This Is For You, Z!

Seems like we're all venturing out in new directions. I'm making digital photo gifts--check out my gallery-- Brandi has her own photography studio, and now Zenita is a rep with
AC Bailey! Congrats, Z! You guys check it out and check out her blog. There's some fun stuff going on! :)


Isn't this sign the cutest? I used a frame by Raspberry Road Designs, and made a flier to advertise the show Brandi and I are doing this weekend. We both need to downsize our scrap stash, so I thought this would be a good way to do that AND advertise our new ventures! So if you need anything, let me know. I probably have it! :)

Time Flies--Again!

It's been awhile again, hasn't it?! I have been busy lately. We've been redecorating the grandkids rooms, and I need to downsize my scrap stash, so I've been going thru stuff. I haven't even made a dent in what I have. It's almost a sin to have so much! I just keep collecting and working it into my room. But no more! Since Pattie closed the lss, I have bought very little. And what little I do buy, I make sure I have a definite need for it. I honestly don't know how I even afforded it before! So I'm going thru stuff, and trying to sell it. Fall Fest is next weekend, so Brandi and I are going to set up a table and try to peddle our wares!lol If any of you live close, be sure to stop by! :)


The kids' rooms have turned out so nice! Jacob's room has been done for several weeks now. We painted his room and found a nice, used bedroom set for him. They still haven't hung his stuff back on the wall. I guess Grandpa is going to have to do it! The girls' room has been the hard one! We finally got it painted, and got their furniture painted--we took my Aunt's old bedroom set, thanks to the generosity of Cousin Dan--and found some cute pink floor lamps. What a bargain! On clearance at WM for $7! We took them over tonight, and Denny put them together. It adds some much needed lighting for the girls! I found some hot pink towels on clearance, too. They'll use them as dresser scarves. It's all pulling together! They just have to unload their old dressers, which we'll take out for them. Denny is going to paint one of them, so they'll have a place to put the "extras". Katie has too many extras! I can hardly wait to see it all completely finished. I'll post pics as soon as it's all put together. Hopefully by this weekend! :)


How do you like the pic? You'll never guess what I'm doing with it. I spent most of the day Sat., working on making a bunch of mini layouts. I found a cool site called ArtsCow, and signed up. Give it a shot! They send you cool specials, and this one that I took advantage of was microfiber cleaning cloths for glasses. Since we all wear glasses, I thought these would make neat stocking stuffers--I thought maybe the kids would use them if they had their pics on them. This one, of course, is for Denny. I got them for $1.99 and free shipping! What a deal! When they get here, I'll let you about the quality. But for $2.....


I used this kit for 3-4 different layouts. I just love it! It's called "Lost in Wonderland" by Nicole Young. I just love her stuff--it's so whimsical and cool! So check out her site!


That's it! I'll try to post a few more of my micro cloths this week! :)

Thomas James Greer

He's a cutie already! This is Thomas James Greer--Ryan's baby boy! Audrey gave me the ultra sound pics way back in July, and for some reason, today was the day to do something with them! I'm going to try my hardest to do his album right and keep up with it--the best laid plans, right? lol


Isn't this kit cute? It's a total scraplift. All I did was add in an extra set of sparkley stars, and the photo frame. The kit is by Carol Baumann and she designs for E-Scape and Scrap. I'd been dying to use it, and thought it was perfect for Thomas' pics. So this is his first layout. He posed rather well, don't you think? :)

Shopping

Here's this month desk top calendar. I've used this pic of my grandma on several things before, but it's such a pretty picture of her, and I thought it was perfect for this little kit! The kit is by mITTSYBELLE, and you can find it here. Hope that works! lol


We took Katie school shopping today. It really went pretty smooth! lol It's a lot easier taking them by themselves, rather than all 3 at once--which we've done many times! Not that they act up or anything, it's just easier to concentrate on one at a time! Katie ended up with a whole new look for school this year, which surprised us. She's into hoodies and high top tennies. Well, she didn't give up the high tops, but didn't buy even one hoodie! She got a real cute double breasted jacket, for one thing. I'll have to get pics of her new look and post them, 'cause I really can't even explain it. Just know, she looks as cute as can be!

Richard

This is the last project I've done for Colleen. A celebration! Her other BFF's son is getting married! Congrats, "Richard"! lol I will say, the names have been changed to protect the innocent! lol Since this is a surprise, we weren't quite sure they'd want their names plastered all over the internet! lol This was fun. And truly a team effort. I wasn't quite sure at one point where we were headed with this, but after asking a million questions, it finally hit me what Colleen wanted. We're both pleased with the end result. I was able to extract the flourishes from the actual invitation and match up the color. I just my photoshop program! :) The storyboard I used is by Miki Ferkul. She does a lot cool things, so check out her site.

Heather's Collage

Here's another page I did for Colleen for her to take to the memorial. This was her daughter, niece and nephew when they went to visit them in Hawaii. It looks like they were all having a great time! :) I love this little kit I used. It's by Sailor and Lula Designs. It seemed just perfect for these playful pics!

Thank You, Colleen!

Colleen was kind enough to let me share these next 3 projects that she had me do for her! The one I've posted today is a tribute to her lovely niece that passed away recently. So sad--she was so beautiful. Colleen wanted something to remember her by, and to give to some relatives, so this is what we came up with. A beautiful quick page by Raspberry Road Designs. It just seemed so fitting--even the quote was perfect. I didn't know her--I had never met her, but I do wish her eternal rest and peace.

Happy Birthday, Son!

Today is Ryan's birthday--35 years ago today I almost died having him. Not really--but isn't that what every mother says? lol I thought I had a hard labor with him, but after having Libby, I realized having Ryan was a piece of cake! lol He turned out to be a great guy--one I'm proud of! I always thought myself very lucky not to have a bunch of trouble with him. He was a pretty good kid. Not perfect by any means, but he didn't give me any trouble. For that I was thankful! It's funny, that he had his little girl kind of late in life. He was 31 when Dakota was born. Now at 35, he's going to be a daddy again. He and Audrey are expecting a little boy in November--a little turkey! lol Their family will be complete. I just wonder how Dakota will take not being the center of attention. Hope she's not mean to the baby!



I made Ryan's birthday card. Since he's in a rock band, I thought I should use some rocked out paper! This is by Flergs and it's called Helter Skelter inspired by the Beatles, of course. I thought it was kind of cool. One time when we had all gotten together, Dakota showed up with a temp tat on her arm of a guitar. She was rather proud of it! lol (Just click on the pic, and it enlarges). Since Ryan has the real deal on his arm, I took of pic of them! lol So that's what's in the middle of the Helter Skelter frame. Then, of course, that's Ryan with Dakota. She looks just like him! :)


So, Son, Happy Birthday to you, and I love you!!! I'll see you at dinner tonight!

Love,
Mom

Road Trip

This is my new desktop calendar I made! I just love these colors! If you go to Amanda Thorderson's blog, you can see the freebie kit she offered. Just scroll down to Aug. 4th post. I loved the freebie so much, I bought the kit--and the bracket album! The colors are so cool and refreshing. It just made me happy!


Not much going on here. Brandi and I took a road trip yesterday to St. Louis. It was a scrappy road trip. We went to For Keep's Sake--a HUGE lss. They were pretty low on mdse. tho. New stuff was coming in from CHA, but probably not til next week. Just our luck! I did find a few things to buy, tho. Then we went to Michaels. We didn't realize it was so close to the lss. I didn't buy one thing, tho. Brandi said she didn't even know who I was anymore! lol After that, we had a nice lunch at The Pasta House. It wasn't too bad. It was no Olive Garden, but I'd go back again sometime. Then it was on to Archiver's. If you've never been to one, well, it's huge! I only bought a couple of small things there, but I found the main thing I'd been wanting--Computer Tricks 3 by Jessica Sprague! I have looked every where I know to look down here, and couldn't find it. Then all of a sudden, there it was! I was a happy camper! Check her site out--if you're wanting to learn to digi scrap, she has great tutorials. That's where I went to get started. Then I took an online photo editing class--I still have to finish it, but I've learned great stuff. My pics are looking so much better! So anyway, that was our day yesterday. Fun!


Peggie, hope you're up and around! :)

Check Book Cover

I decided it was time for a new checkbook cover. My other one was getting all ratty and the plastic cover was cracking. It was in sad shape! I downloaded this little freebie kit by SotoCreations, called Late Summer. You can check out the kit at Twisted Scrapper. Just scroll down to see the whole kit. I was able to put the row of watermelons at just below the fold line. I was hoping there would be enough room for them. So just imagine it being folded in half, and you've got a check book cover! :)


Not much going on here. I have to give Mom a perm tomorrow. It doesn't take very long--just about an hour and a half. But my back is killing me by the time I'm done. Thanks goodness she doesn't have much hair! lol

Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries....

I'm on a cherry kick now. I've got several kits, and decided to play with this one today. First of all, I took a pic of Katie from last year and cropped it, colored her head band, lightened it, then extracted her out of the pic. The photo I did all on my own. I've learned a lot about editing pics, and have come to the conclusion that one of the easiest things to do to a pic to make it look better, is just to simply lighten it. Who knew?!


As I said, the photo I edited I can credit myself with. The rest of it--the whole layout, I copied--scraplifted. I have a hard time layering the elements, so I thought the best way to learn, was see how the pros do it. I actually worked for several hours on this--tweaking this and tweaking that. But I have a general idea as to what to do. But I'll be scraplifting a lot for a while. They're layouts are so cool, and it's kind of like using a pattern. When you make something from a kit or pattern, you just feel good when it turns out right. And you probably learn something along the way. Now, the one thing that I added that was not on the original, is the leaf collar around Katie's neck. She's actually postitioned on top of a butterfly, and the body extended down past her pic, and I needed to cover it up. Works for me! lol You can see this kit at After Five Designs. If you scroll down, you'll see tons of pics the designers did with this kit. They're gorgeous! The one I used was in the 5th column down, 2nd pic. Just click on it, and it will enlarge. Hmmm....I wonder which one I'll do next?!

This Is For You, Katie!

Who doesn't love cherries?! Katie and I love 'em--at least to scrap with! lol I'm not big on eating them, but I think cherries are one of the coolest elements to scrap with and decorate with. My kitchen is done in cherries. I've decorated with them, collected them, sewn my curtains out of Martha Stewart dishtowels--with the cherry design--now I'm scrapping with them! I just love this kit! This particular page is a quick page--it was already designed and all I had to do was put Katie's pic in it. I did add her name, and a few more elements--like the cherry clusters and the bird--that were in the big kit I bought. I found it in May during the National Scrapbook Day event. This particular kit is by Susan Darter of Raspberry Road Designs. You guys really need to check out her blog. She does the neatest designs--a lot of vintage stuff. I bought the Cherries Kit, and she has a kit called Flour Sack. If you're into vintage, you'll love this one--I did, and I bought it. It's designed around retro/vintage kitchen stuff. I swear, she made that one just for me! lol Every Friday she debuts a new kit, and with it, she gives out gorgeous freebies. Not just one or two, but a whole week of freebies that coordinates with that weeks kit. This is one of my fave sites, so head on over there and check it out! :)



I can't believe how many layouts I've scrapped since I've started digi scrapping. I was known at the lss as the project queen, because I wouldn't scrap pictures. Doing projects was leftover from my crafting days, I guess. Now I don't want to do projects--I want to digi scrap! Anyone that knows me, knows that when I get into something I really like, I go whole-hog all the way. Now what am I going to do with all of the paper scrapping supplies I have.....anybody need anything?



I'm glad Katie is into scrapping. She's pretty good and creative at it, too. If she had more room, I'd give her more stuff. I've given her a ton already. I think I'm going to have to go over there and organize it for her. Then maybe I can unload my room onto her! lol You won't care, tho, will you, Katie??? Love you, baby!

I Scream, You Scream

I know--it's pretty lame, but I couldn't help it! lol Mom and I had taken the kids to McD's last Fri. so Dakota could play. We took Jacob and Kelsea with us, too. They all ate burgers first, then Jacob and Dakota were off to play! Kelsea, being 14, did not run off to play! lol She just sat with Mom and me and watched the other 2. They had so much fun. She wore Jacob out! lol At 3 years old, Dakota has energy to spare! Wouldn't it be nice to have just a little bit of it?! They finally decided it was time for ice cream, and you can see what Dakota did with it! lol She had it all over herself, like any 3 year old would! lol But she sure enjoyed it!


Mom has a friend who just adores Dakota, and said she needed a new pic of her. When Mom saw these pics, she thought they'd be fun to share, so I decided to make a card out of them. I printed the above pic out at 5x5, turned it into a card and now she can just set it out or frame it or whatever. I love how it turned out--I say that everytime! lol But these kits are so fun and easy to work with--you just can't mess it up! :) The kit is by Mellisa Toy and the hearts are by Maelia. I love her work--it's so whimsical! I've used the hearts on other stuff. They just kind of go with everything. I'm sure they'll show up again on something, so be sure to come back and take a peek! :)

Jacob's Birth Announcement

Here's Jacob's announcement that I made. I just love the little frog! This is a little kit I used called Feeling Froggy by Colie's Corner. I've got to quit scrapping so "linear". I need to be more carefree, and layer stuff. But it just goes against my OCD! lol I love the page I made, but I just wish I had a bit of a knack for being more whimiscal, I guess. Note to self--practice!


Jacob is such a good kid. I had Dakota for a while Friday, and then I kept her Sat. night, so Audrey could go with Ryan while his band played. On Friday, I picked Jacob and Kelsea up and Mom met all of us at McD's, so Dakota could play at the playground. Jacob played with her and kept her entertained for us. They had a lot of fun together. He's almost 12 now, but he's so good with her. And she loves him to death! lol Then he spent the night with us last night, too. Again, a big help where Dakota was concerned. She's 3 now and is a handful! She's into everything and just wears me out. We went back to McD's last night so they could play and hopefully wear her down a bit. It worked! When we got home, I let her take a shower and it wasn't long after that that she went to bed. By that time, I was ready for bed yself! lol

Kelsea's Baby Announcement

Kelsea is 14 now, so I guess it's about time I made her a birth announcement! lol I love this little kit--it's by KariQ Designs and is call Little Dreamer. I made a little 4x6 announcement (top) and an 8x8 page. I'm really happy with how this turned out! I'll be posting Jacob's next. I still have to do one for Katie and Dakota, so be on the look out for them. I'm not sure yet how I'm going to do theirs.


That's what takes me so long--picking out the kits, then the papers to use. Then it takes me about 2-3 hours to do the page. With the old pics, I have to scan them into the computer, then do some editing. I love the editing part, but it's time consuming. I've been taking a freebie online photo editing class by Jessica Sprague. She is so knowledgeable! I've got two of her mags, Computer Tricks, and they have also been helpful in my digital journey. But I just find this so much fun and relaxing. And I have no mess to deal with, and plenty of room to work. I'll be posting a layout later of Kelsea when she was 3. It was her birthday. The pic was less than perfect, but with the editing that I've learned, the pic turned out pretty good. So stay tuned! :)

Way To Go, Jacob!

Jacob played baseball again this summer. We weren't sure if he was going to play this year or not. He couldn't stand last year's coach, and had decided if the guy coached this year, he wasn't playing. I don't blame him. The guy was pretty rough on the kids--they were only 10 or 11. Baseball should be fun, but this guy made them miserable--it was no fun for them. But they have new coaches that are really good and constructive, so I think the kids are having a better season. Who the hell wants to be yelled at? Not me! Anyway... This is either his 3rd or 4th year. He plays a pretty good game, too! He's usually outfield or left field, and he's great at catching those balls! :) We only went to 3 of his games, but they are fun to watch. His team, the Bernie Mules, had a perfect season this year! He even got on the All Star team, for the second or third time--they didn't make it to All Stars last year. They lost their first 2 games by 1 point, but Thurs. night, they won by 1 point! Jacob batted in 2 guys--I guess that's the term!--which won them the game! Go Jacob! So they'll play again Monday, I think. We'll try to get to that one! :)

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Happy 4th! We're going to Libby's late in the afternoon and have a cookout and then watch the kids light their fireworks. This works out good--cooking out later in the day. That way there's not so much time between the cookout and the fireworks. Not that we don't all want to be together, but then we don't have to listen to the kids beg to light their fireworks. They can't do it until it starts to get dark. Why waste them in the daylight, when you can't see them? That's the way we think, anyway! lol Ryan and Audrey and Dakota are coming, too. Hope I get some good pics of everyone. As you can tell, this one of Dakota is a few years old! lol Isn't it cool, tho? I used a little freebie kit from Raspberry Road Designs to make it. I can't remember where the word art came from. I have to get better at remembering these things! And speaking of remembering....I'd better make sure my batteries are fully charged, because I think I'll have Kelsea take the pics. She's good at it, but I'm sure there will be a lot of self-portraits! lol


We bought hot dogs, buns and chips, and I'm making baked beans. Tonight I made the potato salad. I DO make awesome potato salad, if I say so myself! :) I'll tell you my secret--use a full package of dry Zesty Italian salad dressing mix. Just sprinkle it over the potatoes--I use a 5 lb. bag--and mix it up with your other ingredients. To die for! It was great tonight and will be even better tomorrow!


So with that, I wish you all a Happy 4th, and stay safe!

V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N is Over!

We made our trip to IA, and had a nice time, but you know--as much as I gripe about this place, it was good to get home. I love our home and most of my family is here now--I just don't like this part of the country. It's too friggin' hot for one thing! You go from furnace to AC back to furnace--there's no break inbetween. But anyway, I'll save it for another time...I got to see my Dad while I was there. I told him I'd take him out to dinner in DeWitt, but he decided he wanted to have Harris Pizza. That did not hurt my feelings! lol He only lives about 15 minutes from town, but he doesn't go any more often that he has to. And he knows all the country roads to get to town, so he can stay out of the traffic. Well, there is a lot of traffic in town, so I don't really blame him! Denny got to spend some time with his Mom and I got to see my friends Betty and Colleen, which is always nice. So all in all, a good time!


Here's this month's screen saver I did with the grandkids' pic. It worked out pretty good, just having a place for 2 pics--I found one of Jacob, Dakota and Katie together. Then there's Kels. That's her with her tongue sticking out--she's just like her mother. She'd hate to hear that, tho! lol

V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N

Just a mini vacation. But it's going to be good to get out of town for a few days! We're heading back home to visit my Dad, Denny's Mom and my BFF! lol Colleen and I have been friends since 8th grade, so I can say this! :) Hi, Colleen! See ya soon! In about 24 hours, Denny and I are going to be chowing down on some of the most awesome pizza in the whole, entire world--Harris Pizza! We've lived all over the place, and nothing compares, in our book. It's to die for! :) Sometimes we eat it at the pizza place, and other times we'll get it to go and drive around and eat it--just like we did in the old days! You know, Denny first told me he loved me--between bites-- while we were eating a Harris Pizza. So you see how significant Harris Pizza is to us--plus, it's soooooo good!


Real quick, here's the Father's Day card I made for Denny. I used a freebie kit--Carousel, from Escape and Scrap--it's circus themed, if you couldn't tell. I thought it was so appropriate, since life for us is a 3-ring circus at times!


See ya when I get back! :)

Today is My Birthday!

I've been back here for hours and just realized today is my birthday. Happy Birthday to me! :) I'm the big 5-5 this year. OMG! You know, when you're 15 or 16, 55 seems ancient. It doesn't seem so ancient to me now! lol You know, mentally, I feel like I'm 25. Physically, that's another story! lol And I have CRS--Can't Remember Shit! I'm at the stage in life now that I have to make notes, or I tend to forget a few things. I always thought that so rediculous, and Mom was the world's worst at leaving notes everywhere. Sorry, Mom--I now see the need! lol And if I say something and promise to do something, I don't remember it 20 minutes later. I promise all kinds of stuff with the greatest of intention, but following thru is another matter. Isn't the aging process a wonderful thing?! lol


Isn't this pic of Dakota adorable? I can't take credit for the idea, tho. I saw it on a blog and remembered--that's a miracle in itself!--that I had taken these pics of Dakota when Denny's Mom and Sister were here at Easter. Perfect pics for this! Check the inspiration photo here and see what you think--you'll have to scroll down a bit. And the kit I used was by Brandy Designs--there was a design contest at DigiScrapAddicts, and this particular week, the theme was the Beatles --she picked Strawberry Fields. I'm so happy with how it turned out! The only thing, tho, is you can't tell from the pic that I have a quote in the upper left hand corner. It's by Tinkerbell, and says--You know the place between sleep and awake--the place where you can remember dreams? That's where I'll always love you. It's that cool?!

Well, Mom told me to call her when I get up and we'll go out for lunch for my birthday. I picked Chinese. They have a noodle dish called Chicken Mai Fun. It's yummy! Hope I don't forget to call Mom.....