Christmas Eve in the Shrum home....

Merry Christmas friends and family! It’s almost 9:30pm on Christmas Eve. We just finished a yummy dinner of Papa Murphy’s pizza and we’re watching the Simpson’s movie! Very non-traditional Christmas Eve around here!

Poor Roger had to work today. I hated that! Sammie and I made a trip to WalMart this morning to pick up some last minute groceries, and also ran quickly into Kroger to get steaks for Christmas dinner with Roger’s family. That’s gonna be YUM!!! Big, thick, mouth-watering bone-in ribeyes!!! After we got home we walked over to the neighbors to take Hannah, Gwen and Jacob their gifts…and a bottle of wine for Michelle! Roger got home from work early, which was a nice surprise! The girls decorated some sugar cookies, and so far that’s pretty much the extent of our Christmas baking…well, except some failed pretzel/white chocolate/M&M thingies I left in the oven too long!

We all took a quick drive down to the Westell’s for a quick visit and to drop off some presents. It was nice to visit with them for a bit, too!

Santa has delivered our Christmas PJ’s and the girls have opened their presents to each other. Hopefully they’ll go to bed soon so I can get these presents wrapped and get to bed myself!

I hope Santa delivers nice surprises to all of you!!!

Merry Christmas, one and all!

All I want for Christmas is.....

A clean house!!!

And my SIL, being the kind, sweet person that she is came over Friday and got me going in the right direction! While I was at work a sweet elf came and did some MAJOR tidying up around here. Things had gotten out of control over the past few weeks and this house was a mess.

I don't know how long she spent here, but I'll tell you, when I walked in the door from work on Friday, I just felt this HUGE weight disapper from my shoulders!

Love you, Dona! You really are an angel!!!!

What I'm thankful for....

I'm thankful that I have a wonderful, loving family, a home that I love, (too much) food, and my health. Generally, I feel like the luckiest girl alive. Sure, every day doesn't go exactly as planned and there will always be little disagreements/misunderstandings. Every day isn't perfect, but, all in all, life is great...and for that, I'm VERY thankful!!!

Congrats on entering the PGA, Chad!!

Well, he did it! Roger's friend Chad Collins finally made it to the big time! He got his PGA Card! WooHoo! We have had a lot of fun watching him on both the Hooter's tour and the Nationwide tour, but I'm guessing this will be even more fun to watch. We went to a celebration for him on November 9th at Alcatraz Brewing Company in downtown Indianapolis. It was a nice time and the group of people that showed up was quite large! After the dinner, several of us went to a couple of bars downtown and danced and had fun! It was a nice night out with a great reason to celebrate! Congratulations, Chad! We are proud of you!!!

Keith Urban!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My first 'big girl' concert was a total blast! Donna and I went to see Keith Urban at Conseco Fieldhouse on November 8 th. Gary Allan opened for him. He was good but just didn't really seem "into it". Keith, on the other hand, was so much fun to watch. He smiled so much and just really seemed to be having fun. We were fortunate to have great seats, but after we found them, we realized there was a main stage, then a "catwalk" to a smaller stage that was right by our seats. Donna talked to this cute old security guy and found out we could stand along the barricades that surrounded the stage. Yep, we could have practically reached out and touched him!! OMG, he is so danged cute! It was great. At one point, he even came off the main stage and went about 5 or 6 rows up into the crowd and sang a song…darn those lucky girls that actually got to touch him! He started playing around 8:30pm and didn't finish until after 11pm! Lots of great songs, both old and new. Donna and I both wore our black high-heeled boots and boy did we regret that at the end of the night! Had to take our boots off to walk to the car! LOL I'll have to share that picture later, as it's on Donna's camera…my battery died and my memory card was full!

I'm not really old enough to have been married 20 years already!!

I'm a little late in posting this…I had planned to post it on our anniversary (November 7th), but just didn't have a free minute. So, here it is now! This is Roger and I on our anniversary weekend trip we took. Went to Belterra Resort and Casino in southern Indiana. What a great place. Had a nice room, lots of wonderful food, and just a great time together! Oh…and I had a 50-minute massage and got a French manicure. That was an extra nice treat! So glad we took the time to get away and have fun. The girls were safely at home with my BFF's Jeanne and KatieJ, and they, too, had a wonderful time. They got pulled over by the police while in downtown Indy, colored Syd and Jeanne's hair, clean the house up, made homemade pizza and did an awesome photo shoot! Thanks, BFFs!!! Love you, honey! Thanks for a great weekend and 20 years of putting up with me!

So much to tell you.....

So little time!

Candy corn.....

Well..in 1 hour and 30 minutes, I officially made it through the entire month of October without one single piece of candy corn making it into my mouth!!! It was tough, I LOVE it. But I can't stop with just a handful...it turns into a bagful...and not the small bag...the big FAMILY sized one. Except, I won't share it with my family. They don't like it anyway. Did I mention I love it? Cause I do. I picked up the bags several times throughout the month when I would see it in the stores. I even held it close to my nose so I could smell the sweetness. But I never bought a bag...and I never ate one single piece!

Now it's going to go on clearance...because October is over. Will I still be able to resist?????


(this randomness brought to you courtesy of KatieJ's weekly blog challenge...she said "post something random"...couldn't think of anything more random than my love of candy corn!)

I've been TAGGED....great!

Well, in an ever-pressing effort to keep me posting to my blog, Katie has tagged me. I have to tell you where I was/what I was doing 10/20/30 years ago. I’m not even sure I remember, but I’ll try!

10 years ago…..Roger and I had been married for 10 years and we had been parents for almost 2 years. I was working at my same job. Our house was only about 3 years old at that time. We were still learning a lot about being parents and being “grown ups”! That’s really all I can remember!

20 years ago…I was still a “Renihan”…but only about 10 days away from becoming a “Shrum”. I worked at Park Fletcher as the receptionist. I lived at home with my parents and my youngest brother who were preparing to move to Alabama with my Dad’s job (Chrysler). I was pretty much a spoiled brat (some things never change!), and somehow my Mom just took care of everything with the wedding. I was way too young to understand how much work a wedding really was…I just knew what I wanted and that everything had to be perfect! Thank goodness I was Daddy’s little girl!

30 years ago…I was almost 10 years old. We had moved to the ‘country’ just a couple years before that and life was pretty good! I spent a lot of time playing in the ‘caves’, fishing and swimming in the lake and just running the neighborhood with my best friend Tammy. Danny and Jason (my brother and nephew) were just little guys and I spent a lot of time helping Mom with them so she and Aunt Lois and Aunt Mary Jane could play Yahtzee! Life was so simple back then!

Just a quick post...

I'm still here! Still kicking! Just can't seem to get anything done anymore. Work is crazy, everything at home is crazy, life in general is just crazy! Luckily, we are all healthy and happy most days, I just wish there was a magic wand to clean the house and get my work all caught up and just take care of stuff so I could just hang out with the family and find some time to scrapbook! Oh well....I'll just keep wishin'!

GO, SYDNEY, GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Or, in the words of Sammie last night at bedtime...RUN, BIGFOOT, RUN!!! lol

Tonight was the first Cross Country meet of the season. It was a home meet on our new course and our team did GREAT!! They took 1st through 10th place! All those long, hard, hot practices paid off! It was 94 degrees during the meet tonight, so the kids were really giving it their all! Here is a picture of Sydney crossing the finish line! She got 5th place with a time of 12:55. We were so proud of her, but more importantly, she was very proud of herself! I had a cold towel waiting for the back of her neck, an ice cold berry-flavored Propel and a banana! She was quite pleased with all of that! So, I guess I’ve learned something over the last 2 years! Can’t wait for the big meet on Saturday!







Hugs&Smiles!

Kim

I've been tagged...

By Detta and Janelle!! Thanks, ladies!

"The rulz:"Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog."
So...8 facts about me. That doesn't really sound all that exciting! LOL
1. I've been married to my HS sweetheart for 20 Years on November 11th.
2. I've got two awesome daughters who are growing up so fast.
3. I'm an event planner and I've been at my current job for 11 years in September.
4. I've had the same phone number for almost 32 years.
5. Five is my lucky/favorite number.
6. I love scrapbooking. I am always so thrilled when I finish a page and it always seems to be my new favorite page!
7. I'm the world's worst procrastinator...but I work better under pressure, so I guess it works for me!
8. I love Twizzlers. Love them almost more than chocolate...almost!

So, that's it. Told you it wasn't anything exciting...and I bet most people reading this already knew at least 6 of these facts!
So, now I get to tag 8 people. I'm gonna name Dona, KatieJ and Jeanne specifically, but I think everyone reading this should do it!

Back To School!!!

Yep...it's that time again! Back to school! Sammie is starting kindergarten (all day) and Sydney is starting 7th grade! Where does the time go???

Here are my two cuties this morning. Can't wait to see them tonight and see how their day was!!

Hugs&Smiles!

My new favorite layout

Did this layout on Friday night! Pictures of Syd's new hairstyle/color!

Syd's 4-H Scrapbooking Entry

15 Things I love right now....

KatieJ's blog challenge for last week was to blog about 15 things I love right now. So, here it goes....

1. My family. I don't just love them right now...I love them always! They are so important to me and I love them so much. They always make me laugh!! Here's a picture taken of them a couple weeks ago. I wish Roger's eyes weren't closed, but other than that, it's a great picture!


2. Scrapbooking. I've been having a lot of fun scrapbooking lately and trying a few new products and techniques. It's so fun to just try something and have it work out. Here's a recent layout I did:

3. My BFFs..Jeanne and Katie. I'm so glad we've been able to get together so much this year, and I hope we can still find some more time! If only Jeanne would move down here...we'd be inseparable!!!!

4. My house. It's not anything terribly special, but I really do love it. I've got a list of some things I'd like to do to change it, but honestly, I'm pretty darn happy with it as it is. Well, I wouldn't mind if it was a little cleaner! LOL

5. My Mom. She is just the best. She is one strong woman and she is just a good person. I wish I had her energy sometimes, and I also wish I could make her feel better. She's been struggling lately and it worries me. Oh well, she's off to Florida on Tuesday with one of her sister's to go see their other sister, so that will be good for her..but I'll miss her! I normally talk to my Mom at the very least once a day, but I don't want to bother her while she's have a sister's week, so I'll have to stay off the phone!

6. Fountain Diet Coke. I've not been getting my Diet Coke every day and it's killing me. Since I'm on this diet, I have to drink my water before I can have my Diet Coke....and I'm not always so good at that!

7. Heidi Swapp ghost letters. Yeah, this goes back to the scrapbooking. I just tried these for the first time and I love them! Very, very cool!

8. My Santa Fe - love this car! It's almost 3 years old, but it's still a lot of fun to drive. Need to do a serious cleaning, but oh well!

9. My new stove and refrigerator. I know it's silly to be in love with appliances, but I am. They are both just great!

10. Scrapbook Playground. Yep, I love a website. I'm goofy. But, I spend a lot of time there! It's usually the first site I check in the morning and the last one I check before I go to bed. There are some wonderful, talented ladies there and I've made some great friends.

11. Road trips! KatieJ is a great roadtrip buddy and she doesn't even mind when I drag my girls along! LOL Jeanne and I are supposed to take a little roadtrip the end of September to see Stephanie and walk/run in a 5K with her!

12. Playing the lottery. I'm an addict, I admit it. If only I could win!!!!

13. My friends. I've got GREAT friends. Jeanne, KatieJ, Stephanie, Heather, Donna, Stacey, Julie, Pam, Tonya, Keri, Alisa...so many great friends!

14. My job. Yeah, I complain about it sometimes, but I really do love what I do. How could I not? I just wish it wasn't so stressful sometimes!

15. Don't laugh...my warm, fuzzy blanket that Alisa gave me for Christmas. I sleep with this thing EVERY night. Even when it's really hot outside. I love it!!

So, there ya have it. Fifteen things I love right now. There's more...but I'm out of numbers! LOL

Until next time....Hugs&Smiles!

Running a little behind...

on KatieJ's challenge for last week! Take a pic of myself and post it to my blog. And then..do a layout of that pic. UGH. So, here's the picture...

Maybe I'll try the layout today. Who knows!

Trying again to post my layout! Apparently I didn't agree to terms or something like that! LOL Don't they know I never read the details! LOL

Showdown at the Playground

My BFF KatieJ (her blog is listed to the right!) is now issuing a weekly blog challenge at www.scrapbookplayground.com to get all of us to be better bloggers! Well, this week's challenge was to Post about what's going on in our life right now, so here goes....

I'm in a contest at www.scrapbookplayground.com called Showdown at the Playground. This is round 3 and we will be going from 15 participants to 10. Here is the layout that I have entered this week:



If you'd like to stop by and vote, please visit this link: http://www.scrapbookplayground.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=16559&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

Sydney was quite proud that I posted a picture of her on the toilet on the internet for the whole world to see! LOL

Other things going on this past week? Well, I finally got my SB room cleaned up and pretty well organized. I only worked on Tuesday, which was nice. I spent Thursday and Friday with Sydney and Sammie...and Friday we were at the pool! It was fun to take them to swimming lessons on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and watch them. (BTW, yes, Sydney knows how to swim...this is probably her 8th year in swim lessons! LOL She just loves to be in the water!!). On Friday Sammie jumped off the diving board SEVERAL times! She loved it! She also jumped off the diving board at the pool on Friday afternoon, but panicked a little bit and have to be saved! LOL She was treading water and keeping her head up, she just wasn't moving! LOL

That's about it! Nothing else too fun going on right now!

Sunday 7 - 7 Things I love about KatieJ!!!

In honor of my BFF KatieJ's birthday!!!

!. She loves to act crazy and make me laugh!!
2. How she always tells me "Don't be jealous of this!"
3. She's a great roadtrip buddy!
4. She chats online with me all the time!
5. She inspires me and taught me how to "embrace it"!
6. Her tongue (If you know KatieJ, you'll totally get this one!!)
7. She's a very dear, special, loyal friend!

Love ya, KatieJ! Hope the cupcakes are yummy and that Jay takes good care of you all day!

Oh, heck...gotta add a #8 - Her love of the Gorillapod!!!

And, maybe someday she'll teach me to add photos to my blog!!!

Blood Drive today!

Yep, it's been quite a while since I donated blood, but we finally got all the arrangements made and had a blood drive at work today! So, of course, I had to be sure and donate to get myself back on a regular schedule! It always makes me feel good to do this, knowing there's always a shortage in the blood banks!

So...get out and donate!

I've been tagged! :o)

Here's the rules:

Each player starts with 7 random facts about themselves on their own Blog. People who are tagged need to blog 7 facts about themselves and post the rules as well. At the end of your blog list 7 people you are tagging. Let them know that they are tagged by leaving them a comment. So, it's time for my 7 random facts:

1.) I'm a vacation junkie! I love vacations and wish we could go once a month!!
2.) I think I'm starting to get a little grumpy in my old age. :(
3.) I love playing the lottery! Scratch-offs, pull tabs, Powerball...all of them! Now to just win!
4.) It makes me mad when people leave without saying goodbye.
5.) My lucky/favorite number is 5!
6.) I love *me* time...probably too much!
7.) I have never had a dishwasher!

That's it. Now...I've gotta find 7 more people to tag...hmmmmmm...how about:

Dona
Mel
Dawn/Risingsun
Corey
Julie
Kimmie
Thomisia

Have fun girls!

Has it really been two weeks???

Geesh! I knew we had been busy, but I didn't realize we had been THAT busy! Since the last time I posted, I've been to a scrapbook retreat with my PAWS friends,which was a WONDERFUL weekend. Syd has joined a reading club and a running club, and completed her CPR certification..and also had her first babysitting job! Roger has worked and golfed, took the girls to the zoo and shopping and out to eat several times the weekend of my retreat! Sammie keeps busy by making LOTS of messes, changing clothes about 6 times a day, drawing pictures and playing with her babies. She loved the zoo and is looking forward to spending the night with Grandma tomorrow night. We took Syd to camp today. She is in West Lafayette at a conservation camp where she will get her hunter's education card. She will get to shoot bows and guns, ride jet skis and air boats, climb a rock wall, go canoeing, do some 'primitive' camping and cooking and whatever else you can do at camp to have fun! There are 33 girls and 103 boys at this camp! :o[

And, in honor of Father's Day, my Sunday 7 will be 7 things I miss about my Dad (I can't believe he's been gone almost 15 years. So sad.)

1. Listening to him sing George Jones songs.
2. All the horribly ugly cars he ever bought and brought home so proudly!
3. His opinions on EVERYTHING! (I didn't always agree, but it was fun to see what he thought!)
4. The way he smelled...can you say Old Spice??
5. His beagles...he loved to train them.
6. His temper...wowzer!!!
7. His rules! Again, I didn't always agree..but his rules made me the person I am today!

Stealing an idea from my friend KatieJ....

The Sunday 7

(Katie does the Tuesday 10 on her blog, and I always enjoy reading it, so I thought I'd try my own!!!)

Seven fun things I did this weekend!

1) Went on a road trip with KatieJ!
2) Saw Jeanne and Janelle while on that road trip!
3) Saw a baby cow be "borned" (two actually!!!)
4) Ate fresh-made ice cream at the dairy farm (on a waffle cone!)
5) Had a great family day on Sunday
6) Bought bathing suits for the girls (if I had to buy one for myself, it definitely wouldn't have made the list!!! ;o) )
7) Saw Shrek 3 (cute movie!)

So, what did you do fun this weekend????

Another Month Gone....

Wow, I just can't believe that May is over after today. It went SO fast. We're already almost half way through this entire year. Holy cow!!

Sydney finished 6th grade yesterday. That doesn't seem possible to me. She had a great year and has lots of awards to prove it! She received 4 All "A" awards (she maintained A's throughout the entire school year, again this year!), she also received the GT Math Award, the Language Award, Citizenship Award and the Presidential Fitness Award (She was one of only 3 in the 6th grade who earned this!!..Several received the National Fitness Award).

Sammie is enjoying the warm/hot weather and would love to be swimming all day, every day! Her BFF Kenzie broke her arm on Sunday, so she's been in a little tizzy over that! She's happy to be finished with preschool and excited to start kindergarten! She asks me every day if TOMORROW is the day she goes to kindergarten! LOL She still can't seem to grasp the whole yesterday/tomorrow thing! Oh..and a big accomplishment for her this month...she now knows her address and phone number, including area code! That's no small feat when you realize we live in the country and have a super long address! She already knew our phone number, but now knows to put the area code with it!

We're looking forward to lots of fun in June. We're visiting a Dairy Farm, going to Holiday World, Syd's going to camp, Roger's going to a PGA tournament and is also golfing in an annual golf outing that always proves to be a lot of fun. Oh, and I've got a scrapbook retreat! YAY!

Until next month......

Hugs&Smiles!

Running.....

I hate it. I really do! But I want to love it...really! I remember when Syd started running cross country in 5th grade...she HATED it. Really hated it. Through the entire season. She really improved, though, and she is my inspiration. I can do it. I think. I hope. We'll see! Tonight we went to the track at school as soon as we got home. It was hot...really hot (88 degrees!), but I was determined to get at least a little bit of running in. Syd and one of her teammates, Shelby, took off to run the 2-1/2 mile 'town' course. I made sure I stretched out real good..don't wanna hurt this old body of mine! Then I alternated running and walking 1/4 mile laps. All together, I ran 3/4 of a mile and walked a mile. Not terrible for an old lady! ;o) Tomorrow is going to be a walking night. I'll probably walk to the "T" and back, which is just over 2 miles! So, anyway...I hate running...but I'm gonna learn to love it...just you wait and see!!!

Indiana State Museum

Roger had to go do a little work at CPI today, and after he finished up, we decided to take a trip to the Indiana State Museum. Of course, I hadn't brought my camera along. :o( Anyway, we had a great time learning all about the history of Indiana, as well as seeing lots of cool artifacts. Syd and I had been there on her 4th grade field trip, but today was SO much more fun! I bet there weren't 20 people total there, including the 4 of us. And...it was even a pretty cheap adventure! I think it was $7 each for Roger and I, and $4 each for the girls. We also took a short walk along the canal and let me just tell you...it was a gorgeous day! After that we headed to Red Lobster for some dinner (Sammie's choice!), and it was pretty good, too.

Soooo...back to the grind tomorrow. The dreaded Monday. :o( I'll survive, I suppose. Got a pretty large event in the morning, so that will make the day go quickly. No real plans this week for the evenings, so maybe I can get some more stuff done around this house and get some running in!

Have a good week everyone!

The Weekend!!

I'm so glad the weekend is finally here! Work was CRAZY last week. My co-worker was on vacation and I was filling in for her. You realize, when someone is gone and you are doing their job, that you aren't the only person who is busy all time!

Sammie's preschool graduation was last night and it was SO cute!! She was so proud of herself and just couldn't quit smiling. She had a lot of fun singing the songs and reciting the 10 Commandments (kid-style!), and was more than thrilled with the Bible she got from her teachers.

Today, I've been in a little of a cleaning frenzy. This house has been a pit for so long and I just can't stand it. The living room is done, the kitchen is almost done, Syd has her room finished except for dusting and vacuuming and she will be cleaning the front bathroom after her shower...my bedroom and bathroom still need serious attention, as does the entire upstairs. We'll see how far I get. I do have a yummy dinner planned, and need to get it prepped so we won't be eating at 9pm (like we have 3 times this week!)

I'd also like to get out and run today...I promised myself I would start no later than Monday, but if I can get the time today it would make me really happy!!

Monday??? YUCK!!!

I can't believe it's Monday again already. I had a nice weekend, though, so that always makes Monday seem like such a downer! Saturday I spent the day with my Mom. We had a great breakfast, she bought a bedroom suit, I test drove a new car (that I can't get right now, but will SOMEDAY!), we bought some flowers, had ice cream and just really enjoyed the day! Sunday we slept in until about 9, which was AWESOME!!! Then we got ready and went to Indy. Roger had to do a little work. After he was done we headed to Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch and it was really good! Made a trip to WalMart to get the oil changed, then went to Lowe's to look at patio furniture. They don't have a very good selection this year. :o( We did find some new appliances, though, and might just get them!! After that we went to Dairy Queen (and as much as I love Kit Kat's, I don't recommend the Kit Kat Blizzard...it was only so/so!). Went home and kinda relaxed until the Survivor Finale came on. I'm glad to see it come to an end...now I don't have to worry about being home to see it or remembering to tape it!! I'm glad Earl won...he was my second choice behind Yauman.

I thought we were going to have a quiet week this week, but it looks like tonight is our only free night. Tuesday Syd has 4-H, Wednesday I am hosting a Lia Sophia party, Thursday we have Syd's sports banquet and Friday is Sammie's preschool graduation! I'm already looking forward to next weekend!!!

Sick kiddo...

Well, got a sick chicklet in the house. Sydney has strep throat. She was terribly disappointed to miss her final track meet of the season, which also happened to be the County Championship. She suffered through school all day, and even rode the team bus to the meet, but as soon as I got there, she was ready to leave...and she looked like she felt so bad. She was also burning up with a fever. Poor girl. Took her to a Prompt Care facility and the doctor said no school tomorrow and 10 days worth of antibiotics should fix her all up! She's bummed about missing school tomorrow, though.

Other than that, not too much excitement in my life right now. Work is busy, the house needs some serious attention, I need to make an over-due trip to the grocery store, need to get my oil changed in my car and get new brake pads, and would love to just have some time to clean and organize my scrapbook room and actually do some scrapbooking! Someday......

Okay, I did it!!!! Now what????

I decided for my 39th birthday, I'd create a blog. Nothing fancy, just a place to share my thoughts, my silly stories and ideas, an occasional vent and maybe even some of my scrapbook fun!