Scraps By Erin

Sunday Night Chit Chat

2012-02-12T21:31:00.002-05:00

Again, I skipped last week (Yay! Giants won the Superbowl!!!), but I'm back again this week with Carla's Sunday Night Chit Chat.

First things first, starting off with a picture. Gotta start it off with Eli Manning, the Superbowl MVP!

Reading? A scoring guide for a standardized test. It's ok to be jealous. ;-)

Watching? Does my computer screen count? Too much work to do to be watching anything.

Listening to? The hubby is watching something on his computer so I am hearing that music in the background.

Cooking/Baking? I think I let you all in on a little secret 2 weeks ago that I stay out of the kitchen AT ALL COST! I did make myself a caramel brulee latte using my espresso machine not to long ago. Does that count?

Happy you accomplished this week? LOTS of laundry, including washing and hanging up most of Liam's 18 month clothes and putting his 9 month clothes in a basket. I just need to fold all of the 9 month clothes and put them away. And yes, I know he isn't even a year old and will be in 12 month stuff for a while, but a friend gave me more clothes than I know what to do with. So it's just easier to hang them up instead of putting them in a bin that I have to find later when it's time for him to wear them.

Looking forward to next week? FRIDAY! We are going to have professional 1 year pictures taken of Liam and it's my last day of work before a week long break!

Thankful for today? I'm feeling very thankful for my family. Liam hasn't been feeling well so we took him to a walk in clinic today. He hasn't had an appetite and kept tugging at his ear, so we assumed ear infection. Long story short, no infection, but the doctor was worried about his color and has ordered bloodwork to check liver functions, for mono, and jaundice levels. He said it's most likely nothing and could be just a virus, but it's a mother's job to worry so worrying is what I'm doing. I'm thankful for my family, especially my hubby who are trying to reassure me that my little boy is alright.

Hope everyone has a good Monday!

Decluttering Challenge Week 2

2012-02-11T08:07:00.004-05:00

This week over at Carla's, the challenge was to declutter a family space. If you remember my first post with all of the challenges listed, I was focusing on my basement for the whole month. Even with these 4 challenges, there are still things to focus on (clothes bins, other storage totes, going through stuff from college). Despite the seemingly endless list of things to do down in the basement, I did get week 2 complete (and ahead of schedule too!).

Just to remind everyone, here is the before picture again. In all fairness, it really wasn't as bad as it looked. The drying rack was actually over out of the way, but we had already started moving some stuff to prepare for painting the floor. As you can see, it was still quite messy and the floor was gross!

And now onto the afters:

This one is taken from the same angle as the before picture. We flipped the couch and futon around, put a slip cover on the futon, and we angled the futon towards the TV and projector. You can also see the drying rack is way out of the way now over by the washer and dryer. Hmm, imagine that, a drying rack over by the laundry!

This is looking at it from behind the family area (where the mess of garage sale stuff was). Josh has all of his gun and golf supplies and they are neatly organized. (And before I get questions, the guns are kept in a locked gun closet, are not loaded, and the ammunition is kept somewhere else...we take gun safety VERY seriously!)

This shot was taken from over by the futon. We have the snack center with the mini fridge and microwave, a little entertainment center, our US flag, and the Giants flag. We have also added a little kitchen cart under the US flag that we keep plates and things on to complete the snack center.

Last picture, you can see our projector screen, the TV next to it (for the months when football and baseball overlap and we need to watch the Yankees and Giants!)

What you don't see in the pictures: We hung a dart board to the left of the TV and have been down there at least a few times a week playing, Josh has sports shirts hung all around the perimeter of the space. What you can see if that the floor looks a TON better...even though the pictures don't do it justice!

We aren't sure if we are going to leave the floors like it is or put carpet or laminate floors in there. Josh is also building a coffee table out of broken hockey sticks to put in front of the couch that I think will really add to the family area/man cave feel. Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!

Decluttering Challenge Week 1

2012-02-07T19:57:00.005-05:00

I am back with the after pictures for Carla's Week 1 Decluttering Challenge: Personal Space. I will show you the before picture, and then a few after pictures.

Here is the before picture:

And here are the after pictures:

Looking into my scrapbook/craft room. The hubby had just taken this set of shelves out of a pantry in the kitchen and to give me some more storage if needed he hung them up in this little spot. It fits great! No idea what to put on it yet, but I'm sure I'll thinking of something.

This is the same angle as the before picture. I decided to move the shelving system to the opposite wall and now this area is home to the kitties. We have the cat litter box, cat litter containers, and you can't see it, but a nice 3 shelved thing to hold wet food, dry food, and extra dishes.

This is where I moved the storage shelves to. They now hold cleaning supplies, office supplies, and some other things.

What do you think? I am so pleased with the outcome! Thanks for looking!

Another layout

2012-01-30T20:11:00.003-05:00

I have one more layout to show you from my scrappin' time this weekend. It is based off of a sketch at Boy's Rule Scrapbook Kits. I also used the November kit from Boy's Rule to complete the layout.

A close up of the staples, brads, and burlap.

A close up to show the dimension of the banner and the Tim Holtz tickets. (LOVE those things!)

Thanks for looking!

Sunday Night Chit Chat

2012-01-29T21:34:00.003-05:00

I skipped last week, but I am procrastinating so I decided to join up again this week. You are supposed to start with a picture. Here is a picture of me during the summer of 2010. I was on vacation in Punta Cana. I miss warm weather and sunshine. I am totally not a winter person, which when living in upstate NY is not good. I guess I just like money more than sunshine because the hubby and I have talked about moving south and we would both lose our retirements if we did. :-(

Anyway, on to the rest:

What are you…

Reading? IEPs. Fun, huh? I even had a snow day on Friday to get these progress reports done, but I have been procrastinating big time. So here I sit on Sunday night when I should be going to bed, but working on those instead.

Watching? Nothing

Listening to? Josh has the TV on in the bedroom. Not sure what he is watching. Football? Sunday night cartoons?

Cooking/Baking? Nothing. I will let you all in on a little secret. I HATE the kitchen. I hate cooking, I hate dishes. I don't mind baking, but then Josh just tries to "help" (he can't stand having someone else is his kitchen) so I just give up and let him do it.

Happy you accomplished this week? Scrapbooking. I have been in a rut lately and haven't made enough time for me. I want to scrap, but by the time Liam goes to bed and I get everything done that I feel need to get done, I'm too tired for me. So I took 2 nights this week and did what I wanted to do rather than what I thought I should do.

Looking forward to next week? Not sure. More scrapping time? Progress reports being done? Definitely the Superbowl on Sunday and having some people over for that!

Thankful for today? Great friends. I went to go see a friend and her baby today who I haven't seen in almost 4 months. I went with another friend of mine. It was nice to be able to see her, meet her little guy, and just be yourself.

Thanks for reading and have a great Monday!

February Declutter Challenge

2012-01-29T08:59:00.003-05:00

If you missed my post from earlier, Carla over at My 1/2 Dozen Daily is doing both a decluttering challenge and a low (no) spend challenge. I haven't had time to sit done with my budget yet, but I have some pictures and details for the decluttering challenge. Here are the details of what's involved:

Week 1: Personal Space Challenge

Week 2: Family Space Challenge

Week 3: Productivity Challenge

Week 4: The "Dreaded" Challenge

I hope I'm not cheating,but I'm combining them. Our basement is a disaster! My scrapbook room is down there and I am not motivated to go someplace to scrap that is a complete mess (the basement, not my room) and not a functional family space. So here is the plan of attack, I am combining all the challenges and hubby and I are going to get the basement under control. It won't get completely finished because we have to finish the bathroom that we gutted, put carpet in one area, and put cheap tile in another area. Although we have the supplies for the bathroom already, it is too much to add to this challenge.

Anyway, here are pictures with some details.

Week 1: Personal Space. This is what I am counting for my personal space challenge. This area is right outside my scrapbook room and I am sick of walking past a mess to gointo my room. I also want something more functional for additional storage if I need it.

Week 2: Family Space. This is the family space. I want a more functioning space sothat Josh and Liam can come down into the basement and play or watch TV while I am scrapping. I am totally a social scrapper so I get bored and lonely sometimes when I am down there alone. This is the area we are eventually putting carpeting into, but I doubt that will be this month. It just needs to be cleaner, more organized, and less cluttered before it can be used better.

Week 3: Productivity Challenge This is the garage sale stuff. It is unorganized, messy, and I have no idea what is there. My goal is to get it organized and ready to go once spring hits. I will count this as my productivity challenge because it is productive to get things ready to sell and make money. (Luna wanted to be in the picture.)

Week 4: The Dreaded Challenge This is definitely the dreaded challenge. Josh's "office" space is the catch all. If we don't know where something "fits" but it's important enough to be saved, it gets piled on Josh's desk or the dresser next to it.

Since the first of February falls on a Wednesday I will be doing the challenges Wednesday to Wednesday. Again, it may have bitten off more than I could chew, but we shall see. Luckily, I don't have too much going on at work this month so I won't have to worry about that. I will be busy planning Liam's first birthday party (first weekend in March), but I think I have a good handle on that. OK, a demanding almost 11 month old is calling for my attention, so I better go. Have a great day!

I heart challenges

2012-01-28T23:07:00.005-05:00

As all of my friends that I scrapbook with know, I love challenges! I use sketches for my layouts a good 95% of the time and if I can combine that with another challenge, that's great. For this layout I used a sketch from Elle's Studio and combined it with the Weekend Warm Up at ScrapFIT. The challenge there was to use Kraft cardstock on your layout. Anyway, here is my creation.

I used Kraft cardstock for the strip of paper on the left of the layout and the journaling strips.

Here is a closeup pic of the stars on the bottom and the journaling strips on the bottom.

Thanks for looking!

Why not make life crazier...

2012-01-24T21:04:00.005-05:00

OK, as if I don't have enough to do between my full time teaching job, my part time tutoring job, being a mom and wife, and being me, I have decided to take part in Carla's challenges over at My Half Dozen Daily. I'm not 100% sure if I am doing both, just one, or maybe I'll decide it's just not possible to do either. But I'm going to try! So excuse the break from crafting (I'll still post some projects and layouts), and enjoy my journey through the month of February. I'll be back later with some specific goals once I learn more about the challenges.

Winter Wreath Project

2012-01-19T22:04:00.003-05:00

I have another quick and simple project to share today. I had made a Christmas wreath, but I figured it had to come down with the rest of the Christmas decorations. I didn't have another wreath to put up, so it was time I made one! I started with a basic styrofoam wreath frame that I picked up at a craft store. I also got some pretty blue yarn that I thought worked well for winter. I wrapped and wrapped and wrapped until the whole wreath was covered. I liked the effect, but I didn't love it, so I took some pretty silver ribbon and wrapped it around as well. For the sign I stole a piece of luan from my hubby's scrap pile in the garage, covered it with some Fancy Pants Arctic Chill paper, and used Stickles for the lettering. Adhere a snowflake, and you're good to go! (For the record, I HATE snow, but didn't know what else to write on the wreath, so I chose that. :-))

Menu planning project

2012-01-16T22:47:00.004-05:00

Hello blog land! Happy Monday night (and Martin Luther King Day). I had an unexpected 5 day weekend, which was great, but unfortunately I spent a large majority of it cleaning. It's not that I necessarily like to clean, but I LOVE having everything clean and organized and in its place. Josh said to me yesterday (as he walked in on me washing the inside of the dishwasher), "Ya know, hunny. People actually live here. It's never going to be as clean as you want it to be." What a wise man I married. The truth is, I don't think I will ever be as clean or organized as I want to be. There is always going to be that stray dust bunny or piece of fuzz. There is always going to be a more stuff to organize and a better way to organize. But, you do what you can. And part of doing what you can, is the adorable menu planning/calendar project.

First, I ordered a 16x20 frame off of Joann.com (Super clearance and free shipping.) Next, I sucked it up and paid the $2.00 extra and bought one at Walmart when the one from Joann's arrived in a million pieces. :-( I thought this whole next part was going to take forever and be awful, but it really wasn't. I cut out a few different sized squares to see which would best fit using my Cricut and vinyl. (Unfortunately, I don't remember which cartridge or what size I used.) Once I figured out what size I wanted, I cut the rest of the squares and letters out. I laid the glass piece on my scrapbook cutting mat. This has .5 inch grid marks and was REALLY helpful in figuring out spacing. I adhered all of the vinyl on the glass, but I had to do it backwards if that makes sense. I wanted the vinyl to be on the inside of my frame, so everything had to be reversed. After getting all the vinyl on, I put the glass piece back into the frame, adhered some burlap to the frame (gorilla glue, hot glue, staple gun...can't really remember which), and put the backing back on.

I wouldn't recommend using the calendar as your main calendar for a big family. We only have 3 people, and let's face it, a 10 month old doesn't have a hoppin' social life, so it works for us for now. The menu planning forces us to menu plan every week because I would be so embarrassed if company came over and found it blank. Whether we always stick with what is planned is another story. ;-)

Thanks for stopping by!

Sunday Night Chit Chat

2012-01-15T18:20:00.004-05:00

Still no projects to show. :-( The flu hit hubby, so taking care of a baby, taking care of hubby, and trying to clean/sanitize everything didn't leave much room for crafting. Anyway, I had a quick minute while hubby is giving Liam his bath, so I thought I would participate in Carla's Sunday Night Chit Chat. Here it is:

What are you…

Reading? I just finished reading Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris. Haven't figured out what to read next because I have just been reading the Stackhouse series for SO long. Any suggestions?

Watching? The Giants game. (Go G-men!)

Listening to? Nothing at the moment, but I LOVE the Adele station on Pandora when I'm cleaning or scrappin'.

Cooking/Baking? Baby food, baby food, and more baby food. I take the all natural approach to raising Liam and he has only had formula once, we use cloth diapers, and he has never had bottled/canned baby food. We ran out of green so I believe green beans and peas are on the agenda, as well as sweet potatoes, squash, and applesauce.

Happy you accomplished this week? Cleaning! Josh getting sick forced me to do a thorough cleaning and with the 2 snow days turning this into a 5 day weekend, I've had more time than usual. I still need to get Liam's room, living room, and dining room, but the rest of the upstairs is completely clean. I sometimes go a little too far with cleaning, so it takes me awhile. Examples: yesterday I steam mopped the mattress, today I cleaned the inside of the dishwasher. I have also been knows to dust/lysol shoes before too.

Looking forward to next week? Scrapbooking with friends on Saturday and then having a triple date with other friends at one of my favorite restaurants that night.

Thankful for today? Josh feeling better and my infection clearing up and not having to have surgery to drain the infected area!

Well, I better get going. Liam is out of the tub so I gotta get pajamas ready and get the cloth diapers in the wash. Have a great night everyone!

Quick post

2012-01-11T15:31:00.002-05:00

I have tons of projects I want to show you, but unfortunately I am dealing with a fever and infection. :-( So I am not feeling up to showing projects right now. Hopefully I'll be back soon.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T11:23:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and enjoys their time with friends and family. I am a very lucky girl and have an amazing husband, wonderful son, and so many other great family and friends who care and love me. I am so blessed and fortunate to live this life!

One sketch, two layouts

2011-12-02T19:32:00.005-05:00

Tonight I wanted to share two layouts that you have already seen, but I wanted to show you how I was able to take one sketch, and make the layouts very different.

First, the sketch: (Courtesy of Keri from Sweet Peach.)

Next, the first layout I did using it:

As you can see, instead of doing the vertical pictures because I didn't have any I wanted to use, I chose to use horizontal pictures. I also didn't use the 6 pictures that the sketch called for, instead using only 3 and incorporating my journaling into the other three picture boxes. Everything else I kept almost the same except for the circles on the top and I used more than 5 circles on the side.

Now, onto the second layout:

If you recall from my post with this sketch, I completed this at a scrapbook retreat for a sketch challenge. This is a hard sketch to do when you aren't prepared with the proper pictures. So if pictures of meat work for the sketch and that's how you earn tickets, well, then that's what you gotta do! I did use vertical pictures for this sketch, and used 5 pictures, but still left room in that last spot for some journaling. I also changed the top and side from the original layout.

I hope this post has showed you the different ways you can go with a layout all while using the same sketch. I often use a sketch only once and then forget about it, but it may not hurt to hang out to them and whip the same one back out when looking for some inspiration.

I'm off to go pack for a scrapbook day tomorrow, so I should be back Sunday or Monday with something to show you. Have a great weekend!

Swoon!

2011-11-30T21:48:00.002-05:00

I finally finished a page that I had started at a scrapbook retreat I went to in October. It was part of a 1 page layout class and they provided the supplies and the general "gist" of the page, but it was up to you to play around with some of the key elements such as title, embellishment, etc... I have to say, I am so pleased with how the layout turned out. The picture was taken by Carey White. She did an amazing job with Liam's 6 month pictures and some family pictures. The picture is my favorite part of the whole layout. So without further ado, here ya go!

Thanks for looking and have a great night!

Oops

2011-11-29T16:19:00.002-05:00

Please excuse the mess that is my blog while I work on it. I forgot that some of what I put on it was a custom designed image, so I went to change the background, but will need my husband to help with the other stuff. I know it is UGLY and very mismatched right now, but I'm working on it!

Sketchy Thursday

2011-11-28T22:54:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I went and had Thanksgiving dinner with my family for the first time in 5 or 6 years. Josh has always been on call, so we haven't been able to get down there for Turkey Day. It was nice to spend it with them, and it was special to have our first Thanksgiving as a family of 3. Being in a bigger city for all of the Black Friday sales was nice too. ;-)

Anyway, here is my take on the latest Sketchy Thursday sketch. This sketch brought me way outside of my comfort zone! I had started it last week, and just couldn't get inspired so I tried waiting. Then I got back to it tonight, and actually stopped to look at other sketches to see if what I had started would work with any of them. Finally I sucked it up, kept playing around with different things, and actually came up with an endresult that I LOVE! Many of the products I used were from the November Boys Rule Scrapbook Kit. This is the other kit club that I was talking about in one of my last posts. Having a little boy to scrapbook can be hard, especially in a scrapbook world of flowers and other girly embellishments. I also am not into the typical "boy" products of transportation and sports. This is where Laura Lee comes in. She creates a kit each month filled with amazing boy products!

Thanks for looking!

Giveaway alert!

2011-11-21T21:45:00.002-05:00

I know I don't have many readers...is anyone out there? But I did want to advertise a giveaway for my friend Sara over at Scrap Fit. All you have to do is go and comment on the post...easy enough, right? While you're over there, you should follow her blog too. They do great challenges and have a lot of fun!

Back to back posts?

2011-11-21T10:00:00.001-05:00

Yes, blog readers, that's right. I'm back with another post. This is a layout that I finished this past week for the current sketch challenge at Sweet Peach. I have been loving them lately. Their sketches, their kits, everything. And Corrie from Sweet Peach is so friendly and so prompt about answering e-mails. When I made the decision to order from a kit club, I searched and searched for the right one, but kept coming back to Sweet Peach. I have found another kit club that I am loving and considering about subscribing to as well, but more on that in another post.

I used some Glimmer Mist to spray on the cardstock, and of course I had to distress a little bit using my Tim Holtz distress ink. All of the papers (and most of the embellishments) came from the Sweet Peach November kit. I fell in love with the Pebbles Masking Tape stickers. They are awesome! I really should take a close up picture of that corner because besides the stickers, I stamped a design on the yellow cardstock piece and pop dotted it. I also loved the pink woodgrain paper in this kit. I am not normally a wood grain or girly girl type person, but the instant I saw that paper I knew I had to use it. This picture of me being silly at the pumpkin farm was perfect. (And in case you are wondering what I am wearing, it's the Boba carrier for my son. He was teething and the next day spiked a fever so he was not having the carrier!)

Bad blogger!

2011-11-20T21:41:00.003-05:00

I am really awful at this whole blogging this. First, it was because I wasn't scrapping much. I went through a phase where I didn't like anything I made and I was comparing everything I was creating against my friends. And I happen to scrap with some pretty awesome scrappers, so I was in a scrappin' funk! Then I was scrapping more, butI haven't had the time (read: too lazy) to take pictures or upload them.

I have also been adjusting to my new life of full time working momma. And it's hard! I am still trying to figure out how to balance work, a baby, a husband, and the house. I feel like I am usually behind in one or more areas of my life and am always playing catch up. But, I am learning that it's all about priorities. And I need to make myself, Liam, and Josh my priorities. So I am vowing to take more time for myself to scrap and update my blog. With that said, here we go:

This is based off of a sketch from Sweet Peach. It was for a sketch challenge at a retreat I went to back in the middle of October. All of my friends were teasing me that I was scrapping pictures of meat when I should be scrapping a baby, but this was a hard sketch! I didn't have any other pictures I could use for the sketch besides these. And sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do when presented with a challenge. I especially love the title. The border says delicious and then the sticker at the end says meat. I may not have won the challenge, but it still made for a funny afternoon!

This one is loosely based off of an October Afternoon sketch. I flipped it on its side and rearranged a little bit, but I LOVE it! I have really been into to distressed look lately so I used a file to go around the edges and then took some Distress Ink to it. I Glimmer Misted the raw chipboard and also pop dotted the three rectangles, but you can't really tell.

Thanks for looking and have a great night!

giveaway alert!

2011-07-21T19:54:00.001-04:00

Go to Amy Cornwell's blog, for a chance to win one of 4 amazing prizes! I just love her jewelry...it is all so gorgeous!

Sweet Peach Sketch

2011-07-19T22:54:00.006-04:00

I know it's been a while since I've blogged. Having a baby, working full time, and trying to redecorate your house (while being too cheap to buy decorations, etc I can make on my own) will do that to you. However, when I saw this sketch from Sweet Peach, I knew I had to try it. I used their fabulous July Sweet Featured Kit and came up with this layout about my son and one of my cats (or should I say his cat...) The journaling is a little hard to read, but it says "Although none of the cats seem to mind the new addition to the family, Mulligan has taken a definite interest in Liam. He always wants to cuddle with him, seems worried when he cries, and wanders around looking for him when he's not home. Whether he likes it or not, Liam has himself his first pet."

Thanks for looking!

White core cardstock

2010-09-14T19:21:00.004-04:00

Sorry this post is late, back to school and being pregnant has zapped all my energy and time! Anyway, last week at Practical Scrappers was to use white or color core cardstock. I don't think I even realized that color core cardstock existed. I need to get me some! Imagine the possibilities with one color on the outside, and a different color on the inside! Anyway, I do have lots of white core cardstock, which is great for any type of distressing. For this layout, I sanded the frame around the picture to allow the white to show and then I ripped and sanded the pieces of paper behind the picture. Thanks for looking!

The quote is by Abraham Lincoln and says "And in the end, it's not the years in your life that counts. It's the life in your years."

white pen

2010-09-03T09:12:00.003-04:00

This week at Practical Scrappers, we had to use our white pens. I don't know about you, but I LOVE my white pen. I use the Signo uni-ball gel pen, and they are fantastic! I love using it for fake stitching, doodling, and especially journaling. On my layout I chose to use it for my journaling against the dark brown cardstock. Thanks for looking, and be sure to check out Practical Scrappers for other great and creative uses of your white pen from their talented design team.

I should also add that I'm pretty sure this layout came from a sketch, but I can't remember who! I always like to give credit where credit is due, so if you know, please leave a comment. Thanks!

1 layout and a card

2010-08-28T14:43:00.005-04:00

Hey everyone! I hope you are enjoying what is left of summer. The temps in upstate NY had started to drop, but this week they are back in the mid to upper 80s. Just in time for me to go back to school! Anyway, I have one layout and a card to share with you today.

This week at Practical Scrappers, we were challenged to use lace cardstock. Although I have some in my stash, I had never used it and was a little worried to. I instantly knew I wanted to do a card and wanted to use this bright purple (although it looks light in the picture) against black cardstock. The only problem, I could not find any patterned paper that had both black and purple! I knew I had a piece, and I couldn't find it! I finally found it in my scraps folder after almost scrapping the whole idea and changing my mind. I wanted to keep in plain and simple with the pattern from the lace and the stripes in the patterned paper. I stamped the image on black cardstock and then used some rhinestones to bling it up a little.

My layout was for sketch Friday at Practical Scrappers. It's based on a sketch by the talented Pia. The journaling reads, "Josh had the opportunity to play golf at the resort in Punta Cana. Even with rental clubs and flip flops he still managed to shoot an 84. The paper is from a relatively new company, Echo Park...I LOVE their papers. So bright and fun!

Thanks for looking and have a fantastic weekend!

Stitching

2010-08-24T09:29:00.003-04:00

This is a little late since I didn't really have internet access this weekend, but last week at Practical Scrappers, we had to use stitching. I used machine stitching in my layout and a pre-stitched background page. The sketch is from Julie Bonner. Thanks for looking!

Summer Lovin'

2010-08-13T07:29:00.004-04:00

This week at Practical Scrappers, we were challenged to use summer themed products. Surprisingly, I had quite a lot in my stash, but none had just the right amount of "summer" in them. I wanted the summer theme to pop out at you, I wanted more than just bright colors. In the end, I decided on using the Sun Kissed collection from Bo Bunny. I LOVE me so Bo Bunny and this collection was perfect for what I wanted. I love the top patterned paper because it definitely screams summer at you. I used my Fiskars border punch, LOTS of buttons (my favorite) and some Stickles to add texture to some of the circles on the bottom patterned paper. The pictures are from Punta Cana. I hope you all like vacation pictures, because you are probably going to be seeing them for a while...hehe. The layout is based on sketch 115 from Creative Scrappers.

Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!

First project for Practical Scrappers

2010-08-06T07:35:00.003-04:00

Happy Friday everyone! This morning I have my first project for the Practical Scrappers Design Team to show you. This week they are celebrating their first anniversary so they are doing a special challenge each day and they are also having a great online crop that you can get involved in! The challenge for today was to you "first" in your layout somehow...first birthday, first house, first anniversary, etc... I decided to scrap a picture I have had for about three years of my husband and I with the top layer from our wedding cake. For the layout I used Glimmer Mist (brown, red, and pink colors...can't remember their specific names) and misted it on a piece of white cardstock. I used the Blush collection by Basic Grey for the strips of patterned paper, and then used flowers for the accent corner. I had a really big flower that I wanted to use, but since it was too big, I folded it and half and used buttons and brads to decorate the flowers. I cut out journaling strips on brown cardstock and used my Cricut for the title. It was a pre-designed cut that said "Happy Anniversary" and was fused together. I just cut the Happy off of the top, cut a 1 out and hand-wrote the st. Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!

As promised...

2010-08-01T19:57:00.005-04:00

I'm back with a layout. I'll save the card for tomorrow or Tuesday. Again, I apologize for being so MIA. There has been A LOT going on lately, and unfortunately I can't share it all quite yet...but soon. I will also be posting more regularly starting this week because my Design Team term with Practical Scrappers officially starts this week. I'm SOOOOO excited to be on their DT and am looking forward to the whole experience for the next few months. Anyway, here is the layout.

The journaling reads: "So proud of this guy because he is such a handyman, DIY, fix it yourself type of guy. For example, replacing the whole kitchen sink the day after moving in. 10/10"

I am also linking this up to Bella Blvd. I think it's too late to officially enter the contest, but they haven't picked winners yet, so I figure it doesn't hurt to try. I hope everyone had a great weekend and thanks for looking!

Sorry I've been MIA

2010-07-30T23:15:00.003-04:00

I know I haven't posted in what seems like FOREVER! Between the vacation, getting back into the swing of things at home, company, and having to do some work for well, work, it's been kinda crazy! I promise I will be back this weekend with at least one layout. Maybe even a layout and a card. Hope everyone has been having a great summer!

Still no projects

2010-07-12T17:39:00.002-04:00

I admit it, I've been lazy. Well, not completely, but kinda. I haven't scrapped in a little while, but I promise I'll be back. I have been busy cleaning, packing, a trip down to my parents, and finally, a trip to Punta Cana starting tomorrow. I'll post updates throughout the week with some pictures, but since I'll be out of the country there will definitely be no scrapping until I'm back. Hope everyone is having a great start with their week!

Another quick post

2010-07-07T20:53:00.003-04:00

Still too hot to do much besides try to stay cool in my air-conditioned bedroom, but I do have some blog candy to tell you about. Go to The Purple Pumpkin for a chance to win some gorgeous homemade embellishments...you'll be glad you did!

Exciting news!

2010-07-06T16:07:00.004-04:00

Hello everyone! I have some very exciting news to share with everyone today. After some prompting from my friend, Sara, I decided to apply for the Practical Scrappers Design Team call. Imagine my shock and surprise when I saw this post this morning. Although I usually check my e-mail first thing when I get on the computer in the morning, I had forgotten to this morning so I was quite excited when I clicked on the name Erin and saw it brought me to my blog. I didn't quite believe it at first...haha! I am super excited to be on this DT because they are all about using up the products you have, which is something that all of us as scrappers need to do more often! I may be back with something scrappy a little bit later, but for right now it's too hot to leave the AC of my bedroom. Hope everyone is having a great day!

Short post

2010-07-02T23:34:00.002-04:00

Way too tired to actually type much and it has been a LONG day. This is a layout I did using the Practical Scrappers June sketch and their border punch challenge. I know it's a horrible pic and the journaling is completely blown out, but it will have to do. Thanks for looking!

2 layouts

2010-06-25T18:52:00.004-04:00

Hey everyone! The first day of summer vacation proved to be productive as I did two layouts. They are both sketches from Stuck?!Sketches and I was going to apply for their DT call, but I decided against it. Anyway, here are the layouts, and thanks for looking. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

This layout was the sketch that you had to use if you wanted to apply for their Creative Team, but again, I decided not to. My friend also challenged me to use one of the flowers from the flower swap we did together and create one of my own flowers. The one with all the layers and the button in the middle is the one from the flower swap and then I made the other two. For the blue one, I simple stamped a brown polka dot stamp and then used a small flower from the Making Memories Noteworthy Collection flowers. For the green fabric flower I used a tutorial I found online. It's super simple and I'll share later, but I've gotta run for now!

Quick altered project

2010-06-16T18:46:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone! I just wanted to write a quick post to share an altered project I just finished. I love decorating my scrap room with cute, handmade, crafty projects and I had a big wooden E for my first name that I decided to play with. I had started it a couple months ago, and finally got around to finishing it. I am SO happy with how it turned out! I kept with the theme of my room, which is hot pink and green with accents of white and black. Thanks for looking and I hope you like it!

Sunday

2010-06-13T21:11:00.008-04:00

Like my original title...I just didn't have it in me to try and be creative and you'll see why in a minutes. I have another three in one challenge for you today. I combined the "Exercise Machine" challenge from ScrapFit, Curtain Call Color Challenge #34 from Stampin' With Stacey and the sketch challenge from Sketch Inspiration. Trying to make a layout that combined all of those challenges really zapped me from my creative energy, but it was a great because it forced me to go outside of the comfort zone, especially in regards to what colors I put together.

Here is my layout for the three challenges:

As I already said, the sketch was courtesy of Sketch Inspiration.

The challenge from ScrapFit was the use machines. I used my Cricut to cut the oval, I used a punch to round the corners, and I used my Sizzix to emboss the oval.

And finally, the color challenge was the use whisper white, basic gray, sahara sand, dusty durango, and rich razzleberry from SU. I know that Sahara Sand and Rich Razzleberry were both in colors together, but they were hard to put together in big pieces, so I tried to scale it back with those two. Then Basic Grey and Sahara Sand were hard to put together because I usually don't like grey and beige because they clash, so I picked a darker grey. After pulling out ALL of the cardstock and patterned paper I had in these colors and arranging and rearranging, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.

Thanks for looking and I hope everyone had a great weekend!

To Do

2010-05-23T09:37:00.010-04:00

I LOVE lists, especially to do lists! There is just some strange, triumphant feeling that comes over me whenever I get to cross something off of my to do list. And I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but I am guilty of adding something to my list after it's already finished just so I get the pleasure of crossing it off. I also feel that I work best when I'm held accountable, so I thought I would publish my to do list here. :-) That way you can leave a comment asking if I've gotten something done and if you know me in real life you can text or call me if you want to. So now that I have my caffeine by my side and the music blasting I'm ready to get to work!

- ~~get gas for the car~~

- ~~wash, dry, fold, and put away ALL laundry~~

- ~~unload and load back up the dishwasher~~

- ~~make corrections to one IEP and finish another one~~

- ~~pick up living room~~

- spend some time in my scrap room (both organizing/cleaning and scrapping)

- ~~update my contact information with the National Bone Marrow Donor Program~~

- mow the front yard

Back again with another LO

2010-05-15T21:00:00.002-04:00

Just a quick post today, my scrap room is a mess and I have to get it picked up before the night

is over. This is a layout I did today based on sketch #103 from Creative Scrappers. They have some great sketches and some super talented people designing the sketches and as part of the Design Team! I used October Afternoon paper, the County Fair collection. I LOVE this paper. One of the last times I drove to visit my parents, Josh and I stopped at We B Scrappin so I could pick up some "necessities." When there, I saw the label sheets that went with this set, but they were all sold out of the paper. I searched the internet for months and finally found it at 2Peas. I just knew I had to order it then and there. I'm so glad this paper didn't get away from me. I love the colors, the designs, everything!

Anyway, thanks for looking and I hope you are all having a great weekend!

Is anybody out there?

2010-05-13T21:08:00.005-04:00

I was a little disappointed to come back to my blog today and see that nobody had visited it all week, but that's again. Even if people don't visit, at least I still get to talk...hehe.

Anyway, as promised, I am back again this week, this time with three layouts. They may not be new, new, but they are fairly recent. They are just layouts I had forgotten to take pictures of or layouts I hadn't finished. I'm pretty sure all of the layouts I based on sketches from Julie Bonner, but if I'm wrong and you recognize the sketch, please let me know. I always like to give credit where credit is due.

This first one is a picture of Josh and I down in NYC eating out to celebrate our second wedding anniversary. I did a lollipop flower on this layout and I love how it turned out...although I usually do like how anything turns out once I ink and distress it!

This next one is the layout that I made to display in my scrapbook room on one of the display boards that Creative Memories sells. It matches my room, which is hot pink, lime green, black, and white. It's a picture of Josh and I from hiking last year. I didn't really do anything fancy with this one except I dabbed some Alcohol Inks on the bling to make it fit with the rest of my color scheme.

The last one is one of my most recent favorites. It is a picture of my friend Beth and I at my wedding. She was one of my roommates in college, hence the title Roomies. I did some distressing of the papers by ripping...this is such a cool technique and I love how it came out! I used stickers from Close to My Heart that are white, but you ink over them to get the color you ink, but they have white resist polka dots that stay white. I also made my own flowers and then rubbed clear Stickles on them to cause them to glimmer and shine.

Anyway, thanks for looking and have a great Friday!

Bad blogger, bad!

2010-05-10T19:11:00.003-04:00

OK, so once again a week (well, a little more than a week) has passed and I didn't blog once. :-( I don't even really think I have an excuse. Last week was busy, but in a good way because it made the week fly by. This week I anticipate being less busy, which in a way, makes me sad because I'm worried it won't go by as fast.

I hope everyone had a great weekend, mine definitely was! On Friday I went to a baby shower scrapbook night for one of the regulars of our scrappy group and on Saturday we had a scrapbook day at my friend's house. It made for a weekend full of scrappy goodness. :-) Unfortunately on Saturday I started to feel very congested and by this morning it had moved into my chest leaving me with a lovely sounding cough. I went home from work early and have spent much of the day on the couch or chair.

OK, since I made you sit through all of that, I should at least reward you with two layouts that I did this weekend.

Sketch is by PageMaps:

This layout I did for the NSD All Week Challenge at Scrapbook.com. The challenge was to create a layout that wasn't based on a person or pet. I used pictures of my espresso machine, coffee cup, and espresso and syrup flavors. The journaling reads"

Student: "Mrs. McLear, you should drink coffee every morning."

Me: "Why is that?"

Student: "Because you were in a really good mood today!"

It was at that moment, I knew I was a... caffeine addict.

Sketch is by Creative Scrappers:

I am in love with this layout. I have never used Webster pages before, but I think I am starting to fall in love with them. I used a picture that was of me and my grandfather at my wedding almost 4 years ago. This is the last picture that I have of just me and my grandfather before he passed away. I originally planned on doing a lot of journaling about what he meant to me, etc... but I think the title that I made stand out in the corner of Celebrate Life is perfect. I'll use another picture of my grandfather to document all of my thoughts now that he is gone. I love this layout because I still managed to incorporate bold, bright colors with a very vintage paper.

That's all for now, and I promise I will post again this week!

Quilting is infuriating...

2010-05-02T20:30:00.004-04:00

Or...

I hate my sewing machine

I need to a door to my crafting room

My crafting room is not conducive to quilting

My blog post today could really have many titles. I went to my first ever quilting class yesterday. And let me just say, it's a good thing I teach special ed. and have developed patience otherwise my sewing machine and the fabric I bought would be out in the trash tonight. But with a good teacher and some good friends who have encouraged me to stick with it, I'll give it a little longer. I'm not sure if the sewing machine is the problem, or if it's human error, but the teacher had to come fix my machine about 5 or 6 times yesterday. Apparently it has tension issues....hmm, like sewer, like machine?

Anyway, even though yesterday was National Scrapbook Day and I did participate in lots of challenges at Scrapbook.com. (And even won one...YAHOO!) I don't have anything scrappy to show you. I did submit a layout to them, but it's not quite posting quality yet, so you'll just have to wait! I do have part of the quilt that I'm working on to show you.

You do have to use your imagination a little bit, but the two white points in the center will eventually form a star. Once I have two more blocks done similar to these, I will put them on the bottom to finish the star. That will form 1 unit. Once I have the 1 unit done, I just need to make 29 more...HAHAHA. It's going in my living room so it doesn't have to be perfect, but I do want it to look somewhat decent. Oh well, maybe this quilt will be done by next winter.

I promise I'll try to be better this week about posting throughout the week, but it's a crazy week at school, so no promises. Have a great Monday!

A few cards

2010-04-25T20:57:00.006-04:00

I'm finally back after a week with a few cards to show you. With vacation ending last Monday I think my creative enjoy got sucked away. I attempted the challenge from 365 Cards from Day 50 (Monday) and every time I looked at it, I walked away. Eventually I knew I had to finish it so I could move on. I still hate the card and nothing worked right with it, but it's finished and I can put it at the bottom of my pile...hehe. Anyway, here are Days 50, 51, 53, 54, and 56. I didn't do all 7 days like last week, but 5 out of 7 isn't bad since I re-entered the real world. Hope everyone had a great weekend and you are prepared for Monday.

Day 50: Digging Deep...the card I HATE! Must use:

1) An item that is more than a year old (the white embroidery thread)
2) Something that you were given that you have never used - this could be from a swap or a gift, but it has to have come from someone else. (the patterned paper)

3) Something you forgot you had.(the cardstock...got it from my scraps folder)

Day 51: Use red, stamp, and alpha stickers. Again, not my favorite by any means, but my mojo was lacking at the beginning of the week!

Day 53: Decorate the front, inside, and back of the card. I thought this would best be done by making a gate fold card. I didn't take a picture of the inside, but you can see the paper and there is a stamped sentiment.

Day 54: Joy-fold Card. I LOVE this card. It looks so complicated, but it's so easy and the result is so pretty. I will definitely be making this card more often!

Day 55: Sketch Sunday. I think this card came out pretty cute and it seriously only took me like 10 minutes from start to finish, which is pretty quick for me.

Thanks for looking!

365Cards-Day49

2010-04-18T21:37:00.002-04:00

Just a quick post today...hubby is giving me the side eye from across the room as it's supposed to be movie time and I'm typing away on the computer. It's been a BUSY weekend, but I still had time to make the card based off of Sketch Sunday. I think it's pretty cute, and I love the strip of paper that says "I am blessed..." It makes it a great multi occasion card because I could put almost anything inside such as "...to have a husband/friend/sister/parent like you." Hope everyone had a great weekend!

365Cards-Day48

2010-04-17T16:20:00.003-04:00

Today is the last day of white space challenges. Yay! But at the same time, I usually rely on sketches, so I just have to get my creative energy ready for the challenge of having to come up with the sketch on my own again. I took the liberty of changing the sketch a little bit because I didn't want to put arrows on my card. So I used my scallop square punch from SU! and of course stamps from The {Stamps} of Life. I once again forced myself to go through my old paper instead of using something new. It's fun to look through old paper because you fall in love with stuff all over again. I even pulled out some and set it aside to use soon on a layout or two! At first I was thinking it would be a good card to send to a man because of the masculine colors, but then I just had to use the flower stamps, so I'm not sure who to send it to. I'll just add it to my ever growing pile and pull it out someday.

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far. Mine has been good, but busy! I washed, dried, folded, and put away 5 loads of laundry, changed the sheets on the bed, went through the hubby's dresser drawers to sort, organize, refold, and toss some stuff, then went through all of my new and old shoes and organized them. I'm hoping the productivity continues and I'll have motivation to keep working in my craft room. Well, I'm off. I'll be back tomorrow with another card!

365Cards-Day47

2010-04-16T20:38:00.004-04:00

The card I made for today's white space challenge may be considered cheating because I used a very pretty, but very patterned paper. Because of the colors it is toned down a little bit, but I just couldn't force myself to use a plain piece of paper as the background. Especially since I was challenging myself to use older paper that I have instead of my new stuff. I think it came out very pretty, I'm loving the colors! All of the stamps that I used are from The {Stamps} of Life. If you didn't visit when I put the link in the post the order day, there is also a blinkie in my side bar that will take you to her website. Warning: You will be hooked! Her stamp sets are so pretty, so versatile, affordable, and great quality!

OK, I'm off. Hubby is finishing putting up the new projector screen so that we can actually watch a movie on our projector for the first time since we moved into the new house! I hope everyone had a great Friday. I met a friend for lunch and some shopping at the mall and then went an got a massage. It was a great day out, but unfortunately I got nothing accomplished in my craft room except this card. I have a feeling it's going to be a busy weekend! Have a great weekend everyone!

Edit: I'm also linking this card up to the Sisterhood of Scrap Blog Hop: Marker Challenge. I used my SU! markers on all the stamps. The one in the center of the middle circle was just one stamp so I colored it using Chocolate Chip and Tempting Turquoise.

Stampin' Up Color Renovation

2010-04-15T17:26:00.012-04:00

Although some of you may already have seen or heard, beginning this summer Stampin' Up! is introducing a Color Renovation. What's that you ask? Well, I'll tell ya!

For the past one and a half years, the talented people at SU have been busy researching color and developing a new color palette. And while I'm a little bummed since I just became a demonstrator in October and have spent a lot of money on markers, inks, and cardstock in the old color palette, I'm impressed and excited with the new color choices. So without further ado, let me introduce the changes to you.

Currently, SU! has 5 In Color colors a year, as well as their 7 Neutrals, 12 Bold Brights, 12 Earth Elements, 12 Rich Regals, and 12 Soft Subtles. With the changes, there will be 10 colors each in the following collections: Brights, Neutrals, Regals, and Subtles. If you are doing the math in your head, you may be saying, "But Erin, that means that not all the colors are being carried over." Yes, you are correct. Only 25 of the original colors will be carried over, 10 former In Colors will be returning, and there are 5 brand new colors! There will still be In Colors, however. The new In Colors will now have a lifespan of 2 years instead of just one, and they are still introducing 5 new ones a year.

Here are some of the changes I am most excited

- brand new colors: Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler, and Early Espresso

- return of Pink Pirouette, Pacific Point, and Baja Breeze

- staying of Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, and Soft Suede

- Kraft is now called Crumb Cake and will be available in ink, as well as paper

For more information, I have included a nice visual which lists all of the colors. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me!

Also, here is a visual of the colors that are being retired. If any of your must have colors are on this list, contact me soon to place an order and stock up before they are no longer available!

*I know that both images are small. With the first image, you can click on it to enlarge the image. Unfortunately, I can seem to make the second image do the same.*

365Cards-Day46

2010-04-15T14:14:00.005-04:00

Yep, you guessed it, another white space challenge. When I saw the big arrow on the card, I instantly thought, hmm, I'll just take one of my big chipboard arrows, cover it with paper, and call it a day. And then I got thinking...the point of doing these challenges isn't necessarily to make it quick and easy, but more to do a whole think outside the box approach. I must admit, this totally wasn't my idea. Vicky, one of the FABULOUS DT members for 365 cards came up with the card, and I "borrowed" many of her ideas. Overall I like how the card came out. I used the fun, vibrant Lime Rickey collection by Basic Grey, the SU! pinking hearts border punch, and a stamp set from The Stamps of Life that I just got in the mail today. I am totally in love with the stamp sets from Stephanie, go check them out!

I'll hopefully be back tonight with some fun and exciting news from Stampin' Up! and maybe some before and after pictures of my craft room. Thanks for looking and have a great Thursday!

I am also linking this card to the Sisterhood of Scrap Blog Hop. The challenge from April 14 was to use a punch, any type of punch. On this card I used my border punch, my tiny circle punch to create the buttons, and my 1 3/8 circle punch, all from SU!

365Cards-Day 45

2010-04-14T22:16:00.003-04:00

On today's agenda...more white space challenges. This one was a struggle because apparently I am triangle impaired. I kept telling myself it was really just like half squares to put together, but I am not a spacial person so I guess I couldn't visualize the squares behind the triangles. Anyway, it's done, and I think it is pretty cute. I figured that since I did a Father's Day card the other day I should make a Mother's Day card today. I did play around with my new SU! toy and emboss the cardstock with one of the texture plates. I'm excited to get my polka dot texture folder so then I can play with that, but until it gets shipped from being on backorder I'm content to play around with the other ones I have.

I hope everyone enjoyed their day today. I was supposed to do some hard-core work in my craft room including cataloging all of my SU! stamp sets, organizing paper, finding storage for my new quilting fabrics, etc, etc. but the weather was so nice that I sat out on the deck for a couple hours reading The Pact by Jodi Picoult. After lunch a friend called me and I went to chat with her for about an hour at a local park. After that relaxing afternoon in the sun I met Josh in Potsdam to look for a new chandelier/light for the dining room. The one that is up now is some hideous, old fashioned ceiling fan. This was the first time in a long time that Josh and I didn't fully agree on something related to decor, so we both had to make some compromises, but all in all I like what we got. Since we had a coupon and a gift card, we also decided to buy three new lamps for the living room. We both really liked what we have, but the cats put a dent in one and we wanted a third lamp anyway now that we have 3 end tables. It was also a good trip because I got First Crush for dinner. I do miss that restaurant now that I don't like in Potsdam anymore.

OK, I'm going to attempt to get to bed at a somewhat normal time to slowly transition myself for when vacation is over next week. Have a great Thursday everyone!

365Cards-Day 44

2010-04-13T22:41:00.003-04:00

This whole at 365 Cards they are doing white space challenges. I have really enjoyed participating in the challenges recently because it forces me to go outside of my comfort zone. Today's sketch white space challenge was easier than yesterday's, but I still kept wanting to add more "stuff!"

I can't even tell you how many times I stamped the two images and it just didn't work. Either the swirl was too dark, the sentiment was too light, or it was crooked! I originally tried to swirl in Melon Mambo and the sentiment in Soft Suede, but I decided I needed to switch it. Then I used a stamp off technique. Meaning I stamped the swirl twice on a scrap piece of paper, and then a third time on the actual piece used so it would be a nice toned down color.

OK, it was a long day that started too early after not enough sleep, so it's bedtime for this girl!

365 Cards-Day 43

2010-04-12T23:32:00.003-04:00

Today's challenge over at 365 was another sketch challenge. Except this time there was lots of white space. I realized that maybe I'm a little bit white space challenged. And this was after just telling someone on Saturday not to be afraid of white space...haha. I picked out very masculine colors for the card so I thought I would be perfect for a Father's Day card.

I promise the ribbon is not as crooked as it appears in the picture. It may be a little crooked, but not nearly as much as it looks in the picture. I'm also thinking of distressing the tag. Maybe taking it off and sanding the edges and crumpling it up...what do you think?

Attention Scrapbook Fans

2010-04-12T19:45:00.003-04:00

I just have a quick announcement that I want to share with all of you. If you are on Facebook, go become a fan of Clip It Up by Simply Renee. They are having a promotion right now that if they hit 1000 fans by this Friday, April 15 they will have a 50% off sale for all of their products! I love the Clip It Up and currently have the main model as well as the smaller extension model for up top. I'm especially excited about the prospect of their 50% off sale because I need more clips. Clips is one of those scrapbooking products like adhesive and albums that you need to buy, but you would so much rather spend money "fun" products. So a half off sale is a great opportunity to buy something that is needed, but save some money.

And because no post is complete without at least one picture, here is a picture of my Clip It Up. I will try to be back tonight with my card for the 365 Card Challenges, but today has been a day of unpacking my stuff from the crop so I haven't done any crafting.

So go, now, become a fan of the Clip It Up on Facebook!

Triple Scraptasking

2010-04-11T21:57:00.005-04:00

Some of you are probably looking at my title and thinking, "What in the world is scraptasking?!" Well, I will tell you. :-) It's my new word for multitasking while scrapping. I had three card challenges that I found and I wanted to complete all three, but unfortunately a girl can't spend all her time scrapping, especially with in laws coming to dinner and spending time away from the hubby scrapbooking all day yesterday. So, I made one card that satisfied all the requirements for the three challenges. That's what I call productivity!

All show you the card first and then I'll link it up to all the challenges.

Challenge One: Day 42 at 365 Cards. Today is Sketch Sunday and this was the sketch they gave us to work with.

Challenge Two: This was a Curtain Call Color Challenge. You had to use the colors Green Galore, Pixie Pink, Whisper White, Only Orange, and Yo-Yo Yellow. It primarily has pink, yellow, and green in it, but there is a little bit of white and orange in the butterfly.

Challenge Three: Sisterhood of Scrap is hosting a Blog Hop and Crop. Today Cindy gave us the challenge to use at least three supplies that were older than a year. The Urban Prairie by Basic Grey about a year and a half old, the chipboard butterfly that I covered with paper is something I've definitely had over a year, and the yellow string has been in my collection for who knows how long.

Thanks for looking and have a great Monday tomorrow!

365 Cards- Day 41

2010-04-10T18:44:00.004-04:00

Today I went to an all day crop at my friend Sara's house. I always have SO much fun when I'm there. Some days I may not even get much scrapping done, but it's just a great time to sit and talk with all my scrappy friends. I am so thankful I found this amazing group of women shortly after Josh and I moved to this area. Sara is an amazingly talented scrapper and such a great person that it's always a good time to have the opportunity to hang out with her and and learn from her "awesomeness" as I like to call it. :-)

Although I did do a lot of talking today, I still managed to get two cards and two layouts done. I'll show you one card today, and I'll save the rest for a little later. The card that I'm going to show you fulfills the requirements for Day 41 on 365 Cards:

Add glitter to the tips or to the entire blossom to create your own fancy embellishments.

And here is my card. I had this Prima flower that I bought a while ago, but just never used it. I sprayed some clear Glimmer Mist on it to make it glittery. For those of you who have never tried Glimmer Mist, I strongly recommend it. I felt that the plain pink background was too plain, so I took a stamp from my Itty Bitty Backgrounds from Stampin'! Up! and made the background on the pink paper.

Thanks for looking!

Day 40: Friday 5

2010-04-09T16:34:00.004-04:00

Yep, that's right. I'm back again with another blog post. I think this must be a new record for me. Or maybe it's all the free time I have now because today was the first day of Spring Break. And although I should be cleaning upstairs because the in-laws are coming for dinner Sunday and I will be gone scrapping all day tomorrow, I was in the mood to scrap, so scrap I did. :-)

Anyway, here is my card for today. It's for the challenge Friday Five over at 365 Cards. I have been following this blog for the longest time, but I just started participating in the challenges yesterday. And although Pam can come up with some wacky things, you gotta give her credit for being able to come up with all different ideas every single day!

Here was today's challenge:

There must be 5 of 5 things on your card:

5 different colors

5 buttons

5 patterned papers

5 stamps

5 blossoms

And here is my card:

It may not look like it meets the requirements, but trust me, it does:

5 different colors: In the buttons I made out of patterned paper, there are white, pink, teal, yellowish-orange, and tannish-brown.

5 buttons: I made 4 out of patterned paper and have a read one on the flower punch.

5 patterned papers: 4 are used for the paper buttons and the 5th one is from the flower.

5 stamps: I used stamps primarily to make the background paper. I have three different flower stamps that I used as well as a leafy stamp. Then the sentiment is my 5th stamp.

5 blossoms: 1 punch, and then I technically have 9 blossom stamps on the pink paper.

Have a great weekend!

As promised

2010-04-08T20:48:00.003-04:00

Here is the update I promised in my last post. And I know how busy I have been is no excuse for not posting in over a year, but oh well! So here is a month by month recap of what's been going on in my life (or almost month by month)

February-May: So last time I posted I was in my last semester of working on my second Masters degree, this one in special education. I officially finished classes for the degree in early May and graduated with a 4.0. Go me!!! A week after graduation I had to have a second knee surgery on my knee to remove the cartilage that had been sewn back together in my first surgery. You would have thought I would have had plenty of time to rest and blog, but I was either doped up on pain meds or in too much pain to really sit in my scrapbook room to actually scrap.

June: This was a very exciting month for me. I applied at a local school district for a special education position, and within a week or two of sending out the application I was hired! I am working as a 12: 1: 1 teacher with seventh and eighth grade students of varying abilities/disabilities. It's a challenge and there have been days that I thought "What the heck am I doing?", but after almost a year in I can safely say I love it, I love the district, and it's absolutely what I am supposed to be teaching.

July: I had to do student teaching through a summer program for my Master's degree. I can safely say that was the longest, shortest month EVER if that makes sense. I didn't think it would ever end, but I had so much work to keep me busy that it flew by!

August: Busy preparing my classroom and attending lots of days of workshops.

September and October: Those two months are a blur and I don't remember much. Besides getting settled in a new district I wasn't familiar with, and being on my own in a special ed. classroom, Josh and I decided to look for our first house! After both turning 28 in October we closed on a house the last week in October and moved in Halloween weekend. October was also an exciting month because I became a Stampin' Up! independent demonstrator. I have always loved Stampin' Up and decided to make the plunge to become a demonstrator. So be on the lookout for updates from SU and my SU creations!

November-present: As I'm sure all of you homeowners out there can relate with, there is ALWAYS a project to do around the house. We built a scrapbook room for my down in the basement and putting up boards for walls, drywall, sub floor, flooring, painting, decorating, moving in furniture, and unpacking all my scrapbook stuff took quite a while! We are also almost completely redoing the other parts of the basement including the bathroom, building Josh an office, and creating his "man cave." In fact, as I'm typing this in my gorgeous new scrapbook room, Josh is busy putting up walls for the utility closet area.

OK, this post is getting a little long and it's time for me to go relax. I promise I will try to be better at posting on a more regular basis. Bye for now!

Hello again blog land!

2010-04-08T20:22:00.005-04:00

OK, so I know it has been over a year since my last post. I've been busy...I promise I'll update a follow up post to let you all know what I have been up to.

But first, something scrappy to show you. :-) I created this card using the Offbeat collection by Basic Grey, including the rub-ons. I made this card for the "Totally Transfered" challenge over at 365 Cards. This was my first time completing a challenge for them, but I was in a scrappy mood, most of my stuff is packed for a crop I'm going to on Saturday, and pulling out all the rub-ons I forgot I had sounded like fun. So, without further ado, here is my card.

I just got the Sizzix Big Shot yesterday, so I had to play with one of the dies I got with it. It's a very simple card, but I'm still pretty pleased with how it came out. Nice, springy, and certain to make someone smile when they receive it. :-) Thanks for reading and have a great night!

More Blog Candy

2009-02-18T19:44:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone! I hope you are enjoying your week and just think...we're half way to the weekend!

Josh and I had a good trip back home yesterday....SOOO much better than the ride last Thurs to visit my parents. It was definitely back to the real world today with meetings from 10:30-1:30, 1:30-3:30, 3:30-4:30, class from 4:30-7, meeting from 7-7:30, and now work from 7:30-11. Whew! I should be doing TONS of work now, but I'm so tired I'm having a tough time doing any of it...so I'm checking out blogs and things like that.

OK, this website has blog candy up for grabs. Nicole makes the most gorgeous jewelry and she has Wednesday Winners among other fun stuff on her blog. In celebration of her birthday, she is GIVING AWAY a GORGEOUS choker necklace. Go check it out!!!!

And now onto some scrappy related stuff. This is a layout I did for Sketch Saturday at Sisterhood of Scrap on February 7. If you think it is similar to the card that I showed you a couple days ago, that's because it is! The sketches were designed by the same person, but I like the idea of transferring what you do on a layout onto a card that you make too.

OK, that's it for tonight...I'm off to go eat dinner and then get to work on getting everything ready for my seminar tomorrow night.

Vacation

2009-02-15T21:41:00.002-05:00

I love vacation! After the stress of making the trip down state to visit my parents, Josh and I have done nothing but relaxing and shopping. The trip down was AWFUL! I got out of class a half hour late...not quite the way I wanted to start a 4 hour drive. Then it was snowing pretty hard almost the whole way down and in some places the roads were horrible. We were going to stop in Watertown for the night, but once we got there and got on the highway, the roads cleared up. Then they got bad again so we were going to stop in Syracuse for the night, but of course they cleared up again. Near Cortland they got bad again, but by then we were so close to the trip being over that we just kept going. The 4 hour drive turned into a 5 hour drive and we didn't get in until after midnight.

We have definitely made up for the stress of that trip though. On Friday we stayed home all day and lounged around the house. We went out for dinner and a movie later that night with some friends some college and had a blast. Yesterday we went shopping. Josh bought a hi-def projector in the going out of business sale at Circuit City and I got some good deals on some scrapping necessities I needed. I spent a couple hours at my mom's office helping her answer phones and give info to clients if she was busy. That night we went to the mall and I was able to exchange a pair of shoes I had bought a while ago in Watertown. Today Josh and I took my mom out to breakfast and we went to Target and Bed, Bath, and Beyond. We had a nice evening at home and my mom made lasagna for a yummy dinner with my parents, sister, niece, and grandparents. Not quite sure of plans for tomorrow yet, but we are thinking of visiting one of my aunts, maybe going to a movie, and I should probably do some work.

OK, on to scrapping news. I have LOTS to show you, but since this post is getting pretty long, I'll only show you the Valentine's card I made for Josh. This is the card I did based on the sketch for Sketch Saturday at Sisterhood of Scrap. I have these journaling blocks from one of the monthly kits that I get and I knew this block was perfect for this card.

One last thing before I go...if you want a chance to win some YUMMY blog candy, make sure to check out Carla's blog. She always has the BEST cards and great, fun giveaways so make sure to stop by.

OK, it's time to go and watch my favorite show on my favorite channel. (HGTV, which I don't get at home so it's a real treat to watch it while I'm out of town.) Hope everyone had a great weekend are enjoying the holiday weekend!

Back again

2009-02-12T14:17:00.003-05:00

OK, so I know I said I would try to be back on Tuesday with another post and some stuff to show you, but what I thought were just allergies turned into a bad cold and it left me feeling miserable! I am finally starting to feel better today, so I thought I would post before getting everything finished to go visit my parents for the long weekend.

Here is a layout I did based on Julie's sketch over at 52 Sketches. I was having a tough time with the scalloped edge because I can't do it exactly how I want to on the Cricut and my punch has too small of a scallop, but overall I guess the layout isn't too bad. I also went back and forth about 15 times trying to decide on paper and although I love these papers, I'm not sure if it's exactly right for this layout. Oh well! It's finished, I need to let it go!!!

OK, I have a doctor's appointment in about an hour, class right after, then a 4 hour drive and I still have tons of stuff to do. Hope everyone is having a great week!

Hmm...

2009-02-08T20:01:00.002-05:00

OK, so this is going to be a quick post! I know I've been MIA for a while. Unlike last week, it was because I have been BUSY! Subbing every day, class Monday through Thursday, working at the union 2 days, group meetings, homework, cleaning, etc... And this week isn't going to get any better. I have tons of stuff to show you, but after a weekend spent at the in-laws my allergies are insane! All I want to do is take my shower, get into bed, and watch some TV with the hubby. So that's exactly what I'm gonna do. I'll try to be better at this blogging thing and show you something tomorrow. I hope everyone had a great weekend and all are ready for Monday!

Short post

2009-01-31T22:07:00.002-05:00

OK, I apologize because I know it's been like 4 or 5 days since my last post. And I don't even have the excuse of being busy to use. I meant to post Wednesday night when I was at work, and I forgot. Then I meant to post Thursday and Friday nights, but once again I kinda forgot and once I remembered I was already in bed. So, finally, here is a post. Unfortunately, I'm not feeling too well, so it's gonna be a short post. I made this card today, I can either use it to give Josh for Valentine's Day, or I can save it and use it as a wedding card. I haven't decided yet.

OK, that's it for tonight. I have to rest up so I'm feeling good enough tomorrow to go to a Super Bowl party. Hope everyone is having a great weekend so far!

Two layouts

2009-01-25T20:41:00.003-05:00

OK, tonight I have two layouts to show you. They are both ones that I did at the crop yesterday. The first one is based on Week 3 at 52 Sketches, 52 Weeks and the second one is based on Week 46 from last year at 52 Sketches, 52 Weeks. Whatever layouts I was not able to complete last year I printed out so that I could complete them at some point just because Julie's sketches are the BEST! I also used it for a challenge at Mothers and Daughters. They are the sponsors for week 4 and they also had a challenge on their blog that if you tried any other sketch from Julie you could win a stamp set. The only rules were that it couldn't be the same layout you submitted for this week at 52 sketches and it had to be a new layout that you just completed.

OK, it's been a busy day of laundry, picking up, changing the sheets and towels, and unpacking from the crop yesterday. And I'm still hoping to complete the challenge for Sisterhood of Scrap so I can't spend time blogging. Hope everyone had a great weekend and that your Monday isn't too bad!

Quick post before bed

2009-01-24T22:27:00.002-05:00

As promised, here is my layout that was based on the sketch for Sisterhood of Scrap. You can see the sketch here. Since you can't read the journaling, it says..."Mocha may not like to cuddle with Josh or I, but giver her a blanket and she is all set." She definitely does like her blankets. In the laundry room/linen closet she has her own little cozy hiding spot and if we can't find her, you can almost guarantee that you can find her in that spot.

I had a really good time at the crop today. I really didn't want to wake up early for it, so I didn't get there until almost 10, but I had a lot of fun. I think I mentioned earlier how tired I have been with getting back into the swing of things so I wasn't as productive as I would have liked, but I managed to do 2 layouts and 3 cards. The one layout was this week's challenge at 52 Sketches and the other layout was based on an old sketch from Julie from last year that I just got around to doing. I will post them over the next few days, I'm just too tired to take pictures, upload the onto the computer, then export them to Flickr.

One fun thing before I go off to bed. This was posted on Sisterhood of Scrap the other day, and I thought it would be fun to post it on my blog.

1. What color are you socks you have on now?

They are white

2. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?

My mom

3. What did you have for lunch today?

Mac and cheese and cornbread at the crop

4. Name someone you admire.

My sister

5. How many cars have you owned?

Um, the Geo, the Tempo, the Sportage, the Malibu, and the Grand Prix. So 5, but technically the Grand Prix is the hubby's even though I've been driving it more than the Malibu.

6. How many homes have you lived in?

Two

7. Are you left-handed or right-handed?

Right-handed

8. Do you wear shoes around the house?

Definitely not

9. What was the last thing you took a photo of?

A layout to upload onto the computer

10. Do you like hot chocolate?

I prefer them with expresso and peppermint, which would make it a peppermint mocha

OK, have a great night and I'll be back tomorrow with more layouts and cards.

Finally some scrapping time!

2009-01-23T21:58:00.002-05:00

OK, so I finally had some time today to do some scrapping. Friday is the only weeknight that I don't have class and I only worked for a half day today, so I wasn't as tired when I got home. Sorry I didn't post anything yesterday, but with classes being back in session and me working almost every day, I have been going to sleep around 9. I managed to do this layout tonight and I also finished the layout for Sisterhood of Scrap. Since the Sketch Saturday post won't be released until tomorrow, I don't want to show you my layout for that until tomorrow. I love the Noteworthy paper that I used for this layout. The colors and designs, while very girly, are so pretty. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out, I especially love the buttons, but then again buttons are my favorite embellishments to use.

OK, it's 10pm and I've been procrastinating on packing for the crop tomorrow. (Surprise, surprise...) So I better get going to pack for that so I can get to bed at a decent time...not going to happen, but here's to wishful thinking. I really don't know where the night went, it seemed like just a couple hours ago Josh got home from work.

Oh, in other news. I talked to the high school principal at Edwards-Know (the school I applied at for the special education position) and they can't interview me because I'm not certified yet. The position was open because they fired the person. When they hired him, he wasn't NYS SPED certified yet and they gave him a year and a half. He didn't get his certification, so they fired him. According to the principal they can't really hire someone who isn't certified yet after they just fired someone for not being certified. I understand their reasoning and logic, but at the same time, they gave that guy a year a half to get certified, but I can't even be given the chance of an interview. It's frustrating because I am 1 class, and the CST away from being certified. Technically I'm enrolled in 5 classes this semester, but that's just required for my masters degreee, I only need 1 class to earn certification. I'm bummed, but that's life and I just have to keep thinking positive! OK, have a great weekend!

Funny picture

2009-01-21T20:59:00.005-05:00

I have been so busy with classes starting this week that I haven't really had time to scrap this week...sorry! I did work today on the layout that's due for Sisterhood of Scrap on Friday, but I can't share that with you until Saturday. I also need to make a baby card, a get well card, and a thinking of you card. Wow, that's gonna keep my busy. Luckily, I'm going to a crop on Saturday so I should have LOTS to show you after that. I had planned on taking a picture of a layout that I had not uploaded yet, but I got busy and then I had to go to my student job. I won't be done with my student job until 11 and I need to get up early tomorrow, so it's not going to happen tonight either. In other news, I finally finished my application and the essay and got that in the mail today. Wish me luck! It would be amazing if I could get that job now.

OK, tonight I also have some serious news, and to counterbalance that I have some funny pictures to show you. I found out tonight that a very close family friend was just diagnosed with breast cancer. She is having surgery on Tuesday and depending on the outcome of the surgery will start either radiation or chemo after that. Even though you don't know her, please send some good thoughts and prayers her way so that everything turns out alright. This woman was like a second mother to me and it's hard knowing that she is going through this.

Now, unto the funny pictures. The other night Josh made rigatoni and meatballs for dinner. I had eaten most of the dinner, but I had left three rigatoni's on my plate that I wasn't going to eat. Mulligan of course, being the cat who eats anything and everything went to my plate and started licking the sauce with meatballs. That of course wasn't good enough so he stole a rigatoni off my plate, took it to the floor, at ate it in like 2 bites. He would have eaten all three, but I stopped him after two. I probably shouldn't have let him eat the second one, but I had to get a picture of it. Oh, and this was after he had literally tried licking Josh's plate clean. Needless to say, these dishes were washed VERY well. Well, it's time for my to get back to work. Have a nice night!

Back to reality

2009-01-19T22:10:00.002-05:00

Well, while it was nice to have a month long vacation, I'm glad that classes started back up today. It is going to be a BUSY semester, but I'm excited for it to start. I figure the sooner it starts, the sooner it will be over. I don't say that in a pessimistic way or anything because I am really enjoying the special ed program, but I'm ready to move on with my life and get a teaching job! I am applying for a special ed position now, but I think it starts mid-year and because I'm technically not certified in special ed yet, I'm not sure if they will even consider my application. But, I'll never know unless I send it in. The same district had this position open a few months ago, so who knows, I may get the job without having certification yet. Even if they just offer me a long term sub position for the rest of the year, I would accept it because I would have a better chance at getting my foot in the door next year.

My class tonight went well. For some odd, strange reason I cannot accept mediocracy for myself. So, the research class tonight is kind of like 2 classes. You can attend the class and do the assignments listed in the syllabus, or you can do an independent research project. With the second option you don't really need to go to class or do the other assignments listed in the syllabus, but you research a question, get IRB approval, and try getting your study published. Eventually, (if Josh and I ever move away from up here) I would like to get my doctorate so this is a good experience. Of course, because I need to excel I can't just do the "simple" course, I have to do the more complex, in depth, and time consuming course. Oh well!

OK, enough about that and onto some scrapping news! Through Julie over at 52 sketches...52 weeks I have discovered a new paper line that I LOVE! They are called Bella Blvd. and they are offering a fantastic giveaway. Just click here to find the details. OK, it's back to reality tomorrow with subbing and class so it's bed time for this girl. Have a great Tuesday!

ok, ok...

2009-01-18T21:02:00.002-05:00

I've had this layout finished since Thursday, but I was busy with subbing and getting everything ready for classes to start tomorrow. This was for week 2 of 52 sketches...52 weeks. I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out, even if I may have gone a little overboard with the inking. I did stitching for the first time on a layout, and Josh did need to help, but I'm glad I tried it. I think I will definitely use stitching again, but I'm not sure I'm ready for anything else except straight lines...haha. The title tag and arrow are chipboard and then I heat embossed them black. I LOVE how they came out...the picture doesn't really do it justice. The paper is BG Urban Prarie and I used my Fiskars Scalloped Punch.

OK, I know it's a short post, but classes start tomorrow and I've spent the past 2 days on the couch and not working on my end of break to do list, so I better get to work. Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

Nothing new to show...

2009-01-13T22:06:00.002-05:00

Although I have been busy busy busy since I got home from work this afternoon, nothing is finished yet. I worked on the art work that I will be putting up in the living room, but I got a little stuck and can't decide if I like the papers I chose or how I want to finish it. So I put it aside and left it for another day. I also started the layout for this week's challenge at 52 sketches...52 weeks. I am proud of myself because as I said previously I wanted to expand outside my comfort box with scrapbooking and try sewing on my pages. I saw this week's sketch and realized it was a perfect time to try. So I had Josh get the sewing machine out and thread it and being the wonderful hubby that he is, he helped me. He stitched the first couple lines, then I took over. After I finished I did some practice lines and I'm really starting to get the hang of it. I'm proud of myself for experimenting. It's a shame that my parents gave me their sewing machine, and most of the time it sits in the closet. I really want to use it more. Ideally when we move into a house, the sewing machine will have a permanent spot in my scrapping room. I also briefly started the layout that is due for Sisterhood of Scrap on January 23. Even when I finish that I won't post it until the 24, because I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise of the sketch for Sketch Saturday. :-) Oooh, speaking of Sisterhood of Scrap they announced a Design Team call that I am VERY excited about. I'm going to send in my info in a couple days, so keep your fingers crossed!

In other excited news, Josh and I got our Wii Fit today. We've been having a blast playing balance games. I've also enjoyed doing some yoga poses on it. I really enjoy yoga, but doing it on the Wii Fit is nice because it gives you a better sense of your balance and posture. OK, time to clean up the sewing machine, watch Law and Order: SVU, then go to sleep. Have a great night!

Busy, busy...

2009-01-12T20:55:00.004-05:00

I have been in kinda a depressed funk the last couple days, so I'm glad I was feeling better enough to be creative. I called Josh this morning shortly after I had gotten to school and almost started crying for no reason. I think I'm just annoyed with subbing, especially after working consistently in a special ed classroom last year. I'm really not cut out for the younger ones and I have pretty much only been subbing for kindergarten and first grade. Every day I leave one of those classes I thank myself for having the presence of mind to switch from elementary education over to adolescence. Everyone thought I was nuts, but my family is finally starting to realize that I'm just not a huge fans of the little ones. As crazy as it sounds, I really enjoy working with middle schoolers. I will take a group of hormone-driven, crazy seventh and eighth graders any day over a bunch of 6 and 7 year olds. I did get asked today by the middle school to fill in for a long term sub as an aide. I would LOVE to accept, but just with needing subbing days as a teacher towards my first teaching certificate, it looks like I'm stuck subbing in the elementary school more. I know that subbing as an aide makes less money, but it would be more consistent, better hours, and a better age level. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind subbing in the elementary school, and I don't dislike children by any means, I'm just anxious to get my own classroom and have sicks days and vacation days, and a routine back. Maybe it will get better when the semester starts next week.

OK, on to scrapbooking stuff! Sisterhood of Scrap posted their Monday challenge today. This week's challenge was a simple one...create a thank you card. This is what I came up with. I used stamps and punches from Stampin' Up. In case I haven't mentioned it, I LOVE their products!

I also finished the altered project I was talking about last week. Last week I had covered all the letters with the paper, but tonight I decorated all the letters. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. It was difficult to have enough creativity and originality to come up with 6 different designs, but I really tried to get creative and use all of my supplies. I really liked the stamping I did on the 'R', but it was too flat, so I needed to add some stuff that would make it more 3D. Now I just need to get Josh to hang them up on my wall, which could take a while since opening is this weekend and he's busy with RD training/RA training now.

OK, time to go watch some TV for tonight. I'm getting sleeeeepy. Luckily I'm only subbing 1/2 day tomorrow and don't have to be to school until 11:30, which means I get to sleep in! YAY!! Hope everyone had a great Monday!

Without further ado...

2009-01-11T22:04:00.002-05:00

OK, so it's been a few days. Oops! I went to the doctor on Thursday for what was supposed to be a "simple" procedure, and of course with my luck, simple turned into complicated and incredible painful. And I have still been working and going about my day like normal for the most part, and I am paying for it! So I've been trying to take it easy, rest, and take my meds like a good patient. Which left no room for scrapbooking. :-( I'm back though! I did this layout for Julie's sketch challenge and it fit the criteria for the Sisterhood of Scrap weekly challenge as well. I was REALLY hoping to not use my sketch challenge layout for their challenge, but with not being able to scrap, it didn't happen. Maybe next week. And in case you can't read the resolutions they are: pay off my credit card, get a teaching job, be a better wife, maintain my weight, organize, clean, and de-clutter. Josh told me I needed to get rid of number 3 because I'm already a great wife (aww...isn't he sweet?!) But, I think there are always things I can do to improve...clean more, cooking or doing the dishes once in a while, be more supportive, encouraging...you get the picture!

Despite not feeling the best, I still went to Watertown with all of Josh's family on Saturday. We had a great time. I ended up getting a change to go to Michael's and picked up some alcohol inks from Time Holtz. I have seen these used, and have wanted to try them, but I've always been kinda scared and unsure. But, I want to experiment more with my pages and try stuff like that I sew and other techniques that I consider a bit "out of the box." I also picked up some papers that match the colors in the living room so I can get started on that altered project. I'm excited to get started on that. OK, that's all for now. Working on this page left me in quite a bit of pain and I'm subbing tomorrow so it's time for another pain pill and bed. Have a great Monday everyone!

Another card and lots to do

2009-01-07T23:12:00.002-05:00

Although I wasn't really feeling very motivated today, I did manage to make this birthday card. My SIL birthday is tomorrow and we are all going out to dinner on Saturday. We are going to Applebee's, which seeing how the closest one is a little over an hour away, is going to be a treat. I am also going to splurge and order a Mudslide. (They are SO good there!!!) Anyway, I haven't decided whether to give her this one, or the birthday one that I posted a couple days ago. What do you think?

In other news, I started an altered project today, but I don't want to post pictures of it until it's all finished. I'm pleased with how it looks so far and think it will be really cute when it's completely finished. I was thinking today that the spring semester starts back up on Jan 19...a week and a half away! And I don't have anywhere near enough on my to do list done, so I've gotta kick my butt into gear! Here is what I'm hoping to get done before the new semester starts:

-finish the altered project for my scrapping room

-altered project for the living room

-making the fleece blanket and pillows for the living room

-paint and cover with paper the black cubes and put them up in my scrapping room

-organize all of my paper scraps

-organize, sort through, and de-clutter my school stuff

-sort, organize, rename some stuff on my computer so I'm all organized for the new semester to start

Not to mention I found out about a special ed job that is open, so I printed off an application today and need to get that filled out and sent in. I don't know when the position starts, and I don't know if they will even consider me because I technically don't have special ed certification yet, but it doesn't hurt to apply.

OK, time to go to bed. I gotta get up bright and early for a massage, doctor's appointment, meeting, then home to get to work. Hope everyone is having a good week so far!

No scrapping today

2009-01-05T21:46:00.002-05:00

Wow...it was a long day after being on vacation for 2 weeks. It didn't help matters that I didn't sleep well last night. I have been dragging all day, I meant to go to the gym when I got home, but I was too tired. I also didn't get home until close to 4 and Josh was getting out of work then so I didn't bother going because we had too many errands to run. After running all the errands I was too exhausted to do anything except watch Office Space and watch Josh play Wii Madden. I do have 2 pictures to show you today though. The first one is a Christmas present from my mom that I forgot to include last night. I was SO excited to get the cat album so I can include layouts of the cats in that album.

The second picture is something I am thinking of ordering to help organize all of my scraps. I keep them in a folio type thing now and it isn't working! It just isn't easy/big enough/convenient to organize and sort through all of my scraps. I was thinking of almost like a filing cabinet type thing, but I want something more portable to take to crops. So, my wonderful hubby found these adorable bags. I really like the lime green one, which would match any Cricut bags or anything I ever bought, which is an added bonus. Anyway, what do you think? Any scrappers out there have any good ideas for storing your scraps?

OK, time for me to go to bed! Back to the world of being a third grade sub again tomorrow...night!

Late post

2009-01-04T23:13:00.002-05:00

Whew! Just made the cutoff deadline for 52 Sketches...52 Weeks. That is a great website that Julie hosts and she has an AMAZING new sketch each week and she also gives away great prizes to one lucky winner each week. She is changing it a little bit this year and I'm really excited about the changes she is making. Anyway, here is the layout I did for this week. I took much longer than I expected it to take just because of the 28 brads and eyelets. The ribbon looks really crooked, but that's just because the picture is a little crooked, it looks much better in person.

As promised (a day late), here are pictures of some of the goodies I got for Christmas. I got the new cutting mat, Stickles, brads, 2 Cricut cartridges, and LOTS of Glue Dots from my parents. (I didn't include the brads or Glue Dots in the picture.) From my MIL and FIL and got the wavy trimmer, circle, wavy frames, and oval templates and cutter from Making Memories. I have tried many circle cutters and none work as good as the ones from Making Memories. I LOVE them! And finally, my wonderful hubby (he told me I couldn't call him DH anymore because he thought I secretly meant it as dumb husband...lol) got my the Cricut Expression!!!! YAY!!!!!! And of course 3 new cartridges and the wonderful cart for the Cricut and the cartridges. I still have my smaller, more portable Cricut on my scrapping desk, but there is no way the Expression or all my new cartridges would have fit. I am having so much fun playing around with the new Cricut and love that I can cut things out so much bigger.

OK, I hope you enjoyed the LO and the pictures. It's time for me to go to bed since I have to be up early. I of course got a subbing call already for tomorrow, which I'm actually pretty happy about going back to work because I have been pretty lazy on my 2 week vacation. Goodnight everyone!

New layout

2009-01-03T11:43:00.002-05:00

OK, no pictures of my Christmas gifts yet as promised, but I do have a new layout to show you today. This was from a trip I took with DH and the in-laws down to NYC. We drove down for the weekend, went to a Yankees game, and wandered around the city. It was a great trip!

Anyway, hope you enjoy the layout. It's time for me to go work on my scrapping and cleaning/organizing to do list. I still hope to be back later with pictures of some of my scrapping goodies that I got for Christmas, but right now I'm waiting on a desk to be painted another coat and then dried before I can really take the picture. Have a good day everyone!

Quick post

2009-01-02T21:11:00.002-05:00

Just a quick post for today. As much as I can't believe I'm going to say this, I need vacation to end. I have no motivation to do ANYTHING! Seriously, I laid on the couch reading a book today. I did manage to go to Wal Mart to get some things for dinner and clean/organize some of my receipts, tags, and junk drawers in my scrap room, but the scrap room just looks messy now because I just piled everything that I want to save from the junk drawers on my scrap table. I'm hoping once I start to sub again motivation will quick back in. I am not anxious for vacation from school to be over. I am dreading January 19, it was a TOUGH semester and I don't want to start all over again.

OK, on to the reason of the post. Despite the laziness, I did manage to create a quick birthday card. I believe all the ink, stamps, punch, and cardstock is all from Stampin' Up. (I LOVE that company!!!)

OK, it's time to get back to catching up on the whole season of Grey's that DH and I taped. With all my classes and school work, there was no way I could stay up to do on all the TV shows I like to watch. So far we've only watched the first 2 episodes, so we have a LONG way to go.

Have a good night everyone, and I'll be back tomorrow with pictures of some of my amazing scrapbook presents that I got for Christmas. (I know Christmas is over, but I just had Christmas with the in-laws and I want to post all the yummy goodness!)

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T18:37:00.005-05:00

Hey everyone! I hope you are all getting ready to go out and rock the town for a New Year's Eve celebration. Once again, I was late with getting plans together so we are going to Josh's aunt and uncle's house to celebrate with his whole family. It will be nice to see them since we spent Christmas with my family.

OK, before I head out I have two layouts to show you today. I'm going to be honest, I'm not loving either one of them. I found out about a design team challenge call here.

Layout 1

Layout 2

Sorry about the links, it's not uploading them right onto the blog at the moment, and I have to leave to go to the holiday festivities! As I said yesterday, be patient with me to find my way around the wesbite and how it works. Thanks and I hope you all have a happy and safe start to 2009!!!

Welcome!

2008-12-30T21:15:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone! Welcome to my new scrapbooking website. I decided to convert my old website (that I almost never used) over to an easier one, in hopes that I would use it more. The last website was too difficult to edit and upload so I never did. I'm hoping that by using an easier blogger friendly format it will keep me motivated to upload almost every day. Be patient while I continue to find my way around blogspot and get my gallery up with all of my scrapbooking and crafty creations!