Big Pieces Page is here!!

OK - here it is. It's hard to make out the top "journaling" -- I went with an almost Green Galore rub on "Cherish the Moment".... Seeing as the photo has the date & place I didn't think I needed to journal too much (the compliment page will have the days events on it). During our cruise we kept a journal each day and I'm trying to incorporate that into each layout so that when someone sits and looks at & reads this scrapbook they'll feel all the excitement we did. :) So I used lots of bright colors of craft pads (they get the best coverage & are recommended for scrapbook pages apposed to classic or dye inks). Then I went crazy with punches -- used everything from 1/2", 3/4" and the larger 1-1/3" and 1-1/4"... it was really fun to do. I then asked my daughter if I could have a piece of her hot pink embroidery thread (she's so into friendship bracelets now -- I TOTALLY remember making those in grade school!!) & I sewed (yup, needle & thread) a variety of round buttons on the page. To add a little bit of interest, I pierced in a few funky brads & a few white snaps. Fun to go outside of what I'm used to. I also used a Versamark pad and stamped some stems and leaves underneath it all, but it doesn't come through great with the photo. In Mexico BRIGHT colors are everywhere.... so I went with it. What do you think?

I just thought this was such a hilarious photo of us!! First cruise, first time off the ship & we get greeted with this spunky gal to have our photo taken. The cruiseline then sells you all the pics they take of you. Had to get one of each port of call.

I tried to take a close up so you could see it up close & personal ;-)

Off to make that compliment page..... hmmmm.....might need to flip through my new Scrapbooks Etc. magazine to get some ideas (I'm a magazine junkie too!!!)

The FuNkiNesS continues....

Stay tuned... I'm working on a slightly outrageous page -- at least outrageous for me. It's definitely outside MY box. My with all those punches & stampin' dimensionals, it's taking me some time ( not to mention I could no longer ignore my house and had to FLY through it this morning.... got those floors scrubbed & vacuumed, mirrors sparkling, stuff picked up :-) ahhh doesn't a clean house feel gooooood!!). So I hope to post my page tomorrow -- just struggling with the journaling part.... a slight creative block :) Also, tonight I start a running program that I've signed up with our Parks & Rec program.... tad nervous about that. Tried running before & hated it -- but alas, I will try again. I keep telling me maybe I was doing something wrong & having an instructor by my side will be beneficial and not completely humiliating :) While I'm running I'll think... "when this is over I can scrapbook... " hahaha. Motivation is everything - at least that's what "they" say ~ wish me luck!

**FuNkY*

OK, I'm totally getting into funky stamps. Circles & shapes, doodles & squiggles... (actually starting to like the tattoo rub-ons -- for paper Mom, don't worry! LOL), and so the Big Pieces stamp set in the current mini catalog is fabo! Of course the Little Pieces in the big 'ol catty is the perfect complement. I got the idea for the sample in blue from SCS(splitcoaststampers.com) -- a CASED project there... a few changes in my version of the card. I thought I'd then try one with brown & red/pinks. It's a fun set to play with & I'm going to try to incorporate it into my next scrapbook layout -- stay tuned!!

I'm not sure if the photo shows it very well, but the circles are all punched out with various circle punches, some are placed directly on the card while others are popped up with stampin' dimensionals. Gives the card a great visual effect with all those circles at different depths!

My soccer boy

What a kick!!! (thasma boy!!)
The stance of readiness....

The scoring kick!!

Swoooosh, there goes Saturday....

I *cased* this card from an inspiration sheet... love those when I need to make a card & just can't put my mind in "create-mode"! :) I thought this would work well also for a masculine card. Didn't get much stamping time today between soccer, a birthday party (and of course shopping for the birthday party 2 hrs before start time -- QUEEN PROCRASTINATOR here I am!), play dates for the kids & now we're in sleepover mode. How fun is it to be a kid?! Oh throw into that a trip to the wave pool, to get some swimming in (thank you Grandma & Grandpa!!!!) :) Daddy just went out to return a movie (We rented The Guardian last night -- it was good, have you seen it? Would love to hear of some MUST SEE movies) and pick up goodies for the kids :-) HAVE to have goodies for a sleepover. So tonight I'll drool over my CK Top Ten magazine that arrived in my mailbox on Friday & hang with the kiddos. Happy Weekend!!

Kid's Cards

I did get to sneak back into stampland & get some kids cards done. I think the frogettable set is too cute! Perfect for Kids!! The scans didn't come through as good as they are ;-). I LOVE the watercolor crayons and enjoyed sitting yesterday & stamping. I made each of them a wee bit different. Just annoying that it doesn't come through as nicely on my scans. I was at Costco this afternoon (yeah for ME TIME!!!) and I fell in love with the Canon Rebel XT -- whoa! she's a beauty. OH SANTA!! I think I should ask now as Santa will have some savin' to do. What camera do you use? I'd love to hear input on this one. I've heard great things on the Rebel & my point & shoot digi is a Canon & I quite like it, just doesn't take great, close up photos. Still have a couple cards to finish up on my stamping table... I'll post those once they're done.
Ahhhhhh.... the weekend is here!

Avoiding.....

I'm avoiding work today --- should be cleaning, vacuuming, dusting *blek!* and all that other glorious stuff that a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM) fills her day with. Just not feeling it today! I've stepped OVER the laundry, walked PAST the dishes, closed the door to the kids bathroom (scary!) and wandered into my stamp room. AHHhhhhhh.... I can't believe some people get PAID to create ;-) Lucky ducks. Guess hubby thinks the same way of those who play sports and get paid (a stinkin' amount) for *playing*! February is a full month of birthdays so I thought I'd pull out my spectrum pad & ink up some glossy cardstock and make a few cards using the "Joseph's Coat" technique. Thought if I got 1/2 doz. made up then I wouldn't be scrambling in a few short weeks. I also need to stamp up some kids cards (stay tuned!) to have on hand. It's amazing with three little ones in school how MANY birthday parties there are to attend! :)

My favorite spectrum pad combo is Late November -- love those earthy colors! If you haven't tried this technique, it's worth the effort! I just make a few of them at once so you're not pulling out all your supplies, it's nice too to have some cards on hand. Start by inking up your brayer on your spectrum pad (make sure the spectrum pads are APART or you'll muddy up all your ink). Roll it over your glossy cardstock (do this a few times to get a good rich color on there). Let dry (or use your heat tool if you want to speed up the process). Swipe your embossing buddy over the surface of your inked cardstock & then stamp in Versamark (use a bold image like the one above). Emboss with clear embossing powder. Now ink up your brayer (once it's cleaned & dried) in basic black ink and roll this over the entire card. This is where my little one said "oh Mommy, why did you just wreck your pretty card?!" She was delighted when I showed her the magic! Taking a tissue, wipe your cardfront taking all the beaded ink off the embossed areas! Voila! Mount, embellish..... and finish your piece. Pretty easy isn't it.

Well, off to do a 15 minute tidy (as FLYLADY says... you can do just about ANYTHING for 15 minutes!)......then I'm sure I'll slip into stampland again :)

Scrapbooking with and without Photos?!

Do you ever find that you missed a moment? I mean missed capturing it on "film"? When we were on our cruise I tried to take photos, but also was in *relax* mode so missed the opportunities now & then. (I'll be prepared for Panama!). So in this layout I had many photos (even our room cards I wanted to incorporate in). I trimmed & cut so they all jammed in snugly together & then put our journal entries for that day above & below. I used our corner rounder punches to soften the edges.

Day Four was also a day at sea. I wasn't sure how to scrap the same type of day without duplicating the same photos. In this particular scrapbook I wanted to tell a story; I wanted someone to be able to sit down & after looking through it know everything that happened on our trip. So I took this day to write out in full view our whole journal entry that day - even included my little girls' emails at the bottom. :)

I've Been Tagged!

I've been *tagged*, so here's my info on A-Z :)

A-Available or Taken: Taken
B-Best Friend: David (my hubby!!)
C-Cake or Pie: Chocolate Pecan Pie
D-Drink of Choice: Coffee - if I'm feeling rich, make it a Starbucks
E-Essential Item You Use Everyday: Computer
F-Favorite Color: Ooh, tough one for me -- Always Artichoke, Brocade Blue close behind
G-Gummy Bears or Worms: I could pass, not eating much sugar these days - but if I'm going to splurge, make it some high quality chocolate & I'm IN!
H-Hometown: we moved around so much growing up, I don't feel like I have a home town. Born in Mission, BC - but spend most of my elementary years in Spruce Grove, AB :)
I-Indulgence: Starbucks Caramel Light Frappuccino, After Eight Chocolate Bar, sleeping in!!
J-January or February: February!! My B'day month & my daughters too -- & I just love Valentine's Day... not to mention we're that much closer to fresh tulips!
K-Kids and Names: Megan - nearly 10, Joshua - 7 & Sarah - 5, and my big Kid we call Dad -37
L-Life is Incomplete Without: Faith & my family
M-Marriage Date: August 20, 1994.
N-Number of Siblings: 2 brothers, I'm sandwiched in the middle.
O-Oranges or Apples: Oranges (but I'd pick a grapefruit if I could!)
P-Phobias or Fears: something terrible happening to one of my children
Q-Favorite Quote: I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Phillipans 4:13
R-Reason to Smile: sunshine, my kids, my husband getting his groove on, my brother winning that LOTTO!! Come ooooooon BEN!!!
Season: SUMMER ALL THE WAY!!! Beach, sand & suntans! oh yeah!!!
T-Tag 3 or 4 people: OK - how do I do this? See how computer inapt I am?!?
U-Unknown fact about me: I played center on my high school basketball team (I'm only 5'3'!!)
V-Vegetable you don't like: Parsnips, not a huge fan., but I'm a veggie fan!!
W-Worst Habit: Interrupting.... gotta work on that one!
X-Xrays: teeth
Y-Your fave food: POPCORN (it's a little insane actually) & anything that I didn't have to prepare or clean up! ;-)
Z-Zodiac: Aquarius I think... never pay attention to it.

Scrappin' Weekend!

Ahhhh.. the weekend is here. Not without it's challenges. Hubby & I had to go to Victoria to get our passports -- ready for this?! SEVEN HOURS we stood in line. Can you believe that. We were outside in the cold, shivering our little butts off! BRRR!! It wasn't raining though. We stood there wondering if that was a good or bad thing. The rain may have driven some people to leave & made the wait not as long, but would have made the waiting more dreadful I think. We are heading on our cruise in April, so we needed to get them. Even going on Friday, they won't be here until the beginning of March so good thing we went when we did. Not an overly enjoyable way to spend a friday though. 8:30am - 3:30pm in a line up. Ugh. Although we made some great line buddies and chatted the day away :) Should have had my camera!
So today we had a soccer game with my son and then the chores of Saturday (grocery shopping & all that other not so enjoyable stuff).... but then I finally got into my stamp room and finished a page spread I've put together & taken apart a couple of times. It's a very simple (maybe too plain?!) scrapbook page from my Mexican Album that I'm piecing together. Got Day 3 done and now I'll move on to Day 4. I hope to expand my scrappin' skills this year (and get a new camera!!) but I shall enjoy the journey & process of this great craft.

You R My Sweet Stuff!!

One Day I will take better photos! I saw a great blog on
taking photos of your artwork. Think I need to start asking Santa now for a funky new camera! :) I actually did find some time to get into my stamping space yesterday, between the laundry, the playdates with kids, making supper & doing those dishes! I thought I'd work on my Valentine card for hubby (shhh!). I love the Very Punny Sell-a-bration stamp set. Too cute! I've finally pulled out my bits & pieces from Stampin' Up! It's a great collaboration of tabs, mini folders, pockets.. actually using a pocket on a scrapbook page. I'll post the pages when I'm done as I'm redoing what I originally started with. When a page just ISN'T coming together for me I have to walk away and then go back & *fix* it! Our cruise album is a tough one for me as I want to keep some of the little treasure's we collected along the way so I sometimes think it looks more like an scrapbook *original*. Remember those big 'ol books in school with the newsprint paper that we could glue & paste anything in! I found one a long time ago when my parents gave me my boxes out of their storage from when I was little. Everything from a candy wrapper to a Popsicle stick was in there. Too funny. Guess I started at a young age with wanting to keep memories recorded!!

How do you Scrap & other ramblings.

I think I've realized why I'm not posting regularly -- I have some idea that each post has to contain a photo -- !? So I'm breaking outta my shell & thought I'd just ramble. No, no I do hope to get into my stampin' room at some point today, but it's been difficult of late to actually get IN there. I've been busy sorting through my stamping/scrappin' supplies so that once I'm in there, sitting, ready to create, I don't have to spend 20 minutes searching for my adhesive or stamp set. Time is precious when me-time is so limited!! I was thinking of doing a scrap page of a typical day or maybe a series of pages of a typically week. Do you journal your scrap ideas? I'm thinking I should start this as I get an idea, but then remember that I'm still beginning my scrappin' of our Mexican Cruise (how fun was that!!) and my kids, and our summer pics, and our house journey.... and soon forgot those little moments I wanted to scrap. I had a fellow stamper (Hi TANIA!!) show me how she sets up her scrapbook & I thought it was such an inventive idea. I'm organized, I love organization - not that I'm great at it by any means, but I love the idea of it! haha. Anyhoo, she has a Christmas Album for example and each year, she adds a page of Christmas to this album. So she can sit and look at Christmas' past all together -- how cool is that? Do you find that you're ALWAYS "behind" in your scrapbooks? I do and I hate that feeling. I think because I have three kids and started scrapbooking only a few years ago I have this idea that I need to go back and start from the beginning. I think a few pages, a truck-load of journaling could accomplish this (I don't have too many photos of then either) and then just scrap the events. What do you do? I consider myself a newbie scraper, but I'll try to post a couple of my pages. Most of my albums are in storage while we build, but I could show you a couple I've been working on from our cruise? We're off to Panama Canal in April so I'd love to have this cruise scrapbooked before we go again. Thanks to SU I'm going again for FREE!! Gotta love that incentive. So drop me a line & tell me about your scrappin' adventures... we'd all love to hear about it :-) Right?

Sell-A-Bration

It's Sell-a-Bration time here with Stampin' Up! so the excitement and thrill of FREE stamps is in the air. I love stamps, but getting them FREE is icing on the cake! Send me a note if you'd like more info on this event!!

So I was playing around with Big Blossom today with the technique *perfect* for Valentine's Day -- the KISSING technique. . There's a lot of different kissing techniques, but in this card I stamped the big blossom with craft So Saffron and then used a background stamp from Fresh Fillers inked with craft Elegant Eggplant. You simply take your stamps and kiss them (stamp one on top of the other) and then stamp that onto cardstock -- easy peasy! I'm a punch addict, so I pulled out my flowers punch & my window punch (love that one!!) and added a little embellishing to the card. I used SU's white gel pen (best I've ever tried... no drying out or skipping while I write!) and made some faux stitching/doodles around the cut out flower. Pretty simple, but I needed to make a quick card to send to someone using this technique so she could see it up close & personal. I'm a visual learner too!! The scan didn't come out too great, but hopefully it gives you a bit of an idea.

A Box Full of Love

Happy New Year!! 2007 is here. So what were your resolutions?
Did you make any? I made the usual, shed some pounds (inhaled the chocolates this year -- Thanks Mom!! :) ) -- with our cruise to the Panama Canal this April (thanks Stampin' Up!!) I need to be in beach wear early than usual; let's see what else... get organized, and my hope is to be in our new home by the end of Spring. If anyone else is building a house, you know how slow of a process it can be. A patience tester (I think I'm failing!! ). OK, onto stamping. I like to make something for my Mom each year that's homemade. Funny as a Mommy myself I LOVE the homemade
gifts my kids make me and it seems that that never changes.
My Mom is 54 (SHHHH!!!) and I'm 32 and she still loves to get
things from me that I've made - I love that! So this year with not much cash to work with I decided to make her this box. I used a stampin' up template from last years catalog, but any box could be used. I covered it with some of our designer papers. One of my favorite color combos is pink/brown, so I pulled out some regal rose & chocolate chip, the leaf is Sahara Sand, and went to work. I used the hodgepodge kit to give it some texture and of course the
oval punches make it so much easier than trying to trace out a
little piece to fit behind the frame. I'm a ribbon lover, so I do step outside SU now & then into my ribbon stash to add :). The one thing I loved about this was the poem, which I found online. Here it is:

This is a very special gift,

that you can never see.

The reason it's so special is,

it's just for you from me.

Whenever you are happy,

or even feeling blue.

You only have to hold this gift

and know I think of you.

You never can unwrap it,

please leave the ribbon tied.

Just hold the box close to your heart,

it's filled with love inside.

Now that the kids are back in school & I'm finally unpacked from holidays I should be back on a bit more regularly. Thanks for checking out my blog, please feel free to look at older posts/photos and drop me a hello in the comments section, I love to hear from you!
Until next time..... keep on stampin'!