Bilaterally Speaking

CHA: Day 3

2009-02-02T19:57:00.018-05:00

I apologize for not posting yesterday...busy day at my daughters' cheer competition.

Today I will describe for you my final day at CHA, and what a busy day it was!

Kathy and I started off the day taking some portraits of each other, photoholics (and big hams) that we are!

This one is reminiscent of the poses that my tween-aged daughters like to strike! How cool am I?! Hehehe

I had to make sure that I got some parting photos with my fellow design team members:

Kathy Morgan, Jenny Stockard, and me:

Scrapbook Deals 4 U owner, Martha Galvez, and me:

Kathy, me, and Nicole Capote:

We headed off to Provo Craft to do one of their fabulous make and takes. Each day they taught something spectacular. On this day, we made a wonderful Americana wall-hanging. I just love it!

Chatterbox had a wonderful booth, full of new products and inspiration.

Look at this homemade brad making tool. Simply place thumbnail photos into decorative frames to make your own brads...how cool is that?

I LOVED this layout...so pretty!

What a super fun mini-album made out of denim! Another must-have in my book!

Fancy Pants is coming out with a colorful beach-inspired line of paper:

A fabulous Fancy Pants mini album made from chipboard, felt, and transparent sheets:

Of course American Craft is coming out with new Thickers...just love these fun fonts!

Pebbles debuted a super cute paper line called "So Tweet":

I was told that it wouldn't be a CHA without hitting the chocolate fountain at Rusty Pickle!

Here are a couple of paper lines that I really enjoyed out of the company called gcd:

Next we stopped at the Ranger booth. It was decorated with little houses personalized by well-known scrappers. Here were a couple of my favorites:

One of the highlights of the show was when I got to do a make and take taught by, none other, than Tim Holtz! I sat right across from him!!!

The Clear Scraps booth was filled with lots of inspiration. Here are a couple of my favorite pieces:

I'm proud to say that I know Sally Lynn MacDonald, who debuted a new line of hybrid albums for Clear Scraps:

Sally Lynn and me:

And that concludes details of my experience at the 2009 Winter CHA.

Later that night, Kathy and Linda took me to Huntington Beach. We had such a great time! We walked along the pier to get to a wonderful restaurant called Ruby's Surf Side Diner. They had the best burgers and shakes! It was a beautiful night, a little chilly, but with such a refreshing breeze. Afterwards, we visited a street fair. Here are some scenes from our evening together:

I want to thank everyone who made my CHA experience so memorable and pleasurable. I'll always cherish these memories. A special heartfelt thank you to Kathy and Linda for being so accomodating and such great friends. Love you all.

My LONG road home!!!

All times are in EST:

8 am - Woke up so Kathy could drive me to the airport. Poor thing, it was 5 am PST!
9:45 am - Fly from Santa Ana to Minneapolis
12 pm - Arrive in Minneapolis
12:30 pm - Board plane in Minneapolis to Hartford
12:45 pm - Pilot informs us that Hartford is closed...disembarked plane
5 pm - Fly from Minneapolis to Detroit
7:30 pm - Arrive in Detroit
9 pm - Fly from Detroit to Hartford
11 pm - Arrive in Hartford
12:30 am - Arrive home, after hour drive in ice and snow!

Needless to say, I slept all of the next day!!! ;)

CHA: Day 2

2009-01-31T18:43:00.017-05:00

Kathy and I started off Day 2 with another yummy breakfast at Mimi's Cafe (See Day 1 post). Stayce picked us up and we were off to another day of fun. I was out in Anaheim 10 years ago and WOW the Convention Center has changed! They were just starting to build the current fancier glass structure. Here it is today:

Each day we entered and exited the convention near the Creative Imaginations booth. I just had to get a photo with Cheryl Mezzetti! She's so sweet!

I just had to start off the day by doing the Tim Holtz Grungeboard luggage tag make and take. I haven't photographed it to show you yet, but I did take pictures of some very cool product and designs that I found in his booth.

I love these new masks:

Isn't this design amazing?!!

Just look at the dimension in this layout!

The man, himself, standing by some of his new releases. I've got to get some of these new metal embellishments!

Kathy and I got to meet and chat with Heidi Swapp:

Jenni Bowlin had some super cute things in her booth:

I just love her BINGO cards!

Some cute new embellishments:

I thought this was such a sweet project:

Jenni Bowlin, me, and Donna Downey:

Some really cute paper from Pinecone Press:

I just love this new vintage Sassafrass Lass line:

Cosmo Cricket's Everafter line is soooo pretty:

Some new pretty things coming out from Tattered Angels:

Just look at these gorgeous albums!

Stayce and Kathy won Slices, as well!!! How lucky is that? The three of us! Although, truth be told, I think they would have been just as happy with the M&Ms!!! Love you, girlies! ;)

Some of the potential cartridges I will have to get for my new Slice:

We finished off the evening with a wonderful meal at Joe's Crab Shack.

I just love my new sweatshirt...just a little something for me to wear when I'm copping a 'tude, hehehe:

Linda...she looks so regal here! Love this picture!

Stayce and Kathy, posing by some of the other funny shirts:

I love this shot of Linda, Stayce, me, and Kathy!

I hope you enjoyed my recap of Day 2, as much as I enjoyed sharing it! <3

CHA: Day 1

2009-01-30T19:32:00.023-05:00

As promised, here is a recap of Day 1 of CHA. Mind you, this was my very first CHA, so I was really excited and not quite sure of what to expect.

Each busy day should start off with a good breakfast. Kathy, Linda, and I went to this awesome place called Mimi's. What an incredible breakfast we had. I liked it so much, we went back the next day! Just look at these super cute sisters!

When I got to the Anaheim Convention Center, I was able to see Disneyland, as it is just a mile away!

We were greeted by Martha Galvez, owner of Scrapbook Deals 4 U, and Jenny Stockard, fellow design team member:

Our first stop was at Theresa Collins' booth where they had such super make and takes! Just check out these fabulous new lines coming out from her:

I am such a fan of her clean and elegant style!

I was super happy to have my picture taken with Theresa Collins!

Attendees do anything to try to win things, like a Making Memories Slice die-cutting system. If you wear one of their aprons and get your picture taken by them, you have a chance at winning one. Just check out this get-up:

Stayce, Kathy, and I were CRACKING up at our friend, Linda. She wore her apron backward and adopted the persona of Super Slice!!! She would throw her arms above her head and pretend to glide along the air with her apron. She is just the funniest!!! Love her!

I can't tell you how excited I was to have my picture taken with the talented Tim Holtz. I am such a fan of his products ...they truly bring out my inner artist

Our next stop was to the Basic Grey booth, where they are debuting four fabulous collections. Here are two of them...hint: they will be coming to SD4U in the coming months. Introducing,

Marrakech

and Lime Rickey

And just look at all of this new bling!!!

The super-talented Kelly Goree taught a make and take:

I love this new line by Cloud9Designs, called Bay Blossoms:

Here's one of Pink Paislee's new lines...love the colors!

Bo Bunny came out with some super cute lines. Two of my favorites are Abbey Road and Alissa:

I have saved, what I consider, the best for last. If I was forced to pick only ONE manufacturer to design with, it would definitely be Prima! I LOVE their products! Check out all of the following Prima goodness coming out this season:

This canvas book is to die for! It comes with both canvas and transparent pages. I so have to have one of these!!!

How pretty are these papers?!

This paper is embroidered...Love this layout!

Some unique and gorgeous flowers:

Aren't these album ring covers so clever?

Prima wouldn't be Prima without their famous flowers:

I was thrilled to be able to see Sharon Laakkonen to tell her just how much I admire Prima products:

Remember how I said that people will dress silly to try to win something, like a Making Memories Slice? Well sometimes it pays off!!! I guess it helped that I tied the Making Memories ribbon around my head like an 80's Madonna! My picture made the wall and I was declared a winner! I and my girls are so excited about our new toy!!!

Our evening ended wonderfully with a dinner at Outback with Kathy and Linda. I just had to get a shot of these beautifully decorated palm trees...something we DON'T see in Connecticut!

Thank you for letting me share my fun experiences with you. Stay tuned for Days 2 and 3 over the weekend. :)

CHA: Day 1...the road there

2009-01-29T19:36:00.011-05:00

Hey, everyone, I am back from CHA Winter 2009. What a tremendous experience it was! I am so glad that I went and there is so much to share with you all.

I figured I would break it down into 4 parts: the road there, Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3. So here we go...

Saturday I woke up bright and early and drove myself to Hartford to catch my 7:55 am flight. Everything went smoothly and I landed in Minneapolis for a 2-hr layover. So I'm sitting there, eating my lunch, and I kept staring at this woman. She looked so familiar. I felt really bad staring, but then it dawned on me that it looked a whole lot like Nicole Harper from Pink Paislee and Studio Calico. So I finally got the nerve to go up to her and ask. At first I think she thought I was a stalker, LOL! But it was indeed Nicole!

Nicole was so sweet and personable. It was great to pass the layover time with her. Of all places to meet...in the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport!

After a smooth flight, I arrived in Orange County 12 hours after I left home. I was so excited because my friend, Linda Rankin, was going to pick me up at the airport. I could hardly wait! So I called her and found out that she was at the bottom of the escalator in Baggage Claim. As I got to the edge of the stairs, I saw her. I was waving madly, but she was looking at the escalator and not the stairs, so she didn't see me!!! She was as nice as can be and I felt like I had always known her. We have known each other for 1.5 years online.

So went went back to her hotel and her sister, Kathy Morgan, shortly arrived! I felt the same way about Kathy...like we had always known each other. We both design for the same online kit club, Scrapbook Deals 4 U, and we have known each other from a previous website.

Then it was off to a Creative Imaginations pre-show party. Creative Imaginations is debuting a Star Wars line of paper, so they had a Star Wars themed party...how fun that was! There were Star Wars characters walking all around...it was wild! Wonderful make and takes and super food. Couldn't ask for anything better! There I got to meet my friends, Stayce DeWid, Nicole Capote (fellow SD4U designer) and Alice Carmen. I also met the incredibly talented Cheryl Mezzetti. Here are some pictures from my wonderful experience at this CI party:

Linda and me. I just love Linda...she is always smiling, always bubbly...just a great person all around.

Linda, me, Kathy, Nicole, and Alice. So nice to get us all in one picture. We had such a great time!

Super friends Nicole and Alice. Aren't they cute?!

Cheryl Mezzetti. What a sweet, funny, and talented woman she is! Her Massachusetts accent made me feel like I was home...my fellow East Coaster!

Stayce and me. She is such a sweetie...we had so much fun together!

And now for the Star Wars characters I told you about!

Storm Troopers were everywhere!!! I think they had a really good time!

Kathy's son, Jeremy, LOVES Star Wars so she posed with all of the characters!

Too funny! I didn't tell him that I'm likely to be one of the last people on the planet never to have seen any of the SW movies!!!

Me, Kathy, Linda, and Nicole flanked by Storm Troopers

Check out this super cool product from Creative Imaginations. It's a scrapbook that you hang on the wall. The pages are held together by magnets and you can go up to the wall and flip through the book. What a great way to show off your work!

After the party, Linda, Kathy and I went back to the hotel and hammed it up for the camera:

And now for the funniest picture! Linda and I are both Chemistry geeks. There aren't too many scrapping chemists out there, so we nerds have to stick together! I brought my safety glasses and a pair for Linda and we put on our best contemplative chemist looks. Here's out it turned out:

Too funny, eh?!!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's installment, as I take you through Day 1 of CHA. :)

The New Year is nearly here!!!

2008-12-16T06:54:00.001-05:00

Are you all starting to think of some New Year's resolutions yet? I typically don't make a big list or anything, but I do have a couple of things that I really want to accomplish.

First off, I want to resurrect my blog. I have been so remiss with it over the past several months...it's time to breathe new life into it! So stay tuned for better things from me. :)

I think it's time to bring back the Picture of the Day. I've missed doing that. My favorite type of things to scrap are everyday life...random things that make me and my loved ones tick. So I am excited to bring that back.

What are your resolutions?

December Scrapbook Deals 4 U kit!!!

2008-11-29T20:27:00.005-05:00

Check out what I have been creating from one of the beautiful December kits from Scrapbook Deals 4U! This kit features the gorgeous "Prudence" line from Crate Paper. You are going to want one of these kits!!!

Also check out the Mega Christmas kit at Scrapbook Deals 4U! This kit features beautiful Christmas papers from 3 different lines and so much more!

Order your kits soon, Ladies!

Layouts from the awesome SD4U November kits!!!

2008-11-08T21:51:00.004-05:00

This month I was so privileged to be able to design with BOTH November kits from Scrapbook Deals 4U!!!

The first kit features the sweet and whimsical "Nonsense" line by We Are Memory Keepers (WRMK). I've already made 5 layouts from the kit and there's enough left to make 5 more!!! Check out what I've done so far...

The second November kit features the best of 2 Basic Grey lines: "Ambrosia" and "Granola". They compliment each other perfectly. Again, I have so much kit left despite making 5 layouts already! Here's what I've done so far...

So go to SD4U now and get these kits!!! You will LOVE them!!!

Check out this FANTASTIC October kit by Scrapbook Deals 4 U / GREAT OFFER!!!

2008-10-02T02:00:00.007-04:00

Here's a peek at the layouts I created using the gorgeous October kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U, featuring October Afternoon's "Hometown" line:

Not only can this wonderful kit be yours, but if you order one, you will get a free mini-kit with your order! Just mention in the Comments section that you saw this offer in my blog.

Scrapbook Deals 4 U is also offering a super cute Halloween kit! The same offer applies with this kit. Check out what it includes:

September Kit Creations for Scrapbook Deals 4U

2008-08-21T19:21:00.006-04:00

I am having a blast working with this lovely September kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U featuring My Little Yellow Bicycle's "Vita Bella".

Here's what I've made so far:

Kits go on sale tomorrow, so get it while you can! Also check out the other wonderful September kit featuring My Little Yellow Bicycle's "Zach's Life".

American Idol in Concert / Company Picnic Fun

2008-08-09T21:23:00.010-04:00

Last night we got to see the top 10 2008 American Idols perform in Hartford. What a great concert! Here are the top 10:

Chikezie:

Ramiele:

Kristy Lee Cook:

Carly Smithson...super!

Brooke White:

Michael Johns...he was AWESOME!!!

Jason Castro:

Syesha Mercado:

David Archuleta...sounded great!

David Cook...blew EVERYONE away!!!

Today I went to my company picnic and we all had a really good time!

Alex and I tried the bungee out. Alex, of course is fearless and awesome at it!!!

I, on the other hand, was really scared!!! I had such high hopes of flipping around, but once I got up there, the height scared me! I did do a flip, but Tom didn't get it on film.

We played some BINGO and I won twice (prizes for each girl)

The girls had fun at the pool. Here's daredevil Alex doing flips off the board. If she wasn't so busy with cheer and soccer, I'd love to get her into diving!

Samantha doing a nice split jump:

Just look at the extension that Alex gets on her split!

So far, it's been a great weekend! Thanks for looking! :)

Some Layouts I've Made Using the Awesome SD4U August Kit!!!

2008-07-27T09:16:00.003-04:00

I'm having so much fun creating layouts with the super summery August kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U. The Grafton line from Scenic Route is just perfect for scrapping your summer memories. Here's what I've done so far:

Some close-ups of my 2-pager:

Buy your August kit here and start scrapping those super fun summer times you've been having!!!

I'm baaaaack!!!

2008-07-16T09:16:00.010-04:00

Hi all...I'm back on American soil after traveling 3 weeks in Europe. In some respects, I feel like I've been gone two months. Yet I still feel like I could have lasted longer there, it was just so beautiful. I'd like to share some photos with you all. I've chosen one photo per day that I was gone. I hope you enjoy them.

Day 1 - Doris and I in eager anticipation of our trip as we take our Red Eye transatlantic flight. So many possibilities ahead of us.

Day 2 - I was immediately struck by the European architecture and the fact that Europe is so much older than the United States. Here a Union Jack flies over a beautiful building.

Day 3 - It was so impressive to see the Big Ben and Parliament building in person. Did you know that the Big Ben is not the clock itself, but rather the bell inside of the clock? I hadn't known that.

Day 4 - Just look at this gorgeous sunset in Holland! On this day, we traveled through 4 different countries: England, France, Belgium, and Holland.

Day 5 - This is a windmill in Holland that has been the inspiration for some of Rembrandt's paintings. It was truly a beautiful sight to see in person.

Day 6 - This is a picture of a schloss (castle) in Heidelberg, built centuries ago. My friend Silvia picked us up at our hotel and brought us to Heidelberg to tour for a few hours. It was so wonderful to see her. Thank you, Silvia.

Day 7 - We stayed in a quaint little Swiss village called Fluelen. The scenery was out of this world. Some of the prettiest I have seen.

Day 8 - A beautiful shot of Lake Lucerne. Doris and I sat outside by the lake one evening after dinner and it was just so peaceful.

Day 9 - A gorgeous shot of Venice here. To the right is Doge's Palace (Palazzo Ducale di Venezia). To the left is the famous San Marco Bell Tower.

Day 10 - I shot this beautiful view of the Bridge of Sighs from a gondola in Venice. What an amazing experience!

Day 11 - I had never seen Trevi Fountain in pictures before, so I had no idea how gorgeous it would be in person. This was one of my favorite sights to see. I threw three coins with my right hand over my left shoulder into the fountain. One for life; one for love; and one to return to Rome again.

Day 12 - The Colosseum in all of its majesty. I had no idea that it was sitting right in the middle of the city! I thought it would be more remote.

Day 13 - Vatican Square. What a treat to see in person. So surreal.

Day 14 - The beautiful Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence, Italy.

Day 15 - A beautiful shot of the Prince's Palace of Monaco at night.

Day 16 - We got to visit a lovely village in the south of France called St. Paul de Vence. It was built on a hilltop and had such lovely views all around it.

Day 17 - The famous Pont d'Avignon, a bridge that was never finished and just stops in the middle of the Rhone River.

Day 18 - A wonderful shot of the Moulon Rouge (Red Windmill) in Paris, France.

Day 19 - The Tour Eiffel, probably the sight I wanted to see the most in Europe (you can tell from my Meez persona on my blog!). Truly magnificent and what gorgeous sky surrounding it on this day.

Day 20 - The saddest day of this trip, when we bid 'adieu' to mainland Europe and headed back to England via the Calais/Dover ferry.

Day 21 - Doris and I have come full circle. This parting shot was taken at Heathrow International Airport in London. Back to reality for us!

I can't begin to express just how priveleged we were to have seen all that we saw over in Europe. To walk those hallowed grounds, to touch the stones and marble. This has been a life-altering experience for me and I am truly blessed. I'm already trying to figure out when I can go back!

If anyone is looking to partake in such an experience, check out this Cosmos website. It's a great and affordable way to see the world and leave the driving and other travel details up to someone else, not to mention door to door service to all of the sights.

I hope you all had a wonderful past three weeks and I look forward to catching up with you all.

Off to Take the Trip of my Life!!!

2008-06-24T07:04:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow Doris and I leave for Europe on a three week vacation. London, Amsterdam, Heidelberg, Lucerne, Venice, Rome, Florence, Nice, Lyon, and Paris.

We're just thrilled!!!

I shall have plenty of photos to share when we return.

I hope you all have a great three weeks and I'll catch up with you all later.

xoxo

Introducing the July kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U!

2008-06-22T08:03:00.005-04:00

I had a BLAST creating pieces from the super pretty July kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U!!! This beautiful kit is packed with goodies from the beautiful "Delightful" collection by My Little Yellow Bicyle. Here is what I came up with:

Scrapbook Deals 4U June kit / My Scrapbook Nook scrapoff

2008-06-09T07:17:00.006-04:00

Scrapbook Deals 4U June kit

I want to share with you the projects that I made with the FABULOUS June kit from Scrapbook Deals 4U! This kit featured the beautiful Urban Cosmos line from Prima Marketing.

Here's what I came up with:

This gorgeous kit includes:

6 beautiful sheets of Urban Cosmos paper by Prima
5 coordinating sheets of Bazzill cardstock
1 package of Prima cream felt alphabet stickers
1 roll of Urban Cosmos tape (so much fun to play with!)
5 Urban Cosmos journaling cards
7 pieces of Maya Road and Basic Grey raw chipboard shapes
2 Prima clear stamps
1 Maya Road calendar turn
2 7 Gypsies Pretoria clip
2 yards of decorative trim
1 large Daisy D's rubon
Assorted buttons

All for the low price of $23.95!

To purchase this beautiful kit, please look HERE.

My Scrapbook Nook scrapoff

I have been having so much fun participating in the Scrapoff over at My Scrapbook Nook!

Here are some of the projects I've been making for the contest:

A white-space challenge:

A monochromatic challenge:

A card challenge:

A numbers challenge (use 1 of something, 2 of something...through 10 of something):

A scrap your week challenge. I scrapped preparations leading up to my trip to Europe:

Thank you for looking! :)

Scrapbook Deals 4U - Exciting News!!!

2008-05-18T19:52:00.003-04:00

I just won a spot on the amazing Scrapbook Deals 4U Design Team!

You don't know how thrilled I am to be part of such a great team of women! Martha, Stayce, Nicole, and Kristi are all designers there and Kathy, Cheryl, and I were fortunate enough to place high enough in a 5-week competition that allowed us to join the team!

Here's a sneak peek of Scrapbook Deals 4U's wonderful June kit, filled with such elegant and beautiful papers, perfect for any occasion:

Thank you so much, Scrapbook Deals 4U! I look so much forward to serving with you all!!!

Exciting News!!!

2008-04-30T19:43:00.002-04:00

I am SOOOO excited!!! I was named the May Guest DT member for a VERY COOL site, ScrapWords! I love the whole concept of their site. Instead of galleries, they have blogs. Members present their artwork in their own personal blog. By doing this, they are able to elaborate on the creative thought process that went into their designs. ScrapWords emphasizes journaling, which is an important component of scrapbooking that I don't always take time on. I'm so excited to be working with the talented bunch over there...what an honor!!! I'm really going to learn a lot there.

Scenes from the 2008 World Cheerleading Competition

2008-04-30T18:37:00.005-04:00

We all had an AMAZING experience at Worlds. We're already looking forward to going next year! I'd like to share some scenes from our trip with you:

The girls, as they arrived at the Orlando International airport.

Celebrity Hall, the place they set up at the All Star Sports resort for all cheerleaders to check in. We have NEVER seen so many cheerleaders in one spot before!!!

The resort had SUCH a cool pool...the biggest I've seen at a resort.

I just loved this shot of the large star against the beautiful Floridian weather.

The buildings were fun to look at!!!

My girlies just before we headed to Epcot the first night.

The team (most of it) posing at Epcot.

A little blurry, but the big sphere at night was so pretty to look at.

Some of the girls, as we were touring the countries at Epcot.

The team practicing at out hotel just before leaving for the competition.

Alex and her team walking up to the Milk House (at the Wide World of Sports Center), where they competed.

The most exciting stage they have ever competed on!!!

Alex playing up to the crowd!!!

The end of the routine. Alex is the one in the air.

We had an amazing team dinner that night. A picture of our personalized menus. We had our own banquet room and the food was incredible!!!

Team picture at the Magic Kingdom

By this time, I left Alex with her teammates while Samantha and I spent some quality time together.

MGM Studios. We saw an awesome car stunt show there.

Leaving our hotel the next day.

The resort may have been more economy than other Disney resorts, but we loved it!!! So much to do there and nice comfortable rooms and good food.

Samantha putting on her saddest face on the plane ride home. All she is missing is a big tear running down her cheek!!!

Alex's sad face is pretty convincing, as well!

I had such a great time with the girls!!!

Thank you for looking at my pictures! I am so happy to share my fun moments with you. What a great trip!!!

Updates...it's been a long time!!!

2008-04-29T02:15:00.004-04:00

We're back from Worlds! We had such a good time!!! Alex's team executed a great clean performance. They came in 40th out of 57 teams in their division...which is excellent, considering the caliber of talent we were up against. We couldn't be happier! As I've said before, our gym has only been around 2 years...no other team at the Worlds is newer than our team.

Stay tuned for some scenes from Worlds, as I post some pictures tonight!!!

Speaking of pictures, I'm sorry to say that my life has gotten so crazy busy that I've decided not to continue with Picture of the Day. Yes, it saddens me and I wish that I could have continued it for the year, but at least I did it for 3 months!!! I'll still post plenty of photos from exciting events and other random occurances. :)

Exciting things have been happening!!!

2008-04-12T09:03:00.006-04:00

Hi all,

I've been horrible about updating lately...I know. I've just been so crazy busy...not much time for anything! I am very late on posting my Week 14 pictures. I have decided to post Weeks 14 and 15 together this coming Monday, so you will see 14 pictures at that time. Stay tuned.

I wanted to share some exciting news with you all.

1. I won the $1000 Grand Prize in the 2007-2008 "Heart of Winter - Serendipity" contest by Close To My Heart!!! I created a layout, using their beautiful Serendipity kit and it was selected as the first place winner! I am over the moon about this and now have the very pleasurable task of selecting $1000 worth of CTMH goodies out of their catalog!!!

Here are some pictures of my layout:

2. Alex is going to the 2008 USASF World Cheerleading competition!!!
Alex went to VA last weekend to compete in a cheer competition, where bids to the World competition were handed out to the top two teams.

Now I didn't go and see the performances for myself, but apparently they did awesome and stuck every single stunt and tumbling pass. All of the other teams were telling them how awesome they were and were amazed at the level of difficultly of their routine. So they were all stunned when they came in 5th out of five teams!!! Very disappointed, but chalked it all up them being a new and obscure gym. Cheer can be very subjective.

Fast forward to this morning, when I get an e-mail saying that a math error had been made...Alex's team came in 2nd!!! They are now going to Worlds in 2.5 weeks!!! They are held in Orlando, FL! There will be 300+ Level 5 teams from all over the world (22 countries, I think). Now Nationals are held everywhere and really don't mean too much. But there is only ONE World Competition and it is by invitation only!

Very, very exciting and such a wonderful opportunity for my 12 year old!!! I'm so proud of her and her team.

I promise to show you Weeks 14 and 15 on Monday!!! :)

Week 13 - Picture a Day

2008-03-31T20:32:00.008-04:00

Today is the last day of the first quarter of the year...YIKES!!! The good news is that spring is coming! That puts a smile on my face. I can't wait to take photographs of more scenic things. Taking photos of beauty in the wintertime can be challenging, for sure.

Here is what I photographed during Week 13:

March 25: Me and my little buddy, my friend's son. :)

March 26: Samantha pondering why they put the "Q" in Q-tips!!!

March 27: Hmmmm, so glad to get my hands on these babies...Prima "Say it in Crystals"!!! I have been CRAVING these!!!

March 28: What I've been reading lately.

March 29: My little skater girl, Alex. Her first time on an indoor course and, boy, did she do well!!! Is there any sport she can't do? I think not.

March 30: Samantha nursing a slightly twisted ankle. She's doing much better today. That darn soccer practice!

March 31: Some scrappy goodness came in the mail today, in the form of March's Label Tulip kit. One of their best kits EVER!!! I can't wait to play with it this weekend!

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!!! Happy April!

Techniques II class and Weekend Retreat at Express Yourself

2008-03-29T19:23:00.012-04:00

The Techniques I class at Express Yourself went very well...I even taught a second class for those who missed the first class. I've now developed a Techniques II class that will be taught on Tuesday, April 22, from 7 to 9 pm. Here are the things that I will be teaching in this Intermediate Level installment of my technique series:

Students will learn how to do the following techniques:

-- Using buttons to create frames, flowers and chipboard embellihments
-- More fun ways to alter chipboard
-- Ways to alter Grungeboard
-- Four different creative ways show off journaling
-- Fun ways to use eyelets
-- Some beginning doodling techniques
-- Ways to create fun edges

Students will add these technique pages to the book they created during the Techniques I class. New students will create a new book. These books will be used to take home and consult as students are becoming comfortable with these techniques.

Students are asked to bring adhesive and a Crop-a-dile, if they have one to class.

So if you're in the area and are interested, give Amy Bender a call at the above link. Thanks for looking! :)

Announcing Express Yourself's very first In-Store Weekend Retreat!!!

Dates-

~ April 4th, 5th, and 6th, 2008

Times-

~ Friday, April 4th: 6:00pm to Midnight

~ Saturday, April 5th: 8:00am to Midnight

~ Sunday, April 6th: 8:00am to 8:00pm

The Details-

~ Come and join us for a fun filled weekend of scrapping and cropping!

~ Enjoy the ability of leaving your workspace set up and ready for you to come back to each day! No packing up your supplies at night.

~ All sorts of meals, drinks, and snacks will be provided for you!

~ Fun classes and make and takes will be offered.

The Classes, etc.-
~ Chris Dodaj will be teaching an AWESOME mini-album class on Friday night from 7pm to 9pm. There will be an additional $20 fee for her class for all Retreaters.
~ Amy will be doing demos of Glimmer Mist throughout the weekend. Various techniques will be shown.
~ A presentation on Preserve-it-Frames will happen on Saturday afternoon.
~ Make and takes will be offered throughout the weekend.

The Fine Print-

~ The entire Retreat weekend fee will be $175, Chris Dodaj's class is an additional $20.

~ Fee can be pro-rated for those who can not attend the entire time.

~ The store will be locked up between the hours of midnight and 8:00am.

~ A $50.00 deposit will be required in advance to reserve your spot at the retreat.

I hope that you can come and enjoy this fabulous retreat weekend!!!

*** Please call and reserve your space today!

Reservations and deposits are necessary for Scrap and Class Events.

Week 12 - Picture of the Day

2008-03-24T16:41:00.012-04:00

Hey, I'm on time this week...woohoo!!! So the year is nearly 1/3 over. Can you believe that? I sure can't! I hope you all had a very pleasant Easter. Our family enjoyed a quiet holiday and the weather was beautiful!

Here are my pictures from Week 12:

March 18 - A scene from the very first class I taught at my LSS, Express Yourself . It went very well. My students and I had a lot of fun. And they want to come back to my next class. :)

March 19 - The Samster (our nickname for Samantha, hehehe) sporting her Bo Bunny scrapping apron! She's so cute!

March 20 - Samantha is altering a Maya Road butterfly album with some new American Crafts papers. Here is the beginnings of one page.

March 21 - One of thirteen ATCs I made for a swap over at 2Croppin'Cousinz . My theme was to highlight doodling as a technique.

March 22 - My second home!!!

March 23 - Happy Easter! The girls sitting with their Easter baskets. I made them the name tags.

March 24 - This morning, as I looked outside, I saw the moon through the trees and thought it was soooo pretty...I just had to snap a picture of it!

I hope you all have a great week and enjoy the warmer weather. Here's hoping we start seeing some hints of Spring around here soon!!!

Week 11 pictures / Iron Chef contest runner up / Alex is 12 now!!!

2008-03-19T09:28:00.035-04:00

Boy, this is late...I apologize. It's been a busy week between cheer competitions, celebrating Alex's birthday, and preparing for my first ever class that I taught at Express Yourself last night (which went great!).

So here are my pictures from Week 11 and what a fun week it was!

March 11 - I think Alex looks soooo cute in her reading glasses!

March 12 - Samantha sporting the sweet apron she made in home economics class. :)

March 13 - Samantha and McDreamy, LOL!!!

March 14 - Alex is hanging upside down on a velcro wall! The suit is made out of velcro and Alex was the envy of the place with her ability to tumble herself up the wall upside down!!! I guess the tumbling experience is paying off! ;)

Marh 15 - My birthday girl!!! <333 I can't believe that Alex is 12 already!

March 16 - We took Alex out to a local Japanese restaurant with my dad, stepmother, and grandmother. The girls are pictured with my dad and stepmother. We had a great time and ALWAYS enjoy the food there!

March 17 - Alex upside down again; practicing her double full.

Iron Chef competition runner up!!!

I just participated in a super fun competition at Scrappin' mojo, called The Iron Chef competition. Thirty people signed up for this 4 week contest and were mailed four different ingredients before the start of the contest. Each week, we had to use one of the ingredients in two specified projects. Contestants had to earn the right to move on, and for the final week, it was down to 7 of us. They selected one Iron Chef and two Sous Chefs (runner ups), of which I was one. I can now share my projects with you all.

Week 1 - Working with buttons. On a layout, use buttons on top of an embellishment. Also make a card using buttons and stitching.

Week 2 - Working with flowers. Make a masculine layout using flowers. Also make a monogram tag using flowers.

Week 3 - Using eyelets. Make a layout that uses eyelets for a use other than holding something together. Make an additional project that uses creativity in putting different things inside of eyelets.

Week 4 - Using fiber. Create one layout that uses at least one yard of fiber. Create an Easter project using fiber.

Happy Birthday, Alex!!!

Alex at 1 year.

Alex at 6

Alex at 12

Week 10 Picture a Day / Scenes from Cheer Competition in Wildwood, NJ

2008-03-10T14:52:00.022-04:00

Another week has passed. It was a busy, but fun week.

Mar 5 - Alex posing with a little green stuffed foot that she sewed for a home economics projects. She's got another one to make, but hasn't done it yet.

Mar 6 - The girls are my absolute FAVORITE subjects to photograph!!!

Mar 7 - On the road to Wildwood, NJ for the weekend.

Mar 8 - The Wildwood Convention Center, site of the CheerTech National cheerleading competition this past weekend. The sign is shown here.

Mar 9 - Samantha walking on the beaches of Cape May...truly empty this time of year. Man it was cold!!! And very windy!!! But beautiful, nonetheless.

Mar 10 - Longing for Spring!!! Waiting to see little buds on the trees!

National Cheerleading Competition in Wildwood, NJ

Alex's Senior Level 5 team went to Wildwood, NJ to compete for a bid to the World Cheerleading Championship in Orlando, FL. next month. While they did not receive a bid this time around, they did learn a lot and had a great time. They are continuing to grow with each performance. The gym is only in its second year of operation, so to receive a bid this year would be a tremendous 'pie in the sky' feat. Our last chance for 2008 will be in Virginia Beach next month. Just as long as they are having fun and growing, that is all that we can ask for.

Here are some scenes from our weekend:

Week 9: Picture of the Day

2008-03-03T19:25:00.009-05:00

Wow, we're already into March! Can you believe it?

Here are my pictures from this past week:

Feb 26 - We went to a design team meeting at Express Yourself and Amy gave all of her members three beautiful roses. It had been raining, so I thought it was so pretty how there were water droplets on the flowers. Perfect for pic of the day, eh?

Feb 27 - Me sporting my shorter and blonder do. :)

Feb 28 - Mmmmm, delicious Tacos Al Pastor from a little authentic Mexican restaurant that we like to order from. They are SOOOOOO good!!!

Feb 29 - Amy's fun Basic Grey and Glimmer Mist display...looks so pretty!

Mar 1 - Amy cutting it up at her crop! She's so much fun!

Mar 2 - The girls sharing one of the better sister moments!!! I love it when they are lovey dovey with each other. They truly are best friends.

Mar 3 - The girls love to collect Webkinz! They have 22 between the two of them!

I hope you all enjoy your week! Thank you for looking!

Techniques I class on March 18

2008-03-02T19:48:00.014-05:00

I wanted to show you all the Techniques I class that I will teach at Express Yourself on March 18 from 7 to 9 pm. This class will be the first in a series of 3 classes that will build upon each other. This first class will be the beginning Techniques class.

I will teach beginning scrappers such techniques as:

-- Creating edges by painting, tearing, and simple outlining
-- Creating torn edges for effect
-- How to attach buttons
-- How to attach ribbon
-- What ribbon can be used for in scrapping/paper crafts
-- What to do with chipboard (how to treat it)
-- Special techniques that can be used with sticker letters
-- What to do with flowers
-- How to use a Crop-a-Dile
-- What cutting tools are used in scrapping

Students will put together a small book, as shown in the above pictures, that they will be able to take home with them and consult as they are becoming comfortable with these techniques.

So if you're in the area and are interested, give Amy Bender a call at the above link. Thanks for looking! :)

Week 8: Picture of the Day

2008-02-25T19:51:00.008-05:00

Hi all! I can't believe it's been another week! This week sure has flown by. Been so very busy at work...working long hours. Haven't had too much time for fun this past week, so I am READY to get creative soon!!!

I've been participating in a fun Iron Chef contest at scrappin' mojo. They sent all participants four fun ingredients to work with before the contest started. Each week, they announce challenges in which we have to use one of the fun ingredients they mailed us. Last week it was buttons and this week it is flowers. I'm happy to report that I made the cut to participate in Week 2's challenge. At the conclusion of the contest, I will post my projects!

So now we are at Week 8 of my Picture of the Day challenge. I've just about done two months already...I cannot believe that! With that being said, here are my pics:

Feb. 19 - Tom chillin' in front of the TV after a long day at work. Look at him work that TIVO controller! Such skill...such finesse!!!

Feb. 20 - I FINALLY got to celebrate Doris's birthday with her...just one month after the fact! We tried a new Indian restaurant and LOVED it!!! It is now our new favorite! We've really got to get together soon to start discussing our trip to Europe. We leave 4 months from today...YAY!!!

Feb. 21 - Samantha posing with her periscope that she made for science class. Look how nicely she decorated it with yummy product from Me And My Big Ideas! That girl has good taste!!! You're probably wondering about the Chiquita Banana sticker on her forehead...that's how I picked her up from after school care. Yup, she's silly and she's all mine!

Feb. 22 - Look at that cute snowman the girls built!!! They were so very proud...until they realized they had built him on a sidewalk and it was demolished when the workers plowed us out that evening! No worries, they built two more the next day!

Feb. 23 - The girls had a friend over for a sleepover. Hmmmm, how did they manage to pull that one when I said 'no playdates' this weekend? I'm a softie, I guess!!! That's the nice thing about the girls just being 14 months apart...they have lots of mutual friends.

Feb. 24 - Alex proudly posing next to the pillow she made for home economics class. She really has a knack for sewing and cooking!

Feb. 25 - Our washing machine is on the fritz. Tom thinks we can get away with replacing the hose for now. We shall see.

Thanks for peeking. I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Week 7: Pic of the Day

2008-02-18T20:42:00.007-05:00

I just got back yesterday from a really fun retreat sponsored by Memory Muses . I had such a great time with my friends and the very personable hostesses, Adrienne and Rona. Tomorrow I will post about it.

For now, I leave you with my pictures from the past week.

Feb 12 - The current book that I'm reading. It's very good and I'm hoping to make some time tonight to read more. I love reading these type of books!

Feb 13 - A day full of sleet. Dreary, yet pretty. It kind of matched how I was feeling, being that I was sick all last week.

Feb 14 - My hubby got me this beautiful camera! This camera is capable of quite a bit and I'm going to have to spend time learning about all of its features. I love it!!!

Feb 15 - My first evening at my retreat. I must have spent 5 minutes frantically looking for my "z" that I needed for my title. Lo and behold, there it was, firmly stuck upon my arm!!!

Feb 16 - Dawn was trying to think of a creative way to use fibers on her gorgeous Alaskan album. I suggested that she give the very nice cruise ship cook a new do. We explored a "Wendy's" do...you know, the red headed mascot for the fast food chain? What do you think? ;)

Feb 17 - Anne, Dawn, me, and Dawn (yes, two Dawns!) together in our pajamas during the wee hours of the morning!

Feb 18 - Samantha's soccer team played in an indoor tournament and won!!! Here she is sporting her champion shirt!

So I'll be back tomorrow to share more about our retreat. Thank you for peeking at my photos! :)

I'm going to a retreat!!!

2008-02-13T23:49:00.004-05:00

I can hardly contain myself!!!

Today I printed out all of the pictures that I hope to work with. Enough for 20-22 projects!!! Will I get all of them done...hmmmm probably not!!! But I want to have options, KWIM?

Tomorrow I will pack all of my supplies (well, not ALL of my supplies, LOL!). I'm going to pack a bunch of kits...you just can't go wrong with kits and I have quite a few that I haven't even touched yet! The hard part will be packing the other supplies. I'm going to bring sticker letters, rubons, chipboard, flowers, fibers, ribbons, buttons, gems... Ay yi yi!!! Ohhhh and don't forget paint, ink, embossing powder... Seriously, I'm going to have to REALLY curb the urge to bring more than I'll ever use. When I go to a retreat, I always make it a goal to bring ONLY what I can carry in ONE trip!!! So that's how I will spend tomorrow evening...packing for Friday.

Another thing about retreats for me is that I typically can't sleep a day or two before the event. Which explains why I'm typing this post at midnight, when I have to be at work in 6 hours!!! Retreats are like Christmas to me!!! So I might have to get Tom to knock me out tomorrow night so I can sleep!!!

So tell me about your retreat experiences. Do you love them? Have you been on them before?

Monday, Monday / Week 6: Pictures of the Day

2008-02-11T13:28:00.000-05:00

Another Monday...another day home with a sick child and a sick self. :( Alex has been sleeping like she's never slept before in her life...poor girl. She woke up last night with body aches too. Mama's got a scratchy throat and is just plain run down, as well. So we are home again.

I can't believe it's been another week of pictures...time sure is FLYING by!!!

So here some shots from my life last week:

Feb 5 - Samantha likes to chill out a bit after school, when the homework is all finished. She plays soccer and cheerleads, so she enjoys playing on the computer for some down time.

Feb 6 - I just had to take a picture of me fitting into my lab coat with my name on it. When I was first hired, I was pretty small, so when it came time to order lab coats with name patches on them, they were small. When I gained weight, I couldn't fit into my own coats and had to wear spares without my name on them. Now that I've lost nearly 20 lbs, I can fit my own labcoats now!!! Like my safety glasses?!! ;)

Feb 7 - Funny story!!! A couple years back, I got my ear pierced at the top. I had to take it out, because it was too uncomfortable sleeping with it. So Thursday I decided, spur of the moment, to try it again...this time a little higher up on the ear. Well, that night I had trouble sleeping with it again and looked at it in the mirror. I decided that I really didn't like the look after all and that I valued my sleep more! So out it came!!! At least I'm left with the earrings!!!

Feb 8- I had gone shopping the night before to try to find some smaller clothes to wear. Didn't really find anything I liked, so I was rather discouraged. The next morning, I decided to look through the 'untapped' part of my closet and found an entire wardrobe of pants and skirts!!! I found this skirt and I really like it because it's so much fun and cheery. I feel very pretty in it!!!

Feb 9 - Alex's Senior Level 5 cheer team placed higher than a long-time competitor team in a competition on Saturday. Before the girls went on, the coach had asked them what would motivate them to perform their best and beat this team. The girls answered that they wanted a sleepover at the gym that night if they won. Well, they won!!! Here is Alex posing with her coaches that night.

Feb 10 - Picture day at the cheer gym! :)

Feb 11 - As I mentioned earlier, Alex is home sick today. Here she is after she woke up at noon today! In about 24 hours time, she has slept about 19 of those hours!!! Hopefully that gave her the rest that she needed. Poor girl.

So in the coming weeks, I hope to try to get more creative shots...different vantage points...shots of some of our family's favorite things. Time to mix it up a bit!!!

Thanks for looking! :)

Week 5 - Pic a Day

2008-02-05T20:27:00.000-05:00

This is for you, Deb!!! ;) I slacked off yesterday and forgot to post these pictures, so here we go...

Jan. 29 - Alex posing in her middle school cheer uniform.

Jan. 30 - Samantha sitting in goal (!) during her indoor soccer practice.

Jan. 31 - Oh how I love my car!!! With it's little pink cheer megaphone!!!

Feb. 1 - Samantha's science project, on which she got an "A". :)

Feb. 2 - The girls had so much fun at Dori's birthday party...one of the best they have ever attended!

Feb. 3 - After Dori's sleepover, Samantha was pooped and fell asleep on the couch in the afternoon.

Feb. 4 - Samantha at bedtime with her new Webkinz, Tommy the Turtle.

My new goal is to try to become more creative with my pictures. I'm starting to think that I lead a boring life, LOL! Time to get creative!!!

Thanks for looking!!!

Picture a Day - Week 4

2008-01-28T20:37:00.000-05:00

It appears that Mondays work out well for me to update my picture a week results, so here is Week 4. :)

Jan. 22 - I hadn't scrapped in a couple of weeks, so I was REALLY ITCHY to create something! I made this 8" x 10" picture to frame for my friend's daughter's birthday.

Jan. 23 - We LOVE to watch American Idol!

Jan. 24 - A pic of me, before I lose more weight. Part of a new beginnings photo challenge. I've already lost 15 pounds and need new pants!

Jan. 25 - Still hunting for that perfect online Design Team!!! Any takers?!! ;)

Jan. 26 - The Youth cheer team having dinner together, after Saturday's competition.

Jan. 27 - The cousins together at Grandma's house. How we wished they all lived closer together!

Jan. 28 - Samantha coming home from school.

I can't wait until Saturday, when I make my layout for January!!! Should be a lot of fun!!! Thanks for looking! :)

I mentioned...

2008-01-26T21:00:00.000-05:00

...in yesterday's post that I'm flexible. Here is some proof! This 38 year old wannabe cheerleader just got her bow and arrow!!!

Try not to laugh too hard, K?!! :D

Tagged!!!

2008-01-25T17:30:00.000-05:00

I was tagged by Zarah to share some facts about me, based on my MIDDLE NAME!!!

Here are the rules:
1. You have to post the rules before you give your answers.
2. You must list one fact about yourself beginning with each letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, use your maiden name).
3. After you are tagged, you need to update your blog with your middle name and your answers.
4. At the end of your blog post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged and that they need to read your blog for details).

OK...

F - funny, frenzied, fun-loving, flexible
R - real
A - artistic, adventurous
N - nice, nerdy,
C - caring, creative,
E - eccentric
S - silly, serious, sarcastic, sentimental, smart

Hmmm, it's funny how some letters are a lot easier to come up with adjectives, than others!!!

I choose to tag:
Deb, Debbie, Detta, Janette, Jenn, Lisa, and Theresa

I look forward to reading about your characteristics!

Thank you, Zarah, for tagging me!!! :)

Our Cheer Weekend / Photo A Day Challenge - Wk 3

2008-01-21T21:41:00.000-05:00

The girls and I just got back from the Northeast Knockout National cheer competition in Worcester, MA. It was our very first 2-day competition. Lots of fun and oh so tiring!!! The girls did well. They went up against some very fierce competition and our gym is only in its second year of operation, so we have our work cut out for us. But they did amazing. We all had a very fun time going up with our friends. Samantha competed Youth Level 2; Alex competed Youth Level 2 and Senior Level 5; their friend, Dori, competed Youth Level 2 and Senior Level 3. I want to share some photos with you.

Alex and Sam right before we got picked up by our friends on Saturday.

Mama with her girlies.

The Youth Level 2 team in their pyramid on Saturday

The girls passing some time in between performances.

My friend, Alisa (Dori's mom), and I. We graduated high school together!

Alex, Taylor, and Dori at dinner on Saturday.

Alex, Dori, and Samantha at dinner. What a great time! The food was OK, the friends were the best!

Roy, Alex, Dori, and Sam having fun in the hotel after dinner.

Ready to do it all over again on Sunday!!!

Samantha watching a replay of her performance.

A sweet mother/daughter moment

The awards ceremony.

Alex and Dori at the end of a very long two days!!!

Week 3 of the Photo a Day Challenge:

Jan. 15 - Samantha eating a quick snack before cheer.

Jan. 16 - Me posing with some scrappy mail I received that day...part of my contest winnings from the Scrappy Giraffe Kits "Scrap that Tune" contest, in which I won third place.

Jan. 17 - My entire "Scrap that Tune" winnings.

Jan. 18 - Alex getting some rest before her two-day cheer competition in Worcester, MA.

Jan. 19 - The girls and their friends having dinner at the hotel on Saturday night.

Jan. 20 - The Youth Level 2 team finishing their performance on Sunday.

Jan. 21 - Tom gettin in some rest before leaving to play his 11 pm game. Yup, 11 pm!!!

Thank you for looking!!! :)

Photo a Day Challenge

2008-01-14T17:29:00.000-05:00

Some of my scrapping friends at The Scrapbook Site came up with the idea of taking a photo a day and then scrapping them all at the end of the month. I think their goal is to do this for the year, but I wanted to start off by committing to do this for January. Baby steps! It's been 2 weeks and I've done it, so far. I wanted to share the photos from the first 14 days. I figure that I will share every two weeks.

Jan 1 - Alex, after cheerleading practice. Yup, she even had practice on New Year's Day!

Jan 2 - Diligent Samantha doing her homework.

Jan 3 - My new slipper socks that Tom's aunt gave me. Aren't they the coolest?

Jan 4 - Amy Bender and I (and our friend, Betsy) went into NYC to celebrate her birthday.

Jan 5 - I went to a 12-hr crop at Amy's LSS, Express Yourself . Here are my friends, Jenn and Marilyn with Amy cutting it up in the background!

Jan 6 - Alex at her soccer banquet to celebrate her U12 D1 team win of the district championship. Alex is the second one from the right in the bottom row. Coach Tom, aka, Daddy is pictured here, as well.

Jan 7 - Yes, a lot of board stalking going on as I waited to find out if I made the My Scrapbook Nook design team. I was one of the 20 finalists, but it wasn't meant to be...THIS TIME!!! ;) I'll keep trying, because I love that site!

Jan 8 - I started my cheerleader mini album. Did this while I was watching the girls at cheer practice.

Jan 9 - Samantha and I had our own private crop and she got dressed up for the occassion.

Jan 10 - Alex in her middle school cheer uniform. Isn't she cute?!!

Jan 11 - My desk at work. I try to make it home.

Jan 12 - My family just relaxing at home. Alex and Tom are on their computers and Samantha is watching TV

Jan 13 - Work that I brought home because there was supposed to be a huge storm the next day and I didn't want to go in during it.

Jan 14 - The huge storm...NOT!!!

So that chronicles the first 14 days of the year. You should try this...it's really fun. I can't wait to make my page for January!

Thanks for looking!

Congratulations! / It's Cheer Season!!!

2008-01-12T20:28:00.000-05:00

First I would like to congratulate the 11 talented women who were selected to be on the design team for My Scrapbook Nook. I was honored that I was even considered in the first place to be in the running. I'll keep trying!

Well, it's cheerleading season!!! Starting next weekend, virtually every weekend through the beginning of April will be spent going to competitions. We'll go to Worcester, MA; Hartford, CT (twice); Danbury, CT; Wildwood, NJ; New Haven, CT; Virginia Beach, VA; and Philadelphia, PA. Four of those competitions are two-day long events.

To kick off the season, I made a mini album, given to me by my friend Linda. It contains pictures from the first competition held a month ago. It was lots of fun to make.

Thanks for looking. CHEERS!!!

Nail-biting Time / Scrappy Fun in NYC

2008-01-07T18:49:00.000-05:00

Ohhh, found out today that My Scrapbook Nook will announce their new DT on Saturday at 1 pm. They're going to pick 5 current members and 5 brand new members! I'm crossing everything possible for this, because I REALLY want it!!!

We had lots of fun in NYC this past Friday when Amy, Betsy, and I went shopping to celebrate Amy's birthday. We hit all of the great scrappy/paper/ribbon stores. Here are some scenes from our fun day:
It was very cold!!! Amy is all bundled up.

Amy B squared posing in front of "The Store Across the Street". Yup, that's what it's called!

So many goodies at M&J Trims.

Betsy admiring the goodies.

The Ink Pad...lots of treasures in that tiny store!!!

Greenwich Village was so cute! I loved it!

The Place is where we ate lunch...great food...awesome atmosphere. I'd love to go back!

Amy and Betsy at lunch.

Parson's School of Design...make it work, people!

I Made it to the Second Round!!!

2008-01-02T17:26:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year, my Friends!

I was so excited to find out today that I made it to the second round of consideration for the design team at My Scrapbook Nook! And what an honor it is to be in such talented company!!! I'm very excited and am seriously crossing my fingers and toes for this one!!!

A LONG overdue post!!! I took 3rd place in the "Scrap That Tune" contest!

2007-12-29T18:44:00.000-05:00

Well, after 8 weeks of incredible competition of "Scrap That Tune" over at Scrappy Giraffe Kits, I took 3rd place! I was really happy, as the competition was really fierce!!! I learned so much participating in that great contest...the challenges were incredible! I made some really good friends, too!

Here are my Week 7 and Week 8 projects:

Week 7: Song: Poprocks and Coke
Mission: Alter a clipboard and use the title
Requirements: Cardstock and rubons (ampersand and circle) only
Bonus: Distressing (used a file to get to the white core of cardstock)

Features: Drew the Coke bottle freehanded, drew and cut out title letters by hand.
Also used paint, pen, marker, colored pencil, and ink. Inked and painted edges, doodled. Made faux ribbons out of cardstock.

Week 8: Song: Wind Beneath My Wings
Mission: Entitle layout using line of lyrics that is not the title
Scrappy Mission: letter stickers, hand stitching, hidden journaling, eyelets.
Bonus: Stamping and aluminum foil
Other: Paint, brads, chipboard, gems, buttons, ribbon
Other techniques: Heat embossing, doodling, hand journaling, and painting. The aluminum foil wings were made by stamping wings, using Versamark, embossing with clear embossing powder, rubbing with Perfect Pearls, and outlining with pen. Image was then cut out with scissors.
TFL!!!

Scrappy Resolutions for 2008: There are a number of them!!!

--Keep having lots of fun with what I do
--Keep growing as a scrapper and try new things
--Land one or two design team gigs
--Get something else published
--Update the girls' school photo albums
--Work more on my heritage album
--Enter more contests
--Make an awesome European album!!!
--Update my blog more often and visit my friends' blogs more frequently!!! :)

Happy New Year everyone!!! May the coming year bring you much peace, health, and happiness! <3

Weeks 5 and 6 of Scrap That Tune / Exciting News!!!

2007-11-22T12:08:00.000-05:00

Here are my Weeks 5 and 6 layouts for "Scrap That Tune" over at Scrappy Giraffe Kits. I can't believe that we only have two weeks left!!!

Week 5:

Song: Crazy
Mission: Scrap the title/use the sketch
Photos: Three...combo black and white/color
Extra: Buttons (handmade out of paper and floss w/inked edges
Other: Felt letters, flower, gems
Techniques: Doodling, hand-stitching, inking, homemade buttons; Popped up the center color photo by backing with chipboard.
Journaling: "Sometimes you drive me CRAZY. We like to be CRAZY. CRAZY 4 U."

Week 6:

Song: Bad Day
Mission: Title, Artist (see blow up pic), Lyrics, Sketch
Scrap Design: Monochromatic
Bonus: Pipecleaners
Other supplies: Patterned paper, transparencies, chipboard, rubons, ink, brads, eyelets, fiber (arrow)
Special techniques: Doodling, inking, handcut title, handcut custom border, black and white photo with custom colored sling

Exciting News!!! I was selected to be on the design team for Express Yourself , my favorite LSS!!! I'm very happy and look forward to creating for Amy and her store. The rest of the team is super nice and I'm happy to work with them!!!

Happy Thanksgiving, All!!! :)

Week 4 of Scrap That Tune

2007-11-11T17:57:00.000-05:00

My Week 4 project for "Scrap That Tune" over at Scrappy Giraffe Kits was super fun to make.

Here's what I did:

I chose to use "The Joker" by The Steve Miller Band this week. Very challenging, but I was able to make it work for me.

Also used patterned paper, bling, letter stickers, tag, buttons, brads, eyelets, transparencies, scrappers rings, glue dots, and magnets. Techniques include embossing, doodling, stitching, and inking. Flowers are handmade out of paper. Album is handmade out of chipboard sheets, as well.

TFL! :)

Weeks 1, 2, and 3 of Scrap That Tune contest at the Scrappy Giraffe

2007-11-01T17:53:00.001-04:00

So I joined this REALLY fun contest at Scrappy Giraffe Kits. It's called "Scrap That Tune"! Each week we are given a choice of three different songs to use as a foundation to scrap a layout. Each song is assigned a different point total. We are also given choices to scrap as much or as little of the song as we see fit. Generally, the more you stick to the song theme, the higher the points. We also have design choices to make with different point levels. Each week there is a given bonus ingredient that gives us extra points if we use it on our layout. There is also a secret ingredient that will earn points as well. At the end of the week, the person who earns the most votes from their peers and from the design team will earn even more points. This is a very challenging and fun contest!!!
Here's what I did for Week 1:

I chose to use "Don't Blink" (5 pts); I used the sketch and scrapped a few lyrics (4 pts); I used two different mfg patterned papers (Prima and MME) and ribbon (see the flower) (4 pts); I used felt underneath my journaling strips (2 pts).

Total = 15 pts

Journaling is visible in close-up.

Large picture is my high school graduation photo, taken in 1986. Small photo is from 2007.

This is my layout from Week 2:

"You're Beautiful" - 5 pts
Song title and at least two lines of lyrics - 5 pts
Handcut title and buttons - 5 pts
Glitter - 2 pts
Total = 17 pts

Lyrics used: "I saw an angel, of that I'm sure. You're beautiful, it's true."

I made a hand-drawn and cut title, swirls, and flower greenery out of Sugar-Coated paper. The flowers are made out of felt and embroidered with button details. I used a Heidi Swapp wing stamp for the wings. I just used glue and glitter instead of ink. I made a fiber and glittery floss border and used some beads for added interest. Some star brads round out the details added. My journaling is around Samantha's photo. Supplies: Patterned paper: Creative Imaginations; Sugar-coated paper: Doodlebug; Wing stamp: Heidi Swapp; Glitter: DecoArt; Embroidery floss: DMC; Pen: Signo Uniball; Other: felt, buttons, fiber, staples, glue dots, gold star brads

And, lastly, here is Week 3's layout:

Another Day in Paradise – 3 pts
Scrap at least 10 lines of lyrics (see around photo and title) – 5 pts
Patterned paper from stamp + memorabilia – 5 pts
Ink on flowers – 3 pts
Total = 16 pts

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Corrugated cardboard; Metal mesh and letter stickers: Making Memories; Mica: Magic Scraps; Flowers: Prima; Stamp: Label Tulip; Brads: American Crafts; Snaps: Junkitz; Ink: Ranger Industries; Pens: Signo Uniball, Staedtler; Other: colored pencils, staples, and glue dots. Photo by www.flickr.com
Memorabilia: American Idol concert ticket. I thought provided a little irony, given the topic.
Journaling: When life gets me down, I only have to think about those that don’t have the comforts that I do…food, shelter, income, love.

I can't wait to see what amazing challenges are in store for me for the remaining five weeks!!!

Acrylic album fun!!! - I've been tagged!!!

2007-10-22T15:32:00.000-04:00

I've always wanted to make an acrylic album, so this weekend I tried my hand at making two of them.

The first album is one that I made for myself to celebrate some great fall pics from this year.

The four 8" x 8" acrylic sheets only cost $4! Just go to your local Home Depot or Lowes and they will even cut the acrylic to the size you want.

I used flowers, gems, rubons, and stamps to decorate the pages. Stazon ink is a must because it is meant for non-porous surfaces.

The holes were cut using my Crop-a-dile. I used Karen Foster Scrapper's Rings to hold the pages together and decorated them with fibers and ribbon.

Here are some views:

This second album has a completely different look. It's fresh and funky and was made to celebrate my friend, Rhi's, birthday!

Happy Birthday, Rhi!!!

This time I used a Krylon paint pen to rub along the outer page edges. It worked really well, as it dried in no time! I used Hambly transparencies, as well.

The lovely Wendy Malichio . tagged me...so I'm about to pass along the lovin';

Here are the instructions for the seven others that I'm going to tag...the seven I choose to tag are:

Theresa Tyree

Debbie McCaffrey

Kelly Blair

Janette Zomer

Rhi Cooksey Quinton

Liz Ness

Michelle Stanzione

Instructions:

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself (on your blog, we all want to know them).

3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

4. Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Okay now the seven random facts about ME....
let's see;
1. I wear socks to bed...don't know why...just have to!
2. I must have an orderly wallet, meaning I can't have money sticking out of things
unzipped or unbuckled!
3. I am a huge PROCRASTINATOR...just horrible!
4. I get nervous on trips...trying to get over this!!!
5. My favorite food is seafood...could eat it all of the time!!!
6. I hate beer and wine!!! Most alcohol, for that matter. My drink of choice is a
sombrero (milk and kaluha)
7. Like Wendy, I rush way too much and miss out on life's little pleasures way too
often...have to slow down. Trying really hard to be better at that!

It's CROPTOBERFEST at The Scrapbook Site

2007-10-17T17:27:00.000-04:00

Come one; Come all...This weekend is CROPTOBERFEST at The Scrapbook Site. Join us for

Games

Challenges

Prizes

Fun

ALL WEEKEND LONG!!!

Come join our fun community and you'll never want to leave!!!

My, But I've Been MIA!!!

2007-10-15T19:39:00.000-04:00

It's been a while since I've posted here. Just been crazy busy!!! But at least it's been a good kind of busy. Here are some pictures from past events that have kept me busy.

Columbus Day soccer tournament:

Samantha's U11 DI team came in first place!!! That's two first place trophies out of two tournaments this season!!! Whoop whoop!

Apple Picking:

State Cup soccer game:

Well, I've been trying to post more pictures here, but there is currently a problem uploading photos, so I'll post more later! :)

So Excited!!! Thanks Creativity{Unbound}!

2007-10-02T19:10:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, my friend Elly, asked me to be a Guest Designer for her new blog, Creativity{Unbound} for the month of October. They are being sponsored this month by Magistical Memories, maker of the very cool laser cut chipboard shapes that we all use and love!

Elly has also asked Rita Shimniok, a SUPER talented lady, to be a Guest Designer as well!

Thank you SOOOO much, Elly!!!

October is Here...so Excited!!!

2007-10-01T16:09:00.001-04:00

Today starts my Guest DT month at The Scrapbook Site!!! ! I'm so excited! They are the most awesome site!!! This morning, I read the October newsletter and saw a really cool page about my Guest Designership. Check it out:

I think that's super sweet and VERY exciting!!!

Here is a DT project that I just finished an hour ago that was super fun to make with The Scrapbook Site's Barndoor collection:

I had so much fun making this house that I want to make a couple as gifts!

End of the Road for me in the Bad Girls contest

2007-09-29T00:17:00.000-04:00

Well, I was suspended this week in the Bad Girls Top Designer contest. That means I've been eliminated. I was a little surprised, given that I was very happy with how my layout (See in September 25 post...the sister layout) turned out. Oh well. You can't please everyone. What matters is that you are left with a layout that you and your family will love for years to come. That's what's really important. The talent pool is vast in the Bad Girls contest. Must be horribly difficult to decide who advances week to week.

Time to pursue something new!!!

My Sweet Friend Janette/ Week 3: Bad Girls

2007-09-25T21:54:00.000-04:00

My friend, Janette, sent me the sweetest, best scrappy package EVER! She sent the awesome layout that she did for our swap:

Isn't it beautiful? And, Janette, I read the back of it today...I am so touched by your loving message to my girls!!!

Janette also made me a beautiful layout of a picture that she liked of me:

I think it is exquisite!!! The gorgeous stamping, doodling, flowers, and lace trim! I LOVE the Urban Couture paper that she used. She nailed it!!! I can't stop smiling when I think of the time and care that she put into it.

She also made me a beautiful card:

I love it!

And if that weren't enough, Janette sent me some lovely acrylic stamp sets and Prima flowers!

Janette, I am so blessed to have you for a friend. You are so kind and sweet. So funny and a lot of fun. Thank you for everything!!!

Week 3 of Bad Girls:
I just finished my entry for Week 3 of the Top Designer contest over at Bad Girls. It's a six-week contest with an awesome grand prize, worth over $800 and three runner-up prizes! There are about 110 contestents left.

For my third assignment, I chose to focus on shape.
Here is my response to the challenge:

I chose to focus on Shape for this week's homework. I chose the heart to help convey the loving sisterly relationship that my daughters have. The journaling/title communicates the joking and humorous side of their relationship, and, yes, there is bickering as well!

I kept this layout very simple, so as to not detract from the heart and picture. I used lots of color, bling, fun fiber, and metallic cardstock to dress this layout up, without using too many embellishments. TFL. :)

Supplies: Cardstock and Patterned paper: Die Cuts With a View; Fiber: Basic Grey; Rhinestone trim: Junkitz; Letter stickers: Arrow brad: Around the Block; Making Memories; Pen: Signo Uniball.

Wish me luck that I somehow make it on to Week 4!!!

Week 2 of Bad Girls Top Designer Contest

2007-09-16T13:42:00.000-04:00

I just finished my entry for Week 2 of the Top Designer contest over at Bad Girls. It's a six-week contest with an awesome grand prize, worth over $800 and three runner-up prizes! There are about 150 contestents left.

The second assignment was a Texture/Dimension challenge.
Here is my response to the challenge:

This was a fun assignment to do. I started off by printing 3 of the same photograph. Layer 1 is the entire photograph; Layer 2 is Samantha's body; Layer 3 is Samantha's face. I don't know that it is easily visible in the photograph, but the picture looks 3-dimensional. For other texture/dimensional elements, I threaded lace through chipboard photo corners; I added tulle beneath velvet flowers; I overlapped a cut out portion of the patterned paper flowers on cardstock over a portion of the flat patterned paper; I put a crackle finish on a chipboard heart; I added rhinestones. Doodled edges on the scalloped cardstock gives a further illusion of dimensionality.

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper: K & Co. and Creative Imaginations; Chipboard: Magistical Memories; Flowers: Queen & Co.; Brads: SEI; Letter stickers: American Crafts and Making Memories; Rhinestones: Heidi Swapp; Acrylic Paint and Crackle Finish: Ranger Industries; Pens: Fiskars and Sakura; Gold paint pen: Krylon; Other: Lace trim.

While I was making this layout, I felt really good about it. Now that I see the other contestests' entrees rolling in, I'm not so sure how this is going to "stack up". We'll keep our fingers crossed and see what happens!!!

A New Contest for Me

2007-09-14T08:51:00.000-04:00

Well, after playing that awesome contest over at The Scrapbook Site, I just had to find myself another challenge!!! So I entered the Top Designer contest over at Bad Girls. It's a six-week contest with an awesome grand prize, worth over $800 and three runner-up prizes! With 195 contestents, I'm not expecting too much, but I'll do my best!

The first assignment was a Color Theory challenge. In a nutshell, we had to convey the emotion of our layout through color. Here is my response to the challenge:

I had a lot of fun making this layout! My original intent with this layout was to display it at Express Yourself. I figured it would be a perfect layout for this contest, so I created it for both purposes.

This contest is fun, because it's supposed to take place in a "classroom". We have to sign in on the message board that we were "present" in class. Each week there are suspensions. If you are suspended, you are out of the contest.

Thankfully, I get to move on to the next class, so I'm still in it! Now we have 155 people left.

I can't wait to see what the next class is!

Winner of RAK announced!!!

2007-08-31T19:13:00.000-04:00

As promised last month, I put everyone who participated in a photo swap with me into the running for a RAK, to be drawn on August 31. The day has come, my Friends! The winner will receive the following goodies:

A package of Autumn Leaves buttons, a package of Autumn Leaves flowers, AND a little somethin' somethin' extra surprise to be made by me JUST for you. :)

Samantha was my goofy (!!!) assistant:

And the winner is:

:)

:)

:)

:)

YAY, Theresa!!! I will mail this out to you, as well as your layout!!! :)

Thank you all for playing with me!!!

Which Celebrities Do You Look Like?

2007-08-30T19:17:00.000-04:00

My friend, Theresa, brought to my attention this fun little program that enables you to input a photo of yourself to see which celebrities you look like. Part of me DID NOT WANT TO KNOW!!! But I did it anyway, and the results were pretty surprising to me. Here's what came up:

http://www.myheritage.com

Not bad!!! Except for the two guys, LOL!!!
This next one supports that Alex DOES look like me, once you get past the coloring!!!

Samantha looks more like me, as well!!!

Wow, wow, wow!!!

2007-08-27T22:06:00.000-04:00

I am over the moon excited because I won the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site!!! Eight weeks of super fun challenges that did just that; they challenged us!!! They got us to think outside of the box; to expand our skills; to step out of our comfort zone.

The people there are wonderful!!! The members, the designers, Sarah...I'm truly blessed to have met each and every one of them!!! That to me, is the best prize of all.

But speaking of prizes, I won quite a bit!!! Three fabulous kits, a Karen Foster calendar kit, and the most coveted of all; a guest design team position for the month of September!!! Woo hoo!!! I am SOOOO going to love designing with their talented crew for the month!!! Truly a dream position for me! <3

Here are the Week 7 and Week 8 layouts that I have not posted here yet:

We had to scrap about three things that get us through the day.

We had to create our own handmade embellishments. I crocheted flowers and embroidered stems.

Thank you again to everyone involved with TSS. I'm so thankful for all of the friendships I have formed there.

Tumbling camp videos

2007-08-19T21:03:00.000-04:00

Greetings from Baltimore! We just finished a 3-day tumbling camp for cheerleaders held at the nationally reknowned cheerleading gym, the Maryland Twisters. I'm a bit too tired to recount our adventures, but I wanted to share a couple of exciting videos of the girls.

This first one is of Alex landing her double full!!!

This last video is of Samantha throwing her punch front. She learned this over the weekend!!!

That's all for now. I can't wait to share more details when I get home!!!

Happy Mail for Me!!!

2007-08-09T20:40:00.000-04:00

I was so pleasantly surprised to find a happy piece of scrappy mail for me today!!! My friend, Karen, fellow Pink Lady, made me a GORGEOUS magnet!!!

Isn't it beautiful? Look at that beautiful chili pepper and how it sparkles, the sweet words, and the so very clever corner treatment with the embroidery floss and eyelets!!! My photograph does not do this justice!!!

Thank you so much Karen! I love it!!!

Week 6 of Contest/ More layout swaps :)

2007-08-08T21:14:00.000-04:00

We shall start with the Week 6 assignments for the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site. My 6th challenge required that I use 3 photographs, 3 buttons, 3 different patterned papers, 3 different ribbons, a 3-word title, and 3 additional embellishments of my choice, as long as they were not of the same variety already mentioned. Cardstock, paint, and pens were unlimited. Here's what I came up with:

Journaling:
"What are the 3 most beautiful words I could ever hear? What 3 words can put JOY in my heart, SPRING in my step, and touch my SOUL? 'I love you'. -Especially when they are said by you!"

My 3 bonus embellishments are 3 rubons.

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper: Tinkering Ink; ribbon: Autumn Leaves and Unknown; Buttons: SEI; Rubons: Hambly Studios; Pens: Signo Uniball and Staedtler.
The mid-week challenge was nice and easy! All we had to do was post one photograph of our scrap space (YIKES!) and one photo of a nice way to organize something. Here's what I posted:

Yep, this is where it all takes place at home, my bedroom. It isn't pretty!!! I have lots of stuff and very limited space! We're in the process of converting our den into my scraproom.

I hope this isn't the equivalent of not wanting to eat at a restaurant after you've seen the kitchen!!! :)

TFL! (I think... ;) )

I painted this cute Prima tray and decorated it for the purpose of storing paints in a really pretty way.

More photo swaps with friends!!!

Janette
I had such a good time scrapping Janette's photos. Boy, I wish we lived closer because she has an incredibly fun family!!! They are always smiling and really seem to enjoy each other. I wanted my layout to convey that sense of fun and happiness. Here's what I made for her:

Don't they look like so much fun to be with?!!

Janette made me this SUPER layout of the girls! I love it so much!

Isn't it fabulous?!!!

Pat
Pat gave me this wonderful picture of her and her daughters, Nicole and Dee. They are remarkably close and I just had to make a layout to reflect that.

Aren't they cute?!!

Pat made a WONDERFUL layout that truly captured the playful spirit of Alex and Sam. It's such a fabulously colorful and energetic page:

Isn't it great?!!

Pat had so much fun making her layout that she had someone photograph her with it! Isn't she cute?!!

Thank you so much, Janette and Pat, for swapping with me!!!

Week 5 Challenge/Layout Swaps/Crop Layouts

2007-08-06T18:47:00.000-04:00

This is going to have to be a huge post, since I haven't been good about updating lately!!!

We shall start with the Week 5 assignments for the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site. We are more than half way there!!! Here is my Challenge layout, where we were required to design a layout based on a song:

My "theme song" is I'm Still Standing" by Sir Elton John.

"Don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did
Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid
I'm still standing after all this time
Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind

I'm still standing yeah yeah yeah
I'm still standing yeah yeah yeah"

This is a song of empowerment for me...of overcoming adversity and coming out strong. I love this song!!!

This was the most fun challenge yet for me. I got to play with my Hambly!!!

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics Bling; Patterned paper, transparencies, and rubons: Hambly Studios; Letter: American Crafts Thickers; Pens: Signo Uniball and Staedtler. TFL :)

For the Mid-Week challenge, we had to design a card for somebody based on a song, as well:

The song "Count on Me", sung by Cece Wynans and Whitney Houston, inspired this birthday card for a dear friend. Jenn (Lovetocrop72...show her some love in the gallery) is very special to me. We have so much fun together and she is every bit the scrappaholic that I am. But most importantly, Jenn is a friend who sticks through bad times, as well as good. I just wanted to convey to her that she can "count on me" to be there for her during all times, as well.

"Count on me through thick and thin,
a friendship that will never end
when you are weak
I will be strong
helping you to carry on
Call on me I will be there,
don't be afraid
please believe me when I say
count on...me"

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper: Daisy D's; Sticker letters: Making Memories; Flowers: Prima; Black gems: K & Co.; Pen: Staedtler; Embroidery floss: DMC

Layout Swap update:

A couple of weeks ago I asked friends if they wanted to do a layout swap with me. Ardelle, Rhi, Janette, Theresa, Debbie, Jenn, and Pat took me up on this fun activity. So far I have made four of their layouts. As we complete pairings, I will share with you what we've done.

Ardelle

Ardelle was fast!!! She was the first to complete her layout using my photo. And what a beautiful layout it is. It looks even more divine in person!!! Check it out:

Isn't it beautiful?!! Thank you, Ardelle!!! <3

In return, I got to scrap a picture of Ardelle's beautiful daughter, Britney:

I had a great time making this! Thank you, Ardelle, for participating!

Debbie

Debbie made me a beautiful layout using one of Alex's pictures. Alex LOVED it...it put a huge smile on her face, as well as mine. Here is the layout that Debbie made me:

Didn't Debbie do a wonderful job?!!

In return, I got to scrap a newborn!!! Debbie gave me a gorgeous picture, taken by Theresa, of her new grandson, Logan. I was in my glory scrapping this photo:

Isn't he a cutie?!! Thank you, Debbie, for playing along!!!

Layouts from the August 4 crop
I got to crop with Jenn and Anne again on Saturday. We had a blast! And I was very productive!!! Here are 3 more layouts that I got done:

This is from the gorgeous Cocoa Daisy "Sunkissed" kit...so much fun to use!!!

These are from the fabulous Label Tulip "Chardonnay" kit...I LOVE this kit!!!

That's it for now! Thanks for looking!!! :)

Week 4: So You Think You Can Scrap contest

2007-07-27T21:02:00.000-04:00

This week's challenges for the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site required a lot of thought and a lot of journaling. I liked that about these challenges; they allowed the envelope to be pushed. Here's what I came up with.

Mid-Week Bonus: Create an impromptu card for a person who had been influential in our life or the life of our child.

When I found out what the challenge was going to be, I immediately knew that I would make a card for Alex's tumbling coach, Miss Victoria. Miss Victoria took Alex on, as a student two and half years ago and built her up from a person who couldn't even do a round-off to an elite tumbler. Alex is now executing double and standing fulls!!! For all of you who know cheerleading...that is AMAZING!!! Miss Victoria got Alex to tumble passes that are practically what you see gymnasts do on TV during the floor exercises!!! But not only is she an incredible coach...she is an excellent role model who cares about Alex's well-being inside and out. She teaches Alex to have confidence; to believe in herself; to be the best person she can be. Miss Victoria and Alex have grown to share a very special bond...a bond that maybe people will find once or twice in a lifetime.

Miss Victoria, this card is for you! We look forward to giving it to you at next week's lesson!

Note: This might look like a layout, but it's actually a 6" x 6" card. You can tell by looking at the staples for scale. I attached a ribbon loop to the top, in case she wants to display it.

Supplies: Transparency: Staples; Patterned paper: Basic Grey; Flowers and Ribbon: Prima; Gemstones: Target; Ghost butterflies and rubons: Heidi Swapp; Acrylic paint: Ranger Industries; Pen: Zig Millenium

Week 4 Challenge: A Walk Down Memory Lane. A Then and Now type page.
Create a layout about a childhood memory and how it relates to you now.
Some examples
-something you loved or hated as a child and how you feel about it today
-something you see your kids doing that relates to you and your childhood
-how something random today stirs up childhood memories

The journaling is heavy...I'm not comfortable sharing it here. If you're close to me and want to know more, let me know and I will send you the words. I'm happy to share it with my friends :)

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper and rubons: Basic Grey; Chipboard frame: Fancy Pants; Flowers: Prima; Letter stickers and Brads: Doodlebug; Pens: Tombow and Signo Uniball.

So the contest is now half over!!! 4 more weeks to go. I can't wait to see who wins!!! Thanks for looking. :)

Week 3, "So You Think You Can Scrap" Contest

2007-07-20T21:18:00.001-04:00

This week's challenges were a lot of fun over at the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site.

Our big challenge was to create a layout with the theme "7 Things that I am Lucky to Have" or having a title very similar to that idea. We had to use 7 photos, 7 journaling strips, and 7 buttons. Here is what I came up with:

Journaling:
1. My girls are my life
2. My loving husband. I'm so very lucky.
3. My job...So nice to love what I do.
4. My creativity. Art keeps me sane.
5. My friends. So very lucky to have them.
6. Our health and strength. So very fortunate.
7. Our freedom...must not take for granted.

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper: Basic Grey; Chipboard number: My Mind's Eye; Buttons: 7 Gypsies; Rubons: Basic Grey; Paint: Ranger Industries; Gold leafing pen: Krylon; Pen: Signo Uniball; Other: yarn.

Note: I crocheted the fiber trim...just a simple chain stitch.

Our mid-week challenge was to create a bookmark using patterned paper, cardstock, our favorite quote (or a quote if you don't have a favorite), and a flower. This is what I made:

My quote:
"No longer forward nor behind
I look in hope and fear;
But grateful take the good I find,
The best of now and here."
--John G. Whittier

This quote expresses my desire to live in the moment and to stop dwelling on the past and anticipating the future.

Supplies: Cardstock, Patterned paper, and Die-cut flower: Die Cuts With a View; Journaling Die-cut: Daisy D's; Gold leafing pen: Krylon; Other: Fibers, stickers, and eyelet.

So, we'll have to see what next week's challenge is. Can't wait!!!

Fun Picture Swap with a RAK

2007-07-19T05:03:00.000-04:00

Good morning, Friends! This month, and for August, as well, because the month is almost over, I would like to propose that we do a picture swap! I've done one with Rhi before and I loved it! Here's how it works: e-mail me a few pictures that you would like me to scrap for you and I will e-mail you some pictures. We then send each other pictures of the layouts and the actual layouts themselves. I am making an album with the layouts that my friends have created for me.

At the end of August, I will post all of the layouts that I've received and randomly pick a name to win a cool RAK.

I hope you guys play along...I'd love to scrap your pictures!!!

Let me know if you need my e-mail address...most of you have it!

Have a great day!

Week 2 Bonus Challenge for TSS's Contest

2007-07-11T23:05:00.000-04:00

Today we received our mid-week bonus challenge for the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest at The Scrapbook Site. It was a lot of fun to do! We had our choice between two scrapbook magazine covers to serve as inspiration for some sort of scrap project. I chose the Scrapbooks etc. cover to create a little card that I want to display at my desk at work.

I just love this picture of Samantha, taken when she was three months old! She looked like such a cherub...I just had to put some Hambly wings on her!!!

Thank you for looking!

I Joined a Super Fun Scrapping Contest

2007-07-10T21:53:00.000-04:00

Saturday, I read about a really cool contest held by The Scrapbook Site. It's called "So You Think You Can Scrap". They say that the concept was based on their love of reality TV. Of course I was all over that like white on rice, being the reality TV junkie that I am! For 8 weeks, you have to enter a layout that satisfies that week's challenge. On Sunday's all the contest participants vote for their 3 favorites via private messaging. All design team members have votes as well. Nobody knows the standings and nobody gets eliminated. At the end of the 8 weeks, the winner will be revealed. The winner will receive 3 free kits (awesome!!!) and a Karen Foster calendar kit!!!

I'm not allowed to post my layouts on any other on-line galleries, but I am allowed to post them on my blog, so I will share them with you as I create them.

Week 1:
Old School Challenge: Create a layout using pictures, techniques, and if possible, supplies from the year you starting scrapping. For me, the year was 2005. Of course I was a little disappointed that I had to make a layout reminiscent of my beginning scrapping days! But it was fun! Here's what I came up with:

Back when I started, I was big into Stampin' Up! supplies, as my sister was a consultant. All the paper used here is SU cardstock. Since then I've discovered textured paper, LOL!

The technique for me was all about paper piecing; from the handmade frame to the title. The title was generated from printing in reverse on cardstock and cutting out with scissors. No wishblade for me...

Embossing, chalking, drawing, and stitching round out my circa 2005 techniques. :) The lizard is a stamp; the other designs are hand-drawn.

Journaling: In February 2005, I went to Arizona to visit a good friend who had moved out there. Boy, was I blown away be the beauty I saw!!! The sky was such that I felt as if I could reach up and touch the clouds…I had never seen such large fluffy clouds so low to the ground before. The landscapes were incredible and woven from many gorgeous colors. The cacti were so prolific… they were almost like weeds. Although I heard that these plants are very old and it takes about 80 years for one to sprout an arm.
This East Coast girl will never forget the beautiful Arizonian landscapes!

Supplies: Cardstock and linen fiber: Stampin' Up!; embossing powder: Ranger Industries; Chalk: Colorbox by Clearsnap; Pens: Staedtler

Week 2
Choose an Elsie Flannigan sketch:
This was a fun one! The rules were we had to select a sketch (and there were 28 to choose from!), use patterned paper from at least 2 manufacturers, and use at least 3 photos. Other than that, we had complete artistic freedom. Here's what I came up with:

Journaling: From the moment you were born, Alex, Daddy and I thought you were so beautiful. Then you developed your sweet and loving personality. Beautiful...inside and out!

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned paper: Junkitz, American Crafts, Provo Craft; Flowers: Bazzill Basics; Gems: Darice; Pens: Signo Uniball and Staedtler.

Thanks for looking and stay tuned for other contest editions!

Quite Possibly the Most Flamboyent Layout I've Ever Done, LOL!

2007-07-03T23:12:00.000-04:00

This was TOO much fun...I really channeled Andy Warhol with this one!!! It was in response to a challenge: If we were a color, what color would we be? Thanks for looking!!!

A Layout I Demo'd Yesterday Made the Basic Grey Gallery :)

2007-07-01T21:34:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I showed my friends at Express Yourself how they might use the cool new die-cuts included in the new Infuse pack by Basic Grey. I entered it into the Basic Grey gallery and they accepted it. :)

I also made this layout from the Infuse line. They did not accept this one. :( Oh well. I love the expressions on the girls' faces.

I just want to give a shout out to all of my cropping friends at Express Yourself! I have soooo much fun spending time with you all. Here are some pictures I took yesterday:

Waves to Pat, the owner...she's so great!

Pam :)

Sandra, Jenn, and I :)

Tabby and Pat :)

Tagged Again! :)

2007-06-29T12:01:00.000-04:00

I've been tagged by my friend, Edith.

My roommate and I once: I've never had a roommate other than my sister or husband, LOL.

Never in my life have I: bungee jumped--I agree with you, Edith! You would have to pay me BIG...and knock me out cold to get me to do it!!!

High school was : Much better my senior year when I moved back to Brookfield.

When I'm nervous : I feel like I could throw up. And I get really fidgety.

My hair : Needs a touch-up.

When I was 5 : I started 1st grade. I was always one of the youngest, having a 12/18 birthday.

When I turn my head left : I see my left shoulder (who comes up with these questions?!!)

I should be : Working. I am home sick today.

By this time next year : I will be in Europe for my mega 22-day vacation.

My favorite aunt is : Although I don't see her any more because she and my Uncle Peter divorced, I would have to say Aunt Diane. She was really there for me when my mother died 21 years ago.

I have a hard time understanding : Why when you pass someone in a hallway at work or wherever and you say "hi", they don't say "hi" back. WHATEVER!!!

You know I like you if : I call you or e-mail you all of the time.

My ideal breakfast is : An omelet with tomato, scallions, and cheddar with bacon on the side and a Starbucks Frappuccino...YUM!

If you visit my home town : You will see about 20 different furniture stores. Geez Louise...do we need anymore furniture stores, Brookfield?!!

If you spend the night at my house : You will wonder when my girls will ever go to bed. They have never required much sleep and are usually up at 11 pm, LOL! We try.

My favorite blonde is : Samantha Birch

My favorite brunette is : Alexandra Birch

The animal I would like to see flying besides birds : How about some pigs?!! Nice question!

I shouldn't have been : So anxious to become older. I always had older friends and didn't like to be one of the youngest. So I spent my twenties wanting to be older. Now I'm staring at 40 in two and a half years and I wish I had appreciated my twenties more.

Last night I: Watched Alex cheer for a couple of hours and gabbed with some mothers at practice, finally updated my blog, and did a layout after a two week dry spell.

A better name for me would be : I can't imagine being anything other than Amy.

I've been told I look like : Mia Farrow. I used to be so insulted because I was told this when I was 18 and she was like 40! But I could see it in a younger me compared with a younger her.

If I could have any car, it would be : I don't know...I'm pretty happy with the car I have...a 2003 Honda Accord with a V6 engine. I only wish that deer didn't hit me in December and left the small dent in the hood. I was VERY luck to have escaped with just that!

I am tagging:

Janette (this will be easy for you, because you've already been tagged! Waving "hi", Janette!)

Rhi, lovelyhead

Jenn (you need a blog, girlie, so I can stalk you! You can answer on your scrapbook.com blog.)

Ardelle :)

Julie (Lexea, who's gone blogging now!!! You get to play tag now, LOL)

Two posts in one day after a long dry spell!!!

2007-06-29T00:24:00.000-04:00

I scrapped something tonight! :) I did a layout for my own challenge on Scraptalk.com. I had to create a layout that showed someone/something "Then" and "Now". When I saw this photo on my mouse pad at work of the girls in their Blues Clues pajamas, I just knew that I had to scrap it! That picture is from 2000, when the girls were 4 and 3. Seven years later, Alex and Sam look so grown up! And Sam got a little taller than Alex! :)

I wanted to play with a transparent look, so I fashioned a frame around a standard 8.5" x 11" transparency. I also got to play with the stunning new Infuse line by Basic Grey.

Thanks for looking!!!

I'm Still Here! :)

2007-06-28T21:06:00.000-04:00

Hi all! I've been so busy lately, it's been insane! Not much time to scrap or catch up on blogging in the past two weeks. All work and no scrapping makes Amy a VERY dull girl!

But I'm working to change that! I'm going to a 12-hour crop at the wonderful Express Yourself on Saturday! SOOOOO EXCITED for that!!!

Our family had a wonderful time in Maine last weekend visiting my sister and nephews, Clayton and Christian. We went to Boston together on Saturday. We went to the New England Aquarium, The Cheesecake Factory, and to the top of the Prudential Center to take pictures of Boston. Here are some pictures of our fun time together!

Thank you for looking and I'll try not to be such a stranger!!! I've missed you all! xxx

TOOOOOOTTTTT!!! My Very First Pubs EVER!

2007-06-17T16:43:00.000-04:00

OK, I've been SOOO waiting to do that! Couldn't WAIT for the day when something of mine was selected for print!!! I was notified today that Memory Mania has selected 3 of the 4 layouts that I submitted to them for their Masterpieces Idea Book. It's a sketchbook. I sure had fun playing with their sketches!

Thank you for sharing in my excitement!

It's Official...I'm Going to be an Instructor for my Two Favorite LSSs!

2007-06-10T21:13:00.000-04:00

First of all, two posts in one day?!! Unbelievable! See the first one (below) for my tagging, hee hee.

It's official, I am now an instructor for my two favorite local scrapbook stores, Lasting Memories and Express Yourself. What an exciting opportunity!

Look for me to post my upcoming projects here. I plan to teach one class a month at Lasting Memories in Mahopac, NY and am making plans to teach at Express Yourself in Bethel, CT (watch for my Heritage Layout class scheduled for September).

Thanks for allowing me to share my excitement! :)

Tagged by the Lovely Edith/ Scenes from our Soccer Tournament in Wilton, CT

2007-06-10T18:36:00.000-04:00

OK, so I've been tagged by my friend Edith. We used to work together a long time ago in a local hospital pharmacy. We were recently reunited when I took up scrapping and starting hanging out at Express Yourself, one of my LSSs. I had no idea, at that time, that Edith was such a talented artist...check out her work!

Anyway, here are the rules.... each player starts with 7 random fact about themselves on their Blog. People who are tagged need to blog 7 facts about themselves and post the rules as well. At the end of their blog list 7 people you are tagging. Let them know that they are tagged by leaving them a comment.

1. I'm a "reality" (yea, right) TV junkie! Embarrassing to admit, since I'm supposedly a smart girl, but it's a fun way for me to decompress. I love watching the social dynamics of these shows. Survivor, The Amazing Race, Big Brother...I love them all!

2. I'm a freak with the calendar. I remember birthdays like crazy (yes, Edith, I even remember your July 31 birthday, LOL). It's a curse. I remember other dates, as well. I'm also good at calculating what day of the week a particular date fell on. The way I see the calendar in my mind's eye is strange. It is a continuous oblong, almost racetrack shape. Apparently, your average person just sees a calendar. Go figure! :)

3. I'm really bad with "left" and "right". Not that I don't know which is which, but it takes me a few seconds to process. I think it's because I'm ambidextrous and think well with both sides of the brain...that's why I get confused...there is no real dominance. I'm such a freak, LOL!

4. At 37, I'm still not a big fan of veggies! My children like vegetables better than I do, thank goodness! I really try, but it's hard to learn to love them. At the cafeteria at work, when they load my plate up with a huge serving, I think to myself, "What are you trying to kill me with all of that healthy stuff?" Shameful, I know, but I'm getting better.

5. Speaking of age, inside my head, I still see myself as very young. When I stop to think about my age, it saddens me that I'm no longer a "Spring chicken". *sigh* How did THAT happen?!!

6. After having children and changing diapers and cleaning spit-up, I can talk about ANYTHING while eating and not lose my appetite! I must be mindful of that when talking to others while they are eating, LOL!

7. I'm currently suffering from a serious case of "Be Careful What You Wish For". Now that things are starting to come together quickly for my part-time scrapping career, I'm scared to death! How can I possibly juggle the demands of a full-time career, husband and two very active girls, my being active in the girls' sports (I sit on the Soccer Club board now), serving on a design team, teaching in two LSSs, and just having fun with my scrapping? It' positively terrifying and I hope I can do it all and still manage to have fun.

Let's see...who do I tag? How about:
Rhi,
Janette,
Jenny,
Kristi,
Anushka,
Lucy, and
Stephanie

So this weekend we all went to the Wilton Soccer Tournament to watch Alex's U11 DI and Samantha's U10 DI teams play. Boy was it exciting!

Samantha's team record:
BROOKFIELD : Fairfield, 4:0
BROOKFIELD : Wilton, 4:0
Brookfield : BETHEL, 2:3
BROOKFIELD : Ridgefield, 4:1

Boy, did their team do great!!!

Alex's team record:
Brookfield : GLASTONBURY HEARTWELL, 0:2
Brookfield : WILTON, 0:1
BROOKFIELD : New Canaan, 4:3
Brookfield : WALLINGFORD, 3:4

Now before you feel sorry for the girls for only winning one game, you have to realize that they had NO SUBS for any game and even played short one player for three of the games, including the game that they won!!! Five of the fifteen teammates were injured and couldn't play...a regular infirmary!!!

The highlight of the whole tournament was when Alex did a front handspring throw in and her teammate scored from her throw in! The crowd went wild! Alex's coach had told her that she could show off her special talent during the last game of the season. The referee told her, "no...it's a throw in" when it looked like she was going to put the ball down to kick it. She coyly looked at him and said, "I know". He applauded her throw in and said that it was perfectly legal! The fact that a score came of it, was incredible. I tell you, the planets were in perfect alignment for that one!!!

Here are some of my favorite pictures...I hope that you enjoy them:

New Banner by Rhi / I love American Crafts

2007-06-04T17:13:00.000-04:00

Look at the SUPER banner that my friend, Rhi, made for me? Isn't it the coolest? I didn't tell her anything...I just left the design up to her and she chose colors that are so ME and a fabulous circular design! So cool! Thank you, Rhi!!! You're such an awesome friend! xxx

I am so loving what American Crafts has been putting out lately! From the Thickers to the Typehouse and Greenhouse shapes to the gorgeous paper designs, everything is just so beautiful and begs to be played with!

Here is a layout that I created using mostly American Crafts products:

Thanks for looking! :)

My Baby is Turning 10 in a Few Days!!! Check out the Special Book I Made Her

2007-05-26T20:17:00.000-04:00

I can't believe that my baby is turning 10 years old on May 30th! My two girls are now both in double digits and officially in their tween years. We're ready to ride that rollercoaster together!!!
I made this mini book for Samantha for her birthday. I included pictures of all the many things that she is to us and to everyone around her. I can't wait to show her on Wednesday! I'm going to give you all a sneak peek now:

Thank you for looking! :)

Road Trip to CKC Manchester!!! -- We are truly NUTS!!!

2007-05-19T20:03:00.000-04:00

Wow...I'm pretty tired!!! It all started yesterday when Jenn Henry and I went to a six hour crop after working all day long! We had a wonderful time and had the opportunity to see a great little LSS called Lasting Memories in Mahopec, NY. Boy, are they stocked with the most current products around!!! Can you say, "kid in a candy store?!!!" We left there at midnight and didn't get home until close to one.

Somehow I managed to appeal to Jenn's crazy impulsive side and got her to agree to go to CKC Manchester with me early this morning! We were on the road before 6:30 am! We then set out to pick up my dear friend, Doris, who had agreed last week to go on my little pilgrimage to CKC. I was so exhausted that she had to drive the second leg of our 4 hour trip!

To say that Jenn and I perked up when we got to CKC is an understatement! We were dazzled everywhere we went by beautiful, BEAUTIFUL product! "Hello, our names are Jenn and Amy and we are scrapaholics!"

Here are some scenes from our adventure:
These girls are the best!!! They endured fatigue, a 4-hour car ride, and rain to travel with me to CKC!

Judging from their smiles, I'm thinking that they had a great time!

What a treat!!! I got to meet a fellow Pink Lady, Jenny Lilac! She's super nice and it was so exciting to meet her! We live close enough that I have no doubt that we'll meet again. :)

I also got to meet a scrapping superstar, Karen Burniston! I have always enjoyed and admired her style. What a wonderful delight it was to meet her!

Doris admiring the beautiful ribbons!

Jenn with a look of love in her eye as she shops at one of her favorite online stores. <333

Anyone know of a good 12 Step program? My beautiful array of great scrapping finds...

My cute bag from ScrapDaddy.com and my new scrapping t-shirt. Jenn has a matching t-shirt. Won't we just be the cutest croppers?!!

So that was our adventure at CKC Manchester. I have no doubt that we will want to return again next year. I think we'll plan to get some extra sleep, though, before making the trip!!!

So much to do; so little time!

2007-05-17T05:24:00.000-04:00

I have so many projects that I want to work on, but so little time! I have four calls that I want to submit to, but they're all due the end of May/beginning of June...YIKES! That means I have to come up with some creative ideas FAST!

What inspires you? How do you groom yourself to come up with ideas fast? I'd LOVE to know! :)

Happy Mother's Day/ More DT Pretties...These ones feature Samantha

2007-05-13T20:37:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day! I hope that everyone had a lovely day. I did. Got to sleep a little later; enjoyed two soccer games in beautiful weather. Alex's team won a very good game. I watched Samantha's team as well...they won, but Samantha is still benched with her dislocated elbow. Everyone is itching to get her back into the game!

I made two more design team projects for Scraptalk.com.

This one is made from the beautiful Crate Papers they sent me:

This is another layout made from the gorgeous Anna Griffin line...I'm so loving the pink and blank combination:

Thank you for looking! Enjoy the rest of your Mother's Day. :)

Gift album for my grandmother: DT project for Scraptalk.com

2007-05-12T15:26:00.000-04:00

I had fun making this gift album for my grandmother as a Mother's Day present. This also served as a design team project for Scraptalk.com, because I used the beautiful papers from the Creative Imaginations Art Warehouse Fresh Collection.

The idea of using the 8" chipboard flowers (Making Memories) as an album was inspired by Wendy Malichio...such a cute idea! This is what I came up with:

Thank you for looking! :)

My first Design Team projects ever for Scraptalk.com

2007-05-11T21:51:00.000-04:00

I'm having so much fun designing for Scraptalk.com. It's just the coolest to receive products from the newest lines...to be asked to create pages, cards, or altered items from them...Just so cool! I find that it really exercises my creativity. It's also so much fun to see what my fellow Pink Ladies are designing using the same products. We all come up with so many different looks!

Here are my first two projects ever.
From the beautiful Anna Griffin collection:

From Creative Imaginations Art Warehouse Fresh Collection...so much fun to play with:

It's hard to see in this picture, but I printed out two photos and cut out Alex and the tree from one of them, overlaid it on top of the remaining photo, and popped it up with dimensional dots.
Thank you for looking! :)

Tagged to post Trash pictures!!!

2007-05-09T20:21:00.000-04:00

Rhi tagged me (or I tagged myself, since she tagged anyone who responded to her posting...) to post trash photos. Have I got the PERFECT photos for you, Rhi!!!

Drumroll, please:

What were you expecting? Naughty, naughty!!!

I'm back from my Scrapbooking Retreat!!!

2007-05-06T19:58:00.000-04:00

What a wonderful time we had at the Memory Muses retreat at the Dolce Norwalk!!! I went with Jenn Henry and Anne Densk...we represented our favorite LSS, Express Yourself...Pat, you would have been proud of us!!! We got a lot done! Here are a couple pictures of the fun we had:
Pajama night on Friday!
Relaxing at the bar on Cinco de Mayo.

The weekend was not without drama, however. I got a phone call from a parent telling my that Samantha had been over their house for a playdate on Saturday and was taken to the hospital in an ambulance for a dislocated elbow. Apparently, the parents had stepped out to go to the store and Samantha and her friend (both only 10) decided it would be fun to jump off of a 6ft high sloped portion of a roof onto a trampoline! I was terrified to hear this!!! Samantha was VERY lucky that all she got was a dislocated elbow. It could have been so much worse...don't even want to think about it. The pain that she is feeling is punishment enough for her. No soccer or cheer for her for at least three weeks. And no more going over to that friend's house!!!

Despite the ordeal, I managed to be super productive and completed 12 projects!!! Here are the 11 projects I can share with you:

Thank you so much, Jenn and Anne, for going with me! We had such a wonderful time and are so looking forward to our next retreat together. Lasting Memories in July...here we come!!!