Scrapbook Deals 4U Layouts

As promised, I have a few layouts to share. Thank you, Martha, for asking me to Guest Design this month as Scrapbook Deals 4U. It was a wonderful kit, and I am not done working with it yet. I am in the middle of finishing up a mini book that came with the kit. In the meantime, here are 3 layouts that I completed:


Got to use my Silhouette on the second layout...love it! I have to say that it might not be a good idea for me to keep scrapping so late in the evening. I enjoy it so much that I have a hard time getting to sleep at night. I just want to keep going...not good on a school night. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your night!

Creative Sunday

WoW! Did the past week just fly by or what? I can't believe it is Sunday already. I spent yesterday doing all kinds of stuff to get ready for summer...cleaning the leaves from the yard, getting the back porch ready for chillaxin', pulling weeds, etc. Lots of fun stuff...LOL! So, I am getting the chance to enjoy my Sunday doing what I love...scrapping! I was asked by Martha at Scrapbook Deals 4U to be the guest designer for May, and I received my kit this past week. It is a great kit with lots of Jenni Bowlin goodies. I took a pic from the website to show you:

It comes with a cute little chipboard book from Creative Imaginations that I am working on now. Love it. Love mini books! One of my favorite assignments from my HOF entry was my mini book. I have that book displayed in my scraproom, and I stop to look through it so often. Fun stuff! So, stop back tomorrow, and I will have some scrapbooking goodness to share! Enjoy the rest of your day!

Thank You Again!

I have to say Thank You once again for the sweet comments and e-mails on my HOF win. I am glad that you all stopped by to say HI and check out my little blog. I wish I had a new layout to share today...because I did scrap another one on Sunday. I decided, however, to keep it for a submission. You know...the whole "never seen before layout" thing. I love to share, and that rule seems to take the whole sharing thing away. BUT, I can't say that I don't agree with it. We all want to see fresh, new layouts in the mags. No one wants to buy a mag to see something that they can see for free.

I can, however, share with you one of the layouts that did not make the cut for my HOF entry. Since I can't share the layouts that I did enter, this one will have to do for now

I like the colors on this one. I have nothing against this layout...I guess I just liked other layouts better. =)

I also got a great picture of Ryan and his buddy, Devn, the other day at the park. They are just growing up so fast and both getting so handsome! Love these guys so much!

I hope everyone is enjoying their week so far. I have officially completed my University classes for the Spring semester as of yesterday....woot woot! Pretty sure I busted out a 4.0! Yeah for me! Now, let the summer begin! Have a great night!

Creative Sunday!

Have I mentioned how much I love my Sundays? It just feels so good to have the whole day to myself to do whatever I want (or don't want) to do. I love it when I have a chance to scrap. I did some housework yesterday and finished my last University assignment, so I basically had today all to myself! I had the chance to scrap some silly pictures from Easter. For some reason, everyone was in a goofy mood, so I took the opportunity to snap some photos. The girls will probably kill me for posting these pics of them, but we won't tell them, right?
I used some cool Fancy Pants felt here...love that stuff! I also cut the blue part of my title out with my new Silhouette! So glad to have gotten the chance to use it. I am sure that I can do so much more with it, but we'll take baby steps for now! I still have some time to get another layout started, so I am off! Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Still here

Thanks to everyone for the kind words and the congrats in your e-mails, on the boards, and here on my blog! Everyone has been so sweet...you all have made my week. It has been a bit busy here finishing up my last assignment for my University class....yeah! Not to mention the weather has been awesome. I LOVE spring! We had our first day outside this week with the great weather...bye bye winter! It's hard to sit at a computer when the birds are chirpin' their little hearts out! I hope you are all enjoying your week. Tomorrow is Friday...woot woot! More then!

Good News All Around!

This past week was a pretty good week for me! First of all, I found out at my district's school board meeting that I will, indeed, be teaching history next year! Yeah for me! For those of you who might not know, I was hired by the district in 2006 to teach their Alternative Education program. It has been quite an interesting ride. Most of my colleagues shutter at the thought of being in a room full of kids with behavioral issues. The job, itself, is usually a stepping stone as teacher burn-out is high in Alt. Ed. I happen to really enjoy my job, but I guess I really don't know how I would feel if I stayed in the position for several years. I have lots of thoughts on the subject, so more of that later. The bottom line, for now, is I am thrilled to be able to finally teach history as I have always wanted to do. Yippee!

And, on a scrappy note, I am very excited to finally be able to share that I have been chosen as one of Creating Keepsakes 2008 Hall of Famers.

You can check out all of the talented ladies who also won here. You can click on each of the names to hear their call stories, read their answers to some questions, and see a layout from their entry. I am very excited to have been chosen and to be included with such a talented group of girls! Congrats to all of them! Very Exciting!

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my good news with me!!

Hooray for me!

I am so excited because I finally got my Quickutz Silhouette in the mail today!

I hooked this baby up already and am ready to get cuttin'! Stayce recommended some places for me to go to share files and such. I think I know how I will be spending my scrappy time this weekend. It is killing me that I have to wait, but real life is always a priority. Off to a school board meeting tonight. Hope everyone is having as good a day as me!

I think I found my style

While I was scrapbooking over the winter, something just seemed to happen to me. I really think that I found myself...scrapbooking-wise, that is. I have been scrapbooking for almost seven years. I have dabbled in many different styles. I enjoy the work of several scrappers including Ali Edwards and Cathy Zielske. I went to Creating Keepsakes University (scrapbooking classes) in 2004 and loved taking Cathy's class. I left there so inspired that I went home and tried to scrap like her. Her style never really worked for me. Neither did Ali's. I love the way they both scrap, but it just never felt right to me. It seems that we all need to find our own style that we feel comfortable with, and the only way we can do that is to experiment. I guess you can say that it took me 7 years of experimenting to find my style. I am not exactly sure what kind of style I have. Some say linear...maybe. It's simple, but I don't think it is simple enough for Simple Scrapbooks magazine. I think my style is clean, but it can also be a bit layered. I guess I am just a big combination of all of those styles. One thing that I have really started focusing on is details. Once I get a layout done, I sit back and figure out what little details I want to add. A button here, some stitching there, a tag, a piece of ribbon. I think that this is actually my favorite part of the process. It really is funny what the little details can do to make a layout. I find myself attracted to layouts with those little details, and I also find myself seeking the details out. Just some thoughts on the process. All I can say is that whatever I am doing now just feels right...no matter what I call it. I like that I found myself...it seems to make scrapbooking a lot more fun.

This is one of my layouts that I created a few months back.
This is just an example of what I am talking about here. It was not until after the layout was done that I added the white and black dotted lines around parts of the layout. I also did not add the tag in the upper left hand corner (held on with staples) and the round "achieve" tag toward the lower right until later. And lastly, I added the straight lines to the right and above the journaling after the fact. These tiny little things just made me happy.

What are some of the little things that make you happy?

Starting Points!!!!

My friend, the talented Linda Harrison, recently posted a picture of her upcoming book on her blog. I tell you, I simply cannot wait to get this one.

I am very honored to have been asked to contribute some artwork to her book (Thanks, Linda!), and I see that she has an awesome group of gals who also contributed. They are Kelly Noel, Amy Licht, Summer Fullerton, Lisa Damrosch, Lisa Moorefield, Kim Moreno, and Ali McLaughlin. Now there certainly is a lot of talent in that list. Not to mention the extreme talent of Linda. I have seen a small sample of some really great ideas packed in this book. Lots of different ways to get your scrap on! I believe it will be available in September 2008, so keep your eyes peeled!

I'm finishing up some school work tonight, so I have no scrappy goodness to share. Hopefully, I will get a chance to finish up a layout that I am working on. G'nite!

Taking the plunge & Happy Birthday Skippy!

It did not take too much convincing from my friend, Stayce, for me to finally take the plunge and get a digital diecut machine. I have been tossing the idea around for many months, and she highly recommended a Silhouette by Quickutz. I have not received it yet, but I am already getting so excited. The thought of being able to add "handcut" words for my pages without a exacto knife and lots of time is so exciting! It is scheduled to arrive this Wednesday! I'll be sure to post a review as soon as I get rolling with it. Now, just to find a place for it in my scrap room!

Today has been a pretty mellow day...working on a research paper for class, ironing clothes, and celebrating my kitty, Skippy's birthday!


He is 14 years old this month. I am embarrassed to say that I do not know his exact birthday. I got him right out of college at a time when details like that were not so important. I've celebrated his birthday in April every year since. I guess you can say it is a month long celebration! He has been with me through so many things: boyfriends, interstate moves, break-ups, losing jobs, getting jobs, my pregnancy, Ryan's birth, the adoption of my other kitty (Miss Kitty), the passing away of Miss Kitty (very hard for him) just to name a few. Losing his buddy, Miss Kitty, was very hard on him. He was so lost after she was gone. I've often tossed around the idea of getting another cat, but I never followed through. No one could take Miss Kitty's place. So, Skippy is my one and only. He has such a personality on him. Crabby, yet lovable! They say pets take after their owners...so what does that say about me??? So, Happy Birthday, Skippy! Here's hoping for many more years!