Fall is Here!!

How exciting! Fall weather has finally joined us here in my little corner of the world...cool and cloudy...just enough to make you want to stay snuggled inside with a cup of hot cocoa and a good book... Now don't get me wrong - next week or so I will be whining that I miss my sunshine, but right now I am loving the change!

And it feels like a full season has passed since I last updated my blog...oh well, what else is new? I have finished a few fun things recently, although not nearly as much as I would have liked. Although my mojo has finally returned and I am starting to feel those creative juices flow, my available time has been pretty limited - I take what I can get!

Here is a little fall layout to get you in the mood! This is my daughter last fall decorating pumpkins.

I used Scrapworks and Cosmo Cricket patterned papers, Scenic Route chipboard alpha, Basic Grey alpha stickers and a buncha buttons from my stash.

I am excited to say that I am participating in a fun contest over at Moname Memories. I think a good contest is just what I needed to kick my creativity into gear and get me in the mood to scrap! The contest is called the Tour de France, and we are racing to the finish line - for the next 4 weeks I will be working on challenges for this, and so far I am having a GREAT time! Hope that the old bike is not too rusty to keep up, but either way, it should be a fun ride.

Here is what I created for the first leg of the race. The challenge was to use the theme "greatness" for the layout, and then to create a card using only the items that you used on your layout.

I have to tell you that this challenge was really a blessing for me - As I started thinking about the "greatness" theme, I knew exactly what I needed to do. I have really been struggling with my oldest son, Christian. At 13 he is really starting to test me, and we struggle daily to keep him on the right track, especially with school and homework. Being a mom is SUCH hard work, and I often feel like my role in life is to be a nag, which I just hate. So I created this layout about my struggle with my son, and it helped so much for me to express it and to put it into perspective.

Sorry the photos are not the best - it is dark here, and my efforts to lighten in PS did not do them justice, but that's the best I can do.

The journaling reads:
Christian, I know you think I'm too hard on you...that I am too strict, I push you too hard. You are RIGHT! I do push hard. I have known since you spoke your first words that you were an amazing gift - so incredibly bright! I see a future for you filled with such great potential. I know in my heart that you can do ANYTHING! I want you to learn to always do your best - to reach as far as you can. I want you to see that "good enough" is just NOT good enough for you. I will keep pushing you to live up to your potential, and I pray that one day you will realize that I do this because I LOVE YOU and because I know that you are DESTINED FOR GREATNESS.

Then here is the card I created using the same supplies:
The products that I used are: We R Memory Keepers patterned papers and chipboard shape, Stampin Up cardstock, ink, journaling pen and brads, Heidi Swapp chipboard alpha, Making Memories tiny alpha stickers, and misc. buttons.

Here is another simple card I never shared...

as well as a little journal that I made to keep track of my phone calls at work:

Well, I guess that covers the work I have done for the moment - I am in the middle of several things, so hopefully I will get some time soon and can pop in and share them!

On another note, I did want to mention that I will no longer be participating on the design team at Making Memories for You - I won't go into details except to say that everything happens for a reason, and I have discovered that the reasons this time are so much better for me. I have been reminded that I really do need to listen to my gut - I keep thinking that I know this, but apparently I need periodic reminders. I did learn a lot from this experience - which is why I continue to try new things! I created some things that I LOVE and am very proud of, I made a few new friends which is ALWAYS important to me. I learned that I really enjoy doing sketches, and I think this is something that I will continue - at least once in a while!

And at least for the moment, I will use my time to scrap just for me, and I will continue to challenge myself and enjoy my love for creating because it brings me joy!

I am off now to go dig in to some paper and see what I can get accomplished. Have a scrappy day!!