(diva)logues

Happy Birthday to you, sissy...

Yesterday was my sister's birthday.  Not only do we look alike & act alike, but our birthdays are 4 days apart.  Could be a reason we act alike...we put the BULL in Taurus.  We've always celebrated together and we'll be doing so this weekend.  Can't wait! 

Anyway... I needed to make a card for her.  And since she's a bit of a fasionista like myself... I decided to use a Basically Bare Dress Form.  The "skirt" is 2 layered cupcake liners.  I had a card published in Cards Magazine a couple years ago using the same technique.  You can see that one here... using the same kind of cupcake liners too, I might add...  

I used paper from the Nikki Sivils' Audrey collection for my card & random bling for my "belt" + "necklace." 

And celebrate in style?  We always do! 

And speaking of Basically Bare, we have a product swap coming up at the end of the month with them + Nikki Sivils.  I made something fun for that yesterday.

In other news around here...

Bryn had her art show on Tuesday, her DARE graduation ceremony last night with the entire 5th grade class and a talent show this morning where she sang "A Thousand Years" with her bestie.  My best friend in 5th grade & I used to sing ALL.THE.TIME. which drove the 2 boys we had assigned seats with in the cafeteria totally nuts.  LOL  Tomorrow I have to go back to school in the morning because she's receiving some kind of award at the all-school awards assembly and then again in the afternoon for the last day of school party.

Summer is here & I have to say, I'm not totally ready for it. 

Time to figure out how we're going to stay busy.  Pronto...     

It is what it is...

Well... I suppose I participated in my own little version of National Scrapbooking Day, minus the Cinco de Mayo margaritas.  Or perhaps you might say I've "celebrated" the whole week. 

Yesterday Bob said to me, "You sure have been busy working this week.  You got a lot accomplished." 

I said, "Yeah, as you recall, it hasn't been such a great week.  And creating takes my mind off things." 

Seriously though.  I made 10 pages + 1 card in the last week.  I think that might be a record.  Would much rather it didn't take sucky stuff to get me lost in my craftroom, but such is life I guess. 

It is what it is. 

More old photos from last year here, with another random mix of products.  Gee that never happens.  My craftroom floor looks like a grenade hit it, so I kinda just keep picking up stuff that matches & going with it.  I'm fairly confident that when I bought these Crate Paper chipboard stickers last year that my original intention wasn't to use them with some old and new Nikki Sivils' paper, but it works for me so it's going in the book! 

 

The red paper is from Nikki Sivils' Audrey collection.  The blue background paper in the middle is from Nikki Sivils' It's Raining, It's Pouring collection.  I just cut off the scalloped border from it.  I used a SRM school sticker and some tiny little Want 2 Scrap bling on my tree & on the door.  Love their bling! 

Bryn had her bestie spend the night last night & now they're off with her friend's dad seeing the movie The Avengers.  I haven't heard boo about it, but I have read quite a few comments on Facebook about how much people love it.  Have any of you seen it yet?  Hopefully it's age-appropriate & NOT scary.  That girl does not do scary movies.  Nor does she even do movies like Elf.  Remember when I mentioned how much she cried & had to stop watching it only a half-hour into the movie?  And I was thinking... it's Will freakin' Farrell... how sad can it be??! 

Just wait until she gets to be my age.  Everything will make her cry.  Or yell.  Or laugh.  All in a matter of minutes.  LOL

Be kind... for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle...

Just a few more random pages.  I seem to be on a creative roll lately.  Probably because disappearing into my work takes my mind off other things.  I'm definitely trying to roll with it though, because most of the time the creative mojo just isn't there.   

The first page has photos from back in 2010.  I ran across them when I was going through all my old photo files on my laptop and started laughing out loud again.  This was the day I was waving good-bye to Bryn and her Bitty Twins while Bob was pulling out of the driveway.  As I was waving & he was backing up... he backed over one of the sprinkler heads & caused a huge geyser of water that was spraying into the backseat window where Bryn was sitting.  She started screaming.  I was yelling, "Bob!!!  STOP!!!"  Finally before he turned to drive down the street he realized what happened and said he couldn't hear me yelling at him because Bryn was screaming in the backseat.  I said, "That's because water was spraying in on her!!" 

The 3 of us together = one nutty combination. 

Just a random mix of products.  The car & heart are from the Nikki Sivils' Noah collection.  I put some Want 2 Scrap bling on the tires.  The lined paper is from Nikki Sivils' Summer collection.  I paper-pieced my own drops of water...

Another random mix here.  Sometimes things just need googly eyes added to finish it off.  Or maybe it was to make smile.  Either way, it worked for me...

And I finally used these professional photos + a screen shot of the website that were taken for this recording studio photo shoot with Bryn & some friends.  Another random mix (surprise, surprise) of whatever happened to be laying on the floor that matched.  Heehee.  The headphone & records were from the Nikki Sivils' Dan The Record Man collection.  More Want 2 Scrap bling on the headphones too... 

I think it's obvious I like those red Bella Blvd letter stickers.  They've only been on 3 pages in the last week. 

On Charter's home page today, one of the "hot searches" they were highlighting was "What's the best way to get rid of a migraine?"  So I clicked on it... because I have a migraine today.  And I get to teach 4 hours of Zumba tomorrow for another middle school field trip at the Y, so I'm kinda hoping I'm not teaching with a headache.  The article is A Better Route To Migraine Relief, by Dr Andrew Weil.  The last paragraph stuck with me...

"Finally, if you continue to have attacks, try to change the way you think about the headaches. Migraine is like an electrical storm in your head - violent and disruptive, but leading to a calm, clear state in the end. You may, upon reflection, discover that it is not so bad to let yourself have a headache once in a while. It is a good excuse to drop your usual routine and go inward, letting accumulated stress dissipate. As you come to accept migraines in this way and see them as serving a purpose in your life, you may not have them so frequently." 

I ♥ Target...

...because who knew I needed some washi tape when all I walked in for was laundry detergent & shampoo? 

Oh ok... I had chocolate on my list too.   

But have you noticed that in their office/school supply section they carry this cool tape now?  And you know that washi tape is one of the "in" things in scrapbooking, but it isn't cheap.  This 4-roll Target version for only $5.00, however, is a GREAT deal if you ask me.  Did you even ask me?  They had 4-packs of other colors too, but I went with the red set...

And voila... a taped border is a quick and easy way to add color + pattern.  The tape is a bit transparent, so you can tell I didn't get it lined up exactly straight but I'm all about imperfection here.  Only in scrapbooking though, not in trying to tame my wrinkles.  And even then I'm not doing a great job, but let's move on... 

This was another page I finished over the weekend.  Pretty basic design here, which is good when you're just trying to get pages into the books & not worry about too much detail.  The patterned paper is from my Recollections All Girl paper pad, a Nikki Sivils gingerbread house, a white SRM sticker sentiment adhered directly onto my photo, Bella Blvd letter stickers & my Martha Stewart snowflake punch with some pink Want 2 Scrap bling in the centers...

Another event documented and into the scrapbook.  I'm on a roll here...

"Turn up the music, I need it in my life yeah... turn up the music, just turn it up louder..."

 Happy Monday! 

I've received a several emails from out-of-town friends about the storms in our area over the weekend, since it made national news.  The weather was different for everyone around here.  My parents, who live a half hour away, only had rain.  We had 2 separate hail storms on Saturday night.  The first one happened around 6pm and shortly after that a tornado siren was sounding.  No tornadoes touched near our home, thankfully, and we were only under the warning for an hour... which was good since we had dinner reservations for Bob's birthday.  LOL  The 2nd hailstorm happened around midnight that night.  Very unusual to have hail twice in the same day. 

Bob's State Farm office is in a different area of St Louis and that area probably sustained the worst hail damage of anywhere.  Needless to say, he & his staff will be very busy taking claims today & probably all week.  The airport is also in the area & my sister's car was parked in an uncovered lot over the weekend while she was out of town.  She came home to a badly beat-up car.  Add that to the list of claims from Bob's policyholders...  ;-)   

Bob turned another year older yesterday.  We celebrated his birthday on Saturday night at a restaurant and then again on Sunday night at our house with family.  Bob also went to the Cardinals game with my dad yesterday.  They each got a mini replica of the 2011 World Series trophy with their paid admission.  Their seats were in the Champions Club (an all-inclusive area with food + drinks) which was a Christmas gift from my sister.  Fun day for them, except the Cardinals lost. 

In addition to celebrating his birthday, I also managed to get quite a bit accomplished.  I finished choreographing a new Zumba routine that I'll be using in class today and finished 4 new scrapbook pages.  Slowly trying to get through old photos from last year that I still haven't used yet. 

Like this event.  My friend's daughter & I share the same birthday.  And I always tell her we're cool girls.  Well even without the shared birthday we're cool girls, but that's beside the point... 

I used a random mix of Echo Park paper & letter stickers, Nikki Sivils scalloped border strips, SRM border stickers and American Crafts + the Twinery for my "balloons"...

Time to put on my dancing shoes & go teach ZUMBA!

Have a great week, everyone! 

"My body tells me no... but I won't quit, 'cause I want more..."

2 intense work-outs today... I am officially wiped out & ready to just sit in my craft room & create.  I got up to do the 6:30 spin class & then subbed a Zumba class at 10:45.  Was so happy that 2 of my hot & sassy friends showed up to dance with me, too!  We were rockin' the Y today... fo sho!   

I mentioned recently that my parents attend MANY weddings every year.  This really wouldn't be of any concern to me whatsoever, except that every time they have another one coming up... my mom asks me to make a card for her.  I NEVER EVER HAVE WEDDING CARDS ON HAND ALREADY MADE.  Why I don't make many of them in advance is a question I can't answer.  I must be nuts.  Or a glutton for punishment.  I don't know.  And even Bryn rolls her eyes when I tell her I have to make another wedding card for Grandma.  It's become kind of an inside joke around here.  Hahaha

Anyhoooo... for this particular wedding, it's actually a distant relative so we're invited, too.  They're getting married in New York, but having another reception in St Louis since that's where all of her family is.  We'll be out of town for the celebration, so I'm just sending a card/money.  I actually kinda wish we could go, too, because it's being held at the City Museum.  Bryn's been there, I don't know... at least a half dozen times?  And I've never been there.  And I know it's really cool.  One of these days... maybe this summer... I'm going!

So... back to wedding cards.  I try to keep random wedding stash on hand.  If I see something wedding-related at the store, I'll buy it.  For this card, I used a SRM Congratulations sticker sentiment and some really old paper, but I think the dimensional sticker is really cute, even though it's pretty dang old too! 

I machine-stitched a piece of vellum on top of the patterned paper to keep it from looking too busy.  And the inside of the card has another CONGRATS sentiment sticker...

 

On another note, I recently purchased a brown + white zebra-print area rug from West Elm.  My intention was to put it in our living room, but after staring at it there for 24 hours I picked it up & moved it to the family room in our finished basement.  I love it there.  It gave that room some new life... since it's some really old furniture in there that I've been wanting to replace for a long time.  Funny how just one different thing can liven up a room, even when the furniture isn't your favorite... 

I also happen to love a pop of animal print in just about anything.

Especially shoes... just sayin'.  ;-)

Kiss me, I'm Irish...

Happy St. Pat's Day + March Madness weekend... aka. party time!  Wearing green will have to wait because today is all about BLACK + GOLD for MIZZOU basketball!  Family is coming over for the BIG game at 3:30... which means the party is starting early today!  Fun times!  

Let's hope our #2 seed team brings home a WINNER!   

Have a SAFE & FUN St. Patrick's Day weekend, everyone! 

"A daughter is one of the most beautiful gifts this world has to give..."

The one thing everyone tells you after you have a child is how fast time will fly by. I don't think you can fully understand how fast it really goes though until you're actually experiencing it and one day you wake up & realize almost 11 years have passed in the blink of an eye. I went to school today to surprise Bryn with lunch. I had several teachers stop & say, "I can't believe this is Bryn's last year here already." I just shook my head. I can't believe it either. I think the real wake-up call happened last month for me during her middle school transition night.

I just keep praying... please God... let her be more willing to talk to me about future issues & drama with girls & boys than I was with my own mom. So far, she tells me about most things. Although I have checked her texts & see that there's issues on the bus involving girls that she's friends with. It appears in her texts that she stays in a neutral position...not taking either side... which is good. But the drama is just beginning sadly. I spoke to her about the girls on the bus the other day & she was so surprised & wondered how I knew about it. I said, "Moms have a way of finding out everything." ;-)

If only she could stay in half-day Kindergarten, coming home to eat lunch & take a nap, forever. I can't even say how badly I miss those days.

New chapter though! Just gotta keep trying to make each second count & remember to not take our time for granted. So easy to do...

Mostly the October Afternoon Schoolhouse collection on here. I love it... so sweet & girly. I added a SRM Baby's First Year sticker sentiment on top. Also used my Marvy scalloped heart punch to layer a couple stitched hearts...

Just reminiscing today. And I probably have a minor panic attack every time we are getting ready to travel without Bryn. It happens so infrequently that we leave without her so on the few occasions that we do... I'm usually ready to cancel the trip with second thoughts the day before we leave. Once I get there, I'll be fine though! And she's going to have a fun weekend, herself, I have no doubt! :-)

I drove all night... to get to you.... (and then you weren't there...?)

The other day while flipping through my blog reader, I came across a card someone had made with buildings on it.  I'm fairly sure it was a stamped image.  But after seeing it, I asked Bryn to draw some buildings onto white cardstock for me, so I could cut them out & use them on a page.  You know how much I like patterned paper with buildings on them.  I've been known to use them over & over again... ;-)

I thought the card I saw was on the Moxie Fab blog, but now I can't find it there... or anywhere else for that matter!  So if you know the image/stamp I'm talking about, leave me a comment so I can give credit for Bryn's inspiration.  I think she just copied them.  Although I was busy doing something else while she was hard at work, so I can't be certain! 

Anyway... aside from Bryn's buildings on here (that I also embellished with a little bling on the clock), I used some OLD, OLD K & Company letters, a couple American Crafts embellishments, a couple SRM sticker sentiments, a free printable journaling tag, some grey paper from that All Girl Recollections paper pad & the yellow paper is Bo Bunny...

I added pop dots underneath the middle building just to give some dimension...

In other news... I received an email today regarding our tickets to see Celine Dion in Vegas.  The show has been cancelled due to weakness in her right vocal cord.  She's been prescribed voice-rest until the end of April.  Are you kidding me?!! 

Looks like we're going to have to make new plans.  PRONTO! 

"Tonight is the night that we're losing control..."

Just a quickie post today with a quickie page I made after updating my profile on the Zumba website.  And yes, I know you're all wondering when I'm going to stop talking about Zumba.  It's probably not going to happen for awhile, considering I've been talking about it on here for the last 4 years as a student and now the situation has been amplified by my becoming an instructor!  I FREAKIN' LOVE IT.  It's as simple as that! 

Not that you didn't already know that...

I'm loving the pink zebra print paper from that All Girl Recollections paper pad I told you about the other day.  I also used a SRM Baby's First Year calendar page, since the page is about my new Monday class.  I put one of those free Project Life tags behind my screen shot of my Zumba profile.  Lots of different Zumba & dance wear clothing tags on top that I've been saving. 

Miss Smarty Pants Bryn asked me how many times I was going to make one of those tag banners on my pages. 

I said, "I don't know.  Clearly I must like doing it."

Tag banners are the new clouds, what can I say.

Sometimes it's nice to have another very creative artist in the house & sometimes it's just annoying... LOL!   

"Turn up the music, just turn it up louder... turn up the music, I need it in my life..."

It's an extra long weekend for us... with an early release day from school yesterday & no school today or Monday.  I'm actually supposed to be in Phoenix for a girls weekend to celebrate a birthday right now, but the flu hit one friend really hard so we rescheduled our flights for another weekend in April.  It's a nasty case of the flu & she's on her 3rd day of not feeling well.  Awful.  I'm disappointed to not be in Phoenix this weekend, but I am looking forward to new plans we've made in the meantime... because they're with friends I kinda love a lot!  Yay!   

I had a little time recently to tackle another event from December.  After finishing up my December Daily mini book, I needed to take a break from all things Christmas for awhile.  But I got inspired to get the red + green back out again...      

I used some more of the free journaling tags I downloaded the other day + a SRM Christmas Tree sentiment sticker.  I also snuck another photo in with my journaling tag banner...

Yay for the weekend!  Hope yours is FANTASTIC! 

A big THANK YOU to SRM Stickers...

Today is my final post on the SRM Stickers blog.  It's been a lot of fun to have been part of SRM Stickers first ever design team in 2010 & then to have been asked to continue on for another year as an Emeritus Designer in 2011. 

The new releases that made their debut at the Winter 2012 CHA Trade Show this week are completely adorable!  I'm LOVING the fun colors & patterns on the new border stickers! 

We've Got Your Border birthday stickers...LOVE, LOVE, LOVE...

and the We've Got Your Invite stickers are so cute...

I made a quick card using more border stickers, cut to fit...

We've Got Your Border thanks stickers... adorable!!!

My closing thoughts & appreciation for my time spent with them for these last 2 years was posted on the SRM Stickers blog today.  While this is my official last posting with them, it definitely won't be the last you'll see of SRM products used in my work.  I'm hooked on their products & will ALWAYS be a fan! 

Thank you, thank you, SRM Stickers! 

XOXO

A little too connected...

I have to admit...I have mixed feelings about Facebook lately.  It can be a good vehicle for getting hurt feelings.  You know the old saying... what you don't know (or see on Facebook) won't hurt you.  On the other hand, when I went to my 25th high school reunion, I felt like I was still in touch with a lot people BECAUSE of Facebook.  It gave you something to talk about....because you'd already been chatting online.  I liked that.  The majority of time when I'm on Facebook, though, there's something that makes me laugh...sometimes to the point of tears in my eyes.  I like that, too.  I like staying connected. 

Like I said... mixed feelings.   

So... I had a handful of photos from my 25th reunion that happened in September.  I wish I had taken more & especially wish I had one of just Sally, Steph & I since we've been friends forever (since 2nd grade with Sally & since 6th grade with Stephanie)... but I worked with what I had.  And as I was trying to decide what products to use with my photos, I noticed that there was a lot of green & yellow in the School Is Cool collection from Nikki Sivils.  And how perfect is that, since our school colors were green & gold? 

I added a brown Burlap Button to my camera punch-out & I also used some SRM stickers... We've Got Your Number & Class of '10...

 

Got my run in this morning & I'm almost finished choreographing a new Zumba routine...without any help from videos.  And it ain't easy peeps.  LOL

TGIF & have a fabulous weekend, everyone! 

Decaf venti soy latte please...

Seems like there's been quite a few birthdays lately among my friends.  Some BIG celebrations... & some more subdued lunches too.  I've been making a lot of birthday cards though & SRM stickers make the job a little easier.  For this particular card, I used a cardboard Starbucks sleeve to hold my note & a gift card for coffee, of course...     

It's "early release" day at school, so I'm off to pick up Bryn & do something fun together!  Too bad the weather is cold & rainy today...

New product releases for SRM Stickers...

Have you seen the SRM Stickers blog recently?  This week they've been showing all the new products making their debut at the Winter 2012 CHA Trade Show at the end of the month.  My favorite of all the new releases are the ADORABLE border stickers!  LOVE THEM...

 

 

 

I also LOVE the new We've Got Your Invite stickers.  What an easy way to create party invitations!  I've been having lots of fun working on some new projects using the new stickers.  Here's a sneak peek...

Head over to the SRM Stickers blog for a chance to win some new SRM products!  There are 4 different chances to win, so become a follower of their blog & leave your comments!   

Have a FABULOUS weekend, everyone!  

Hala hala!

The Winter 2012 Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) Trade Show is just around the corner and once again, I have the amazing opportunity to create projects to be on display there.  While I'd love to actually BE in Anaheim for the show, it's just as cool to have my work there representing me.  New product is on it's way to my door step & I'm excited to get to work, since I'll have a pretty quick deadline to meet.  I love this time of year!

While I'm waiting though, I'm still keeping up with some new found inspiration to finish pages using what I already have.  On this one, I used some Amy Tangerine paper for my background, some graph-patterned paper from Bryn's American Girl paper pad, and lots of SRM Thanksgiving & fall-themed stickers.  I just printed 6 wallet-size photos & then cropped them a bit smaller to fit...

I attended one CRAZY FUN birthday party on Saturday night.  Aside from my 40th birthday party, it was probably the most fun party I've been to since college.  Didn't get home & in bed until 2am.  Way too late for me... but totally worth it!  Love those girls! 

Happy Monday & have a GREAT week!     

"Old" is the new "new"...

Well... not really.  I love "new."  In fact, I just bought a lot of "new" today... like lots of fun blingy stuff for Zumba & going out on the town.  I even bought a couple birthday gifts today, too, so it wasn't all just for me... even though MOST of it was for me.  LOL  

But for the sake of this post... we'll just pretend that "old" is cool.  Because I have a TON of old product, not to mention a TON of photos that need to get into the books.  And since my goal this year is to get pages finished, whether they're "publishable" or not, I think I may be on a roll here!  Almost everything I used for these 3 pages was AT LEAST a year old, some of it a LOT older than that.  And of course... there's some SRM stickers on all pages.  LOVE those stickers...   

Photos scrapped... check.

Old stash reduction... check.

Don't care if I can post them anywhere but here... check, check, check!

And speaking of birthday gifts.... I have a fun birthday party to attend tomorrow night.  Belly dancers will be there and I'm sure we'll all be dancing as well!  Woot woooot!  Party pics next week!

Have a FABULOUS weekend everyone!  TGIF!

Top eleven in '11...

Happy 2012!  We had a FUN & memorable weekend... a great way to ring in the new year!  And the Zumbathon was a BLAST yesterday.  Getting my tired butt out of bed that morning was the most difficult part, but once I got there... all was GREAT!  Best way to start the new year EVER!   

And following suit in annual tradition of the yearly round-up... here's my top 11 favorite pages from the past year...

Some trends I noticed while reviewing my work from this past year:  stars, word bubbles, banners & 8x10 photos...cropped to fit.

At least you didn't have to see an over-abundance of clouds & rainbows though.  LOL   

Hope you all had a FUN weekend!  And here's to making 2012 a FABULOUS year!

"She's got a thing for attention... I gotta say, this girl can dance..."

Before you get too impressed that I've already scrapped some photos from our Christmas... let's try to remember everything I HAVEN'T done yet... because the list is LONG.  Like, let's see... Halloween, Thanksgiving, my December Daily, the Mud Run, Austria, and at least 45 other events on my ever-growing list.  You feel much better now, right?  And I suddenly feel worse.  LOL

This one was easy peasy though.  I used Picnik to create my photo collage and the Nikki Sivils' Gingerbread Land collection to create my page.  You don't really have to add too much more to the cute little gingerbread house scene paper.  It makes it easy to create a page quickly.  Even though I like to take extra time obsesssing about details anyway...    

I added some Want 2 Scrap bling on my banner & also added some SRM Happy Holidays Sentiments to the top...

In other more exciting news... I subbed for a Zumba class this morning... my 3rd class ever.  I had a lot of people show up to dance with me, too, which was GREAT because it's normally a class that doesn't get high attendance numbers.  And even better... I get to take Zumba tomorrow in my weekly Thursday morning class that I attend AND I get to help teach at the Zumbathon on Sunday!  

Three days of Zumba this week... be still my heart!  Woot wooooooot!!! 

"Oh... sometimes... I get a good feeling..."

I think I'm going to have to rename this my December almost Daily mini book.  I had to skip a couple days last week to get caught up... just the 13th & 14th.  And probably the real reason is that I didn't have any photos from those days, nor could I think of anything earth-shattering that happened either.  Or rather, I could've thought of something, but I'm feeling the need to be an under-achiever right now.  LOL

Even though I've tried to simplify the process by using the divided page protectors, this book still takes a lot of time, thought & creativity... of which I seem to be majorly lacking these days!  I will finish it though... and hopefully without skipping any more days since Christmas is already here this weekend. 

I think I can... I think I can...

"On Friday night... I'm sorry, I'm booked..."

As planned, I have continued with my quest to use photos from earlier this year.  And with the weirdly warm 60-degree weather we had yesterday, it doesn't seem too inappropriate to be posting a page about Easter in December since that's typical Easter-time weather.  Umm, right? 

I pulled out my Pink Paislee Hometown Summer collection & added some Easter SRM sticker sentiments.  Nothing too fancy here, but I can finally scratch this event off my list anyway...

Back to normal weather today and... 

• Had Aqua Jog & Zumba classes this morning.  Best day of the week! 
• Lunch with the girls.  Always fun & full of laughs.  Note to self... must see the movie "Hall Pass." 
• Early release day for Bryn & we were off to get a photo taken with Santa.  Even though she told me before we went in, that he wasn't "the REAL Santa."   I got a photo though... yay me!  
• Quick stops at Target & Michaels.  I feel like I'm spending too much time at both places lately & no, I'm still not finished with my Christmas shopping.
• Planning to start wrapping some gifts with Bryn's help today.  She's a really good wrapper.  Better than most adults.  Or at least better than her dad, anyway. 
• Going to a gift exchange party tonight with a bunch of girls from the Y.  Should be more laughs tonight for sure.   
• All of this, while nursing a sore throat for the past 2 days.  Obviously not bad enough to keep me in bed though.  I have to be REALLY sick for that.  And "I'm sorry... I'm booked!" 

"Here comes the rain again... falling on my head like a memory..."

I decided to take a little break from the cold weather + Christmas paper last night and went through old photos that I hadn't printed yet.  I've also had a couple pieces of paper & cut-outs from the Simple Stories 100 Days of Summer line sitting on my craft table for months and went with some photos from this summer.  It's always amusing to see photos of the 3 of us.  Stephanie has a way of making Sally & I look extremely pale.  LOL

I added some SRM sticker sentiments from the Hello set and some Glossy Accents on the tree.  It became apparent when I took this photo that I forgot one dot, too.  Too bad, so sad...

Love that yellow chevron so much. 

Planning to get to some more older warm weather photos later today, too.  I've got sun & the beach on my brain on this cold, rainy day... maybe that will help.  

"Pressure pushing down on me... pressing down on you no man ask for..."

Ok, so I caved... to the peer pressure I suppose. 

I've made a December Daily book for the past 3 years now.  This year I decided I was way too uninspired, way too short on patience & just frankly have too many things keeping me distracted right now that I wasn't going to tackle this book.  NO. NOT GOING TO DO IT.  But every single year by the end of the month, I'm really glad I took the time.  It even makes me think I can tackle a Project Life book when I'm finished.  And then I come back to my senses & realize it ain't happenin'!   

You can see my 2010 December Daily right here and 2009.  Couldn't find 2008 in it's entirety, but here's a day with some pages from that year's book.

I'm planning to use a mix of products for my book this year (ie. whatever I can find in my stash), but I'll probably use the Nikki Sivils Gingerbread Land collection for the majority of it... 

To add a little more interest & dimension to the cover, I used my Glossy Accents inside all the circles (you know I love that stuff)...

There's also a SRM Merry Christmas sentiment on there (well, of course!).  Speaking of SRM Stickers... check out their blog today for details on how to apply for their design team!  A new call has been posted today!

Before you get too excited about this book (because I know you're on the edge of your seats right now), please note the simplicity of all the pages.  I'm using some Becky Higgins 12x12 divided page protectors, cut down to size, so I can just stick my photos + journaling spots into place.  Quick & easy... hopefully without too much thought.  LOL 

Anyone else doing a December Daily this year?  Link me up in the comments.  Would love to see yours!

"Hey good lookin'... whatcha got cookin'..."

A couple weeks ago I mentioned that my mom, sister & I were taking a cooking class at a local grocery store.  We get together to do these classes every once in awhile, not because we need to learn how to cook, but because it's a fun reason to get together.  Plus... usually they do the cooking for us, so we can just sit there & watch, eat & drink.  It's fun! 

This class, however, was held at a different store than we usually attend and we would find out upon arrival that it was a "hands-on" class... thus the aprons.  Wine bottles were opened first thing for all the students.  I was running a few minutes late that night because I couldn't find the store & must've missed the instructions that wine glasses were to be kept at our seats & not on the cooking prep counters. 

So about a half-hour into class, an older man (another student) says to me, "You're not supposed to have your wine glass on the counter." 

My mom, who also had her wine glass on the counter, said to me, "Oh, sorry, they did tell us that when we first got here. I forgot to tell you that.  I guess they're worried we might spill our wine or something."

I said, "Well, I'm going tell him I'm a professional and I never spill my wine while I'm cooking."

Seriously.  That would be a waste of wine.  LOL

Anyway... LOTS of SRM cooking-themed stickers on here.  The crossword puzzle paper is Kaisercraft's Class of '87 paper.  I was planning to use it with some other school paper I bought from that line, but I liked the idea of filling in the spaces with some of the cooking sentiments, so it ended up on here instead...

The paper with the fruit & veggies on it, is an old piece of Karen Foster paper I found in my stash. 

It's December 1st and holiday party season is officially starting.  Tonight is Bob's company Christmas dinner party.  Not the most exciting thing on my calendar, but must make an appearance!  LOL  Tomorrow night is a party with my college friends & Saturday night is a dinner with friends at a new restaurant.  Looking forward to a fun-filled weekend! 

Sunday, I shall rest.  And take Advil.  LOL 

Tis the season!

I get by with a little help from my friends...

Let me begin by saying that the title of this page is not meant to be taken seriously... it's just meant to be funny.  I'm blaming Pinterest for it.  I pinned this poster awhile ago because it just reminded me of my crazy friends...     

    

pinterest

Since there was a lot of crazy colors & prints in our dresses, I went with a very colorful background and title, but tried to anchor it all with white directly behind the photo.  I also threw in some SRM sticker sentiments, of course! 

I'm really thankful for those 4 girls. 

It's not every day that you meet someone so cool... let alone 4 people so cool.  We have a lot of crazy fun times together, but this past year has had it's share of tears too.  Somehow even through sadness though, we always end up laughing about something.  And I mean laughing really hard.  We all have each other's backs & we're there to pick each other up when we fall.  

And I mean literally, too.  That's happened.  LOL 

Zumba may be what brought us all together, but it's really liking each other's company that makes us want to spend more than just that hour we have at the Y every day.  And when one of us moves, or one of us isn't at lunch or at a night out... it isn't quite the same.  We miss who's not there.    

I speak for myself when I say all this, but I'm pretty sure we all feel the same way.  And with Thanksgiving coming up, I guess I'm just feeling thankful for many things... especially good friends.   

"We ain't done... I said we ain't done..."

I'm meeting my mom & sister for a cooking class tonight.  We all know how to cook... pretty well, I might add... but it's always a blast & an excuse to get together so we try to do it a few times a year.  We're going to a new place tonight.  Hoping it's like the other ones we've attended where it's NOT a hands-on class.  I can cook at home, so I prefer to watch someone else do the cooking & be served, thank-you-very-much.  LOL  We'll see what happens.

Anyway, more often than not, if we're getting together my mom will ask me to bring a wedding card for her.  She has this thing about giving cards that have a "DKM" logo stamped on the back of them.  (DKM... as in mine & my sister's first initials.)  I NEVER have wedding cards already made.  NEVER.  In fact, the only time I make them is when she's going to a wedding, which seems to be quite often.  It's endearing & annoying all at once.  LOL 

So, I mentioned at breakfast this morning to Bob & Bryn that Grandma had asked me to bring a wedding card tonight, so I had to make one for her today. 

Bryn said, "Another wedding?!  How many weddings does Grandma go to every year... 70?!"

I said, "Actually I think it's 71.  And I should know because I have to make a card for every single one of them!" 

Frankly, this card looks more like it should be for a new baby... girl, that is... but I just don't have much in the way of wedding-themed stash sitting around (aside from my SRM Stickers) & the pink crepe paper was still on the brain... so it is what it is. 

All stamped & ready to go. 

Now let's eat...

"It's just another manic Monday..."

Well, it's Monday... and I have to say, I'm looking forward to Tuesday.  There's something about that monthly massage at Massage Envy that makes me feel like I don't have a care in the world.  Even if it is only for an hour... LOL

Here's something that put a smile on my face today... this sweet memory from back in May that I finally got around to documenting.  Just a random mix of products here... so what else is new?   And of course, at least one SRM sticker always finds it's way onto my pages these days.  The "celebrate" sticker was actually from an anniversary-themed set, but it works for any celebration & I liked the gold color for this page...  

I machine-stitched my border and used a Bazzill Just The Edge border strip with some Nikki Sivils' Burlap Buttons.  I pleated 2 rows of pink crepe paper underneath...

And on a different note...

A friend from scrapbook.com asked if she could feature me on her blog this week.  You can see Laurie's first post here.  She posted some of her favorite pages of mine & had me answer a list of questions.  I love how she said, "Let's dig into the colorful and Zumba-filled world of Deana."  My reputation precedes me... LOL  She also asked for a favorite recipe of mine & she'll be featuring that this week, too.  Thanks again, Laurie.  That was fun! 

Have a great week, everyone!

11.11.11 Operation Write Home Blog Hop...

In honor of Veteran's Day... SRM Stickers is participating in the Operation Write Home Blog Hop, along with 10 other manufacturers in the industry.

 

About Operation Write Home:

 

OWH is a 501(c)(3) organization; we send blank handmade cards to deployed service members so they can write home to their families. As of May 2011, we've sent one MILLION cards!

 

The seed of the 11.11.11 idea:

 

This special hop was dreamed up by the OWH blog team - 12 creative women who brainstorm new ways to use blog technology to both inspire and entertain our donors. Celebrating our veterans - both those who have returned home AND those currently serving - is something we love to do, and we're so glad you're joining in with us! We're delighted to share our favorite companies in eleven sectors of cardmaking (two paper because we just adore paper!) - and allow YOU to share your passion for our troops, present some of your wonderful products, and to provide your well-known stamp of approval on our organization too!

I used SRM's 4th of July stickers + their We've Got Your Sticker Plus - Flower stickers for the "thank you" sentiments on my card...

Head over to the Operation Write Home blog for details on how to participate in this cause AND in this weekend's blog hop. 

Also... leave a comment on the SRM Stickers blog for a chance to win a SRM Stickers prize package!

Happy Veteran's Day... and thank you to all of our men & women in the military!

Have a GREAT weekend, everyone!

Abnormally "normal..."

I received the results from my annual mammogram yesterday and all is normal...in that area anyway.  As for my brain, I'm not so sure sometimes...

SRM "Celebrate Life" stickers found here.

Certified or certifiable? Probably both...

 ... especially after my last post.  You're probably thinking I am certifiably nuts right now.  And well... in some situations I just might be.  Those girls tend to bring out the cray-cray in me.  And... they're coming over tonight to watch Bridesmaids because 2 of my friends haven't seen it yet.  It'll be the 4th time I've seen it in less than a week... and I'm sure I'll be laughing all over again.  Have you seen the movie yet?  You have to tell me some of your favorite lines.  I know I have many!   

On another subject... I received my Zumba certificate in the mail 2 weeks ago.  I thought it might be fun to use it on my page, but couldn't figure out a design I liked when I tried using it in it's original 8x10 size.  So... I put it on my copier & reduced the size of it.  I also used some SRM Congratulations sticker sentiments on my page.  It's not my favorite photo of me, (I look possessed... my... what BIG eyes you have...) but it's the only one I have from that day so it's going in the book, dang it. 

 

I made my banner using a bunch of Zumba clothing tags I'd been holding onto... thought they were colorful & might be fun on a page.  I might need to consider a 12-step program for purchasing too many Zumba clothes.  The other colorful tags (and the paper I used on this page) came with the American Crafts set of goodies I purchased from Scrapbook Steals the other day.  I don't know that it's still available, but it's the City Park collection.  So CUTE!    

 

And speaking of Zumba... I taught my first class yesterday.  It wasn't planned AT ALL.  In fact, I had just finished my Spin class & was getting ready to leave the leave the building while I was still chatting with friends, when the instructor who was supposed to teach ran up to us & said she couldn't teach her class.  She had major hives.  I looked at her and said, "OMG... I'm giving you some Benadryl!"  Because... I carry that with me, along with an Epipen, everywhere I go for Bryn.  My friend, who would have ordinarily taken her place, didn't have shoes to put on so she asked me if I would do it.  I said, "Ok, but I need your cd and you have to come show me how to use the cd player!"  Dancing I can do.  Figuring out the equiptment in the room... need a little training.  LOL  I begged another friend, who had also just finished Spin, to go in there with me and there were only 2 other people in the room ready to take the class.  So... the 4 of us did an hour of Zumba.  I've never been so NON-blinged out for Zumba EVER!  That's SO WRONG.  LOL  It was fun though & now I can say I've officially taught a class.

It's WAY more fun when there's more than 4 people in there though, I have to say.  And a little bling helps, too... ;-)