Finishing up the Kids’ Heritage Album

I haven’t worked on the kids’ heritage album since February, so I decided that it was time to pull it back out again. I only had around 8 more layouts to do to finish it, and I really wanted it done… So here are the final layouts.

Edit:

Well, turns out this ISN’T the last 8 layouts… I’ve had some more ideas, so there are still 10 more layouts to make. *lol* … But just in case you’re curious, here are the next 8 in the series. (When I am done there will be something like 81 layouts in this album alone. )

Angel Baby #7

Journaling:

After losing Andrew, I was so upset that I decided to stop trying to get pregnant for a while… My
emotions needed a break I guess… Well, one thing led to another and we never really started trying
again. We sold our house in January of ‘06, and got pre-occupied with trying to find a new place to live,
and moving, etc… But the desire to have just one more baby never left my heart. I was always hoping…
dreaming… Then on May 26, 06 we decided to “throw caution to the wind”, and ended up getting
pregnant. When I got the positive pregnancy test on June 12th, I was ecstatic. Because of the way
we had gotten pregnant, I felt that Sweet Pea was a special gift, and I was confident
that we wouldn’t lose him… I spent the next six and a half weeks focused on him… I
was just so happy. Oh, the plans I made… I thought about him way too much… When I was
9 weeks along, I was bending over the oven when I got a sudden, sharp pain in my lower
back. That night I had a dream that I had lost the baby. It upset me a lot, but I tried to
push it out of my mind as only a bad dream… The weird thing is, a day or two after that,
Jared came to me out of the blue and asked if Sweet Pea was
still alive… I should have taken those things as a sign. *sigh*
I went for my first ultrasound on July 27th, and that’s when
I learned the horrible truth. My sweet baby had been dead
for over a week. He died at 9 weeks gestation, the same
day I had the dream about it…. You can’t imagine how
heart sick I was…. Out of all my losses, this one hit me
the hardest. Maybe it was because most of the others
came earlier in the pregnancy… I don’t know. But I still,
to this day, wish that Sweet Pea was in my
arms, and not just a memory of what could
have been… I also began to ask myself
why. Why me? Why do I keep losing all
my babies? Why does this keep happening 
to me… And how much more could I  
take?… Yet, the desire to have another 
baby still lingers in my heart
and it will probably be
there until my dying day.
That’s something you just can’t
forget about and push out of your
heart, just because someone
else tells
you to… *sigh*

Credit: The Great Expectations by Lie Fhung
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Fonts: Doodle Cursive and BethHand
Link: http://scrapbookbytes.com/store/digital-scrapbooking-supplies/fhungs-collection-thegreatexpectations.html

Angel Baby #8

Journaling:

After losing Sweet Pea
Dr. Neilson(who I saw with Sweet Pea,
and who I’ll never see again… But
that is another story) ran a
bunch of blood tests and I
tested positive for something
called “Lupus-anticoagulant”, so
Dr. Neilson referred me to Dr. Weick,
who is a perinatologist. Joe and I had
to see a genetic councilor and then we
had an appointment with Dr. Weick. Turns out
that the Lupus-anticoagulant makes your
blood clot too easily, and that it can cause
a miscarriage. After going over my medical history
he said that it sounded like I developed it either
before I got pregnant with Amanda, or during. He
said that it was very rare that someone would
develop pre-eclampsia in their 4th pregnancy, and
that the Lupus-anticoagulant can cause that. He
told me that it wasn’t hopeless though, and put me
 on baby aspirin to thin my blood and said that we could
 start trying again… In December we hit the jackpot again,
 but the pregnancy didn’t even last long enough to get excited about it…. I had
  started having symptoms right away, but when I tested I got an extremely faint
  positive. I kept testing, but the line got lighter and lighter ever day. When the
  symptoms started fading, I had to face the fact that Cubbie was gone before I could even
  celebrate the fact that she had been there. *sigh* … While it wasn’t as emotionally devastating as it
  had been with Sweet Pea, I was still very upset… But I wasn’t about to give up. For over a year I
 kept taking the aspirin, and month after month we kept trying… But as the months went by, the less Joe
 seemed interested in having another one. Pretty soon, he was getting negative about the whole thing. I
also had to deal with the fact that I wasn’t getting any younger. My 37th birthday came and went, and
we still had no baby in sight… Though my heart yearns for one still… But without a willing partner, it
doesn’t seem very likely. *sigh* … The kids still talk about wanting another baby, and I dream about it
 all the time, but it doesn’t seem to be in the cards for us… When I look around the dinner table, I feel
  like there are a couple people missing. I have lost my Joel Jeremiah, and my Alyssa Anne… They have
  always seemed so real to me, and I will always wish they were part of our lives… I loved them so…

Credit: The Great Expectations by Lie Fhung
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Fonts: Doodle Cursive and BethHand
Link: http://scrapbookbytes.com/store/digital-scrapbooking-supplies/fhungs-collection-thegreatexpectations.html

The Big Move (page 1)

Journaling:

When we got pregnant with Alicia we knew that we were outgrowing
our tiny 880 sq ft house in Portland, so we decided that it was time
to sell and find something bigger. We put the house up for sale in
April of 2001, and in 6 months time we only got one nibble on the
house, and it didn’t sell. When it came time to renew, Alicia had just
been born, and Joe didn’t want a lot of strangers coming into the
house, so we decided that we would hold off and just made do with
things being so cramped… Meanwhile, we made very good friends
with the realtor and her husband, who had recently moved in next
door to us. When they moved to Missouri in September of ‘04, we
had them over for a BBQ a few nights before they left, since we were
going to miss them… That night Rob told us that being friends with
Joe, and seeing how he lived, help bring Rob back to the Lord. It
was then that a light went off in my head… If we had moved then
Rob and Joe wouldn’t have become friends. The Lord needed us in
the house, so that Rob would find his way home… I felt at peace
about it, after 3 years!… But in the meantime Amanda had been born
as well, and six of us in that tiny house was too much! So on 1/26/06
we put the house on the market again, and low and behold, we had
an offer on the house THAT VERY NIGHT… Around 12 hours after it
went on the market. Heck, the sign didn’t even go up until the next
day!… That’s when the chaos began. We had 30 days to pack up
everything, find a new place to live, and move… But we ran into a
glitch. Every house we looked at that was in our price range (we
were approved for up to $175,000) was either too small or it was
structurally unsound. We were getting beyond discouraged. After
a particularly bad day of house hunting, Joe and I decided to go
to Palm Harbor, just for a look-see… What I find interesting, is that
we didn’t go to the one in Portland, which is much closer to our
house. Joe wanted to go out to the one in Woodburn instead, and
then take the kids put-put golfing at the Family Fun Center in
Wilsonville… I actually think this was the Lord at work, because He
wanted us to get the lot we have now. If we had gone to the Portland
Palm Harbor, we would have never heard about this lot, and we
wouldn’t have been able to get as nice of a house… But I am getting
ahead of myself… After talking to Dea at Palm Harbor, we finally
felt like there was a light at the end of the tunnel. We were delighted
that we would be able to get a nice house, that would be big enough
for the six of us… But it would also take months to get the house
done and made move in ready, and we had to have a home in the
mean time… Well, it just so happened that Joe’s great aunt and
uncle had moved into a retirement home in 2005, and their house
was sitting empty. We had been interested in buying it before, but
they were attached and not ready to sell. But when Joe called up
their daughter, Jean, they were more than willing to rent it to us…

Credit: Celebrate Harmony (and Addon) by Retrodiva and Eva Kipler
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Font: CAC Camelot
Links:

Kit: http://retrodiva.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=132
Addon: http://retrodiva.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=145

The Big Move (page 2)

Journaling:

Charlie and Nellie agreed to give us a break in the rent, if we would
paint the interior of the Sandy house while we were there, which we
were happy to do. They only charged us $500 a month, which was
yet another answer to prayer. We couldn’t afford much, because
after we signed on the new house, we would have to start making
interest payments at the same time we were paying rent… Our
arrangement couldn’t have been more perfect… With housing in
place, it was time to look for a lot for the new house to go on, and
we found in on 2/22/06. Dea told us about some lots in Molalla, and
we went to see them. We fell in love with the quiet, rustic sub-
division and the lots were a lot bigger and a lot less expensive than
all the other ones we had seen. (God was just working out every
thing perfectly!) So we put an offer on the lot, and then got busy
with the move… The last couple weeks before we moved out of the
Portland house was very stressful. The buyers were asking for a lot
of repairs done to the house before they would sign, so Joe and a
friend spent 2 weeks repairing things that had been driving me
crazy for over 10 years. *grins*… But we made it, and we moved out
to Sandy on Saturday, February 25th… We lived in Sandy for six
months, which was a lot longer than we had originally planned.
There were so many delays! It took a long time for our home
construction loan to go through (because it was our lenders first
time doing one), and then our contractor messed up on the pad
for the house, and it was off by 29 inches… But slowly everything
got worked out, and we *finally* were given the keys to our new
house on August 21st…. Can you say EXCITED!!! … From then until
we moved in, we were out at the house a few times a week, cleaning
the house and moving some of the smaller stuff over… I didn’t have
too much to pack this time, because most of our things hadn’t
gotten unpacked in the Sandy house. We had left most of the boxes
in the basement and lived on the bare minimum…. Finally the day
arrived when we could move in!! Joe’s family came over on
Saturday, September 2, 2006 and moved us into the new house.

Credit: Celebrate Harmony (and Addon) by Retrodiva and Eva Kipler
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Fonts: CAC Camelot and BethHand
Links:

Kit: http://retrodiva.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=132
Addon: http://retrodiva.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=145

Joe (page 1)

Journaling:

In 1997 the company, RiteAid, bought out Payless Drug Store, and put in place a lot of changes, that weren’t really all
that great. After giving it some thought Joe decided to quit his job as assistant manager and go to truck driving
school. After an 8 week course he was           hired on at Container Recovery, Inc. and his first day on the job was on
August 3rd, 1998. Joe really likes driving truck, and he has become
one of their most dependable drivers. He even won driver of the year
in 2004… For the first year Joe worked a route in Lake Oswego, but
in November of 1999 Joe was given one of the Salem routes, and he
has been working that route ever since. He sure puts in a lot of
miles, driving that truck back and forth between Portland and
Salem… In the evenings Joe likes to kick back and watch the TV,
while he snoozes and catches up on his lost sleep. On the week-
ends he likes to do things as a family, so that he can
spend time with the kids. He likes to go on outings
with them, like to the zoo and other fun places.
The kids love it too!

Credit: Good Friends Collection - Kenneth (retired) by Eva Kipler, Cardboard by Michelle Swadling
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Font: CAC Camelot

Joe (page 2)

Journaling:

Joe doesn’t really have any hobbies, but he does love to work out in the yard. He likes to mow the lawn, trim the
trees, etc. It’s his thing. Maybe it’s just because it keeps him inside, where he likes it best… When the sun is
shining you can’t keep the guy indoors. *grin* … When he is inside, his         favorite thing to do is watch TV. He’ll
watch pretty much anything, but mainly he likes to watch the news,
sports, and his favorite show, which is Cops. But he also enjoys
watching shows like Little House on the Prairie with me and the
kids. What a guy! He also loves comedies like Gilligan’s Island
and Home Improvement. Another thing Joe enjoys is his music.
He always has to have the radio going (if the TV isn’t on). Country
music is Joe’s tunes of choice. He likes the country oldies the best,
but enjoys the newer songs and artists as well. His favorite artists
include Pam Tillis, Toby Keith, and Alan Jackson,
among others. One of Joe’s all time favorite things
to do is to go camping. He loves packing up
the trailer, and
heading out!

Credit: Good Friends Collection - Kenneth (retired) by Eva Kipler, Cardboard by Michelle Swadling
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Fonts: CAC Camelot and Stamp Act

Julie (page 1)

Journaling:

            From the time Joe
           and I first got married
        we both agreed that when we were
blessed with kids, I would stay home and take
care of them myself. We just didn’t want to go the day-care route.
I always thought I would love it, and I was right. I find it more
fulfilling to take care of the kids (and the house) than any career could be.
And, thanks to the Internet, I don’t find myself lonely for adult company, since
I can find that on-line. Being home full time probably isn’t for everybody, but
it’s a perfect fit for our family… I know I am not the best mom around, but
I love the kids with all my heart, and I try to do what I think is best for
them… Though not everyone agrees with my methods… But, it works for us…
In fact, the greatest compliment Joe has ever given me was about my parenting.
He said, “I have to hand it to you Julie, when it comes to babies, you know
what you’re doing.”… That meant the world to me, and I will never forget
                                          it… My goals, as a parent, is to teach
                                          them to love the Lord, to be a loving and
                                          respectful person, and to be caring, giving,
                                          and to work hard at the task on hand…

Credit: The Promise Collection by The Shabby Princess, Template by Michelle Swadling
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Fonts: Eisia and Doodle Cursive
Link: http://www.theshabbyprincess.com/downloads/promise/promise.asp

Julie (page 2)

Journaling:

When the kids became old enough for school, teaching them at home seemed like
the next logical step. While I would have loved to have sent them to a private,
Christian school, we couldn’t afford it on a single income… But I still wanted
the kids to have a Bible based education, and that’s something that is impossible
in the public school system. So homeschooling them was what was right for our
family. Though I admit to things sometimes getting a little hectic in the house,
with four kids, a household to run, and school lessons, it’s always been
rewarding. We were also lucky that we didn’t get a whole lot of negative
feedback, like some homeschooling families do… We loved the extra freedom
homeschool gave us too. If we wanted to take the day off school to go to the
zoo, we could. We would just make the lessons up later. The kids loved it
too, because they could get their lessons done in half the time of the
public school, and then they got to run off and play. That’s a plus in
their book… It was
also very rewarding
to me, to know that I
had taught my children
how to read, and had
guided their learning.
And the best thing of
all? I got to keep them
at home with me all
day, and you
gotta love that!

Credit: The Promise Collection by The Shabby Princess, Template by Stacy Carlson
Program: Photoshop Elements 5
Font: Doodle Cursive
Link: http://www.theshabbyprincess.com/downloads/promise/promise.asp