All American Girls a *thinkingthroughdesign* Thursday Thought

Our assignment at *thinkingthroughdesign* this week was to demonstrate some form of fussy cutting on a layout. I wanted to convey a patriotic, homespun feel for this layout. This paper by K and Co. was perfect! What says homespun more than a quilt!

This photo was taken at sunset on 4th of July weekend, hence the patriotic theme.

Found some old Tim Holtz Grungeboard letters and embossed them with some glitter powder. The Dresden quilt embellishment was fussy cut and layered, then popped with a die cut from the same line.

A little stitching added to the homespun feel. This was my interpretation of a Sketch Support sketch. I'm so sad that Sketch Support is hopefully temporarily taking a break.

 Take a moment to check out the amazing layouts demonstrating different types of fussy cutting at *thinkingthroughdesign* ! Don't forget you can share your creations too!  Thanks for stopping by :)

Our Christmas Tradition *Out for Publication*

Some of my favorite memories of Christmas are the times spent with my husband's family. They welcomed me to their family over 27 years ago and I love them dearly! No mother in law angst here...I loved my first "Mom" in law (she passed away 15 years ago)and when my father in law remarried, he picked a good one the second time too :) I couldn't ask for nicer sisters in law either!

Last Christmas was the first time we celebrated at Mike and Jill's house. Grandpa & Grandma's house has been bursting at the seams for the last few years, especially since three of my nephew's married. Now with grandchildren, the 30 or so of us were crammed in like sardines at Christmas. We even had to forgo a Christmas tree to fit everyone in!

This is a Creating Keepsakes sketch. I love doing their sketches each month. Lots of photos are a must, and this one is no exception.

Punched the banner from Core'dinations paper then embossed with the Cuttlebug and sanded.

Matting the busy photos in white helped separate them from the patterned paper.

Love this photo of my girl :)

Folded the scalloped circles in half and added pearls.

Cut the snowflakes with the Joys of the Season Cricut cartridge then backed with white cardstock.

Fussy cut the journaling spots from patterned paper.

Hope you have a great week and thanks for stopping by!

Track & Field Day

 Mariel found these photos in her room the other day...which is quite a feat. Things go into her room never to appear again! You need a Tetanus shot just to negotiate her floor. Before you say anything remember...she is a teenager, I have to pick my battles wisely and there are plenty of battle worthy subjects to conquer!

Even though it was meant to be a baby line, the colors in this Doodlebug paper were perfect. The soft colors and subtle prints really allow the pictures to be the focus of the page.

Customized the American Craft Thickers with acrylic paint and then covered them with Glossy Accents.

Discovered that my attempt at handwriting isn't nearly as cute as Ali Edwards :P

The flowers are cut using the Paisley Cricut cartridge, the leaves are from the Home Accents cartridge. The top flower layers are cut from vellum and embossed.

Fairly simple and quick...just what I needed to get my mojo going again!

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 :)

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!