A Bug's World OARDC

The colour challenge at If the Shoe Fits was Brown and Pink. I had these BoBunny My Darling papers and it seemed like a perfect excuse to use them.

That was SUCH a fun day, the girls are still talking about eating the bugs (you can see what Trin thought of it from the photo)and the classes they took. I can't wait til next year!



I didn't have room on the layout for all the pics I took that day, so these are 2 6x6 pages that go in between the spread.

Scrap Card

The challenge for Earth Day (yes, I'm playing catch up) on If the Shoe Fits...Scrap It was to make a card from scraps (recycle people!!!).

So, since I've been playing with Marakesh a lot, I had scraps! And the stamp, well, it was sitting on the table, so I grabbed it, but I love this stamp!!! I also glimmer misted and added bling!

And while you're out there......

The ScrapNMoms 2nd challenge for April was a song challenge. You had to use the lyrics, title, whatever from My Wish by Rascal Flatts and incorporate it into your layout. Along with stars and paint.

Here's what I came up with:





Everything on this page with the exception of the little piece of background paper I used as a matte was originally white. I used my Tim Holtz mask (that Tracey kindly RAK'd mine as she felt bad that I melted the last one!) and twlight, patina and huckleberry glimmer mist. Then, I glimmer misted the stamp (I just picked this up this weekend, it's a new design from Stamping Sensations and I LOVE it!) and 'lace' and added some glimmer misted coffee filter flowers I made awhile back. Then, I love how the lyrics came out....I cut thin strips and ran them through my dymo labeler and then painted it with a metallic blue dabber, then highlighted it with a silver marker. I needed the stars so I took a jelly pen and freehanded some little ones all over the layout, but they don't really photograph.

discover - ScrapNMoms April Challenge #3

Noticing a lot of Marakesh papers going on? lol The papers are so vibrant that a little on a page goes a long way!

This was such a great sketch that Tracey posted.....it was 6x12 which is very different, I loved playing with it and since I had all that white space left, what a better opportunity to use my a new glimmer mist colour and my new glimmer screen?

And I love this photo of Livy looking into the water. She is my nature girl and has to check out everything outside. We have a pond behind our house and I think she knows every inch of the land around it by heart. She can tell you what all the different tracks are (ducks, heron, canadian goose, raccoon, deer, our dog, etc) and when the tadpoles are due to hatch and all the plants and so forth.

Earth Day

The Medina county parks puts on a great Earth Day celebration. The girls had such a great time making and flying kites, playing in bubbles, eating kettle corn, watching movies on the Nasa bus, checking out the bookmobiles, seeing the raptors and reptiles and insects, fishing and just taking advantage of everything they had to offer. It was such a fun day!

The BG Marakesh papers I had were perfect for this layout (from Pagemaps), then I had to use my new Tim stamps!

Gym-tastic

It is sooo nice to finally have sunshine here in Ohio! It was a looong winter! The kids at co op the other day were so happy to have it that they were a bit restless. The regular teacher was away so we took them outside to play for gymnastics instead of staying inside.



Oh and how fun are these papers?! They are from the Jillibean Soup Minestrone collection. I LOVE her paper designs!

I Love Your Funny Face

So, we were a little bored waiting to catch our train at Lodi Station last week (we road the train after our Auntie Anne's field trip....it's so fun being a homeschooler!) so the girls started hamming it up for the camera. I had to scrap these pics as they were SO hilarious!

Sisterly Love

This was a kit from thescrapqueen this month. I totally LOVE these Kasiercraft papers! And the embellies that came with it were too fun as well!

And I love pictures of the girls like this. I have to immortalize these moments because usually it's "MOM! I HATE having a sister! Why couldn't I have been an only child?!!!"

Waiting

Judy at Simply Scrapping has been posting some awesome sketches and I LOVE how this one from last week turned out!

Tattered Angels Rock!

I had the BEST time on Saturday at Adventures in Stamping. Tattered Angels were there and I was so looking forward to their class, I registered like 3 months ago! They did not disappoint! The make and takes in their booth were phenomenal (where I hung out for like an hour lol) and the class was awesome! I highly recommend taking them if you get a chance! Wendy and Allison did a great job!

We put together their kits. I did the Nature kit and it is soo awesome! I am totally dying to get my hands on my next one! And for those of you local and crop with thescrapqueen, well May 2nd is Glimmer Mist day and I'll be sharing with some of the cool stuff I learned!

In the meantime, here is a sampling from the book I did:











And, I have to say, I was so impressed by the products. Okay, I LOVE glimmer mist, I have been using that for awhile now, but I hadn't seen the chipboard or glimmer glass. Wow, they are SO gorgeous! I will be getting some more for sure! I was impressed by the kit books too, the one I did had 24 PAGES plus the covers! And the tattered traveler kit book has all these great fold outs. And you'll definitely be seeing more glimmer mist on my art, I picked up 9 more bottles this weekend!

Playing with Card Challenges

The ladies over at If the Shoe Fits posted some great card challenges this week. I finally sat down this morning and finished them up.

First, a joy fold card (if you go to their site...link is to the right....there is a link to the tutorial). I was trying to use up scraps, this is way brighter than what I normally do so not sure I am crazy about it, but I tried to get out of my box:



The next card was a small square pocket card (again, link to tutorial on the If the Shoe Fits blog), this one I love! Papers are from the BG Urban Prairie collection along with some cardstock scraps I found to match.

Yep, I will take pictures anywhere.....

So, as I whipped out my camera at the library to take a picture of my dd sitting reading a comic book, I'm sure the other patrons there thought I was crazy.

Well, we do spend A LOT of time there (homeschoolers....we go through 40 or 50 movies and books a week) and just sitting reading comic books is one of the highlights for Trin. So, why not take an everyday picture in an every day place?

Papers are Kaisercraft (LOVE this company!)and I got a bunch of the Tim Holtz metal so had to start playing with that!

Big Blue Eyes

This is the sketch from Motivational Mondays on Simply Scrapping this week. It was really fun to use! Thanks Judy!

The papers are all CTMH, flowers are prima and Imaginescence. Asst chipboard letters and an ocean ctmh marker and turqupoise stickles to make them match.

Love how the sketch really brought out the picture!

A Bug's World

Omgosh! We had SOO much fun yesterday! We participated in A Bug's World at the OARDC in Wooster. Sooo awesome! They put on all kinds of great classes for the kids. I had never been before so had no idea what we were in for. They do this annually and if you ever get the opportunity, I highly recommend it!

We took:
Busy, Busy Bees
Cafe Insecta
What's Eating your Lunch?
Aquatic Insects
Insect Olympics
Critters up Close

The hit of the day was Cafe Insecta....why? Because it was a class where you ate bugs! Yum, huh?
This is Livy with a mealworm....

And chomping on a cricket:

Trin wasn't so keen to try the bugs but she had fun balancing water droplets on a cabbage leaf:

And they loved the Critters up Close class and looking at the bugs under microscopes:

And just in case you are wondering....yep, I tried the crickets. They are just crunchy and don't taste like much of anything at all. They made chocolate chip cookies with them in them and it was just like having nuts in them. Just added some crunch. So, not gross at all.

WooHoo!

I am sooo proud to announce that my guy got promoted yesterday! He is now a super store manager for Oreck.

However, it means a schedule shift, starting today, so bear with me if I owe you things or seem to be behind. Our life is going to be a bit off kilter (but it's a good thing!) for a few!

The Sugar Shack

Lorain County Parks puts on a great maple syrup field trip! And the reservation they do it at is nearby! Even better (I live in the middle of nowhere, when I don't have to drive 40 minutes I am excited! 20 minutes is a short trek to me)! So, when we had the opportunity to see how maple syrup is made I quickly signed us up. This was back in March and I finally got around to scrapping the pictures today.

Syrup season is over, but if you get a chance to go in the future, take advantage of it. THe kids loved it! They learned all about it during a short presentation by the ranger inside. Then, we grabbed buckets and a drill and went out and the kids tapped a tree. We found one that was flowing, so they all got to taste syrup right from the tree as well and take what had already dripped out to the sugar shack to be make into syrup.

Papers are from Kaiser Kraft and I LOVE them! Bling from K&Co and asst felt.

Vintage Image Challenge

The ladies on the If the Shoe Fits blog posted a fabulous vintage image for this week's card challenge. Just had to use it in a card. Here is my contribution....I love the look of kraft paper with the vintage image and then I just threw on a circle scrap, a rub on and a piece of transparency along with some K&Co pearls.

Splash 16 Invite

My friend's daughter is turning 16! Yipes! Seriously, I have known this girl since before her tween days! How can she be turning 16? I volunteered to make invites to her pool party, this is what I came up with. Hope she likes them, special cards for a special young lady!

All materials (except bling) is CTMH. Info is on the tag which goes down into the little pocket. And that lady is not swimming, but she is one of my favourite stamps and if any of the girls at the party are like me, I'd be hanging out poolside anyway since I hate water.

Sketch Challenge

Boy, they certainly know how to keep a girl busy over at If the Shoe Fits....Scrap It! This is for this week's Sketch Challenge. Papers, Stickers and Dies are by SEI from Simply Scrapping.

Kristy did a great job on this sketch. I love that it calls for a big ole flower since I am loving playing with my coffee filter flowers....at this rate, it is going to be time to brew another batch!

Design Team Call

This was posted on the Simply Scrapping Blog this morning, if you are looking for something new and fun to do, check it out!

With much excitement, Simply Scrapping is looking to expand Our Design Team. We are looking for 3-4 that will shine with our team of Scrap Artists. Applications will be accepted through 4/30/09. If we feel we do not enough interest, it will be extended through 5/31/09. You will be notified that your application is received and when application closes who and if someone was selected.


Scrapbooking is about preserving memories, being creative and of course having fun.
Now what are we looking for but not limited to.

**Crafters who can work with the Beginner’s
**Scrapbookers who would like to help with our Sketch Challenges and other designing.
(Plan: Each week a sketch comes out what is needed 2 or more takes on the sketch) This is where you will come in.
**Card Makers
**Altered item gals

We are prospecting scrappers who can bring your personality to the team with your outgoing & fun attitude. We need ladies who can think outside of the box, work quickly if needed. Participate in our forum, give praise, create challenges, computer and some photography, and support our Sketch Program.

If this sounds like something you'd be interested in, then we would love to hear from you..We look forward to hearing from you.

Need more info? Go here: http://simplyscrapping.ning.com/profiles/blogs/design-team-recruitment

Tim Technique Inspired Card

This is for a challenge on the If the Shoe Fits ning site. There is a Tim group and I'm a member (big surprise there, yeah?)

Challenge was to make a card using the technique from Tim's blog here:
http://timholtz.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/08/september-techn.html

I used my CTMH inks and stamps and this is what I came up with:

A ticket, a tasket, a cute little cardstock basket!

In exchange for the rooms we use at co op, the extemporaneous people volunteer for the church. Now, you NEVER quite know what you are going to do those days. I am free 3rd period and have put up bulletin boards, stuffed snack bags, cleaned rooms, washed toys, shredded papers, stuffed bulletins, etc. Last time we were there, the volunteers worked on Easter baskets for the kids. We made up kits and all they would have to do was assemble.

They were so cute and I thought how could I adapt them. Theirs used 2 paper plates per child and about a yard of ribbon.

We had a template about 4 inches across with 8 lines drawn on it as a template. We laid this down in the middle of the plate and then cut down to it lining our cuts up with the lines (I really needed to take a pic, this sounds far more confusing than it is).

Then, we punched holes in each wedge. 2 per. Scalloped the edges of each wedge a bit.

Then, on the second plate we just cut out the center section for a handle. You would then run the ribbon through the holes to connect it all and gather it up like a basket and then staple on the handle.

So, my adaptation:



I just used one piece of cardstock (CTMH sorbet) and used a dinner plate to trace my circle. Then, I used a sour cream container to mark out my template. Made my cuts and punches and that was it.

I didn't leave eough room to make a handle, but it is still pretty cute. You could stamp it first or cut pieces of patterned paper to size to decorate. Possibilities are endless! Sooo simple!

Coffee Filter Flowers

Okay, these are soo fun and who doesn't have coffee filters laying around?! These are so cheap to make, a little time consuming (well, my friend Sharon would say they are, I was able to stitch up all of these during an episode of House so I didn't think so), but the result is well worth it!

All you need it coffee filters and a needle and thread.

Directions are here:
http://www.hgtv.com/crafting/coffee-filter-yo-yo-flowers/index.html

The ones on the left I did with glimmer mist. Instead of getting them all wet, I just sprayed. It was a bit quicker and they are GORGEOUS! The ones on the right I used my mica paints (found here: http://www.thescrapqueen.com/product/USJEWELMETAL/METALLIC_Jewelz_Mica_Watercolor_Paint_by_US_ArtQuest.html) and I got a great glimmery water colour effect.



I used one of my glimmer misted ones on this card (I haven't quite decided what the sentiment will be) but I was dying to start playing with them.



You can also see another one on the WTF layout challenge below.

Punk Rock Scrappers Challenge.....WTF?!

Okay, so a few of my friends turned me onto the Punk Rock Scrappers blog, there are some awesome designers there and some fun challenges. Currently, there is a WTF challenge.

Well, how perfect for a snowy day in April. Snow? April? Yeah, WTF exactly. I know welcome to NC Ohio, if you don't like the weather wait 5 minutes and it will change and all that. But, I am sooo sick of snow! I was sooo sick of snow back in November.

I took this photo of this poor defeated daffodil this morning. It was the one spot of colour in our currently otherwise white world. I love this photo, I think it sums up how I am feeling right now. It waited all winter to come up and bask in the sunlight, only to be dealt this. So, it hangs its head.

Wedding Purse and Guest Book - Altered Cloud 9 Chipboard Book Set

I got this and was playing around with it, I wanted to do something different and couldn't figure out what. I found my inspiration from SEI. These papers are SO gorgeous and elegant, yet they are a bit funky (which I love). I also thought, who would give a mini album in a little box, how can we use them both as seperate entities but that still go together? I love making purses, but who the heck uses a small purse? And would need a book as well?

Elegant papers....small purses....hmmm, maybe a bride? Not just any bride, of course, it would have to be someone a bit nontraditional, but how fun would this be for someone with a sense of kitsch?

So, I made up a cute little purse for her to carry and a matching guest book.

As I said, papers are SEI, for the purse though, I just made it to match using Ranger dabbers in silver (dab indeed, don't paint and you'll get the great texture) and pool and then, I covered the front with reinforcements after first painting them silver as well. Added some random sparkles and it was done.

Papers, stickers and die cuts in the book are all SEI.

I am soo loving my new toy!

The other day in the mail I got an awesome surprise! A brand new Kodak ESP All in One printer. I was seriously "woohooing"! lol

(Kodak sent it to me as part of the Cafemom Influencer program, 2 of my admin from ScrapNMoms got one as well, it's good to have the largest Scrapbooking group on Cafemom)




Once I cleaned off my desk (which really needed done anyway) I proceeded to set it up. It has Wifi capacity so thought I'd be all set to go. Okay, that did work, but it was slooooow. So, depending on your wifi, this isn't the option to use (much to DH's chagrin as he had visions of printing in the middle of the night from his laptop and scaring the heck out of me).

So, we got a cable and connected it directly to the computer. I can print faster as long as it is something from the web, but my computer and the printer are not talking nice to one another. So, that was getting a bit frustrating and it wouldn't print pictures. It is most likely something simple, but it's a bit beyond me, we are going to do a complete reboot and all that happiness on DH's next vacation.

In the meantime, we found an around....I just load my pictures to a USB flash drive thingy (yes, that IS the technical term) and then plug it directly into the computer. It has a window and you just scroll through, click okay on the pics you want to print and in seconds you have awesome quality pictures all ready to go.

It is super easy! And like I said, the quality is great! I'm very happy with it! And feeling a bit spoiled as before the printer I had would print photos, but the quality wasn't all that great, so at best, I had to upload them and have them shipped and get them in a week or drive 20 minutes into town (I live in the middle of nowhere) to get them.

MAJOR time saver! I'm all about that!

It also scans and copies. Again, easy features to use and I am LOVING that! I'm a homeschool mom and I am always getting workbooks and borrowing library books for the girls. Now I can make copies at home! WooHoo! I have copying like crazy this morning. that feature alone has me on cloud 9!

So, despite some initial frustration, I am completely loving my new printer and can't wait to show off the layouts I'll be doing with the pictures I printed off yesterday!

And becuase I haven't shared enough with you this week, here are some more pages I completed....

I LOVE the CTMH idea book Reflections....it gives you complete cutting guides for a single page 12x12 layout. I don't always use it exactly, but on those days when I am stuck for an idea on a page, it is soo wonderful.

I used it on this page, using CTMH Key To My Heart papers from the January promotion (I'm on a cleaning out my stash mission....Adventures in Stamping IS coming up!) and matching stamp set for making the journaling box. I also used Just Blooms, Rub ons and brads by CTMH. The ribbon is from Autumn Leaves.

My friend and I were taking a class at the parks and her DH was kind enough to watch all the kids while we went (my two plus her 4....he is such a doll!) and he kept them busy by planting seedlings. This is where they were at when I left, when we got back they had tons done. The girls came home with a tray of 2 types of tomatoes, morning glories and snap dragons. They are loving watching them grow!


This was the same day, it just happened to be St Patrick's Day so we pitched in and made an (almost) all green meal for them as well. Chicken with bacon and CABBAGE, GREEN BEANS, LIME JELLO, GREEN GRAPES and for dessert an obnoxiously green frosted chocolate chip jumbo cookie.

It's all CTMH, with the exception of the Bazzill Bling flower


We were treated to something special in March. Bob tried to make a new friend....of a skunk! OMG.....it reaked so bad, I was literally walking around with a gas mask that Stan had from his biohazard cleaning days. (Notice no pic of that!). Livy felt sooo bad for him and made a "Get Smell Soon" card for the top of his crate. I had to take a pic of that, it was so cute!


Sometimes I wonder if my DH REALLY is 36. There are days where I swear I have 3 children, not 2. But, at the same time, it is so awesome how he plays with the girls. And he has a patience with them that I will never have. I LOVe all the giggles that ensue when they are playing together and it is great that they have someone to share comics, action figures and cartoons with since that isn't my thing at all.


Trin's birthday. She turned 9 in February! How did that happen?! Yep, TIME FLIES!



Homeschool Support Group night, kids learned about Native Americans in Ohio from years passed. They loved it. The patterned papers are from the new Basic Grey line Marakesh which I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!