zauber-a

I'm not getting rid of this list until everything is crossed off. Well okay, that's a lie. Today is the last day, have to show it off in all it's crossed-off-ness, even though not everything got crossed off!

~~Edit (I don't like the original layouts) my CJ entries for Tara and Trish and Cynthia~~
~~Print CJ entries for Tara, Trish, Cynthia, Ash ley & Sandra (I told you I was behind!)~~
~~Call Andrea M.~~
Mail CJ entries.
~~Mail Ines's Album~~
~~Mail DVD of pics to Mom and Kylene~~
~~Create a few cards for upcoming birthdays and other stuff - and MAIL THEM~~ Okay, so I still have about 3 cards to create, but I got a good chunk of them done!!
~~Put up the Scavenger Hunt results and answers!!~~
~~Mail Elsie Water's Baby Present!~~
Create a layout for Cora
Email about a hundred different people
Create a Planner and get organized for Scrap-A-Ganza, which is only a few weeks away! I suck at this. I can't think of anything to do. I think I might just forget the whole idea!
Create the sign-in cards for two of the Circle Journals
Do some work for Andrea (which is why I asked for a deadline, without one, who knows when I'll get around to it?!)
~~Write down my circling thoughts on about 10 different Layouts for Georgia's album~~
Call Kereth
~~Find a sippy cup and get Georgia started on water~~
~~Call Micaela and find out if Killian is going to the krabbelgruppe tomorrow and whether I should keep Georgia home since she might be about to break out in the chicken pox!~~

We didn't end up going to the krabbelgruppe yesterday. I never actually called M. because I can't find my phone list, but Heike called me just as I was ready to walk out the door to tell me that no one was going to be there except for the two of us, and asked whether we shouldn't just cancel? So we canceled. Did you know that 'because' is probably my most often mistyped word?

Pacifiers. I had a long rant on them a while back. Was all worried that my girl was going to be a paci-sucking-addict. I needn't have worried. If it ain't a booby, she don't want it. What she does like though, is chewing on a pacifier, usually upside down, often backwards. She sticks it in her mouth, bites down hard, and then yanks it out again, without letting go. Crazy, but quite amusing. She also likes to sit in her highchair and pound the table with items, like her wooden rattle-thing, or a metal cup I gave her to play with. She bangs it with all her might, then flinches each time it 'BANGS' (her reaction seems to say: hey! who's makin' all that noise? Stop it now!!) and proceeds to bang even harder.

Rice Cereal. None at Aldi, none at MiniMall. MM had Alete and Hipp, banana cereal, yogurt cereal, grieß cereal (grieß translates to semolina, no idea what that is). I want rice. I checked out the grießbrei from Hipp, it had sugar - traubenzucker - but sugar all the same. So I decided to FORGET IT, and bought a NUK sippy cup instead. Looks more like a bottle with handles. So that means we have to go to Pep tomorrow or Saturday and check out Kaufland. They must have rice cereal, without sugar, right?

TGIF anyhow! A three-day weekend ahead of us, that's 3 days of Sven being home to help entertain his girlie.

Posted at 07:41 am by zauber-a
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Well, I don't know how, but my ToDo list increased exponentially yesterday instead of decreasing.

So the list:

~~Edit (I don't like the original layouts) my CJ entries for Tara and Trish and Cynthia~~
~~Print CJ entries for Tara, Trish, Cynthia, Ash ley & Sandra (I told you I was behind!)~~
~~Call Andrea M.~~
Mail CJ entries.
Mail Ines's Album
Mail DVD of pics to Mom and Kylene
Create a few cards for upcoming birthdays and other stuff - and MAIL THEM
~~Put up the Scavenger Hunt results and answers!!~~
Mail Elsie Water's Baby Present!
Create a layout for Cora
Email about a hundred different people
Create a Planner and get organized for Scrap-A-Ganza, which is only a few weeks away!
Create the sign-in cards for two of the Circle Journals
Do some work for Andrea (which is why I asked for a deadline, without one, who knows when I'll get around to it?!)
Write down my circling thoughts on about 10 different Layouts for Georgia's album
Call Kereth
Find a sippy cup and get Georgia started on water
Call Micaela and find out if Killian is going to the krabbelgruppe tomorrow and whether I should keep Georgia home since she might be about to break out in the chicken pox!

and although I could swear there are a million other things to add, little piddling things, my brain just shut down and I can't remember any of them. I really need to get a small notebook and carry it and a pen with me at all times so I can jot things down as they occur to me, otherwise I may never get the things done I need!! I need to prioritize the list, but man, that's just asking way too much.

So let me just skip ahead and tell you that Ellen won the Scavenger Hunt. She wasn't the first to Email me the answer, but she was the only person to answer every question and get all but one right, and the one she missed was a hit or miss anyway. Plus, as far as I know, she waited until the end to answer the quote...or she's keeping it secret and not telling me otherwise!! So E - if you want me to, and don't mind a wait, I'll scrap a page for you.

The Words to the Scavenger Hunt were:

ugliness
have
form
it
months.
to
intolerable
Fashion
a
of
that
six
we
alter
so
every
is

Put them together and you've got: "Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months." - Oscar Wilde

For those interested in the answers to the questions:

Clue Number 1: I am a 70's baby, which year in the 70's was I born? (hint: the Eagle's Hotel California was #1 that year). Go to this Seventies Almanac for help. For extra brownie points, you can tell me which day I was born, Barbara Streisand's "Evergreen" was number one on that day.
Answer: Jan. 8, 1977

Clue Number 2: Clue Number 2: What was the population of Tucson, AZ at the 2000 census? Brownie points: Which of my family members was living in Tucson that year and why? hint: [she] was a wildcat. You're going to have to google this one. Good luck!!
Answer: 486,699, Kylene

Clue Number 3: What major [scrapbooking] contest did I win & what year? Bonus: how many years did I enter before winning? hint: One of my sidebar links will tell you the answer... bonus hint: I entered the same number of years as [Stacy] did.
Answer: CK Scrapbooking Hall of Fame, 2005. I entered 3 times before winning.

Clue Number 4: What part of Germany is known as 'the green lung of Berlin'? What is one thing this area is known for? Bonus: Why do you think this place landed a spot in my scavenger hunt? hint: when you do a search for 'the green lung of Berlin' you will come up with two answers. I am looking for the one that is an area of Germany, like a city or a state.
Answer: the Spreewald, PICKLES, Bonus: This is where Sven grew up and where we got married.

Clue Number 5: Who said: "I jump out of the circle and then jump back in it, and then I... shake my gourd." Bonus: where and when was it said? (this is vague, it has to be or it will give away the above answer)
Answer: Rupert Giles, BtVS, Season 5, Episode: "Intervention": April 24, 2001

Clue Number 6:
1. Who sang: 'I've got my very own set of designer genes...' & 'You're not gonna get rich on me'?
2. What is SPEW?
3. Where is Green Gables?
4. Bonus: you can send me an audio comment per Email where you sing me the answer for Number 1...how do you send audio comments? just record yourself using a program like: audacity and send away. I think, if anyone really does do this, then they get a special treat, a real one!!
Answers: 1. The Safety Kids, 2. the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, 3. Prince Edward Island, 4. NO ONE wanted to sing for me

Clue Number 7: Who is Lena Gercke? Easy one today. Bonus: tell me what you think of her (if you do at all).
Answer: Germany's Next Top Model

Clue Number 8: Who are Rob & Jon, what do they have to do with top tens and where are they right now?
Answer: They are the hosts for the Top of the Pods podcast. At the time of this question, Rob was sick in Scotland and Jon was buried in work. They live in Peterborough, England.

Clue Number 9: What is a Yeoman? Where will you find one? Once you have found where they are, tell me what magazine their 'home' made the cover of, when and for what reason?
Answer: Yeomen are the mascots of Oberlin College which made the cover of Life Magazine on November 20, 1970 for the article dealing with co-ed dorms.

Clue Number 10: Where did I have my very first scrapbooking page published?
Answer: Simple Scrapbooks A Simple Guide to Designing Scrapbooks (The answer was in my Email signature the whole time)

Clue Number 11: What is JYM?
Answer: Wayne State's Junior Year in Munich

Clue Number 12: What does: "Gute Besserung" mean? Now send me three 'pf' words.
Answer: Get Well Soon. Pfad, Pfau, Pfeffer, Pferd, Pflaster...

Clue Number 13: How was David Boreanaz discovered?
Answer: Walking his Dog!

Clue Number 14:
What did Georgie Porgie do?
What did the Old Woman feed her children?
What did the Little Girl have in the middle of her forehead?
Answer: Kissed the girls and made them cry, broth without any bread, a curl

Clue Number 15: What is it doing today in Munich???
Answer: it was snowing that day

Clue Number 16: Why is Tuesday night the best TV Night (IMO) here in Germany?
Answer: 20:15 - Grey's Anatomy, 21:15 - ER, 22:15 - Medical Investigation

Clue Number 17:
1. What did the brown girl in the ring look like?
2.What was I doing in Charleston, WV in 1997?
3. What [was] "the Can"? What is it called now? When did the name change?
Jus' Yenjai
Answers: all of these fit together - including the last comment: Jus' Yenjai (which in a google search would have brought you directly to the website with the answers to numbers 2 and 3). 1. She looked like a sugar in a plum (Boney M), 2. Playing the most amazing gig of my life with the Can Consortium, 3. The Can Consortium is now called 'Oberlin Steel'. The name was changed in 2001.

Whew. So I guess I can cross off another bit of my ToDo list, eh?!

Posted at 09:32 am by zauber-a
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I know I have much to catch-up on. I apologize. I will get to it. Right now, I have GOT to finish and print and MAIL my pregnancy loss Circle Journals that I have had for over 6 months - I am so so so so so sorry for being such a slacker. And then I need to mail Ines's album which I've had for four months. Again, i am so so so so so sorry. I have turned into much worse than a procrastinator recently and I know why - I have an excuse. I totally use Georgia as my excuse for not being able to do things. Bad, bad me.

So the list:

Edit (I don't like the original layouts) my CJ entries for Tara and Trish and Cynthia
Print CJ entries for Tara, Trish, Cynthia, Ashley & Sandra (I told you I was behind!)
Mail CJ entries.
Mail Ines's Album
Mail DVD of pics to Mom and Kylene
Create a few cards for upcoming birthdays and other stuff - and MAIL THEM
Put up the Scavenger Hunt results and answers!!
Mail Elsie Water's Baby Present!
Create a layout for Cora
Email about a hundred different people

I'll stop there for now and leave you with a picture because I had fun creating it with a PS tutorial...

We've been meaning to video Georgia in her bath for a while now because she has become much more active. She sits up now and grabs at things and loves the washcloth best of all. Of course making it difficult to wash her face as she grabs at it or opens her mouth and tries to eat it...

She's also started on pumpkin, fairly sucessfully I'd say. The first day was so-so. She ate it slowly, and not much, but she never made a face or spit it out - so brownie points on that. She is now up to half a glass and I don't push more because I once again read that 'baby's have tiny stomachs' and so I don't want to force her to eat more than can fit in her tiny stomach. I think she's doing quite well with half a glass of pumpkin and rice - especially because (between you and me) that stuff is gross! I think we'll do carrots and potatoes next since there are not other veggie options without potatoes and she already knows carrots, so that seems like the best intro to potatoes to me.

I wanted to start her on grießbrei for breakfast (Aldi doesn't have rice cereal) but when I got it home and looked at the ingredients, there is sugar added. Does all baby cereal have added sugar?? If so, then forget it. We'll have veggies for breakfast! Anyway, the box of grießbrei is unopened on the table for her to play with. I suppose I'll have to eat it!

On Sunday G was chewing on a rolodex card that I had written on in red ink. Non-permanant red ink that runs when it gets wet. I looked down at G in my lap and her lips were totally pink, eep! I showed Sven who was concerned and told me to wash them off asap and then of course, I took her into the bedroom and snapped photos.

Click HERE to see.

And if you want an idea how big she is really getting, click HERE.

Posted at 10:19 am by zauber-a
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Mom is going home today!!!

Posted at 05:47 pm by zauber-a
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Sorry for the long silence, things have been exhausting around here which Georgia has PROVED by sleeping for 1.5 hours this morning and another 2 this afternoon (or almost, she went down at 1pm and it's nearly 3pm now and she is still sleeping), something she hasn't done in over a week.

Mom is still in the hospital, but doing better and hoping to go home this weekend, at which time she will have at least a 2-week recovery at home. I wish more than anything that I could fly over there and be with her those two weeks.

My in-laws left yesterday morning, I was very sad to see them go as Georgia had finally accepted them as belonging to her, gave them many grins and Ute had warmed up enough to her to hug, kiss and cuddle her. Of course, she did scream her lungs out when they walked her on Thursday, sort of like she does to us when we are so cruel as to LEAVE HER in her carseat while we are driving...

I spent the night getting pictures ready for printing (try and print hard copies of my faves every 3 months in case something happens to computer or cd's) which is a pain in the patootie when you are insane and take something like 100 photos every 1.5 days.

I did scrap this past week, despite in-laws living in the computer room. I made 3 cards (two thank-yous and one get well soon) and a layout because Ines got on my case for only scrapping the sweet smiley photos of Georgia. Yes, I had planned from day one to scrap the screaming photos, just hadn't gotten around to it yet (except for the halloween layout and the 8-days-old layout which has her crying in one pic). So anyway, in between free moments, I did scrap this page (and do plan on scrapping quite a few more crying photos):

I am also happy to report that Georgia can def, without-a-doubt roll over. We have watched her do it numerous times, but always only once. If we get excited and flip her back on her tummy, she gets mad, puts her face in the floor and cries. I guess it's not really the nicest way to reward her, by turning her right back onto her tummy again!

As for the visit with all the in-laws: she cried at Rainer up to the end if she was left alone with him. She suffered Ute to hold her if I was in the room, but grinned at her like crazy at all other times, and got excited and happy whenever she saw her. She cried at Grit and squealed at Ben and tried her hardest to grab his face and hair. Heinz and Annegrit kept their distance. I think Ben was the biggest hit. Maybe I'll get around to posting a few photos later. There are not many, Sven had to work and Georgia wouldn't let anyone else hold her so I could take pictures...

And now I hear her, is awake so off I go.

Posted at 02:47 pm by zauber-a
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Lots of things going on. In-laws still here, sister-in-law, her husband and two kids arrived today and Mom went into the hospital Sunday night and was operated on on Monday night. So if I owe you an Email, or you are wondering why the blog isn't being updated with Scavenger Hunt answers, or why I haven't read your blog, that is why.

Mom is okay (she says). The operation hopefully went without a hitch. Possible that not all the dead tissue was removed and she might have to go back under, keeping fingers crossed that that is not the case. If you want more details, or to call her, or visit her, or send flowers or get-well cards, drop me an Email (you can use the contact form) and I'll get you details. Or call Kylene, she's got the info as well and was there for the OP along with Dad.

Posted at 06:05 pm by zauber-a
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Just a quickie: Georgia's First Easter in Pictures: (Click HERE for ALL the photos at nice big sizes)

There are more stories to tell, ones without photos, like stopped up toilets first thing in the morning and no water tonight, smokey kitchens from marinade that burned and salad dressing using concentrated vinegar...but for now: Happy Easter!

Posted at 09:36 pm by zauber-a
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Georgia slept for 2 hours this morning. I just happened to walk by right as she was waking up and quite calm. So I joined her. She sleeps on her tummy in the mornings. She looked at me a while, then started banging her feet on the bed and very slowly rolled over! I didn't help one bit. I excitedly called Sven into the room and flipped her back on her tummy and she did it AGAIN! Then Sven ran for the camera and we flipped her back on her tummy and she got mad and refused to roll over again. Actually, she acted like she had no idea what we wanted from her nor that she had done it before, or how. Ah well. Baby steps. Literally!

Posted at 11:30 am by zauber-a
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Me again. Brought Georgia back to the computer room with me and put her in the walker to see what she'd do. I think she figured it out. When I went to change her diaper, the feet of her tights were black. So I put on her first pair of robeez and she has now made it out the door of the computer room, that's right, she is walking purposely FORWARDS and even made it half way over the door's threshold. Go Georgia!

Oh, and I now am certain she CAN roll over if she wants to. I came in after her first nap this morning and she was rolled over on her side and waving her arm in the air trying to get over the rest of the way, with a teeny bit of encouragement, she did it. So I'm sure she could do it alone if she tried.

And now she's out the door and on the way to the hall (and looking around in fascination so I'd better wrap up here and catch her before she pulls the cuckoo clock on her head!

Posted at 03:36 pm by zauber-a
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For some unknown reason, I received my copy of the May CK in the mail on Saturday. Yes, in April, yes before some people even got it in the states. I was so excited to see the article "Make 12 Layouts in One Night!" Not just because that's cool, to make 12 layouts in one night, but because when I opened it up, I discovered that Jamie had done all the layouts for the article! I love Jamie, and I love her style, it could not be more different from my own, linear, graphic style and so I was excited to sit down and scrap those 12 layouts for Georgie's book. I started last night and I got three layouts done. Three. Well hey, I might have had things sketched out for me, but I still had to choose pictures, think up journaling and find matching embellishments and papers!! And of course, if Jamie used acrylic accents, then I wanted acrylic accents, only I don't have any digital acrylic accents and so I spent too much time figureing out how to make them and the time dredged on and I ended up with 3 layouts by midnight (oops, that's 4 hours of finicking around) and I hated one. Got up this morning and fixed the one I hated and started a 4th. And although I'd love to finish the fourth, I decided I'd better do today's blog entry instead.

So here is a preview of the 12 layouts (I will show them all eventually!!). Please forgive me for leaving out credits today, I'm tired, I only have a little bit of time until Georgia wakes up and I'd like to finish the rest of my lunch. I'll come back eventually and credit them.

Abschied: papers from Trish Jones, Way Down and there's a jazzy dot from Tracy Robinson, I'll be back with the rest of the info.

flying girl: papers by Jen Wilson - I'm not big on the ribbons. Anyone know where I can get a bigger variety of stapled ribbons? I hate it when my accents don't look 'real'.

This one cracks me up, seriously. Georgie used to do this every day, many times a day and then suddenly one day, she didn't do it anymore, like it happened overnight! Sven had even forgotten about it. Good thing I'm here to take the pictures and then write the stories to go with them!

do you see angels?

I did a similar one before, at least, using this quote and while I was uploading it, I realized that I had to tell more of a story behind the quote, so here it is. This is the one that gave me problems last night. I changed it drastically this morning.

And for those who just love the layouts that go with the pictures of Georgie (because they tell the story) here are three more I did over the weekend: trick-or-treat, drool & Valentine's Day. (Trick-or-Treat is a lift of Ali Edwards & Valentine's Day is a lift of Tracy Kyle).

And now for the Scavenger Hunt.

Today is the LAST DAY.

I'm happy to report that I have had five people stay with the game from start to finish, so thanks Sybille, Cindy R., Cindy G., Cora & Ellen for playing every day and even going back and fixing wrong answers!! I'm sorry I lost a lot of people along the way and now know, if I do this again, to make it shorter! And to all of you who have been reading every day but not playing because you were afraid of wrong answers, pshaw!! Even I had a wrong answer on Day 1, as Ellen so kindly told me!! So, since my in-laws just called and canceled their trip for now (fil sprained his ankle) then we have more time for the Game. I will expect the answers to the last clues by tomorrow noon PST. At that point, I will mail out the last word to everyone and whoever sends me the quote with author first, 'wins'. Hopefully there is someone left who didn't cheat and figure out the clue already!! This gives everyone who fell a bit behind, time to catch up. I'll post the daily answers and the quote answer tomorrow after the game is over.

So, for today's clue. It's gotta be somewhat harder I think, but I'm not sure anything can top the Yeoman day! We'll try it without help first. And Yoko, if that is you checking in here from Japan on a regular basis - say hello! Today's clue should 'speak' to you!

Clue 17:

What did the brown girl in the ring look like?
What was I doing in Charleston, WV in 1997?
What [was] "the Can"? What is it called now? When did the name change?

Jus' Yenjai

Posted at 01:23 pm by zauber-a
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