I've just had...

...an EPIPHANY.

You know, for the last few years, I've set these kreative goals for myself and for the last few years, I've come up short. In 2008, it was because my Mom was in the hospital for so long. This year, it's just been SO MANY different things, culminating with our entire house being sick right now. My main goal for this year was to complete 550 layouts. Right now, I've posted 422. I have others to post but it would mean being up until 5am AGAIN. It would mean missing out on all the New Year's Eve festivities we have planned...and really, it's just not worth it. I mean, 422 is a GREAT number...especially with all that's happened this year. And because I'm a glutton for punishment, I'll just set more goals for 2010!!! Naw, it has nothing to do with loving punishment (even though a spanking every now and then never hurt NObody!!!) It's because another realization I've had this week is that setting goals and working hard to reach them is what keeps me focused. I'll leave you with my favorite five layouts for 2009:

first cookie tasting
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(I love these pictures and the fact that this page turned out BETTER than I pictured it in my head...how often does THAT happen?!?!)

it's like summer on the lake
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(This is the first page where I did a LOT of hand stitching...and realized how much I LIKE it!!!
Hence, the addiction was born!)

beau bathin' baby boy
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(LOVE how this page turned out!!!! LOVE that Memory Makers published it on their blog!!! Never got a chance to be published in the paper mag...but this'll do!!!)

you are a paradox:man-child (dreamgirls challenge)-WINNER!!!
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(LOVE all the techniques I used on this page....AND it won the Dreamgirls' Challenge!)

to my firstborn son
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(JUST LOVE!)

hold on to you (dec/jan somerset memories)
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(My first PAPER PUB!!!!!)

2009...two at a time
by Keeperkwill
Scrapbook.com

(My pride runneth over! Plus, my addiction to the mists was starting to overtake me!)
Umm, I KNOW that's more than five...and I'm ONLY up to May, so I'd better stop. I, too have decided to adopt OLW for 2010 and it's RENEW. I want to renew my commitment to God, to myself and to those who are important to me and never falter in their support of me. If I don't get to do another post before the next year overtakes us, may you all continue to be blessed.

You know...

...it's like my posts are getting far and few in between! it's not that i haven't WANTED to blog! our baby boy has been really sick this past week. around 1am, when he threw up FIVE TIMES within an HOUR...we knew it was time to go. and, let me tell you: there was NO JOY and fa la la la la in THAT hospital last night! the doctors told us that keanohn has respiratory syncytial virus and bronchiolitis. sunday morning, he awakened with a temperature of 102. but, kea gets like this ever so often (as a matter of fact, he was sick LAST december!) so we didn't immediately take him to the emergency room. but, we watched him closely....and he progressively got worse. by the time we left for the hospital this morning, i was afraid to take my camera with me. i normally DO take it when we go because keanohn does some of the FUNNIEST things while we're there. do you know what my mind kept telling me? if you take pictures of keanohn during this hospital stay, they'll be the last pictures you take of him. may seem crazy to you but i felt that all down in my genes and chromosomes....and i left the camera home.
and that's one of the best decisions i've made. the respiratory therapist had to give him two breathing treatments and it took FOUR of us to hold him down!!! he's lost 5 lbs and he's down to 30 but he still has BEASTLY strength!!! he doesn't like anything covering his face so the breathing treatments...a HORRIFICAL experience!!! the chest x-rays weren't much better. all in all, he's doing better. his breathing is not as labored and even though the coughing still rattles him, he hasn't thrown up in the last couple of hours...i even got him to eat scrambled eggs and i'm just monitoring him to make sure they stay down. we have to give him breathing treatments every 3 hours and he goes back to the doctor tomorrow for more tests but he's on the mend...i'm claiming it! i really want to thank pegs, chary and mz blue for their encouragement and prayers this past week!
needless to say, we're gonna miss the christmas celebration AGAIN this year! we think kea will be more comfortable at home with not so many folks around. plus, my mom's immune system is not strong enough to handle getting what he has. the homebody in me is grateful. i prefer being home. it's ahmad's year to spend christmas in atlanta, so the boys won't be opening their gifts until he returns next week. so, i'm gonna enjoy watching movies and eating with two of my favorite guys. and when the little guy sleeps, i'm gonna put on my leopard galoshes and fa la la john's la! it PROMISES to be a GREAT DAY!!!
you know, charyamore told me that john and i are TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE parents because we don't give each of our kids an ornament each christmas. naw, i'm joking but i DID think it was a great tradition when she told me about it. when john and i went to hobby lobby last week, we picked these up for ahmad:
because he's our basketball player this year! (how CUTE is that chuck taylor with the christmas tree in the center?!?! ) for our car and truck fanatic, we got these
i LOVE them but OBVIOUSLY not as much as kea who keeps trying to take them off the tree!
OH! the december kreatorville kit is LIVE!!! here's a peek at some of the yumminess:
how BEAUTIFUL are those papers?!?!? and the TRUE beauty of this? that's not the BEST part of the kit!!!! go on over there to SWOON over the rest of the december kit and possibly win a FREE KIT!!!!
i have SO MUCH to do that i'll leave you with only TWO of the projects i kreated with this kit!
this is one of the pictures that we took in texas. the "winter" portion of the title is one of the handmade embellishments available with the december kit. every embellishment and paper used on this page is included in the december kit!
also, i was able to find a FEW minutes this month to branch out and kreate a home decor item! mr. snowman is decked out in the latest finery from the december kit. i LOVE the way the pearls look all over the front of his plump belly!!!! if you're interested in a kit, contact me @ keandra@kreatorvillekraft.com. i'll be back soon with better news on my kea (i'm CLAIMIN' IT!!!)

do you know...

...what makes a birthday great? when it's celebrated for DAYS, not just one day! i got this in the mail:

my CHARYamore knew that (sadly!) i've never read the twilight series and i told her that i really want to before we see the movie so she sent me the first two books! plus, she made the tickets for the december kreatorville kraft kit and sent me a BUNCH of other die cuts and papers to play with! i'm sure you'll see tickets on my next 500 projects because that's how many she sent me! just kidding...it was only 300!!! don't forget to check out kreativity.kreatorvillekraft.com to see peeks from the december kit!
OH! i forgot to mention that i got an email from pam (essensevibez) this morning letting me know that i won kenner road kit from ali...it's beginning to look a lot like christmas in this joint!!!!

oh hey....

...the girl next door has revealed her November kit! Make sure to check it out here...she's giving out some GREAT "incentives!"

EXTRA EXTRA....

...READ ALL ABOUT IT!!! check out my FIRST INTERVIEW with Essense Vibez here:
http://essensevibezxtraz.blogspot.com/

::Interview with Keandra Willis::

check this out, have you ever met someone online and feel their spirit shine through your screen when you're chatting with them?--if you've ever chatted with KIWIKREATOR KEANDRA, you know what i'm talkin' about!!--this woman has been my inspiration for some time now and yes, she knows it!--what i love about KIWI {what i passionately call her} is her beauty, her honesty, her way of making you think and how she can turn things around when you're feelin' like crap-a-doodle after a long day or puttin' up with everyday life--i'm so feeling her passion to create--you talkin about an artist!!--KEANDRA has evolved!--sit back, relax and read about this incredible woman whom i love from bottom of my heart and soul--:

(you can click the link to read the rest!) thanx to pam for allowing me such a wonderful opportunity to express myself and my views!!!

two years ago today...

...at 2:30 in the morning, i was merely praying for God to please let this kid COME ALREADY!!! now, as i look at those beautiful eyes, i'm just so grateful for the blessing which is him! even though he just cried for 15 minutes straight and gave me a not-so-great, VERY early start to my day, i still appreciate having him in our lives. plus, i understand his pain so i'm cutting him some slack! see, daddy decided that two is "big boy" range. and big boys NEVER walk around looking like this:
john has been talking about it for months...even warning kea: when you turn two, daddy's taking keeper from you! (keeper is short for PEACE keeper). well, the other day kea and i were home alone and keeper was misplaced. so, i decided that i may as well bite the bullet and start the process then. kea was NOT HAPPY. he thrashed; he begged; he screamed; he almost made me lose my mind! but, we're at day four now and he's doing well...for the MOST part. several points to remember:don't mention keeper around him; don't show him any pictures of himself UTILIZING keeper; and the MOST important rule: make sure to freshen his diaper before he falls asleep so that he doesn't have to be awakened in the middle of the night screaming for keeper. why am i up at 2:30 am, blogging? i fell asleep last night before kea. when i was awakened around 1:30 by barney singing about friendship ( i don't LIKE that dinosaur!!!) i checked kea and realized he was SATURATED!!!! of course, he couldn't stay that way because he's so susceptible to diaper rashes so i had to bite the bullet and change him...and i woke him. at first, he just reached for keeper; then, he insisted that i find it FOR him...LOUDLY...for TWENTY MINTUES!!! it's times like these which separate the weak from the strong; times like these REALLY show if you have any abusive tendencies! but, i stayed cool. even though he was twitching, i resisted the urge to stuff keeper in his mouth while screaming, "here...TAKE HIM!!!" you see, the last four days have been like living with a crack addict going through withdrawals. he awakens and he is the SWEETEST little boy, with those big beautiful eyes and those beautiful teeth. then....just...like....THAT...he snaps and turns into pookie from new jack citytwitching, throwing himself around...just like a person who's fighting an addiction. i feel pretty much like a crack addict myself right now because all i can do is hold him and rock him back and forth while he claws at me and his daddy snores (did i mention that daddy can LITERALLY fall asleep in two minutes flat? i've always wanted to suck that ability RIGHT OUT OF HIM like a BODY SNATCHER...i NEED THAT!!!) but, God is good because He gave me some peace and now the murderous thoughts have dissipated and the warm fuzzies have returned. at two the little boy:
*snatches his pamper off and asks to use the potty more often
*tells us EXACTLY what he wants/doesn't want (cup, please! stop, ahmad! eat, please!)
*will give me kisses most of the time without making me fall to my knees and beg for them
*loves to be outside
*LOVES LOVES LOVES football! he will throw his arms in the air whenever the crowd roars
during a game. doesn't matter if it's a first down...SCREW THAT!!! EVERYTHING'S
touchdown!!!
*loves the phone...not to talk...just to listen...well, he will say lub you and bye but not much else
*makes us so grateful to have him in our lives. have you ever been in a situation where
you desire a thing for so long that when you finally get it the disappointment is just
overwhelming? well, i wanted this little boy for about eight years. around the time ahmad
turned three, i decided that i wanted another baby. i would daydream about it, pray for it...i could just feel this baby in my arms. that feeling has never diminished. i worried that having another baby at a more...ummm, MATURE point in my life would mean i would be dealing with this little person with a lot less patience. i delivered jamani the month before i turned 20...he was like a toy to me: i just played with him and held him all the time...he was SO MUCH FUN! i was 24 when ahmad came along and still young enough to be pliable. but, i had kea two weeks before i turned 36. i was afraid of not having enough patience to deal with him daily. but, that worry was unwarranted. of COURSE he tweaks my nerves every now and then...but HE actually drives me a LOT LESS crazy than my 18 year old! i feel so blessed that God has entrusted this beautiful, intelligent, FUNNY little being into our care...AND so blessed that God gifted me with a good husband to help raise this little person! so, i guess the good outweighs the bad and we'll keep the little boy (cause about an hour ago i was SERIOUSLY contemplating giving him to Goodwill in the morning with the donations!)
we're having a REALLY small party saturday with some of kea's favorite characters from sesame street. the only one he'll call by name is "elbo" so i made some quick invitations using him

i normally love EVERY aspect of parties, from the food to the balloons to the decorations. but, i'm so swamped with everything else right now that i'm just ready for this one to be OVER!!! i'll be working like a robot today to get as much done as possible before we attend open house at ahmad's potential high school...MERCY!!! that's ANOTHER thing: my baby will be in HIGH SCHOOL next year! UGH!

i have a new neighbor...

...but i'm not sure if i like her or not. i mean, she seems like a cool chick...very stylish! but, she's always talking business...her business THIS and her business THAT!!! you know i'm all about the family and quality time making memories with them so i'm not sure if our friendship will blossom or not. check her out yourself...let me know what you think!