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...I married the most wonderful man in the world! Happy Anniversary, Chad! I love you!
And 53 years ago today, my Dad was born! Happy Birthday, Daddy!
So, now a couple of updates. On Sunday, I went to my second crop with the scrap group I was invited to join. My Mother-in-law, Marty, is a part of the group now too, so it's fun scrapping with her. I had alot of cards to make (which I didn't take photos of), but I did manage to get one layout done. I came across this picture of me (at age 8)when we were going through photos while my Mom was down. I thought it was too hilarious NOT to scrap.
I call it my Afro Mullet. Gorgeous, isn't it? My sister is SOOO lucky she missed most of the 80's. And I have to say, I am LOVIN' those Heidi Swapp bling borders. Even though you can't really tell, I used the Martha (light green) ones here that I got in my last Poppy Ink kit.
One last thing. About 6 months ago, I retired my beloved (but tired and not big enough) Coach bag and got the Daisy Tote from Etsy. Although it's cute, it just wasn't working for me as a purse. I wanted another nice purse, but really didn't want to spend a big chunk of change again. I browse the big purse sites now and then, just to see what they have. and I came across this one on the Dooney & Bourke website. I comes in about 6 different colors, but I LOVED the pink on green.
Well, on Saturday, Chad and I were out and about and I asked him to stop by Dillard's just so I could look and see what purses they had. I walked over to the Dooney display, and there it was....the EXACT bag in the EXACT color combo I wanted. The best part.....it was 50% OFF (and it's still a current season bag, too)!!! I swear it was fate. I had some extra money, and Chad said he didn't mind if I got it. It's slightly lighter than it shows in the picture, and the green and pink part is a kinda silky canvas cloth. It's the happiest purse I've ever seen. So cute.
Well, that's all I have for now. Have a great day, everyone!
Today's blog challenge on 2Peas:
If you could ask for only 3 things this Christmas, what would they be?
Well, this one is actually pretty easy for me, because I don't tend to ask for alot at Christmas. I buy myself all the smaller things I want during the year, but Chad and I use Christmas to get each other the slightly pricier things that we wouldn't neccessarily buy on a whim.
I've decided I want a new Nintendo DS Lite in Coral Pink. Chad got me the Gameboy Advance SP a few years back, and we both play it all the time, but since the new one came out all the new games are released for this one, plus this one has a brighter screen and backlight. I would eventually like the new Nintendo Wii, but I know I'd play the handheld more. Chad and I decided that we didn't want to spend $600 on the new Playstation 3, so it wouldn't be fair to turn around and get the other system right away, even though it is alot less.
The next item is a game for the DS. Let me tell you, the Wario Ware games are seriously the most fun games ever made. I have the two that were made for Gameboy Advance, and I can play them for hours (great for long trips!). So, the game I most want is Wario Ware: Touched! (the site is pretty fun, check it out!).
The last thing I thought of would be a Quickutz Aplha. As this would be $200 alone, I would rather have the DS. But, the challenge asked for three things, so here's my third! The new QK Diesel aplha (just the alpha, no shadow!). I mainly got the QK to use the shapes so I wouldn't have to get so many punches (and it came with a cute aplha), but I wouldn't mind having one full size, versatile set as well.
Okay, so there's my Christmas list. Funny, because Chad and I just talked about this over the weekend. He's decided that he wants a Smoker and has already picked one out, so I guess we're pretty well ahead of the game! Now to plan Christmas cards....
I am SO behind on my blogging! I slacked for a few days, then my Mom has been in town for the past week while Chad is on his annual Canada Fishing Trip with his college buddies (he comes home tomorrow, yay!!!).
SO....I thought I would share all the fun stuff I've been getting in the mail. First of all, the WAY CUTE skeleton and goodies I got from winning BonnieRose's RAK Contest on her blog. A couple days before that, I received a cute Fall Card from her, too! Cards from her always put a smile on my face!
I ordered a couple more items for my Belly Dancing costume. Everyone raved about my skirt in class last week. I wanted to get some nice jewelry to go with it...I can't believe the awesome prices you can find on Ebay! This stuff is new, too! A headpiece and ring/bracelet cuffs. I got them from two different stores, and they match perfectly. We are also starting to learn Zils (finger cymbals) in a couple weeks, so I am REALLY excited about that! I'm getting my set in class tomorrow.
I also got my second package from my Swap Sister for the Sassy Secret Sisters swap on 2Peas. I found out she is the fab Ms. Kiki! Awesome stuff. HS fuzzy rub-ons, chenille rick rack, Basic Grey monograms, chipboard flowers, a TOTALLY cute Altered 'P'. I was especially excited about the Petaloo Flowers. I've had my eye on those! I'll have to come up with something pretty cool to use them on.
A nice pile of paper posies for the Flower Swap I'm doing with my local scrap group. I'm really looking forward to getting all those packages of different flowers! I decided to go unconventional with black. I thought they were pretty cool.
Last but not least...lots of lovely Alphas. All my favorites. I just LOVE HS chipboard alphas, and they are such a great value! Also some MM velvet alpha sticker in colors I didn't have, and some small HS mailbox letters! You can never have too many alphas, and I use the HECK out of them!
Before Chad went out of town, we also got the FABULOUS 85mm f1.8 lens for the camera. I am totally loving this lens! I also scored a Black Quickutz Squeeze (that comes with the Metro alpha) for $45 on scrap-mart.com when they were having their big 50% Off Quickutz sale last week!
I still have 3 layouts that I have to photograph and post...another thing I've slacked on. I'll probably do that on Friday. Have a great day!
Okay, I'll put this simply.....if you don't get the Poppy Ink kit, you're CRAZY!!! I *almost* feel silly for being this excited about paper and embellishments (notice I said almost...), but man, Heather just comes up with the coolest combinations of supplies! All my favorite pages have been made using Poppy Ink kits. I just got my September kit last night (I was too lazy to take pictures of mine):
And check out these awesome add-ons we had to choose from. I got the top one, although I kinda wish I had gotten them both! I just had to get that monthly stamp.
October pre-orders will be starting around the 20th of this month. It's going to be a FLEA MARKET theme (peekies can be seen on Heather's Blog)! She has said that soon they will have to put a cap on subscriptions and start a waiting list soon, so if you're interested, make sure you get a pre-order sub in...all current subscribers are locked in for the future!
On a COMPLETELY different note, another of my happy obsessions that I haven't mentioned here yet: BELLY DANCING! A month ago, my friend and I started taking Belly Dancing classes at a local studio as a fun form of exercise. Man, it is ever a BLAST! Well, of course that means our Halloween costumes are decided! We'll eventually need all the costuming anyways, so why not start now?
The whole reason I brought this up is because I found (and bought) this GORGEOUS skirt today. One glance and I was in LOVE! I just got the skirt...no bra. I'm not really into showing my belly at this point! I'll wear a nice tunic with bell sleeves and my hip scarf with all the coins.
We started learning walking shimmies yesterday, and I'm determined to get some form of it down by Halloween. I can do a few other things pretty well, but I'm still not all that great at the basic chest and stomach circles. I'm better at the hip and arm stuff.
Well, have a great weekend everyone! I have that all day crop I'm going to on Sunday, so I'll have some new stuff to post next week!
On Thursday, a fellow Pea emailed me and invited me to join the Southwest Florida Scrappers group. I'm so excited! I'll finally have ladies to scrap with! None of my friends scrap, so this will be fun. I've only ever been to one crop, so I am looking forward to our September crop on the 17th. It is going to be at the local scrapbook store that I shop at (when I get out that way).
So, I figured it wasa a good time to go get one of those cute tool totes from Michael's that everyone has been talking about! Mine only had the black one, which is fine, because my big tote that I already have is black. They were 30% off, so I got it for $13 and some change. Of course, I had to decorate it, so I dressed both bags up with some flowers and bazzill brads. I also tied ribbon to all the zippers on the tool bag.
My paper rack also came in yesterday. It's nothing fancy, but it works great for the paper I have. It looks like so much less when I spread it out this way! I tied ribbons to the side to show what color of paper goes in that slot. Patterned paper is in the upper section, and cardstock is in the lower section.
I noticed how crooked it looked when I loaded this photo onto the computer....apparently I didn't tighten up one of the wheels all the way, so it's fixed now!
I also got a little metal magazine holder that sits on the floor next to my chair. To fill the space where my old paper trays were, I placed an old white metal bread box that belonged to Chad's Great Uncle. I painted flowers on the front, and put my foam alpha stamps in there. It turned out cute! My camera battery is dead right now, and I'm too lazy to go recharge it right now. Hehee. I'll take a picture of it later!
Well, I'm off to work on some rolodex cards for a swap. Have a great weekend, everyone!
This is a card I made for Becca, bigsunglassesrock on Two Peas. She is hosting the swap I'm in, the Sassy Secret Sisters. Becca, if you read this, have a great birthday!
We did all the shopping for the cookout yesterday, and all our friends are coming over about 5 this evening. It's gonna be a great time! Chad got me a Key Lime Cheesecake as my "Birthday Cake" and he even got number candles (as a joke). He said he was going to get the black 'over the hill' candle, but then decided against it. Gee, thanks, honey! I'd hate to know what you think when I AM over the hill! He's just a goofball like that. Hehee.
Man, long weekends are the best! That means the work week goes by faster, too. Have a great Labor Day, everyone!
I came home on Wednesday, and Chad had moved all the stuff out of the larger guest room and painted and installed the new ceiling fan. The yellow turned out AWESOME! It's so warm! I started moving some things in on Thursday, and on Friday Chad put together the big storage cabinet and put up the shelves. Friday night and yesterday I finished moving in, and we got the guest room set up in the smaller room. I'm so happy with both rooms! I think the guest room is actually cuter and cozier in the smaller room
View from the entrance. Computer area, small printer (the big one is in the cabinet), and all my scrap supplies. On the top shelf is all my embossing powders and cans of craft spray paint. On the bottom shelf are my bottles of Primas and tins holding ribbon. The picture over the shelf is a painting of the sun rising over a green hill that my sister did for me when she was little...I've displayed it ever since she gave it to me.
Sitting area and sewing table. The baskets in the window hold layers of silk flowers. The chair goes to our living room set, but we didn't have room for it in the living room when we moved to this house. It's so comfy, and I love having a reading area!
Closet and storage cabinet. We put daylight flourescent bulbs in the ceiling fan, so it is nice and bright at night. No desk lamp needed! Lighting was a big problem in the other room. I was able to stack all my mounted photos (for shows) on top pf the cabinet. I had to put them in their boxes under the table in the other room and I was kicking them all the time. I was determined not to have ANYTHING under the tables in this room.
Sewing table and entrance. I used the top shelf over the sewing table to display artwork, and I have my patterns and some fabric on the lower shelf. I had Chad leave the door off the room. I just like it without it, and it gives me an extra wall to put up some artwork.
I still have a few finishing touches that I need to add. I want to get cute curtain valances for the windows, or make something to add some color over those blinds. I have a big paper rack that stands on the floor ordered...that should be here around Wednesday or Thursday. Then I'll put my foam stamps in jars and put them in the place where I have my paper trays now. I also saw a cute wall-mounted magazine rack at Jo-Ann that I'd like to put up next to the chair. I'd like to get a couple 12x12 clipboard to put on the doors of the storage cabinets to display my latest pages, too. I just love being in this room! It's so much bigger and happier.
We're having a cookout/party tomorrow and having friends over for my birthday, then Chad said he'd take me out on Tuesday, which is my actual birthday. It should be fun! I love entertaining, and we don't get to do it that often during this time of year. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, everyone!
I made this for the girl I work with....today is her birthday! I usually take the photos in natural light, but since we probably won't see much of that today, I had to use the light of my desk lamp. The red flower is actually a brighter red, and this photo does NOT do that MME Bohemia paper any justice. This is that paisley print one. I just want to wallpaper my craft room with it...I love it!
Ernesto has been a bit of a let down. It's no worse than our typical summer storm, but it'll probably just last all day instead of 30 minutes. Not that I wanted to get a serious storm or anything, but there's always all this build up, then we just get a crappy weather day that makes it miserable to come to work...we were all hoping we'd AT LEAST get a day off out of it. The good thing, though, is that there was NO traffic on the way to work today. I'd drive to work in the rain every day for that!
Chad and I went up to Port Charlotte on Saturday to spend the day with his parents. His mom took me to the scrapbook store that they have nearby....wow. She has a NICE one up there! Anyways, as we were checking out, I was asking how they liked the Cutterpede, as I am becoming less than thrilled with my current trimmer. The ladies proceeded to tell us about the Limited Edition PINK Cutterpede they are taking names for. I had heard about this, but didn't really want to pay $75 for it. Marty (MIL) put her name on the list for one....then asked if I'd be happy with this for Christmas. Heck yes! So, I have to forget she's ordering it, and act surprised when I open it. Hehe. Here's how it comes:
Bag Features:
-ID pocket
-Carry handle and removable shoulder strap
-Loops hold pen securely in place
-2 removable mesh pouches
-2 adjustable dividers
-1 large mesh pouch
-Straps to hold Cutterpede in place
Includes:
-Tool Bag
-NEW Pink Cutterpede Paper Trimmer w/ blade
-Cutterpede Score Blade
-Cutter Bee Scissors
-Archival Zig Millennium Black .05 Pen
-Zig 2-Way Glue Chisel Tip wet glue
-Herma Glue Star Removable Adhesive dry glue
-CornerAdorner Medium Rounder Punch
-Pink Fastenater Mini & 48 Silver Staple Bars
Marty also bought me the Freestyle book and a white Staz-on ink pad with inker for my birthday since it's coming up next week (the big 2-6!). I got a few of the new MME papers (Bohemia and Signature Studio), some Bazzill, Plain Janes chipboard arrows, the Rebecca Sower photo corner punch, solvent ink cleaner, Bazzil chipboard flowers, and a few packages of Bazzill big polka-dot brads.
Then, yesterday, Chad and I went out to get the paint for my Craft Room. I'm currently in the smaller, front bedroom, but I'm moving to the larger back one. The Guest Room hardly ever gets used, so it'll be fine having it in the smaller room. I'm not going to invest in cabinets for this house, but when we get somewhere we're planning to be for a long time, I'll go that route then. For now, my tables and sterilite drawers are perfectly fine. In this room, I'll have space to add a comfy chair (which is already in that room), a sewing table, and a couple Pantry-type cabinets from Target.
I decided to go with a yellow. I wanted something happy and cheery, plus true yellows stimulate mental activity and promote creativity. I was originally going to go with a more buttery color, but I saw this picture in the paint sample brochure, and loved it. This is similar to the color our neighbors painted their kitchen, and it looks great! I chose Behr Bicycle Yellow. It looks a little darker on the monitor than it actually is...it's a nice, sunny yellow.
Chad said he might try to start moving stuff out of the room and paint, depending on what this storm decides to do, and if he has to start boarding up buildings in the park or whatever. I'll be sure to post photos when I'm all moved!
First of all, I am happy to say that I purchased my very first Idea Book this weekend:
Elsie is just amazing. Her layouts are both fun and heartfelt...not to mention gorgeous! Just a quick flip through gave me the inspiration to fix a layout that I really wasn't happy with. This one started out as a horizontal 8 1/2 x 11 on Kraft cardstock. I liked certain elements (the photo and the tag) but it just wasn't 'doing it' for me. This is the final version:
Now I just need to get the Freestyle book! And maybe the designing with type book.
DISTRESS INKS! I'm sure I've pretty much made that clear before! I'm participating in the Sassy Secret Sisters swap at 2Peas, which is going on for 3 months. This month we had to send out packages worth $5-$10. This is what my AWESOME secret sister sent me! Jewels, flowers, and distress inks in pretty colors. Really, is there anything better? And check out that sweet card...it's all painted. Now I need to go to Michaels and get more of those papier mache signs to alter.
I have a confession....or even a declaration if you prefer: 
I LOVE HEIDI SWAPP RUB-ONS!!!
I know I am in the minority on this one...most people that have used them HATE them with a passion and threw them away. Yes, yes, I admit...they were a big pain in the butt the first and even second time I used them. I couldn't get them to transfer at all, let alone actually STICK to anything. But I was bound and determined not to waste $5.99 and 925 characters worth of pink Heidi goodness. Okay, I did waste maybe 8 or 9 letters, but I figured them out. And now, I'll venture to say they are my absolute favorite. It's not just the awesome fonts and colors...it's the convenience. I love that you don't have to cut out the individual letters, since they are not sticky. They are so much quicker than the others...to me, anyways.
I always use the pointy end of the stick that comes with them. Lay down the sheet and line up the letter you want. I do a quick trace-around of the letter, just to get it started, and then I trace over the letter itself. You don't have to rub hard at all. The letters actually get darker as they transfer (which is the opposite of what it says on the back of the package). Make sure there are no more light spots, and lift! They are so easy, and really quick once you get the hang of them. The small learning curve is totally worth it. I use them on everything, and have never had a problem with them coming off. And the scotch tape trick (removing mistakes with a piece of scotch tape) comes in handy now and then, too.
I, for one, am going to be bummed when Advantus changes them to work like regular rub-ons.
I wanted a new headshot-type photo of myself in color, and that looked a little more like me, to use for my photography and whatnot. Chad shot this one of me, and I did the color work. I'm pretty happy with it (and I am PICKY about photos of me), and I had a good hair day yesterday, too! Of course I couldn't get it to look like that for work today to save my life. I don't know what's up with my eyebrows in the photo, though. Hmmm.
As for today's Blogging Challenge from 2Peas: Did I like High School? What were my favorite subjects?
Yes, I did like high school, it was a blast. My favorite subjects were Drafting, Spanish, and European History. I actually really enjoyed Economics my Senior year, too. My European History teacher was awesome, he quoted Monty Python all the time, and showed us Black Adder episodes that were relevant to what we were learning. I also liked my AP English classes Junior and Senior years. We had the same teacher both years, and she made the classes fun and interesting. She's the Principal of the school now, which is great, but I just wish my sister was able to have her as a teacher.
I was also in Marching and Symphonic Bands and played the Flute and Piccolo. I still pull out my flute every now and then...I keep telling myself I'm going to start playing again, and never follow through!
