Sketch #39

Sketch #39 went up on Sunday over at 52 Sketches. It's a fun one that let me use a lot of scraps I just couldn't throw away.



Adore

Obviously I decided to use circles instead of squares. I still love this line from Bella Blvd. (with a little My Mind's Eye added in). I think it's one of my all-time favorites! Sorry the colors are off, apparently I didn't get very good lighting when I needed to take pictures of it. That salmon colored ribbon is actually pink.

Anyway, speaking of Bella Blvd. my Guest Designer package arrived yesterday full of goodies that are coming out soon! EEEEKKK! You can catch a sneak peek of them over on the Bella blog and be entered for their giveaway too!

Some Jillibean love

I guess I can now share with you 2 of the LOs I submitted for the Jillibean Soup DT call. Until very recently, I hadn't gotten to work with their product, so I was very thankful to find a good amount in the Sept. Color Me Daisy kit, as well as a kit purchase I'd made this earlier this summer.

Family

"I'm always in search of a good family portrait hoping that one will "turn out". This is another one that didn't. Caroline refused to let go of Bear. Sarah Kate was fussy because she was hungry. So I didn't get the photo I was hoping for. But I'm realizing that this photo better describes us than any posed one would. It's true to our life, true to us, and that's what matters most. And this? This is who we are at the moment. And we are...(family)"

Blue

The whole title actually reads, "You bring BLUE in to our lives" and the journaling explains that a little more. "The crystal blue of your eyes and your fanatic Duke blue, without you we'd be all pink!" cause even the dog's a girl, and there's LOTS of princess paraphenalia around here (none of it my own ;) ).

I did much of the last LO with Color Me Daisy's September kit "ABCs and 123s". And as I type, I'm wondering if I ever posted my creations with this kit. hmmm... Well, sadly, this was my last month to design with CMD. I wish Mike and Michelle all the best and much success in the future! I had a great time designing for them for the past year!

That's about all for now. I need to go hunt for those other CMD LOs and get them posted! I tell ya, I'm ready for life to settle down a little bit. Volleyball's over next week, so it should be headed that way...

1st Fall card

I made this one for the Collage Press challenge over on their blog and used a combination of their products to make it. There are papers from Camden, Jackson Lodge, Knave of Hearts, and their journaling cards all tucked in there somewhere! ;)
(I used Oct. Afternoon alpha stamps.)

Usually I'm really excited about Fall, it is after all my favorite time of year. But after last night's ballgame where Ole Miss got romped by SC, I'm not as happy at the prospect. That happens when the #4 team in the country gets beat by an unranked conference opponent on national TV. But I don't need to go there. It's very depressing. I'm just going to concentrate on the changing on the leaves and the cooler weather that's supposed to be headed our way.

Hope you're able to enjoy a little bit of Fall this weekend!

Wooohooo!!!

I'm a happy girl this morning! I woke up to find this:



Wooohoooo! I'm soo excited!!! I can't wait to get started!
And the thing is I almost missed it! My internet is out, but lucky for me my step-sis Katie is here with her laptop! I'm also excited to see a couple familiar names on there too! Congratulations ladies!

Is it November yet??

Because this is the only reason why I'd ever want to skip October.

Watch more Moviefone videos on AOL Video

Lately I've been working with Urban Anthology's September kit, "Oops I did it again!" (sold out) and it's been so much fun! Colorful yet a bit rustic and charming too--just my type of kit! :D

The first LO I did with it was this one about Caroline's blue eyes.






And then the second LO so far is about Caroline's love for the Sea Doo. We all love it, but she's a little monster on it! "Faster! Faster Daddy!"








This LO has a TON of depth and dimension, and even though I've tried to show you with different angles, it still doesn't do it justice. The photos and journaling stickers are up on pop-dots, and the Core d'nations cardstock is torn, pleated, and glued in place (not sewn down). It was a lot of fun to play around with and design!


And I used this last layout as a part of my Technique Tuesday demonstration over on the UA boards.

Adding a vignette to your photos

Here's how I add a quick vignette to the edges of my photos without any type of photo-editing software.

First, you need some ink, a slick writer, and a photo.


Ink all the edges of your photo, and on the corners apply more than on the straight edges. You also want to make the ink curve in the corners.




the inked photo:


Next, go back with your Slick Writer (fine tip), and draw a line around your photo, again getting thicker and darker on the corners.


And then when you've finished you've got a custom made vignette in about 2 minutes or faster!
(much better and faster for me than any editing system or site!)

Final photo:


See? Fast, simple, and just enough oomph to make a difference.

Still playing/coaching volleyball, so I've gotta run for now! Enjoy and have a good week!

Check these out...

The Nikki Sivils DT is hosting a sketch challenge over on the blog. Check it out! Here's what I did with it! I used the newly released "Boo-tiful" collection. You can see more inspiration here.

Boo-tiful Babies


Also, sketch #37 is up over at 52 Sketches, and this week's sponsor is none other that Studio Calico! Be sure to post your take on this week's sketch by Sunday to be eligible.

Floatin' Along


Yes I did just post a VERY summer-y LO with a VERY Halloweenish LO. I can't make up my mind which season I'm in or ready for!



And lastly, the "official" announcement went out yesterday for the Urban Anthology DT call. You don't want to miss this call/contest. There's two different ways to play, so pick the one that works best for you!

k, that's all for now.

Have a great day!

Holy Holy....moly

K, so I'm not even sophisticated enough to figure out how to post a video on my blog, but luckily I have a friend who is. AND she has wonderful daughters who can bribe my girls to do just about anything. (If only I were so lucky. hehe!) This was such an occasion. Holly got Caroline to sing (and yell) for the camera. Thanks Hol for getting this recorded. It's something I've been meaning to do. ;)

(warning...you may want to turn down your volume)



Can't WAIT til kids choir starts! lol!

All the news from 52

Just dropping in to say that sketch #36 is up (and has been up) over at 52 Sketches this week.



"Sisterly Love"

Snuggles and kisses after a fun evening of swimming.

I also did a DT tutorial this week, and you can find it by going here. It's called "Mix and match your chipboard to be like new". Basically it's a "how to alter your chipboard" kinda thing. ;)

And lastly, 52 has a DT call going on right now. You've got until Sept. 13th (Sunday) to turn in your DT application. YOu can read more about that HERE. I really love Julie's sketches, so even if you're on the fence about this one, I say go for it! It's a fun community to be involved with!

And now...the REST of the story

As a kid the only talk radio I actually enjoyed was Paul Harvey's "The rest of the story". It was the only segment I truly liked, and always hoped would be on. Because the rest was terrible and I had to just suffer through it while riding in Dad's car.

Many of you will remember this post where I discussed how upset, I think I used the word angry, I was with Caroline.

So now....the REST of the story.



That post is about an impromptu trip to the park, mainly to save my house from falling victim to my 3 yr. old--again. But I ended up getting taking some photos of Caroline that I love no matter how angry I was at her. (that stinker!)

Mental note: We went to the park on a Tuesday.

You see, I was (still) angry with her because on Sunday of that week, she'd sneaked a FULL *brand new* bottle of fingernail polish into her room during rest time. She proceeded to paint her fingernails, half of her fingers, toenails, half of her actual toes, the BOTTOMS of her feet, AND paint a nice size circle (puddle) of fingernail polish on our hardwood floors! Then, I bet because she'd run out of paint, she apparently tiptoed or danced or something'd around the hallway/entry way leaving cute little size 8 footprints of RED, blood red, fingernail polish all over the floor. Ticked would be a good way to describe me at the time. But half a bottle of fingernail polish remover later, I was started to calm down. (I was also a little high thanks to the smell.)

She didn't stop there.

Just when I thought that could be the worst thing she could do, she takes it one step further AND involves her sister.

On Tuesday morning, a mere 36 hrs. after the fingernail polish incident, I wake up to giggles coming from the laundry room. (Remember that my scrap space is in the laundry room.) Curious about why there's giggling in the laundry room, I quickly unfold closed the bi-fold doors to find my 2 lovelies finger painting ON THE WALLS of my newly painted scrap room in the most beatuiful (hideous) colors of maroon and orange. Someone (coughcoughCarolinecough) climbed up into my chair, found two colors of acrylic paint that suited her fancy, poured them out onto a plastic plate (just like Mommy does), and then painted the lower third of my wall. There's also intentional handprints reaching higher than that to see just how far they could reach.

That just about sent me over the edge. I'd cleaned up my scrap stuff from the night before, put it all away like I was supposed to, closed the doors to the laundry room, and she/they STILL got in to my stuff! Grrrrrr!

So in order to save my house from further damage, we went to the park. Anything to get them out of the house. That's where I ended up getting the photos I now love of her. Go figure.

But I'm over all of it now. I know she's curious, artsy (obviously), and wanting to explore new things. And I really do love those things about her. They're what make her HER. But I've also come up with a "schedule" to keep her busy (and out of the house) most days so she doesn't get bored and go exploring in the house any more. hehe!

And you know me, of course I've gotta scrap those photos, and journal a bit about it all. So I used Urban Anthology's August kit to make this LO. (I think I've made 5 or more layouts with it and a card or 2 too. Those kits just keep on going...) Oh, and I created it from the sketch I made. You can find it here.

Cutie Pie







The journaling reads, "Sassy, spunky, a little spirited with a glint of mischief in her eye. We love her...(she's our) Cutie Pie"

And that just about sums it up. As mischievious as she is, she's our cutie pie.

The Lord uses her to teach me about undconditional love. His for me. I've done WAY worse than tiptoe-ing through fingernail polish, or finger painting my mama's newly painted walls. And I still love her. Without a doubt. And thankfully, graciously and mercifully, He still loves me. Without a doubt.

And that's the rest of the story.

09.09.09

**beware. I'm playing catch up so this is a long post with LOTS of photos**

Wow. It's been so long (for me) since I've updated my blog, that I have no clue where to begin. Thus the title. I like quirky little things like a cool date. Just kinda fun, I don't know why. I'm not superstitious or "in" to numbers. Just something fun.

Another something fun was our weekend. (bad transition. sorry.) We spent it at the lake, and even though it rained the whole first day, we made the most of it. Both the girls ended up riding the tube for the first time.

True to form "Miss Daredevil" loved it.


And Little Bit was a somewhat shy and timid at first.


She did end up enjoying it though. In fact, the whole thing was all her idea. She'd been begging all summer to ride the tube (and would say "tuuuuuube" every time we passed another boat pulling one), so let her have a shot. Of course we went really slow--like "no wake" kind of slow.

Soon thereafter the girls finally met their baby cousins. Both were taken by them. Caroline was loved being a helper and SK was enamored. She IS our babydoll lover.

The first of many cousin shots


Both boys


Gabe

I hate that his hand is in the way, but I just love his little expression. It's funny that he was the smaller of the 2, did the time in the NICU, and is the one who's got the double chin.

Drew

He cooperated better for his photo shoot, so I got several of Drew that I really like. He's the spitting image of his daddy for sure.

****And now on to scrap stuff. LOTS to share, so please bear with me.****

First up are layouts from the last 2 Treasured Hunt rounds. Unfortunately I was eliminated this week. :( But not before I created 2 LOs I love.

Challenge #4 "Sweet Indulgence"

I shot this photo at the Godiva in the Opryland Hotel last April. It went along with the challenge's theme, "I'm not willing..." Guess you can tell what I'm not will to give up yet. I mean, just look at that truffles!





And then this week's challenge.

Challenge #5 "This day"



I've been really wanting to re-do my wedding album, and at least this gave me the excuse to start. The challenge was to use "This Day" as the title, and include it in the journaling too. Then also use 3 ribbons, 2 pcs. of chipboard, and 1 brad. I went with the monochromatic look to help create a timeless and classic feel. No more wedding themed stickers for me, or photos cut in the shape of a wedding bell. Nope. I kept this one streamlined and fairly simple, drawing inspiration from my wedding dress details.


And lastly an announcement. I'm really excited to announce that Urban Anthology is having a design team call coming up on Sept. 15th. Be sure to stay tuned to the the UA blog for details.

And if you've read this far then you deserve one more photo from the weekend. New sunglasses.


Hope you're having a great week!