* Our { Creative } Life *

Organization At It's Best!!

2012-01-27T20:32:00.000-06:00

About two weeks ago I asked Scott if we could get the supplies to finally construct our closet system for the master bedroom. So, a trip to Menards on a Sunday and a few weeks later, here it is ... step by step ... COMPLETELY built all by my handy husband. I can't tell you how excited I am about this. I totally dig organizing so to have all of our clothes in one location again puts a HUGE smile on my face!!

The first step ... make the boxes in the shop.

Here's what the closet looks like before we started ... just one big empty room.

Another view going into the master bedroom / living space.

Putting up the shelving to see where the placement should be.

What a cute little helper. Wherever Daddy is, he has to be there too. :)

Oh yeah, it's solid!!

All stained, varnished and put up. Scott's putting on the finishing touch of the clothes bars.

And now it's my turn to get to work ...

Putting all the clothes in - all nice and organized!

My clothes ... I learned LONG time ago that when my clothes are put in rainbow order I can easily find the piece of clothing I am looking for. I do this for my clothes and now will do it for Scott's since I'll be the one putting his away. Brea also does this for her clothes and she swears by it. It's a GREAT little tip for organizing and SO easy to do!

Filling up my sweaters and some of Scott's clothes.

Scott's clothes and our longer garments. I also have to add that the baskets, etc., we have here are NOT staying ... I just need to find the ones I like and get it all pretty in here. I just couldn't wait to have it all put together today. I seriously couldn't walk by it knowing that it could all be put in there TODAY!

I encourage you to organize your closet today.

1. Go through each piece of clothing and decide if you wear it. If you don't, donate it. If you haven't wore it in over a year, donate it.

2. Organize by color. Trust me, it makes it so much easier to find things.

3. Once you get everything cleaned out and you know what you have, you'll be SO happy you did it. When you start with one closet, you'll be going through the rest of the closets you have in your house in no time.

Thanks for looking ... I hope you like my closet as much as I do!

Recipe: Crockpot "Candy" Chicken

2012-01-27T15:22:00.000-06:00

Here's a new recipe that I tried in the crockpot. It was really good - just enough "sweet" to make it super yummy!

Here's the ingredients:

6 (or so) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup lemon lime soda (7-up)

2/3 cup white wine (could use vinegar)

3 Tbsp. minced garlic

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Go here for the recipe I sortof followed but again, I went with what I had on hand.

I used our bigger crockpot for this but it is suggested to use a 4-quart crockpot.

Put the chicken in the crockpot. Mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour over the chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6-9 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. The chicken is done when it is cooked through and has reached the desired consistency. The longer you cook it, the more tender it will be. I cooked mine for about 7 hours on low and it was super easy to cut with a fork ... very tender.

Here it is before it starts cooking. If you use a smaller crockpot, it would cover the chicken even more. Halfway through the cooking time, I turned the chicken over to make sure the juices would absorb into both sides.

And here it is as a meal! I served it with rice and my Grandma's Banana Bread. It was very good. Brea, Scott and Hayden all loved it! This will definitely be one I'm making again!

Make it ... enjoy it!

Another Week ... More Pictures!

2012-01-27T13:02:00.000-06:00

I'm actually behind because these pictures were taken at the beginning of January. I'll be adding more and more as I get a chance!

Check out this little guy ... couldn't you just grab him out of there and squeeze him?!

Enjoying a yummy lunch with Mommy and Daddy.

Supper!!

Went to the movie "We Bought A Zoo" with Bee, Evan and his friend, Brandon.

On Saturday the 14th Brea and I had to go down to the Cities to pick up Mom from the airport. The weather was AWFUL. We saw seven different vehicles in the ditch. This one has only three wheels on the ground and it had to have just happened because the people were still inside.

Yep - this is the crap we were driving in.

Here comes Mom!

Giving love to Sissy!

Playing around on the rocker chair.

No lie ... this is how Hayden walks and drives around the house most of the time. He loves having this bucket on his head.

Oh, are you talking to me?!!

Such a nice day ... 54 degrees in January ... go figure!

And two days later it was down to 12 degrees. Gotta love Minnesota!

Hayden is finally starting to fold his hands when we say Grace. It's so cute because the first couple of times Scott had to help him. :)

Working on my Project Life album from last year ... here's part of that project - all the pictures that needed to be corner rounded. That's a lot of little bits!!!

And last but not least ... Brea working on her Math homework. I'll never understand it but she totally gets it so I'm lucky I don't have to help her at all.

More pictures, stories and recipes to come!

This is so true!!

2012-01-26T16:48:00.000-06:00

I'm loving having alot of inspiration and ideas at my fingertips every day since the discovery of Pinterest. However ... I feel like this is true! I definitely need another house to use all of the ideas that I've pinned. Many of the things are just for inspiration since they don't really go with the style of our house, but I know if I had another house, I'd PIN the heck out of it! LOL!

Recipe: Crack Bread

2012-01-22T17:12:00.000-06:00

1 unsliced loaf of sourdough bread

1 cup (estimate) of grated fiesta-blend cheese

Oscar Mayer Real Bacon bits

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 Tbsp liquid Ranch dressing mix

Pre-heat oven for 350 degrees. Place bread on a piece of aluminum foil on a baking sheet. (in my pictures I missed this part so don't forget to do it or you'll need your handy hubby to help you move a crazy cut-apart loaf of bread!)

Cut the bread length-wise, careful to not cut through the bottom crust.

Cut the bread the opposite direction to create "cubes" of bread, again not cutting through the bottom.

Separate the pieces of bread, sprinkling cheese down in the bread. You can add as much or as little as you want.

Next, do the same with the bacon bits. (See what I mean about NOT forgetting the aluminum foil - now I had to move this! Yikes!!)

That's better!

Mix the melted butter and ranch dressing in a bowl or measuring cup. Pour over the bread and into the grooves. If you have enough left over, using a pastry brush you can coat the top of the pieces.

Wrap the entire loaf in aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, take out and remove any aluminum foil. Since I had it on the bottom, I just removed the extra piece I had on the top and pushed the rest down to the side. Return to oven for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Makes a yummy appetizer or addition to an Italian meal! Make and enjoy!

The original recipe comes from www.plainchicken.com. I changed it slightly because I worked with what I had in my fridge and pantry. Feel free to check out the original one as well!

Oh Life ...

2012-01-09T11:26:00.000-06:00

Since last year when I started Project Life I have been using the website called Oh Life. It sends you an email every day, you hit reply, write what your day was about and send it! It creates an online journal for you to keep for journaling purposes or just a little diary. Just thought I'd share since I know other Project Life people appreciate helpful links!

This Week ...

2012-01-06T13:44:00.000-06:00

This week I've been offline quite a bit and busy spending more time playing with Hayden, cleaning the house (decluttering!), getting crafty and getting other things done around the house. I still make time to take a few pictures so here it goes!

A quick meal for us ... meatloaf, potatoes and beans - SO BEYOND GOOD!

This is what I experience every time I go get a diaper to change Hayden. He RUNS and hides somewhere ... today his choice was behind the curtain.

He then will peek out at me - it's so cute!

I'm WAY behind on Project Life 2011 so I've been spending time catching up on that. It's a great feeling.

Brea organized all of Hayden's Christmas toys so when he came down the next morning it was all set up for him to play. He thought it was great!

He loves his new train set from Grandma because it makes music and goes around the track by itself. However, he can't help himself and takes the train off the track all the time.

On the 5th, I went to Marshall with Brea and some of her classmates to a writing conference. It was fun spending the day with her.

The group in one of the classes.

James and Brea ... love their friendship.

Brea, Espi and Kaitlin - {besties}

Off to do more around the house as Hayden takes a nap. Have a wonderful weekend!

Oh My Word!

2012-01-02T11:59:00.001-06:00

Every year I pick a different word to try and live my life. Previous years I've had journey, bliss and create. This year my word is

STORY!

It's just another chapter in my life, but what will be my story in 2012?

I've decided to do another Project Life album this year to document our year and am super excited now that the year is started so I can remember everything that is happening in our lives so it will be a perfect STORY book to share with family and friends!

Hello 2012!!

2012-01-01T18:42:00.000-06:00

We rang in the New Year in style! We went out with a bunch of our friends to Alexandria to eat, drink and dance!

Yummy drinks at Bella's ... Sangria and a Beer

This was Scott's meal ... the Osso Buco

I had the manicotti ... it was delish!

My main squeeze :)

{ my girls! }

{ the gang's all here! }

CHEERS!!!!

~ Merry Christmas ~

2011-12-25T20:42:00.001-06:00

From our family to yours

... Merry CHRISTmas ♥

Advent Calendar

2011-12-13T18:13:00.000-06:00

I *finally* got my Advent calendar done. I had purchased the little boxes last year after Christmas from an Etsy store. I bought the bulletin board at Crafts Direct and just spray painted the frame so it was black. (If you are making one yourself, a little tip I can give you is to slightly sandpaper the wood to take the "plastic" feeling finish off and then use a primer to give it a good base.)

I went through all of my scrap paper to find coordinating papers to use to cover the boxes, as well as grabbing my black stickers to make the numbers.

Here's a closer look at the boxes ...

~ ♥ ~

It's hard to see the extras and bling that make them more fun, but trust me, it's CUTE in person!!

And here was the little card for today ... to make a snow angel family. Well, that didn't happen. Why?

NO SNOW!! Just fog!

Enough fog that school was 2 hours late this morning! CRAZY!

Hope you are enjoying your December so far. The holidays are busy, and I can't wait for all the magic that happens. :)

Brea Got A Deer!!!

2011-11-15T09:19:00.000-06:00

On November 6, in the early morning hours, while hunting with Scott, Brea shot her first deer! Her excitement could NOT be contained! She was so proud of herself!

Here she is in the woods with the nice-sized spike buck that she shot. She's just the cutest, little hunter!

When they got home, I took this picture of her with it. She had a perma-grin for most of the day.

And coming full circle, the next night we had this yummy meal of her venison, green beans and potatoes. (Sorry if that grosses anyone out but if you know us by now, we're NOT vegans and we eat what we hunt!)

We're so super proud of her and she's excited to go out next year to get a bigger one!

Recipe: Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

2011-11-15T09:08:00.001-06:00

Here's another Crock Pot recipe that was SUPER easy to make! All ingredients were found at Wal-Mart so accessible to all!

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Here's the ingredients and recipe:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breats (can be frozen or thawed)

4 cups chicken broth (that's the whole container)

2 cups water

1 box of Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice

1 cup diced carrots

1 cup diced celery

1 cup chopped mushrooms (optional)

(Sauce)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 cups half and half (I used fat-free half and half)

Directions:

Place chicken at the bottom of the crock pot. Add the broth, water, rice (along with seasoning packet), carrots, celery and mushrooms in a large slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4 hours. About 15 minutes before completion, take out chicken and shred with two forks on cutting board, then add back into slow cooker. In a small bowl combine salt, pepper, and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Slowly pour in and stir the flour mixture to form a roux (thicker mixture). Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until sauce is smooth and creamy. Pour mixture into slow cooker and then let cook on low for 15 more minutes.

Chicken all chopped up!

Before the cream mixture is added

Flour, salt and pepper mixture

Adding the cream mixture to the chicken, rice and veggies

Doesn't that look delicious?! Serve it with some french bread or garlic toast and you've got yourself a great meal!

Here's my kid eating better because I've been cooking more ... she's loving it!!

Scrabble Tile Coasters

2011-11-13T20:57:00.001-06:00

I've been wanting to make these Scrabble tile coasters for a long time! I finally had a little bit of free time to figure out the words I wanted to use so here's what I came up with. They aren't "drink" related like other ones I've seen ... instead, they are simple four-letter words that I liked to describe my house and life.

I made four of these for us to use around the house.

So cute!

Here I have all of the ones I was going to make laid out, ready to be assembled.

Here's my little tutorial for making these coasters.

Using corkboard as your base, I simply placed the tiles on it and drew a line to indicate where to cut.

With your corkboard on a cutting mat, take a straight-edge blade and cut along the line.

Once cut into a slightly-off square (Scrabble tiles are NOT square), I took a piece of finer sand paper and sanded the edges to get off all the little pieces hanging off of it. Be gentle or you'll take off a big chunk!

Once the corkboard is ready, you simply hot glue the tiles into place. As you can see, you will not get a perfectly-aligned creation unless you spend countless hours making sure you glue each piece individually and with a ruler! Besides, the imperfection of crafting is the perfection in it!

After the tiles are all glue on one side, I put hot glue all over the back and adhered it to black felt. This is for tiles that you would place on glass tables or other scratchable items or just for a finished look.

Here you can see the three layers are done ... but the tiles need one last little bit of love!

A quick coating of Mod Podge does the trick. This is to fill in the spaces between the tiles as well as giving it a finish that helps with beverages that "sweat."

The finished product ... how cute are these?!!!

And now here's some more ideas for your tiles!

So ... Scott is an electrician and we have our own company called Westberg Electric. How ironic is it that it is EXACTLY 16 letters ... enough to make a Scrabble Tile coaster JUST for him ... love it! We also made another coordinating one for an employee who might be having a drink with him after a long work week, and another one for another buddy who might show up for a cold one (Your Beer Goes Here - gotta love it!)

I didn't glue the following tiles together, but just arranged them so you could see some other ones you could make:

How about a cute coaster for a wine-loving friend? For your friend's birthday, give this, along with a bottle of wine, and it's a perfect gift!

Here's one for you to set your morning cup of coffee on while you do your makeup in the bathroom!

And how about a five-tile coaster? Just a little bigger with the same amount of fun!

And you could always use the words I came up with to make your own little set for your house. There are many other words you could use (first names, last names, etc.) that would work too. Personalizing it (like I did for Scott's) is a great way to make something as a gift!

Wanna know where you can find a HUGE list of four letter words ... right here! It's a list actually used for Scrabble Australia but it will give you some great ideas if you have the patience to go through it.

Enjoy making your own Scrabble tile coasters and let me know if you do, I'd love to see your creations!

Painting Pumpkins

2011-11-10T15:40:00.001-06:00

Let's take two ordinary pumpkins ...

Spray paint the smaller one green and the larger one red. Don't forget to tape off the top!

Grab your craft paint and turn them into some Angry Birds!! We saw a picture of these and Brea wanted to make them so we found the perfect pumpkins to do them. To get the pig ears the same color, I simply painted some white cardstock the same color I used for the nose. They are taped to some toothpicks, then stuck into the pumpkin.

I think they turned out great!!! They were fun to do and next year, we'll find something else to turn a pumpkin into!

Recipe: Zesty Italian Chicken

2011-11-10T15:26:00.000-06:00

Zesty Italian Chicken

This recipe is made in the crockpot so it's perfect to put together in the morning. Here's the recipe:

3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or pork)

8 oz. cream cheese

1 packet Zesty Italian Dressing Mix

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup water

Sundried tomatoes (optional)

Rotini noodles
Garlic bread

Place chicken in the bottom of the crockpot. Mix all other ingredients together and pour over the chicken. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

Boil water and make the noodles. While they are cooking, take the chicken out and place on a cutting board. With two forks, shred the chicken and place back in the crockpot. Stir in and leave simmering for 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve over the noodles with garlic bread.

SUPER YUMMY!!!

YUMMY Pumpkin Seeds!

2011-11-10T10:28:00.001-06:00

The boys were here for the weekend so I decided to get some things done that were on my To Do List! One was finally getting some pumpkin seeds roasted!

Nugget decided to be my little helper for the job and he ROCKED it!!

The guts gotta come out!

Wash them off thoroughly! I think I rinsed and washed mine about three times because I don't like ANY strings or anything left on the seeds.

Here's where the patience comes in. If you want really crispy seeds, soak the seeds for atleast eight hours in salt water. We gutted the pumpkins in the middle of the day so we soaked them all day long. Then overnight we layed them out on a towel to dry out. The next day is when the magic happens!

Here's the recipe:

2 cups (approximately) pumpkin seeds (rinsed, soaked for 8 hours, dried overnight)

4 Tablespoons butter, melted

4 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp onion powder

(for the garlic salt and onion powder, I don't even measure, I just shake some into the bowl)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Mix everything together making sure all seeds are coated. Spread seeds out on a cookie sheet in a single layer, baking for approximately one hour (or until crispy and brown and all "sauce" has evaporated) - stir every 20 minutes. If you have more sauce, it might taken an extra 20 minutes to get them done but TOTALLY worth it!

Remove from oven when done and place in bowl. Let cool for about five minutes and ENJOY!

Here they are spread out on the cookie sheet waiting to go in the oven.

The finished goodness! Super yummy and a great little snack!

The kids and adults that were here when they came out of the oven started eating these right away and didn't want to stop! Let me know if you make them and if you think they are as good as I do!

Recipe: Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

2011-11-06T13:57:00.000-06:00

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

I thought I would try cooking more (I know, I know - people are probably thinking the world is coming to an end - LOL!) so I've been trying to find some recipes that are easy and quick.

Here's the ingredients that I got for this recipe. It's pretty much a "dump and cook" recipe, which I love!! All ingredients shown can be found at Walmart.

Here's the recipe:

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard (or any mustard)

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups Instant rice, uncooked

1 22 oz. package Tyson Grilled & Ready Oven Roasted Diced Chicken Breasts

1 6oz. package Oscar Mayer smoked ham thin slices, cut into approx. 1" pieces

1 8 oz. package Kraft Big Slices Swiss cheese, cut into 1" pieces

1 10 oz. frozen broccoli, thawed (optional ingredient)

Topping:

1 1/2 cups corn flakes, crushed

1 3oz. can Parmesan cheese

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

Combine all casserole ingredients in one bowl and the topping ingredients in another.

Close-up of the casserole ingredients ... it smells so good!

Place casserole in 9 x 13 pan ....

Spread topping over entire casserole.

Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.

It doesn't look THAT different, but the topping is a nice, golden brown.

This amount served six people with some left over. I also served it with Garlic Bread, which was a great compliment to it. My family LOVED it and I've made it again since I first tried it.

Make this some time this week and enjoy the yumminess!!!

Crazy Kids!

2011-11-04T11:31:00.001-05:00

Last night we went and bought some new hats for Brea for hunting and being outside this winter. When the boys were over, they decided to play around while wearing them and whoever had one of the hats on got to act silly and have me take their picture while flying through the air.

Crazy and cute!

This kid cracks me up!!

I Believe I Can Fly!

JUMP!!!!

We interrupt this jumping to take a phone call - LOL!

Patiently waiting his turn to wear a hat ...

Oh yeah, it's crazy time!

It's always entertaining when the boys are over. Brea joins in and Hayden loves the chaos. Win-win!

... love everywhere ...

2011-11-03T11:09:00.000-05:00

A few years ago we planted this tree on the 10-year anniversary of my Dad's death. When I picked this tree out at the nursery, I could only see a picture of it hoping that it would magically turn into what the picture was showing.

And today I look outside and see this ...

A nice, brightly-colored tree! My heart was leaping out of my chest!!

Against the blue sky, it just looks so beautiful. I can't wait until it grows bigger.

Later in the night, Brea and I were sitting around chatting when she got up for a snack. When she got back, she noticed this:

The imprint of where she had sat left a little heart.

It's true ... you can find love everywhere!! ♥

Thankful Tree ♥

2011-11-02T16:28:00.000-05:00

It's the beginning of November ... the month to be aware of the things in your life that you are thankful for. I had an empty space on the table in our entrance so I created my own Thankful Tree for my family and friends to write little notes about what they are thankful for.

I simply cut some branches off a tree, put them in a vase and filled the vase with rocks I had on hand. You could also use acorn, marbles or sand. The possibilities are endless!

I printed a little sign so people know why I have branches in my entrance - LOL! I just let them know they need to grab a tag, write their name, date and their thankful note on the tag. Then they just need to take a ribbon from the bowl and hang it from a branch.

I can't wait until the end of the month when the tree is FULL of things people are grateful for! It will look so cool and I can't wait to read what everyone is thankful for.

This project took me less than two hours TOTAL ... I know this because I did it when the little babester was taking his afternoon nap. It could be even less if you purchased tags and didn't have to punch them out. Let me know if you decide to make one ... I'd love to see other creations!

The WAVTI Coat

2011-11-02T10:46:00.000-05:00

When my Mom moved out of her house, one of the things I took was my Dad's WAVTI (Willmar Area Vocational Technical Institute) coat. I wear this coat when I am outside working just to stay warm and have a bit of my Dad with me for inspiration and know I can get anything done while wearing it. It's like my Superwoman cape! I had been working on some things outside and had the coat upstairs on the back of a chair. I walked out into the dining room and saw this:

The little guy wrapped up in the coat. He was just laying there contemplating life. It melted my heart because even after I went and grabbed my camera, he just stayed there.

He got up, walked around the table and came to me pretty much shoving the coat in my face! He wanted to wear it!

And so here he is. ♥

I laugh at this one because he looks like E.T.!!

Just so sweet

And always grabbing for the camera! God I love this kid!!

Boo from the Westberg Crew!

2011-11-01T10:06:00.001-05:00

With Halloween being a Monday night this year, we got the kids ready and headed out early.

Isn't this the cutest, little witch ever?!! :)

Add an adorable spider and you've got yourself a perfect combo.

We stopped over at Olsons so Konner and hayden could see each other. Konner was a cowboy and acquired vampire teeth while out trick-or-treating so by the time we saw him he was a vampire cowboy ... scary!

And of course, with the kids being dressed up, we decided to get into the action as well. Brea thought I would fit in with her and Hayden as a kitty. It was going to be just me taking the kids because Scott was working out of town but he came last minute so we threw him in the Batman costume again. After a long day of work, I didn't dare ask him to wear a mask all night so he was revealing his true self while showing off his super powers at the same time! :)

Hope you all had a magical night of spooking!!

Evan and Noah's Birthday Party

2011-10-30T19:31:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Evan and Noah's birthday in style ... wearing VIKINGS gear! So be prepared, you're going to see alot of purple and gold!

Aunt Janet made their cake ... adorable!

~ D ~

Me and my Baby

~ B ~

Hayden having a great time playing with Auntie Debbie

Opening presents ... Nugget draws and colors all the time so these little aliens that Beckers gave him are perfect to show off his skillzzz.

Itunes gift card ... always a perfect gift!

New Jersey

The hat Evan is wearing was Aunt Joyce's. It will be worn with pride!

Happy Birthday Boys! We love you more than you know!!

Halloween Night with our Friends ... It's A Wrap!!

2011-10-29T18:11:00.001-05:00

Another Halloween night out with our friends. We ventured over to Lisa and Blair's house to start out, then to Blue Sky for dinner, followed up by going to O'Neil's for drinks and dancing.

Doug Herrupp, the archaeologist, and his mummy :)

Heck yes, he digs me!!

Starting the evening out ... Credem and Liz, Blair and Lisa, Trever and Brooke, Me and Scott

The girlies ... Angela, Chasity, Stacy, Brooke, Elizabeth, Lisa, Me and Tiffany

Out at O'Neil's ... Krissy, Lisa, Liz, Me, Brooke and Chas

Such a fun night! We love dressing up and having a great time with our friends!

2011 Table Setting Fair

2011-10-29T16:51:00.001-05:00

I attended the table setting fair at Paul and Carol's church again this year and found some interesting and fun tables. I helped Carol with one as well. You'll see that at the end!

I adored this one for several reasons. The red candleholders were from Walmart and they were gorgeous! I loved the fact that I have all the dishes shown, along with the exact same silverware. The thing I loved the most was the tablecloth. The lady actually MADE the tablecloth to match the dishes.

Cute ideas for a kids party

A simple Country Christmas table

Family friend Jan Sand did this one ... simple and elegant

Jan's granddaughter, Belle, who is about nine years old, did this table with thoughts of summer in mind!

This one made me think of my sister, Nancy, who is over in China now so I had to take a picture of it

I just liked the simplicity of this one with the black, white and blue

Brea thought this one was cool with goldware, not silverware ... fancy

And now onto ours ...

We called it From Thy Bounty

Fun things we did were doubled-up the napkins for a layered look, had chestnuts in the vase to add a touch of nature and cute little name tags made with simple shippin tags. The names on the tags were the nicknames that Grandpa has for the five grandchildren. Joining Grandpa at the table were Hug-A-Bug (Brea), Curly (Hayden), Mac (Konner), Izzy (Kenzie) and Miss Muffet (Kaitlin). We got ALOT of compliments on it - so fun!

La Casita With My Friends

2011-10-28T15:16:00.001-05:00

I met my friends Tisha, Anne and Missy in St. Cloud for a fun, extremely entertaining dinner at La Casita. All I can tell you is that we had to stop for about three minutes to take a few pictures and then we went RIGHT back to catching up and telling high school stories. It was such a great time!

Don't we all look fabulous - LOL!! I always have a great time getting together with them and can't wait until the next time I get to see them!

DIY Ring Holder

2011-10-25T19:30:00.037-05:00

So I've been looking all over for any ideas on how to store my rings. I finally decided that I was going to make my own ring box so here's the details!

I first found all my materials, which wasn't really much. I had the box from when we cleaned out my Mom's house. I'm not sure what it belonged to - maybe a desk - but I have three of the exact same thing. I purchased the foam at JoAnn's on a big sale they just had. I have PLENTY left over for another project. I also found the black textured fabric on JoAnn's clearance rack for $4.00 a yard and also have plenty of that left over.

The first thing I did was lay the box on the foam and measure out how much I needed.

Cut with a sharp scissors or a blade. Precision is not a must as you aren't even going to see the foam.

See? This is how my edge turned out trying to cut through the foam. It would have been a little neater if I would have used a blade but I grabbed what was closest to me and that was the scissors!

Next I measured how much distance was going to be between the cuts. I figured two inches would be good because I have some larger rings.

Draw a line across the entire piece of foam so you know where to cut.

Grab a sharp blade and cut the foam. DO NOT cut through the entire piece. It makes it easier to work with. However, if you do choose to cut them into individual pieces, just make sure you leave them in the correct order (possibly numbering them) so you put them together in the box like a puzzle.

-Once cut, you can see that they make an accordian-type piece.

After cutting, I put the foam on top of the fabric to measure it for how much I would need. Remember to atleast double it because you will use quite a bit pushing it down between the cuts in the foam.

For the depth of my box, I needed to cut another piece of foam to fill the bottom. I did not cut this piece.

Place the cut foam in the box and get ready to cover it with the fabric. Sidenote: After placing the foam in the box, I realized I should have cut it more narrow and I could only fit six blocks in the box instead of the seven I measured for. You might have to do the same so I thought I would let you know you do not have to try and squeeze it all in - just put in what fits because you'll also have to allow for the bulk of the fabric.

Lay the fabric on top of the box. You are now ready to start stuffing the fabric in around the foam and into the box.

I used a bone folder to squish the fabric down into the cuts of the foam and on the edges. I worked with the fabric to have it nice and even. It really is super easy. Just keep pushing it down and working with it until you are done. At the end, if you have alot of extra fabric, make sure you cut some off before pushing the fabric down in the front.

The finished product! I'm lovin' it! The whole project from start to finish only took me about 40 minutes so if you have little time one day, try making one!

Full of rings! Now I never have to figure out where my rings are when I want to wear them ... they're all in one place. The nice thing is, as my collection grows, I can always make another box (or two!) to match!

I just love the detail of the front of this box. You could also use an old cheese box, a plastic craft box or anything you think would make a great ring holder! Thanks!

Night Games In Sauk Centre

2011-10-22T14:38:00.001-05:00

Hayden, Brea, her friend, Megan and I went up to Sauk Centre for our friends, Bob and Ann's, annual night games. Scott was gone and a little disappointed that he wasn't there to play along.

How many kids fit into ALL these shoes?!!

This many!!! The kids have such a great time playing outside in the dark, followed up by some fun, relaxation and craziness in their basement. Good times!!

Just Another Day ...

2011-10-18T18:05:00.002-05:00

Brea had a late start to school because of conferences so it was nice for Hayden to see her before she went to school.

I thought it was funny how she double-stacked her backpacks ... one for school books, another with gym clothes!

My day consisted of watching this special guy go in and out of the bin about 100 times. He had toys in it, sat in there for a snack and generally just hung out in it.

Just another day here at the Westberg Empire. :)

Happy Birthday Linda and Lisa!

2011-10-17T17:50:00.000-05:00

This is how my day started ... emptying out the corner cabinet and watching Hayden use it to climb in.

There was a piece of the tennis cake left so I ate it for breakfast. That's appropriate, right?!

We went out to eat a Chen Garden for Linda and Lisa's birthday. We about DIED laughing when their free "cake" showed up, along with a few of the employees singing "Happy Birthday" to them in Chinese. All we could think about was the scene from A Christmas Story where they are at the restaurant and they get sung to ... Fa.ra.ra.ra.ra.ra.ra.ra.ra!! Oh, and check out the cake ... just HAPPY. It was so strange and memorable at the same time.

Evan and Brea

Lisa, Brea and Linda

And me with my fabulous sisters!!! ♥

... Just Hayden ...

2011-10-15T17:41:00.003-05:00

Just like Daddy in his Carhardtt

This is his happy face when he sees all kinds of puppies on my computer. :)

Tennis Anyone?!

2011-10-14T17:12:00.002-05:00

Brea hosted a little party for the girls she played tennis with. There was nine total (missing Louise) all staying overnight. It was quite LOUD in my house all night long.

Here's the girlies ... Kylie, Brea, Alexis, Heather, Emma, Taylor, Kennedy, Catherine and Michelle.

A few decorations and a yummy cake for them.

Closeup of the cake. Each little pearl to make the seams was strategically placed by me with a tweezers to make it *just* right!

Over the bar I had tennis balls hanging down spelling "Wildcats" ... the kids thought it was so cool!

A great group of girls who all had a blast together!

Fall Decorating 2011

2011-10-09T15:30:00.000-05:00

This year I went to a friend's house and purchased a bunch of pumpkins from her at a GREAT price so I had lots of them to decorate with. The white ones I got off a self-serve trailer on the side of the road in Waverly, MN, while on the way home from visiting my Great Aunt. It was a major score!

Again using my Aunt Joyce's table for decorating. It sits outside all year long and gets weather and aged, but that's what I love about it. I grabbed a bunch of stuff from the fall bin and went to down putting it all on the table. I have no rhyme or reason to where I put stuff, I just put it down and move it around until I feel good about it. :)

Here's a close-up of the pumpkin on the table. I spray painted thumbtacks the color black and then created a W with them. Monograms make things so much more personal in my opinion.

The one end of the garage is a little more narrow so I put this crate there with some little decorations on top. I love the copper pot, it brings in another element. Oh, and I adore little churches for some reason. I gravitate to them all the time.

Grandma Kosse's fence is in the middle of the two garage doors. The little bench is made from barn wood from the barn that blew down years ago. Again, I just put a bunch of things on both items unil it looked right to me.

I got the cornstalk the same time I got my orange pumpkins so it was a great space filler by the mudroom entrance door. It's hard to see but the thing holding the flowers is an old camper coffee pot ... think speckled black. I love it!

And at the end of the driveway by the fence I put up this stuff. The screen I got from a five-screen panel that I bought long time ago at a garage sale. I just unscrewed on panel to hang the garland and the W on. I think it's welcoming and festive!

Hope you have a wonderful Fall! The weather has been pretty good in Minnesota, and today is actually very nice outside. It's a lazy day as Brea is doing a bit of homework and Hayden is taking a nap. As soon as he wakes up, we're headed outside to enjoy a little sun!

Uncle George's John Deere Auction

2011-10-08T16:52:00.002-05:00

Debbie and I flew out to the big town of Morristown, South Dakota for my Great Uncle George's John Deere auction. We were excited to go with Ron, Aaron and Ethan. We were fortunate enough that they were flying out to Mobridge and then driving the one hour to Morristown.

Here's the plane we took ... it was so nice inside. The flight only took 40 minutes compared to an atleast six hour drive!! It was amazing!

Here we are over 25,000 feet and going about 373 miles per hour - crazy!

~ flying the friendly skies ~

Ronnie, me and Debbie during the flight

We landed in Mobridge where I commented that the population was 3,574 and that where we were going to Morristown would only be about 74!!

I was 10 people off ... the big town has 84 people in it. My Uncle George says they must have taken the census on the day of a town festival and the bar was full - LOL!

The auction was out at the farm ... LOTS of tractors - some newer, some really old - for sale.

The lineup of the newer tractors.

Some of the older tractors and machinery.

About six lines worth of stuff ... something for everyone ~ well, if you need a tractor - LOL!

Lisa modeling the nicest tractor they had for sale.

Mom and I by my Great, Great Grandfather's tractor

Uncle George riding in style during the auction. If I could have bid on that truck for Scott, I would have! It was perfect inside!

And the auction begins!!

Me and Mom

Ronnie bidding on the WRONG tractor. Thankfully someone else outbid him and he realized it just in time to bid on the right one.

Ronnie and Ethan bidding on the "H" tractor ... they one he wanted to get for the kids to have out at the airport.

They won! Ethan getting comfy on their winning tractor.

Ronnie and Uncle George ... his button says "This is the real George Burns." He's so cute!

Here's part of the crew that was there to see it all happening ... Debbie, Auntie Janet, Me, Ronnie, Aaron, Ethan, Lisa and Mom

On the way home, we stopped to see Uncle Earl and Aunt Shirley in Mobridge. Ethan wanted to see the farm Uncle Earl and his son, John, had built over many, many years!

It was massive and amazing! Ethan was in love and wanted to make one just like it!

It was a fantastic, cold day but I had a blast going there. Always good times ... it's what you make of it!

Brea's Birthday Party With Friends

2011-10-07T09:40:00.001-05:00

Brea had some of her friends come over after school one day to celebrate her birthday! We had a hometown football game that night so they were all dressed in their team spirit attire.

Taylor's birthday is the same week as Brea's so Brea suprised her with a little tiger cake because they are her favorite animal. The girls are Espi, Megan, Taylor, Brea and Kaitlyn.

A close-up of the cake ... I had fun making it for the girls. :)

Opening some presents ... the Rubik cube which she is determined to solve!

Megan gave her a bunch of stuff she thought Brea would enjoy. It was so cute!

Onward to the game ... the Wildcats kicking some Sauk Centre butt!

That's alot of black and gold!!

Check out the score ... holy cow!!

At the end of the night ... 54 to 6 ... it was a blowout!

Brea had such a great time with her friends, and it was a nice date night for Scott and I. :)

Happy Birthday Brea!!!

2011-10-03T15:16:00.000-05:00

It's Brea's Birthday!! She's now 14 years old ... where does the time go?! We went to Litchfield to watch her play tennis, then went out to eat and over to Carol's brother's house for a little DQ cake!

Catherine, Louise, Brea and Taylor

Brea enjoying her FREE caramel malt ... it was so good!

Mom, Paul and Carol with us

Parkview Cafe ... it's a total small town feel ... literally about six tables and some stools ... tiny!

Brea with her DQ cake ... it was so cute!

Happy Birthday to our sweet, perfect girl! We love you more than you'll ever know!

Last Night Out At Melvin's

2011-10-02T14:39:00.000-05:00

This weekend, Melvin's ... a local bar and restaurant ... hosted one last night of fun before turning the keys over to the pizza joint Zorbaz. We went out to celebrate and have a great time with a bunch of our friends.

{ the girls }

{ the guys }

{ most importantly, I had their Spinach and Artichoke Dip with a Long Island Iced Tea ... so yummy! }

The Last Days Of September

2011-09-28T01:35:00.001-05:00

Here's a few pics from the last of September including tennis, hunting and playing outside!

September 22 ... Brea had a tennis match in Willmar ... she won every game she played!

Nice serve kid!

September 24 ... Duck Opener ... a BIG day in the Westberg household. Brea and Scott went out to the duck pass the night before, but after hunting all day, they came home with these babies! Great job!

It was also the day of the Fall Festival where I purchased this playyard for Hayden. He LOVES it!

* cutie *

It looks like he is trapped in there, but he didn't care ... he was playing away while we were watching Scott clean the ducks and goose.

My awesome little hunter!

September 25 - Scott and John went out to the pass again this morning and shot even more birds.

When you shoot it, you need to clean it!

Doing a great job Johnny!

After the boys got done, I went in the backyard and picked a bunch of apples from our apple tree to make some yummy apple crisp!

Could I get any luckier as a Mom? I think not!

These two just love each other.

- beauty -

Thor was tired from fetching the ball that Hayden throws for him.

Gotta give Sissy hugs :)

You can find signs of love ... even if it is oil on the shop floor!

~ our sweet boy ~

September 27 - I received a little surprise in the mail today ... this beautiful bracelet that my friend, Marnie, had made for me with Brea and Hayden's names on it. I ADORE IT!! It's seriously one of my favorite pieces I'll ever wear!

It was a GORGEOUS day out so we spent a bunch of time in the backyard. Hayden discovered the swingset so Brea spent some time pushing him on the two-seater. He's growing up so fast ... well, they both are!

So that's the end of September in a nutshell - well atleast what I took pictures of! Hope you enjoy seeing a little bit of our lives. :)

Scrapfest 2011

2011-09-17T11:07:00.001-05:00

During the weekend I helped our friends Chris and Angela at Scrapfest down in the Cities. It was fun getting back into the scrapbooking/stamping world ... even if it was just for two days. I had a blast with them as well as my friends Brooke and Lisa. LOTS of laughs during the whole weekend!

The first night we helped at an Archiver's event.

Brooke, Chris and Lisa all helping the ladies made wonderful Christmas tags.

After the event, we went for dinner and drinks. I *had* to take this picture of Chris with his drink because it had to be the smallest Jack he ever drank. It was so funny!

All of us enjoying yummy food at Buffalo Wild Wings

Speaking of yummy ... this was my burger ... so good!

The next day I went to lunch with Chris and Angela at Twin Cities Grille at the Mall of America. Ang and I split their Macaroni and Cheese. It was devine!!

Before going out on the night of September 17th

Gotta love a good long island iced tea ... yummmmmm

Now THAT's what a Jack should look like - love it!!

It was Chris and Angela's anniversary so they were given a little treat to share!

Good times yet again with my friends!

Brea's Birthday Celebration!

2011-09-13T10:33:00.000-05:00

Because half of my family was going to be gone for Brea's real birthday, we decided to celebrate it a little early. On September 11, we had a little get-together at our house for Brea and also to cheer on the Vikings (who lost! - UGH!)

The Birthday Girl

Opening some of her presents

Gotta love a good book!

With Auntie Linda, Konner and Auntie Nancy

With Grandma Vosika and Uncle John

The Kiddos ... Kaitlin, Kenzie, Konner, Noah, Brea and Evan

Grandpa & Grandma Westberg and Auntie Kim

With Mom and Dad :)

Nancy made cake pops and we made some quick cupcakes

Baby Hayden who slept through the whole party ... it was naptime, what can we do about that?!

Loved celebrating my little girl!

Brea Hunting and Prairie Pothole Days

2011-09-12T14:49:00.000-05:00

September 10, 2011

Brea, Scott, Evan and Noah went hunting for the Youth Hunt this morning. Brea shot a goose ... we are so proud of her!!!!

The group came home before we headed out to this place ...

Prairie Pothole Day!

Right when we walked in, John found a dog that he thought he should have - LOL!

At the reptile exhibit, they had these beautiful butterflies with the cocoons hanging ... very cool!

It was Johns' first time at Prairie Pothole.

Our little family enjoying the HOT, SWEATY day!!

Just Bee ... Our Beauty

Our Little Cutie!

40 IS Fabulous - Nancy's Birthday!!

2011-09-12T14:03:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Nancy's 40th birthday on Friday night. It was such a blast! Here's some pictures throughout the evening. :)

Nancy made this cake for herself ... how awesome is it?!

She also made a cake for her friend, Jeff, who was celebrating his birthday that night.

Nancy and Jeff with their cakes - don't they look great for 40?!

Shelby, Evan, Noah and Nancy

Me and Mom

Me and Shelby

James, Linda, Nellie and Me

Our 6th Sister ... Me and Marsai

The kiddos had fun hanging out by Green Lake and playing in the water and sand.

~ ♥ ~

The Fab Five!!

Mom and Jim

Nancy and her friends

Me and Ashley

Me and my girlfriends ... love them all!!!

9.11.11

2011-09-11T18:29:00.001-05:00

Nine Eleven

Who knew that when we were in Kindergarten those two numbers, when said together, would have so much significance in our daily lives. We looked, or some people maybe still look, at other people differently. We travel differently. We look at the world differently. Sometimes you don't feel safe, no matter who you are with or where you are.

Today is 10 years after the attacks on our nation, our land ... the land of the free, the home of the brave. I applaud all of the men and women of the service who protect me and my family every day. They are without their families on a daily basis so I can be with mine.

♥ May we always remember. ♥

Watch this Youtube video ... very moving!!

Here's the timeline of 9-11-01 ... 10 years ago

September 11, 2001: “Today: Less humid. Sunshine. High 79.”

6:00 AM: Polls open in New York City for primary elections.

7:59 AM: American Airlines Flight 11 [carrying 87 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:00 AM: New York City public schools open for the fourth day of the school year.

8:14 AM: United Airlines Flight 175 [carrying 60 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:20 AM: American Airlines Flight 77 [carrying 59 innocent, including crew, excluding hijacker] takes off from Washington, DC’s Dulles International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:42 AM: United Airlines Flight 93 [carrying 44 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] departs 42 minutes late from Newark International Airport for San Francisco.

8:46 AM: After receiving a call from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Boston control center that Flight 11 has been hijacked, the Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) scrambles two military jets to the New York area from Otis Air National Guard Base, Cape Cod.

8:46:40 AM: Hijackers crash American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 carrying 92 innocent people, into floors 94 to 98 of 1 World Trade Center, the North Tower.

8:46 AM: The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) receives the first report of a plane crash into the North Tower. Evacuation in the North and South Towers begins.

9:00 AM: The Fire Department of New York (FDNY), the New York Police Department (NYPD) and the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD) are at their highest mobilization levels. Port Authority civilian staff and all on-duty WTC response staff have mobilized.

9:02 AM: Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 78 to 84 of 2 World Trade Center, the South Tower.

9:15 AM: Officials begin closing New York City bridges and tunnels to all but emergency vehicles and pedestrians.

9:25 AM: The Federal Aviation Administration orders the first ever nationwide ground-stop, prohibiting the take-off of flights. Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) jets establish combat air patrol over Manhattan.

9:30 AM: The New York Stock Exchange does not open at its scheduled time. Instead, its employees evacuate.

9:37 AM: Hijackers crash American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.

9:40 AM: The Federal Aviation Administration orders all 4,546 planes in North American airspace to land at the nearest airport.

By 9:45 AM: Evacuations are underway at the United States Capitol, the White House, the Empire State Building, the United Nations, the Kennedy Space Center, Disney World and major sites across the United States.

9:59 AM: 2 WTC, the South Tower, collapses in 9 seconds.

10:03 AM: Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 93 in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers launch a counter-attack to seize control of the aircraft.

10:28 AM: 1 WTC, the North Tower, collapses in 11 seconds. All 16 acres of the World Trade Center site are in ruins. A rescue and recovery effort begins immediately at the WTC Site.

10:30 AM: New York Governor George E. Pataki declares a state of emergency in New York State.
11:02 AM: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani orders the evacuation of all of Lower Manhattan below Canal Street, including workers, residents, tourists, and school children.

1:27 PM: A State of Emergency is declared in Washington, DC.

2:35 PM: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani holds a press conference at the New York City Police Academy. When asked, the Mayor states: “The number of casualties will be more than any of us can bear.”

5:20 PM: 7 World Trade Center collapses.

8:30 PM: President George W. Bush addresses the nation from the Oval Office: “Today, our nation saw evil, the very worst of human nature. And we responded with the best of America—with the daring of our rescue workers, with the caring for strangers and neighbors who came to give blood and help in any way they could.”

It's September!!!

2011-09-06T16:05:00.000-05:00

This weekend we went up north to Cross Lake for the Labor Day weekend. We spent it with Scott's side of the family.

On the way we always stop in Belgrade to fuel up. Brea loves the green dino at the gas station.

Hayden fell asleep ... I consider it recharging the little battery!

One night we went into town for pizza and to listen to Rockie Lynne play. His whole set consisted of songs dedicated to the military. It was pretty cool.

In the town circle there is a placed called the Chocolate Ox. It's a quaint, little candy store that has new and old-school candy. Brea, who is obsessed with Angry Birds, found a game there.

Two kids in a candy store - and they LOVED filling up a bag of goodies while there.

Indulge in chocolate .. very cool!

Enjoying the concert.

Hayden and Konner playing on the bullfish in the town square.

{ adore my pretty girl }

We spent alot of time chasing this little guy!!! :)

Always wanting to grab the camera.

So big he has to drink all by himself. Is that face to die for or what?!!

Rockie performing in the town square.

The next day we took Hayden for a walk down by the lake.

He just had to get down and touch the water!

Very tired at the end of the day ... gotta rest on Grandma.

Before we leave on Monday, one last night down the road.

First Day Of School

All the supplies are ready to go!

She has a schedule so she knows where to go.

The traditional picture by the big ole' tree. :)

And our baby is off to school! Yet again, I'm crying inside but happy for her as she starts another part of her learning journey. She also is riding a new bus for the first time since Kindergarten so we'll see how that experience is once she gets home.

And this pile of stuff will be a yummy roast for supper! Looking forward to that yumminess!

Well Hello Katy!

2011-08-29T15:49:00.000-05:00

I took Brea and her friend, Megan, to the Katy Perry concert that was in St. Paul on August 23. It was such a great concert ... very entertaining and amazing!!

We went out to eat before the concert for some good food!

I met my friends Michelle, Coretta and Tisha there. I love seeing my high school friends whenever I can. :)

The good food I was talking about ... Frickles (deep friend pickles) and mini burgers ... it was all so yummy!

Waiting for Katy to come out and perform.

Oh yeah ... she's on!!!

So fun watching her and the dancers all night long.

She had many costume changes throughout the night.

The stage ... so awesome!!

She got on a little cloud and floated out above the crowd. It was adorable.

Closeup of her cute, striped guitar while she was on the cloud.

During the song Hot & Cold she did a ton of costume changes ... this is the one at the end where she literally changed with confetti being dumped over her ... spectacular!

With her dancers ... they did an amazing job!

On her little swing singing a love song ... it was beautiful!

At the end of the concert - fabulous!!!

The girls in their new t-shirts. It was such a great time I spent with Brea!

Time for the Fair!

2011-08-28T21:10:00.000-05:00

We went to the Kandiyohi County Fair with Paul, Carol, Konner and Kenzie. One of the places we thought Hayden would really enjoy would be the animals - we were right!!

I thought this picture was hilarious! Nothing like letting Porky and Wilbur kknow the correct temperature they are going to be cooked at!

Checking out the cows with Grandpa

Grandma and Hayden looking at the llamas

Petting the horse named Louise. She was the horse of Kaitlin's boyfriend so we had to check out both of them ... Thelma and Louise - LOVE IT!

Whenever Hayden wants to get your attention, he literally shifts his body and sticks his face right in yours. It was so funny when he was doing it to Konner.

Konner was making weird faces and making his giggle!

Sharing a little ice cream with Grandma

Konner wanted to go on a ride so he picked the motorcycle. He had fun and even went "no handed" just to show off - LOL!

Look at that face!!!

We had a good time ... love my kids - they are so much fun to be around!

A New Favorite!

2011-08-20T14:46:00.000-05:00

One of my new favorite reality shows is called Picker Sisters, which is on the Lifetime network. It's two chicks who dig in barns and the back woods of different places around the United States and find junk to turn into creative home decorations. It's right up my alley!

Here's an example of some of the things they have made. The table is with old chains and the cow picture is an old sign. Very cool ideas!

Friday Fill-In

2011-08-19T20:50:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I did a Friday Fill-In so I thought I would do one today!

1. It's fun to waste a bunch of time on Pinterest! I'm addicted and I like it. :)

2. Easy Mac is easy to make. LOL! Hayden loves to eat it for lunch every once in a while, so popping it in the microwave works for me!

3. I like to be me!

4. Some things I will never know! However, I'm always willing to learn new things. :)

5. Something I'm very much excited about is school starting again. It's actually bittersweet for me because I love having Brea at home with us but she's excited to get back to learning and especially her friends!

6. Eating every piece of food that passed through my lips was well worth it.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to chilling out with the hubby and Hayden, tomorrow my plans include finishing up some crafty projects get Brea from the Christian gathering she has been at for the past few days and Sunday, I want to finish hanging some stuff in the bathroom upstairs. I'll need Scott's help with that so maybe I'll make some fresh banana bread and bribe him - LOL!

{ Just Ordinary Days }

2011-07-16T11:29:00.004-05:00

Same stuff ... different day at the Westberg Empire!

We had Evan and Noah over for the day while Doug and Linda were at work. It was fun having the boys here during the week!

While watching America's Got Talent, we were just dying laughing over the guy! He had this look on his face the whole time his partner was veing interviewed!

One night we ventured over to our friends, Mike and Tammy's, cabins. Brea and Megan went tubing for a little bit before it got too dark out.

Mike was just whipping them around in a circle, but they were having a good time!

Me and Tammy - love her!

Captain Mike and Junior Captain Ethan

Rylee and Hayden

Megan, her friend, Kenzie and Brea

Another day we went to Doug and Linda's for supper to hang out at the pool.

Having a blast with Daddy in the pool!

And last, but not least, Brea on her way to Community Ed tennis. It's her sport of choice, and she's pretty darned good at it. Most of all, she just enjoys it!

Have a happy Saturday!!

Let's Celebrate America!!

2011-07-15T21:24:00.001-05:00

July 4th

For the 4th, we always go to Spicer's parade and meet our family there. We enjoying seeing lots of family and friends who are actually in the parade. This year, afterwards we went to Nancy's house to enjoy some great food and to relax. That night, Brea and I went into watch the fireworks display ... one of my favorite parts of the whole weekend!

Mom, Debbie and Brea waiting for the parade to start.

Doug walking with the Color Guard in the parade. He is on the far right-hand side in the front row.

John drove one of the fire trucks while Evan (on top of the truck) and Noah (inside) rode along with him.

Shelby and Hayden watching the fire trucks go by.

Hayden LOVES being with Daddy!

Ashley and Me melting in the HOT sun!

It's become a tradition that I take a picture of Brea and her friend, Kaitlyn, who rides with the BMX group in the parade. :)

After he was done with the route, John joined us where we were sitting.

{ the Fab Five and a wee one }

Another day ... another table of food for all of us to eat! With a weekend like this, I should weigh about 300 pounds!!

Uncle Dave stopped over after he was finish with his police reserves duties. Hayden had fun playing with him.

{ ♥ }

Time for the fireworks!

I hope you all enjoyed your 4th of July weekend as much as we did! We're so proud to be Americans and truly appreciate what every soldier and veteran has done for us. Freedom isn't free. There are men and women paying the price with their lives every day for us and we will never take that for granted so to you, we thank you!! God Bless!

It's Summertime!!

2011-07-15T17:46:00.023-05:00

It's July and we've finally got enough good weather ... almost TOO hot ... that we can be outside enjoying it. Here's some highlights of our 4th of July weekend and some of the days afterwards!

July 1

{ playing and swimming can be so tiring }

... Noah flying high! ...

~ Evan's the basketball this time! ~

: pretty girl :

... Noah, Sam, Ducky, and Evan ...

{ swimming is FUN!! }

July 2

During the weekend of the 4th of July, the town of Spicer is HOPPING! Tonight is the night the street dance is taking place but instead of going and being swallowed up by a sea of intoxicated people, we decided to host a little gathering at our house. It was just perfect!

I had to take a picture of the little treats that my friend, Lynette, brought. So cute and yummy!

Bob and Hayden scored BIG TIME while playing ladderball against Brea. Three shots on the three-pointers ... perfection!

Hayden didn't think it was necessary to leave the beanbags on the boards so he just took them off whenever he felt like it. :)

I couldn't resist sharing this picture of Bryan and Waverley ... super cute!

{ just the boys }

... the pretty girls ...

:: all the kids ::

Brady, Blake, Lucas, Maggie, Waverley, Brea, Hayden and Ely

[ the adults ]

Bob, Ann, Bethany, Bryan, Lynette, Jon, Scott and Me

A few fireworks to end the night off with a bang!

July 3

The night of the 3rd we went over to John and Lisa's house for some family time to eat and play the bean bag game. Every year we have a friendly competition we call the RWBO ... Redneck, White Trash, Blue Collar Olympics. The bean bag game is our game of choice so we decided tonight would be the perfect night to play!

( sisters )

-- a delicious plate of food is a MUST to get lots of energy --

Just love this picture of E- Bob :)

Blue bean bag coming RIGHT atcha!

Brea's so cool she has to wear shades while playing :)

{ Evan showing some sweet tossing skills }

Doug taking a turn at throwing.

1st place ... Scott and John ... aka The Beer Bellies! LOL!

2nd place ... Doug and Evan ... great job guys!

3rd place ... the Westberg duo of me and Bee!

4th place ... Linda and Nugget

5th place ... Lisa and Nancy - In all fairness, they didn't even play until the second set and before that was finished, the Minnesota State Bird (aka mosquito) came out to play and we just weren't into having them around so the competition ended very abruptly!

- me and the hubster -

~ say cheese! ~

... watching the final competition ...

Mommy's Little Firecracker is all tuckered out from a long, exciting night of fun! Sweet dreams!

Friday Fill-In!

2011-07-15T09:08:00.000-05:00

Just for fun I thought I would do a Friday Fill-In as it's been a little while since the last one.

1. I hold my true friends close to my heart and value their honesty and love them for who they are.

2. Scott is someone I like to travel with because he drives and I can read and sleep.

3. That day, February 16 ... the day we became a complete family!

4. I plan to create good memories this year.

5. Trust is a HUGE issue for me. Abuse it and you lose it.

6. I hate stepping on little square blocks in the dark.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to spending time with my family, tomorrow my plans include having a good time at Boogie Wonderland and Sunday, I want to relax.

Look ...

2011-07-13T18:18:00.002-05:00

A while ago I was watching TV and a commercial for something came on with this saying. It totally caught my attention ...

"Look. Look up. Look out. Look around. Look at the details, the big picture. Look behind closed doors. Look beyond. A look can be focused. A look can tell you more than a glance. You can say it all with a look. But be careful, looks can be deceiving. What are you looking at? A look can tell you where you are going ... and where you've been. A person can look suspicious, look guilty, look lost, or be overlooked. You should get that looked at. You can look at the facts, look right through someone, look out for number one or take a look through soneone else's eyes. You look because you want to know the when, the where, the how and the whodunit. You can look away or you can look closer, but no matter what you find, never ... stop ... looking."

I don't know why, but it "talked" to me in that you can figure out alot by just observing and paying attention to what people, your surroundings and even your gut are telling you. So remember to LOOK.

Two Word Wedding!

2011-06-28T11:47:00.020-05:00

June 17, 2011 ... Celebrating John and Lisa!

{westberg family }

( simply perfect )

[ pure joy ]

= the parents =

- grandma - grandson -

~ pretty amazing ~

... fab five! ...

{dad's flyover}

[ exchanging vows ]

{ we're married! }

: second family :

(rainbow dreams )

{ handsome boys }

~ feeling pretty ~

( wedding cake )

{ first dance }

- grandma - grandpa -

~ dollar dance ~

... birthday boy ...

( my mama )

... heavenly ...

2011-06-23T12:39:00.003-05:00

I would love to have an area like this at my house to have friends over for some cool beverages! A nice warm sunny day would also be in order ... which we are NOT having lately here in Minnesota! Grrr ...

Wedding Photos ...

2011-06-22T13:37:00.000-05:00

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Matthew 18:20

This past weekend my sister, Lisa, got married to her guy, John. I'll be uploading some pics here VERY soon to share the wonderful day with everyone. We are blessed to have him as part of our family and couldn't be happier for them! :)

Welcome Summer!

2011-06-21T19:29:00.002-05:00

The irony of summer starting in Minnesota is that we have only had a handful of days that it has been nice out. It's been ridiculous weather! Mother Nature has the worse mood swing ever this year! Today, the first day of summer, it has rained ALL DAY LONG ... not cool! Hopefully the weather will get a little better and we will be able to have a great summer!!! Cheers!

Friday Fill-In!

2011-06-03T19:54:00.002-05:00

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged but I'm going to upload a bunch of pictures from Hayden's FIRST Birthday soon! It was a perfect day!

So to get moving again, I thought I would do a Friday Fill-In, which I used to do about a year ago. I visit a blog that gives us prompts and we can fill in the rest with our own words so everything in red is my fill-in ... enjoy!

1. Hey! It's HOT outside!

2. I don't like getting just a kernel of truth. I want the full truth.

3. Eat whatever you want and enjoy life.

4. I don't eat many donuts but when I do, I love getting to the jelly in the middle.

5. First thing to note: Life is pretty dang good right now.

6. Facebook is one a major distraction.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to spending the night with my family, tomorrow my plans include going to a cousin's wedding, and Sunday, I want to rest - LOL!

Super Mom!!

2011-05-08T11:58:00.002-05:00

Here's to all the moms who put the cape on every day!!

~ Happy 15th Shelby!! ~

2011-05-04T17:01:00.004-05:00

It was Shelby's 15th birthday so we celebrated at her house this past weekend.

What a beauty!

New pajamas from Auntie Nancy brought back from China

Happy Birthday Mike ... it's what she wanted her cake to be - LOL!

Now THAT'S our crazy Shelby!!

Nancy made this beyond adorable cake ... so colorful and fun!!

Shelby with her cousins

You have FIVE chances to get a boyfriend out of this!

Single ... by choice! ;)

Ash, Bee and Me

Donna and the Fab Five ... plus a wee one

Jim and Mom

LOVE YOU SHELBY-BELLE!!

* A Blessed Day *

2011-04-24T13:41:00.001-05:00

As you can tell it's been a while since I've blogged. That's what happens when we have another wee one in our house ... sometimes there is no time for technology ... and that's okay with us! We've been busy with life, but I'm going to try and upload some pictures later to fill in the gaps of our lives, because those moments are too special NOT to share!

Easter Sunday was an extremely special day for us. It not only represented Christ dying on the cross for us, but we also celebrated bringing Hayden into God's family through Baptism. We had all of our family there with us at the church, followed by everyone coming to our house for Easter dinner and an Easter egg hunt.

A long day with lots of pictures so sit back and enjoy!

Easter Morning

Books, books and more books from the Easter Bunny!

Brea with all of her Easter basket goodies!

I wonder how loud he'll get with this little toy. :)

Such a cool kid with shades just like Daddy.

The Baptism

Being blessed with the Holy Water

Being presented to the church as a member of God's family along with another baby that was baptized that day.

* Our Family *

With Father Bryan

Kim, Keith, Debbie and David are Hayden's Godparents ... we are thrilled they said YES!

Scott's Family - Kaitlin, Keith, Kim, Kenzie, Paul, Carol and Konner

Susan's Family - Doug, Nancy, Linda, Mom, Evan, Lisa, Ashley, Shelby, Noah, John, David, Auntie Janet and Debbie

LOTS of oil in his hair means a crazy, little mohawk!

Easter At Our House

Hayden has found a couple of his eggs!

Brea's having fun searching for her eggs. Look how cute she is! :)

All the kids found their goodies.

Mom, Nancy, Shelby, Noah, Debbie and Auntie Janet

Opening some of Hayden's Baptism presents ... this one is a huge rosary from Nancy

His first duck call from Lisa and John

Nancy made this beautiful cake for Hayden ... adore it!

Family Pictures

... so blessed ...

- sister & brother - daughter & son -

SO handsome in the outfit my Mom made for him!

So that's our day in a nutshell. I hope you had a perfect Easter day like we did!

... Hayden Paul Westberg!!! ...

2011-02-16T18:20:00.002-06:00

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!

HAYDEN PAUL WESTBERG

was adopted into our family this afternoon!

We are beyond thrilled ... but the journey to this joy started back in April.

Kim and Keith (Scott's sister and brother-in-law) were told by Family Services that a baby was going to be born and would need placement in a foster home. They thought we would be the perfect family to accept this little one, with a possibility of adopting him in the future. We knew in our hearts that we would take on this responsibility with open arms and open hearts, no questioned asked, through all the struggles we knew we were going to endure.

But this day is even more special because with the adoption today, it not only brought Hayden into our family, it also brought two very special boys together ... Hayden and our nephew, Konner ... two cousins who are also forever connected as BROTHERS!

Two boys ... brothers and cousins ... bringing two families even closer together!!

Our whole family helped us celebrate this joyous event today! We couldn't have done it without their support!

{ Hayden }

... ♥ Family ♥ ...

So there you have it ... we opened our home, and most importantly, our hearts, to this little boy who will forever be our SON!! We feel so blessed for this opportunity to keep these two boys in each other's lives so they will also know each other as brothers. God Is Good!!

December ...

2010-12-04T19:23:00.000-06:00

Here's a few pictures from the beginning of December.

A sneak peak of the gift we gave Brea for Christmas.

On December 2, I went to see All Shook Up at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre with Lisa, Aunt Janet, Linda and Debbie. This is an annual thing we do the night before our big Family Shopping Day! The performance was awesome!

The next day we shopped 'til we dropped. We ate at the Great Mandarin restaurant, another tradition we have. As you can see we have some packages but this was just the start of the day!

Egg Drop Soup and a fortune cookie ... so good!!

In the middle of the day it started to snow quite heavily. We were in a huge winter storm. HOWEVER, Debbie and I decided to shop through it and actually stopped at different locations on the way home. Put the truck in 4-wheel drive, take it slow and there was no stopping us! Besides, it paid to stop because the first time we went out on the freeway it took us ONE HOUR to go 10 miles. Sheesh!!

Another photo of the roads ... people just drive plain stupid in these conditions.

On December 4 it was our friend, Mike's, birthday so we met him, Tammy and some of his family out for supper. Happy 40th!!!

It's December!!

2010-12-01T10:51:00.005-06:00

I'm not even remotely close to being caught up on the pictures from this year on my blog but I thought I would post some current pictures as well. I decided to take part in a "December Daily" project that a lady in the scrapbooking industry named Ali Edwards does. It's just a little something you can do to remember the month. You could do this for any month really, but she focuses on December.

The way you are suppose to do it is have your entire album ready so you can just add pictures, etc. Mine? It's ready to the point it is going to be because it's not a traditional scrapbook. I had this little box that I covered in cute brown polka dot fabric and then some vintage velvet green ribbon around the edge of the cover. The "pages" are just double-sided cards I made. I figured that I would just pick a page depending on my mood for the day. There is a front side which has bolder patterns, and the backsides have space to write what we did that day.

I'm looking forward to doing this as this has been quite a year for us! It's definitely one I want to document and remember. :) Enjoy my posts about the album!

It's A Snow Day!!!

2010-11-30T16:11:00.000-06:00

NO SCHOOL!!

Too much snow and the kids love hearing that! What better way to spend a snow day than out in the snow!

A ton of it drifted in the yard for Brea to play in.

Gotta make sure the puppy gets some time to play too!

Building a snow angel and writing in the snow.

To the right of Brea is her name ... one of her favorite things to write on EVERYTHING! Typical kid! ♥

Out On The Town

2010-11-27T16:05:00.000-06:00

We went out on the town to celebrate Scott's birthday with our usual group of friends.

Happy Birthday Babe!

Bob and Ann surprised Scott and came down from Sauk Centre to go out to eat with us.

We absolutely adore them! They are the best!!

The Girlies!

Simply The Best

Happy Birthday / Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T15:20:00.000-06:00

Today is a day we can be very thankful for!

My hot hubby is celebrating his birthday today, as well as us celebrating everything we are grateful for as it is Thanksgiving!

SO thankful for this little girl ... as well as other little children in our lives!

We were over at Paul and Carol's for dinner (pictures at another date) and then stopped over at John and Lisa's to see everyone there.

Ash!

On a spur-of-the-moment decision, Debbie and Lisa decided to whip up some lefse ... without Mom! They did a great job!

They had the whole process down and made a yummy treat for everyone.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING ALL! No matter what your situation is, you have SOMETHING to be grateful for. Remember that!

Winter Writings

2010-11-23T15:54:00.000-06:00

Brea went to school this morning but before she left, she wrote a little note for me on my truck that was outside.

From a distance I couldn't really read what it said so I ventured outside.

I ♥ My Mommy!

(and on the side) ... so very much!

Awwww ... my heart just melted. I love that kid beyond words!

Happy Birthday Nugget!!

2010-11-17T13:24:00.000-06:00

We went out to eat at Panda Garden for Noah's birthday. Right before leaving I grabbed him for a quick birthday picture ...

and Evan snuck in ... too funny!

So I took a picture with just him too. ♥

Love you Nugget!!

A Sticky Situation ...

2010-11-13T13:19:00.000-06:00

Nugget came over to spend the day so we thought we would get ourselves into a little sticky situation ... making CARAMEL APPLES!!

Yum!

First Bite

A shiny caramel apple just waiting to be eaten ...

BIG BITE!!

Diggin' Deep ... they were so juicy and tasty ... and sticky!

Kenzie's Confirmation

2010-10-31T13:06:00.000-05:00

Kenzie had her confirmation on Sunday morning. We went to the service at the church and then to her house for lunch.

Brea and Kenzie ... cute cousins! Congrats Kenzie!

Konner wanted to take a few pictures so here's one of me and Scott.

The adorable photographer himself!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T12:57:00.000-05:00

For reasons that I can't post online, I'll have to upload some of the Halloween pictures in the future ... HOPEFULLY the near future! ♥

The Night The Crazies Come Out!

2010-10-30T11:01:00.001-05:00

We went out and about with some of our friends for Halloween - such a fun time!

Professor and the Student

Cowboy and a Pretty Maid

John Lennon and "Yoki Oni"

... Sizzle ...

{adore}

Love these girls!

Fall Decorating ...

2010-10-24T15:07:00.003-05:00

Just popping in to put up a few pictures of my fall decorating. I'll be posting more summer pics within the next few days.

I bought this little dresser at my Aunt's auction last weekend and after thinking about where to put it in my house, I opted for our entrance / mudroom. It's more cozy now when you walk in - more inviting! I took the knobs off and painted them black instead of the white and gold that they were. After a few fall decorations, I'm in love with it!

Just outside the mudroom entrance door is this little setup! I just figured that corner needed something so I dug into my supplies and found the crate, wooden bowl and little sign that my sister, Linda, gave me that says, "There's no place like home." Perfect way to greet people!

This wooden gate was saved from the trash at my friend, Marnie's, grandma's house while they were cleaning out her house. It was in an outside shed so when I asked what they were going to do with it, and they replied they were going to throw it away (gasp!!), I said I wanted to take it. Again, another piece I'll love and adore to decorate!

This is the dining room entrance. I salvaged this table from the trash at my Aunt's house after the auction. It is so shabby and distressed, but that's the style I completely appreciate! After digging through my fall decorations and adding in some fresh pumpkins and other produce, plus adding some homey touches like the lamp and ceramic pumpkin, VIOLA!, it's done!

Hope you have a great Sunday! I'm going to get a few more blog posts ready and also upload some pictures of Brea's birthday party on Facebook so her friends can see them! PLUS Vikes play tonight - Skol Vikings!!!

First Snow

2010-10-21T10:57:00.000-05:00

October 21 ... and there is SNOW! WHAT?! Can't it wait until AFTER Thanksgiving?!

I just put out the fall decorations and now it looks like a pumpkin winter wonderland ... WRONG!

Just a little so you can still see the grass, but you know what that means? More to come later ... it's just the beginning!

I guess we do live in Minnesota - and I'm not letting a little snow stop us at all so bring it on!!!