Time Flies!!

I just have to wonder as the month of January 2012 is already coming to a close, where is time going?! Thinking about how much has changed for us in the last few years since Erin was born. Each passing year seems to go by quicker and quicker for all of us.

One year ago she was at gymnastics! Now she is taking dance.

Two years ago she was playing dress-up with a dress-up kit from her godmother. Now she has princess dresses!

Three years ago, playing with snow inside and some of my preschool classroom materials.

Although big brother was able to paint the snow with food coloring and eye droppers. :)

And four years ago in January, an almost seven month old baby!

Yesterday going to visit Evan's school so Erin could check out the Kindergarten classrooms, reminded me of this photo! She was less than a month old when big brother started Kindergarten. And now here we are getting ready for her to begin in a few months and Evan to enter fifth grade!

It seems as if it is all slipping through my fingers some days.
I wish it would slow down just a little.
But time doesn't slow for anyone, and I think I will just continue to take photos and look back and smile.
And I am so glad I scrapbook, because it has made me so much more aware of these moments and how precious they are.
No matter how small :)

Miss You!

Each month the design team at ScrapGal  participates in a Product Showcase. This month we were given

two Maya Road Medallion flowers and...

two 7 Gypsies tags from this pack. I used my product to create a layout.

For some reason, the tags made me think of my grandma Ruth. It's funny how your mind works sometimes. What triggers thoughts of people. And I have been missing her a lot lately.
So I used the tags for photo mats and the flowers to embellish the tags :) Some crocheted trim added to my tag that I misted and used to journal completed the layout.
Originally it was just going to be an 8 1/2 x11 layout on white cardstock. By sheer chance I placed it on top of this green patterned paper which is actually also from the Crate Paper Snow Day line I've used for my other projects this month. That paper has such a different more elegant feel to it. A happy accident :)

If you would like to see how two of the other design team members used the same product, you can check out this blog post. It is a Mad About Members Monday post, but the design team projects are at the bottom.
Have a great weekend!

Let It Snow!

I have a post up on the ScrapGal blog about this layout...

I had a lot of fun using the Crate Paper Snow Day line! It's been a while since I used rub-on's and found them perfect for embellishing this layout. Along with a snow border sticker and a few phrase stickers :)
Have you completed any winter layouts yet this year?

Coming Soon! :)

Well, the Craft and Hobby Association (or CHA as it is known in the scrapbook world) is going to have their winter trade show at the end of the month. And all of the scrapbook message boards and manufacturer blogs have been sharing peeks and full reveals of the new scrapbook product they will be releasing soon! The trade show will give the scrapbook store and kit club owners, to name a few, the chance to see the new product in person.

My scrapbook shopping habits have changed considerably the last two years. I definitely do not spend as much on scrapbook product, and I am much pickier about what I buy! I have to really, really love it and know I am going to use it. So thankfully I haven't seen to much that has tempted me yet :)
But here are a few of the items being released soon that are favorites for me!

1. Cosmo Cricket just can't go wrong with these adorable tiny text stickers! Love them and can imagine lots of ways to use them!

I really love the colors in Crate Paper's new Storyteller line. And since I plan on trying to work on trip scrapbooks this year (can you say Ireland and Seattle from 2009!), I this line will be great!

Another favorite line coming out by Crate Paper - Pretty Party. I have to say, I think Crate Paper is going to be one of my favorites this time around.

And I have to say, I think Studio Calico's Abroad line is going to be another favorite! I love the prints and colors and can see myself using it for travel scrapbooks as well! Plus, Studio Calico has some other amazing pieces coming out like...

these map Thickers...

and how adorable are these wood veneer people. Can see making gifts with these for family and friends. Maybe wall hangings with the family name and then one person for each family member :)

I am also a sucker for tiny type alphas. Especially in one of my favorite colors!

This bubble mask will be great for misting! I love bubbles :)

And as for October Afternoon, well so far we have seen peeks of two new lines. This one is my favorite. But I love the retro 50's feel to it! And will save judgement til I see the rest of the line.

American Crafts also has two new lines coming out by Amy Tan and Elizabeth Kartchner. And even though I have only seen peeks, I am looking forward to seeing more!

What new releases are you looking for to this CHA?

All About Me Challenge

Rita, our design team coordinator, over at ScrapGal posed a challenge for all the members on the boards.
It's basically an "all about me" challenge since there are several new members hanging out at the boards right now during the design team call.
She encouraged the design team to play along, too.

And this is what I came up with. Just a little bit about me right now. I'm not always to comfortable doing pages like this, but it was fun to put together. And I decided to use photos with my family instead of just me because really they are what it is all about for me right now. My main focus. I actually cut up an extra Christmas photo card to get these pics :)

Do you ever do "all about me" pages?

Happy Winter!

My first January layout for ScrapGal.

I am by no means a winter person. And on top of that, last winter was pretty brutal here weather wise. but there were definitely fun moments. These photos were taken on a snow day when we had a play date in the park across the street from our home with friends and neighbors. I also have a 12x12 page divided protector from We R Memory Keepers that holds more photos of that day with our friends that will sit right next to this page in the album.
The main product I used was from the Snow Day line by Crate Paper found here.

I started with this paper as my base and then added pieces of these phrase and journal spot stickers...

using Happy Winter as my title on the photo block.

I also handcut snowflakes from this paper and added throughout as embellishments with button and twine.
To embellish the top right and bottom left corners, I cut a few strips from this paper...

because I liked the stitched effect. And I also used these border stickers...

Just the blue for this layout. I used several others for another :)
I also used some American Crafts washi tape (it's the little things) and Studio Calico white mist.
Although funny story - I wanted white all along and accidentally grabbed my Mister Huey Shine mist instead. They look so similar. As I was using it, I realized it didn't have the effect I wanted. Then it hit me that it was the shine. I was still able to use the white though and the shine didn't really hurt it :)

So far I really can't complain about this winter though. One snow "storm" so far with lots of mild temperatures and more sunshine than usual. How is your weather so far this winter?

ScrapGal Design Team Call

ScrapGal is having a design team call right now, and the information about how to apply is here. I really enjoy working for SG because Rita, the dt coordinator, and Jenn, the owner are so friendly and easy to work with. The requirements just involve three projects a month from product we get to pick ourselves from the store, board participation, and the occasional crop or blog hop. Not overwhelming at all, but fun!

In fact, two of the layouts I designed for them this year are appearing in Scrapbooks Etc... for the April and June issues. So I am scrapping projects that I love and getting published! A double bonus :)

If you are looking for a great place to design for, come check out the site and say hello!
Hope to see you there :)

 In other news, looking forward to going out with these girls on Saturday night. We started a tradition a few years ago where we have a girl's night out for our birthdays. Tomorrow we are celebrating Brooke's by going to dinner and seeing the new Twilight movie. We are just going to catch it still in the theaters!
I do not know what I would do without these women. We are basically raising our kids together. Like a little village. And I know I would do anything for them. And they have been such a big support to us, especially with Mike traveling so much. I am so very, very grateful for them! Everyone needs a group of women like this in their lives. And I can't wait for our night out! :)

What are your plans for the weekend? Anything special?

Out of This World!

Just a layout to share today that I made for fun! :)

Wanted to do a layout about the stage U2 used on their latest tour. It is going down in the record books I think :) I used all October Afternoon's Rocket Age line on this layout. Except for the orange "world". That would be American Crafts. The photo is from the first show we saw in Chicago. Evan went to this one with us.

Such a fun experience :) And he was so excited!
And the layout is going into my U2 concert memories album :)

A Memory to Scrapbook

So one of my favorite memories from Christmas morning was...

this one. Yoda and the clone troopers (Evan's Christmas gift) coming to visit Erin's Strawberry Bitty Cafe. Loved it! And a great memory came back to me. How my brother and I used to play "school" with his Star Wars Action Figures and play sets. Looking back now, I can't believe I made him do that. Yoda's planet was the elementary school, and the Cantina from Star Wars was the high school.

All the smaller action figures like R2D2 and the Jawas were elementary students. It was a lot of fun :)

So when my brother Pete (shown here) and his wife made it in town for Christmas, we were pretty excited. It's been awhile since we have spent Christmas together. And I reminded him about our time back in the day playing school. His first reaction was "Oh my God! I do."  And I thought he was going to be all mad that he was forced to play school with his star wars figures by an older sister. But then he said something that made me smile. He said that he thought it was fun, and basically great that I would play with him.

So when Evan, Erin and I were playing this new version of Clone Wars and Strawberry Shortcake on Christmas morning, it felt as if a new memory was in the making. And even though Evan and Erin fight something awful sometimes (as brothers and sisters are known to do. Right, Pete? lol) I love seeing them be sweet to each other. Because there are so many more moments when they look out for each other. And treat each other kindly. And respect each other. And I hope they continue that as they grow older and have the kind of relationship that I have with my brother. As friends and not just siblings :)
Now I need to go scrapbook this! :)

Top 11 of 2011

In no particular order, here are my eleven favorite projects of 2011:

I actually created this one from a sketch from the Crate Paper blog. I had a lot of fun with this one because I just loved working with those photos :)

A favorite memory :) Photo was from 2009, but I didn't scrap it til this year.

I love that photo, and that song by U2!

A little bit of a messier style for me with the misting, but I still managed to keep it clean and simple with the grid design. And it talks about the relationship Erin and Evan have right now :)

This one was a complete learning experience with the misting and alphabet letter masking, but also fun to do!

Loved the flower on this one. My favorite season scrapbooked :)

Really, really loved how fun this one was to do. Love the colors, the little bit of misting and just taking a chance for me on using the Doodlebug product. Not typically my style :)

I want to do more layouts like this. About what life was like right at that moment :)

An actual 2pager and really important moment for Evan :)

Really liked going back and scrapbooking these older photos :)

And the mini album I made out of the photos as well is on my all time favorite projects list :)

It was a lot harder than I thought it would be to pick favorites. Plus, one of my fave projects of the year will be in the June issue of Scrapbooks Etc..., so I can't even post it!
Also love seeing how much I experimented this year with something new - mists. And how I used different sizes. There were other projects, such as my recipe book, laundry room sign, decorated chipboard house, and even cards that showed me that I am branching out from just layouts!
Really looking forward to seeing where 2012 takes me :)

Cards

I know Christmas is past, but I so very rarely make cards and wanted to share.
These cards were made for Evan and Erin's teachers and support staff at their schools. :)

Used the "I Believe" line from My Mind's Eye and some October Afternoon rub-on's. Plus acrylic stamps by Imaginisce and Bella Blvd. :)
This is probably the biggest batch of cards I have done since last Christmas. I usually do not make more than one or two at a time. And not that often. Although I am still trying to make a card from the scraps every time I create a layout :)
Right now I am working on my mother-in-law's Ireland album, so that is my main focus! I am really enjoying it and will have a few photos to share soon!

Happy 2012!!

Where on earth did 2011 go? Really the fastest year for us yet. But here we are in 2012, and I am actually pretty excited to see what is in store for us this year :)

We had a great two weeks of holiday celebrations with family and friends! We baked cookies, decorated the house, saw the Christmas train display, and spent lots and lots of time with people from in town and out of town. It was probably one of the most relaxing Christmases I have had in a while.

But it's time to get back into real life time. School and work start for the kids and Mike again tomorrow, and I am ready to get back in a routine!

I have a layout up for a color challenge at ScrapGal for the month of January. I kept it pretty simple for a challenge - use a color you normally wouldn't use. For me that would be hot pink or magenta. I usually avoid that type of color completely. But for this layout, I thought it added a nice punch of color :)

Also at ScrapGal this month, we are having a DESIGN TEAM CALL for a six month term. You can read about the application guidelines and expectations here! I hope you will come check it out :) Jenn is also having a big sale right now

So if you are looking for some good prices on product, you will find it here!

Happy New Year, everyone!