HAPPY BIRTHDAY...

TO ROBERT BURNS!!

he is Scotlands acclaimed national poet,

known famous for many of his works in poetry and stories...

such as

The Selkirk Grace:

"Some hae meat and canna eat,

And some wad eat that want it:

But we hae meat, and we can eat,

Sae let the Lord be thankit."

and also The Address to the Haggis,

and many, many more!!

Here are some photos from our trip to scotland this past summer..

we went to ALLOWAY, which is Robbie Burns' birthplace.

this is the Burns Cottage,

where he was born and lived with his family.

When we were here in august, the staff were busy re-thatching the roof

in preparation for January 2009,

well, actually

TODAY,

as this day marks the celebration of his

250th birthday anniversay!!!

It was really quite remarkable and so well preserved!

...the next four photos were taken in the garden of the Burns Cottage...

...and as i often did...i strolled alone further down into the Burns National Heritage Park to see the

Burns Monument built in his honour...

climbed up the many, many spiral stairs to get up and dangerously close to shoot some photos up and under the rooftop!

heehee...

...and for those of you who like a good intrigue...

check out this link

www.worldburnsclub.com/begin/robert_burns.htm#Fuss

as you will find TONS of interesting information about Scotlands beloved

Robert Burns,

including the written works of his poems and stories...

especially the most intriguing of them all....

THE TAM O'SHANTER EXPERIENCE!!!

-basically Robbie Burns telling of his friend Tam's

experience after overinduldging in the Drink!

...he claims to have seen witches and ghosts and the devil himself having a party in the

Alloway Auld Kirk ( old church- which still remains...i have pictures! )

anyway, Tam apparently yells out to the witches and they begin to chase him!

He fearfully tries to escape the witches on means of horseback on his hopeful rescuer,

Meg, his mare!

( figures....a drunken man needing help from the girls...hahaha )

anyway, they run to the famous Brig O'Doon ( bridge over the river Doon )

knowing that evil spirits cannot cross past the middle of running water....

of course, he does escape the witches clutches, but she grabs hold of the mares tail in her last attempt to catch Tam and pulls the tail right off!

If you are interested in reading the acutal words of the Tam O'Shanter Experience by

robert burns, you will find the story on the link above!!

have fun!

...and here's the famous Brig O'Doon in Alloway...very cool to walk on it's 'history'!!!!

so....

every year, Lynn, courtney's dance teacher, holds an annual Burns Supper.

it is always a formal, sit-down traditional Scottish Dinner of roast beef, yorkshire pudding, mashed turnip, mashed potatoes, steamed green peas, dinner rolls, salad....

and of course...HAGGIS! ( if you dare! )

here's our pretty girl all dressed up and ready to go!

...the evening is started off with the 'parade of guests' being marched in to our tables by a piper...

...next, the HAGGIS is piped and paraded in...( like it's the olympic torch!LOL )

and in true Scottish accent, a Scotsman recites the

"Address to the Haggis"

by Robert Burns

to the guests, followed by a toast to the piper!

(yuck )

...and here's your traditional Scottish dinner...

complete with a dollop of haggis ( at the bottom of the plate )

Mike has no problem taking the offerings of the unwanted haggis at our table, never fails!

...and of course, what would a Scottish celebration be without some Highland dancing by the girls? ( courtney's in the green tartan )

...alex and kailey...

..courtney and kelsey...

WHEW....

AND...yesterday i was a guest vendor at an all day crop for a local

Wellness Team at Concordia Village!

( ironically the same building that my grandparents now live in...so I got a few happy visits from them throughout the day! )

Anyway...it was a fun, fun day with the girls, and I even managed to do this layout for tyler...

his first tae kwon do layout for his book!

( and LA, i STILL couldn't figure out how to crop my pics for my blog...hahaha )

...and here's a couple more i did this week for tyler too...

...i painted the stars and then i outlined them with black fabric paint...

fun stuff, just needs drying time if you give it a go!

...wow, this is a really long and fun post...

i send you an E-HUG if you stayed with me to the end!!

hope you're all having a fabulous weekend!!!

:O)

not much...

hello.

this past weekend i managed to pinch the nerves in my lower back ( yet again ) and was out of commission ALL DAY on saturday.

in bed.

propped on pillows, heating pads and tylenol.

mike was out of town all day saturday so i felt bad that the kids for the most part had to entertain themselves...courtney made breakfast and lunch for her and tyler....

AND...

just look at what my sweet, sweet thoughtful boy did for his mommy!

he was busy in the kitchen making mom lunch

ALL BY HIMSELF...

no instrucions, no help from his sister, no requests...

he just went in the kitchen and made an extra special lunch for me out of

HIS OWN FREE WILL

because he wanted to 'help take care of mommy'.

* mug of white milk

*one peanut butter sandwich on multigrain

*vegetable crackers

*one grape lollipop ( to make me feel better )

= one proud momma!!

dang, i love this boy.

kiss kiss.

...so all those extra hugs and kisses from the kids must have worked their magic because a good solid days rest and lots of TLC made me feel better....

not back to normal yet, but definitely better!

on sunday, ALL DAY, courtney was suffering with a horrible headache to the point where she was running to the bathroom sick to her stomach 5 times. this is the second time since the fall that she's had a 'horrible headache day' so i am taking her to the doctors this afternoon to have a chat and see what they say...

AND...

speaking of courtney, here's her newest layout i've been working on.

these are the peppermint cupcakes we made for our family christmas dinner!

so fun!

Layouts for Sketches class

...as requested, i thought i'd show you the layouts for the upcoming sketches class on

monday, january 19

630 - 930pm-ish!

Class is $20 and includes ALL supplies to create sketches IN YOUR OWN COLOR CHOICES!

( bring your own basics = adhesives, paper trimmer, scissors and PHOTOS )

if interested in registering for this class, please email so I can send you the photo size requirements for the layouts!!

thegriffs@mts.net

LAYOUT 1: 'THIS BOY'

LAYOUT 2: 'YOU COLOR MY WORLD WITH LOVE'

LAYOUT 3: 'LUV'

...and this is just another spin off of tyler's layout as i had pictures the same for courtney's album too!
...so keep in mind when looking at my sketches that you may go with whatever color themes you'd like to compliment your photo selections!

...and this one, " I know who you are"

was done just because i was on a roll last weekend! i have been meaning to do a layout featuring this very special book of tylers and i found the perfect photo to do it with!

...so, there you have them!

and in case you didn't notice, i have chosen all three layouts for this upcoming sketches class

from the ever talented and inspirational

Elsie Flannigan!

( i usually choose two different artists and then make one of my own layouts, but i was in

the "elsie zone' this weekend for something bright and cheery!

sketches classes also include a small snack, coffee and tea....

I hope you come out to one soon!!

...and who's been inspiring you lately??

:O)

teehee.

i LOOOOVVVVEEEEE lazy days, don't you?

they just don't happen often enough, but yesterday i took full advantage of a couple

quiet hours in the afternoon when mike took the kids to the pool with our friends...

oh yah baby.

i pulled out oodles of my own scrapbooking goodies that i haven't seen in a while and

PLAYED ALL DAY!

i did not get dressed = jammie day

i drank earl grey tea and diet dr. pepper all day = inspirational MOJO

i had a BIG, FAT burger from burger factory for supper = i did not have to cook, mike picked up

of course, there happened to be another NERF GUN war between tyler and i through the house at one point, and courtney was pleased to finally get her PINK shiny beaded 'door curtain' hung up...but all in all it was a fabulous, relaxing day!

= ONE HAPPY KIM!

AND JUST LOOK AT THE MESS I'VE MADE!

hahahaha....

...a little reminder that there's still lots of room at my monthly hall crop this coming friday night

( Jan. 16...6pm - midnite ) at st. saviour's hall

$10

includes small welcome gift, door prizes, coffee, tea and yummy half time snack!

*** THIS IS ALSO THE SCRAPPIN STUDIO'S

3RD ANNIVERSARY CROP

SO YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS OUT ON LOTS OF GREAT POWER SALES

HAPPENING ALL NIGHT!!!

there will also be a few optional and free contests to enter throughout the evening as well...

come out for a fun, fun night of scrapbooking and friendship!!

please email for more information or to register at

thegriffs@mts.net

there are several other home classes happening throughout january, so if you would like to be added to my newsletter list, please email to join in the fun!!

and how was your weekend???

:O)

busy week...

i'm sure for most of you this first week

"back to..."

has been as chaotic as the griffin home...

back to work, back to school,

back to dance,

back to swim,

and tyler had his FIRST

TAE KWON DO

lesson on wednesday night!

( my cousin diane is a 3rd degree black belt- which was new info for me too - and has been teaching tae kwon do for a long time now )

tyler has been interested in this type of activity for a while now and let me tell you that at his first lesson, he couldn't get enough!

he didn't want to go after his hour was up and asked if he could stay longer!

he LOVED it and i thought he fit right in!

so exciting for him!!

thank you diane...you have created an addict now!!

hahahahaa......

so awesome!

:O)

well, i'm off to rossmere's hall crop shortly so i better finish getting organized!!

my next hall crop for The Scrappin Studio is

FRIDAY

JANUARY 16, 2009

at st.saviour's.

6pm - midnite

$10

please email for more info or to register at

thegriffs@mts.net

...and how was your first week back to reality???

interesting New Year's phone call...

i just had the WORST and at the same time FUNNIEST phone call of 2009!

( btw, this photo of my new breadbox was supposed to be at the end of this post, but i deleted it by accident...ooops! )

okay...onto this phone call...

RRRIIINNNGGGG...

( LA will appreciate the convo...)

KIM: "hello" ( not recognizing the number on call display )

CALLER: "hello, this is sandy from glen eden memorial gardens. how are you today?"

KIM: "not dying."

CALLER: "oh." ( she almost sounded disappointed...what the??) "i am calling today to see if you have given any thought to future funeral arrangements."

KIM: "i said i'm not dying, so my answer is no, i have not thought about my funeral arrangements yet."

CALLER: "yes, you do sound kind of young." ( what does that have to do with it? ) "well, when the time comes for you to start thinking about your future arrangements, please keep glen eden memorial gardens in mind and my name is sandy. i can help..."

CLICK. ( kim's way of saying "i'm not dying for the third time" )

HAHAHAHAHA.....

is it just me or is there something REALLY WRONG with calling ( SOLICITING ) people and discussing death with them SEVEN DAYS INTO A NEW YEAR????

dang, woman.

...on another, much brighter note...

what do you think of my new shiny breadbox?

we are replacing all our small appliances now with stainless, so the wooden breadbox had to go too.

my kitchen ( being turquoise and white now ) is starting to look like a modern Partridge family kitchen!!

hahahaa....but i love it!

...i wonder if they make PINK urns for cremations??

Little boys...

...i LOVE having one...

found this on tyler's bedroom door and had me a good laugh!

courtney's been demanding privacy of her room lately so i guess tyler wanted in on the game too!

( i'm glad that i've scored brownie points as 'the mom' to still enter without being shot with a NERF GUN in the butt...)

...i've been feeling a little devious since the new year has arrived, ( and also because i am DROPPING POUNDS! )...thinking of trying out some new exciting adrenaline activities...so tyler's note on his door just boosted my mood today!!
maybe i'll try out the race Karts with LA & Keith??
open to suggestions people!

...i've also been painting today...

a project for monday jan.12 class...

stay tuned...

HEY....

BODY PAINTING....now THAT could be fun!!!

( ahem, of course, not for a class though!! )

hahahahaha...

:O)

{ wink }

YIKES!!!!

sorry for being such a bad bad blogger the last couple weeks...

i can't believe how FAST the holidays have whizzed by and it's jan.5 tomorrow already.

the kids go back to school after their nice, long 2 weeks off school.

no doubt that tyler especially does NOT want to go back...he'd rather stay home and play with all his new toys from Christmas!

getting ready for Christmas is always such a panic...all the cooking preparations, baking and present buying / wrapping...trying hard not to miss anyone!

thank goodness i had two fantastic little helpers with the baking this year!

( i made buttertarts for my first time this Christmas too...yum! )

courtney and i made these pink peppermint cupcakes topped with crushed candy canes!

literally, crushed....with a hammer in a ziplock bag! hahahaha!!

good times!

...and Christmas morning was a chaotic, exciting, wonderful blurr of wrapping paper, squeals and "Awesome's" from the kids!!

...Christmas morning, before the attack of the kids...

...after all the Christmas morning fun, we showered up and got ready for my mom, my grandparents, my niece, brothers and "future sister-in-law" ( get on it curty! ) to come for dinner and more excitement!!

i LOVE this photo of my grandpa...he looks just great in it ( and really, really happy! )

on the 27th, we went out to mikes parents for another christmas visit and dinner!

we had a super visit, great nibbles and simply another great holiday visit!

mike's mom bought him this awesome TOWEL that looks like a KILT when you wrap it around!

...i think it suits him...

{ giggle }

...our friends Linda and Dan and their baby Jill ( whom I went to visit in October in Missouri ) came in to visit their families for the holidays and we were lucky to steal a day of visiting with our family! i cooked us up some asian food and we had a lovely visit...i couldn't get over how much little Jill had grown in only 2 and a half months...she even sprouted her bottom front two little chompers!!

SO CUTE!!

...courtney was quite smitten with her and was playing with her a lot...

they just left to drive back home to Missouri yesterday and i miss them already! linda and i and the 3 kids all went for some shopping at st. vital centre on friday and then a visit at my grandparents for tea and shortbread...i miss them already!!!!

we had our friends over for New Year's Eve and they brought along their Wii system and brand new Guitar Hero....courtney is actually pretty dang good at it! i was impressed....i myself am quite fond of that game too....it was a fun, fun night!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

( courtney and rachel )

...our usual Boxing Day celebration takes place at my mom's house. its a fun day of lots of family, a potluck dinner, games and good times! I have always LOVED our boxing day since i can remember as a little kid when it used to be at my aunty's house...

my mom was quite sick with a bronchial virus and then topped it off with the flu on boxing day morning....so unfortunately, for the first time ever, boxing day was postponed to new years day instead!!

...yep, another great day for food, family and friends...and a belated visit from Santa himself!!

mike and his mom, liz!!

#1 M-I-L!!!!

well, i wanted to catch you up to speed on our family's holiday celebrations!!

it's hard to get back into the swing of things, but tomorrow has innevitably come and whether we're ready or not, routine begins once more!!

...and how was your Chirstmas holiday??

I hope it was magical and unforgettable!

love

love

:O)