Goodbye Lynn

Just a shout out to a pretty cool gal who I am honored to have met. Lynn, you are a great listener and a great friend - just wish you could have hung around a little longer to see all my annoying traits! I sure am going to miss ya. Keep in touch and we'll have to hang out whenever you come this way. We'll try not to get Sidetracked by the Keno Men out there. LOL. Thanks for everything! CKS

LOAD 23-27

LOAD 27 #2 Kaden 8 days old June 2008 (below)- yes i did another LO today too! and laundry too. and i dusted. what's wrong with me??????????
Credits: PP (Small Wonders, Brenda Walton, K&Company ***actually using a paper pack i bought - for its intended purpose . . .)
Stitching (Granny, In Stitches, Bazzill) LOVE THEM! I'm going back to the Shack and grabbing Every kind available!!. so easy to use and so fun and i don't have to use my sewing machine. - now where to store it all. . . .
Alpha (Milk Chocolate Chip, Chipboard Stickers, Basic Grey*love these*) (K, monogram stickers, Close to my Heart **love these -want each letter in alphabet)
LOAD 27!! Karlie and Kaden True Beauty Feb 2009 (above) love this quick page stuff. all i did was put a photo behind the large matt. added another photo with a box behind it. and the titles. that's it. feels like cheating.!! and the quick page was free! thanks Claudi Designs! awesome job.
Digital: (Friends, Quick Page Set 1, Claudi Designs) Font (Saffron Too).One more day to go for LOAD. !!! cannot believe I have completed - completely finished - 27 LO's so far. I'm not stopping here though - we started another challenge. LOAD might be too much if i want my hubby to keep smiling at me. so LOAW - lay out a week. first LO is due March 7 by 11:59pm. so, it'll keep me scrappin and my household won't fall apart! and we are keeping the LOAW up throughout the year. no prizes. just self -satisfaction. and pages in albums! who's joining me? i after 7 a week - i think i can pull off 1 a week. now where is the "go to the gym challenge" . . . just asking so i can avoid that one! LOL.

LOAD 26 Kaden A boy's will is the wind's will August 2008 (above) this will go on the right side of LOAD 24. my favorite photo ever. after a long battle of figuring out how to make him eat and be happy afterwards - He finally smiled. and i caught it on cam!
Credits: CS (Blue, Bazzill) PP (Playtime & Dino-Mite, Playtime, 3 Bugs in a Rug)Alpha (Blue Jean Letters, Mini Brush Letters, EK Success) (Vera Vinyl Stickers, Thickers, American Crafts**love these btw**) (Cork Alphabet Stickers, Fall Srapbooking, Target Dollar Spot) ACCENTS (Ribbon Quotes, Archivers) (Travel, Pebble Clips, Making Memories) (Mini File Folders, Li'l Davis Designs) (Staples) (Black Brad)Journal Block ((Destination, Journaling cards, ColorBok)Ink (Antique Pewter, Cat Eye Colorbok) (White Uni-ball Signo broad tip)

LOAD 25 (below) Karlie - I love pinky 2008. these photos are hilarious. nana, daddy and mommy are the witnesses to this silly little girl. aunt Nel bought her this toy dog and they named it Pinky. she is just so ornery.

Credits: PP (Daisy Blankie, Love Elsie)CS (Pink)Stickers (Daisy Trinkets, Cardstock Stickers, Love, Elsie)Walnut Stain, Designer Series Tim Holtz Distress Stickles, Ranger) - i bought all of these supplies the night before at the shack -after a run in with a so-called "keno man" and some maybe-not-so-innocent gal breaking my Car. (which still doesn't work btw. maybe it has something to do with hitting a mailbox a few weeks ago . . . and maybe i should trade it in b4 said hubby finds out!) anyway - quite impressive i think to buy supplies - with a page in mind - and then actually use them. i mean come on - who does that. ??? must be that keno man influencing me. . . .

LOAD 24 Kaden Roar August 2008 (above). this goes on the left side of LOAD 26. love this dino paper.

credits: CS (Blue, Bazzill) PP (Playtime & Dino-Mite, Playtime, 3 Bugs in a Rug)Alpha (Puffy White Chit Chat, Thickers, American Crafts)ACCENTS (Pin Striped Shipping Tags, Li'l Davis Designs) (Word Clips, Narratives by Karen Russell, Creative Imaginations)Ink (Antique Pewter, Cat Eye Colorbok)
Enjoy!!!

LOAD 23

Credits:

PP (PL-179, Me and My Big Ideas) (Flocked Paper Baby Boy/Words, Heidi Grace Designs)CS (NAVY)ALPHA (Autumn Spice, Chipboard Metallic Stickers, Making Memories) (White Puffy Chit Chat, Thickers, American Crafts)ACCENTS (Tite Cuts, Baby Boy, Laserline) (Boy Designer, Fabric Tags, Melissa Frances) (Spiral Journaling Notebook, {note}worthy, Making Memories) (Baby Ben Chipboard, Renae's House, Creative Imaginations) (Rub-Ons, Color Splash Baby Boy, Deja Views) (Hearts, To/From Tag Rub-Ons - don't know where from - sorry)White RibbonPunches (Corner, Paper Shapers)

whew - almost didn't get this in. The computer wouldn't read my SD card!! Scott listened to me panic for a half hour before telling me to use the usb cord. duh. even started doing a digi LO. i would have been so mad! i actually worked my little tail off on this LO. Kaden is 1 week old here. I love the larger photo on the right. so darn precious. These photos alone almost - almost made us crave another one. Then Karlie AND Kaden started screaming their heads off at the same time. I went and hit my head on the wall a few times to clarify my noggin! It's clear now - no fear. LOL.

at any rate - the computer will still not read my SD cards. tried a different one, too. gotta love technology.

oh - and good news for the world - bad news for outlets, computer cords (hmm - kaden did tug on it earlier), all of karlie's toys (magnets, play food. oh the list goes on) and on and on. Kaden is crawling. 8 months old. it's mostly a monkey version - with one knee down and one foot to push him - so hillarious. but he did use both knees too. moved all over the living and dining room - and just GIGGLES. stinker! Enjoy.

LOAD 21, LOAD 22, Sketches

OK my computer is going nuts right now so this is out of order> below is the sketch i used for load 22. a few of us have been chatting about the use of sketches and how sometimes they are awesome and sometimes they hold us back. So, i thought i'd show ya how i used this sketch. My LO is different in many ways. photos to start. this was just a cool card i liked in a magazine. i mimicked the CS, Striped Paper on the bottom and a thinner strip of Paper in the middle. I put the flowers up in the corner instead of where the card shows and i added my photos, stitching (rub-ons) and Journal Block. Inked the edges and called it done. Sketches are just a starting point. It is my scrapbook afterall! Enjoy!

SKETCH FOR LOAD 22 (BELOW THIS RAMBLIN SECTION!)

Yesterday was busy - got my LOAD in before we hit the town. Met some friends at Mi Rancho's for dinner. A Grande Sombrerro, Afgan, and Shot of Tequilla with a Mexican version of Happy Birthday - graced Scott by the end of the evening. We had fun to say the least. Then we hit the bowling alley - my goodness. i am hurting today! I know I'm a whimp but come on! Guess my age shows. Or it could be those degenerate discs my chiropractor keeps working on. But we really had a lot of fun. it's good to get out and be with friends. Next - it's roller skating. ha!!


LOAD 22 (Sketch above)

PP (stripes - sorry don't know the name - it's royal blue and lime green stirpes distressed, royal blue on the back. got it at Hobby Lobby or Michaels) ( Port, Art Warehouse, Creative Imaginations)CS (Blue, Bazzill)Flowers (Notebook Collection)Vellum QuoteStitches (Baby Boy, Rub-ons Debbie Mumm, JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts)Journal Block (Destination, Journaling cards, ColorBok)Ink (Black & Sky Gray, Cat Eye Colorbok)Thanks for Looking!

LOAD 21 (also used a sketch)

PP (Silver Spoon & Confetti, Little Boy Blue, On the Dot) CS (Navy)Accents (Staples) (Little Prince Grand Adhesions, Sweet Pea Studio, K &Company) (Fabric Tags, Boy Designer, Melissa Frances) (Library Card) (Rub-Ons, Color Splash Baby Boy, Deja Views) (White Ribbon) (White Sheer Ribbon)Thanks for looking!

LOAD 20 Daddy's 30th Birthday

Digital: PP (Free Birthday Themed Paper, Striped, Blue Dotted, Multi-Color Circles, & Birthday Present Print, Scrapbooks etc.) Stamp (It's My History Kit) Font (Sandra) (happiness: Reservoir Grunge with a Star Glow effect) Circles on Dates (Custom Shapes, Circle Thin Frame, Simple Outer Bevel)I have never scrapped an event in the same evening it happened! : ) feels pretty awesome! : )

Scott turned 30 today. man he's getting old. and i'm getting older (older than him

by a few months. ok. like 6 or something. but he's had bragging rights of me being 30 and married to an OLDER woman - until today. well - i mean i'm still older than him but at least he's 30 too!) The kids made a banner for him, and then we left, so he had a quiet house for a couple hours. We returned loud and full of energy with supper and a cake. KK badly wanted to get him a Blues Clues cake, but we settled for one with balloons on it instead. She also had to buy daddy plates and hats. and she tried really hard to buy Pink Hannah Montanna napkins. and looked in the cart and said with hands on hips, "hmmm. we need cups too mommy." I've created a shopping monster. but it's funny bc she is a pretty good shopper! all the while - kaden has learned to dance. bopps his head and bottom to any beat of music. and Laughs galore at a simple look at karlie. i love how they love each other. anyway, we had a nice evening. Finally bought him a GC to go golfing since my free "go golfing" tickets never seem to get cashed in. now he'll have to use it and i can scrap without feeling guilty! ; ) at any rate - aging seems to have worn him as he's been pretending to NOT sleep since 9:30. only scott. (so really - i joked about putting them all to bed and sneaking out to crop - and i guess i really could have! ) tomorrow we have big plans to go bowling with some friends. haven't bowled in forever. haven't gone out with friends in forever either. so really looking forward to that! hopefully the old man can make it past 10. or until 10 at least! Enjoy!

LOAD 19 AND SCRAP SHACK DESIGN TEAM

Supply List:
Go to your Local Scrap Shack!!!
PP (Dainty & Delicious, Key Lime Pie, Nancy Rowe-Janitz, Fancy Pants Designs) (Dream, Daydreams, Nancy Rowe-Janitz, Fancy Pants Designs)
CS (Hot PinK)
Accents (random chipboard alphabets) (Euphoria, Chip Stickers, Basic Grey) (Corners, Bazzill Chips, Bazzill) (Buttons, Sassy, Fashion Sense, Fancy Pants Designs) (Posies, Sassy, Fashion Sense, Fancy Pants Designs) (Staples)
Ink (Garden Green, Exclusive Inks, Close to my Heart) (Cyan, Cat Eye Colorbox)
Glitter (Silver Ice, Glitter Glue, Ice Stickles)
Punch (Corner, Paper Shapers)
Journaling reads: Sammie *My God-Daughter, an Angel on earth. Fall '08

Ok, so I'm killing 2 birds with one stone tonight (what an aweful expression BTW). I'm so excited about this LO. No one who has witnessed me scrapbook would believe that I really did this all in one day. Betty is my parshal witness, KK the other. lol.

*So, this line is so fun. the photo of the LO comes off more peachy than it is - it really is a nice dark pink color.
*I just let myself go with this one. It started with a simple sketch from Scrapbooks etc. and I tweaked it as needed. Just use the sketch to get you going. Don't let them hold you back. Remember IT'S YOUR SCRAPBOOK. YOUR MEMORIES.:
**It's so girly with the cluster of buttons. Buttons for the dotted I. Buttons for flower centers. I just LOVE these buttons. printed words and flowers right on them. no work for me. Didn't even thread 'em. frankly i'm too lazy. oh - wait - I mean I thought they looked cuter w/o floss! lol.
**I used 3 fonts for my title - so unlike me. but I Stickled them and the corner punch to bring them together. The "g" is a chipboard letter inked with the Cyan Cat eye ink and then stickled on top of that. (stickles is fun - but you have to let it dry. it is forgiving though so if you smudge it 40 times while finishing your LO - just reapply and smear it all in. LOL.)
**I covered the larger chipboard scalloped corner with PP. I've been trying to use this one but always found it so girly. Well, it worked perfect here! just the right touch.
**The Journal Block: KK wanted to work with me. She brought me a little piece of paper with a pink edge. and wanted me to color on it. She said it looked pretty on my page and I agreed. However, she wanted me to color on it, and I kinda disagreed, but decided to journal on it instead. She is just so cute. Go with the flow - never know where it will go! lol.
**THESE CROCHET FLOWERS ARE SO FLIPPIN ADORABLE. I want them in every color. The funny thing is - I was going to ask my grandma to make me some. And then I excitedly found them in my design team packet. I just love them. gonna try and use the blue ones on a boy page. he he he.
**The Photo and Mats - YES I TORE A PHOTO (SCREAM). and you can too. I've found in moderation - it's pretty cool! It works especially well with photos that have a dark background. Light photos just don't do it justice. I did this technique with a series of 4 photos of my daughter laying on a dark navy blanket. it gave the LO such a look! I also printed mini wallets of Christmas and tore the edge off some of them to resemble little tags. cute. (make sure it's a copy of a photo before you go ripping up all your photos though!)
**********I had fun today. trying new things, playing with stickles, getting glitter and ink all over me, turning my dining room back into a cluttered mess. . . . challenge yourself. go outside of your box. have fun. life's too short to NOT have to explain to your husband why you have glitter on your forehead. LOL. enjoy! (all items and inspiration found at the Shack!)

LOAD 17 AND LOAD 18. need sleep.

Okay here are my LOADs for yesterday and today. This is kinda funny - but I think I need a break from scrapbooking. I've honestly done at least one LO a day. Tonight I re-discovered the Bevels. made a huge difference. i just kept playing with this LO. I'd delete off bevels and drop shadows for fear of too much is not such a good thing. then i'd add them back on. silly me.

It's been a kinda hectic day. I was out the door, dressed in a suit, and ready to tackle the world by 8:30 am. that alone was a bit much for me. (it's been 3 years since i've worked!) anyway, i dropped off my ap at a private school. the campus was more like a college campus. so beautiful, woodsy. the admissions building was amazing. i love old historical buildings. i had to climb like 50 stairs and still look composed and energetic. HA! only to find out it was the wrong building. (shock) but it was pretty. : ) I'm really excited about this school. it's small and they are hiring an English teacher and a yearbook advisor. maybe it's fate. then again yearbook and deadlines and my head on a platter comes to mind again. lol. and this yearbook is pre-k thru 12. which actually might be kinda cool. so we'll see.

anyway, kk and kaden and i just bundled up for the rest of the day once we got out of the rain. (she just HAD to potty in the middle of no where - Michael's was the only thing open and it was drizzling. not so fun. gotta love potty-trained kids)

I also tackled a pretty cool project the Design Team at the Scrap Shack is doing. all 4 of us are working on the same LO. I had to start it - which was a little harder than I thought. I just kept thinking what the rest of the team would think of my LO. and then I said to heck with it - it's just for fun. I kept it pretty simple. now the next gal will get the page and add to it and so on. i'll post the progress of that soon. anyway - here's the LO's - off to investigate the weather - gotta love tornado weather and no basement. Enjoy - stay dry!

Load 18 (My Sweetie) Load 17 (2 Cute for words)

Just in case i have followers ; ) I have been keeping up with a layout a day - despite my germ-infested house! The kids seem better and it seems it is almost over - again. hopefully the GA sun keeps shining. Didn't realize I hadn't posted in awhile - so here are my LOAD's! Valentine's Day was a sweet evening with the kids. Scott worked all day on the back patio while I had a farewell party at the Scrap Shack. and i pretended to scrap while there. i picked up Scott's favorite meal - Caines (the best chicken fingers - better than zaxby's!) and browsed through Earth Fare. wow - i want to be rich enough to eat healthy! I have heard their meat is worth every penny so i bought a roast with some great help. It'll make at least 3 meals for us so we will be going back - even if it's only for our sunday night meal! anyway - scott and the kids got me a bunch of flower bulbs and a rose bush so i have roses for life. then i overheard him tell his brother that this way he never has to buy me roses again. let's just say i handed him the gardening gloves. LOL. I must give him credit though for digging into my scrapbooking supplies and hand making me a heart shaped valentine. he can be sweet when he wants to! As for the back patio - the windows and doors are installed and the drywall goes up in the morn. so the dogs should have a cool - new room soon! enjoy!


LOAD 16 Karlie and Kaden Be Mine February 2009
Digital: Page (DCDesigns XOXO quick page freebie 1) Ribbon (Thin Blue Ribbon and Bow, Welcome Kit from Digital Scrapbook Place) Flowers (It's My History Kit) Font (Bradley Hand ITC)Thanks for looking!
LOAD 15 Slattery Girls Cousins Best Friends November 2008
Digital: Welcome Kit quick page from Digital Scrapbook Place. (gives tutorials. cool site.) thanks Ramie!

LOAD 14 Kaden Live for the Moment August 2008

Credits: (Friendly Forest Scrap Pack, COLORBOK) Thanks for looking at my cutie!

LOAD 13 Kaden Wonder Hope & Dreams June 2008

PP (wonder, hopes. dreams) (denim print paper) CS (blue) Accents (envelope) (tag) (brad) (ink) (staple)

LOAD 12 Karlie and Kaden Good Times August 2008

Credits: (Friendly Forest Scrap Pack, COLORBOK) That's IT! LOVE THIS PAPER PACK!!

felt good to grab a paper pack and a photo and play with ink. gotta say - this challenge - doing a layout a day has both worn me to the bone and motivated me to do more. i've done a load of laundry every day. the dishes are done. i even cut a variety of peppers up tonight and made a real homemade meal. and it was good too. i'd give y'all more ramblin thoughts but i must confess that my DVR is overloaded with shows i have to catch up on. and gray's is on! . . . enjoy.

LOAD 11 Desperate for Paper Scrappin

Digital: PSE7 & It's My History Kit. Pumpkin Photo - took picture of a single pumpkin, stretched it to fit page, grayscaled it with "vivid landscapes" and then used Effects - sun faded photo. the white around the pumpkin photo is "salt".

Journal: The Great Pumpkin(s)

Karlie Kay was so excited to go to the Pumpkin Patch! She searched and searched for the perfect pumpkin. Or at least we thought whe was looking for ONE pumpkin! When she was finished choosing from the rows of pumpkins, she had three - one large, one medium, and one small. When asked why, she replied matter-of-factly, "No, my need tree punkins. A Daddy Punkin, a Mommy Punkin, and a Baby Punkin!"

Oh, Karlie Kay. she is such a doll. this daddy, mommy, baby story does not end here though. This continued on through the rest of the year. I took her to Hobby Lobby to buy scarecrows for the yard - (girl can shop in there more than me!) long story short - we left with a daddy, mommy, and baby scarecrow. and the stinkier tried to get a "mommy's daddy's mommy". like what is that - a grandma? or great grandma. dunno. but she's cute. then at christmas while decorating - we had to group snowmen and santa's - so they could be with their friends or bc they were a family. and even decorating the tree - she would cluster the ornaments on one branch and label them - mommy, daddy, baby, big girl, and friend. oh - the innocence of childhood.

as for digital scrapbooking. i do love it. but i do love my paper. think i'll use this for coffee table books and big layouts like christmas and halloween - when you have a ton of photos. then you could crop them to bitty photos easily, it'd be cheaper than printing 30 4x6 prints or even wallets. I do love this for invites, christmas cards - you could make collages of the year and order any size print of it pretty cheap instead of from your pro photographer. so don't worry digi world - you haven't lost me yet - (especially since i haven't truly found the digi downloading world yet) i guess i'm a Bi-scrapper. LOL. but my hand is literally going numb, i can't take this computer one more day. so for tomorrow - i hope for you to find a nice paper layout and ink smudges on my fingers. nothing like the real thing. Enjoy!

LOAD 10 and upgrade, needed or not

So here is my LOAD of the day. it's really sad. I had a spur of the moment night on the town adventure with two silly ladies. and sadly for most of the evening we were actually scrapbooking - kinda. LOL. anyway i hit my laptop around 11:30 pm. This is what i came up with. and crossed my fingers that the computer or site wouldn't crash before 11:59. My submission landed on the group site at 11:54. my heart was literally racing. funny i know - i mean really - i was more nervous about that layout being submitted than i am -standing in line for the Magnum at Cedar Point. which just proves the well-needed outing mentioned above. LOL. i need another hobby! which incidently - oddly enough, Ramie's submission landed on the group site one minute before mine. hmmmm. LOL. (and damn if it didn't look professional!)

So I played with the LO (Layout) today and did some much needed changes. I am more proud to call it my own today. however, here's the funny thing. i got four comments posted on the first LO. all "wow" "stunning" and even "breathtaking". i literally almost woke up my house laughing so hard bc it was aweful and i did it in minutes with shaking hands. but then it made me think. especially when one comment was on how beautiful my daughter was and what a great photo it was of her. and i got teary eyed and a little mad at myself. it brought me back to what this great hobby is all about. capturing our memories.

the fact is - this photo could have stood by itself and been the most beautiful LO. it is one of my most favorite photos of her. and it is one of my most favorite memories of her and my mother. this photo was taken on my mother's birthday at her favorite spot - the lake. and the two of them were so precious together, just talking 2 year old talk about birds and trees and pretty pink flowers. and those flowers were just so breathtakingly beautiful. and SO pink. and I remember thinking how lucky we all were to have that day. and then I remembered thinking -I have to get this on film. and in my scrapbook. (and of course what shade of paper I would use with it bc that's just how addicted to this habbit I am!) but really - i know we don't HAVE to have photos to remind us of all these great memories. i could never forget the look of innocence found on my baby's face. but sometimes - it takes a photo - of a little girl innocently playing with bright pink flowers and nothing on her mind but those bright pink flowers - to remind us of how good life really is.

I challenge you to simplify your life today - in any way. whether it's for scrapbooking and using only one photo or if it's to just take a breath in your day - go to the lake. breathe the air, watch the sunset. don't worry - life will go back to chaotic and crazy as soon as you let it.

LOAD 9 Karlie My Nel

Digital: PSE7 & It's My History Kit.
Karlie Kay is abosuletly in love with her Aunt Nel. She calls her "My Nel". "My Nel coming over today?" "My go to My Nel's house at the beach?" We love you Janel! Enjoy!

As for us - the kiddos and I went to the doctor AGAIN today. They both have bronchitus - AGAIN or still for that matter. We left with 5 prescriptions to be filled between Kaden's reflux and both of them being sick. Yippee. Then I went to a badly needed visit to the chiropractor - who threatened to write my husband a note - that that my back and neck needed sleep to heal and if he didn't give me a break, Dr. J was going to lock me up in a room and let me sleep at the office. Scott just laughed. It was worth a try anyway. LOL. here's to a night of two kids and two dogs sleeping through the night (and a non-snoring husband). am i asking for too much.??? guess so - as the little boy just started to cry.

LOAD 8 Kaden Your smile is worth a thousand words

This boy is so stinkin cute! All the stuff he's been through, all the doctor visits and all the medication for his reflux - he can still muster up the biggest smile. That smile is all I need to make my day! Enjoy!

Digital again. YEAH! Just used the program. made some more circles to go with the patterned paper. very fun. i'm so psyched that i can do this. OH _ BTW> did anyone else know that NKOTB concerts are still in session. Low and behold. i'm gonna look into this. how cool would i look in a side pony tail, feathered bangs, and a rockin rad NKOTB t-shirt. Hangin Tough - The Right Stuff. I might have to venture down this lane again. LOL. LOL. LOL.

WOW. I did it! Here's my very first digital page, and it only took me 10 Hours! LOL. I spent all day yesterday watching the learning videos - most of which was just a reminder, and started on this page about 1 am (thanks to my wonderful kids. - one would wake up - settle him, then she'd wake up, settle her - which by that time the other would be in another coughing fit. and on and on.) So I figured why not scrapbook! I had some issues like I duplicated 18 daisy's before I realized my "move tool" wasn't so much the move tool. LOL. and I went to CREATE. the tabs are PROJECTS and ARTWORK. Under ARTWORK, I found awesome flowers and all kinds of embellishments and paper etc. even the daisy mentioned above (of which after all that - I changed all the daisy's to the blue and tan flowers). anyway - when i go to the same spot now - nothing is under ARTWORK anymore. any help there - would be great.

All in all - I am pretty pleased with myself. I challenged myself to learn digital scrapbooking and actually followed through. Hey I even journaled on the page! But this wasn't about scrapbooking. This was about ME. It is so easy to make excuses for ourselves. Either we are too tired, the kids too sick, too many dishes and laundry, or whatever. Which are all valid excuses. But I really think it is important to challenge ourselves outside of that mom/wife mode. We owe it to ourselves to practice what we preach to everyone else. I cannot count how many times I've told someone else to steal some time for herself. to take on a hobby or to just take 5 and drink a cup of hot tea - all by herself. How come we need someone else to tell us to relax or to venture out and try something new? So, I challenge you to find some ME TIME. (the funny part about scrapbooking is that it is my hobby, my escape - yet it's still about my kids - so maybe I should get a mani-pedi, too -on top of the scrapbooking - not instead of. LOL) anyway, do something just for you. after all, the chores will wait (unfortunately) but if I don't take care of me - eventually I won't be able to take care of everyone else. Here's to you - or me that is.

Credits: Elements from It's My History Kit. I took the pumpkin photo at the patch - put a vivid landscape effect on it and then accidently put a sun faded effect on it.
Thanks for looking - any tips would be wonderful. : )

Credits: PP (Blue Damask) (All Boy, Playtime, Three Bugs in a Rug)CS (Navy & Light Blue, Bazzill) Brads (Silver Button Brads) Alphabets (Rootbeer Float Vinal Letter Stickers, Thickers, American Crafts) (Black & White, Puffy Alpha, Making Memories)

MY OH MY! Just posted my LOAD and it's 10:30. Scott was starting to hassel me - asking me if I was ever going to start it! I've been watching Digital self-learning videos all day. Well on and off between the kids. Kinda funny that I've waited this long to get into digital scrapbooking seeing as I taught yearbook and photoshop for 4 years. but that was a long time ago and I thought I forgot everything. have no worries -linking and grouping layers and digital nightmares all came running back to me. turns out I think I might actually know what I'm doing. We'll see. This might sound funny - but I'm kinda afraid that I'll love digital so much that I'll forget about the paper stash looming over me. What would I do with all my tools that I "need".? Then again I doubt it. I just have too much stuff. And it's cute and cool stuff that I cannot live without I tell ya! Anyway - enjoy your day. off to enter the world of free digital downloads. LOL. LOL.

KK JUNE 08. Credits: PP (Sweet Nothing Collection, MadLove S3, A2Z essentials) Ink (Brown, ColorBox Cat Eye) (White Uniball Signo Pen broad) Accents (Travel, Pebble Clips, Making Memories) (Mini-File Folders, Li'l Davis Designs) (Pin-Striped Shipping Tags, Li'l Davis Designs) (Blue Alphabet) (Cork Alphabet Stickers, Target Dollar Spot) (Gold Bubble Alphabet, Crystal Stickers, Mark Richards) (Journaling Specialty Stickers, Memory Boutique)

How to make the flowers: So darn simple! (thanks shellmar for the inspiration) Find some hideous patterned paper with a bunch of weird looking circles on it : ) and cut out the circles. or just cut out circles of any cardstock. wrinkle them up a bit, layer them, use foam dots on the second or third layer. and Done. Add Green rick rack for stems. (or ribbon, or draw them, or cut straight or wavy lines from cardstock). Now how simple is that!?!

Here's my KK back in June. This photo makes me crave the sunshine even more. I cannot wait to complain about it being way too hot to play at the park. We are currently undergoing yet another project at the Slattery household. (oh- that thing about my husband constantly tearing down walls in my home - maybe I am partly to blame. like a few percent!) Enclosing the back patio into a four season room. And shoving playdough, messy paint projects, and those adoring dogs OUT! We have to wait 2 weeks for the windows and I cannot wait!! Then maybe, just maybe - the BIG little boy (Kaden) can move to his own room - and outta mine. (yes I know we are pathetic - but really -the kids end up in my room anyway - so why not just start there. thinking of adding a trundel to our bed. then the kids can just pull it out and land there. kidding. well kinda. : ) But really looking forward to not having wet dog prints through the entire house. They'll have a whole room to themselves where they can hang out and bark at the squirrels they see. oops - sorry neighbors.

Credits: (Pewter Square Brads) (Friendly Forest Scrap Pack, COLORBOK) Kaden at 4 days old. I love this paper pack. I never thought I'd ever scrapbook with owls and squirrels, but this pack is so versatile. You could just use the paper and accents without all the animals, but they are so darn adorable. Looks like I found a nick for scrappin boys after all ; ) 2 more layouts and I'm finally done with the first four days of his life. (ug to all those yucky hospital photos of me - good thing the boy is a cutie!) 24 LOADs to go. (I even did dishes, laundry, vacuumed, and organized my patterned paper. along with 2 sick kiddos. must be super woman today. LOL)

LOAD day 3

Kaden - 4 days old.

Credits: CS (navy, green), Button Brads, PP & Chips (Baby Boy Collection, Brenda Walton, K&Company), Stickers (baby giraff) (Little Prince Grand Adhesions, Sweet Pea Studio, K&Company)

LOAD day 2

LOAD day 1

Here's my Kaden at just 3 days old.

Scrapbooking

So, I started this contest called LOAD - Layout A Day. So, needless my goal is to scrapbook at least a layout a day, post it, and eventually WIN THE BIG PRIZE. oh - I mean - and eventually gain inspiration from others and get caught up with my scrapbooks. Anywy - I'm adding on to the LOAD challenge. You see, I do dabble in some sort of scrapbooking daily anyway. I just never finish anything. always a journaling block to add or a brad here, a flower there. so really this LOAD is forcing me to actually completely finish a LOAD. Plus, as my eyes glaze over at all the unfinished layouts and projects - I am going to FINISH Another LOAD. (OR FALOAD - ok nevermind - Now i'm just weird.) Anywho - once i figure out how to upload my LOAD - I'll show ya. But not before I return to my Laundry of the day. (ok - i'll stop - it's lack of sleep i tell ya)

I'm a BLOGGER

Ok. Here goes nothing. I'm finally a "Blogger". Kinda weird to me - in a way. I mean come on - I learned to type on a typewriter. We were in heaven when we were allowed to use the screaned typewriters - you know where you could see two lines of your typed errors, fix them, and then hit the return button. Not dating myself here or anything. But, really - my family was privelleged to have a real computer in our home - and it was Dos. And now it is expected to have at least one computer - my house has two - well actually KK just got a game computer for Christmas - so I guess that means 3. Anyway - never in a million would I guess I'd be a blogger. But here goes. Kind of a Ramblin Fool at times. ok - well all the time. : ) Anyway, this year is about change. Change for the Better.