Blog Archives October 2008

I don’t know what it is about Halloween in my house, but it never quite goes as planned. Last year, my youngest daughter was sick. It was also a comedy of errors from start to finish: I stepped in dog crap while trick-or-treating and tracked it all over my house, my mom fell off a curb and almost broke a knee cap – which sent my oldest daughter into a crying fit (she felt bad) so we had to go in and regroup for a while, then my youngest peed all over my dining room carpet – thereby ruining her costume and requiring a wardrobe change, and my husband was stuck in traffic after a soccer game and he pretty much missed the whole evening. This year, my oldest daughter came home from school with a raging sore throat and fever. She was not feeling well, but with the help of some Tylenol and a nap, was able to rally for a little while. We tried to make the best of it.

First, we made “creepy eyeballs” with nilla wafers, frosting, and assorted candies (and got a little silly while doing it). They were a big hit with all the ghosts and goblins.

Then, we got costumes ready. My oldest was a devil and my youngest was Hannah Montana. My devil was psyched to have teased hair and red hair dye. My youngest refused to wear her Hannah Montana wig, but she rocked the microphone all night like it was her job.

Elated that my photos were actually coming out okay, I made my kids pose with me for a couple photos. I was kind of bummed that my fancy-schmancy fake eyelashes didn’t come out because they were spectacular (albeit annoying and sticky)!

And, I captured a photo of the neighborhood girls right before the chills set in and my little devil had to to go bed.

All in all, it was a good Halloween. Hopefully next year, nobody will be ill. Here’s hoping you enjoyed your tricks and treats!!

One of the things I love about the scrapbook industry is that it is always readily changing to meet the needs and desires of the consumers. There is always something new to look at and the quality and variety of papers, ribbons, tools, embellishments is improving all of the time.

Since I have been really short on time lately, I have taken a genuine liking to papers/cardstock that have the design and texture built right in. It saves so much time and a layout can be done lickety-split. So, for me, time I would normally spend inking, distressing, layering, and tearing is time I can now spend doing something else.

The layout below is a good example of that. The background was rich in design already, so I just added a picture of my daughter and wrote on a few tags, which I placed behind the photo and embellished with ribbon. Easy. Quick. And, the journaling is kept relatively private, adding a nice interactive element to the page.

If you are looking for paper with a little more pizzazz, some of my favorite vendors are Chatterbox, 7Gypsies, and Basic Grey. Enjoy!

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Admittedly, I have been negligent of this blog. Really, really negligent. I’ve also been really, really negligent about scrapbooking and crafting in general. Lately, I’ve been consumed with a few other things: the gym, the kids, and Facebook. I have become thoroughly and completely consumed with the time-suck that is Facebook. (Are you on Facebook? If you are…send a friend request.) I’ve been reconnecting with old friends, enjoying the new connection to existing friends, posting photo albums, and playing my fair share of Scramble. What I’ve decided is that, since I am there so much, I will also be using Facebook more for business purposes in the coming weeks/months. Expect a Facebook group, and store notifications via Facebook. More to come on that…
What I’ve learned in the past couple of months with all of the sweating, parenting, and playing online is that I miss the crafty arena. I miss playing with paper and paint and embellishments. I miss the power of words, and words combined with photos. I miss telling my story and leaving that legacy for my children. And, where it has been remarkable to spend time at the gym and nurture my oft-neglected physical needs, I am also a person who needs to nurture her creative needs as well. So, I have been dabbling again. Nothing crazy – but just catching up on some scrapbooking. Taking some of my favorite pictures and creating layouts. I don’t have the balance thing down yet…there are just way too many areas vying for my attention each and every day. But, I have been trying to listen to my heart and reach for the scissors and glue dots when the calling gets really strong.

This layout is of my dog. My aging, graying, unconditional-love of a dog. She is almost 14 years old and aging more and more every day. Her hips hurt and she has a hard time getting up and down stairs. Her once exuberant trot has been replaced with the shuffle of the elderly. Time spent playing fetch in the yard has been replaced with time sleeping in the sun. She has developed a noxious gas that makes your eyes water. But, we love her and she has been a big part of the family for just about 13 years. My children don’t know a world without her in it. So, I thought it was only fitting that she finally get a page in the family scrapbook.

Enjoy the layout and thanks for stopping by!