Shutterfly's 50 Free Cards Promotion

So I have never used Shutterfly before, but I have received Christmas photo cards from others that have used Shutterfly and was considering using them this year.
Then I saw a post from one of the blogs that I check regularly and they had shared this advertisement with this great opportunity from Shutterfly.

Fifty, yes fifty free cards promotion!  And all I have to do is blog about it.

So this year will be the year I try Shutterfly.  I am excited!  It seems to me that the have an extensive selection of cards and layouts to choose from - and who doesn't love choices?!

So I am going to head on over and start designing my cards and await the e-mail with my coupon codes.  Heck I may even post a little something on Facebook about it.

So if you love freebies (and who doesn't - especially around this time of year?), head on over to Shutterfly and check their amazing products:

Christmas Photo Cards  www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards
Perfect for friends and family near or far!

Holiday Cards http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards

Christmas Cards  http://www.shuterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards

Design a Holiday Greeting that will make the recipient smile & hang on to for years.  It's easy!

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

I Need to Slay the Paperwork Monster...

...so he quits puking papers up all over my desk and surrounding area.

 The only reason I am posting these pictures is so I can show pictures after I get this all taken care of today.  It is literally making me a little crazy.

 I'm not to Psycho Kitty crazy yet, but I can feel her coming on.

The thing is, I thought I had this all under control this weekend.  Boy was I wrong. 

And now I will dive into this mess of disorganization and get it under control.

Or Psycho Kitty WILL make an appearance.  We don't want that to happen!

Football & Display My Art 2010

Aidan's Display My Art Artwork.  It's a circus lion!

Aidan was a captain at this past Sunday's game.  It was awesome.  They won 32-0 & he rushed for 10 yards for a touchdown!

He's number 23.  He's running off the field after the coin toss & discussion with the refs.

ACE Football Pic 2010

Look at him!  Love him in this picture.  Not really happy with the bad attempt at Photoshop.  But he is adorable!

You would never guess that behind that sweet smile is a Tasmanian Devil. 

He plays with his heart because he loves the game of football.  It doesn't matter if he's practicing or playing in a game, gives 110% always. 

That is what makes him a great footall player.

Geocaching Addiction

As if you didn't already know, my name is Tracy and I am addicted to geocaching.

There I said it.

We only started caching the beginning of August and have found more than 60 treasures!

Uncle Matt & I rooting through the loot in the Hogback Hollow cache in Potter County.

Uncle Rick & Uncle Matt looking at the Potter County Trail map.

The Dragons of Cymru cache near the Cumru Township building





Aidan & I at Middle Creek on the Mill Stone Trail



 We really didn't have time to look for any this past weekend which really bummed me out.  We went for a micro on Monday night, found it easily and that made the world all better.

I don't know how many we will get done this weekend either with the NHRA coming to Maple Grove, but we shall see.

We have purchased our first ammo can & we are going to attempt to hide our own geocache.

People are clever when it comes to unique containers to use as cache vessels.

I love it when just Jerry & I go out.  We get to go for a walk, talk & just be together.  Our geocaching adventure will hopefully continue for years to come. 

A Sunday of Fun!

Happy Monday everybody! Another weekend has flown by and here we are at Monday again. I'm telling you - slow this crazy ride down!!

Saturday was pretty calm. Jerry was on service & the boys are still on house restriction, so they were here, but getting along, so it was enjoyable.

Sunday however, everything was a little hectic! We left the house right before noon to go to Owen J. Roberts High School for ACE's football game. They got crushed and our ten year-old is starting to not like playing.

I know winning isn't always the point, it's the fun of playing, blah, blah, blah. He's a boy. He's ten. He wants to win. Period. It's the same story each week. He's even "threatened us" with "I think I'll just play soccer next year". No.You.Will.Not. Period.

Everything was smoothed over with a stop at Sonic on the way home.

The game was over in record time and it was a good thing because I had the baby shower for our niece and nephew-in-law in the afternoon.

They party was wonderful and they got bunches of wonderful gifts for their new little addition.

I have to tell you, I don't know how our sons made it to the ages that they are. I can not believe all the stuff they have for a baby. I mean I'm sure everyone feels that way when they go to shop for things for the "next generation" but seriously people, pacifier wipes??? What happened to either running it under water or the popular "phoof" it off? I am pretty sure those are still accredited methods, but if you need to waste your money, err I mean buy special wipes for anything from their buns to their boogies. I guess that's your choice. Maybe I'm just ticked that I didn't think of it first!

It was a great weekend & I hope everyone had a fantastic one also. Here's to a fun week!

A Little Bit of Halloween Decor

So we put up most of our Halloween decorations. You know how I like minimalistic, so this little bit of orange and black goodness is enough for me.

Sometimes when I see pictures of other women's Halloween decorating, I feel like I haven't done a thing! But it also makes me a little crazy to think about putting all of their stuff away!

We have a few more things to put on the front porch and I need to get pumpkins and mums, but I don't think it is in the plans for this weekend.

Jerry and the boys just left for lacrosse throw-around and the house is eerily quiet.

I may light up some autumn candles and bust out my Bible Study book. It isn't too often I get these quiet moments to myself!

Hoping everyone is enjoying this beautiful fall day and doing what they like to do. I know I am - spending time at home with my family - God is good!

Now enjoy my decorating pictures with commentary:

Some of decorations in the living room. The lanterns hanging in the windows I got at the dollar store last year. They are so cute when they are lit up.

Here's a close up of one of the lanterns.

This is the cabinet under the television.

Love my Party Lite Lantern with interchangeable panels.

The bear is from Boyd's.

I got these lovelies at Green Dragon. The above leaves/acorns are made of wood. I am anxious to go back next week & get some more. I've got ideas swimming around in my head.

Pumpkin from the same stand. It is made from tin.

Skeleton made of wood. I love skeletons!

A shot of all of them with a half dollar for size reference.

My brain is swimming with ideas as to what to do with the ones I got and the ones that I may still get. For right now, they greet you when you come in the front door.

As I get some creative ideas, I will post them. As for now, any suggestions?

New Bible Study

Two weeks ago, our Bible Study group got together for the first time this school year.


We met for a week, had off a week (kids were off from school) and this past Wednesday was our first actual "study" day.


The new study is called "Bad Girls of the Bible - And What We Can Learn From Them" by Liz Curtis Higgs.


I decided to read the first chapter. I can tell if I'm going to like a book by reading the first chapter. If it takes a lot of effort to convince myself to continue reading, then it usually is a book I will not finish.


This book is not one of those. I hated to put it down.

It is a Bible study that I understand. The author translates the stories of the "bad girls" into modern day topics that I can relate to.

We watched the hour long DVD to start off on Wednesday. It is the author giving highlights of each chapter and main bad girl.

She is comical and very likable.

Our first chapter is about Eve, the original bad girl. I have the chapter read & will start the workbook this weekend. It seems like a wonderful companion to the book. I will let you know after I start it.

Bible Study is a wonderful grounding point for me. The women there are so supportive and wonderful. I find myself praying for guidance and assistance more often. I pray for wisdom in parenting, in relationships, aww heck who am I kidding, just overall help. I can sure use it.

Am I really cut out for this parenting thing?

I am constantly asking myself this question. When tough situations arise, I think "I do not know what I am doing. Who entrusted me with real live human beings?".

As Austin gets older, the problems get more complex and come with more serious consequences.

He does not get the significance of doing well in school. He is a 14 (almost 15) year old young man who lives in the moment and does not think about what actions he takes today could affect his road to the future. I hear myself saying "If I would've known then what I know now...".

I make it sound like he is doing terrible. He's not. He is only having problems with his Earth & Space Science class. I am not sure if he really doesn't understand the material, or he doesn't like the teacher. Regardless, he is going to have to adapt.

I can not express to him how much this concerns me without sounding like a nag. Our conversations usually start out civilized and then end up with either or I or both of us crying.

It is so hard for me to watch him struggle. The things I do for him, I wish my Mom had done for me. She knew the importance of letting me learn from my own mistakes, but I don't want him to make the same mistakes I did.

I have been praying about him a lot. I want him to develop a desire to want to do the best, to be the best. I want him to be comfortable in his own shoes.

What happened to my little boy? He's still here, just in a size 10.

2009-2010 - 8th Grade - Still a boy.

What a difference a year makes.

Wow. When did this happen? I guess when I wasn't looking.

Autumn Pretties

I love autumn. The changing of the seasons from summer to fall is my favorite time of year. The colors, the scents, the baking, the changing of temperature...love, love, LOVE IT!

I also love to decorate for fall. Fall leaves, gourds, pumpkins, corn shocks, hay bales...I am in heaven.

I found these beautiful dishes at Wal-Mart last week & just had to have them.

This is the platter. I put a half dollar in the middle of it so you could see how big it is.

Bowl from the top.

Bowl from the side.

And at last the combination.

I can't wait to serve something yummy out of this gorgeous serving set. It looks so pretty just sitting on our table. I may have to whip up some Italian Sandwich Dip this weekend to give it a test run.

Back to School, Back to Work

It's that time of year again. Back to school. I dread it every year. I think I feared it even more so this year because it meant that Austin was going to high school. Weep. Cry. Weep. Cry some more. The last stop in his Governor Mifflin career has come into view and I am desperately trying to find the emergency brake.

How can it possibly be that my first born is old enough to go to high school? I was unaware of the drastic change that was about to occur in my boy. Girls, riding to school with friends, he somehow got taller than me...

I really didn't think it would be this hard. Austin has become very independent & I am so proud of that. He has been staying home by himself for a few years like when we go out shopping or to one of Aidan's practices, gone fishing several times out on the Atlantic with our neighbors (their son is his best friend) and is generally a very nice young man - except when it comes to his brother, but who is ever nice to their siblings?

I know it is the ultimate goal to have him move out, be a contributing member of society and to take care of himself, but I didn't think it would come along this fast.

He is a young man. A bit of a goof, but a great kid, who I am so thankful to have for a son.


Not to mention that my youngest son started his last year at the elementary school where I work. He is so sweet.

Maybe I can hang on to him a bit longer.

We shall see.

What! - It's been two months!

So I've been busy! The boys & I were in Erie for two weeks to celebrate my Mom's 60th birthday & my sister's wedding.

While we were gone, new carpeting was installed in the bedrooms. That means before we left for Harbor Creek everything had to be emptied out of the bedrooms. The boys helped (and by that I mean, not so much) and Jerry worked his butt off to get it done. It is beautiful, but I am sure that there are still a ton of boxes in the attic that need unpacked. Oh well, out of sight, out of mind (also, not so much).

We were in Brecknock for 13 days and then traveled to the wilds of Pennsylvania for our annual 10 day camping trip to Potter County.

ACE started football mini-camp last night (it's so freakin' hot here!) & I've been sitting in the air conditioning because apparently, I am a wimp. I do not like to sweat.

Here are highlight pictures from the past month & a half. We had so much fun & I am sure the pictures do not do it justice.

Charles James & Aunt Fracy

The Myers'. Gosh are we cute - or what! My sisters & Momma are beautiful!

Walking down the aisle. The strap broke on my shoe. I tried my best to conceal my mortification.

Lynne & I. We are adorable.

Eli Earl bustin' a move. See his arms?

My baby sis. Gorgeous.

The love of my life. It doesn't get any better than him.

Daddy & Mom. Still crazy in love. What a wonderful example to the three of us.

The plate I made at Claytopia. I thought painting pottery would be relaxing & therapeutic. All it did was stress me out! It's not perfect & I hate that!

Mmmmm...Mike Sullivan...HAWT!!

Uncle Matt & I digging through the cache stash at Hogback Hollow. I must say, spending the afternoon hiking through the woods with Uncle, Rick, Uncle Matt & Jerry was probably my best day there. Relaxing, energizing, amazing.

So there it is in a brief little nutshell. I doubt life will calm down any time soon, but I do enjoy the blogging & will try to do so more frequently.