7.15.2009

10 great memories today.

#1. million dollar view from back deck.

#2. minnow fishing.

(caught one! it was one thing on nates list

of things to do this summer.)

#3. swimming with our cousins.
#4. running bases & backyard giggles.
#5. hanging out with paul & debbie.
(before the incident)
#6. walking to the palmwood for dinner.
(and ordering before the other large table)

#7. early morning golf.

#8. ice cream at the shack.

#9. am walks together with tim hortons.

#10. only 5 stitches.

7.14.2009

day four filled with 'antique' legos & wedding planning

at nan's.

afternoon swim at fox.

sandra & mike arrived from florida to hang with us.

julie & hannah arrived to party with us.

our trip wouldn't be complete without dinner at brennans.
steves toe survived without incident.
hannah & colin colored away.

the soon-to-be-married couple practiced their
camera smiles for us.

good stuff. wedding talk. chicken wings.
sippy cups. catching up. making lists.

talking.

laughing.

making everyday memories.

7.13.2009

day three. the chilly day didn't hamper our fun. bundled up and headed to the beach with paul. debbie & the kids. sand castles & tunnels. running bases & tag. catching up. dinner at the blue house. vacation days are the best.

7.12.2009

day two.

same shirts.

same seats.

on the road again.

movies, wii and game books filled our day.

sandras mix cd tunes filled the car.

lanovas was our first stop.

pizza and wings - the real stuff.

ets and might taco will be next.

over the bridge & off to celebrate poppas

birthday at ed & erins.
new rental this year.
light & bright.
we quickly unpacked.
it already felt like home.
vacation we are here.

7.11.2009

day one.

5:25am on the road headed north.

3 stops and 1 mcdonalds drive-thru.

made it to nashville.

wipe-out & ruby tuesday filled our evening.

early to bed.

vacation excitement in the air today.

7.10.2009

to do today.
pack for our vacation.
pack for a wedding.
pack for a 50th party.
pack for fun times.
pack for a boat load of memories.
pack for sippel stories - old & new.
pack for motorboats & paddleboats.
pack for lanovas & andersons.
pack for tim hortons & timbits.
pack for birthday celebrations.
pack for swimming & tennis.
pack for work days.
pack for family days.
pack for sunny days & rainy days.
pack for quiet times.
pack for pool days & beach days.
pack gps & atlas.
pack camera & charger.
pack books & sunblock.
pack water ballon launcher.
pack batteries & bandaids.
pack minnow net.
-
ready. set. go.
vacation here we come.
memories in the making.
creating new sippel stories.
relax.
recharge.
reconnect.
now.

7.9.2009

colin picked life for our family game this week.

a little different version than the one i grew up with

but the spinner is still the same.

spongebob has replaced the car with little pink and

blue pegs piled in back.

houses are out, caves and rocks are in.

dogs and cats are out, worms and jellyfish are in.

nothing like hanging out with squidword and patrick.

colin won.

this is life. hanging out.

debating the college path.

paying the expenses.

working for the paycheck.

this is life.

enjoy the game.

enjoy the life.

7.8.2009

birthday balloons x 2 today.

we celebrated from austin with round rock donuts and sprinkles.

happy birthday bob!

may your day be filled with sunny skies, the perfect putt

and a hole-in-one!

happy birthday aunt sandra!

may your day be filled with sunny skies, the perfect serve

and great vacation days!

enJoy today!

7.8.2009

164 stories to tell.

164 memories to share.

164 photos to love.

164 events to scrap.

164 pictures to love.

here is january thru may in a pile.

-

getting the camera ready.

cleaning out the memory cards.

finding the cords.

charging to full.

lots of new memories to catch this month.

can't wait!

put your smiles on.

here we come!

7.7.2009

guess what colins dreaming about?

7.6.2009

july daily journal prompts.

took the time to create 30 at once.

ran them on stickers.

no more searching for the glue or tape everyday.

love sharing our answers.

heres some of nates answers to '10 things that make

you laugh'

elf. sponge bob. bud light commercials
on the radio. jokes. night at the museum.

klay world on you tube.

heres to daily writing. journals & lists.

heres to the laughs. memories & insights.

heres to paper. pencils & creative answers.

simple stuff. daily stuff. priceless stuff.

7.4.2009

happy forth.

doesn't get any more american than this.

thursday night at dell diamond.

cheering on the home team.

watching for a home run ball.

gloves on.

foam finger support.
cokes and blankets.
sunsets and fireworks.

baseball caps and smiles.
hot dogs, ice cream & cotton candy.

go team.

go usa.

happy forth.

-
"you have to love a nation that celebrates its independence...

with family picnics where kids throw frisbees,

the potato salad gets iffy,

and the flies die from happiness."
―erma bombeck

7.3.2009

friday fun.

morning rudy breakfast tacos.

early swims at the pool.

afternoon movies for little boys.

afternoon golf for big boys.
running bases.
sun showers on sidewalks.
third base dinner and pool games.
friday holiday fun.

7.3.2009

important update!
nathan "trump" sippel won again.
he owed every property.
and 29 million in the bank.
it was a battle to the end.
nates hotel on times square bled us each dry.
20 million $$.
pricey in any economy.
congrats nate.

7.2.2009

now. today. this is THE catalog.
colin has not put it down since it arrived in the mail on saturday.
it has been on every errand this week - from the library to the dry cleaners.
it has been found at the pool. in a bed. in a bathroom.
it has been studied. memorized. slept on.
colin has picked out his christmas present from us 12 different times.
it changes daily.
we are updated the first thing every morning.
we have promised to pay the sales tax and shipping costs.
we remind colin that christmas is months away.
we still have last years.
this by far is the best catalog in our home.
the pages are slowly ripping from all the overuse.
i will restaple and retape these pages many times over the next couple months.
in these pages live indian jones & star wars & sponge bob.
we travel from city to space to farm land to speedways.
we love the award winners and hard to find ones.
we are secret agents and space policemen.
it will not get lost - like homework or library books.
it will not get misplaced - like pool toys or shoes.
it will not get thrown away - like cereal box toys or birthday party favors.
it is the lego catalog!
better than any magazine around.
i'm thinking of ordering another one - just in case.
now. today. the life & adventures of a seven year old.

7.1.2009

today it rained.

quickly.

the gray clouds rolled in.

sprinkled us with large drops.

disappeared as fast.

we enjoyed the change.

hung out in our pjs.

played monopoly.

moved in a slow pace.

ate breakfast late.

now the sun is out.

we are awaken from our slumber.

chores are done.

errands are completed.

running. playing stolen bases.

chatting.

complaining about the humidity.

cheeseburgers on the grill.

did the weather dictate our pace?

or did we use it as our excuse?

-

heres to a sunny july ahead.

we have so much planned.

there will be no time for rain drops in our schedule.

weddings. birthdays. anniversaries.

road trips. parties. dinners. picnics.

beaches. pools. family. friends.

bingo. boat rides. swimming.

smores. smiles.

sunburns. baseball. ice cream.

chicken wings. roast beef. custard.

bridges. passports. suitcases.

we are ready.

hello july!

6.30.2009

electronic monopoly again.
one of justins "5 things i want to do this summer" was beat nathan at monopoly.
it was justins turn to pick the game of the week.
here we go again.
i actually never liked monopoly growing up.
too long.
too complex.
i had a hard time playing this game solo.
but now i love it.
i love watching the different strategies each boy uses.
i love watching the smile when its a good chance card.
i love the bargaining when money is tight.
i love the sharing of funds just to keep players alive.
i love the fact that we play a little everyday.
whos going t0 win this time?
will justin finally outsmart nathan?
will colin and I survive longer than a couple days?
will nathan 'trump' sippel continue his winning streak?
keep you posted....

6.29.2009

goal: scrapbook a page in real time.

(currently i'm on september 2008 in our family album.)

plan: figure out how to print

pictures now. at one of those machines.

remember to bring tiny card from

camera with you when you go.

insert. touch. print. pay.

instant gratification.

drive home.

simple layout.

use invitation colors for theme.

quick journaling about the day.

while the day is still fresh in my head.

capture thoughts i might forget by the

time i actually would scrap this event.

love it.

now i just have to fill all

the days between sept 08 & june 09!

real time.

real life.

6.26.2009

we started on june 9th.

we each have our own journal.

we write something everyday.

we take turns creating the prompts.

we list our 5 favorite dinners.

we list our 5 favorite books.

we list 5 things we want to do this summer.

we list 5 things that are red.

we list 5 superpowers we wished we had.

we answer questions.

if you had a million dollars and couldn't

spend it on yourself, what would you do.

whats your favorite ride at

austin park n' pizza & why.

theres an elephant in your school

cafeteria....finish the story.

we think.

we write.

we create.

we share.

we laugh.

we add to our stories.

we rewrite our answers.

we journal together.

good stuff.

love reading their answers.

love hearing their thoughts.

love sharing ideas & imaginations.

happy day.

6.25.2009

this week.

colin lost another tooth.

we watched the pink panther 2 on dvd.

broke a record - 103.

went swimming.

started a new game of monopoly.

received 164 pictures in the mail from kodak.

laughed to elf (again).

relived the life of michael jackson.

looked for our farrah poster.

learned of moving neighbors.

relaxed.

slowed down the pace.

enJoyed mornings in our pjs.

opened a book each day.

summer days.

6.24.2009

colins fathers day card.

i normally never point out errors

in such a thoughtful, handmade gift.....

but i couldn't let him go around telling anything

less than the truth to all his friends (& teachers).

6.23.2009

tuesday notes:

-justin asked when we were going to the library again. he just finished a "great book" by a new author aunt debbie found for him. i dropped the laundry basket & we jumped into the minivan - library here we come.

- its rare that justin reads everyday, everywhere we go - gotta take advantage of this opportunity. three new books checked out by justin. 5 by nathan. 0 by colin. he's still working on the pile from last week. 3 by mom. 1 dvd picked up that was on hold for us - harry potter.

-rented pink panther 2 online at redbox at 7:10am. picked up after the library run. watched this afternoon during high heat time. gotta love steve martin. cute movie. made boys list all the steve martin movies they knew of. did well. got the big ones. googled the answer before i asked.

-late afternoon swim with our new water toys. concrete too hot to walk on. must wear flip flops to the edge of the pool. love it. 102 today. 79 tonight. my first swim in the pool of the year.

-college baseball rules all the tvs tonight - ut vs. lsu - love this college town - love it that colin understands sports better than i do.

-reading busy woman seeks wife with the real simple book club - perfect summer pool book.

-watched mr. deeds with the gang this weekend. adam sandler never disappoints. nothing better than a silly saturday family night movie with a big bowl of popcorn and never ending glasses of sprite. love that justin still hangs with us, sometimes.

-downloaded this mini poster from this blog.

-printed out this set of labels to organize my scrapbook bins.

enJoy.

6.23.2009

ok. time to review & recap

last weekends quick trip up north.

10 great memories.

#1) hanging at brennans with the happy couple

and our newest austin resident and ut girl ms. megan.

#2) staying up till midnight on friday just to be

one of the first to wish lauren happy birthday.

#3) hanging out at the CCB with mom and her
wonderful giggling girlfriends -
thank you marcia for hosting!
#4) singing happy birthday to lauren at
the shower while the violins hummed away in the
background - thanks doug & gayle.
#5) the beautiful centerpieces created by mom -
we always put mom in charge of flowers and she never
disappoints - aren't they gorgeous - lilly would be proud.
#6) cinnamon ice cream. oreo crust. chocolate topping.
strawberry wedge.
no words necessary.
{sinfully delicious}
#7) a special visitors from rochester.
no not uncle mike.
teddy & sandra spent the weekend in town.
i'm hoping to see mike at the wedding.
keep your fingers crossed.

#8) laurens very own birthday cake.
no sparkles the clown.
no half pink and half blue.

#9) glowing julie with number two &
hannah in her pigtails and pj's.
priceless watching ryan as a dad &
making cookies & taco dip & pasta salad &
inflating bounce houses.

happy times.

#10) sharing my top five words of wisdom

with my soon-to-be-married little sister.

you know i love lists.

you know its my responsibility as 'cis' to share it.

heres my top 5 survival words of wisdom

for all - newlywed or not.

-

No.1 - God First. Before spouse, family, friends, career & stuff.

No. 2 - Real Simple. Don't make life more complicated

than necessary. Keep it real - keep it simple.

Your life - your house - your calendar - your meals.

No. 3 - Listen completely.

Don't hear your words. Listen. Digest. Absorb.

Hear as if with new ears.

No. 4 - Love contentment.

Love life. Love always. Love the quiet routine that everyday

brings. Love the big events. Love the daily events more.

No. 5 - Everyday brings a memory.

Find it. Cherish it. Enjoy it.

6.22.2009

happy party day justin.

you've waited all month for today.

heres to 9 guys at austin park 'n pizza.

102 degrees.

lots of sun and fun.

what a great group of friends you have.

heres to no waiting lines on a monday afternoon

on the go cart track.

lots of pizza, oreo cake and presents.
laser tag groups of nine.

perfect day for water bumper boats.
perfect way to cool off after putt-putt.

the party was supposed to end at 8pm.

too much fun to stop there.

can't believe we made it out by 9:15pm.

i think they would of stayed all night if we could of.

happy party day justin!