I'll Be So Glad When This Is Over!

ACLS that is! It stands for Advanced Cardiac Life Support. I have to recertify every 2 years and it stresses me out every time :P Today is the written test and the "Megacode", it's where they give you a scenario and you have to figure out what to do for that patient, including medications & reading rhythm strips. Now I'm an Labor & Delivery Nurse. How often do I code 80 year old men with chest pain...hopefully never! I typically have healthy young women. Now don't get me wrong, we do have an occasional emergency that requires super fast critical thinking, but not usually CPR. I have to know what the ER & CCU nurses know and use every day. Can you say stressful ?!

On a happy note...I did another sketch challenge from http://www.sketchythursdays.blogspot.com/ and I'm really happy with the result. Originally I looked at this sketch & went Blech! What do I do with this? Then I sat down and pulled up these pics of my nephew and it all came together. Loved this Basic Grey Marjolaine line for this layout, it really let the photos shine.

Here is the sketch:

and here is my take on it:

I embosse the chartruese  cardstock with the houndstooth pattern Cutttlebug folder, gave it some great texture.

 The scalloped journaling spot came from swap on my favorite MB, Club CK. Wish I could remember who made it! The journaling block looked so stark, so I added the pen line border. An old Making Memories date stamp was perfect!


Thanks for popping in, I look forward to comments & suggestions! If you have questions about a layout or a technique,  just let me know :)

Sunshine!

I know I talk about the sun a lot...living in Michigan makes one crave it! It is a good day if we see the sun because we have so many gray, overcast days in the winter. Speaking of dark, I scrapped some more of the really dark pics from when the kids were little. There was something wrong with the camera I had at the time.

And...

Speaking of sunshine, finished a really sunshiney layout the other day. Bright and happy :) Used a sketch from one of my fav sites http://www.sketchsupport.com/p/one-page-sketches.html . Had so much fun making the cute little ice cream cone! Used the Cricut cartridge " Straight from the Nest" for the ice cream cone A Glitz Designs background stamp used on the diagonal was perfect for making the cone's texture, with a little colored pencil for the details. The top is some of DCWV's glitter paper.

Yippee!!!

Ready to get some scrapping done! Thanks for stopping by!

Girls Road Trip

Good news from the heart & vascular doctors this week. Dad is healing well and can resume driving and almost all normal activity! Pacemaker & fistula are both working well. We celebrated with lunch at Red Robin :)

A while back I shared a mini album I'd made for a trip Mariel & I took. It didn't have any pics in it, I'd planned to add them later. Well...it's later :}} Way later! I love the way it turned out. Did a little photo shoot in the front yard this afternoon and nearly froze my tush off!

Sorry for the long post, Haven't figured out a better way to add so many pages. Thanks for popping by!

If I Wait Until...

There are no clouds in Michigan I'll never get a layout posted! It's dark, rainy, and cloudy here. Had to take pics of my Sketchy Thursdays entry anyway, had to have it posted by tonight. My cropping is a little off too. I used the beautiful floral line "Sweet Nectar" from K&Co.,  Anna Griffin diecut. Now that I look at the layout from a distance I can see it is weighted too much to the top and left. Still love the effect :)

Here is the sketch: Here is my take on it:

I was driving through town on my way home from work the other night, thinking about how long I've lived in my town. Realizing I'm actually 45 years old. 45.45. Forty Five! I don't feel 45, is this a cruel joke? I feel young on the inside and look old on the outside. Grrr.  I'm officially middle aged. I refuse to go down easy! So if you see this old lady bustin' a move in the yard or singing at the top of her lungs, remember " I don't feel 45!".

Until Now...

I'd been unable to scrap this photo of my deceased kitty Griffyndor. I had to have him sent to kitty heaven last year when his kidneys failed. I noticed early that spring that he was losing weight and his coat was getting dull. I waited to take him to the vet because I knew in my heart that something was terribly wrong. She confirmed my fears, he was in kidney failure. She explained that this ailment is fairly common is all white animals. Something to do with the recessive genes. Nothing short of dialysis would help him (insanely expensive), so I brought him back home. She said he wasn't in any pain but to watch for dehydration and feed him a high protein diet. Instructing me to bring him back if he was in pain or seemed to be suffering.

I kept him home until late May. He gradually lost more weight until he was a third of his normal weight. Following me from room to room became his routine. He would sit next to me or in my lap while I was on the computer, slept in my closet on my clothes and looked at me with such love & faith in his eyes. I knew it was time, but it took me a while to build up the courage to let him go.

He is still with me, in spirit. I still think I see him out of the corner of my eye and find one of his hairs knit into the fabric of the couch once in a while. He is buried in our yard with another beloved kitty, Jacob Marley. As you can tell, I'm one of those "cat" ladies. My kitties are my children as much as my biological ones. If that makes me crazy, then so be it!

The butterflies were made with the new die and embossing folders from Cuttlebug I snagged at Hobby Lobby the other day. Used Coor'dinations paper then sanded the embossed dots and edges. The felt butterflies are from the $1 spot at Micheals and were marked down to 50 cents! Loads of symbolism here.

                                                             
Enough with the sadness!  Time to go tuck my "kids" in bed. I can't believe they are 12 & 14 already. Where did the time go?

Back tomorrow with another layout. Thanks for stopping by!

Eating My Words :}

Some may remember me talking about the kids & Science Olympiad, how Mimi was cramming and Matthew said he had it covered. Well... Matthew received a 1st place and 3rd place in 2 out of 3 events respectively! Out of 11 schools in their division. Mimi learned her lesson, I'm sure she will plan a little more ahead next year :) Proud of them both!

Mimi discovered a hidden talent as a result of her bird studies. She can sketch & watercolor shorebirds quite well! Planning on scanning and sharing later. After our trip to the orthodontist (aka)Uncle Steve, we stopped at Hobby Lobby for some watercolor paper and brushes that don't shed ;) Of course I had to pick up something scrappy related. I'll share the layout created with that something soon!

Thanks for stopping!

A Little Scrappin' and a Lotta Surfin'

Lately I just can't seem to leave the computer, it has me mesmerized! So much to see and learn on here but it eats up my day. Here is a layout I did a couple of days ago. A result of all that previously discussed editing :) There were so many good pics it was hard to choose!

Making the lines on the field was a little challenging but I like the results. First I measured off the lines, then I cut strips and put repositionable adhesive on them. Then I positioned them on the pencil marks and sprayed fixative on the exposed lines. The fixative makes the chalk stick really well. It can still be rubbed off but not as much as without it. Cut the numbers on the Cricut with the Base Camp font. I love good old traditional scrapbooking, the pictures are the focus!

Gotta get to bed. Work all weekend. Thanks for stopping!



Happy Day!

I have 4 layouts on Scrapbook News & Review! It is a subscription only  e-zine (magazine). Tons of lovely inspiration:) So excited to be pubbed!

Here is the layout I did for the Sketchy Thursdays Guest Design Team challenge.

Yippee!!!

This paper from My Minds Eye is just adorable! Unfortunately I didn't have any of the embellishments to go with it :( Off to my trusty Cricut to make the flowers & title with the "Straight From The Nest" cartridge. Then sketched & made the little birdie, using a circle punch to make the wing. 

 Dad is doing well, not liking not being able to drive but loving all the attention :)  Thanks for stopping by!

Finally Home!

Brought Dad home from the hospital today, Yay! Took way too long to get him discharged :( It's going to be a challenging week. No driving, no bathing for a week, and he can't lift his right arm more than 45 degrees! Unfortunately this is a 3 day (12 hour days) work week for me and I have ACLS review , plus on call time  Not sure how this is going to work but I'll give it the college try! Just glad he's OK. Thanks for all the prayers!

Promised the kids to watch a movie with them tonight since I've barely seen them in 4 days. I miss my scrapping too! I did get some scrap related work done, found this when I was editing some photos for a layout, cracks me up!

Thanks for stopping!

Success!

The pacemaker implant went well, they placed the 2 lead instead of the 1 lead. He was super cranky because he didn't get to eat all day  That's my Dad! Hoping he'll get to come home tomorrow. They kept him for more tests to make sure the pacemaker was working well and check the placement of the leads. Now we have to make sure his blood isn't clotting too much. I didn't realize there are so many restictions with a pacemaker! Cell phone has to be at least 6 inches away, have to be hand checked at the airport...and stay away fom those chainsaws and power tools! 
Back to the hospital in the morning. Thanks for stopping!

Hoping All Goes Well Today

Found out last night that Dad needs a pacemaker. He is going for dialysis first today and then they are going to place it. Heading up to Borgess after the kids are off to school. I hope this helps him feel better and increase the circulation, the nueropathy has been really bad lately.

Hope I can get some scrappy time in this weekend! Going through withdrawal :) Be back tonight with an update. Thanks for stopping by!

Totally Unexpected.

Took my Dad for surgery today, he had his fistula (place where they place the needles for dialysis) revised. It is his 5th surgery on it so I was pretty relaxed. I thought it was kinda funny that his pulse was in the 40's so I mentioned it before he went in the OR, but they didn't seem concerned.

When they called me into recovery the nurse said he was having an irregular heartbeat with some other unusual changes that weren't good! They admitted him and are running a bunch of tests, including a chemical stress test and possibly a heart catheterization. :(  I'm hoping it was just related to the medicines they gave him during surgery.

I'll be back at the hospital with him tomorrow, please keep him in your prayers!

Sweet Weekends!

After Thursday & Friday I really needed the weekend off! I think we broke our shift record for 8 deliveries in 12 hours .

 Missy (My scrappy buddy) came over yesterday and we had a scrap fest plus we snuck off to South Bend to visit Pages In Time Forever. They had my all time fav thing on sale...THICKERS! Anyone who knows me knows how much I love American Craft "Thickers" :) Got my hands on some of the new My Minds Eye "Stella Rose". Wow, what beautiful paper! Here is one of the layouts I finished yesterday, sketch courtesy of http://www.sketchsupport.com/p/one-page-sketches.html:

Off to the movies with the kiddos to see "The Kings' Speech". Be back later. Thanks for stopping by!

I love Sketchy Thursdays!

I was picked as a fav again this week :}} for my layout "Catch of the Day". You can check it out here http://www.sketchythursdays.blogspot.com/.  Off to work for a couple of days. Thanks for stopping by!

I Almost Forgot!

My layout "Sweet*heart*" is up on scrapbooking.com! There is even an audio  bounce on over & check it out!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRKQ196nAf0 & http://scrapbooking.com/. TFL!

Here Comes the Sun!

Two days in a row! Went shopping at Mike's and out to lunch with my "Bestie", Lerita. Picked up lots of goodies!

 Finished a layout last night  based on the weekly Sketch by http://www.sketchythursdays.blogspot.com/. Here is the sketch:

and here is my take on it:

Journaling reads: Ever since you took over my horse trough pond, this poor catfish has been your catch of the day...everyday! You crack me up!

Used some old Making Memories foam stamps with acrylic paint for the title. First prepped them with the red and then added a touch of blue for accent. Cut them out then popped  for dimension. The felt buttons are from Jo Anns, I love the bright red with the other more muted colors. Cut the fishing rod out with the "Simply Charmed" cartridge for the Cricut.

Mimi & Livvy are in the front room supposedly studying for Science Olympiad but I hear Little Big Planet...busted!!! Mattew says "I already know what I need Mom", I hope he's right!

Thanks for stopping by :)



So happy to see the sun!

Starting to get spring fever and think about what I have to accomplish this year in the gardens. The front bed on the southwest side has to be completely reworked. My arch enemy...crabgrass, has invaded along with those pesky grapevines! I'm going to beg off the garden tour and devote my time to doing all the things I should have done last year. AFTER the plant sale of course :)

Completed a new layout last night. I was going for a grungy yet girly feel and I think it's mission accomplished.  I wanted it to represent Mimi's down to earth, likes to get dirty side and her girly, pretty side too. Used Distress ink and a can lid & glass to make the circles then grunged up the sides with a dauber. I like the contrast of the grunge with the bling. If you look closely you will see the embellies mimic her shirt and the title has paint splatters on it. Tell me what you think! Required to remove :)

Cardstock: Stampin' Up; patterned paper, rubons: Glitz Designs; letter stickers: American Crafts; glitter stickers: KI Memories; gems: Heidi Grace(circles), flowers(Basic Grey); flower: Recollections by Micheals; acrylic stamp: Autumn Leaves; ink: Ranger, Stazon; acrylic paint: Plaid Enterprises; pen : Sakura; adhesive: Tombow, 3L.