New Beginnings

This is the January Cocoa Daisy kit I was telling you about, lots of Basic Grey Origins, and American crafts Letterbox. Here are my layouts. This first one uses the rub-ons and paper from the add-ons (Happiness and Anticipation respectively), everything else from the main kit.

Since I was inspired by the rub-ons in the title from the first one, I decided to let the rub-ons guide me again! The rub-on is from the add-on Happiness. J was using those binoculars as a camera, running around "shooting" everything making a clicking noise. Where do children get these notions? Darn that tv. :)

This layout is my favorite I think. I love the colors and it really is how I feel right now, very chilly! Some paper is from the add-on Anticipation, the rest is from the main kit. The rub-ons and Pink paislee alphas were from the add-on Happiness.

This layout didn't turn out like I had planned. The JBS calendar is from the add-on Unwritten (however I had it in my stash from the gdt I did for them earlier this month). Everything else is from the main kit except the rub-ons and BG woolies (Happiness). My favorite thing is that card. I thought it looked like a seed packet, so I included it on the page. But it actually says in french that it has syrup of a basket weaver to cure any common ailment. ??? Oh well. It looks pretty. :)

This one is a page that I left half complete that I found when I was cleaning out for the move, eek! For like 2 years! I loved the journaling, so I cut it apart from the half done page. I reprinted the photo and added paper from the main kit and the add-on Anticipation. Then I added those American Crafts Letterbox Pearl brads that I had in my stash (also in the add-on unwritten). The gee is what my son called our dog (as in (do)g-ee). I love that photo of J and the pug. It's one of my very very favorite. Ever. It's moments like this I thank God I'm a scrapper, because even though I was there and saw it, my sleep deprived mind didn't register it. I need the evidence.

This last layout was a last moment edition before I left for the holidays. I had a fight with my printer and the journaling is on the back. The reason I did the notebook spiral punch? It's all I had left after I took a bunch of stuff over to my new house. Necessity. Everything from the main kit except the 'candy cane' alpha (Happiness add-on) and that American crafts Foil Merrymint candy cane I had in my stash. It was just too cute not to add it.

Happy Holidays and Happy new year to all who stop by! I'm too tired to make any resolutions. Does resolving to get all my crap over to the new house come heck or high water (or snow, ice or blizzard) count? I didn't think so. :)

6 Sneaks

Some Cocoa Daisy Jan sneaks for your viewing pleasure:

I only had two days with this kit and I made 6 layouts. Now granted, I was snowed in. :) I did like 3 a night though which is unusual for me. (Normally I work 2 at a time, not 3. I like to go back and forth, when I get stuck on one, I go to the next one.) But it's a really great kit and I love the assortment of Basic Grey Origins clips, buttons, etc. that Cocoa Daisy has put together. I always want to buy all that stuff to go with the paper, but to be able to get just a couple (which is all I'll use out of a pack anyway), genius I think. Happy Holidays and a very Merry Christmas to all who stop by!

PS A big hello to all you new blog followers! I'm glad you are here. :)

JBS guest

Here are some of my layouts for my guest design team spot over at the Jenni Bowlin blog for the month of Dec. Some really fun guest designers over there this month! I know, I am probably the last person I would put with JBS, and I was shocked that Lisa D. asked me. I thought she had eaten too much turkey, had a tryptophan induced coma/passed out, and hit her head and came to with a strange notion. I do really love JBS products though, as is evident by this older layout:

And here are some of the new layouts:

I wrote up a detailed description of each layout and it's on the JBS blog. I'm in a huge hurry to dig out my car today. I did shovel the driveway, but getting 3 ft of snow off the roof is going to be a challenge. I'm running around trying to get everything packed and get some photos of my Cocoa Daisy projects for Jan. I have 6 layouts, thank goodness for the blizzard right? Anyway, I'll get them up as soon as I can, today or tomorrow morning early. Happy Monday and Happy holidays friends!

The weather is here, I wish it were beautiful.

And it shall be beautiful. The only problem with a snow storm is that it's cold. Other than that, I have no problem with it. :) In fact, I'm a little grateful for the snow. It will force me to stop moving for a little bit, and we can just be still for a while. That's what my holiday is missing. The gifts are bought and wrapped. The baking is done. The house is as decorated as it's going to be in the middle of a move (tree and wreath). Now I'm ready for peace and quiet. There is none of that in the middle of moving to a new home.

On my mind:

1. This is my last move for a good long while. We are supposed to be here until my dh retires, please God let that be true.

2. My little Christmas tree. It's not much and with the unbreakable ornaments it's kind of tacky, but it's mine. And I like how the lights twinkle at night. And it especially tickles me that J plugs it in sometimes.

3. This new kit from Cocoa Daisy, a mixture of Basic Grey Origins and American Crafts Letterbox. No peeks just yet, still waiting for it to arrive. I think it's caught up in the holiday packages.

4. This too shall pass. All really difficult and soul trying times do eventually pass. Moving is really hard.

5. One more load. When I feel like giving up and giving in and throwing everything on the sidewalk I say, one more load. Just one more load. It gets me through until tomorrow anyway.

6. Making my own Christmas tags. I did, I made them all. I'll show you photos in a little bit, when I have a chance. I don't want J to see, some of them are from Santa.

7. The gift of giving. I say you've been pretty good this year and I left you a present here. It won't be there until Friday (I think), but I'm sure you can find pretty things to pass the time there until then. :)

Will be enjoying the weather enormously all weekend, as it is impossible to move my crap in a foot of snow. Happy Friday! Until tomorrow.

You, you don't really want to stay no but You, you don't really wanna go, oh

On any given day, I'm hot n' cold about this moving thing. (Mostly cold with our most recent snow storm). One moment I'm sad thinking about how many memories we have made here, how great the neighbors are, and how it's taken me nearly 2 years to make friends. Then the aggravation of dealing with the rental company and their myriad of ridiculous rules kicks in and I just can't wait to go. I just get comfortable with a situation and then the new freaks me out. But me and this rental house? This is an abusive relationship. I've given a whole lot more than I have gotten in return. It's time to part ways. I have a dog-like personality I guess, loyal until the bitter end. Speaking of which, not sure what this means:

Guess he's ready to go. I should take that hint. :)

I've been busy cleaning the new house, and packing up the old house. I'm moving the slow painful way across town, a couple boxes at a time. I'll still be doing this in Jan, long after you are shaking your head going "Is she ever going to be done moving?" Yep, it's like a root canal for me too. :)

So what am I up to other than that? Well, I've made the starling discovery that I love crafting more than blogging. Don't get me wrong, I like reading your blogs. But writing mine has become a chore. I'm going to try out a new format in the future, we'll see how it goes.

On Scrapping: Presently, I just finished 4 layouts for a guest DT position. I will have a layout up on the American crafts blog at the end of the month, around the 28th, I think? I made my digital Christmas cards, waiting for them to arrive. And I am waiting for a cardstock refill and the new Cocoa Daisy kit. Thinking of starting a project for J, trying to find time to make that happen. Wondering how/when to move my scraproom. Thinking about storage. American crafts has busted my storage system. Before I made the team I had 15 packs of thickers to my name. Now, 6 times that. Yikes! How do you store your thickers?

On my mind: Moving. Moving. Moving. Did I mention moving?

Driving me nuts: Sales people. Especially sales people who are like "I'm not a sale's person, I'm not pushy like that." Maybe it's time to dust your resume off then, just saying because that doesn't make me want to buy anything.

Still makes me laugh: This conversation overheard by me at my parents house: (My sister, mom and dad all work for the government and the day before thanksgiving my sister got a 4 hour release.)

My sister: We are getting off 4 hours early release!

My mom: We aren't getting any time off.

My sister: Why not?

My mom: We don't get time off/early release unless there is threat of bodily harm.

My dad: I'm bored to death, does that count?

I'm supposed to do what???: I've made so many lists it's not even funny. I get to check things off on five different pages when I do something for the move. Gratifying or terrifying, hard to say.

Happy Monday! Until tomorrow (or the next day, or the next day). :)

Cocoa Daisy December

I have taken a bit of a blogging hiatus around the holidays. I think I really needed the break, not just from blogging and scrapping, but from everything. Spending the past 2 weeks with my parents has been really fun. We had a great holiday. And I feel really re-charged and excited for the new house and Christmas. I took so many photos, I can't wait to scrap!

Here are my Cocoa Daisy December pages, such an awesome kit! Loved all the envelopes! The letters layout has two letters, one short one from me about what I want for Christmas and one from J that I helped him with. The second one is a very strange attempt to dislodge a song stuck in my head, Duncan Sheik's On a High (it didn't work). But the more I heard myself singing it, the more I thought how much it really represented how I felt. I, like everyone, have reasons to be down, but I'm just feel happy. The third layout has a letter about the miracle of snow to J. The fourth layout I love because I have to watch Dora, a lot. So it's kind of tongue and cheek about "swiper." The fifth layout has a letter to my dh about our first 10 years together, he brought me the ribbon on a box of chocolates from Paris. And the last layout features my dh and son, only 1 week old, just home from the hospital 5 days before Christmas.

Ok, I've got to go upload to the Cocoa Daisy gallery. I can't wait to see what the other girls did! Happy Monday! Until tomorrow.

Quick update/card

On my desk, the new Letterbox line from American crafts: (Thank you AC!) The ones to the right are chipboard and the ones to the left are fabric-like the delight thickers. This whole line is amazing, check out Doris' blog for more photos of it (scroll down one post). I love it all!

What I'm doing, making a card with a few photos for my MIL:

Thank you card

Supplies: American Crafts Minimarks-Blue skies and Letterbox; plus Kraft Bazzil Cardstock.

What I'm thinking about: the holidays, Arrrrgh Charlie Brown! I haven't done any Christmas shopping, but more importantly no J's birthday shopping. I did put the Christmas tree up, but only because it provided endless entertainment for J while I made some calls about the new house. Thank you for asking about the move. We are most likely moving in Jan, I will be handling a few home renovations in Dec--new carpet for the downstairs and possibly paint for a bathroom. But the weather here is always snow storms for January. Could be exciting?!

On my to-do list: Take some videos back to the library. Laundry, ick.

What I see, photo from across the street at my house: the leaves are almost all down.

Happy Wednesday to you! Until tomorrow.

Sneaky

Cocoa Daisy Dec Kit, I love it! Here's some sneaky:

Happy weekend, until tomorrow.

ETA: I was going so fast to get them uploaded to the message board. The "chocolate ribbon" is memorabilia, a gift from my dh, on a page about my dh and is not included in the kit. Sorry, but everything else is. :)

You Inspire you

My friend Stephanie Howell wrote a comment on my first No phase layout at 2 peas, and said: No is more like a way of life than a phase. Made me laugh so hard. And as the no phase goes into overtime and overdrive I find myself saying that: It's really more like a way of life. This layout is the follow up to the first, the sequel if you will. My newest layout featuring the you inspire you concept:

The No Phase Part 2 Layout

Supplies: American Crafts white cardstock; American Crafts Junior Patterned paper: Yah!; American Crafts Craft Fair Patterned paper: Elanore Battington; American Crafts Leaf Rocketeer Thickers; American Crafts Junior Fabric covered brads; plus Scenic Route patterned paper, October Afternoon Farm Fresh patterned paper: Chicken coop, 7Gypsies sticker and Maya Road Chipboard heart.

Long ago, I was asked to be a GDT for a challenge blog called I Inspire me (which sadly is no longer in existence). I created these layouts with the premise that the things you already own in your own home can be inspirational to you. I still really love that idea. However, my house now is in various states of disarray as I clean up, pack for the move and bring out a little christmas tree for J to play with. But I wanted to post some older examples, and a new example.

Look around your home, at everyday items and see the beauty that could be translated into a scrapbooking page or project. This requires seeing your surroundings with a fresh eye and an open mind. Just choose an inspiration piece and give it a try. Anything is fair game, but here is a list to get you started:

Jewelry Artwork/wall hanging/paintings Carpets, throw rugs, decorative pillows or throws Dishes/mugs Food in the Fridge? LOL Books, Magazines, Shampoo bottles Toys, games

I will be back later to post Cocoa Daisy Dec sneaks of the kit. Happy weekend to you! Later.

A quick share

For Vee's tv inspired challenge over at Cocoa Daisy. This was the inspiration piece:

And here is my take:

Lil girl Layout

Supplies: American Crafts Delight Watermelon Thickers and American crafts Pastel Glitter buttons, plus Cocoa Daisy November kit and Spiced Cider add-on. Plus Martha stewart butterfly punch.

If you play along you could win something. Until tomorrow. I'll have another page then.

This weekend

I'll be hanging out here:

And I'll be posting some layouts here as I post them for the crop since it will make them bigger for the message board. Like this one:

My pug is always in the shot, I swear. I have lots of sneaks of the Cocoa Daisy December kit, but it's still a little early to post them (I jumped the gun last month, ha!). Love this kit, I've done 6 layouts already and I'd like to do more, but I've got to decorate for Christmas this weekend. Be back in a few. Happy weekend! Until later.

Cocoa Daisy November

At first, this kit really threw me for a loop. When I started researching the contents of the kit, the first thing I said aloud was, "It's pink?!" As the mom of a little boy, that word can panic me just a little. But once I saw it in real life, I was sold! And I think that Tricia is really talented for putting together such amazing kits, I couldn't do it. :)

I only got the main kit and the patterned paper add-on, all embellishments/alphas are from the main kit. However, I wish I had gotten more embellishments because I used all mine!

This was a photo from last year at the pumpkin patch. Even though it's a strange angle, something about it intrigues me. The alphas sold themselves to me after this one (love those!):

This is just a quick one about J being on the verge of walking. I used my own handwriting because I was too afraid to run that beautiful piece of 7 Gypsies paper through my printer and risk certain destruction. LOVE that paper. I just thought the font looked good with rhinestones, J was a baby, I can get away with that. I think. :) Oh, also my first and last experiment with real stitching. Very time consuming, didn't love it as I thought I would.

Loved this photo, J doesn't sit still very long. I'm used to chasing him to photograph him. I think he was mesmerized by the water, but then he got up and started tossing in acorns and all was back to normal.

This is my favorite layout, only because Kutin is all I have heard around here for the past month. Kutin is J's word for pumpkin. Love the stamp in the bottom corner of the photograph, beautiful stamps with this kit.

Lastly, this kit comes with a mini album. Loved that! This is Jill bean soup paper, my first exposure to this manufacturer, and I loved this paper so much I used it for every page. I hand cut the butterfly and leaves out of the main kit paper, a different leaf for every page. Then in the interest of being a purist and only wanting to use the kit, designed some labels in photoshop (I will have a tutorial at Cocoa Daisy on the blog this month). However, if like me you have Jenni bowlin, October afternoon, etc. label stickers already in your stash, I would just use those. I added the Pink Paislee numbers on top and some embellishments. I did not journal before I posted it, I was afraid my handwriting would ruin it, but I've since journaled on it and I like it. I love that it sits open on my side table displayed for Fall. Can you believe how big he is getting? (Choked up here, carry on.)

So, that's it. I told you I was busy. Seems like I should have more to show for doesn't it? I'm such a slacker. :) I am in the middle of a project for J, I promised him I would make him something he could have, really have. Not something that just sits on the shelf and looks pretty. But it's not finished yet. I'm not doing a December daily. I've decided no one wants to see me hanging out of a Uhaul for as many pages. :) Friday, I will have a layout on the American crafts blog. I'm waiting on my AC albums to get here. I'm so excited for them, I have one album to my name and a huge stack of layouts. I'm excited to put them all in albums before the move (which won't be completed until Jan., but that's another post.) Happy Thursday to you! Until tomorrow.