For You Santa *The ScrapRoom*

Leaving cookies out for Santa is a tradition I really miss. No more wide eyed wonder at the empty plate in the morning or arguments about which cookies were Santa's favorite. The truth came out this year during a conversation we had while I was looking through photos and the kids were peeking over my shoulder. Matthew admits that in his later years he would sneak downstairs and eat some of the cookies! (and I thought Eric was the one!) He looked so guilty admitting this even though he knows now that Santa wasn't eating them :)

More Christmas goodness from the December Flavor of the Month kit from The ScrapRoom.

Fussy cut the banner from patterned paper and added some Thickers :)

This Santa is from the Winter Frolic Cricut cartridge, I love that I can reverse the image with the Expression. Added some Stickles for that extra bling factor.

Now I'm off to "snuggle" with my teens and watch a movie. Christmas was my holiday off this year and starting tomorrow I have to pay the price for having 4 days off (if you don't figure being on call and called in) with a 4 day stretch over New Years. Adding in Wednesday and a 12 hour call slot on Thursday :( I really need to look at the big picture when I'm signing up for call and not do that to myself!

Merry Christmas to all!

It's Wrestling Season Again...

and that means lots of photos of my guy and others in those things they call "singlets". So if guys in the equivalent of leotards offends you, time to move on :)
 
He always looks so intense and nervous before a match. I know my stomach is in knots! The idiom "The bigger they are the harder they fall" is true. Last years wrestling season is still fresh in my mind. He was so inexperienced and it showed. This year I was pleasantly surprised to see a huge improvement. He didn't win either match but he sure gave those guys a run for their money!

I think these guys from Constantine thought they were going to just walk on the mat and be done, but Matthew had other plans. The first guy he wrestled was ranked in state last year. I only have this one pic of the first match because I was so excited all the others are too blurry from my shaking hands!

Matt put up a great fight and was in control for the first part of the match. His downfall is learning how to get out of a hold when on his back.

The second match. Remember he is a BIG kid and he makes everyone else look tiny...

Little can be deceptive. This dude had thighs the size of New Jersey!

I'm learning some of the strategies slowly. grabbing around the head and pulling down is a good move :)

A little coaching between periods.

Got him down and getting him maneuvered into a good hold.

Showing he's in control...

but all it takes is one wrong move and the tables are turned :(

It's going to be a long season for this Mom. My stomach ties itself in knots before every match. He had a tournament this weekend with 3 matches. 1 win and 2 losses but learning from his mistakes. I also committed the cardinal sin of the photographer...I forgot my SD card at home and don't carry a spare :O Guess I'm learning from my mistakes too :)

Scrappy goodness coming next week.

Christmas Kisses *The ScrapRoom*

Mimi has a habit of sitting in my lap and giving me hugs and kisses, hopefully she'll never outgrow this habit! My sister in law Debbie took these photos, Thank you Debbie!

If you check out The ScrapRoom Blog you can see my tutorial on stitching :)

Fussy cut the string of ornaments.

This "package" is stinkin' cute! Added the baker's twine bow with a little Tombow glue.

As you can see by my last 3 posts... The ScrapRoom's Flavor of the Month kit is awesome!

One more layout to share form this kit coming up :)

Make Mine With Sprinkles! *The ScrapRoom*

A sugar cookie just isn't a sugar cookie without sprinkles, in my book anyway :) Making sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles is a long standing tradition in our family. Used more of my ScrapRoom Flavor of the Month Kit, this time some Simple Stories. I can't get enough of their sticker sheets!

I actually cheated a little...I had 2 sticker sheets so there was enough of the scalloped border sticker for both pages. Ditto with the adorable popcorn banner.

Can you imagine what their clothes looked like at the end of the night :(

The tag sticker filled in the white space on the photo perfectly.

Used some pre embossed American Crafts cardstock for the circles.

Love this little gingerbread man :)

Journaling cards are always included in the Simple Stories lines, they make journaling a snap! 

I had to dig deep into my stash for these "sprinkles". Way down in my cross stitching bin, these little seed beads were hidden. The only catch was there were no red ones and I really wanted red. After digging through Mimi's room looking for her bead supplies, I found a pair of earrings she had made with red beads and actually disassembled them for the beads. Bad Mom! Luckily she wasn't mad at me. She knows how I get when I have an idea in my head and nothing else will do :} To make the "sprinkled" letters I first painted the Kraft alpha stickers from Pebbles, then added some Glossy Accents and sprinkled the beads on.

Check out The ScrapRoom Blog for more inspiration. You'll be glad you did...promise!

Magic *The ScrapRoom*

No. Not Magic Mike. Christmas magic. The magic you feel when you see the Christmas tree lit up for the first time each year. When I was little I would lie on the couch or on the floor in front of the tree and stare at it for hours. I can't resist taking photos of the tree each and every year. This was the year of the mirrors.

It started the year before when I decided the wall in the front room would look really cool covered with antique mirrors. I have a wonderful friend that loves to frequent auctions and estate sales. He loves to scour the corners for cool items and doesn't mind looking for my collectible of the moment. I requested oak mirrors with beveled edges and one year later, voila! A wall of mirrors! Imagine my delight when I turned the lights down to gaze at my tree and this gorgeous view appeared :)

This layout is one of the rare ones that didn't start with a photo. When I pulled out my Flavor of the Month Kit from The ScrapRoom and saw this paper, I knew immediately what photo I wanted to use.

The birds are fussy cut so that the photo and mat slide underneath. Doesn't it appear as if the birds are looking at the tree too?!

A little spray ink with some "magic" masking to help it stand out.

The brads included in the kit are so beautiful. I love the vintage feel of this collection.

I hope you feel the magic too!

Honored

For some reason it was hard to make myself share this layout. Although it makes me feel good knowing I impacted a family so much that they would write to the president of my hospital, it still embarrasses me.

To further embarrass me...they made me come to a Senior Management meeting for a presentation. They presented me with a big chocolate star, a pin and a framed certificate. The chocolate was thoroughly enjoyed :)

 

Inspired by another lovely Susan Stringfellow sketch.

So happy I could finally use this bright orange flower, it's such a cheery color!



Lots of new layouts to share from The ScrapRoom's Flavor of the Month Kit starting on Monday. Get ready for oodles of Christmas inspiration here and on the ScrapRoom Blog! Thanks for stopping :)

Welcome Home

I know...I should be saying "Welcome Back". I've been suffering from a bit of blog fatigue. Kinda like jet lag. You know how it goes...not enough hours in the day. Any hoo, I'm making this one short and sweet :) Sweet like my baby girl, only she's not a baby anymore!

More Dear Lizzy "5th & Frolic" from the Flavor of the Month Kit at The ScrapRoom.

The chip pieces are so versatile!

You can never have too many brads :)

I promise to be more attentive to my blog this month! Thank you to those who kept popping by to see if I'd posted any new tidbits :) Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

Welcome... *The ScrapRoom*

home baby Mariel! Only 14 years later :P I started Mimi's baby album when I first began scrapbooking but quickly became sidetracked. It was hard to stay motivated with such a small selection of baby patterned papers. Over the years I've learned to adapt other collections for my needs. The Dear Lizzy "5th & Frolic" collection is a perfect example. Grey + bright pastels = baby!

Inspired by a Susan Stringfellow sketch.

The splatters remind me of confetti and add some softness.

Inked the edges of all the patterned papers.

Mimi's first nurse was one of my best friends, Brenda. Love the photo of Eric holding her for the first time. I was able to crop out most of the dark background.

Is this garland stinkin' cute or what!?

Love this "Polaroid" paper, perfect for journaling.

Some of the lovely chipboard included in the kit.

Pop on over to The ScrapRoom and look through the store, Tammy has past kits for sale and more!Then head on over to the blog for even more inspiration :)

123 U R Sweet as Can Be *The ScrapRoom*

Crate Paper "Acorn Avenue" has an eclectic mix of papers and embellishments, just right for everyday photos and Fall too! It can be found in the November Flavor of the Month" kit at The ScrapRoom. This line is one of the four different lines in her "Flavor of the Month" kits. Whenever I have a photo I love, I tend to make it the only photo on my layout and this one was no exception.

The number chipboard really caught my eye.

The Next Katniss  was created with Cosmo Cricket's "Smore's Love". I love it when I can use a themed line for a non themed layout :) The sweet little owl seemed appropriate along with the trees for an archery layout.

This layout is based on a sketch by sketchinspiration.ning.com and is part of The ScrapRoom's sketch challenge for the month.

The letter stickers aren't included but the chipboard leaves and trees are, and half of a chipboard sheet!

Stop on by The ScrapRoom to check out this months kit and the The ScrapRoom Blog for inspiration!

Work It! * The ScrapRoom* (Out for Publication)

I was giddy with excitement when I saw the November ScrapRoom Flavor of the Month kit! It was full of great new product like  Pebbles "Seen & Noted". Bright colors and fun patterns...right up my alley :) I love to take the icons in the paper and make my own embellishments, like these flowers.

Of course I had to use my Cricut :) Made these tags by cutting a regular sized tag apart and placing a piece on either side of the photostrip.

A few circle punches and a heart punch and voila...a cute flower!

The centers of the aqua flowers are from the sticker sheet included in the kit.

Basic Grey has the greatest little letter stickers, just the right size to create small batches of journaling.

Can't wait to use some more of this line to

create another layout and some cards. The sticker sheet has a few perfect sentiment stickers!

Pop on over to The ScrapRoom and check out Tammy's awesome kits and check out the ScrapRoom Blog for some inspiration!

It's a Pirates Life for Me! *Out For Publication*

Matthew's pirate phase lasted about two years. It started in Kindergarten and went through 2nd grade. He was a pirate for Halloween twice. Once in a costume I made him and again in a "store bought" costume. You'll see in these photos that he was wearing it his way...with the collar on the outside. He insisted that this was the way it was supposed to go!

One of the reasons I bought the Wrap It Up Cricut cartridge was for the pirate ship cut. One word... amazing! I've already used the gingerbread house and castle from this one and there are several more I want to use.

This Fancy Pants paper has been in my stash for a couple of years, apparently waiting for this layout :)

Accented with some Jolee's and Recollections stickers. It's amazing what you can do with these little sticker packets. I love taking them apart and using just what I need.

 Check out that motley crew!

The Stone Script Cricut font was suitably piratey.

 I wanted to include as many photos as I could and that didn't leave any room for journaling so I tucked it behind the photo collage.

More stickers, including one from Jillibean Soup.

There were still photos left over from the pinata whacking so a 3rd page was born!

The number diecut is ancient too :) It helped tone down the background paper (I think).

and finally...a treasure chest full of loot, just like the treasure chest pinata! That's my friend Lyn assisting the Birthday Boy. I could (and still can) count on her for party assistance.

Wow, You made it through all that! Guess I'll have to give you a break and save the family update for later in the week :) Thanks for stopping by!

Living In Paradise

That's how I feel when I'm walking around my yard marveling at the beauty God has created! Each year I take multitudes of photos that just beg to be made into a layout. The problem is that they are all so colorful it's hard to choose paper and embellishments that don't compete.This year I gave in to the color and used some gorgeous floral Basic Grey paper with even more colorful flowers :) The pop of yellow on the left seems to balance it nicely.

My interpretation of a Creating Keepsakes sketch.

 

I love Basic Grey sticker sheets. They have so many cute icons, aren't the birdies sweet! Martha Stewart border punch and my ever favorite Thickers.

 

I loved how the sketch mixed squares with circles.

 

Prima and Recollections flowers.

Splattering on the background helped keep it from looking too stark. 

 

Another sticker from the sheet, such a pretty journaling spot.

Dad is slowly getting around. The catheter in his chest is quite annoying to him and necessitates sponge baths instead of showers. Hoping the new fistula will be ready in another month or so. Thankfully it's football season and he's semi distracted!

Matthew had an awesome last game of the season with several tackles, 2 quarterback sacks (one sent the quarterback to the hospital :/ Sorry to his Mom), and he ran a 2 point conversion in for his first ever points!!! They moved him up to Varsity for playoffs, hope it goes well. My nails will be gone before the game is over :(

My poor Mimi is burning the candle at both ends. Volleyball, Colorguard, Student Council, Peer Helping, Health Careers Club and I could go on! She is sick with an ear infection now. Thankfully her last Colorguard appearance will be next weekend, so no more practices in the cold & rain.

Off to bed, work tomorrow. As they say...no rest for the wicked!