Site Title

If you are interested in purchasing wood letters for your Christmas Gifts, please email me at:  bloominmemories@yahoo.com and print this form.  Please place your order by November 20 to guarantee you’ll be able to pick it up by December 8th.

Yes, I DID get my classes designed!  WOO HOO!  I was up until 4:30 am, but it’s done, it’s done!  Class the next night went well.  I can’t believe I’m done teaching Imagine already!

We needed to tell my parents “thank you”, and because my dad loves sugar cookies (so do I) we made a batch this weekend.  The boys love helping me when I cook.  After I’d made all that we needed to give away and keep for ourselves … I let the boys play!  They were even good at taking turns and sharing.  They loved it!  Here are some fun shots I took:

hugs to all!  Amber

p.s.  SUU bball update:  SUU 57, Sacramento State 53!!!

Hello my friends!  It’s 10:16 pm … I’m just starting to design the Possibilities! class for January, February and March.  Jorjana and I are reviewing them tomorrow morning. 6 pages in 6 hours … let’s see if I can do it!

Before I start (and I hate to admit it!) … I’m going to the Chevron on the corner to get some Mountain Dew!  hugs!  Amber

WOW!  I LOVE college sports! (football & basketball … gymnastics … )  It was so much fun to be in the University of Utah “Sixth Fan Club” (now called the MUSS), have 5th row seats for the basketball games and really feel the spirit of the team and crowd.  My friends and I were lucky … I was on the student counsel so we got great seats! 

Go ahead to 2007 … my “little” brother, Geoff, is playing basketball at SUU.  (Thanks to Richard Payson at the SUU Journal for the photo of Geoff)  We are heading down this afternoon to see him play tonight.  I am so glad that he is playing close enough to home that we will be able to see him fairly often.  It’s fun to see my sons develop a love for the game like I did.  It’s also fun to see families come together in support of each other.

Bryan is running in the Butch Cassidy 10K run/5K walk.  It’s his first 10K.  It’s going to be a gorgeous run.  The race ends in Grafton, a ghost town.  It will be fun for the boys to look at the building while we wait for Bryan. 

Have a GREAT weekend!  Amber

p.s.  Want to hear something funny?  I was in college during the Roger Reid era at BYU and the (myself included … it was college, right!?)  were relentless toward him and his two sons that played for him.  Now he’s Geoff’s coach and was at his Wedding Breakfast this summer.  Who would have thought in 1992 that I would be a fan of Roger Reid’s.  But, I am.  He is a great guy.  We all have lessons to learn.  Some of us have to learn them in the public eye. 

If you don’t know what I’m talking, read this on the Making Memories blog.

We had been gone all day.  We’d gone to the Halloween parade and party at Neal’s school . 

Then we went to visit Grandpa (my dad) at his work.  Neal was scared of the ladies’ costumes (they dressed like Pirates of the Caribbean with Davy Jones, too).  He wouldn’t talk with them. 

We drove to Provo to visit Bryan at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, came home and just had time to get ready to trick-or-treat.  We wanted to visit Bryan’s dad, but didn’t have time to get out to his work by Kennecott from Provo!  It makes me tired just talking about it.

After Bryan and the kids went trick-or-treating with our friends .  We then went to Bryan’s parents and my parents .

We had just gotten home when we had our "visitors".  They barged their way in and scared Neal (all the work we did to get him unscared went out the window).  We played around with them thinking they would eventually tells us who they were.  As you can see, I even went into the other room and got my camera to take their picture.  They just sat there and finally asked for candy.  We had given out all our candy before they left, so I took some candy from Riley’s bucket and they left.  We know who they are, they are our friends … but just wait, we have something planned for them this year!  hugs!  *A*

October 11 that I posted?  Here’s a quick update on my crazy life lately:

• October 12:  Prep 60 imagine kits.
• October 13:  Teach two imagine classes.  Leave my house at 8:00 am, chit chat with people in the store after teaching and get home at 7:00.  I saved a husband from complete destruction by helping him pick out his wife’s 30th birthday present.
• October 14:  Go to church.  Have an enjoyable day.
• October 15:  Drive to My Mind’s Eye (in Bountiful) to get paper & transparencies I’m missing for Frame Up class.  Prep Christmas Frame Up! Class. 
• We still need to have Family Home Evening, right!?  So we went to Engh Gardens to pick pumpkins & play in the maze.  
• October 16:  Watch Riley’s friend, Bridger, while his mom helped at school.  Made cookies.  Left to go back to My Mind’s Eye because they packed the wrong products the day before.  Get home from Bountiful, go to Draper to the AMM storage unit & find chipboard alphabets for class.  Get home in time to pick up carpool, practice piano & leave to teach the class. 
• October 17:  Replan (for the third time) the Joint YW/YM activity.  Carry out activity.  It went well.  Stay up until 2:00 am fixing, tweeking and ordering pics for my cousin’s wedding sign in book.
• October 18:  Clean, a little.  Work on layouts for a Pauline’s crafty booth.
• October 19: Neal’s home sick.  He’s miserable. I took him to the doctor and she thinks it’s strep, the rapid culture comes back negative, but we need to treat it like strep.  We were supposed to go to my cousin’s wedding dinner, but we change plans, Bryan goes to the dinner.  I stay home and Neal throws up the entire time.  I thought I’d get to work on my cousin’s sign-in book.  Finish at 3:00 am.  I forget to take pics, so I can’t share it.
• October 20:  Get up at 8:00 am (after getting up with Neal in the night), get ready for the wedding ceremony.  Get home and take a nap.  Go to the reception.  Grandpa came out and sat with the sick Neal and mischievous Riley ().  Go home, get dinner and finish Pauline’s pages.
• October 21:  Stayed home from church with Neal.  Make cinnamon rolls. I had to do the yeast twice because I put too much water in the first time and then I almost forgot to add it after I finally got it right.  Have I mentioned that I’m YEAST deficient!?  I can make cookies, roasts, chicken … whatever!  Just nothing with yeast!  We also did our FHE … we started making our Halloween Gingerbread house.  We couldn’t finish because Neal still wasn’t feeling well.
• October 22:  Prepped Possibilities! kits.  Called the doctor because Neal still has a fever (no throw up since Friday night, thank goodness!).  She said it’s the flu (the strep culture was negative) and to give it one more day.  If he still has a fever on Wednesday to bring him back in.
• October 23:  Neal still has a fever & is STILL miserable (he fell asleep at the counter after eating breakfast) so he’s home, again.  It’s too bad, he’s missing a field trip.  I’m excited to teach again tonight.  The other classes have been FABULOUS and I’m sure this one will be, too.
• Some cool news … check out the Making Memories blog to see a new Halloween page I did for them!

Phew, that was a lot to say.  ENJOY!  Amber

If the graceful way I broke my toe wasn’t enough … here’s something I thought you’d enjoy.  (This didn’t happen to me, but to a friend of mine!)

Friday I went to the doctor for my yearly physical.

And sure enough, I felt better immediately. I never knew eating right could be so easy.  Just thought I should pass this tip on to you.

Enjoy! 

… at least cleaning up from it is.  I was being such a good girl today and I got going on things bright and early today.  Up first on my list of things to do was inventory the product I have for my upcoming classes.  I organized it, reorganized my supply sheets, put my product in boxes and took those boxes downstairs to the "ScrapCave". While I was putting my boxes on the shelves I have in the "Cave", the large clothes pin project (see photo at left) I did for the AMM Design Team  fell from the top of the shelves.  I was quick enough to not have it fall on my head, but it got my little toe. 

It’s BROKEN.  I know it is. 

I called Bryan to tell him what I did and he asked if I’d gone to the doctor.  I don’t think I need to go to the doctor, they won’t cast a broken toe.  Grandpa Packer will be so proud of me.  Bryan’s Grandpa Packer always said "Get a band-aid on it and get back to work" no matter how much blood there was!  So here I am, I’ve taped my little to to my other toes and I’ve gotten back to work.  I don’t have time to stop!

I’ve had such a great response to my magnet board, that I will be teaching it next quarter (January, February, March 2008).  Tell me what you think … are you in!?  Amber

Warning!  It’s about poop!  If you can’t "digest" (hee, hee) it, don’t read any farther!

Riley has been potty training (kind of).  It’s a long process because he doesn’t want to do it. So, I really wouldn’t say he’s "training", we usually "discuss" potty training.  I’m fine with that, I can wait.  I know that forcing him won’t accomplish anything.  The one thing we have going for us is Riley hates having his diaper changed.  So every time I change his diaper, I lovingly say "if you don’t want me to change your diaper, go in the potty next time."  or "where does pee/poop go?"  He dutifully answers "in the potty" and we move on until the next time he needs his diaper changed.  Somewhere along the line I heard someone say that you need to let them know that poop goes in the potty (as we already discuss) and take their diaper, drop the poop in the potty and let your child flush the toilet.  It’s gross, but you don’t have to actually touch the poop and if it helps … , right!?

Well, this morning, he needed a poopy diaper changed and he was still in his pajamas so I told him to stay where he was while I got a diaper & clothes.  Well, he didn’t.  I heard a really sweet voice coming down the hall talking about poop going in the toilet.  I turned around and what do I see?  Riley holding his diaper, poop on his bum, thoroughly proud of himself because, after all, "poop goes in the potty".  No worries, a little elbow grease and disinfectant and we’re all recovered.

Riley turned three last week.  I hope you enjoy these pics (can you tell he likes cars & Thomas?  Enjoy!  Amber