how to cheat at calvinball

dig out all the ufo's collecting dust in the baskets under your scrap table . . .

make sketches for all those unfinished project life pages . . .

kits!  kits!  kits! even if you have to make your own . . . 

plan on making cards with all those scraps . . .

throw a mini-album or two into the mix . . .

print out lots and lots of pictures in advance . . .

schedule a plethora of playdates for yourself and children . . .

and declare bonus points for calvinball blogging!!!

join us!  :)

aleida's challenge

keeping up with aleida's challenge.  they aren't especially fabulous or attractive, but they sure are happy.  :)

calvinball! are you in?

one more day!  are you in?

the rules:
1. the rules are subject to change at any time by anyone.
2. layouts = 1 point
3. the layout is the gold standard. all other projects are measured against the almighty layout.  
4. smack talking is expected.
5. cheering on your teammates is also expected.
6. the reward is the huge feeling of accomplishment at the end of the month!

duck season opens tonight!

9 pm CST

"The 2012 finale was A&E's most watched telecast of all time with 6.5 million viewers."

it's that good folks.

good blog reads

my angel baby has discovered the joy of reading in the bathtub.  i'm also delighted to report that he enjoyed "farmer boy" so much that he picked up "little house in the big woods" and "little house on the prairie" at his school library last week.  the librarian, who was also his second grade teacher and who he fondly refers to as his favorite teacher, told me he checked them both out because he was afraid the second would be gone the next time he came in and he must read them in order.  yay for quality literature and a love of reading!

you know, i absolutely can't wait to show him soulemama's post from today, "it's time," on tapping trees for maple syrup.  he's going to love seeing that in the here and now since he read all about it in "farmer boy."

here are a few more good blog reads that i've bookmarked in my surfing this month:


deep thoughts:

"one day vs this day" - a very nice post from karen grunberg on not letting goals get in the way of enjoying the moment you're in


cute videos:

"paperman" - an adorable sweet video i first saw on kelly purkey's blog, but have seen it several places since

"this video makes me smile" - this one was on a new blog i just found last week and it made me smile too


project life/scrapbooking:

tracie claiborne - tracie is a dear friend of mine.  she's been card-making and blogging up a storm this year.  i really enjoy her writing style as she talks about her various projects.  she's just begun her journey into project life and i'm very curious to see how it progresses

patricia roebuck - briana introduced me to this blog when i started my own project life journey.  love her project life style and she's a great scrapbooker too

anja wade - one of my favorites is finally back to blogging and this time she's added her funky spin to project  life spreads

"five ways to use mists on a scrapbook layout" - shimelle has been having some dynamic scrapbook artists on her blog lately.  this article from corrie jones is amazing

"diptic photo colalges via phone" - i'm sure i will gush about this again, but this app may found has shortened my project life photo processing time so much!  if you want to do quick 2x2 inch prints be sure to check it out

haiku 226

sweet is journey's end
when home is the final rest
winter's sun is brief

jbs mercantile: march peek!

there are some pretty colors to choose from with the upcoming kits.  this one is about 90% main.  apparently these march kits have put me in the mood for beach pictures as i've printed out eight sets to work on.  think i'll get eight layouts done  with them?  you know calvinball's coming!  ;)

under the camera is the new exclusive stamp.  it's a vintage spool.  i stamped it in brown sugar ink on some aqua cardstock then tied on a bit of twine from my stash and pop dotted it.  the blue papers you see there are the a and b sides of lisa dickinson's exclusive march papers.  happy happy happy!

in the background here you see the effects of march's exclusive stencil.  a lovely and delicate crosshatch.  i applied it with speckled egg ink and a blending tool.  i've been loving that method lately instead of misting.  the little wooden chip pieces have been colored with lemon drops ink.

and the title.  the background card is vintage and the two stickers are from add-ons.  don't you love photos of kids all crowded around some exciting found treasure?  there are such wonderful memories there.

blue and gold cupcakes aka smurf bones

we all know i'm no domestic diva.  so when i have to make baked goods for a bake sale or in this case a silent auction at the blue and gold banquet, of course i'm going to use a box mix.  oh and a premade tub of icing.  these turned out surprisingly tasty.  i was proud and bummed that i didn't have more spares to ruin my diet with.  never fear.  i ruined the diet thoroughly at the banquet.  if you're a local, "courtney's" is fabulous.

i do like to get creative with the decorations.  and in sticking with the blue and gold theme, i was desirous to decorate in blue and gold.  g, not understanding themed parties very well, had other ideas.  i had to compromise and let him decorate the outer cupcakes and told myself it was the party confetti.

i got high tech with food coloring.  the cream cheese icing got a little yellow added.  the leftover bones from the plants vs. zombies birthday party got a little smurf blue.  i totally crack myself up.  i say that a lot, don't i?

and here's my baby getting his awards.  fun times.  but wait!  there's more! . . .

i tried to post this entry this morning, but i wanted to link the infamous plants vs. zombies cupcakes and couldn't find them.  what?!  i never posted them here?!  egads!  i was a very bad blogger last fall.

seriously.  are these the coolest cupcakes ever?  i was so proud.  heck.  i'm still so proud.  :)

calvinball is coming!

shenanigans begin friday, march 1, 2013!

project life: january is in the book

this is actually the first spread in my book.  it took me a while to finish because i contemplated how to add the facebook convo for quite some time.  that's the slowest part for me, using the computer.  so not fun.

on this page:  a lot of becky higgins project life seafoam edition on both sides here.  the text card and two smaller cards below it and the orange card are all from that kit.  plus the yellow card on the facing page below.  i'd say if you're unsure how to get started, get a kit.  it took the pressure off for me on the first couple pages and then i had a better feel for how the whole thing works.

on this page:  most of the rest of the papers are scraps actually.  one thing i am pumped about is the amount of thickers and alpha stickers i've been using.  those things seem to never go away, but with project life they just might.

one thing i've already noticed that i like to do is to bracket matching photos with washi tape.  this concept happened totally on accident for me the first time.  the two vertical pics of my kitties here printed with white strips at the top and bottom.  i decided to cover them up with the floral washi tape and then after the fact really liked the idea that it also showed the relationship between the two photos.  i did the same thing on the spread above with the diagonal striped washi tape around the horizontal photos of my kid in the tub.  love it when good ideas just happen.

on this page:  this spread is more bits from my february jbs mercantile kits as well as some stuff pulled from my december daily hoard.  

on this page:  more of the same.  love the little jbs birdie punch that i've been using for snowbird.  it's a neat visual representation on several pages that kinda ties the idea of snow (or lack of it in our case) together.  the love diecut was created by lisa dickinson for jbs mercantile.  the card in the bottom corner i had made from my january kits as a lunch box card for g.  he didn't seem overly impressed with the idea, so i only made the one batch.

and now i'm on to february!

a mega sale at masterful scrapbook design!

hello!  i'm looking forward to working with debbie hodge, lisa dickinson, leah farquharson, corrie jones, celeste smith, amy kingsford, and tami taylor in the upcoming march/april issue of masterful scrapbook design.  this is a peek at one of the new layouts i created for it.  oomph and polish is the topic for this one and you know i'm all about the details.  i love the creating and i also love the talking.  not only will this seminar have five interviews from the guests that are typical of debbie's seminars, but she's also added "office hours" with us as well, so you can drop by and chat.  how fun!

i also wanted to mention that debbie has just announced a big sale at masterful scrapbook design that is running through the weekend.  50% off all past classes through monday, february 25th.  each class is an amazing value and there is a large selection of titles to choose from.  it's totally worth a looksee . . .

art journal: exploring collage

this is a little 6x6 collage that i've been working on for a few weeks.  i actually finished the bulk of it in one sitting, but then it took me a while to find the time and inclination to finish embroidering the rainbow.  i was surprised that it came together so quickly as when i sat down to start it i had the proverbial deer in the headlights syndrome.  i had no idea what i was doing and thus had no idea how to get started.  scary.

i decided to cruise through my pinboards and found an art journal page with stitching on it that sparked my interest.  then i remembered a couple little kits that i bought from julie kirk a few months ago that i'd only fondled thus far. these two things gave me just enough direction to relax and let the creative juices start flowing.  this was fun.  i think it's a charming little piece and hope to try collage again soon.  show no fear.  :)

b&w stories: soldier boy circa 1951

this is my dad in 1951.  the photo was taken in columbia, south carolina during basic training.  he'd volunteered for the army and signed up for three years of service.  he found out later that if he'd volunteered for the draft he would have only had to sign up for two years, but he didn't really know what he was doing.  he said that extra time turned out to be a good thing though.  after spending a little over a year in korea, he served the remainder working in a big army hospital at fort gordon outside augusta, georgia.  he was a trained medic by then and says those last 14 months working with educated people, doctors, having conversations with them, built his confidence.  when i asked him why he enlisted he said, "i don't know really.  there was a war going on.  i just thought that's what you do."

flea market finds: usps door frame

that's my dad back in the early 1950's.  i believe it's when he had just joined the army and was getting ready to head over to korea.  i think there must be a lot of stories behind this photo.  i'm going to call my dad later today and get some of them.

the frame is a vintage u.s. postal service door that i got from the jbs flea market.  jenni did one too.  you can see hers and a cute story about it HERE.

the little tags are avery jewel tags available most everywhere in the office supply section.  i like that the pair of them remind me of dog tags.  i could have put elmo on one as that is what they called him back then or papa as that is what we all call him these days, but i chose dad because this one's for me.

haiku 214

rose tinted skies
the fading sun smiles on us all
lovely valentine

get it scrapped!: books shaped my character

This one was for an article entitled "motif-print patterned papers that tell a story" that just went up at get it scrapped!  the motif-print that helps tell my story is the text in the background.  my story here is about my love of books, most especially the ones that indeed helped shape my character.  i wrote about them HERE.

jbs mercantile: scattergories! aka game time!

we've got a super fun new game going over at jbs mercantile!  a scrappy version of scattergories!

five reasons you should enter:
1. we're a fun group to hang out with
2. it's an inspiring challenge that will spark your creativity
3. you'll become reacquainted with your stash
4. cheating is always fun
5. there's a prize involved!

here's my first take on the challenge and i just might have to play another round.  this layout came together so quickly!  the photos were taken over the christmas break while g was in florida with his papi.  the kitties kept me good company while he was gone.  g noticed this layout last night actually and asked me why i had spent so much time in the living room as we always hang out in the craft room together.  i guess the answer would be i was lonely and letting the tv keep me company too?  i was definitely glad when my warm and squishy baby came home!

scattergories supplies i used:
DEAR lizzy patterned paper
jbs red/black extension iv patterned paper with DIAMONDS
DIAGONAL washi tape from target
DARK chocolate chip chipboard alphas from basic grey (three old fonts)
tim holtz DISTRESS stain in mustard seed
october afternoon midway DECAL alpha stickers
DOTS from paper source
DIE-CUTS gifted to me by gluestickgirl
DOUBLE-PRONGED metal attachers aka staples

aren't the splats just lovely?  that's a little trick i learned from louise nelson and it works just beautifully with the tim holtz distress stains.

randoms

i can't explain this one, but let me try.  my dad was a commercial fisherman.  my brothers are commercial fishermen.  i grew up on the gulf coast of florida, six miles from the ocean and across the street from the intercoastal waterway.  i do not eat fish sticks.  ever.  i do not eat at captain d's and such like.  i barely tolerate farm raised fish offerings from kroger.  tilapia.  why bother?  but a week ago monday morning i cruised through mcds for hotcakes, bacon, and my morning coke.  while waiting in line i noticed the happy meals had hello kitty in them.  i have a coworker who collects hello kitty.  hmmm.  perhaps i needed a happy meal for lunch.  don't judge.  then i saw the fish mcbites sign.  considering the processed fish aversions i've just discussed with you, this thought shouldn't have even entered my mind.  but it did.  maybe i want those.  sure enough i was right back at the same mcds for lunch.  i didn't want a burger.  i don't much care for mcnuggets.  against my will and better judgement i got the mcbites.  i've been biting them ever since.  i'm addicted.  i got them five days in a row from the onset.  i wouldn't kid you about something like this.  the batter is fine grained cornmeal and the fish i've heard is cod.  tastes almost like a florida fish fry.  if it came with a side of cheese grits i'd be too happy for words.  170 calories in the little box.  another 120 for the tiny fries and apple slices.  we won't talk about the coke.  mmm mmm mmm i'm lovin' it.  i've heard they're only around through the end of march for lent.  catch them while you can.

turns out i didn't accidentally erase those home to school and home again photowalk pics.  i found them on another flashcard once my brain function came back after the flu.  this shot made me giggle a little.  beware those seemingly placid killer cows calmly chewing their cuds.  you won't catch me hopping this fence.

i was photographing the jbs flea market the other day, and per usual, after photographing the outside of a set of books, i flipped one open to snag a pic of the inside.  everyone likes to see what's on the inside, right?  this particular set of books was a tiny set of educational books.  i chose mother goose to photograph as poems are normally nice.  the first page i flipped to was this one.  i was in a hurry and saw "there was an old woman" and immediately finished it mentally with "who lived in a shoe."  not so much, but after snapping the pic i noticed an awkward three letter word on the left side.  i took my glasses off to make sure i was reading what i thought i read.  i read the whole poem and laughed and laughed.  jenni wasn't there, but i went upstairs and read it to jared and laughed some more.  heck.  i took a picture and laughed all day.  i also took a picture of a more appropriate page for the website.

can you spot what's wrong with this picture?  teenagers parking in faculty parking is a pet peeve of mine.  grrrrrrrrrr.  don't get me started . . .

get it scrapped!: you wear my heart on your sleeve

i created this one for an article on bold stripes over at get it scrapped!  those stripes are pretty bold, eh?  you know me.  per usual, i had to kick the theme into overdrive.  i immediately played off the stripes in my son's first day of kindergarten outfit.  the sentiment expressed here truly makes me quite sentimental.

is he the cutest, or what?  i do love him so.  that little girl is me.  i like to put a little something girly on gman pages when i'm talking about how i feel about him.

the tag was too stark, so i stenciled it and drew a border around the edges.  and how excited was i to find that bit about kindergarten on lisa's new "modern mercantile" papers?  very.

polka dots, stripes, and thickers.  a winning combination, yes?  you betcha!