(diva)logues

Patrick Star...

 

Do you ever have an assignment due that you wish someone else could just complete for you?  Well, sometimes when I'm really busy, I wish that.  Like the other day for instance.  I said to Bob, "Umm, can you just go run for me & let me know how I did?"  Heehee.  If only.  But this time, I got my wish.  I asked an endlessly creative & gifted artist (aka. my daughter) to draw a picture of my favorite fictional character.  Then I asked her to color it and cut it out for me.  She willingly obliged!  The only alteration I made was to add some google eyes.  I love when she draws pictures.  She really is gifted. 

 To make a long story, short... the new challenge at These Are A Few of My Favorite Things is your FAVORITE FICTIONAL CHARACTER.  Mine is Patrick, from Sponge Bob of course.  It's really not my favorite, but I happen to immitate him all the time (mostly his laugh) so now Bryn thinks I love Patrick.  So... I just go along with it.   I mean, Wikipedia calls him a lazy, overweight, unemployed seastar, who spends most of his time sleeping & watching tv.  What's to love?  I think I'll stick with my employed, hunk of hot burning love of a husband, who only wants to watch tv in the craft room...  with me.  ;-)

Also... a new challenge has been posted on the Nikki Sivils blog today!  Create a "back-to-school" themed layout, card or project for the chance to win a Nikki Sivils prize package!  Here's my take on it...

 

It's a mix of Henry's Brilliance & My Friend Birdie (plus a few SRM school-themed stickers!)  Check out all the details here!

One last thing... this sickens & saddens me.   I pray this never happens to Bryn and feel major sadness that it's happened to any other child dealing with food allergies... 

Would you believe that Bryn's layout is being featured today?

Check out Nikki Sivils' blog today!  Bryn made a Halloween page a few weeks ago and it's one of the projects featured by Julie today!  Here's her page...

I think for 9 years old, she has a great eye for design!  And just so you know... she made this page all on her own.  The only thing I helped with was to show her how to use that new spider web border punch.  It's all Nikki Sivils Bootiful  products + a HALLOWEEN SRM sticker!  Clearly, someone's been digging through my stash... ;-)  Thank you, Julie.  You made Bryn's day!  She's quite proud of herself!

Another early day for Bryn at school & I'm off to Spin class!  Another vacation is sounding pretty good right about now...    

I ♥ stamping onto patterned paper. Now if only I had tiny fingers & tiny scissors...

 

Another example of my new stamping obsession.  All I can say is, at least I'm putting a few of the too-many-to-count stamps that I have, to good use.  I'm also happy to say that my girls look a little less jaundiced than some of my other Copic creations.  You'll get to see one example of jaundiced skin on Saturday (aka. "World Card Making Day.") 

Went out to lunch with my friends today!  The weather was beautiful and we were able to sit outside on their patio.  Love when that happens.  My lunch was yummy too... cornmeal encrusted trout, green beans & sauteed brussel  sprouts.  And yes, I know what you're thinking... brussel sprouts?  Trust me.  These are AMAZING.  I think I could eat them every day.  Need to figure out how to work that out.  Heehee.  Thanks again, Christa, for lunch! 

Operation Write Home...

SRM Stickers has teamed up with Operation Write Home for a card sketch challenge!  Here's a little bit about Operation Write Home...

Operation Write Home began in 2007 with just a few cards made by friends on a message board; what began as an outlet for a hobby has become a much larger mission to help heroes keep in touch with home - and the effort has been joined by thousands of cardmakers!

OWH receives handmade cards donated by crafters across America (and beyond!). Cardmakers range in age, location, and level of skill; cards are provided by individuals and groups, schools and scouts, companies and churches. All have one primary thing in common: a desire to serve those who defend our nation!

Cards are mailed to one of our volunteer shippers in quanities both small and large. The shippers process, sort, repair, and document each donation, and then pack and ship boxes of over 300 cards each to our contacts. Our heroes request cards (families may also request on their behalf; we serve all branches in all deployed locations.

Here's the sketch that Jenyfur provided...

 

... and here is what I created with it...

Loving the new brown & white sentiments... a nice alternative to black!  The brown stickers on my card came from the new Hello sticker sheet...

 

You have until September 30 to create a card based on the sketch & leave your link here for a chance to win an SRM prize package full of NEW SRM Stickers!  What a GREAT way to use your talent & creativity to help others! 

Costume shopping...

 
Bryn & I went costume shopping today.  We lucked out when we arrived at Halloween City to find out they had 30% off the entire store from 12-3 today.  The ugly mask was for photographic purposes only.  She went with a vampire bride costume.  And we HAD to buy some fake blood to go with it... gross.  And of course, she's counting on me to put some spooky-looking dark eye makeup on her, because really it's all about the makeup you know...

Happy Friday!

  
It's Friday & that means it's the beginning of another busy weekend!  Tomorrow morning Bryn's school dance club is participating in a local high school's homecoming parade.  Bob's taking her there, so I can do my Zumba class.  Thank you, thank you!  Then we have her volleyball team pictures that afternoon, with her game following that.  Then, I think I'm going out with the girls that night.  I go out with the girls a couple times a year, it seems, & now it's 2 weekends in a row!  Sunday, Bob's picking up his niece from the airport & then driving them both to see his dad.  I think Bryn & I are going out to look for a Halloween costume.   

I learned a new (to me) stamping technique from Gina on the SRM Stickers team today.  You'll be able to see her inspiring cards on World Card Making Day next weekend.  Suffice it to say, I've been a stamping fool all afternoon.

Have a great weekend! 

Who knew?

Who knew you could use a sheet of Nikki Sivils' paper to make a model of the solar system?  I didn't know that, but Bryn did!  She has one creative mind, I tell ya!

Even though she was mad that I said NO to wearing her "high"-heeled sandals to school... she still managed to smile for me!  (They aren't that high, but not flat either.  And I think a kid should be able to run around at recess without possibly twisting their ankle... call me crazy.)

And another tooth came out.  This one came out (or actually was pulled out) at school today, so it came home in the "tooth taxi."  How CUTE is that?!

I counted last night.  That makes 11 little teeny tiny teeth that have come out all together.  Baby teeth one day... high heels to school the next.  If only she could stay my little girl forever...

A HIP way to use your ribbon scraps...

Yesterday, I had a tutorial posted on the HIP 2B SQUARE blog involving this card.  You can check it out here!

 

Last Friday night, while I was out with the girls, Bob took Bryn to the annual Hot Air Balloon Glow.  It happens every year on the night before the Hot Air Balloon Race!  The "Glow" is when all the balloons ignite their fires (causing a glow) after dark.  Bob & Bryn both said it was really cool.  They also said there were SO many people there, which meant a VERY long walk from where they finally parked the car.  I only wish they would've had my camera with them... only Bob's work camera.  But I'll use these... oh yes I will!

 

 

Even though I had a great time with the girls... I SO wish I could've joined those two!

I ♥ "word bubbles..."

 
Yesterday was my day to blog at Nikki Sivils' blog.  Check it out here if you missed it!  The word bubble stickers I used on this page were not Nikki Sivils' products and I've had them FOREVER.  Seriously.  I think they're about 10 years old.  But they all have hilarious sayings on them & I just could never make myself part with them.  For close-ups of the journaling and the word bubbles... check out the Nikki Sivils' blog! 

Also... today I have a card featured on the SRM Stickers blog...

Don't worry... beeeeee happy!  :-) 

You want to meet when? Let me pencil you in...

I'll pencil you in on my new calendar, that is! 

Today on the SRM Stickers blog, they are featuring calendars!  I, along with a few other designers, decided to tackle one.  I have to admit, it did take me a few days to complete this calendar.  But, I left it on my craft table & would work on it as I found free time.  It was fun to make & now is the perfect time to make one for yourself before the holidays are upon us! 

To make my SRM Stickers calendar, I started with the 8x8 size.  They also have 6x6, 12x12 and Baby's First Year calendars! 

And from there, I used some old stuff + some new stuff and LOTS of SRM Stickers!  I mean seriously, I think I may have used 1 sticker from every single SRM Sticker sheet ever made to complete this calendar.  Ok, maybe not really.  But there are quite a FEW!  If you have any questions on a particular product though, just leave me a comment & I'll let you know what I used!  

 

With the holidays quickly approaching, these calendars would certainly make a great gift!  You could personalize them even more by adding photos!  Check out the SRM Stickers blog today, to see how the other designers created with their calendars!  I swear the SRM girls provide ENDLESS inspiration for me every single day! 

I'm blogging here today if you have a chance to hop on over!  Have a GREAT week!

OH, how I love a party with a theme...

... especially when the theme involves wearing some bling...

    
 
Just one of the many photos from Teresa's "jeans + bling" birthday party last night.  I didn't have my camera with me, but there were a few on hand to capture the fun.  There were a lot of girls there from the Y and we had a great time celebrating with appetizers, wine & red velvet cake!  And a few of us die-hards made it up to the Y this morning for a work-out!  

Going to the Y again in a bit for Bryn's volleyball game & looking forward to seeing my sister there.  We'll be catching dinner with her afterward.  Perhaps Cheesecake Factory?  ;-) 

Just the girls...

Our mini Girl's Day Out on Bryn's first "early release day" was lots of FUN!  Bob was amused when he said to Bryn yesterday morning, "You sure are dressed up for school."  She said, "Well, Daddy, it IS Girls Day Out after school today."  I mean, duh... have to be fasionable for that, right?!  LOL!  The girl cracks me up.  Our afternoon began with an appointment at the nail salon... manicure for Bryn, pedicure for me.  I think she was excited and amazed when she was asked to pick out her nail color after we signed in.

She asked for some flowers on her nails & ended up with a pretty cool design on 2 of her fingers.  (Cool for little girls but I'm more of a plain polish girl myself).  And only on my toes... finger nails are always clear. 

Stopped & got her some french fries + an orange soda for a treat afterward...

Next stop was Michaels, armed with my 50% off coupon.  All their punches are on sale this week 40% off, too.  Sooo... I picked up another border punch.  Clearly, one can never have too many of those.  Then we went to Charming Charlies.  I needed a couple cute girly gifts and that's the perfect place to find something!  We ran through the grocery store on the way home, had an early dinner & then took off for volleyball practice.  Bryn enjoyed her day (& so did I!)

On Monday, SRM Stickers is featuring their calendars.  I, along with a few other designers, tackled one.  It took me a few days to complete it, but I finished it... my first hand-made calendar.  Here's a sneak...  

Come back on Monday for all 12 months & stickers GALORE! 

This weekend is the annual Hot Air Balloon Race.  Tomorrow is the actual race, but tonight is the Balloon Glow... when they inflate all the balloons, lighted by their burners.  It's supposed to be quite a site, but we've never made it to this part of the event... only to the actual race day.  Bob's going to take Bryn to see all the action tonight, while I'm out with the girls!  I'm hoping he can get a few decent photographs.  It will certainly be a great place to take pictures!  Future page in the works! 

Hope you have a FABULOUS weekend! 

Lots of school-related HIPness...

Images of the September HIP 2B SQUARE kits have been posted!  Here's the main kit & the add-on kit...

There are lots of options including kits that include only patterned paper!  Check out all the details here!  Looks like LOTS OF FUN to me!  Can't wait to create!

I'm looking forward to this afternoon!  Our school district has implemented something new this year... early release days.  There will be 8 of those days this year & today is the first one with the students released at 1:30pm.  I'm planning to pick up Bryn from school & we're going right to a nail salon.  She's getting her first (professional) manicure & I'm getting a pedicure (for the first time in ages... usually just do it myself).  We'll probably do a little shopping before heading back home.  Then after dinner tonight... volleyball practice!   

Tomorrow night is Girls Night!  We'll be celebrating a friend's birthday from Zumba class.  The theme is jeans & bling.  I'll be wearing these...

It's just a little bit of bling.  ;-)  

And speaking of Zumba... I'm headed there now!  

I'm a poet and didn't know it, but my feet show it, they're long fellows...

 

I don't think I have a favorite poem.  I do like a lot of children's poems though... probably from reading them to Bryn over & over again since she was very little.  For time sake though... I kept it simple for this one.  I have too much going on lately & waited until the last minute to tackle this.  So... I used some leftover stash from my August Hip 2B Square kit, some of the new brown SRM Sticker sentiments, AND my new Marvy Uchida Quick Borders punch! 

Head over to These Are A Few of My Favorite Things to tell us your FAVORITE POEM for the chance to win a $20 gift certificate to Borders, generously donated by Julie!  There's always such great prizes up for grabs! 

Embellishing with stickers...

With back-to-school time still fresh on my mind, I decided to use some more of my school-themed SRM Stickers to make a little set of school necessities.  I have to admit though, while it does make for a cute set, the likihood that the sticker on the water bottle will withstand a washing is unlikely.  The pencil, however, was perfect for a long strip of sentiments!  The ways to use these clear stickers really are endless.  Check out the SRM blog daily for more inspiring ideas!

And speaking of school, Bryn is officially involved in 3 school clubs now, making for some early mornings.  Would you believe that she wanted to be in the Scrapbook Club?  Didn't think you'd be surprised by that... although I did try to talk her out of it.  I told her she has a huge scrapbooking room at home with way more supplies than she'd find at school & that maybe she should pick a different club.  Nope... no way.  Oh well, I tried!  She's also involved in Dance Club again, as well as Honor Choir this year.  Then add on the volleyball class she's taking on Tuesday nights to get her up to speed with the rest of her teammates, volleyball practice on Thursday nights & games on Saturdays... she's busy.  But as long as the grades stay up, I'm all for cooperating!  

Remember my "I ♥ Bloglines" page?

Well, I do not love them anymore.  I just found out over the weekend that effective October 1st, they are closing shop.  Suffice it to say that I'm still in the process of transferring 193 blogs on my blogroll to Google Reader now.  So not cool & such a pain in the bootie. 

Yes, I know, there are worse things in life.  Moving on...

We had a busy weekend:

• Friday night, the 3 of us went out to dinner.  I had grilled salmon & lots of veggies.  Yummo.
• Saturday morning I got up early to run 3 miles at the Y.  Then I did 1/2 of my Zumba class before running across the hall for Bryn's volleyball games.  I was a sweaty mess for the games, but glad to have my work-out over before they got started.
• Her team won 2 of the 3 games they played.  Yay team! 
• We stayed home on Saturday night.  Bob grilled some salmon on the BBQ & I made a big salad to go with it.  Bryn also ate some linguini with her dinner.  She wore my shoes & necklace to set the table.  The girl loves to raid my closet. 

• Game Night began shortly after dinner.  Evidently we didn't eat enough dinner either, because we proceeded to make & eat 3 bowls of popcorn, while having some wine & playing the kids version of Sequence. 

 

• Bryn went to bed around 8ish & then I followed her lead & went to bed at 8:30.  I cannot remember the last time I went to bed THAT early, but it was nice to get almost 11 hours of sleep for once. 
• Got up early on Sunday morning & ran 3 1/2 miles on the treadmill, while Bob ran outside because we had plans to go visit his dad.  We brought lunch & got to visit with him for a few hours.

 

Don't ask me why she wanted to wear her Easter dress with white sandals today.  I have no answer for that.   

• We stopped at Target & Whole Foods on the way home.  We all grabbed random things from the deli area for dinner and ate when we got home.  It was only 4:30, but for some reason we were all really hungry.  Just a long day, I think. 
• Bryn did a little studying for some upcoming tests & I think she has finally mastered her times tables.  Yay Bryn!
• I finished up a layout after she went to bed, attempted to add some more blogs to Google Reader & made the cover to my Austria album.  We'll see if it goes any further than the cover. 

Bryn left for Dance Club early today & I am off to Spin class.  Then it's back home to get creative and maybe just a little bit of house cleaning.  A very little bit...

Since I'm in tutorial mode here...

... I thought I'd post a quick tutorial for making your own hand-made titles for cards or layouts.  I particularly like this idea when I'm working with a kit, but wish I had different color letter stickers to use.  For this tutorial though... I made a card for my mom.

I started with a piece of patterned paper & lightly wrote my word MOM in pencil...

Then I carefully cut around my letters.  The tricky part is cutting out the center of the "O"... I just poke a hole in the center first & then cut slowly & carefully.  It won't be perfect, no worries...

Then I erased my pencil lines & adhered it, along with a couple SRM Stickers!

It's your own hand-writing on a card... what more could your mom want?! 

I see more tutorials in my future.  Stay tuned... ;-)  

We have a busy, busy weekend ahead!  Must remember to bring my camera!  Hope your weekend is lots of FUN!  

Another random event, checked off my list...

 
Wanted to document these memories from our trip to Petland this summer.  Also wanted to use up some random products I can't seem to file away from my craft table.  More little bits of Echo Park here along with Cosmo, Bella & Basic Grey... really ♥ those Max & Whiskers stickers.  I'm still trying to get motivated to start an Austria mini, as well as a CHA mini.  I even have all my Wander stash on my table & ready to go with my Austria photos... now I just need a good swift kick in the butt to get me started.   

Oh well.  One of these days I suppose.  Already finished my Zumba class & ran 2 miles this morning.  Off to get my hair cut (or trimmed rather) and then tonight is Bryn's first night of volleyball practice.  I'm the assistant coach this season.  I played on our high school team & I always get the itch to play again when I'm watching a game.  This will be her first full season, so I'm excited to watch her grow with the sport & improve.  She is quite the athlete, very determined & very competitive.  I have no doubt she will be really good at this sport with lots of practice. 

How about a little fancy editing today?

We're talking some serious laziness creativity here people, so take some notes!  I decided, why use Photoshop when I can just take the leftover back of my SRM Stickers to cover up my daughter's school on all the t-shirts?  For some strange reason, it takes me forever to blur things out with Photoshop, so I thought I'd save myself a little time with some leftover trash scraps.  So many reasons to use SRM Stickers, my friends, so many reasons!  Heehee!

 

And speaking of SRM Stickers, I used the cheerleading stickers for this page along with some We Are Memory Keepers, Echo Park, Imaginisce & Bella Blvd.  The photos are from May 2009.  I think I kept putting this page off because I didn't want to advertise Bryn's school name & it was in all the photos.  And actually when I started on it yesterday, I was just going to put it straight into the scrapbook, but some fancy editing to the rescue & I changed my mind. 

And one more thing.... my dad shared this quote with me today & I loved it. 

"To be challenged in life is inevitable, to be defeated is optional." 

Some HIP greetings...

Yesterday I posted all the layouts I made using the August HIP 2B SQUARE kit.  If you missed the post, you can see it here!  As for today... it's all about the cards!

For our card requirement this month, Melanie asked us to make a card for a grandparent.  I made one for Grandparent's Day, which is coming up soon.  Love that word bubble punch... 

For the next 2 cards, I used my new Marvy Uchida Quick Borders cartridge System.  I love, love, love it!  Takes all the possibility for error out of making borders...

 
For this one I used the Ribbon Stitch cartridge...

And for this one I used the Scalloped Shell.  As for the apple, I just hand-cut my own design & added some of the green ribbon from the kit for the stem/leaf...

My old beloved lace punch for this one + the packaging from the Dear Lizzy buttons (the green polka dotted square)...

And finally a little thank you note.  I hand-stitched my own little flower using a piece of ribbon, then layered it on top of 2 of the chipboard flowers & added a button.  Obviously, I used a border punch on this one as well.  I'm hooked on punches...

 

Go here for more information on this and every other amazing HIP 2B SQUARE kit!  I can't wait to see what September brings!   

The August kit is full of HIPness...

The August HIP 2B Square kit is just too CUTE!  I'm loving the combination of October Afternoon, Sassafras Lass & Cosmo Cricket.  There are LOTS of banners on the Sassafras border sticker sheet plus more cute flag banners on the OA patterned paper.  The add-on kit works so well with the main kit, as always!  Gotta love those big numbers!

  

My first layout was inspired by this October Afternoon map paper.  I had no intentions of scrapping any Austria photos with this kit (because I'm planning to put them all in a mini book), but when I saw this paper it just screamed Europe to me.  So, I used a few photos from a riverboat cruise we took during our trip this summer...

I machine-stitched my banner, which was cut from one of the OA papers.  I paper-pieced my sailboat together & printed the name of that boat onto the paper.  I love that wave border punch...

 

On the next one, I used my lace border punch on a 2-inch wide strip of my green patterned paper (12 inches in length).  Then I accordian-folded it to make my tree.  It just adds a little more detail to it.  My bike was made using clip art in Word.  I just printed it out & added some of the Dear Lizzy buttons to the wheels.  The flowers at the top of the page came from the Basic Grey brads packaging.  Love finding ways to reuse the packaging when I'm creating with these kits...

I love that fence border punch, too. 

 

The photos on this next one may seem kind of boring, but the nut grass situation did manage to find it's way into quite a few conversations this summer so I really wanted to document it for the scrapbook.

My journaling area was also some packaging... this time from the Sassafras Lass chipboard stickers...

 

Melanie designed this month's 2-page sketch and I decided to use photos from Bob's recent race, since I had taken quite a few that day.  In place of one of the 4x6 photo spots, I used part of Bob's bib # from the race, cut to size...

I had too much journaling to try to put it in the circle like the sketch shows, so I added it in the unused area above.  I made my text box in Word.  I don't usually like to have my journaling outlined like this, but in this case I needed some more black on here...

You can always click on the photos to see more details. 

I also made 5 cards with this kit, which I'll post tomorrow! 

For more information on the Hip 2B Square kits, click here!  

Labor Day weekend...

... minus the labor.  Our weekend will start off tomorrow with the annual Mizzou vs. Illinois football game.  Bob was able to get tickets from State Farm again.  This year we're taking my parents to the game, too.  Our seats will be close, but not right together since we asked for their tickets a day later.  Afterward it's back to our house for dinner & "Game Night," which means plenty of wine + popcorn.  ;-)

I really have been creating quite a bit lately, just haven't been able to post much of it yet.  But here's a couple sneak peeks at my almost-completed HIP 2B SQUARE kit for August...

 

It is one CUTE kit!  

And oh how I ♥ you, Marvy Uchida!  SRM Stickers will be featuring them on our blog next month and have they been GENEROUS with us!  You think I've been addicted to my punches lately?  You ain't seen nothin' yet!  

Happy Labor Day weekend, everyone!  I hope yours is full of lots of fun & good memories!

Deliver yourself...

THE DAILY MOTIVATOR
Thursday, September 2, 2010

Deliver yourself
+++++++++++++++++++

You will succeed not because you're allowed to, but because
you decide to. You will prosper not because of the hand
you've been dealt, but because of what you do with it.

You can allow yourself to be held back by what is, or you
can choose to create what can be. Whatever comes your way is
insignificant when compared to what you make of it.

Though others may have impressive wealth and other
advantages going for them, remember this. You have you going
for you.

You have a solid, authentic purpose, and the determination
to fulfill that purpose. You have a unique perspective, and
the ability to leverage that perspective into real, lasting
value.

That's more than enough to take you wherever you choose to
go, no matter what your starting point may be. Whether
circumstances favor you or not, your commitment and your
actions can always be working in your favor.

Don't waste your time obsessing over what's unfair or
unfortunate about your situation. Put all your energy into
what you can do, into the positive steps you can take, and
deliver yourself to wherever you wish to be.

Ralph Marston

I decided to pick TWO winners...

The card looks so cute! And I love the Tree!

Posted by: Natalie K | September 01, 2010 at 11:59 AM

I love how you made the tree! Cute Cute card.

Posted by: conniemelancon | September 01, 2010 at 10:50 AM 

 

CONGRATULATIONS to Natalie & Connie!  Please email me with your full name + address so I can send you the goodies!  

Sweet treats...

There's a new challenge posted at the Nikki Sivils blog!  The design team was asked to create a card or layout using the My Friend Birdie line.  I made a Get Well card after reading this post via Julie's blog...

 
So here's the challenge!  Create a card, layout or project using ANY Nikki Sivils line, old or new, and post a link here for the chance to win a complete line of YOUR choice!  A sweet deal, eh? 

How about another sweet deal?  One random commenter on this post today will receive a package of the Burlap Buttons I used on my card + a Pocket of Treats Stickers from me...

You have until MIDNIGHT tonight, Central Standard time.  I'll post the winner tomorrow!

Off to Spin class & then to see if I can make some more progress on the calendar I've been tackling.  It's coming along slowly but surely...