Happy Thursday!

Whew - what a day! Today Surewest came to switch over our TV and internet - a couple minor glitches, and an all day process pretty much, but it is done. I will have a new email addy but got tired of waiting to get it set up, so that is a job for tomorrow! We had Lauren's "reward" dinner for sleeping through the night (and not waking up the momma) for a whole week -- that was a nice reward for momma too! She picked crab, and I decided if we were having crab we needed shrimp and steak as well, a little salad and sliced peaches -- YUMMO!

I have spent what time I could today getting caught up on some scrapping and other projects - still a lot on the long list of crafty things to do, but I made some headway! I start my role TOMORROW as design team member for Scrappin With Grace. Have I mentioned how excited I am about this?? Saturday is our all day Winter Wonderland crop -- I will be around the message boards most of the day - I hope you will come and join me!! If you have not been by before, please check it out - make sure to say hi if you come by - tell em KP sentcha! :)

I finished this layout this week for the final round of the Winter Wonderland contest at Scrappin with Grace as well. The challenge this week was to use Flair Designs patterned papers, and to complete a layout with at least 25% white space. Wow, was it hard for me to do this - really a challenge to try something out of my comfort zone. But I am SOOOO pleased with the way that this turned out. This is among the photos that I found last month that had never been printed -- I just loved this phase with Lauren, expect to see lots of that cute little face for a while!!

I used Flair Designs patterned papers, Bazzill Cardstock, Rub Ons and Stamps are Stampin' Up (and BTW these new rub ons ROCK!), Prima flowers, buttons from my stash, Grungeboard Heart, Crystal elements from Mark Richards, and my DYMO label maker.

I have also been working on the layouts for the Scappin with the Stars contest at Coordinates Collections as well - but I can't share them until the judging starts -- I will be sure to link you to the gallery for the contest when all of the entries are in. The competition already looks stiff, and I am really laboring over my layouts for this one... much MUCH harder than I expected it would be!

Well, I am off to try to get a few more things finished before bed -- have a great night!

Some Scrappy news...

So if you have been following my blog, you know that my goal for 2008 is to focus on my personal growth as a scrapper, to challenge myself to create my best work and to stretch myself creatively. I am sure working on it! I have been entering contests, completing challenges, and really spending time trying to learn new things and gain insight and inspiration!

I entered the "Scrappin with the Stars" contest over at Coordinates Collections, and to my shock and delight, I made it through the "Dance Off" and am in the top 20!! I am starting work on round one, and am frankly terrified! There are some truly amazing and very talented scrappers in the competition - I hope I am up to the challenge. But I know that all I can do is my very best, and I am just so delighted to have an opportunity to push myself and try something new! I am not allowed to post the layouts for the contest until it is over, but when I post my creations over there I will share a link so you can check out my work, and the rest of the amazing entries - and of course you can go and vote for your favorites! Round one voting starts Feburary 4th, so I will update things then.

I am also growing VERY excited, as I will officially start my role on the Design Team for ScrappinwithGrace on February 1st. And right off the bat we are having an all day CROP on February 2nd!! I hope that you will join us! I will post the details as it gets closer, but let me just say that there are tons of fun things planned! Challenges, games, prizes - it promises to be tons of fun!

In other news around here - I got to go to the urgent care today with my son Ethan, who has a delightful infection in his thumb - a tiny cut that has grown into a nasty mess!! Hopefully antibiotics will end that challenge quickly - EWWW!
Lauren has let me sleep for 3 days in a row, and I am FINALLY starting to feel human again. I resorted to bribery - lol - I promised her a crab dinner if she did not wake me for a whole week. She REALLY likes crab, so she is working for it!! Hope it is enough to break the cycle of sleepless nights and start getting things back to normal around here!
Christian is ...well he's Christian. We are having a good time with his newfound love for Led Zeppelin. I think it is too funny that his favorite band at 12 was also mine. He is learning to play Stairway to Heaven on the guitar, and lives with an ipod attached to his head.
Larry is back to school --one more semester and we will finally be DONE!!

Well, I think that sums it all up for now -- wish me luck in my new endeavors. I'll be back soon with some new layouts and projects to share!

Good Morning!

See, I knew you guys were out there! I guess it just takes bribing you with goodies to get you to talk to me lol! If you have not done so already, check yesterday's post and leave a comment for a chance to win a prize!

So I finally slept last night. Whew. My insomnia (and my sleepless 4 year old) have been getting the better of me, and by yesterday I was really feeling it and getting a "tad" on the grouchy and whiney side. I don't like me when I am that irritable, so thank goodness sleep has come! I took a muscle relaxant last night, went to bed at 9:30 and never heard my husband come home from school last night or leave for work this morning, slept through the alarm and dragged myself out of bed after 7am. Which means that my son missed his zero period, but it was worth it - obviously I needed the sleep. I have the day off today, and plan to make it a restful one. Maybe I will get some scrapping in too.

I have not done any scrapping this week. I have been working on getting the cards done for my upcoming Stamp a Stack. Since I took off a couple of months from my Stampin' Up! classes, it was a little hard for me to get back into the swing of designing cards for a class - I am so glad they are finally done - designed, prepped and ready to go! I am going to share what I made for the class -- NOTE, if you are a customer and are coming to the Stamp a Stack and prefer to be surprised, QUICK - SHUT YOUR EYES! lol

When I design for a Stamp a Stack, I have to plan cards that are simple enough that we can get them all done int he 4-5 hours we have available (we are making 21 cards - 3 each of 7 designs) and cards that stampers of any skill level can complete -- but they have to be CUTE and be something that everyone can use! I am hoping that my customers like my choices this time - here they are:




This first card was made using the new sets One of a Kind and Boho Backgrounds, Berry Bliss desgner series paper, Purely Pomegranate, Close to Cocoa and Pretty in Pink Cardstock, Purely Pomegranate stitched ribbon, the Key Tag punch, Horizontal Slot punch, Boho Blossoms punch, 1/2" Circle punch and Ticket Corner punch, and sponge daubers.


This card was completed using the new set Pun Fun, and Seeing Spots. I used watercolor crayons, watercolor paper, and cardstock in Taken with Teal, Rose Red, Pumpkin Pie and Old Olive. Ribbon is Pumpkin Pie grosgrain and I used the ne My Way (arrow) punch.

This SUPER simple card uses the new From the Garden background (hostess) stamp, Itty Bitty Backgrounds, and sentiment from One of a Kind. I used Confetti Cream, Bordering Blue, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip inks and cardstock, Chocolate Chip 5/8" grosgrain, brayer and sponge daubers.


This one is made with the new Embrace Life set (my new favorite of course!). I used Ginger Blossom designer series paper, Ruby Red, Groovy Guava, River Rock and shimmery white cardstock, Stazon and watercolor crayons with blender pens, Groovy Guava stitched grosgrain, the Ticket Corner punch and the Word Window Punch, and sponge daubers.


I love these new Felt Flowers!! And this new background stamp too! This card was made using the background stamps Pretty Petals and Paisley, and the new Celebrate Everything set. I used the 5 petal flower punch, NEW felt flowers, and silver brads. Cardstock and ink are Old Olive, Purely Pomegranate and Pumpkin Pie, and ribbon is Old Olive 5/8" grosgrain.


This card uses the new set Big Birthday Candle, Happy Happy Birthday wheel, and Dotted Background. I also used the hostess "prints pack" of prints designer paper. Prints papers used on this one are in Real Red, Bashful Blue, Wild Wasabi and So Saffron. (Cardstock and ink in these colors as well) Ribbon is Bashful Blue grosgrain.




This card was completed using the new (and completely adorable) set A little Birdie, and the flowers from Time Well Spent. I used the print patters papers (for paper piecing) in Pretty in Pink and Apricot Appeal. Cardstock is Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Pretty in Pink, Tempting Turquoise and Whisper White - ink in Basic Black and Regal Rose, stampin write markers in Tempting Turquoise and Regal Rose, small and large oval punch, Turquoise grosgrain and silver cording.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great day!

Blog Candy Anyone??

Unbelievably, I have received almost 7,000 visits to my little blog. I think this is frankly amazing, and I want to offer a little thank you for stopping by to visit me!! SOOOO I am offering a prize -- just a little box of stamping and scrapping goodies that I hope will make you smile! How can you win?? Just leave me a comment on this thread between now and February 1st. I will randomly select one winner from those leaving comments. You'll have to come back and check to see if you win, so I can send it to you!! Good Luck :) and thanks for stopping by!

All about ME!

Well, it is isn't it? LOL

In all of my years of scrapping, I have never done a "ME" page. Feels kind of strange, really. So, since I am on a "try new things" roll, here it is. I completed this layout for this week's contest entry at Scrappin with Grace. The challenge was to use the word "NEW" in the layout title, and this is what I came up with. Hope you like it, thanks for looking!


I used Daisy D's and Fancy Pants patterned papers, Rub on's by Luxe designs (these are AWESOME quality rub on's - can't wait to get more!) Petaloo flowers, AC Thickers and Lisa Bearnson chipboard alphabets.

I'm excited!!

I decided to throw my hat into the ring and apply for a design team position at ScrappinWithGrace and was delighted to find out this morning that I made the team!! I am so excited, as I think that this will be a really great growth opportunity for me - a chance to really focus on my goals, try new ideas and products, and share my work -- I am really looking forward to the challenge!

These are the projects that I submitted for the design team application -- so glad they liked them :)
This layout of my "angel" (we can call her the occasional angel lol) was done using Fancy Pants patterned paper, die cuts, rub ons; Tim Holtz Grungeboard with acrylic paint and SU ink; Stampin' up! ribbon, pearls, hat pin; Bazzill and Prima flowers; Lisa Bearnson chipboard alphabet with SU ink and embossing powder.





My card entry was complete using all Stampin' Up! products - I used the stamp sets A Touch of Nature, French Script and Warm Words. I used watercolor crayons and an aquapainter for watercoloring.


Finally I completed an altered project using a mailbox tin from the Target $1 spot (my favorite place lately!!) -- Papers are Fancy Pants, ribbons and rhinestone brads are Stampin' Up! and flowers are Bazzill and Autumn Leaves. Crystal Elements for flower centers are by Mark Richards.

Again, I am just so thrilled, and even more than ever looking forward to sharing my work with you...thanks for looking!

Too Cool...

This is a layout I completed of my oldest son Christian. He thinks he is too cool to smile! But even without a smile - I think he is the cutest! (don't let him know I said so -- eeew, mom!)

The patterned paper is KaiserScrapbooks (first time I have used this line - I like it!)
The flowers are Bazzil, Prima and Hero Arts, Buttons are Hero Arts and Stampin' Up!; Letter Brads are Rusty Pickle, Alpha is Grungeboard by Tim Holtz; ink is Stampin' Up!

Bling it on, Baby!

I completed this layout for a contest at Scrappin with Grace - we are in week 2, and this week the challenge was to create a layout using "bling" - this one was really fun for me! You know I gotta say, I am really enjoying the message board at SWG -- I visit many, and enjoy them all for different reasons, but this one is just homey and personal - everyone there is so friendly and supportive, I find myself visiting often! If you have a chance, you should stop by!

Anyway, here is my contest entry - I wish I could get a better photo that really showed the sparkle - for my bling elements I used Bazzill Bling cardstock, I added glitter to the large heart, I painted and glittered the flowers, added bling flower centers and rhinestone brads.

Pattered paper and chipboard is My Mind's Eye, Cardstock is Bazzill; flowers, glitter, rhinestone brads and ink are Stampin' Up!; bling flower centers are heidi Swapp, ribbon is from the target $1 spot

Update on us and a new layout to share...

So what's new around here? Well lovely sunny California has been seeing some pretty rough weather! Having lived here all of my life, when people talk about "big storms" it has never meant much to me - but Friday got a little scary. We lost a 30+ foot tree in the back yard, and a good portion of our fence with the winds - There were things flying everywhere, and still today driving around the roads are filled with debris, and the evidence of the storm is everywhere...there are still people with power out as well. I have seen trampolines on roofs, basketball hoops IN cars - It really has made me count my blessings. I am so grateful that I don't live in a place where storms like this (or much worse) are something to worry about all the time!

In other news - can you believe we are sick, AGAIN! What is UP! My daughter (who got the worst of it last time) is sick. I took her to urgent care yesterday, and she has a virus that causes painful ulcerations at the back of the throat - the poor thing is in so much pain! They gave her lidocaine to numb it so that she can swallow and be able to eat and drink. Unfortunately I woke up at 3am today with the ulcers on my throat - guess I will be stealing her meds until I can get to the doctor! The good news is that the doctor said that it is not airborne, and so it spreads with direct contact (kissing, sharing drinks, etc.) only - so it is okay to work and go to school. She is staying home today as she feels pretty rotten, but I can suck it up and work - I hate calling in sick!

Thinks are looking promising on the job search for DH - I hope you are still keeping us in your prayers, we really need them! We hope to have good news soon.

I did finish a new layout this weekend. I am really quite pleased with this one. I have been looking for MONTHS for a "winter" paper in pinks to use for these great photos of Lauren on our snow tip last year. I finally found these and I just LOVE them! I bought several snowflake embellishment options, but most of what I found was just not quite "right" - so the large snowflakes I made myself - I love how they turned out! I used a brass snowflake stencil with translucent embossing paste. For the white snowflakes I added glitter, and the blue I added pearlex powder and glitter. The exacto work was a little time intensive, but I love how delicate and shimmery they are!!


The supplies used here are:
Patterned Paper: Fancy Pants Designs - Holly Jolly line
Cardstock: Bazzill
Sugar Coated chipboard alphabet - Doodlebug Designs
Small snowflakes: EK success; Large snowflakes - Lasting impressions stencil, Dreamweaver Embossing paste, pearlex powder and Stampin' Up! glitter
Rhinestone brads: Stampin Up!
Ric- Rac: found at target $1 spot!

Following inspiration, or insight?

So every time I sit down to create, I learn something - and even when projects turn out differently than I had planned, I get something out of it. I completed this layout today to participate in a contest at www.scrappinwithgrace.com
The challenge was to complete a one page layout with at least 5 photos reflecting on 2007. I printed out the photos last night, and had a layout plan in my head, but have been sick, and was just too tired to scrap, so I went to bed. I could not breathe this morning, and got up at 5:30 am and decided to start scrapping. At some time during the night, the contents of my scrap room must have shifted, and a bag of items I have not seen in ages (and frankly forgot existed) somehow ended up on the floor. The bag included a ruler and tape measure, and a grid stamp. I figured that it must be meant for me to use these items, and decided to use them as inspiration for my page layout. Now, I am really not sure if I like this page, and it is definitely far from my "style". Throughout the day ( and yes I struggled with this nearly all day) I thought about turning back and starting over, and doing something that felt more comfortable and safe - you know, floral or whimsical...but I stuck with it, and I have decided that even though it will never be a favorite page, it is good for me to try new things, and step outside my comfort zone. And I am sharing it with you because someone may find something they like and are inspired by.

Other things I learned - time to clean the scrap room and get organized so things don't fall on the floor and "inspire" me unnecessarily! lol

The patterned paper, ruler, tape measure and grid stamp are Club Scrap; cardstock and ink are Stampin Up!; ghost letters are Heidi Swapp; other supplies used: acrylic paint, staples, washers, drywall tape, hinges.