I had forgotten

to show you all my new way of displaying layouts. I usually just set them again existing pictures that are on a shelf or my one window. Well, I had come across this idea from a clever gal whose name just isn't coming to me. I thought "WOW" I can do that and it will look good, too! So as soon as I can remember who it is that had the original idea, I will come back and post her name.

All items I got were from my grand trip to Ikea. Gosh, I love that store!

I'm moving slow

lately! I can't even manage to muster up the energy to get this Christmas tree finished. What's the rush, huh...LOL

I will get the majority of it done today. I promised the kids. It has snowed here again during the night, not a lot but it sure is cold. It hasn't been this cold in December here in a long time.


I'm trying to finish up my DT work and get in the mood for Christmas. I just feel so tired every day. I need to snap out of this mode. Coffee isn't doing it. Maybe I need to make it stronger...LOL Exercise might help...nah I get even more tired thinking about that!

Well I leave you with my first layout from December's wonderful Back Porch Memories kit

Finished a sketch

so I thought I'd post it. I always think I'll wait until I have a few to share, but I know I'll forget by then.


Have fun with it. I think I'll be using this one soon myself. I don't know if I like the sketch or the color combo more...LOL

Oh, here's just a peek of the Christmas Countdown project I finished up.

Thanksgiving...

has come and gone. I still feel stuffed!

Now on to Christmas and all the fun it brings. We will be having Christmas Eve here again at our house and my head is already spinning thinking of all the stuff I have to do. This year we decided not to pull names and buy gifts for all the kids. My sis came up with a great idea to play games, decorate cookies, and make crafts. Of course, I am the one who has been put in charge of crafts...lol How did I know that was going to happen. Well, I'll have some good ones for the kiddies for sure.

I also am making a couple Christmas projects for Back Porch Memories. Paula will be sharing them via email. I think the first one has turned out kind of cute. As soon as I can post it I will :D

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Off to create some more goodies :D

Here's a sketch

I had forgotten that I had finished this one up. Have fun using it. If you do, be sure to send me a link to your creation :D

I wanted to share this blog!

I stumbled across this blog from a gal at CSS. Dolores is a designer for this cool blog -- Scrapping the Music. I find music to be very inspirational most times for lending hand to the perfect title or meaning to a layout. I definitely want to scrap a layout with the last two songs -- Best Days and the current one Little Wonders. Make sure you go check it out!!

Lots of scrappy things to share!

Whew! I've had a whirlwind of a week and actually managed to finish up EVERYTHING!! I felt so accomplished, yet exhausted because I always wait until the pressures on to complete the things I need to complete. I must like pressure -- I work best under it, but I'm always afraid one day I'm going to get bit in the butt by it...LOL

So here everything is:

My Back Porch Memories montly DT creations







Here was my altered project I created for the monthly newsletter. You can find the instructions here.





And then here were the creations I made for my guest designer stint at Creative Scrap Shack for the month of November.




I even managed to make 18 cards for a Christmas card swap I am in. Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of them before I sent them away. I should be getting my package back soon and I will share everyone's beautiful cards. I just LOVE this time of year!!

Lots to talk about!

Okay, first off I got the BEST news today!!!! I was asked to be the guest designer for the month of November at Creative Scrap Shack How exciting!!

Next, we had a great Halloween with a bunch of trick-or-treating that left me exhausted. I think that was more from all of the candy I ate...lol My kids just love Halloween as much as I do, but poor little Collin doesn't enjoy the walking part. He literally only walked our block and then told me he was done...WHAT!! So Marisa and I headed over to another subdivision and continued on. We ran into one of her schoolmates and the mom and I just started chatting it up. She was a hoot and before I knew it 1 1/2 hours flew by!


And then some more exciting news. Yes, we finally purchased another vehicle. Now that winter is looming, we knew it was time to store the Camero. I can't believe I found this amazing vehicle by chance. I had been looking and looking for an afordable SUV, but had come to the conclusion that it wasn't going to happen. But as luck would have it, I logged on to Craigslist one more time on a Sunday morning and found this beauty ---->
Doesn't it look good sitting in my driveway....LOL I waxed and washed her until she shined like a baby's buttisimo! Then of course that very night it rained! Oh, well, at least I got a good picture. I had to get new tires as of yesterday because I woke up to a flat. Somewhere along the way searching for a pumpkin I ran over a huge chunk of metal. NICE! Well, it needed new tires anyway so that's one thing checked off the list.

Well off to scrap! Trying to get things done in a timely manner *grin*

Scrapbooks Etc.

What a cool thing that was pointed out to us by Paula the awesome owner of Back Porch Memories in the Nov./Dec. issue. In the middle section of the magazine in the Objects Of Desire section of the magazine BPM is advertised. I have to totally agree with the description and put a check in the box next to LOVE IT!!

Photoshop Elements 5.0

Yep, I took the plunge and bought the program. You couldn't beat the deal I got on Ebay. Man, I love that place sometimes. Too much my pocketbook tells me...lol
This place had super lightning fast shipping and the disk made it to me in two days. I still am waiting on the 2GB of memory I bought for my computer at another great steal on Ebay. My computer is seriously lacking in the memory department and holding me up all the time.

Since then, I have downloaded every free digital file I could find that I liked -- even bought a few!! The types of files I like are the frames, labels, journaling blocks, and overlays. The things you use to enhance photos. I can't see myself ever digital scrapping -- well, I mean replacing my paper scrapping. No way!! I love paper waaaaaaaay too much...lol

So here's a little thingamabob I threw together for some cards I made for my neices and nephew for Halloween. I used a free 2Peas kit along with Lisa Whitney's Halloween doodles. I printed it out and cut for a cute tag on my cards. I also used it in my siggy line at my favorite spots!

Someone...

make me scrap!! Tell me I have to!! Haa haaa

I want to I really do, but I seem to have lost the ooomph and then there's that time issue thing. If I'm not running for the kids, I'm just tired from running and doing all the day-to-day things.

Tomorrow, I will scrap if it's the last thing I do! So if you're looking for me I'll be over at Creative Scrap Shack participating in the Halloween Boo Bash. Oh, and if you're looking for some other Halloween crops going on this weekend, there is another cool one at Create My Keepsake. Make sure to check both of them out!!

Who can resist a prize???

Well, not me, and hopefully not you either! Go check out Back Porch Memories' blog. Paula is making the BIG move and needs to lighten her load. It's a good giveaway -- promise!

Another one!

Man, these are becoming addicting...LOL I just finished this sketch up. Time for bed...it's 4 am almost(eek!)

Sketches

I think I'm hooked on making these! I tried one for the first time today and it was super fun! Here it is in case of my peeps want to use it :D

I made it...

to round 4 of the Bad Girls contest. I seriously can't believe it because if you knew the stress I put myself through yesterday. I had finished a layout and didn't like it at all. So of course I decide I have enough time to do another one being it was first thing in the morning. Yeah, right...does anyone know my kids and hubby???LOL Well, around 6 pm I head to the basement and forget about everything. Then hubby comes home early from bowling and I have to stop scrapping so we can get the kids to bed. Now mind you I am struggling with the design element -- that's what we had to do a layout about. Nothing was working the way I wanted. I couldn't get the paper to "feel" right. I pushed, pulled up, played, inked and anything else you can think of until finally I finished at 10:30 pm eastern time. Now I have to have the layout loaded up into the gallery by 11pm. I should make it with no problem....yeah right!! My computer decided to lock up after uploaded the pictures. I was getting reading to resize it and that was it...nothing...stuck! I flip it off really quick and then turn it back on.

UH OH! That did it! Now there's a black screen telling me I did something wrong. I click a button. Now there's a blue screen telling me something needs to scan the system. I decided I don't want to do that...well, the computer had the upper hand here. FINALLY...at around 10:53 pm I am able to get on the computer, resize the photo, and then upload my layout in the nick of time. Serious panic attack going on there. I couldn't get to sleep for hours after those heart palpatations...LOL But it's all better today and the world is great!

Here are my layouts from the first three rounds so far:

Week #1 Color


Week #2 Dimension/Texture


Week #3 Design Elements

Camping

It was our first experience as a family. We LOVED it!! A little exhausting for the fact that I just can't get sound sleep. I actually came home yesterday and after unloading my brother's van and putting stuff away, I laid on my bed to remember what one felt like and then fell asleep for 2 hours. Boy, oh boy, did that feel good!!

Marisa lost her bottom eyetooth over the weekend. She couldn't wait to get home to give it to the tooth fairy because as she put it "she's broke and needs money"...LOL

Now I'm back to the routine of getting everyone off to school. I have tons of laundry to do because everything smells like campfire. I'm dying to scrap and probably will some time today. I'm waiting on the mail man to bring my BPM DT kit...can't wait!!! So many goodies I'm vying to play with. Time to get some pictures printed!

It's that time of the month...

no not that one...lol The time where I update my scrappy creations from Back Porch Memories. Gosh, I might sound repetive, but this was another AWESOME kit!!!! October's will not disappoint you either, promise!! Just found out the goodies in that will consist of October Afternoon, Fancy Pants, Basic Grey and Dream Street papers -- woo hoo!!!

So here's what I've been doing lately:

So much has happened... (super long post)

since my last post! Where do I begin???

Well, on August 23rd I flew out to Tulsa, OK to meet up with some of the best women on the planet! We stayed in the fabulous Renaissance Hotel and attended the Creating Keepsakes Convention. What fun! Lots of shopping and eating...yes, I said eating! If you know me, you know I love my food...LOL I would give the food at the hotel an A+++ Holey smokes, Cheri got us a room on the concierge level and that meant free eats certain times of the day. I can't say there was one thing in there that didn't taste incredible. Hey, I think I found my new calling -- a food critic! Seriously, though, all in all it was just a fantastic time. I almost got a little teary eyed when standing in Chili's parking lot I realized it was over. I just know there'll be a next time!
Here's few pictures from my grand event.










The next important thing was my kiddos heading back to school. Well for Collin it is his first year in school -- kindergarten. This is a big adjustment year for Travis and Marisa. They have always attended private schools and now we're heading to the big world of public schools. I have to say it's been an adjustment for me, too! I am a little sad that we are no longer at St. Peter's Lutheran. It was small and quaint and there was just something about it that I loved. Now Travis has adjusted quite well. As a matter of fact I think he just LOVES this whole new world -- or maybe the girls...lol Collin just can't get enough of the bus and his new teacher Mrs. Witgen. Marisa on the other hand is having a bit of difficulty. I can see it in her eyes and her demeanor. She is trying, but she is like me when I was a child and despises change. I keep reassuring her that it will all become familiar like it was at the other school. I'm praying! Praying hard! It breaks my heart to see my little girl sad and there isn't much I can do about this one except to keep upbeat, positive, and re-enforce all of it over and over again.
Here's some first day photos!


Collin started the following afternoon. I couldn't contain his excitement! The first day I drove him to school and then after that he took the bus.












Oh, I forgot to add that Collin has now lost two teeth!! I couldn't believe it. I thought at first he might have hit his mouth and knocked them loose, but no! There are new teeth coming in underneath and he is also getting his six-year molars in. Wow, this kid definitely grows like a weed!




Then on to the birthdays. Dave celebrated his 39th on the 5th and Marisa celebrated her 8th birthday on the 10th. Lots of fun and lots of presents!