I won!

woke up to a great email...the online crop I participated in...I was one of 3 top point accumulators..and I won a gift certificate. Whoo hoo! I can buy scrap stuff!!

I went cropping yesterday...got Venice and started Rome for dd's book. But got a li'l tired of doing them so....serious.. Used elegant papers and tried to give them an old world style. but, I dunno...they look elegant...but I kinda like bold pops of color and fun. (more whimsy) Guess, as I unpack..I'm gonna figure out ways to add those elements to the pages.

maybe I'll post a couple of pics and ya'll can help me.

the hostess of the crop has a li'l girl who is 5 years old. She is a duplicate of my dd at that age. All of it, dancing, strong will, bit of a perfectionist...okay, C was a li'l more tomboyish..L is the picture of girly femininity. After her nap, we got to talking...she loves tinkerbell and had some wings to decorate. She gave me one of the flowers from the package...anyways, it made my day when as I was leaving she asked if I wanted a hug.

I stopped by Nyki's on the way home. I was given some salmon by the hostess...anyways, I got a li'l Adriana time!! whoohoo!! of course she just slept in my arms, there is something about my 'grandma pillows' that put babies to sleep!!
guess you can say, I carry my own 'boppy'!!! ha!!!

So, this has been the best weekend you can imagine...cropping every day, Adriana time every day, a hug from L and a gift cert.

There was emotion over the weekend also. Both my young men (ds,dsil)needed a kick in the pants, but both my young ladies(ddil,dd) took care of it. Just hope both couples as willing to truly look at things and work on the changes that are needed. AND

while packing for the crop, I watched a small portion of Independance Day...just in time for the speech...and for Russell Case to fly into the spaceship...man, the tears were pouring!!

AND my long lost uncle has been found! We have not heard from Uncle Donald in 30 years. My cousing, Aimmee, sent a letter to the military asking them to forward it to him...and he responded. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to see an email from "Uncle Donald". He is 10 years younger than my dad, and in our childhood, I remember the outgoing, exhuberant, handsome young man who would come to visit. I loved my Uncle Duck (that's what we called him) anyways...I told him I still think of him as Uncle Duck..and that is how he's been signing his emails. YAY!!

a scrappin weekend...

its been good...after getting my chores done yesterday, did some scrappin.
joined the online crop at Pages in Time and tomorrow is a crop for our local group.

also, got to see Adriana...Friday night and they stopped by for an hour this afternoon.

NOW this is a great weekend.


Friday, I spent a lot of time with my Slice..the elements of the 'wreath' were made from the Noteworthy card. It has been moved from a basket on the shelf to a plant stand near my work surface. ha!!




Today's online crop, we had 7 challenges... a lot of fun, and I got a variety of layouts done. A couple of them, you had to pick your elements..and she emailed you what they stood for..i think my first one was a bbq menu...I picked, develid eggs, coleslaw, hamburger, watermelon and soda..which translated to - "friends theme, Summer in title, pastels, flowers and distressing...




another one was to use fruit in your layout...I lifted this design from the current issue of Scrapbooks Etc.








the final was another surprise..you chose elements of a summer outfit.. I got felt, punches, doodling, nonscrap item and embossing... decided with so many elements it was a good opportunity to do something with this damaged pic of me and dd.
and the finished project:


dont ya love Prima!!








Not sure, what I'll take tomorrow...gotta catch up on the project 365..and have some pics from dd's Europe semester set aside...we'll see....

I've done good this morning...

pretty productive...washing sheets, towels...catboxes...recycling, sinks, dishes..hmmmm sure do miss my mommy!! anyways, for me, the trick is turn on the Pandora Radio not the tv!! just took my lunch break.

I've also done 2 layouts for dd's Europe album. Pics from Bratslava...the Prague is next. Got my calibration card for my Slice...and I liked my slice before..but I can see a difference. Got the embossing tips and will try to use them on the nextlayout.



Turns out I won't babysit today, its been switched to next Friday. BUT we stopped by last night, so I got my Adriana fix. (I'm turning the flash off to photograph her, dh was worried about her eyes and all the pics I take. This is on portrait mode.) BUT I will see her and Nyki tonight, we are going to Betsy's to celebrate her (Betsy's) birthday.
Betsy is our co-worker who had her daughter, London, a month after Adriana. I'm gonna be in 'hog heaven' with 2 babies to spoil!!! teehee.


my credit cards were taken away from me last night. Apparently, according to dh I spent @$490 last month. But remember it was GASC and my trip to TX!! Geeeee!!

(oh well, its probably for the best)

but don't worry, I have my password for my online shopping..ppppbbbbbllllttt!!!!

lunch break is over! time to scrap that pic from the Prague!! I am told that weekend, dd and her friends went to Vienna..but I don't recall any pics from there. She is looking for me.

Oh, found those Greece pics yesterday...the ones stuck in a kit...so, I'll probably take them to Sunday's crop. or if I decide to do the Pages in Time online crop tomorrow. yay!!

a couple of things...

Organize your stuff challenge this week is about the scraps. right now, my scrap storage is fine. I have a sterilite film with file dividers for the cardstock which is sorted by color. And my pp scraps are in a bin on the same shelf. Makes it easy to grab a scrap of cardstock..but I don't use the pp much. But then, I don't make cards very much. I should...


I'm still working on my projects/kits storage. Last night, I worked on seperating pics/papers/ephemera for the books about dd's Europe semester. I'm actually very close to finishing this project. BUT I cannot find some pics from the Greece portion that I KNOW I printed and put in a kit for future scrappin'. Its driving me crazy!

so, I guess I've got to revisit my kit storage. Right now, I have the kits that fit into a season and the very themey ones in Cropper Hoppers. Others are in another bin. with the most recent in front.

Bad Girls stopped making regular scrappin kits, so I no longer subscribe from them. But looking at the website....they are still soooooooooo coooool!!!

I still get my 'I am a Scrapaholic' and 'Stampin'Up by Stephanie' kits. (and occassionally order a 'Jenni Bowlin' kit)(like this month's that is filled with Cosmo Crickets Early Bird) and every other month, I get the SEI maxi kit. hmmmmm, what is the best way to store these.


I'm off tomorrow and I get to babysit!! I'm starting to get Adriana withdrawals.
and I have a crop on Sunday...sooooo, if I find that bag with the Greece pictures...I'll be in great shape! ha!!

howdy!

my baking skills, still need work...but it was YUMMY!!!!




well, work is drama right now. It has way slowed down and there was another round of layoffs...but the drama quotient is up! Or maybe as people fight for their jobs, they are complaining more about how others are doing theirs. I dunno.

BUT, as the boss's wife, I was kept in the dark...I kinda wish I still was.
and as the boss's wife, how much do I talk to him about, how much is just people venting...all I can do is encourage them to go to Michael. I love Michael, but he can be so THICK sometimes. aye yi yi!

I haven't been able to scrapbook much this past week, just work on some challenge layouts for the Scrap your Vacation. I've got Friday off, so I plan to do some then.

I'm at a 4 day work week...and stay clocked in only about 4 hours per day. There just isn't much for me to do this time of month. In the beginning, I'm busy closing the month for 2 companies...but once that is done and sales tax is done...ho hummmm.
So, I'll be busy next week...but this week...snooze-ola.





One cool thing, while my Uncle Phil was visiting, we pulled out the Wilson family pictures..he ended up taking a lot of them..as he is going to Indiana to visit some from his mom's side, and they may be able to identify some of the pics. I got this big shoebox of wonderful old photos...none marked! He thinks some of the really old ones are from the Wilson side, then we are in trouble, cuz he does not think there is any of his dad's; my grandpa's family left. We'll have better luck with his mom's side. We did find his parent's wedding certificate. I'll scan that soon.

and one relative, Sarah Alameda Wilson, must have been the 'Donald Trump' of Indiana in the early 1900's...we found so many land deeds with her name on it...buying and selling.

time to start my day! Ya'll have a great humpday!!

a pic...

here is a pic of my paper-progress..









a couple of months ago, I bought the CH verticals thru Craig's List. Yesterday, I got the closet shelf from Walmart...flipped it over...and now, I can have my vertical files a little higher and the stacks underneath. the only thing, is the CH's are heavy and the middle started to 'bow a little' Gonna need help from dh to 'prop' it up.



there was only one shelf at this Walmart, so I'm going to have to look for another one, for the other side of the desk.

In the picture, you can also see my cardstock..they are in horizontal files by color, except a couple of CH's have the name brands...Bazzill Bling and Shapes and Trios...Stampin Up's In Color packs..those are seperated from the other colors.

This side of the desk, the pp in the CH's are *y Manufacturer..Cosmo Cricket, Crate Paper, Stampin Up, Fancy Pants, Love Elsie, Sassafrass Lass, Luxe...to name a few.

okay, off to finish cleaning the 2nd guest bathroom...I'm reclaiming it also...gone is my mom's sunflower stuff...my stuff is back!!!! Vintage pink sheer curtains, the ruffly valance attached to the shower curtain...frogs on the shelves...aaaahhhhh!! teehee.

making progress...

my scraproom is looking pretty good. at least the paper side is coming together..teehee.

(I'm using dh's computer) I have a B again...let me do that again, B, b, B, b, B!!!!!


anyways,
I babysat last night...THIS time, I put her down when she was awake!! and held her while she slept....so there. ppppbbbbbbllllttt!!!

We went to a park bench dedication for my sis in law (who passed away last May)..ddil dressed Adriana in a pretty purple/green dress. (if I was at MY computer, I could post a pic) ha...

It was nice to see the people who loved and miss Michelle get together to honor her memory. she was such a genuine person, who embraced life and people and loved to cook and had the most beautiful smile. So much about her to admire...and miss.

I have taken today off. My Uncle and Cousin are driving up from the LA area for the weekend. So, I've taken today off to spruce up the house and prep the guest rooms and bathrooms. Gosh, I think the kids were 8 and 10 the last time we got a chance to visit (my uncle lives and works overseas)...sooo cool!

I've been transforming my mom's room. Taking out all the sunflower stuff...and some of my scrap stuff is starting to spill into the suite area. oh my!! (another reason the actual room is looking good? nah)

I've *een getting in trou*le!!

Whenever I *a*ysit Adriana, the 'rumour' has *een that the next day, Adriana is fussy and does not want to *e put down. Apparently this happened Sunday, as I *a*ysat her on Saturday. On Monday morning, this is the conversation with dh:

me: I don't understand, I put her down when she is asleep.

dh: you hold her whenever she is awake.

me: yeah, not the whole time, I put her down when she is asleep

dh: that's the pro*lem, she wants to *e held whenever she is awake

me: oooooooh (duh moment)

Teehee...guess its *een awhile, huh. G'ma has all the time in the world to sit and hold...mom wants to put her down and get stuff done...even when she is awake!

Teehee, I'm not normally this dense... I used to *e one 'smart chick'

Organize your stuff Challenge weeks 3 and 4.

With *eing gone, I was a*le to put this off for a while, however catching up was not too difficult.

(sorry a*out the *...it is my replacement for the letter after A)(and it is starting to drive me nuts) do new key*oards need an installation cd? or can I just plug it in.

So, to catch up:

week 2, 2ndpart ...was to think of your dream scrap room..money, space no o*ject. Yeah, I drew one out...not going to happen. Lots of storage, lots of ta*le space, great lighting. In my drawing, mom's suite *ecame my new scrap/crop area. Okay, *ack to reality....

week 3, *ox up your trou*le areas, and don't let them *ack in till you have it controlled. YIKES! So, this morning I *oxed up all the stuff on my floor...well not next to the walls, however in the middle where it was getting in my way...



areas like this in front of my shelf...

I got 2 *oxes, one for papers that need a home and projects in progress.
AND as recommended, I took advantage of the situation and swept the floor.

I also took out all my craft *ooks and magazines...

the floor space in front of the shelf, now looks like this.





however, the floor in my mom's suite looks like this (good thing she is in Texas)!!


Now, moving the *ooks and magazines, made room on my shelves, so I could move the Prima Tu*es out of the door hanging thingy...and move my punches in...so that area looks pretty good. (the flower organization was on my list of pro*lem area, don't like them all over the room)



so, making progress.
this week I need to find a home for the papers that was on my floor...and do something with my pile of stacks!

oh, for those who might *e interested in the challenge, here is a link!

guess my li'l guy missed me..

the night I returned, dh suggested I take a shower..after all I had spent the day in airports and on airplanes and who KNEW What I had *een exposed to...right?

During my shower, Percy, stayed at the *athroom door...and meowed...he spent the entire night at my side. (which he rarely does)...Sunday night was more 'normal', he did give me cuddles *ut went on to do his own 'thing'.


Over the weekend, he was following me around. Like he did not want me out of his sight. It was sweet. Like my ddil said, "we just lost Marsh..he pro*a*ly did not understand that you were coming home."

dh says the 10 days I was gone, Percy did not 'warm up' to him and give him cuddles at all. (it took almost 7 years for Percy to let dh pet him at all)


Yup, the Purr-man is definately a 'momma's *oy'...

home

yay! and poo-ey... I already miss the kids, *ut it is good to *e home. (*='s the letter after A...it is stuck again) I have spent the morning unpacking, doing laundry and listening to my Pandora station..downloading pics and now printing for
P365...


already exhausted... here are some 'highlights' of the trip

here is Col*y, the naughty cat...he opened this drawer *y himself! such a stinker!
he is the su*ject of my post a couple of days ago, lets just say, with him...if you can 'get into' it...he will. good thing he is soooo darn cute!!





here is my companion for the past week, this has to *e the sweetest pup ever.
Her name is Sadie, she is so patient with Col*y and just follows you around the house. She is a genuine sweetheart.












Damage from the storm...the only tree on the *lock! teehee. Chris rented this *uzzsaw the next evening...to clear it out.








My angel doing her 'sweeps'...just love the way the light from her laptop lit her face...I loved the evenings we stayed home and just 'hung out'...














and some of my goodies purchased in Ft Worth , GASC, and Houston...you can see why I LOVE my Texas trips! (the 2nd pic is of all the kits from the

all is calm...right now

wow, last night was weird..

C came home from work @ 6pm. We went to Academy, to pick up a pair of shoes...while at the cash register, the gal asks if it is raining yet. We told her no...C had seen some lightning on the way home, but we did not see anything bad. We get in the car...and all of a sudden...winds...rain...darkness. C says she hopes we don't get hail, and when we get home, Chris steps outside to put the cars in the garage.

C is in the bathroom getting out of her work clothes, when we hear a small crash..
"Oh my goodness, C, part of your backyard tree just hit your bedroom window!" (not enough to break anything). We run to the backyard to bring in the bbq and chair and stuff, cuz we don't want more stuff to fly at windows.

At this time, Chris runs in...the tree out front also broke in half. Luckily, it fell away from the house. I'm not sure, but I think Chris goes to the neighbor's, who has a weather radio...we have nothing, no internet, satellite, and power goes out briefly.

He runs back in and tells us to get in the small bathroom's bathtub. C asks, 'can't we go in the master tub?" he says, 'No, gotta go in the room with no windows"...he grabs the mattress, we grab the animals, C and I get in the tub. Chris goes back to the neighbor's to stay updated. Now, my cell phone did not work, but C's did. So, I am on the phone with dh...'what can you tell me about Fort Worth and Tarrant County". Tornado Warning.

We get conflicting reports, 5 tornadoes in Denton.. moving NW...very confusing.

Chris comes in and tells us to go ahead and leave the bathroom...but we leave the cats...and if we hear something that sounds like a freight train, get back in with the mattress and the dog. He grew up in Oklahoma and knows a bit about tornadoes.

But when his grandma (from OK) calls him and tells him its in Plano,over an hour away, he feels its safe for us to get 'back to normal'...we eat, get tv back...and eventually internet.

I got a few pics of the trees and rain...lets see how they turn out.

all night, there was rain and lightning and thunder..and this morning, it was nuts!...but its settled down now...so, take a deep breath...w o w!

I did go to CVS to buy a battery operated weather radio for the kids. The gal at CVS told me the Walmart across the street is closed, due to no power. There are several stoplights not working on the roads, and flooded streets. You can also see trees and fences that were knocked down.

Chris wants C to keep a radio in the bathroom...just in case this kind of thing happens when she is home by herself. AYE YI YI!!

I grew up in Houston, but I've never experienced anything so sudden and violent before. Well, not that I can remember. This did scare me, but none of us panicked..so that was good, right?

whoa!!

We just had something strange...we had a tornado warning...heard sirens, also.

The hardest part is we lost 'contact' with the outside world for a while and did not really know what was going on. Chris (dsil) had us go in the inner bathtub and wait while he went to the neighbors to try to find out what was happening.

my cell would not work, but dd's did...so dh was on the net telling us where the warnings and such were...it was ...wow.

you know, I had a brief moment of wanting to grab my purse, but did not think of my camera...hmmmm. I did get a pic of the tree in the kids' front yard that broke in half.


oh boy...

cats...

I've been living with older cats for so long, I've actually forgotten what 'turds' these younger ones are...esp Colby who thinks his only job in life is to get into what you are doing...like he just tried to snag the ice from my cup!!

Yesterday morning, I was dumb enough to bring out the folding mesh laundry basket I've been using. First thing he did was get in it...2nd thing he did was leap at me as I walked by. OUCH got a claw in my leg. But I blame myself, I forgot.

He was sweet while I was taking a nap. Laid at my feet...of course 'just out of reach' for pets.

Then he was playing with Sadie, hiding under the bed to paw at her...and as I watched, he opened the bottom drawer of the ikea nightstand...to get in!
(kids say he's also figured out how to open the shower door) I got pictures!!

I have locked him in the bathroom cabinet (accidently!) it has a child proof latch..I had to retrieve something, forgetting that he goes into any open space.
Till I heard him trying to push the thing open.

He's been on top of the fridge, on top of the cabinets, and leaps on top of the computer desk...now, he is not graceful, so he also knocks things over as he does it.

As dsil's screen saver scrolls by...he paws at it...and plays with the 'other kitty' when he sees a mirror. He takes great pictures, cuz while your wrist strap is dangling, he tries to paw it.

All I can say is 'its a good thing he is so darn cute!!'

And a good thing the kids' puppy, Sadie, is so mellow and sweet!! and patient. She is the perfect companion and balance for this cat!

tuesday...my vaca is coming to an end...

so far, I've had fantastic food!! Lots of treadmill time for me when I get home!!

we arrived Weds last week, met dd at BJ's ...we shared a sandwich and had pazookie...hmmmmmmmm, talk about yummy.

Thursday, met dd and dsil, they took us to Babe's Chicken...oh my, talk about an experience! the chicken fried steak is 'melt in your mouth' and the fixin's are great also.

Friday, the kids had to go to a play for his class, so mom and I went to Cracker Barrel...oh, those chicken and dumplings...I was drinking the juice!!

Saturday, drove to Houston, then went to Escalantes...heaven on earth...that white queso...incredible...though the waitress was less than pleasant.

Sunday, came back to Ft Worth...dd made us a 'green bean' casserole...layer of grnd beef, rice, green beans and cream of chick soup...easy..but yummy.
(and both days in the car, we had Whataburger)

Yesterday, Monday, dsil took me to 'which wich' sandwich shop...fun place, pretty yummy and when dd came home she made us grilled tuna melts w/tomato soup.

Today, we are supposed to go to Papasitos, the kids tell me the fajitas are 'to die for'...but I'm an enchilada gal.

Weds, we are going to a chapel service..so who knows where dinner will be...
and on Thursday, we are going to 'stay in' and have pizza and watch Taken. dd and I saw it in Houston, but dsil has not seen it yet. It definately is a movie to watch a couple of times...cuz i'm sure in the 'thrill' of the first viewing we missed alot.

I am also enjoying my grandkitty, Colby and grandpuppy, Sadie. Colby is "grade A" naughty and Sadie is soooooo sweet. DD tried to bring other cats for Colby to be friends with...but he is just too rough..so, Sadie is the perfect playmate...she can take his roughness, but not respond with too much...like a typical dog COULD.

AND dd has a little scrap area set up in the guest bedroom. She scraps a little, so I've been adding some stuff to it and plan to spend some time finishing her graduation album.

I'll leave Friday afternoon. It will be good to see dh and Percy again...but, I sure am gonna miss the kids!!

I have computer access again!

it is really weird going without computers...but also kinda nice...hmmmmm

had a blast at GASC. took 8 classes (I had originally signed up for crop and shop for 4 people, 2 days; but my sister's house flooded so she had to cancel...instead of being 'out' the funds, I switched to classes)

Day 1: 3 layouts by Scraptique (the club for Scrapbooks and Stickers)...love the papers and embellies...though I did do it 'my' way on the layouts..this is the 'dangerous' booth for me. I think half my budget was spent there...

Wonderfully Whimsical by Memory Maker's Stacy Etheridge...I took 2 classes from her, this one and She's a Crafty Girl. HIGHLY recommend her classes. Not exactly my 'style' but fun and I feel like I learned things that will take me 'out of the box'.
lot of finger painting, so be prepared to be messy...yes, I was the one with the wipe...I can't stand messy, hands!!

I am Thankful by Melissa Francis..taught by Melissa Francis! The kits did not arrive, so we had to make some quickly, did not have all the 'stuff' but ...very nice!! LOVE her style..and her! When you get past the Canadian accent, jk!

Day 2: an acrylic album class by Storytellers Club...a li'l disappointing...she just 'taught' the album, no techniques for thinking out your own...and I don't like their stuff...you know the picture of a flower as opposed to a flower..

Glitter, Flutter and Shimmer by SEI..this class needed more time...but it was cool.
learned to make folded envelopes and an origami burst frame. and I loved the Loverbirds paper...but don't schedule a class for immediately afterward, you may not get the chance to finish.

a purse album by Scrapbook Barn (a store in Dallas)...very cute, good instructions, I feel like I can now make one of my own. She did explain her thought process for selecting how it is going to flow, esp the 2 pages facing each other.

a 'paperclip' calendar by Crystal Reiger using Prima...oh my, loved this...but I LOVE Prima. (she had a funny Canadian accent also)...she did a lot of reuse and recycle...I like that.

I'm at dd's computer, so can't post pics of the projects. But I really enjoyed myself.

Also got a trip to Archivers in Houston on Sat...and my dsil just took me to Hobby Lobby.

So, I guess, I'm officially broke. Oh well, but I am one happy broke person!!

Organization Challenge part 2

actually there are 2 parts, one I've done...take pictures of your space as it is...
this is shooting at 360 degrees from the door.







part 2, I'll do on the plane...dream of your ideal space...then think of how to make the areas that are not working...work. ideal space...hmmmmmm...I'll need a larger room.


leaving early, @4am for the airport...yay! going to Texas!!'