cute rather than tormenting and annoying.  She shares with him (like her popsicle, and as you can tell, he appreciates her), she cheers him on (crawling, talking, walking, etc), and generally just loves him!  Jane is still doing gymnastics once a week, and going to "spanish class" for preschool.  She tends to make up spanish words and phrases when she doesnt really know them.  Then argues that she is right!  ha!  It is pretty funny.

Clark continues to be the best baby boy in the world.  He is sweet as can be, slobbers kisses all over your face (or maybe just slobbers), and has recently started saying "day-doo" (Thank you).  Seriously.  Don't believe me?  Why not?  Because he STILL WONT SAY MAMA!?!  Well, just check my facebook page for proof.

Just have to share this great photo of Jane....  Mind you, I have NONE of these falling asleep in the highchair as a baby photos.  I was a NAP NAZI.  Every now and again, her naptime was the drive time from Soledad to Salinas, but I never got a cute photo of her sound asleep half on the livingroom floor or something.  Until today.

Oh, Jane?!

Jane?

Are you still playing Sesame Street?

Jane??

I wonder if anyone with a pHD still sucks their thumb.  I bet there are some.  I'm not worried.  Not one bit.


Not at all.


Totally Calm,
Stacey