Decorative Memories

Eye Candy

2011-06-22T19:59:00.000-07:00

I have a new camera... and lots of new photos to share! :) This is my first summer at home with the kids and being completely FREE, no daycare business and no work other than the things I sell online. I won't lie- it's been wonderful! It took me awhile to adjust to being at home and I am really amazed at how busy we have been- how does any mom have time to work a full time job and be a mom and wife at the same time?!

This zebra shirt is made using a bandanna- and it was surprisingly fast and easy to make! Every little girl should have one...

I am working on a new project and will be revealing it soon, I must say it feels good- and its going to LOOK good too :) It will have lots of attitude and sparkle, but for now here is a bit of eye candy from the past few months!

Little miss patriotic... although she is quite bratty. I have to work extremely hard to get her to pose for photos for me, the process often involves bribery and if she doesn't fall for that then I resort to threats. When the threats don't work... I tickle her and try to get her to tell me the colors of whatever object I can wave above my head and then I snap photos that look like the one above! This entire process usually occurs in my front yard. I live on a busy street. I think the neighbors might think I am a little crazy :)

Uh huh. Theres some of that attitude I was just telling you about...

A Cherry Limeade Custom Baby Shower

2011-04-22T19:45:00.001-07:00

When it comes to throwing showers (of any kind), I just can't help myself. No matter how simple it is supposed to be... the wheels in my mind keep spinning and before I know it I have a mile-long list of ideas for custom decorations, handmade treats, and coordinating accessories! This shower evolved from a "cherry jubilee" to a "cherry limeade" theme during a trip to Wal-Mart... and as soon as the idea hit me- I knew it was going to be perfect!

Most of the party supplies came from Hobby Lobby, Wal-Mart, and Michael's. The wooden crate for silverware was from Hobby Lobby and I painted it with acrylic paint. All of the miniature chalkboards were also painted by me- which did take a little extra time, but in the end I was able to create unique decorations that perfectly matched the shower for under $5 a piece. I had considered adding extra cherry die cuts around the borders of the chalk boards but decided that they looked good with a simple coat of paint.

I used some fabric from Hobby Lobby to tie around the silverware and added a cute bow to the wooden crate with some cherry fabric from Michael's.

No generic punch here- of course a cherry limeade themed shower should have cherry limeade! I made this myself using a cherry limeade Sam's Choice brand mix (it was by the Crystal Light) except I mixed it up with 7up instead of water, then I added lime wedges and some maraschino cherries. I put extra limes and cherries in a bowl so that we could feel fancy and top our drinks with them! The kids enjoyed these too!

I have to say... these chalkboard tags are like the find-of-the-year for me, they turned out so stinkin' cute! Of course, me being an adult who still <3's to color with chalk miiiiiight have just a liiiitle bit to do with that ;)

I tied lots of little bits of ribbon around these jars and filled 'em with candy that came in colors that matched my theme. I am an over-achiever like that. And yes, I spent about an hour in the candy aisle at Target trying to decide which candy would be the best. And yes, these jars are now sitting on my kitchen counter because they are too cute to put away.

Ahhhhh.... the cupcakes.....

Please honor this moment of silence and drool over the pure cuteness before thee.

Ya'll may have read my posts about my dear friend Carrie before... or you may not have, whatever the case- she loves cupcakes. She calls them cuppiecakes. And she makes them a lot- any reason is a good reason to have cuppiecakes!

If you know Carrie, you will never throw her a shower that has cake without cupcakes. It would not be proper :)

Thank you Annie's Eats for the awesome cherry limeade cuppiecakes recipe :) I stayed up until 3 am making these little beauties and it was worth it!

This was our "welcome" table. The green polka dot "tablecloth" is actually just more fabric from Hobby Lobby. The little bags next to my super duper cool chalkboard sign are a couple of the goody bags I used for party favors. I created the labels using a digi scrapbooking kit and filled them with paper shreds and a Ghiradelli chocolate.

The second part of our party favors were daisy topped pens. I have always thought these darn things are so cute, so I have nooooooo clue why I never made them before! It was so easy... I made extras so that I can be super dorky and make all of my to-do lists with a flower pen now.

This picnic basket actually came from my attic! It was here when we moved in, all it needed was a little cleaning! I lined the inside with more Hobby Lobby fabric and filled it with flower pens and envelopes for thank you notes.

Diaper cake time!!!

This diaper cake is a little different than my normal ones because it actually had clothes on it. Carrie already has a lot of my handmade hairbows and some that she made herself, so I decorated the layers of the diaper cake using ribbons, fabric, and some mesh ribbony stuff (thats the technical term for it...).

Congratulations Carrie and thank you for letting me throw you a fancy schmancy custom baby shower :)

The beautiful and fun mommy! Of course we had to make her pose with a cuppiecake!

Think Spring...

2011-03-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

All too often, scrapbookers keep their craft tucked away in albums- but not me! I want to have my art all over the house! This is a canvas I created for Katelynne's bedroom using Cosmo Cricket papers and chipboard and various other craft supplies.

It took me quite awhile to find the perfect quote for this canvas, I wanted something about flowers and happiness- because... well, flowers make me happy! I began by painting the background on the canvas blue and adding a few touches of stamped flowers and butterflies for dimension.

I used several different paper flower techniques to create these little beauties, I like the combination it creates. The stems are made of green ribbon and I cut the leaves freehand from green cardstock before folding and inking them.

Here's to spring and flowers on my front porch! Make something sunny and hang spring on your wall :)

Advocate THIS...

2011-03-24T06:58:00.000-07:00

To all the nurses, doctors, and more recently- secretaries, who have in some way contributed to the health issues my son has dealt with, I am waving a middle finger salute at you!

I have written a lot about Lucas' past surgeries and other health concerns; there are many scrapbook pages and journal pages that I simply cannot share on my blog because they are so very personal and represent very strong emotions that I am not sure will ever get any easier to deal with when it comes to my baby boy. This particular post may seem a little angry, or outright accusatory- after all, it is these very doctors and nurses that I am complaining about to whom I should be thankful for all that they have done for Lucas. So here is my disclaimer: YES I acknowledge the fact that ya'll saved Lucas' life as an infant and you have done great things for him. Now I am going to commence a major bitching session about you and healthcare in general and I am going to say a lot of things that many other parents have felt as they watched their infant or child go through surgeries or recieve devastating diagnosis after diagnosis with no real answers- if you don't want to hear it, please go back to spying on your facebook friends.

To the nurses and pediatrician who failed to identify Lucas' imperforate anus before he went home from the hospital (it was most definitely visible had you actually looked at his bottom), you suck! I will never, ever stop asking myself how life would have been different if this had been recognized before we took our baby home from the hospital. His colon wouldn't have ruptured, he wouldn't have had to be on life support for the first 3 weeks of his life- what if we hadn't taken him to the ER that third night at home when we simply thought he was "breathing funny"? My son suffered unimaginable pain and multiple surgeries because you were too busy to do your job right, and every single day I carry a doubt in my mind that perhaps it is all my fault, that somehow I should have been able to see that something was not right. Being that I had not (at that time) spent any time at all examining what a newborn's anus is supposed to look like, I guess I shouldn't feel that way. So, here's to the healthcare professionals responsible for my eternal "what if" questions that I can never answer, your own personal middle finger salute!

To the pediatric surgeon who saved Lucas, you did a miraculous surgery on a less than 5 pound infant, you are an amazing person! Follow through after that surgery? Not as great. You have so many patients that I had to recite his medical history almost every time we came to your office. At three years old my son could barely talk and was having potty training issues and your only suggestion to me was to come back when his speech improved and that he had "normal bowel function". Excuse me Dr. Amazing, but sh*tting your pants and not knowing how it happened is not normal bowel function. I would like to inform you that thanks to a simple facebook search I found a support group of parents with children who had the same health issues as Lucas- and guess what?! Almost all of those kids have been to gastroenterologists to treat their diminished bowel function, almost every single parent of a child who had a colostomy as an infant said that their child faced bowel incontinence issues. Dr. Amazing, you have a lot of time-outs, groundings, and poopy underwear to clean because these are the punishments we gave our son when we believed that his accidents were a behavioral problem because of what you told us. Here is your own personal middle finger salute!

To Dr. Amazing's secretary, I have really, really enjoyed this two month run-around with you, but honestly- I am out of breath. And patience. It would be sooooooo freakin' awesome to actually get Lucas an appointment with that gastroenterologist I found out he needed to see through facebook (thank you Dr. Amazing), but I can't seem to get an appointment because they need a copy of his medical records. That you were supposed to give me. Two months ago. I know it must suck that Dr. Amazing moved his practice to Texas and left you behind, but seriously get me the damn records. Of all the sh*t I have to advocate for, getting my sons medical records should not be one of them, enjoy your middle finger slaute ma'am!

Six years ago, a doctor told me that my son would most likely live a normal life and that after a few more surgeries life would go back to normal. For the most part it has, and I am very thankful for that. It still amazes me today that I still have to advocate for my son to get the medical care and attention he needs. Because of a simple medical error and healthcare professionals who were too busy to recognize a birth defect, I will always blame myself for each and every scar Lucas has. His scars have become my scars, they aren't visible on my body but rather on my heart. This post is for every parent who has ever felt let down by a nurse, doctor, or other healthcare professional. I'm not sure when it gets easier, but somehow a little bitch fest every now and then helps, thanks for listening!

Pretties for my Pretty

2011-02-23T18:23:00.000-08:00

Katelynne is finally starting to happily try on some of my tutus and hairbows for photos- for the longest time she didn't want anything to do with them! She was making silly kitty faces but I'm not going to be too picky- at least she wasn't putting up a fight!

Today the weather got into the 70's so we had a good time outside in the sunshine taking photos of bright and cheery frou-frou!

I decided to make another rainbow tutu- one that wasn't "Knotty". I really like the results- I slipped in a few pieces of glitter tulle here and there also which added a nice bit of sparkle.

I don't know why on earth I hadn't made a rainbow hairbow before- but I must say that I L.O.V.E. the results! I am always amazed at how pleasing to the eye it is when these colors are combined in the ROY G BIV order, I can't get enough of it! This bow is a monster by the way- I chose this photo because you can see it is as big as my whole hand!

So many people think "green" for St. Patrick's day, but I have got to say- I think that a fluffy rainbow tutu really says "lucky" when you look at it. After all, the pot of gold is supposed to be at the end of the rainbow...

A peek at all the goodies we made this week, I am really excited about these butterfly clips, they are so cute and can be clipped on anything- not just headbands! I clipped a few of them on the tutu below and I think they would also be perfect for a scrapbook page.

I am still trying to focus on making things for myself and my family, so I am keeping most of these bows or giving them as gifts. There must be something in the water here because almost every single one of my friends are pregnant and they are having girls! I am going to list a few of these items in my Etsy shop as well, so if you are looking for a treat for your own little spring beauty come take a look!

Spiffy Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies

2011-02-02T06:35:00.000-08:00

There's a good reason why I named my blog "Decorative Memories"- pretty much everything I make, I want to make it fancy or extra-special in some way. This desire spills over into my baking as you can see :)

If it were a perfect world.... I would make fancy cookies for every holiday, but alas- 'tis an imperfect world and not everyone gets to have beautiful cookies!

I need to mention that the last time I attempted to make "spiffy" sugar cookies (with my bestest friend Carrie of course!) we had to make our husbands eat the evidence- it was that bad! This time around I told Carrie, "It's just hearts how hard could it be to make them look cute?!", To which she told me "don't speak too soon". I suppose she's right, the snowflake cookies we attempted to decorate last year looked pretty bad!

Why did I make butterfly shaped cookies for Valentine's Day? Because this my kitchen. And I can. Or maybe because butterflies and hearts make my little fantasy world of awesome cookies a little bit happier?!

This poor butterfly broke her wing and was therefore deemed to be a defective cookie. I was forced to eat her in order to put her out of her misery- forced I tell you! It was the right thing to do!

Snow 'n Rainbows

2011-01-12T10:02:00.000-08:00

Ahhh... a nice snow day stuck in the house. Okay actually it's not all that nice because we still have to roll out of bed (after a fifteen minute pep talk to myself LOL) every morning in a cold house and trudge out into the snow to take Lucas to school in the morning. Seriously- snow was Soooo-ooo-ooo much more fun when I was kid because I didn't have to clean up the snow all over the floor, acknowledge the whiny complaints of freezing fingers and toes after playing out in the snow, and decline approximately 1,000 requests to go play in the snow some more!

I definitely did have a smile on my face in the morning when the kids woke up and I knew that they had not looked out the windows yet and that I possessed the sweet pleasure of telling them "Guess what?! It snowed last night while you were sleeping!" I could have sworn there were a lot more than two children in this house the minute they began the chorus of "SNOW! snow, snow snow! IT'S SNOW!"

One of the most romantic memories I have of all the things my husband and I have ever done together- revolves around snow and a midnight walk around the neighborhood. It was one of those nights when the snowflakes were so big that they looked like white feathers floating to the ground. I was pregnant with our first child at the time, so it was no big deal to get out in the freezing weather and the middle of the night for a "walk around the block".

If you have never been for a walk in the middle of a snowy night, stash away the idea for a future time because it is a unique experience of complete silence and you will actually witness the beauty of nature colliding with humanity to create a scene that can only be absorbed and enjoyed when most of your neighborhood is at home- in bed.

So, enough about snow! I am sure that by now you must be wondering why on earth I have photos of a rainbow tutu here while I am reminiscing about snowflakes!

I had an order come in this week for a rainbow tutu for a special little girl's birthday outfit. I couldn't have picked a better project for today. The bright colors that perfectly fade from one to the next- with a fluffy white layer underneath representing the "clouds" around the rainbow simply remind me of spring and warm sunny days spent taking care of my flower beds. This tutu is the perfect project for a snowy day inside, I can't wait to get started :)

Click on any one of these photos to view this tutu in my Etsy shop!

Somebody call 911...

2011-01-09T19:09:00.000-08:00

We need an ambulance- my blog has lost its pulse!

I'm not really sure what to say after not posting for so long. I think about my blog, I look at it, I look at who's been reading my blog... and then say "eh... it's been too long since my last post- why bother now?"

The larger truth is- I think sometimes it is hard for me to find my voice. I feel like all too often crafters and bloggers in general are simply selling out their interests and their words to whatever companies or people are offering F-R-E-E stuff or design opportunities, but at the end of the day WHO are they creating for? A manufacturer or their own inner artist? Not to say that free stuff and popularity isn't a great motivator for creativity! :)

I want to tell my own story, in my own words, without selling out to anyone. I want to scrapbook my family's memories for my family to enjoy, to inspire other paper crafters, and to indulge my desire to create pretty things.

2010 brought a lot of changes to my family, and I have not scrapbooked a single one of them. NOPE, nothing! I think stepping back from the rat race of trying to purchase every new tool, flower, or paper line has helped me to see with a new point of view, to realize that I am wasting the things I have been given to create with and taking my own creativity for granted. At the same time I have discovered a new love of reading and writing, and become confident enough to say that YES I enjoy playing video games and sometimes I am nothing more than a big computer geek who actually watches Starcraft II game replays while organizing my ribbon collection (quite the combo there eh?).

There is nothing I could say to sum up everything I wish I had written here and didn't, so I'm just going to start now- with a fresh perspective and ideas that I want to translate into creations. There are books I have read that I want to discuss, games that I want to play, how-to's that I want to share, and a brand new office in our new house (yep I told ya there were a lot of things I haven't written about didn't I?!) that is full of an unbelievable amount of craft supplies that I was in denial about until I had to lug it all down the stairs of our old house and up the stairs of the new house. Nothing like a sore body and endless boxes of craft stuff to put away to give you a slap in the face and make you realize that you have a l-o-t of crap! It's pretty crap- delightful papers, flowers, fabrics, ribbon and more, but it is a LOT. I have some serious work to do to pay for my shopping sins!

So for now, I'm not going to try to play catch-up or explain or beg for forgiveness. I just hope that those of you have always enjoyed reading my blog and seeing my creations might find something here that inspires you in some way.

All Inclusive

2010-07-05T08:32:00.000-07:00

Today I have a few more Bella Blvd. projects to share. Above is a card made from Man of the House and below is a layout made from the All Inclusive line. I can't believe I made this layout in January, it feels so warm and sunny! There was actually snow on the ground when I photographed this layout believe it or not :)

To save paper I actually cut out the middle of the orange background paper and used it for another project.

I don't have much else to say today! It is 4th of july weekend and I have spent it relaxing and doing all the nothing that I can stand. I often feel guilty for not spending more time doing activities with the kids and this weekend was all about laying back and just recharging my batteries so to speak. Every mom needs a little time to just sit back and say "I'll do it tomorrow" and this is officially my weekend for doing just that, I am claiming it and I am going to savor it. Tomorrow it is back to work and back to the balancing act that is my everyday, I'll be ready- are you?

Book and thoughts of the week

2010-07-05T06:42:00.000-07:00

Reading. Studying. Gardening. Cooking. Creating. All of these things have been fighting to be the forerunner of my activities the past several weeks. I have been drinking a LOT of coffee and doing as much as I can handle before giving up and crawling into my bed, surrendering to the warm chocolate brown sheets and melting into a much needed deep sleep.

I am in week 8 of my first term of classes with Kaplan University. Only two more weeks left and so far I have a 99% in all my classes! I am really happy with this and I have actually learned a LOT. I'll be graduating in about nine months from now and everyday I think about the future and feel a little tinge of excitement at the fact that I am finally finishing school, I wish I had done it sooner. I wish I had known how easy it would be to go to school online and get a real deal degree from a big girl school :)

This week I am reading The Passage by Justin Cronnin. I absolutely had to read it after seeing his interview on Good Morning America- seriously Stephen freakin' King called in during the interview to tell Cronin how much he loved his book and said that he hoped it sold "a million copies". Seriously. That was the moment I knew I had to read it- besides the fact that it is about vampires that is ;). I am about halfway done with the book and lemme' tell ya what- Cronin's vampires most definitely do not sparkle in the sunshine and fall madly in love with teenage girls! I am enjoying the book but it's definitely not the genre I would normally read. There have been several parts of the book that I would have liked to have been written differently. It hasn't been - for me anyway- an "I can't put this down for anything except to go to the bathroom and eat" book, but I think I need a little more time to get fully engrossed in the book, it is after all- one ginormous book!

I also have one more bit of exciting news I want to write about. I have been a work at home mommy since 2004 and I have done just about every different type of WAHM job you can think of. I am adding a new item to my resume of work at home experiences- freelance writing. I have loved reading and books ever since I was old enough to listen to a story, let alone read one myself. I don't know why I never recognized how fulfilling the act of writing and creating my own story could be. I've always thought it would be the most amazing thing to be the author of a story as enthralling as those of my childhood, why didn't I ever sit down and actually write? I don't have an answer for that, I've always been creative so it's only natural to me that I feel a new creative desire- to write.

I know I've got a lot to learn so I'm starting small. I have accepted three freelance writing gigs to get a little experience before writing on my own topics. I'm having fun- so we'll see where the creative ride takes me!

Love, Mom - a mini album memoir to my children

2010-06-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

For the Bella projects I created for CHA in January it was requested that we stick with the main theme of the line when creating our projects- and this was challenging for me when it came to the Estate Sale line. I have a fairly good amount of family- that is true, but my family generally does not spend time together, most of us harbor a grudge against one family member or another for various reasons, and it’s really sad for me that things have to be that way. When I sat and thought about “Estate Sale” I thought of the great grandparents I never really knew, about my living grandma in Ohio I have seen only a handful of times, and about my other grandma that is like a second mother to me. I don’t have any photos of any of these people, I know my grandma that I am close to has lots of old photos, but yet again the “I never got to know these people” factor was in the back of my mind. So I decided to take a different angle.

The Bella Blvd. estate sale line is about long-term relationships, both family and friends, that are important to us and who will forever be remembered with love and good times. I decided to make this album about my OWN family and relate my past to my present and how I want to be better than the family I grew up with (or actually grew up WITHOUT).

This album has the most heartfelt journaling of any other I have done and brings out some feelings that I have never felt were easy to discuss with anyone, but they are things that need to be said to my children, and that’s what scrapbooking is all about for me- relating my feelings and thoughts to my family and recording them so that they know exactly how much I love them and have tangible memories of my life and our memories together. So- enough chit chat already! Here’s the album!

It's one of my faves- paper bag book.

Had to include a pic of myself of course ;)

I picked a different word for each set of pages that represented one of the most important feelings I wanted to talk about and convey to my children. The first one is faith. There is a journaling tag in the right side page.

One of my favorite photos and pages, it needed a close up :)

Left side page has a magnetic closure and is a tri-fold page, photo below shows the inside of the page:
This inside portion is about how my family DOES love eachother, but we never say it. I am determined to break that cycle with my own children and let my feelings be seen, heard, and felt no matter what!

Dream- this page is about thinking big, believing in yourself, and always believing that you can do ANYTHING if you put you mind to it and work hard enough. I don't want my children to ever feel like anything is holding them back.

health- this page is about my hope that the kiddos will learn some healthy eating habits from me and like their veggies LOL! Ok, it's more about my hope that they will be better than me in the health dept.- be active, play sports, excercise. It may sound a little out of place compared to the other hard topics, but obesity is a real issue in my family and even my husband and I battle our weight and eating habits. My hope for my children is that they will see the lifestyle changes we work so hard to make everyday and that they will come automatically for them, that in their adult lives they will not have to worry about their weight, that exercise will simply be a part of their everyday schedule.

More Bella

2010-06-21T11:02:00.000-07:00

This color combo is one that I have never worked with before- navy blue with hot pink and brown, a touch of lime green. I like it! It is different! I was honestly surprised that I had an outfit of Katelynne's that matched the paper too! This layout uses the Estate Sale line from Bella Blvd. and was another one of my creations for CHA in January.

Some more Man of the House for ya'll here. I was proud of myself for using my silhouette and cutting out an odd border to use on this page. I like the effect and had really been feeling like I needed to use my Silhouette more. This photo was taken on our sixth anniversary last year and although the date we went on totally sucked (thank you mr. negative attitude!) I like the photo... lol! We went to a casino for the first time and my husband hated it, he was a real party pooper if I do say so myself. Oh well, at least I got a nice scrapbook page out of the deal right? Now if our anniversary this year isn't more enjoyable I may have to think of a more cruel and unusual punishment for him other than using his face on a scrapbook page!

I just finished reading the Harper Connelly mysteries by Charlaine Harris today. I have already preordered the next book in the series from Amazon, can't wait! Perhaps I will try to write my first book review and post it here? Maybe no one will want to read it other than myself, but hey it's my blog right? :)

Bella Blvd. Man of the House

2010-06-16T12:53:00.000-07:00

I was ecstatic when I got asked to make a few things for the Bella Blvd. CHA release back in January, and I really liked the new products I got to work with. I was in my downhill creative slump at the time so I procrastinated until the day before my projects were due and had to ship them express mail to Bella.... yeah that was stupid!!! Anywho- here's a couple of my projects. This first layout is about lucas' SEVENTH trip tot he ER. My hubby freaked out when he saw the big gash on Lucas' forehead after he hit it on the side of the bathtub, but super-mom me used a bandaid to hold everything together 'til the ER doc could use some good 'ol Dermabond on him and fix it all up! Of course, Lucas cried more when the doctor touched him than when he actually hit his head. I think I'd cry too if I had the sort of memories concerning hospitals that he has.

This is my other layout and it's the first one I created with my goodies. After all- the line IS called Man of the House, so I had to make a page about the man of my house. He hates all the photos of himself but I told him he'd have to just get over it because I was putting his picture on THIS layout and he'd just have to cry more if he didn't like it! My inspiration for this page was the way it makes me feel when he gets home from work everyday. I work from home so I'm here all the time, and on those days when he has to work late I can just feel the need to talk to him and sit with him while the kids play. Sometimes he comes home grumpy, or comes home and finds me grumpy, but talking to him makes me remember who I am and why I do what I do. Now if we're BOTH grumpy at the same time when he gets home from work... thats not as much fun, but I omitted that scenario from this particular scrapbook page HA!

Blog Resuscitation

2010-05-16T12:24:00.000-07:00

Hmmm... it's been a little dead around here lately hasn't it? I mean, gee the blog owner hasn't posted anything NEW for 6 1/2 months. She's also neglected her daycare blog and facebook page. It's almost as if she has disappeared off of the blogger universe!!

I think about blogging at least once every few days, and then I never do anything with that thought, it simply slips to the back of my mind, filed away for another day. I have always enjoyed reading blogs and posting my own thoughts and projects here. I am a self-proclaimed perfectionist and I truly believe that for a very long time I was trying to do things that simply were not me or what I truly wanted to be. I'm not happy go-lucky, my life isn't perfect and I'm not ever going to try to make myself feel like it is through always optimistic scrapbook pages, albums, and yes- blog posts. I've come to realize that my life does NOT revolve around scrapbooking, YES I have other interests! From the moment I picked up Twilight and started reading it was like an affiar with a former lover and it is full of all the heat and passion our relationship once had years ago. I haven't been sitting idle while I wasn't creating or blogging about those creations. I have read 45 books in the last 6 months and I'm still going! I've even started writing a little something of my own...

I guess that what I'm here trying to say today is that I had to step away from art for awhile, from scrapbooking for the recognition rather than the love of the art itself. I have barely been able to pick up a piece of scrapbook paper or glance into my craft room without being disgusted with myself for the huge accumulation of supplies I have allowed myself to frivolously purchase. Yes- I am definitely not the only scraphoarder (remember you heard that term HERE first! LOL) out there, and I won't be the last, but I am going to stop it- I have stopped. I destashed my room of everything I could part with and sold every bit of it in a garage sale. I haven't purchased any craft supplies in months unless it was for my children. Scrapbooking became a like a dragon that had made its cave inside my craft room and it was hoarding every new line of supplies, every bookmark on my computer, every bit of internet surfing time, every last minute of free time I could funnel away from my family! It took me this long to realize why I couldn't create anymore, it wasn't that I was bored or needed a break, it was that I was totally disgusted with my behavior. I couldn't create because I had to slay that dragon hiding in my craft room, it wasn't big enough in there for the both of us!

So... if you're still reading and don't think I'm crazy yet- you may wonder what I am doing now? I'm still not in the mood to create, and we are in the process of trying to sell our house so some of my stuff is packed away, and I'm ok with that. I see other people's creations and they inspire me and ignite a tiny spark that makes me want to get to work at a new project, but it's not quite enough to convince me to go up those stairs to my sweet little attic room and get my hands dirty. I've been thinking about making Katelynne a new dress... or maybe one of those cute and trendy aprons, maybe sometime soon I'll do that. For now, I have decided that I want to keep sharing here on my blog, maybe not always my scrapbooking, but I want to write and talk about my garden, cooking and weight loss, reading especially- I need someone to discuss these books with after I'm done reading them! I have some projects I have never shared here before too, perhaps talking about them will help me fuel my creative side?!

Either way, I am back and I'm going to keep posting, I hope you will continue to follow my blog and enjoy reading about my experiences and my creations. Maybe you are a scraphoarder too! :)

Finally, a rag quilt for my mom!

2009-12-21T17:39:00.000-08:00

It's not that I didn't want to make my mother a quilt, I would have loved to have cranked one out for her a long time ago- it was just hard to find the time! When I heard her complaining at our last rummage sale that she still didn't have anything handmade from me I decided it was time to go fabric shopping and make the woman a quilt! Then I procrastinated- but I HAD to finish it, so I stayed up until 3 a.m. on saturday night so I could finish it before our family lunch and Christmas together! I really like how it turned out and I love the polka dots. It was amazing to see Lucas' reaction when he saw that the squares he had watched me cut the night before had been turned into a blanket while he was sleeping!

this is the first time I have done two colors on the backing of a rag quilt, I really like how it looks!

Isn't it so pretty? Now to try to finish the super-long list of other things I wanted to make before Christmas...

MME Blog Challenge #6

2009-12-17T14:13:00.000-08:00

I needed a little motivation to jump start my creativity this week- and I found it on the My Mind's Eye blog- their challenge: to make handmade paper flowers! This is always fun because there are SO many ways to create handmade flowers, the possibilities and details are endless! I had a few new techniques I had been wanting to try- so I did!

I went a little old school and dug out my Kiss and Tell papers from MME and I knew what I wanted to do- make a "fancy" page with one of my wedding photos. I have made a whole album with our wedding photos but it was my first scrapbook ever! So I wanted to make something with my current style.

I also got out all of my Shimmerz and used them to add lots of shine and bling to my flowers, there is just something relaxing about getting out a paintbrush and painting with the shiniest sparkliest paints you can buy! (well at least for me anyway haha!)

I used some shimmerz blingz and painted it on a stamp to add some detail around the edges of my cardstock base for this layout- believe it or not this is the first time I have used shimmerz on my stamps and I LOVED the result! Then after I finished making my flowers (details on that below!) I got my paintbrush back out and added details on the edges of all the flowers, the blingz and shimmerz really added a lot of depth to the color just by painting it on the edges of the paper.

So, wanna know how to create flowers like these? here's a short mini-tutorial if you will :)
For the fluffy pom-pom style flowers cut a strip of paper from a 12x12 piece of paper, cardstock or patterned paper doesn't matter! Adjust the width of the strip to your needs, the wider it is the bigger you finished flower will be. I used 2 and 3 inch strips for mine.

Next, fold the strip in half and cut fringe. Using your fingers bend and tossle the fringe so that your flower will have a nice fluffy look!

Add a little adhesive near the edge of the fold and roll it up! After it is rolled up fluff the fringe again and you are all done!

Next is the rosette flowers, these are really easy and quick! Start with a circle, freehand cut is fine, and like the other flower- the bigger the circle the bigger your flower will be. Cut a freehand spiral and then roll the paper starting from the outside. Add a dot of glue at the end and you are done!

Add ink and shimmerz, paint, or stickles the edges of the rosettes for extra dimension and detail!

I also made paper spirals to sneak in between a few of the flowers, just wrap a thin strip of paper around a pencil to make your own.

November Life Preserver's Kit Creations

2009-12-15T11:14:00.000-08:00

The colors in this wonderful paper from the Fancy Pants Rough and Tough collection REALLY inspired me this month and I feel like everything I created was really fun and different from my norm! I really liked using all the buttons and rub-ons- seriously- I do not use rub ons that often and I think I used almost the entire pack this time!
I thought about trying to do a girl page with this paper that is typically BOY themed, but decided to give my little guy some extra room in the spotlight! I just had too many photos that went SO well with this kit!
This is my favorite page from this kit because of the arrows! Ya know- for some reason I had led myself to believe that if I wanted an arrow it needed to be die cut with my Silhouette or from a chipboard shape, but really now- does it? NO! I hand drew this arrow and cut it myself, I love the look and I was able to 1. save paper and 2. make it the exact size and shape I needed for my page!
And here's a couple cards I made to round out my kit creations! We have to pregnant family members right now- one expecting a boy and one a girl- so I am thinking the Oh Boy! card would be perfect for the mama of the baby boy when he arrives... and the other would make a good birthday card for someone else!
Can you believe that with all these projects I STILL have more of my kit left? I have enough for at least two more pages... I would much rather use it up and than file the kit away in my drawer and forget about it! I think I need to play a little game of "kill the kit" and try to use it up later this week! Don't forget to check out Life Preserver's Scrapbook Club- the sneak peaks for the February kit will be available soon, and you know they will be yummy!

Caution: Toxic Smile

2009-12-14T13:01:00.000-08:00

I was looking through photos today and honestly could NOT believe I hadn't shared this layout with you on my blog. I mean really, I had this layout displayed in my kitchen for like two months I liked it so much and I didn't put it here? When I was making this layout I could not decide on a title. I want something different and just as funky as the Rebelious paper from Prima is! I looked through the paper at the names of all of them and finally got an idea! I think this is my favorite title of all titles! And it's true, isn't a child's smile simply toxic?

These are photos I have scrapped before but in a Halloween sort of way, so I really wanted to take them and put it in a different light, I do this a lot with my very favorite photos. If a photo is worth a thousand words then I say it can also be worth a thousand (ok maybe not a thousand but at least multiple) layouts!

And what happens when I get into a creative mood and I am busy playing with kiddos and can't create anything? well usually I draw a super-artistic scene on the sidewalk and cause the kids to get mad when I won't share MY chalk, but then sometimes I just grab a few little girls and open up the Toddler Time Daycare Beauty Salon LOL! They all loved getting their hair french braided, I had to share the photo:

Six things...

2009-12-14T06:32:00.000-08:00

Back Porch Memories kit club always has some fun and interesting challenges- and yet I nearly never find the time to complete them LOL! This month I DID! The challenge was to create a layout using ONLY six different types of things. My six things are:
1. chipboard
2. cardstock
3. patterned paper
4. ribbon
5. brads
6. thickers

and of course my inspiration came from one of Becky Fleck's December pagemaps, I would be lost without them!

I am so totally proud of myself for using my Quickutz Silhouette to cut the large bracket, yeah it's been awhile since I have cut anything other than pendants for my banners with it!

Happy 1st Birthday Aubrey!

2009-12-10T11:37:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Aubrey!!! Has it really been a year already?! She's walking, already? YEP! Can you believe that just over a year ago I was busy taking belly pics of Carrie's cute baby bump? Here's our little Aubrey Bear posing in her party dress I made her, it fit perfectly which is more than I can say for some dresses I have made LOL!

I had to dig this photo out just to reminisce. I love looking at prego-bellies they are so cute and you know a little miracle is inside!

Here is Katelynne enjoying a cupcake at "Aubbie's" party as she says it ;) I can't wait to scrap that one!

And my other creation for Aubrey's birthday, a banner of course!! I loved the colors we ended up using to make it, so girly and sweet!

I kept the name banner separate from the Happy Birthday part so that she can hang it in Aubrey's room for keeps!

We used cardboard between the scalloped pendants and the straight edged ones for more dimension.

My favorite pendant on the whole garland- I used cinnamon stickles on the one and then I added MORE loose brown glitter on top, such a stunning and sparkly effect, I LUV it!

This pendant weighed more than all the other ones put together LOL! But it's cute, so who cares?! And no, this didn't even put the tiniest dent into my button collection, nope not even a scratch on the top ;)

I used some prima flowers on the h pendant and cut them in half to make butterflies, add some hemp tied to look like a body and you've got a super cute, quick, easy, and cheap embellishment!

Aubrey got a total of 10 baby dolls for her birthday HA! I purposely picked out something different because I just KNEW that would happen! And- after all- a princess needs a princess plate, cup, cup, bowl, and silverware to eat with!

Karen Foster Cowgirl Wedding

2009-12-01T12:10:00.000-08:00

Quick, name one of the biggest downsides to getting married young?! Well I have one that I betchya didn't think of! None of your friends are getting married anytime soon! I got married when I was 15 (two months away from 16) and NO I didn't grow up in the depression era ;) Yes 15. For a long time I wouldn't admit it to anyone because I was still technically too young to be married! Today I am 23, still married, and I don't care anymore LOL! It was always difficult for me not having any other close friends that were married or in a serious relationship, so you can only imagine how elated I was when one of my BEST friends got married!

Ashley had some beautiful photos taken at her wedding but she doesn't scrapbook, so when I recieved the Cowgirl paper line from Karen Foster I KNEW what I wante to do with it! I think the results are quite nice if I do say so myself :)

This page is technically not quite done- I am going to let Ashley add journaling herself in the upper right corner, but for now it is white space.

I typically don't use a lot of premade title stickers but I really like how this one looks and it enabled me to add a lot of dimension and detail to my page very quickly and easily.

I absolutely love this page, the detail on the patterned paper makes it almost look like real leather! Plus it's pink and brown, not too many color combos can beat that ;)

More Kitchen Spice and a little TWILIGHT!

2009-11-26T12:54:00.000-08:00

I just couldn't leave my kitchen spice paper alone, lonely and unused on my scrap table! I made another layout and another card to remedy the situation!

And the little card...

Did you know I like Twilight? I do. I read all the books. In 6 days. LOL! I stayed up ALL night finished the first book, I literally picked it up and could not put it back down. When I found out that Pink Paislee was naming their new Halloween line TWILIGHT I knew I had to order it, ALL OF IT, even if it was FUGLY I was going to get ALL OF IT! Thankfully it was pretty :) Here's a little card I made, there will be more to come, I'm thinking that this will be the year that I finally make handmade invitations for our Halloween party!

Pumpkin Princess- Braided Ribbon Technique

2009-11-24T12:21:00.000-08:00

Ribbon has been used in many, many ways and I adore it :) My ribbon is supposed to reside in a large white basket under my scrap table. Supposed to. But it overflows! Everytime I see a new polka dot or texture or stripe that I don't have- well lets just say the pile that is overflowing from my basket gets bigger nearly everytime I step foot inside any store that sells ribbon!

When I was making this layout I simply could not decide which ribbon I liked better, so the decision was simple- I used all of them! I really liked the look of the braided ribbon, it has a lot of detail. Yes- it does add a lot of bulk to the page but it did still fit inside a page protector and that is what matters! This technique could easily be used with much smaller ribbon or even hemp, string, or embroidery thread to create a much less lumpy bumpy feel.

Our Newest Family Member... and some other interesting things!

2009-11-22T12:35:00.000-08:00

Ok OK so this is a bit of old news here- from before Halloween in fact, and yes I have been slacking in my posts- but hey, I'm going to share now! This is OLLIE! He is the sweetest smartest most wonderful dog I have ever had the pleasure of meeting :) As you can tell I am already a proud parent hehe! He is a full bred Schnauzer and 3 years old, his owner couldn't keep him anymore and we had been looking for a dog that needed a home for a long time, he was the perfect match. We knew that we didn't want a puppy- puppy care and training is just not on my agenda after a day full of daycare work and two children of my own too! Ollie is not yappy like schnauzer are known to be, he barely ever barks, and he is a SNUGGLER! I told my husband he has been replaced because Ollie loves to cuddle with me while I watch tv and he keeps me warm too, so I clearly don't need my husband now ;) Here Ollie is sporting his own Halloween bandana I made him! It's SO cute! I loved dressing him up so much that I told my husband I need another dog now- a FEMALE so I can put pretty pink bows in her hair LOL!

Is it wierd that I am excited that I can scrap about our pets now? I have always been a little jealous of the people who make those super cute pages with their dogs on them, now I can too! Yippeeee! Here's a photo of Ollie posing with Danica, the kids love him and he loves them- he picks a different one to take a nap with each day during naptime! How sweet is that?!

Ok FINE! I will quit bragging about my Ollie and show you something crafty :) When Danica's mom saw my daughter's tutu she wanted one realllllly bad so of course I did the right thing, the thing that all wonderful crafty childcare providers should do- I made Danica one too!

And of course I had to make her model it before I could give it away! She liked trying it on but her mommy said that she didn't like it when she HAD to wear it on Halloween, silly girl!

Tutorial: How to Make a Garland

2009-11-21T20:47:00.000-08:00

Garlands and Banners are two of the hottest altered arts projects in the scrappin' world right now, and they make beautiful home decor! I am going to walk you through how to make a fantastic garland. You can make it as simple or complicated as YOU want, and of course if you are short on time- pick a short word or whatever word goes with the theme you are making! Today I am going to show you how I made my Halloween garland...

Supplies
at least 2-3 pieces of patterned paper (more depending on how long your garland will be)
at least 2-3 pieces of coordinating cardstock (could be all the same color or different ones)
cardboard (I usually use USPS boxes)
various ribbons/hemp/yarn/wire of your choice (read through the instructions if you are not sure what you want to use)
digital die cut machine OR printed template (or make your garland pieces square shaped)
crop-o-dile or hole punch
scissors
various embellishments and letters

Instructions

First you will need to decide on what shape your pieces on your garland will be- pendants, circles, squares, rectangles, etc. Either use a pattern or your digital die cutting machine. Cut your shapes from your pattern paper and then cut a shadowing shape with cardstock.

Next, you will need to trace the shape of your pattern paper pieces onto your cardboard- one for each garland piece.

Adhere the pattern paper to the cardboard pieces and then adhere them to the cardstock pieces. Now you are ready to decorate!

While you are decorating, keep in mind that you will be punching holes in the top two corners of each piece so they can be strung into a garland.

Add die cut letters, chipboard letters, or thickers to create a word on your garland- or simply decorate it, the possibilities are endless!

Using your crop-o-dile or hold punch make a hole in the top two corners of each garland piece.

You can string your garland pieces together with almost any type of ribbon, string, hemp, wire, or yarn, so choose whichever you like best and begin to string your garland together. Bring the string through the front of each piece and then up through the other side, leave some space in between each piece so they will hang nicely. When you have all your pieces on the string tie a loop at each end for easy hanging.

If you'd like, add ribbon in between each piece on your garland for an extra fancy touch!

FTC Disclosure

2009-11-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

This policy is valid from 10 November 2009

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact adonia At cox Dot net.

This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, we will and do accept and keep free products, services, travel, event tickets, and other forms of compensation from companies and organizations.

This blog abides by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post will be clearly identified as paid or sponsored content.

The owner(s) of this blog is not compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners. If we claim or appear to be experts on a certain topic or product or service area, we will only endorse products or services that we believe, based on our expertise, are worthy of such endorsement. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider.

The owner(s) of this blog would like to disclose the following existing relationships. These are companies, organizations or individuals that may have a significant impact on the content of this blog. We are employed by or consult with: Life Preserver's Scrapbook Club.

I'm awake and I'm alive

2009-11-01T18:06:00.000-08:00

On Oct. 15th I got to go to the best. concert. ever. It was sooooo awesome! I have been a skillet fan for several years and have every CD from them, and I remember seeing them in concert years ago- before they were as popular as they are now! When I buy a Skillet CD I always know that there will not be a song on it that I have to "skip" because I don't like it, I like every song on every CD. They were amazing in concert- fire effects and all. It was also amazing to me that they had a celloist and a violinist on stage with them- head banging right along with everyone else! It was so cool to see them playing orchestra type instruments with a rock band- and of course the sound is incredible too!

So anyways... when I got home and was looking through my photos I KNEW I had to break out my Prima Rebellious paper! I mean I HAD to! I'm a mom and a scrapbooker and I act way too mature for my age, but I can still go and rock out at a concert and to me that is as "rebellious" as I get LOL!

Awake is the name of Skillet's newest CD, and in the song they sing "I'm awake and I'm alive, now I know what I believe in inside" and the song is all about living your life and being who you are, not following the crowd. The title also reminds me of how I felt when I got up to work in the morning after being up til 1am at the concert LOL!

And in other news... Today the Nov/Dec issue of Scrap N Art magazine debuted! For less than $1.75 an issue it is a great value and a great place to find inspiration, not to mention the GIVEAWAYS in every issue!

{Feel} Fall

2009-10-22T11:35:00.000-07:00

Do you ever just go outside and take a moment to really FEEL fall? I do, and I lOVE fall and the way it feels. This picture reminds me of how the cool air, wet ground, and crunchy leaves feel, plus it has the cutest baby in the world (or at least MY world!) in it! I used the October Backporch Memories Medley kit to make this layout- and of course the warm and colorful Bo Bunny Delilah collection!

I also wanted to take a moment and invite all of you to join me at the Life Preserver's Club DARE to Be Inspired crop! It starts tomorrow, I hope you'll be there for all of our fun challenges, make n takes, and games!

Kitchen Spice is Very Nice!

2009-10-14T07:51:00.000-07:00

From the day that I learned that my October Life Preserver's Kit was going to have the new Bo Bunny Kitchen Spice collection in it- I have been dreaming of what I wanted to make with it!!! The fall colors combined with the pinks and blues really appeal to me. I have even thought to myself "I need to take more fall photos so I can make some more layouts with this kit!"

For this page I did what I like to call "fussy cutting"- taking a piece of patterned paper and cutting out some of the elements from it to use on my layout. For every paper line there is usually one piece of paper that I always find myself wishing I had more of simply because I would like to have one for cutting out and one for using whole! Visit the Life Preserver's Club gallery to see more of the design team's creations using this very nice kit :)

And... While I am talking about LPS ( I do that a lot huh?) I would just like to say that I am soooo happy I have been chosen to join the design team! I have always loved the LPS kit club and I am proud to be designing with their kits! I hope you will join us for our next crop "Dare to be Inspired" on Oct. 23rd!

My Super Stud Lucas

2009-09-24T11:13:00.000-07:00

My designer challenge posted over at the Bella Blvd. blog today: journaling with stickers. Lucas is such a little stud, and he is super funny, super cute, and super crazy sometimes! I really loved working with this paper! When I looked at the paper for the first time I knew that it just "fit" him! Lucas loves to make people laugh and his preschool teacher has even told me she expects to see him winning an Emmy someday for best comedian.

Journaling with stickers can take many routes, and the Super Stud stickers provide a lot of really cute sayings. I decided to combine the sayings along with my own handwriting on the journaling stickers, and honestly I normally do not journal on stickers, so this was something different for me. I really like how my journaling was able to flow easily thanks to the sticker prompts.

If you haven't already- head on over to Bella Blvd. and leave some love on their blog! Check back later this week to get a peek at my Plastino layout and a tour of my scrap room!

Oh and by the way....

2009-09-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

I am so honored to be a Bella Artista this week over at the Bella Blvd Blog! I have created three projects for them and today my summer banner is being featured, it uses the new and fabulous Plastino line from Bella, which just screams SUMMER!! Go check it out....

Snack Time!

2009-09-22T07:31:00.000-07:00

This was one of the first layouts I made when I got to play with my July Life Preserver's Club kit! I can't believe I haven't posted it here yet... SO I had a blonde moment when I was printing my photos and I accidentally printed THREE 8x10's of this photo! Yeah... way to conserve the paper and ink LOL! I was trying to decide what to do with the photos and one of my wonderful scrappin buddies (thank you Sonja!) suggested that I cut out Katelynne and pop her from the page- and I LOVE it!!!

The look on her face in this photo was just classic, it popped from the page without being cut out LOL!

I think snack bags are the best idea I have had in a long time! I accidentally bought a pack of 500 lunch bags at Sam's club when I thought I was getting paper towels... yeah thats the second blonde moment that I've admitted to in one post ;) Anyways, I started giving the kids their snacks in these bags and it is grrreat, especially for the little ones. They can take their bags outside and eat them and when they are done they just toss the bags in the trash and we're all cleaned up! Plus it's been nearly 4 months since I bought the pack of 500 and we haven't used them all up yet! When Katelynne sees a white bag now she starts yelling "I want cookies!"

More Birthday...

2009-09-19T19:30:00.001-07:00

My birthday was a lot of fun and I got to spend a lot of time with friends and family- and go shopping! I used my birthday money to buy some scrappy goodies and got Lucas a new bicycle! And of course the bicycle created an opportunity for some great pictures which will lead to more uses for the scrappy goodies... *ahhhh* life is good!

You might be tired of seeing my creations from my kids birthday party... but that's just TOO BAD because I have more :) This is it though, I promise I am done!

Today I have this lovely two pager to share with you :

And a page for Lucas, I love the border of 4's on this page!

And now I am off to go play with the spoils of my birthday shopping trip...

It's My Birthday!

2009-09-18T04:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's my birthday- but I'm going to share photos from Katelynne's first birthday. When I first started making this album I had intended for it to be of both my children's birthdays- but once I got started I realized that wasn't going to happen- I only have about 3 photos of Lucas where he stood still long enough to get a decent picture!!!

I have yet again pulled out the Bo Bunny Love Shack paper for this album, it was simply perfect and fun for my kid's birthday photos! I have loved working with it! I used a Cosmo Cricket blackboard album, and it was a lot of fun! I used Shimmerz Blingz to paint and my sparkle gel pens to write on the black, I loved the look- it's really different from what I can normally do with a mini book.

Being the procrastinator that I am- I am going to go renew my driver's license tomorrow LOL! After that I am going to hurry back home to plant some fall plants/flowers in the garden with the help of my daycare kiddos. All week people have been asking me if I want to go out to dinner for my birthday and where but I just can't make up my mind! I did have one special request- I want to take my Lucas out to see Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs! I think he will LOVE that movie and it was one of my favorite books as a kid, it is sure to be fun!

I am planning to have a bunch of cupcakes on hand too- anyone who stops by the daycare or to visit me will get one :) I think I am even going to let the daycare kids help decorate them... as long as they'll sing me happy birthday at lunch LOL!

I have one other goal for my birthday: it's going to be a busy day and I have a lot to do, but of all things- I want to get my husband to take some photos of me. I never get photos of my birthday anymore and I am determined to change that this year! You can bet I'll be scrapping those soon....

Woot!

2009-09-17T11:52:00.000-07:00

While I was thinking about my wonderful rebellious kit I started thinking about this photo of my friend Carrie and me with our little girls, and it really made me think of how we are "rebellious", I decided it was perrrrrrfect for this paper :) I am so glad that I met Carrie, she is my one and only real life gamer girlfriend! We have played world of warcraft together and (nearly) conquered Super Mario Galaxy (OK OK we had to let the boys help us a little on that one...) and I just feel lucky to have such a cool friend to share that with, we love cooking together- it's like a dance to watch us, here in kansas we call my kitchen a "two butt kitchen"- in other words- no more than two booties need to be in there at a time LOL! Carrie's favorite word is woot and in case you didn't know- it's the word of the year so go look it up :) When I think about my awesome gamer girlfriend- I think WOOT!

Die cuts are from The Scrappy Shack, I glitzed them up with the black diamond stickles I found in my LPS kit and then I used them to frame the corners of my photo- and YES I DID use my Crafter's Workshop circle template AGAIN! Love that thing :)

Getting Rebellious!

2009-09-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

When I opened my goodie box from Life Preserver's Club this month I didn't immediately know what I wanted to do with it... usually scrapbook paper has so many possibilities but this time I just thought hmmmm... what do I want to scrap with this? It has to be something rebellious and really COOL! I decided to go back to my "rebel" days as a teenager and scrap some old photos! I ended up spending over an hour going down memory lane in my photo box and when I stumbled upon these photos from after prom I KNEW they were the ones! All of us girls were just being absolutely crazy posing for photos!

This was the only time I ever went to prom so this page really is special to me, it's a once in a lifetime memory. I was already married and we had just bought our house a few months earlier- yes I got married YOUNG, but that's another blog post and another scrapbook page! I am so grateful that my friends talked me into going to prom, it was a fun night!

Wall Art

2009-09-14T08:09:00.000-07:00

I decided that it is high time I used some of my adhesive vinyl and cut some cute stuff for my house! I am really happy with how these came out and I ordered more colors of vinyl so I can tackle the kids room and laundry room next. This wall art really looks unique and lets you add your personality to your walls, doors, windows, and mirrors!

This one was a little hard to photograph since it is on my front door! You can see my kids standing inside the house wondering what the heck I am doing! I have had several compliments on my front door, everyone seems to agree with me on the girl scouts part ;)

My kitchen is a little odd in that it has a mirror above the sink, I have never liked it, but I live with it- so I decided to make it more decorative :) My husband wondered why I needed to label it a kitchen ... lol!

The vinyl was amazingly easy to cut- I used my Quickutz Silhouette, I didn't use the cutting mat and I can make the designs up to 39" tall! I want to make some flowers for Katelynne's wall and make them tall like they are growing from the floor... I can't wait for my new colors to get here!

Birthday Banner

2009-08-29T18:26:00.000-07:00

My friend Ashley's little boy just turned the big ONE and I was thrilled when she told me she wanted to make a banner for his party! We spent way too long talking about it probably but when we finally got together and made it we were in love with the results! I have to confess- this is the most I have ever used my Quickutz Silhouette all in one day- and I have another reason to be glad I bought it nearly 3 years ago now LOL!

Nolan's party was sports themed so we used some patterned paper with footballs and baseballs on it. We used sports stickers to make the tiny tags that are tied in between the pendants. The pendants are attached using wire that I looped between the pendants.

Underneath each triangle of pattern paper is a triangle of cardboard to make the banner more sturdy and give a 3-d effect too. I used the cardboard from one of my USPS boxes that I had recieved some scrappy supplies in through the mail- so a great way to recycle too!

So... did I stop at one banner? NOPE! I loved this one so much that I made Nolan another one to hang in his room, I used the Cosmo Cricket Lil' Man line and it turned out SO stinkin' cute :) But- you'll have to take my word for it because the banner will be published in the Nov/Dec issue of Scrap N Art magazine, so you'll have to wait til then to check it out!

I Dare to Dream Big

2009-08-26T04:04:00.000-07:00

This week's challenge over at Scrappin' Out Loud! is to create a layout based on one of your current dreams or goals. I spent awhile thinking about this layout because this was one of MY challenges I thought up for the blog- so it had to be good right?!?! I feel like lately my thoughts have been focused on the future and what I can do now to reach those things that I am "dreaming" of. My aspirations have been in my mind constantly, it reminds me of a high schooler trying to decide which college to go to and what to major in- I have so many ideas and things I want to achieve. I have started keeping a journal to write down my thoughts and ideas and try to sort through them and keep clear goals.

I chose these photos for this layout because they were taken when I was pregnant with Katelynne, they symbolize one of the best times of my life- being pregnant. YES being pregnant is HARD and I have terrible morning (yeah right- ALL day) sickness for 2-3 months, but I love being pregnant and there is no other experience like it in the world. These photos remind me of how I felt and the great changes that occur when your family grows. I want to have a big family and also be successful in other things, I want to teach my children to share my love of cooking, reading, gardening, and crafting, along with their daddy's love of music and games. When I think about our future I can see a clear picture of where I want to go and for me this challenge was all about capturing that feeling and that hope for what is to come.

What are your dreams? Make a page about it and share it with us at the Scrappin' Out Loud! Blog, if you do you'll get your name entered in the draw for our monthly p-r-i-z-e :)

Precious

2009-08-25T06:28:00.000-07:00

As promised- here's another Kraft Kuts layout I made. This one is my favorite, hands down, no competition! I LOVED these photos when I took them of the kids- their outfits matched and the browns and earth tones were just really attractive to me, not to mention the cutest kids I have ever seen ;) I loved how the Kraft Kuts paper worked perfectly with the colors in the photos.

And here's a tip for ya- ever wonder how I make so many different sized scallops on my layouts? Next time you need a scalloped border just grab something round- for this page I actually used a tin pail that I purchased with Prima flowers in it- then use it to trace half circles on your paper to create scallops! All you have to do is cut it out and you are ready to go.

I also couldn't resist cutting out a few of those adorable little owls and popping them on the page, then glitzing them up with some good ol' stickles!
Check back tomorrow for my Scrappin' Out Loud! design team layout of the week, this week's prompt is: "dreamer" everyone has dreams and goals, pick one of yours and scrapbook about it.

Kraft Kuts Fun - Flowy's

2009-08-24T06:06:00.000-07:00

I was so excited when I saw that the July Back Porch Memories solo kit had the new Kraft Kuts in it! The rich colors are different from what I normally work with and I loved the earth tones.

I have totally been on vacation from blogging this summer- thats the best way to put it LOL! So I am going to share my layouts from this kit one at a time over this week, it's time to give ya'll something to come to my blog for again ;)

This layout is one of my favorites- Flowy's, that's what katelynne calls our flowers. She is starting to outgrow it already and say it right but it was so cute when she would just walk up to a plant and say "Flowy's!". Whenever I pick off an old flower from a plant I'll give it to her to carry around the backyard and she gets SO excited! These photos are of her looking at the first flowers of spring- literally I HAD to be the first person on my block to have flowers on my front porch- they got snowed on a couple weeks later but I was the first HA!

Check back tomorrow for another Krafty layout ;)

Twins For A Day

2009-08-02T17:03:00.000-07:00

My posts have been WAY too few and far between, it seems like the summer sun is soaking up my time and energy! Our garden is growing better than I could've expected- although I've had a run-in with some squash vine borers and had an unexpected tree frog visitor it has been so enjoyable! I am working on expanding our garden to make room for twice as much goodies and extra fall veggies. But you probably aren't here to read about my gardening.... so on to the scrappiness!

I have been busy creating with my first shipment of the sooooo cool Scrappy Shack die cuts! Lori Goree has created some of the most unique and inspiring die cuts I have ever worked with and I really enjoyed creating with them! You can check out her Etsy shop by clicking here.

I created this page using my July Life Preserver's Kit and the lovely flourish frame from The Scrappy Shack:

And this page was created using the July Solo Kit from Backporch Memories and the lovely Baby Girl circle frame from The Scrappy Shack, I am just lovin' the new Krafty Kuts paper, aren't you?

Pages Without Borders

2009-07-14T05:35:00.000-07:00

I've really begun to think outside the box when it comes to scrapbookig lately- the 12x12 box that is! Ever since I made my button rainbow page I have been thinking about how much I enjoyed piecing together a page and not caring if it even so much as resembled something square. Yes- these pages might be a tad bit difficult to get into a scrapbook album, but I love them enough I might just have to display them in my house for a long, long time anyway!

I used several different Cosmo Cricket lines to create this page- I just picked out any paper that had the right colors! One from lil'man, one from Girl Friday, and one from Snorkel! I used Bazzil Bling cardstock- fourth of july is all about the sparkles and bling ;) I had drew and cut all of the stars and flourishes, it was really fun!

Now- don't laugh.... really... I had the idea for this page in my head for quite awhile and I wanted to sketch it out before getting to work, but I just did NOT have time to sit down and do it, plus doing a sketch in color is so much more fun! So, being the queen of multi-tasking that I am- I sat down to play with the kids in the backyard and had a brilliant idea "I'll make my sketch while drawing on the sidewalk!". You should have seen my husbands face and heard his comment when he looked at my drawing and asked "why are there photo squares and a title on your picture?" LOL! He just rolled his eyes when I explained it was a scrapbook page sketch.... Oh well, I still think it's cool ;)

My Kraft Haven

2009-07-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

Do you have your own crafting space? Is it a whole room or just a corner borrowed from you dining room, bedroom, or den? Perhaps it’s an attic room or a basement? Our love of scrapbooking definitely takes up a space not only in our lives, but also in our homes, so why not make it a beautiful and inspiring space? I invite you to join me now in my journey as I makeover my attic room turned craft room, and I challenge you to play along with me! Over the next several months you’ll get to watch me go through the many steps of making my room perfect, I’ll start from the bottom up (look at the photos below, it’s definitely in need of help!!!) and end with a room that reflects my personality and is ready for the creative juices to flow.

Before we can get into the fun part of renovating our scrap spaces and really get our hands dirty- we’ve got to make a plan. I don’t know about you, but I know that if I jump into this project without a plan or goals then it is never going to be what I wanted it to be and it’s going to take twice as long to finish!

There’s a few important things to think about here and set goals for:

1. Budget

This is all about goals, so I am going to plan my budget at a modest $1000. I will be working on my room over the course of several months so I feel like this is a reasonable amount. I will probably end up spending more than this but hey- that’s why it’s a goal not a deadline right?!

2. Decluttering

Step into any crafter’s space (not just scrapbookers!) and you’ll see all kinds of materials overflowing from shelves and drawers. I am no exception J I am going to set a goal to declutter and reduce my stash by at least ¼ within the first month of my makeover. I will sell the supplies to help fund my budget too!

3. Color scheme

There are so many resources on the internet for getting great ideas for your makeover. Many scrapbookers before us have renovated their rooms- we are not the first or the last!!! Do yourself a favor and search the internet and galleries such as 2peas for what others have done, find an inspiration room to help you map out ideas. I found a great room for my inspiration, it’s NOT a craft room but I love the colors and whimsy of the room, it will be a great starting place for me!

4. Furniture/Organization

The final stage of the room makeover will be to buy furniture and create the ultimate organization in my room. My plan is to look for used furniture first, even perhaps flea market finds that I can paint or alter to make my room more unique. I plan to work on this part throughout the entire room makeover; shopping and searching for the right pieces over a few months time!

There’s the plan, wanna see the canvas?! My room is a tad bit messy right now and I am sure you will form a love/hate relationship with the ugly errr I mean interesting sunflowers and vomit yellow that the previous owner of my home decorated with!

My room is unique in that it is a finished attic room, this means low ceilings and a relatively small room in itself. I don’t mind this though! I have a small house and I am just thankful to have a space of my own.

Here’s the kids play space in my room. Sometimes I have to go up there while they are awake and I love to share my love of art with them too. I have play dough, paint, markers, crayons, blocks, stamps and more stashed up here that are upstairs only toys so they are entertained (and somewhat messy!) while I am working. It is important to me that in my finished room they have a corner of their own.

My sewing space- I use sewing in my scrapbooking but I also make quilts, dresses, and other things. I’ll need to keep room for my “secondary hobby” in my room!

Clearly- I need a makeover don’t I? I am a clean freak and a perfectionist- I can’t stand my room looking this way any longer! I am going to do what it takes to turn this into my own Kraft Haven!

So, are you ready and inspired to make your crafting space spectacular? Are you with me?! I am going to walk you through all of the steps that I take to get to my dream room, and as you can see from above- I’m starting with an ugly room and a lot of mess! Don’t be afraid to make your goals and begin making your space functional and beautiful. I’ll be back in two weeks with the next step in our makeover!

Here’s your homework: Find an inspiration room and go through my list above, make your goals for these four areas! Let me know you are ready to take the next step by commenting on this post!

What I've been playing with, dreaming about, etc!

2009-06-30T13:19:00.001-07:00

When I look at any of the new Cosmo Cricket paper lines I have a fleeting thoughts of how I'd like to take a week off from work, hire a nanny, housecleaner, and chef; then go and lock myself into my craft room and be free of all responsiblities other than creating! There are so many projects swimming in my head just begging to be made, and yet there isn't ever enough time to indulge myself. You may have noticed I haven't posted as much in the last two weeks- you can chalk that one up to mojo rehabilitation and summer time activities! There's a lot of things I haven't shared with you yet though, so I'm here today to show you the product of the few hours I got to "pretend" I was locked away in my craft room with nothing to do but get elbow deep in some of the most inspiring and wonderful paper EVER!

Have you noticed how many kit clubs are featuring Cosmo Cricket paper this summer? It has been hard to find ONE that isn't. And that of course is a great thing! I seriously thought about how cute Katelynne's crib would look if it were decoupaged with some Girl Friday paper!

When I look at the Snorkel paper I want to plan a vacation- RIGHT NOW and take enough pictures that I could buy a wholesale amount of the paper and use it, yes- all of it! These layouts were made using products from my June Life Preserver's Kit, I anticipated it's arrival for several weeks!

When I saw the wonderful Early Bird paper in my Scrapbook Kit Club Kit this month I just knew it was what I had been waiting for- the paper that was absolutely perfect to scrap the photos of my daycare kids. All of the colors are happy and fun and mesh well with the outdoor photos I have taken throughout spring and summer.

Paper that is double sided and has tags and journal spots on both sides are very dangerous. I must buy two or three of them, always. If I don't I sill sit and flip the paper over and over and over and, yeah you get the idea! I am always afraid of using a piece only to find I have the perfect use for the OTHER SIDE later! I really loved making the border on this page though, and YES, I flipped my paper over, around, and back and forth several times :)

When I saw the piece of Early Bird paper with the polka dots and paired it with the yellow, it was a match made in heaven! I was at a crop while working on this page and I remember saying "I am DEFINITELY going to need some more of this paper!".

And now for my favorite of my recent projects- this one has been on my mind for quite awhile. The last straw that made me get up to my craft room and get this little box made was when I had to buy Katelynne a new pair of shoes. She wore her size 4 sandals for nearly two months and even had two pairs exactly alike- one dirty pair for the backyard and one clean for when we were going out. This box is to preserve her first pair of shoes, they were so cute I cannot let them go! I plan to make one of these little boxes for Lucas too!

I covered the inside of the box with pink fabric and tulle to make it feel extra special and fanci-fied!

Lucas Style and some news!

2009-06-17T19:41:00.000-07:00

I was waiting to post this layout since I had entered it in a sketch contest- since I didn't win here it is! LOL! I LOVE these pictures of lucas, they have to be the best I have ever taken!!! I made this with my May kit from Life Preserver's and it's hangin' out on the refrigerator right now- so I can look at it everyday :)

News #1- I have accepted a design team position at Scrapbook Kit Club- and here's a sneaky peaky from one of my layouts created with the July kit! I had so much fun making all my creations with this kit and I even matched together paper from two different lines- which you may have noticed is something I don't normally like to do!

News #2- I will only be designing for Scrapbook Kit Club for a couple of months BECAUSE.........

I have accepted a design team position at Scrap n' Art Ezine! This is so exciting for me and I cannot wait to begin working with all the wonderful ladies at Scrap N' Art! You have GOT to go to their website and check them out ;) I'll be creating multiple pages/projects for each issue and showcasing products from several companies, it is just an amazing opportunity! I am going to be helping with the SNA blog and a few projects for the Sept/Oct issue, and you'll see me full time in the Nov/Dec issue.

Stay Beautiful

2009-06-10T10:36:00.000-07:00

This week at Vintage Plum is the final challenge of the Star Search- Roll out the red carpet and embellish your layout with all the "icing"- do you think I added enough? :) I made this layout using some more of the new K&Co greenhouse line, tons of prima flowers, thickers, prima transparency, and some Shimmerz! I had fun painting with the Pixie Dust colored shimmerz on my flowers and around the photo.

Guess what I was listening to while scrapping this page last night? Yep- Taylor Swift's CD and the song Beautiful came on and has been stuck in my head ever since then- and it gave me the title of my page too!

I used some of the Bo Bunny clear charms swirls in between the flowers, and I made the white hemp curls too! Wanna know how? I'm planning to use it as my next blog tutorial!

Mommy, I smell something!

2009-06-09T13:21:00.000-07:00

This is just a quickie I did today- because I had to break into my goodies from Life Preserver's Club! I have been wanting to make a page about this for a long time now- Lucas has been totally all about smells, he is constantly noticing new smells around him. If you can't tell- in the smaller picture he is holding a flower, he picks them for me almost everyday and always wants to smell my flowers too.

Relay for Life Baton

2009-06-09T13:19:00.000-07:00

YAY I finished the Relay for Life baton!! I don't know about ya'll but I would feel pretty cool walkin at Relay for Life with THIS baton :) I had a lot of fun altering it- it started out as a piece of PVC pipe! Add some thickers, purple rain drops, a whole bottle of grape stickles, and some ribbon- and you get something super cute! I used some of the photos from last year's R4L and put them on the ends of the baton as well since this year's theme is "memories" I thought that would tie it in really well!

And I know you are probably getting sick of hearing my design team news but I am happy to say that I am one of the lucky new designers for The Scrappy Shack and I'll be getting to work with their fun and unique die cuts- can't wait!! I have also accepted a summer design position at Scrapbook Kit Club, so be sure to check out their kits, I'm planning to make you drool over them for the next few months :)

Get Happy

2009-06-08T07:30:00.000-07:00

When I saw the new Greenhouse line by K&Co I knew I HAD to have it. Just flipping through the pages in the specialty paper pad made me think of all the wonderful sunny days playing in the backyard with my kids and the daycare kids too. I was glad that it was on sale because I had to buy the paper pad and all the matching embellies too!!!

I created this layout for Week 4 at the Vintage Plum star search- it was all about hand stitching. To be completely honest up until now I have snubbed the stitching kits at my LSS because I simply did not want to spend the time to do HAND stitching on my pages- but I do maching stitching on almost every single one of them. So this time around I really thought about my layout for a couple of days and what I wanted to do- WANTED, I didn't want to FORCE myself to do the hand stitching if I didn't want to! I started thinking about when I was a little girl and my grandma taught me some embroidery stitches and showed me her crazy quilt she was making with decorative hand embroidery all over it. I borrowed some of her old embroidery thread and a book about embroidery stitches and got to work!

For the record- embroidery on paper is like TEN times harder than on fabric LOL! But I had fun and love the look I got using it!

This layout uses recycled materials too- old embroidery thread, the Kraft paper is from some Prima packaging.

This page is all about how much these little kiddos LOVE to swing. It is amazing to watch 2, 3, and 4 year olds just put their whole bodies into going as high as they can and huge smiles on their faces, they look so free and relaxed when they are swinging. This is one of those pages that if I could put a video on it it would be priceless!

Menu Plan Monday 6/8-6/14

2009-06-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've posted my menu- not that there hasn't been a plan, I just haven't been sticking to it! In the warmer weather and longer days I've just been outside all day and not taking as much time to plan, but I've realized I NEED my plan more than ever in the summer! I NEED it to give me a reason not to give in to going out to eat, over-spending on groceries and take out, and feeding my family food that is not entirely healthy for us! So, here's my re-commitment to eating healthy, at home, and affordably!

I am adding a new "feature" to my weekly plan - every couple weeks I am going to spend some time doing freezer cooking. My daycare meals and family meals have become so much simpler by using these methods so I am going to make a plan to keep doing it!

Breakfasts:
Cereal
english muffin egg sandwiches (low fat!)
Pancakes, oranges
Peanut Butter Toast, banana

for lunches visit the daycare blog!

Dinners:
Monday
tacos
mexican rice

Pizza Tuesday
french bread pizza (with mushroom, onion, and beef topping)
salad

Wednesday
turkey burgers
mac n cheese
baked beans

Thursday
chef salad with grilled chicken
1/2 baked potato

Friday
baked ham (leftover from lunch)
green beans
baked sweet potatoes
rice

Saturday
tex-mex cheese quesadillas with black bean and white corn salsa
mandarin oranges

Sunday
pepper and cheese stuffed chicken
rice
salad

Freezer Meals
I went to sam's club this weekend so this week I'll be whipping up some staples for the freezer:

Turkey Meatballs (4 lbs. worth!)
Taco Meat (4 meal portions for tacos and taco salads)
Spaghetti Sauce (2 batches)
Pancakes
Breakfast Burritos (with ham eggs and cheese)

Diaper Cake Tutorial

2009-06-05T19:13:00.000-07:00

It is long overdue- but here is my first tutorial!! It could use some tweaking, but I hope that it will help someone (anyone!) to create a wonderful gift and have fun doing it! Click the image above to view the PDF format of my tutorial, or read on below!

How to Make a Diaper Cake

Are you looking for the perfect gift to take to the next baby shower you attend? Want to give a new or soon to be mommy a unique gift that can also serve as a decoration in the baby's room? A diaper cake can be all of these things! It is easy to give a package of diapers as a gift, but if you know me- then you know that I believe in doing everything in a "decorative" way- and that includes gift giving. By spending a little bit of extra time you can create a beautiful and unique gift for nearly the same price as a generic store-bought one and I'll teach you how!

Supplies you will need:

1 package of size 1 or 2 diapers, I usually use size 2 so that the cake doesn't have to be taken apart too soon. You will want to buy a good brand of diapers that doesn't have designs on them so that when rolled up your diapers will look crisp and white.

rubber bands

cardboard cake round (either 8 or 9 inch, if you don't want to buy one then simply cut one from a cardboard box and paint it to match your cake)

1 large bottle of baby powder

glue dots

coordinating ribbon and paper shreds

cake topper (could be a stuffed animal, infant toy, onesie, large bow, flowers, card, etc., be creative!)

Now, let's get started!

Begin by rolling all of the diapers up and securing them with the rubber bands. To roll them start at the open end of the diaper with the pattern facing so that it will be inside the rolled up diaper, and roll towards the folded end of the diaper. I used Huggies organic diapers so there is a small pattern on mine, but I was able to turn the diapers so that it didn't show up too much!

Once you have all of the diapers rolled up, use a few glue dots to secure the bottle of baby powder to your cardboard round. Place one large rubber band around the bottle of baby powder and then begin place the rolled diapers all around it, I used two rounds of diapers for this tier of the cake.

Now you are ready to add the second tier to your cake, you’ll add it the same way you did the bottom tier and only using one round of diapers this time. The base of your cake is now ready for decorating!

Here is where you can really play! Experiment with flowers, ribbons, paper shreds, bows, and any of your other scrapbooking supplies. Look for unique embellishments that go along with the theme or colors of the baby shower. There are endless photos of diapers cakes on the internet so if you don’t know exactly what you want to do, look around for some ideas!

You will need to cover the rubber bands, I usually use a decorative ribbon or scrapbook paper. The theme of this diaper cake was OSU Cowboys so I used a black/white polka dot grosgrain ribbon:

I usually like to use either a curly ribbon bow, paper shreds, or flowers in between the layers of the cake. For this particular cake I shredded a piece of patterned scrapbook paper that had orange and black on it, then folded the paper shreds myself- it went quicker than I thought it would and gave a custom look for the cake! Add the shreds in between the tiers and at the top of the cake under your cake topper. If you wanted to be extra fancy, you could even add some under the cake too.

Almost done! Add a cake topper of your choice and you are ready to go! There are SO many choices here, you could use a stuffed animal, baby toy, rubber duck (they come in ALL different colors, even with outfits!), a large bow or flower, baby bottle or products. I used the travel size baby items on this cake because I knew the parents liked to travel and thought that these would come in handy!

I hope that this tutorial will inspire you to make a decorative move next time someone you know is expecting a new little bundle of joy! With only a little extra time and effort you can use your scrapbooking products and creativity to make a memorable and unique gift! Here’s the final finished OSU cake, I added a handmade card and used some thickers to put the baby’s initials on the top tier of the cake:

Remember to experiment with different materials when making your diaper cake, use more diapers, make more tiers, there are SO MANY ways and ideas of how to decorate them- have fun!!! Here’s two of my past cakes to spark your creativity:

Relay for Life Album

2009-06-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to be asked to make this album for the Relay For Life fundraiser Auction. My father in law has been diagnosed with Leukemia so it is even more special for me to help raise money for the Relay For Life foundation. It has definitely been awhile since I have made a pre-made album with no photos in it, let alone a paper bag book!! It was fun and I enjoyed hunting for lots of purple things to add to the book. The theme of the even this year is "memories" so the album will fit in perfectly!! I tried to keep it generic enough that the album could be used for photos of nearly anything- family or friends.

I am still working on the baton for the team I am creating for- basically an altered piece of PVC pipe! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll have both the time and energy to get it finished tonight!

If there is a Relay For Life event near you I would encourage you to go and check it out this weekend- they are a lot of fun- bring the whole family! Nearly everyone knows someone who has had cancer or is living with it now and this is something that we can all donate a little bit of our time to :)

And one more piece of news....

I am one of the new design team members for the Scrapping Out Loud Blog! It is going to be a lot of fun and I hope you will all participate in their weekly challenges- you could win some pretty cool RAK's and prizes for it too! Our July prize is going to be sponsored by Life Preserver's Club too- which you hear me talk about all the time so you KNOW this will be an awesome prize :)

OSU Baby Shower Diaper Cake

2009-05-30T19:36:00.000-07:00

My friend Mandy is expecting a little boy in just a few short weeks and tonight was her baby shower- and this is her gift from me :) I love having an excuse to make a diaper cake!!!

For this one I used orange and black to match the OSU theme of her shower, and I really love how it looks! The cake is made up of Huggies organic size 2 diapers so she won't have to take it apart too soon! I thought of putting the little travel sized baby samples at the top of the cake because I know that Mandy and Mike like to travel a lot and these should come in handy on one of their trips. The congratulations on top is the handmade card I made to go along with cake.

I took photos as I put this together and am hoping to write a little tutorial on how to do it for my blog- you all should share in the fun of making a diaper cake ;) The real fun though is when you get to give it away!! Mandy looked so gorgeous, I hope she gets some great maternity photos before the new object of attention arrives!

I'm a designing again...

2009-05-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

I have officially accepted a design team position at Butterfly Crafts blog . I will be part of the team that posts layouts on the first of every month, so be sure to check it out ;)

And next on the agenda is this cute little layout... my first ROUND one! I used the new Creative Memories girl patterned paper- it is so soft and sweet! The colors in it reminded me instantly of this photo I took of katelynne when she was about 3 months old.

I used lullaby pink thickers, pink prima say it in studs, handmade crepe paper trim, prima flowers, and a bo bunny clear acrylic charm for the scroll square, plus some odds and ends from my stash! I just love all the soft colors in this layout!

The journaling reads:

As Katelynne sleeps, I can't help but stop and watch her and day dream myself about how blessed I am to have such a beautiful baby girl! {june 2008}

Almost every single page i have created lately has been about more than just the photo, it's been about my feelings about the moment the photo was taken, I feel like this perspective lets me put a whole new meaning to my scrapbooking and reason why it is important to me. If you are feeling low on the scrap mojo today then take a moment to dig deeper into your feelings about the moment you are scrapping, not just describing what is happening in the photo!

More love shack baby... My Everyday

2009-05-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

I made this layout using more of my May Life Preserver's Kit and also based on a challenge from the Design Experiment blog- to create a layout about what makes your day complete, what five things you have to do or have each day, and what three things you avoid!!! I absolutely loved these two "everyday" photos and love how they look with the colors from the Bo Bunny love shack paper. Katelynne had just woke up from a nap in her picture and had bed head hair that was adorable, and it's not too often that I get to be in the picture with Lucas or Katelynne so I am lovin' that one too!

Journaling:

take care of the kids, cook for them, play with them, watch them grow and learn new things
share my day with JD
take time to appreciate the little things & the beauty around me
clean something! I can't stand a messy house
AVOID putting away laundry, eating junk food, and losing my patience
My day wouldn't be complete without these things!

It was really fun doing all the different scallops and distressing on this page, some of the scallops are die cut, some are made using my trimmer, some are made using a stencil then hand cut!

I have had so much fun being a guest designer this month at LPS, I'm still not done with my kit yet... :)

Medium Madness

2009-05-25T21:52:00.000-07:00

I used the new Bo Bunny Love Shack line and the May featured kit from Life Preserver's Club to create this layout- and it is based on a challenge from Vintage Plum to use several different mediums on a page. The background was made using MM paint, shimmerz, and stickles- so much fun!

But more importantly this layout is very special because I used the ACTUAL fabric, trim, tulle, ribbon, and chenille that I used to handmake my daughter's dress for her first birthday! When I look at this page I feel like it really represents what I feel scrapbooking means to me- it captures the special feel of her first birthday, has journaling about the day, and has keepsakes incorporated into the page! I know she won't remember her party or wearing the dress or anything, but someday she look back on these photos and see what an absolutely beautiful baby she was on her birthday!

Lil' Sister

2009-05-17T20:17:00.001-07:00

I love love love this layout! It is out of the box and off the page for me ;) I created it for the Scrapbook Nook's scrap off weekly challenge #2- to make a shaped layout. This page is special for me because the buttons i used for the rainbow came from my grandma's button collection she has grown over the years- she always cut the buttons from old clothing before throwing them away, and some of them actually came from her mom too, so there's some really unique buttons on there- and some new ones too ;)

I used nearly a whole bottle of stickles underneath and around the buttons to make them look like they are on a fluffy white sparkly cloud- ya'll know how much I like glitter ;) The clouds and sun are handcut and I drew the face on the sun too.

This page is about how much fun it is to just watch Katelynne toddle around the yard, I can't believe that at one year old she can play in the sand, dig in the garden, color with sidewalk chalk, and look at my flowers without hurting them! Of course her very fave thing to do is find a kitty and try to catch him LOL!

We have been spending a ton of time outdoors taking care of our garden and making our yard look much nicer than it usually does ;) You can bet there's going to be some layouts of flowers and gardening this summer! I cannot wait!!

Sweet, Happy, Sassy, Beautiful

2009-05-15T19:03:00.000-07:00

Have you heard of Vintage Plum? They are a monthly kit club with kits full of vintage goodies! I am participating in their star search contest and there are some great people there ;) Look below to see my layout "Me at 22" that I created for their first challenge!

And here's another goodie for you:

It seems like every couple months I get a photo of Katelynne that is just *perfect*. I stare at it over and over again and just can't belive how cute she is and I just never get tired of looking at these photos! This is the first time I have ever used the same photo more than once on a page, and I am so totally happy with the outcome!! I have been saving this Prima flower for over a YEAR now, knowing that the perfect layout would come along! I didn't know exactly how perfect it would be ;)
I used the same photo on this layout 7 times LOL! My journaling is about the saying "a picture is worth a 1000 words" and picked the words that are the best to describe my little Katelynne- sweet, happy, sassy, and beautiful- stress on sassy LOL! Her favorite word is no ;)

Just Be Me

2009-05-14T12:52:00.000-07:00

*note* these photos are too big to show up properly on my blog- please click on any one of them to view them in photobucket art gallery! The password for my album is "decorativememories"!

This is my newest mini book! I created it with the Lily Bee contest on their blog in mind- to make an album around the theme "just be me". This really was a challenge for me because I am almost always scrapping photos of my family or my kids and it's not usually an in depth thing about ME and what makes me tick! I focused on the main things that I feel like make me who I am in this book and I hope that someday my friends and family will be able to look back on it and see who I was and how I felt about my life (so far!).

I used a Bo Bunny Edgy album for this one and it was soooo much fun!!! When I bought it I just knew that the decorative edges were right up my alley ;) If you would like to see more photos and products I used in this book please take a look at it on 2 peas HERE!

I have been stalking my mailman waiting on my May Life Preserver's kit... it didn't come today but I am almost 99% sure that it will be here tomorrow!!! Ohhhh the anticipation!

I'm Still Here!

2009-05-11T18:03:00.000-07:00

I hope you guys don't feel TOO neglected, I am planning to do my best to post more often in the next few weeks! It seems like ever since I started using Facebook that I have been *ahem* neglecting my other interests LOL!

I have joined two scrap contests right now and I am determined to stay in them- one is the Scrap Off at The Scrapbook Nook and the other is the Vintage Plum Star Search. I've tried doing these contests that span over several weeks before and it always seems like I get too busy and don't keep up with the challenges- so now that I have admitted all that to you guys I hope it will be more motivation to KEEP GOING this time!!!

Here's one of my first layouts for the challenges I used some "fussy cuts" and cut out the flowers/bugs from patterned paper, I know it's really popular to do this right not- but I normally don't take the time to do it. I really love the end result here!! I used some of the lovely Lilly Bee papers on this layout along with my cut outs! I can't get enough of this piece of paper from Lily Bee that looks like notebook paper!

This layout was made using the April alternate kit from Life Preserver's Club. I added some black cardstock from my stash to accent the patterned paper and used some doodling stencils to make the flourishes. I really like the idea of what this page is about, I took some everyday photos and made them about something totally different than the literal subject of the photos- the page is about how much I love being a mom that stays home with my children. It's a big part of who I am and I hope that someday my family will see this page and remember this about me!

And... I am really excited to share that I am now a part of the Croppinsville, U.S.A. design team!! Croppinsville is both a local scrapbook store to me and an online store, so go check them out!! If you live nearby be on the lookout for my upcoming paper gift bag album class, and if you don't live nearby be sure to check out their blog where I'll be sharing tips and ideas, and some of my class kits may be available for purchase!

And I have to brag for just one more paragraph... This week I recieved my 2 in 1 combo trimmer from Purple Cows- along with an email letting me know that they would like to have me be a guest designer for them!! I am SO EXCITED about this!! I feel so lucky to have won this really awesome trimmer too, it's officially the biggest prize I've ever won LOL!

Ok, one more brag and then I am seriously done. I am the guest designer over at Life Preserver's Club this month! I should be getting my kit this week and I am seriously just drooling over the pics of whats going to be in it- lots of bright beautiful colors!

And the winners are...

2009-04-29T21:25:00.000-07:00

Picked using random.org the lucky ladies are:

~ Grace ~ said...
That sale seems to good to be true. I wish there was one like that around here. What a wonderful giveaway. Thanks for the opportunity.

Katamommy said...
Wow, where have I been? I've missed some things around here! lol I love the purses you posted in the last entry, so cute!!!!! I love the blog candy and I have a link up for you over at my blog!

CONGRATS you ladies are going to be the victims of my RAK and will each get a pack of 3 Bugs in a Rug "Spring" paper! Email me your addy's and I'll get em out to ya asap :) I'm so glad that you all visited my blog!

Pigtails N Mudpies & DIRT!

2009-04-28T19:18:00.000-07:00

YAY the weather got nice enough for me to take pics of my pages from last night!!! When I saw the new U Bug Me Bo Bunny line at the LSS last week I just KNEW that I had to get my hands on some of it! It has been sitting upstairs in my craft room taunting me for over a week now and I have honestly been getting grumpy everynight when I was too tired or busy to get up there and create something with it! I had so much fun playing with these papers and I just absolutely loved working with the colors in this paper, it went perfectly with the photos I took while I was working in the garden with the kids a few weeks ago. I am proud of myself for using a boyish paper for a girl layout ;)
To me, this paper was SCREAMING "use cardboard with me!", seriously- my paper was talkin to me ;) I ripped the edge off of yet another cardboard box and used some of it for the little flower embellies on this page.

I will be entering this layout in a conest at My Sketch World, in hopes of winning a $25 gift certificate!

There is a piece of paper in the U Bug Me line that has arrows all over it.... and I couldn't resist cutting some of them out for my page!! Ok well maybe a few more than "some"... a lot! The challenge for this contest was to use a sketch AND a quote about spring on your page, and lemme tell ya- I LOVE this quote about spring because it just sums up what I feel like doing- getting outside and enjoying the weather and getting dirty! "In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt!"

I machine stitched all of the photos and used some foam squares to make the arrows and the smaller photos pop from the page.

And yes, even after the first layout my paper was still begging for me to use more cardboard with it...
And last but not least I just have to brag a teeny little bit- today I got an email from Purple Cows letting me know that although I didn't make the design team they would like to have me be a guest designer in the future! I am soooo excited about this I can't even begin to describe it here, you'd just had to have seen my face this morning :D

Harleigh's Dress

2009-04-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

This is the dress I made for Harleigh- got it done just in time for Easter! I also made a matching hairbow! I knew I had to have this fabric the first time I saw it- it's hard to tell in the photos but it is glittery and just perfect for a little girl!

These hairbows are so much fun to make and to mix n match all the different ribbons is just right up my alley. I keep thinking that I should make more bows for Katelynne, she could use a rainbow of them you know ;)

I did some major scrappin last night and made two pages that I absolutely love... now I am just waiting for it to quit raining outside so I can take photos of them to share with ya'll! I love rainy days, so relaxing- until I have a house full of children who would rather be playing outside LOL! Anyways, I had better get back to work :)

I'll leave you with a pic of my new hairdo, for some reason every spring I always want to make my hair strawberry blonde...

Lil' Sister and Spring Chick

2009-04-24T14:08:00.000-07:00

This layout has to be my FAVE that I made last weekend! I hung it on the refrigerator so I could look at it everyday ;) I always have two layouts displayed (in page protectors of course!) on my fridge right along with the kids artwork! I made this layout for the "what's the weather like today?" challenge during the Backporch Memories crop. I used my cuttlebug to emboss the paper for the sun and then hand cut the circle and "rays". I used K&Co Berry Sweet PP and some new Prima's too! I love this photo and now I love this layout too!

I made this layout for the "feeling edgy" challenge- which I thought was brilliant ;) I decided to use the new Making Memories flower patch paper line and scrap LAST year's Easter pics (hey, one step closer to this year's pics now lol!).

The crop is still goin on and I am hoping that I can finish some more challenges tonight. I've had a killer stomachache all day long today so I have no clue what I'm going to accomplish- or if I'm sick or just upset stomach? Maybe I should make a pepto bismol pink layout- do you think that would help my stomach? ;)

What's on my mind...

2009-04-17T20:48:00.000-07:00

Yay- the weekend is here!! I'm tired from this week's activities and lots of playing outside with the kids, I'm ready to take a time out and do some scrapping! I am going to force myself to limit the shopping trips this weekend so I can actually be at home and have time/energy to scrap ;) One of the websites I visit is having an online crop this weekend and they're giving away lots of prizes- what's more motivating for scrapping that winning prizes? Anyways- I'll be playing along at Backporch memories you should come check it out if you are looking for some inspiration this weekend!

Here's a layout I did last week, I was going to enter it into a contest but didn't get it posted in time- DOH! It was for the Pagemaps "what's on your mind" contest. Oh well, I'll just consider myself a winner because I still got a great layout done and the "whats on your mind" part really made me think and helped me create a unique page with really meaningful journaling. I used some more of my Feb. alternate kit from Life Preserver's Scrapbook Club.

More Layouts

2009-04-10T13:34:00.001-07:00

As you may have guessed- I've been super busy with Easter this week and neglected to post my menu this week... or well- to post anything LOL! If you've been reading my blog for awhile then you know that I am a perfectionist and I like to make everything decorative which means that the week before any hoilday I go nuts planning the perfect outfits, perfect crafts for the kids, perfect menu to cook and so on...

We've just gotten back from the BIG family Easter Egg hunt today, I took a few of the daycare kids with us and they all had a lot of fun- and got to run around and get worn out- which means I get a few free minutes to make sure ya'll have something to look at ;) Here's some more of my layouts I made at the Life Preserver's Spring Fling crop:

Rain Play
I made this layout for Sandra's challenge to scrapbook about something quirky, cool, and crazy! I thought of a few things I could scrap but my favorite would definitely be playing in the rain. SO many people consider a rainy day to be gloomy, boring, sad, or depressing but NOT me! I love the rain, especially when it is a warm spring or summer day, or a mild thunder storm in the afternoon. I find it soooo relaxing. Have you ever walked in the rain? You should try it, especially with your children. We teach our children how to react to the world around them and so I have definitely made it a priority to teach my children not to be afraid of thunder storms and to cherish a nice refreshing rainy day. Here's my page I made using the Feb. alternate life preserver's kit:

Everyday Magic
I made this page using a pagemaps sketch and I entered it in the guest designer contest at Backporch Memories. I also made it for the Mix and Match challenge at the LPS crop, I used some paper from my feb. alternate kit and some from my march featured kit on this page. I really love this page, especially the title "everyday magic". We were doing an everyday thing- but it was special because Lucas was going to be having surgery the next weekend, it was our last outing to just focus on our family and having fun together. Sure- it was an outpatient surgery but life can throw you curve balls at any time and this day was just about making an everyday memory together.

Life is Good
I made this layout for the early bird challenge at the LPS crop- which happened to be a sketch. I rarely EVER make layouts without a sketch so this was right up my alley ;) I absolutely adore this cherry paper!! And these photos.... well they are something else! I loved watching katelynne gently holding my little flower and how she just smiled right at the camera. It was a pretty day and it reminds me that life is good!

My Cherry on Top

Noticing a theme about cherries here? Well i think they are adorable on scrapbooking paper... and on clothes... This page was made for the bring on the bling challenge, and of course I used a pagemaps sketch ;) What really made me think of this title was not just her cute cherry outfit but how a cherry is really the way you "finish" an ice cream sundae, it's the special extra something that makes the sundae look yummy (even if you don't like cherries, your sundae just looks cuter and tastier with one sitting there!) And when I think about life after Katelynne was born I just feel like she was the "cherry on top", we already had a "yummy sundae" or in other words a happy healthy family, and she just made it even better! I have a hidden journaling tag explaining this behind the photo on this page.

Smiles
this page is for the monthly sketch contest at LPS- using none other than a pagemaps sketch (see a trend here?). These were some of the first really good pics I got of Katelynne smiling! Between these few pages I made with this March featured kit I somehow used up FOUR pieces of this cherry paper, I still can't believe I used that much LOL! I am glad I asked for extra in my kit :)

I still have more to show you and I am still working on my first tutorial for my blog, and I'll be back this week with my menu plan- that is after I recover from Easter Sunday!

I scrapped til I dropped!

2009-03-31T10:43:00.000-07:00

It's a RECORD- I made 19 layouts this weekend- YES 19!!!! Also one paper easter basket, one paper flower, and a paper flower bouquet. My sister in law will probably not believe me because when we go to REAL crops together I always sit there yawning and don't get much accomplished! so i took a pic to prove it:

(pic is missing the paper flower bouquet- don't worry you'll see that later!)

How did I get the mojo to do this? Well... I decided to go to my very first online crop! Yes- online! I have always snubbed them because I thought pfffft, if I'm at home doing this how am I going to get anything done while being on the computer? I was SO wrong! It was so encouraging to chat with all the other ladies, see all the different challenges, and join in on the games. The challenges really made me think of new ideas for some of my photos and I really liked that.

So, I'm not going to share all of my layouts all at once- I'm going to let you all savor the artwork over the next few weeks- starting NOW! And if you have time you should totally stop by Life Preserver's Club and check out the Spring Fling crop- a lot of the ladies are still chatting and working on the challenges this week.

I LOVED the colors of this layout once I got it done. I don't normally use this bright of a yellow and I just had a lot of fun breaking out these bright tropical flowers.

These pictures were just adorable too, I thought katelynne looked so pretty sitting in her exersaucer on the front porch! Everytime I look at these photos it just reminds of how I felt that day, it was just a beautiful day outside and Lucas was riding his tricycle in front of the house while I watered the flowers. Just this photo reminds me of all that!

I also love my daughter's hair- so I had to make a memorial of her very first piggie tails ;)

and again- I totally love this color combo. I have been so crazy about purple, green, and brown lately! I hope my local scrapbook store has more of this paper because I don't think I can get enough of it!

And my easter basket- I made this one for my mom and stuffed a mini avon lotion and lip gloss in it- luckily she doesn't read my blog so she'll still be surprised....

notice the paper I used to make this basket? That's right! It's from my GIVEAWAY! See the post below and leave a comment to get in on the drawing :) Only 10 more comments til I give it away!

I'm working on my first ever blog tutorial, can't wait to share it with all of you!

Spring Cleaning GIveaway!

2009-03-31T10:22:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a LOT of cleaning and organizing around here (yeah yeah I know what you're thinking- "could she get more organized?") but really- I have WAY too much scrappy stuff! I cannot believe that these two paper kits did not sell at my LSS's garage sale last week- but you're going to be glad they didn't! I have decided it is high time to have my first blog candy giveaway!

How about some adorable SPRING paper?
I know it's hard to see in this photo- but there are two pieces of this paper that have cute little bunnies on them!! Visit the 3 Bugs in a Rug website to see more detailed pics and ideas of projects made with this paper. Plus- look at my designer purse post to see the album I made with this pack ;)

Want to win one? Guess what?! I have TWO of these caboodle kits to give away! Each pack includes:
9 sheets of 12x12 double sided paper
die cut monograms
die cut tags/journaling spots
1 sheet of stickers

Leave me a comment here to get your name entered in a random drawing- but I have to have at least 25 comments here for the drawing so SHARE the news of this giveaway with your friends! If you mention my giveaway on your blog you'll get a second entry into the drawing!

Menu Plan Monday March 30

2009-03-31T06:00:00.000-07:00

One day late on posting my menus again! Guess what else happened AGAIN? We're sick!! Runny noses, congestion, headache, achy body- wonderful! I'm not giving up on my menu plan though! We have been saving a lot of money by not eating out and I'm not about to let a bad cold stop that grrrrr! Here's the battleplan this week lol:

Breakfasts:
Cereal
Mini breakfast pizza w/ ham
Oatmeal pancakes, strawberries
Peanut Butter Toast, banana

for lunches visit the daycare blog!

Dinners:
Monday
Turkey pot pie

Pizza Tuesday
I'm going with Digiorno this week!
salad

Wednesday
Beef lo mein
w/ lots of broccoli and veggies

Crock Pot Thursday
I'm roasting a whole chicken this week,
you'll see me using the meat for two other days in the coming week
Exploding chicken taquitos
homemade guacamole and sour cream dip
steamed broccoli

Friday
I am going SHOPPING today, so it's definitely leftovers for dinner tonight!

Saturday
didn't get this made last week- so it's back again!
HG's beach bum on a bun(made with turkey instead of Boca burger)
tossed salad

Sunday
pork chops
steamed broccoli and cauliflower
roasted red potatoes

Designer Purses!!!!

2009-03-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

Finally- FINALLY! I have two new purses to show you today! These are a special custom order I took from a wonderful lady I met just over a year ago. She contacted me and said she knew I was busy but wondered if I would make these for her- she said she was willing to wait but I don't think she had two months in mind :) I am so happy to finally have these done, and terribly disappointed in myself that it took so stinkin' long! But it's a new day and I have some neat little extras I'll be slipping into the box I'm mailing to Becky.

The valentine purse is complete with some ADORABLE cupcake polymer clay beads and flatbacks that I purchased from this Ebay shop, this girl makes some reallllly cute beads, I could spend a fortune in her Ebay store!! She made these cupcakes custom for me to match the paper which was totally awesome!

In the Easter album I also used a little butterfly flatback from Katie's Jelly Beads - it matched perfectly with the spring colors of the album. I really loved the metal butterfly charms I found for the beaded handles on this one too- I was surprised to find them at Wal-Mart but they were just PERFECT for this album!!

Here's the detail shots of both albums:

Menu Plan Monday March 23

2009-03-24T06:51:00.000-07:00

Last week was a success- we only went out to eat once! I'm a day late posting my menu this week, but so far I'm on schedule. I did ditch my plan for Sunday though and made mexican style grilled ribs with a honey lime glaze and homemade mexican rice- so I'll give the stuffed chicken another chance to make it onto our plates this week! You'll also be seeing a lot more veggie laden recipes and healthy stuff- I have been feeling just weighed down by some of the things I've been eating the last few weeks- so I am lightening up a little and definitely going to to try to stay out of the kid's lunches too lol! Here's my gameplan this week:

Breakfasts:
Cereal
Breakfast burritos
Pancakes, oranges
Peanut Butter Toast, banana

for lunches visit the daycare blog!

Dinners:
Monday
leftover grilled ribs
mexican rice

Pizza Tuesday
good-for-you pizza with homemade crust
and chicken veggie topping
salad

Wednesday
Emerald Stir Fry
brown rice

Crock Pot Thursday
easy italian crock pot turkey breast
sweet potatoes
green beans

Friday
HG's beach bum on a bun(made with turkey instead of Boca burger)
tossed salad

Saturday
tex-mex cheese quesadillas with black bean and white corn salsa
mandarin oranges

Sunday
pepper and cheese stuffed chicken
rice
salad

Katelynne's Birthday Dress and the Kid's Party

2009-03-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

This is the LAST dress you're going to see for a little while! Next on my list is an Easter dress for Harleigh and maybe Katelynne... but that girl sure does have a lot of dresses already if you hadn't noticed ;) I found some really fun looking patterns for tote bags and even an apron that you wear while giving the kids a bath- the bottom part of it is a bath towel so when you pull the kids out of the tub you can just give them a big hug! Oh and also I made her hairbows- my first ones and I really like how they turned out, plus they were quicker to make than I expected. Anyways- here's the birthday girl in her dress I made her! And of course I couldn't leave out some pics of the birthday boy either...

The cakes- I made them and it about killed me lol!! I worked on them for two days and was about ready to give up when I ran out of powdered sugar and needed more icing... but the morning of the party I was able to get up early and finish up everything. I really like how it all turned out! I had to leave the number 4 candle off of the cake until time to blow out candles because it was heavy enough it was trying to fall off the top.

and here is Katelynne's smash cake for her first birthday:

Meggy was at the party too- she's eating her lime sherbet ice cream - lucas' favorite! All the adults said "oh I haven't had this for a long time!"And yes I am a super freak and I had to buy multi-colored forks and spoons, then I created little napkin rings that said happy birthday with polka dots and rolled them around the silverware. I gave the little pink basket to the daycare girls to use as a baby carrier after the party was over, they've been fighting over it ever since!

Pics of their presents from us- I absolutely love curly bows so I had to indulge and get two big ones for each present, and it was so cute when Katelynne saw hers she bent over and played with it.

And yes- this is the best picture of lucas I could get all day long- and that includes my sister in laws pictures too! This boy simply cannot hold still- EVER! Maybe on his 5th birthday he'll pose for me? By then Katelynne will be the one I am chasing around for photos...

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

This week I am determined that we eat at home all week- Why? Well.... this weekend we had a project-anchoring our swingset, building a wooden border around it and filling it up with cedar chips- well.... the cedar chips turned into recycled rubber mulch and $250 later we have a great looking playspace! I'm hoping we can make the expense of the rubber mulch hurt a little less by eating at home all week! Just think of all the scrapbook supplies $250 could buy lol! Somehow I think that the kids will get more use out of the rubber mulch right now... haha. Here's my gameplan this week:

Breakfasts:
Cereal
Breakfast burritos
Pancakes, oranges
Peanut Butter Toast, banana

for lunches visit the daycare blog!

Dinners:
Monday
Hamburgers
pasta salad
baked beans

Pizza Tuesday
(it's st. partrick's day so pizza tuesday is going to be wednesday!)
Reuben subs
salad

Wednesday
pizza casserole
veggie dippers

Crock Pot Thursday
slow cooker sweet & sour turkey meatballs
rice
stir fry veggies

Friday
grilled chicken wrap
baked fries
mandarin oranges

Saturday
cheesey BBQ chicken sandwiches
homemade coleslaw

Sunday
pepper and cheese stuffed chicken
rice
salad

A New Dress

2009-03-12T07:51:00.000-07:00

So I'm making up for not posting in almost a week- here's a dress I made for Danica last week. It is a fusion between a pillowcase dress and the tanatutu's I've been making. I added a liner to the inside too. It turned out to be too big and I have no clue how it got that way but Danica can hopefully wear it before the end of summer. I added a new "peek" in the back where there's a split so that more of the tulle can be seen.

I made a little ribbon "tag" and attached the bow to a hair-clippie so that it can be removed from the dress what it is washed. If Danica had enough hair I would have made her a matching hairbow too ;)
And here's a close up of her name- I made it kind of blend in with the dress so it's a little bit hard to see in the photo.

I still can't believe that I am actually MAKING dresses... I bought a few new patterns now that I've learned the basics and I can't wait to try them out. I was also thinking about making a couple cute little tote bags... can I please have a vacation day for all that?! lol!

Bargain Meal of the Week March 12th

2009-03-12T07:29:00.000-07:00

I'm still recovering from the kids' birthday party on Sunday- which is why artwork and recipes have been scarce around here!!! Add the time change to all that and I've just been walking around wishing for a nap all day. I have been cooking though! We have managed to eat a homecooked dinner every night this week so far. I'm cravin' some Tavern on the Plaza for this weekend though ;)

Now for the real reason why you're here- the Bargain Meal of the Week! Country Mart is having some special sales for the upcoming St. Patrick's day and I would LOVE to share our favorite meal using corned beef- Reuben Subs. My husband LOVES these. This is another one of those meals that is going to add up to close to $10 to make but it makes 8 large servings or even 12 smaller servings if you have a side dish with your sub or are feeding a crowd (Or if your husband is a gorilla and eats half of it at dinner like mine!). Whatever the case- you have GOT to try this recipe!!!

This is what will be on my menu for St. Patrick's day next week :)

Reuben Sub
1 corned beef brisket (I usually get a large one so there is leftover meat but a 1.5-2lb piece is enough) $1.89/lb this week
1 loaf of french bread $1.50 everyday at CM
Thousand Island dressing (Kraft dressings on sale for $2.39 this week including low fat and fat free if you are looking for a lighter version)
1/4 lb sliced swiss cheese from deli (on sale for $5.99/lb this week)
1 can sauerkraut (not on sale this week surprisingly, but should cost $1 or less)
Olive Oil

1. Cook your corned beef brisket with the spice pack following the directions on the package. You have some choices here so just choose your desired method of cooking. I prefer to actually put mine in the crock pot all day long- simply cover it with water and add the spice packet, cook on low for 8 hours.
2. Slice the cooked meat and set aside. Cut your loaf of french bread open and lay the two pieces side by side on a jelly roll pan. Brush a small amount of olive oil over the bread and put it under the broiler just until it is lightly toasted.
3. Remove the top portion of your french bread from the pan. Top the bottom half of the bread with sliced swiss cheese, corned beef, and sauekraut. Place under the broiler for another 5-8 minutes or until toasty and hot. Drizzle with thousand island dressing and top with the top half of your toasted french bread.

Serve with extra thousand island dressing for dipping- and a fork- your'll need it ;)

And- I'll be back later with something wonderful and scrappy... *it's a new designer purse album!*

Menu Plan Monday March 2-9 (on tuesday!)

2009-03-03T11:53:00.000-08:00

So, after being sick and too busy to post or keep up with the plan- we're back on schedule! so here's whats on the menu for this week:

Breakfasts:
Cereal
Mini Blueberry Muffins
Pancakes, oranges
Peanut Butter Toast, banana

for lunches visit the daycare blog!

Dinners:
Monday
bruschetta chicken skillet
Steamed broccoli

Pizza Tuesday
pizza casserole
salad

Wednesday
(we're having guests over tonight to help put together the new swingset for the kids birthday so we're having something a little special to eat!)
sausage rigatoni
italian style tossed salad
garlic bread

Crock Pot Thursday
BBQ Chicken Legs
cheesy rice
green beans

Friday
taco puffs
corn
lettuce/tomato/sour cream

Saturday
Out- we'll be getting ready for the kids birthday party!

Sunday
BBQ Muffins
1 tube refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
3 T. brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 T. cider vinegar

Separate dough into 10 biscuits; flatten into 5 inch circles. Press each into the bottom and up the sides of a greased muffin cup; set aside. In skillet, brown beef; drain. Add additional ingredients to ground beef. Heat through. Place mixture in muffin cups. Top with cheese. Bake at 325 degrees for approximately 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

Featured in Scrapbooking.Com Magazine

2009-03-01T17:43:00.001-08:00

That's right... I finally got something published!! You can view my articles and projects in the March issue at these links:

Berry Sweet Paper Gift Bag Album
Clean Baby Layout
Spring Beauty Layout

And... You'll be seeing more of me in the April issue ;)

Ok so enough bragging now, I've got to unload some of the million things on my mind! This weekend I had BIG plans that included shopping, sewing, scrapping, cleaning, gardening, and cooking. Surprise surprise, it didn't all get done- but then again it's not midnight yet right? HA! I feel like I did at Christmas, too many things to do and not enough time. I have already started my seeds for our garden and they are needing transplanted- this MUST get done or they will die or not grow right. The kid's birthday party is next sunday and I have to sew Katelynne's dress, make party hats, practice the design for their cakes- then make the REAL cakes and smash cake for katelynne since it's the big first bday for her... I have two custom ordered albums from a past Ebay customer of mine that I took the order for one month ago and still have not completed, and I have a mountain of laundry to do! I HATE being unorganized and feeling like I have a full plate of things to do- it really makes me just want to take a nap, which will of course make the problem worse. I go and try to put away laundry and all I can do is think about everything else that needs to get done! Do you ever feel like that?!
So, I am going to go take a chill pill and go work on transplanting my flowers and veggie plants since their lives hang in the balance ;) Hopefully tomorrow will not be a manic monday and I'll get lots of STUFF accomplished! (yes that includes posting my menus for the week!)

Bargain Meal of the Week

2009-02-26T15:22:00.000-08:00

I'm late I'm late.... but the good news is there's lots of time left to stop by Country Mart West and pick up these sale items to create a bargain dinner:

Chicken Mac N Cheese Skillet

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese (.79 / box this week)

Split Chicken Breast (.99/ lb, buy enough for your family)

1 can Libby's whole kernel corn (.49/can)

1 vine-ripe tomato (.79/pound)

1/4 cup sour cream (.99/16 oz. tub)

pepper to taste

You'll need to cook and shred/chop the chicken ahead of time. My suggestion would be to buy extra chicken and cook it all in your crock pot and freeze the extra for another bargain meal ;)

Once you have done that, prepare the macaroni as directed on box. Stir in the corn, chopped tomato, sour cream, and pepper. Cook on low heat until heated through and serve! I suggest picking up a bag of dole special blend salad on sale buy 1 get 1 free to serve on the side ;)

And here's my scrappy show n tell for the day- birthday party invitations!!! Yes, the kids went a little bit crazy while I was making these yesterday but we all survived. I made the invites using photoshop and had them printed at wal-mart then matted them with coordinating cardstock. I mailed them out today! Now on to making decorations... and Katelynne's party dress...

More Dresses, More Sick Kids

2009-02-25T14:44:00.000-08:00

Every two weeks- EVERY TWO WEEKS- since the first of the year my family has been sick with something different! I actually whined the last time I went to the dr. because she said I just had a cold and I was SO SICK of hearing it. This time it's even worse.... Katelynne has been throwing up since Friday morning. I thought that it was all over on Sunday but then last night she threw up- all over me and our bed, she even got both of our pillows! I yelled for hubby to come help me because I was covered in chunks (sorry if that was too graphic! LOL!) and he helped bathe Katelynne while I solved the problem of what we would be sleeping on since all of our sheets were now in need of washing. We ended up sleeping on top of a snuggie (google it if you've never heard of them!) and using extra pillows off of the couch. It ended in a good way because we all kind of snuggled up (yeah yeah on the snuggie) and fell asleep together. It's been a long time since we have really taken the time to just slow down and sort of fall asleep together without really meaning to.

Sooooo.... that's my excuse for no menu plan this week- we've been too sick to even feel like cooking and have spent a fortune and a half going out to eat almost everyday! I'm one of those people who actually gets GRUMPY when my house is off schedule, not clean, and not organized. Add their birthday party coming up in two weeks and it's like the cherry on a big PMS sundae ;) Annnnnyyyywaaayyy....

Here's some photos of the dresses I made when I had a bit of free time and wanted to take a break from cleaning up after sick kids ;) I'm thinking I might try to make some of these for my Etsy shop, what do you think? I can't wait to get started on Katelynne's dress for her birthday party!

Tomorrow I am mailing birthday party invites, I made them using photoshop! I'll try to share a photo of them if I get time between all of my OCD cleaning and menu planning ;)

I Finally Made a DRESS!!!!

2009-02-21T14:47:00.000-08:00

Soooooo... it totally cost more time/money to make this than a purchased dress (well I guess that depends on where you shop...) but it was SOOOOOOO worth it!!! This is one of those projects that I have just wanted to make foooorrrreeevverrr but never had the time/reason/know how to do it. I am so freakin proud of this dress, I just can't quit looking at it!! Megan was the birthday girl yesterday and since her parents are divorced and this was daddy's party I was pretty sure that him being a typical man he wouldn't care about dressing her up, so I took Meggy out to lunch (she requested McDonald's of course!) and then took her to my house to get her all dolled up. She was so excited and said that the dress looked like a princess dress! I told her that was perfect because she IS a princess ;)

I am so thankful for the website where I found the ebook to learn how to make this dress- http://www.youcanmakethis.com/! It's an AMAZING site with ebooks on all different topics. So many things there to learn... This dress is called the "tana tutu" if you try to look it up.

So here's the details of the dress, I can't wait to get started on Katelynne's party dress (only two weeks away!!!) I can't believe that soon I'll have to start referring to my children as "my 1 year old" and "my four year old"!

So everyone send me good shopping vibes... I'm off to Tulsa for the day to find some goodies! I'm sneaking off by myself so I can mill around in Michael's and Joann's without anyone who is not-so-crafty getting extremely bored (pretty much everyone I know that would want to go shopping with me lol).

I'll be back later with the menu plan for this week!

6x6 Waiting for Baby Album

2009-02-17T12:37:00.000-08:00

Several months ago you all got to see the photos I took of my very pregnant and yet beautiful friend Ashley, and today I'm going to share the photos of the album I made for her using those photos and some I *borrowed* from her mom's myspace ;) Ashley would like to try scrapbooking someday so I hope this will give her a good start!

I used a cranberry 6x6 album I had leftover from my Close to my Heart consultant days and it is STUFFED full of pages! I also used a CTMH paper pack and stickers with added matching primas and say it in crystals. The last photo shows basically a 6x6 page that is just lined cardstock for her to journal on, I think it would be a great place to write down the birth story of baby Nolan. The charm on the spine of the album is a little pewter pacifier- too cute! And of course you won't be seeing any journaling in these photos- I left that part for Ashley :)

Valentine's, My Planner, and Menus

2009-02-15T09:12:00.000-08:00

I was so excited this year when I was at Target and happened to find the $1 mini mailboxes! For the last two years I've been wanting to get one but never seemed to get to Target before they were sold out. I made two of them- one for Lucas' preschool teachers and one for home, but of course- I forgot to take a photo of the teacher box before I gave it away! So you'll all have to be satisfied with this mailbox....
Lucas was so excited to give this to his teacher, he carried it in as if it were made of gold ;) I filled it full of chocolate truffles and had lucas attempt to write his name on one of his spongebob valentine's- hopefully next year I can set aside enough time to actually make the valentines!

And here's my planner after it's makeover....I use my planner every single day and I just HAD to make it look pretty! I write our daily menu plans in here, birthdays, appointments, to do lists- everything! I'll probably be switching out the photos in it throughout the year.

and speaking of menu plans....

On my evergoing quest to save more money, be more of a supermom, and have a healthy family, here's my plan for this week- there's a few repeats from last week due to my being sick (feeling much better now!):

Clicky on the links for recipes!!!

Breakfasts:
Cereal
Mini Blueberry Muffins (very healthy recipe!)

Dinner:
Monday
Italian Grilled Chicken Salad

Pizza Tuesday
Broccoli and Burger Pizza, Carrot Sticks
Wednesday
BBQ Rice and Beef Roundup, Salad
Crock Pot Thursday
Southwestern Bean Soup with Cornmeal Dumplings
Friday
Ham and Broccoli Macaroni Bake
Saturday
Salmon Cakes, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans
Sunday Special
Steak Fajitas, Homemade Mexican Rice, Avocado Salad

Bargain Meal of the Week

2009-02-12T07:17:00.000-08:00

So when I started thinking about what idea I wanted to share for the Bargain Meal of the Week all I could think about was Valentine's Day! Wouldn't it be special to create a meal for your sweetie or your family that was less than $5? Then I started thinking, everyone expects a special dinner on Vday so how about a breakfast, that'll get you goin for a day with your sweetie(s)! Here's the plan:

This week Country Mart is having a special 3-day sale, so you'll need to get out there and pick up some eggs for .99 cents a dozen! Here's what else you'll need to pick up from this week's sale:

1 can Best Choise Texas Style Biscuits- .79 cents

1 roll Oldham's Pork Sausage- $1.99

You will also need some shredded cheddar cheese- there's some Kraft on sale this week but honestly you'd be better off buying some best choice choice and shredding it yourself ;)

Sausage n Cheese Breakfast Bake

1.Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Spray the bottom of a 13x9 inch glass baking dish. Separate the biscuits and then cut each biscuit into four pieces; arrange evenly in prepared dish.

2. Cook sausage in a skillet on the stove and drain off grease. Sprinkle over the biscuits in the baking dish.

3. In a large bowl, beat 10 of the eggs with 1 cup of milk and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese and then pour over the biscuits and sausage.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until edges are golden brown and center is set. Let stand about 10 minutes before serving.

And there's still enough money leftover to add a side of fresh seedless grapes that are only .99 cents a pound this week :) Enjoy!

My Girl and Her Quilt

2009-02-09T07:34:00.000-08:00

I went to a 2-day crop at my LSS this weekend and I believe I accomplished more than I have ever before at a crop! I finished a 6x6 album for my friend, altered two of those adorable mail boxes from the one dollar bin at target, altered my day planner, and made this layout for Sketches by Tamara:

And of course I had to share the fruits of my new sewing machine! I was SO EXCITED to get a machine that could embroider words, I mean like I felt like I had bought the rocket ship of sewing machines! Here's the new rag quilt I made for Katelynne:

Now it's time for Lucas to get a new quilt, I'm thinking about doing one with squares cut from old rummage sale jeans and then adding in some fabric with a sports theme? We'll see!

Menu Plan Monday Feb. 9th

2009-02-09T07:14:00.001-08:00

Sooo.... I'm sick again!!!! I think my sinus infection has come back, yuck yuck yuck! I'm pretty sure we'll be having chinese food for dinner tonight, but we'll see how the day goes. I have a plan for tonight if I feel like doing anything other than crashing on the couch. It's extra hard for me to have patience with the children when I don't feel well, so yeah- I think I see Hong Kong Delight in my near future! Anyways, here's the plan, and as always if you are looking for the lunches for the daycare kiddos clicky here to go to the daycare blog.

Breakfasts:

Cereal

Scrambled Eggs with Cheese

Peanut Butter Toast

Dinner:

Monday

Pizza Roll, Salad

Tuesday

Chicken & Bowtie Alfredo, Steamed Broccoli and Cauliflower

Wednesday

Chicken Quesadillas, Spanish Rice, Tossed Salad

Thursday

Tacos, Mexicorn, Fat-Free Refried Beans

Friday

Grilled Chicken Salad

Valentine's Day Dinner

Stuffed Shells, Ceasar Salad, Garlic Bread (hoping to make homemade bread!), and homemade Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake (hoping to share the recipe for this one!)

Sunday

Oven Fried Chicken, Rice, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Green Beans

Also I wanted to share with ya'll that I have volunteered to participate in the "Bargain Meal of the Week" over at $5 dollar dinners. Each week I will be posting a dinner idea that you can make for $5 or less using items from the weekly sale at from Country Mart! I'll be posting it here on Wednesday evenings.

I've got something scrrraaaaappy to share...... I'll be back with that later ;)

Menu Plan Monday

2009-02-03T13:52:00.000-08:00

It's that time of the week again....
Last week my menu plan went out the window because I was miserable with a sinus infection! I am determined to make back the money we spent eating out by cooking everyday this week! here's the plan:

Breakfasts:
Mini Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Ham, Egg, Cheese Breakfast Burritos
Cereal

Lunches:
See my daycare blog for the lunch plan!

Dinners:
Mini Meatloaves, fried taters n onions, salad
Mediterranean Chicken Skillet, more salad
Ham n Beans, Cornbread
Cinncinatti Chili and Spaghetti- and more salad yet (I've been craving salad this week! what can I say?)
Leftovers
Pork Chops, Swee Potatoes, Corn on the Cob

And I was so proud of myself- I had to share my victory at the grocery store this week:

I've been reading a lot of blogs about using coupons and using them to the best advantage- but this is the first time I've ever really felt like I got a great deal! Here's what I got:

Lucky Charms- on sale 2/$3.00, I had a coupon for buy 3 save $1.00, so I got THREE boxes of lucky charms for $3.50

Total- on sale 2/$3.00, I had a coupon for .50 cents off of one, with Country Mart's double coupon I got two boxes of Total for $2.00, yeah that's right- ONE DOLLA a box :)

Pizza crust- not on sale but I got a coupon doubled so that it only cost me $1.60

Yo plus yogurt- double .50 coupon makes these only $1.58!

Progresso Soup- on sale .99 cents a piece, I had a buy 2/save .50 coupon which means that when it was doubled I got two cans of soup for .50 a piece!

Sorry I don't have anything scrappy to share today... but I'll be back with something soon! I'm sure it's fun for you all to see how "martha stewartish" I am anyways, a scrapper, crafter, gardener, and cooker :P

Menu Plan Monday

2009-01-26T15:41:00.001-08:00

Well - my plan for last week was foiled by me being sick! I have the worst sinus infection I've ever had, so my grocery budget has been spent on take out! Ya know- after cooking our dinner almost everynight for the last couple of weeks I almost don't want fast food anymore! I think it's a good thing- and I can't wait to start feeling better, I think I'll make it a point to start freezing some extra meals so we don't HAVE to go out to eat when Mama is sick! Anyways, here's the plan for this week:

Breakfasts:
Mini Lemon Poppyseed Muffins (I'm going to make an extra batch of these to freeze! The daycare kids love the mini muffins!)
Cereal
Turkey sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast burritos

Lunches:
Turkey Hot Dogs
Homemade Mac n Cheese
Chicken and Rice with mixed veggies
Bean Burritos w/ mexicorn
English Muffin Mini Pizzas
Leftovers

The Big D's:
Taco Salad w/ authentic mexican rice and homemade guacamole (didn't get made last week)
Ham and Beans (got some ham in the freezer)
Chicken and Broccoli Hot Pockets
Chicken Parmesan and Salad
Cheesy Black Bean Burgers (recipe from the current issue of Cooking Light Magazine)
Leftovers

Tonight we're having pizza because my head feels like one big balloon of pain, so that's it for this week :)

I am going to actually try to post a pic or two and recipes this week, we'll see if I can make it happen!

And because I can't leave you guys without something scrappy:

Lately I have been having a lot of ideas of pages or projects I want to scrap but I don't have time to do right away- so I knew I HAD to make somewhere to write down my ideas so they'd be "safe"! I used a notebook from the dollar store and dolled it up with some basic grey papers and ribbon from my stash.

Some Valentine's and other things!

2009-01-22T06:28:00.000-08:00

Yes, Valentine's Day is right around the corner! Do I have anyone to give these cards to? No not really, but I couldn't resist the adorable stamps and hearts and pink and red.... And yes, the tall skinny card has a square that fell when I was taking the picture- I didn't even realize it til I was editing photos! I have some neat ideas for the daycare kids for some Vday crafts- I think we are going to make valentine's for their parents and decorate some heart shaped cookies.

This is a teeny tiny little gift bag- it would be perfect for CANDY and a valentine ;)

This card is one of my favorites, I really like the dimension of all the embellies- and when you open it up there's a sucker inside!

And a few mini 3x3 cards, I love doing 3x3's because, well- they are short and sweet ;)

Menu Plan Monday

2009-01-19T10:46:00.000-08:00

First things first- something new to my blog! I have decided that I want my blog to be more about ME and not totally about my scrapbooking. Perhaps by sharing some of my other passions I will also hold myself more accountable to getting time for all of my projects squeezed in. Sooo... Something I've been doing for quite awhile now is menu planning. Being a stay at home mom and childcare provider means that I have to have a plan for what I'm going to cook- or it won't get done! Lately I have begun to plan my lunch and breakfast menus as well as dinner since I could have anywhere from 6-8 children eating breakfast and lunch here. Needless to say, I was more than excited when I found orgjunkie.com- a site where lots of freaks like me plan their menus and then share them! Many of these people are working with a budget to feed their family- just like me ;) Hey- the less $$$ spent on food the more money that can be spent on scrapbooking- or sewing or gardening! Anyways, I am planning to start sharing my menu plans and recipes when I can! Here's my road map for this week:

Monday: French Bread Pizza (I'm making homemade french bread!) and Salad
Tuesday: Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and green beans
Wednesday: Slow Cooker Chicken Terriyaki, rice, and chinese vegetables
Thursday: Leftover Buffet
Friday: Tacos and Authentic Mexican Rice, Homemade Guacamole
Saturday: Hot Dogs and homemade mac n cheese
Sunday: B: BLT Breakfast Bake (a Kraft Foods recipe but their website isn't working right now!)
D: Broccoli and Chicken Hot Pockets (made with homemade bread dough) and Salad

You didn't think I'd leave you without something scrappy did you?? Here's my newest layout of Katelynne. And yes, if you were wondering, I have not scrapped her "monthly" layouts since two months so I have some catching up to do between two and seven months lol! You can also find this layout on the Sketches! By Tamara blog this week :)

This layout is extra special to me as well because I used handmade Yo-Yo's from my grandma. She had started to make a yo-yo quilt years ago but her eyesight is not good enough to sew them anymore so she doesn't think she'll ever get that quilt finished. She brought me a little baggie of the yo-yo's thinking that I might be able to use them. I hope that maybe someday I can help her to finish the quilt. If you don't know what a yo yo quilt looks like clicky here!

They're all sick

2009-01-15T14:06:00.000-08:00

Ya know... having two kids has not ever really been a challenge for me, except when they're both really really sick! They both have bronchitis and for that matter- so do all of my daycare kids!! They all pretty much go to the same dr. and I think my entire daycare as been to see Dr. Han this week! Lucas has had fevers off and on to top it all off. Oh well, super moms like me don't need to sleep at night- didn't you know that?

In my absence a lot of things have happened- I've made new year's resolutions, gotten back on the weight loss/eat right bandwagon, started sewing a new quilt (and got a new sewing machine!) and on a more serious note my husband's grandma passed away. I have never felt like such a different person over such a small time before. I don't know when it happened but it has come to my attention that sometime over the last few years I have become the "shy girl" and I am determined to change that! I am definitely not the life of the party - I'm the one who planned the party and made (or attempted to make) every detail perfect, if ya know what I mean ;) Sooooo.... here's to getting out of the house more often and not being afraid to jump into a new situation or ask for help when I need it.

Ok Ok Ok I know you were probably not here to read all that- you wanted to know about my scrapbook pages! The above page was a miracle in the plain fact that I actually got decent photos of Lucas- it was made using the January Life Preserver's Kit. You'll be seeing this layout on the We Kit You Not blog this month too (YAY!).

The layout below was made using the January Addicted Scrappers kit! And yes, I am so obsessed with all the adorable girly paper that I dressed katelynne up in a valentine's outfit just to get a photo to match my paper. I'm a scrap dork, I'll admit it!

I've got more to share but I am officially WITHHOLDING those photos for another blog post, on another day, enjoy :)

A little reminiscing

2008-12-17T11:12:00.000-08:00

Today I was thinking about how I needed to do some scrapping, I haven't been up to my poor abandoned scrap room for over a week! Then I started to think about "what was I doing at this time last year? What did my projects look like?" SO ... I conveniently still have the photos on my computer!! At this time last year I was avidly selling premade things on Ebay, and making nothing for myself! I must say, the things are awefully cute, but they'd be cuter with pictures of my cuties on them ;)

I did, however, create ONE page for myself at this time last year, in fact I took photos of this page exactly one year ago from today:

So, I hope my reminiscing was at least a little bit inspiring to you ;) I'm hoping to bake some goodies tonight plus I got some pictures of Lucas playing in the snow before preschool today, so hopefully there will be some more recent artwork to share soon!

He's Makin' a List

2008-12-16T10:40:00.000-08:00

Here's my layouts I wanted to share today- I made them using the November Life Preserver's club kit, this paper line is adorable! These are photos from Thanksgiving two years ago.

But- what I wanted to write about today has absolutely nothing to do with my layouts I wanted to share today :)

Today it seems like everything is hitting me- my family Christmas dinner that I am hosting at my house is five days away, Christmas is next week, and soon it's all going to be over! This time of year everyone is busy with many different things, everyone knows that, but today I've just been feeling a bit smothered by everything I haven't gotten done and the realization of the things I am NOT going to get done. I'm just a little bit OCD when it comes to keeping organized and keeping my house clean, so this really bothers me! I have grocery lists for my sunday dinner and all the things I am making for other family dinners, lists of presents I've bought, lists of presents TO buy, lists of things around the house I wanted to get done, lists of chores & errands that have been put on hold. Right now I'm thinking "I wish I was Santa, at least he only has to make ONE list!"

Right here, right now I am going to make one more list. This one is a stress free happy list- it's all the things I have accomplished this holiday season, there's no point in stressing over what needs to be done or isn't going to get done. So here goes!

1. Our Christmas tree is up and decorated, and we put up lights outside our house too!

2. I have bought all the supplies for the handmade gifts I am making

3. I have already planned and bought supplies for some pretty cool Christmas crafts for the daycare kids to make

4. I have planned what we are all going to wear on Christmas (it was quite a task finding the perfect Christmas dress for Katelynne's first Christmas!)

5. I have planned what I'll be cooking for my family this Sunday.

6. I scrapbooked some great photos from past Christmases and shared them here!

7. I've got everything ready to wrap presents

Here's to looking on the bright side!- I challenge you to do the same, if you're Christmas to do's are weighing you down just take a moment to be in the here and now and cherish your accomplishments and your family!

Tough

2008-12-14T19:24:00.000-08:00

Today's layout I wanted to share is about Lucas' recent surgery. I remember writing about how much I loved the picture on the bottom of this page, it's one of those that really is worth a thousand words. Just by looking at it it reminds me of what I was feeling that day in that moment and how Lucas was after coming out of surgery. I can even remember the smell of the hospital. I created this page for a guest designer position at Backporch Memories, but it really became one of my favorite layouts that tells a special story. My journaling is really meaningful to me and I felt like I really wrote what I wanted to say and something that will be meaningful to Lucas too.

Today I am feeling anxious because tomorrow I will get to find out if I have been chosen for a few guest design team/ design team positions that I have applied for!

But on a happy note- I have been invited to join the We Kit U Not blog as a full time design team member! I really really like the idea behind this blog- inspiring scrappers to USE their monthly kits they have purchased! I think monthly kits are so much fun- getting a box of fully coordinated scrap goodness in the mail along with a website that has lots of ideas of what to do with it- and lots of ladies to chat with too! Well- at Kit U Not they have several of the most popular kit of the month clubs all TOGETHER making it even easier to get some great inspiration. I am going to be representing the Life Preserver's Kit Club, which I have been purchasing monthly kits from for over a year now. The layout I shared here today was in fact made from their November kit. Anyways- to end this long bit of rambling, you will see my work starting in January on the We Kit U Not blog :)

One more tidbit- I got some great photos at the Christmas Train- I'll definitely be making some layouts to share!

December Addicted Scrappers Kit Creations

2008-12-11T08:14:00.000-08:00

This month I worked with the Good Cheer kit from Addicted Scrappers and I couldn't have been happier! Plus there was a surprise of some yummy chocolate in my box... there's nothing more motivating than that LOL!

Ok so I got the photos taken and the projects done... and I simply adore the layouts I created with this kit!! I have them all hanging up on the refrigerator so I can admire them before they get put away in the scrapbook!

This layout was based on the pagemaps sketch contest for this month:

and this layout was created for this week's Sketches! {By Tamara} Blog:

This one was also based on a pagemaps sketch, I really like the foam Christmas trees as a border for the page and I was excited at how well the journaling spot "fit" on this page!And this little bag is my project of the month, get the instructions for it at the Addicted Scrapper's blog!

Sooooooooo..... .... there should be another project from this kit coming soon- when I get some scrappin time! Last night I had to veg out in front of the TV to watch some CSI, House, SVU, and Life! My DVR was gettin too full! And tonight we are taking Lucas to ride on the Christmas Train at Dry Gulch, Ok with my mother and father in law- it should be fun and there should be some GREAT holiday pics to scrap with more of my Good Cheer kit!!

More Baby Belly Pics

2008-12-09T18:01:00.000-08:00

Soooo.... I'm late in getting my December Addicted Scrappers projects posted- still need pics of two things! I wanted to give you all something new to read here there so I am going to share more BELLY PICS from Carrie!! Her baby belly is now a thing of the past as we welcomed Aubrey into the world on December 1st! She weighed a whopping 5 lbs and 15 oz! Holding her reminded me of a sweet little baby Lucas- he was 5lb 9oz when he was born and even smaller after all his first two surgeries he had early on.

Anyways- here's the pics of Carrie's beautiful belly!

Sorry- no pics of the baby yet (I know it's hard to believe!) but you can bet they'll be coming soon! We are planning to take that pretty pink ribbon that was around Carrie's belly and tie it around the baby for some of the pics. I really can't wait and can't believe I didn't take any pics of katelynne posed when she was newborn! Oh well- maybe with the next baby right?! ;)

This Week at Sketches! {by Tamara}

2008-12-06T18:04:00.001-08:00

This week was Tamara's first ever 6x12 sketch, and in making it, it became the first page to go in my 6x12 album! I am scrappin away at these two year old pictures- they were SO GOOD but I still hadn't gotten them scrapped, I'm glad that's changing!

And by the way- this page was also made using the contents of my December Addicted Scrappers kit! I'll show you the rest of my creations with this kit tomorrow :)

Today I went on a big shopping trip, my mom and both kids in tow, I am tired to say the least! Lucas was doing everything he could to be as annoying as possible, I promise you would not have wanted to be with us at Wal-Mart tonight! I am excited though because I bought a mini pine tree at wal-mart and got some adorable pink mini decorations at Hobby Lobby- I cannot wait to decorate my own little pink tree! I'll share pics as soon as I'm done :) Right now I am off to gather the energy to decorate our BIG Christmas tree!