Coming To A Close

Six months ago I embarked on a new scrap journey starting a DT position at serendipityscrapbooks.com. It has been a fun journey filled with new buddies, a ton of inspiration, six months of coming up with scrap questions of the day, and my evolution as a scrapper. Today, that journey ends; I'm sad, but all good things must come to an end. I had so much fun working with Kristen's awesome kits - if you ever get the chance go on over and check them out and stay for a while the site is great and filled with lots of fun-loving, drama free ladies! You'll see me there, too because I plan to stick around!

I had a wonderful time working with my co-design team members and Stacey, the DT Coordinator and site moderator (she's so on top of things). You ladies rocked my scrap world! There's a fabulous new DT taking over and there's bound to be countless inspiration for every scrapper!

MMM Layouts

Here are the LOs that I submitted to Memory Makers Masters contest - no call this year - guess we'll have to see what next year brings!

These are pics of Donovan on our family vacation to Jamaica! He had a ball playing on the hopscotch board. I love all of the motion captured in these photos because it's sooo Donovan, always on the move!
Here you can see the hidden journaling and another photo!

These are pics of my mom taken a few months ago at my sister's wedding. She looks so pretty here and the Basic Grey papers really compliment the photos! See the green tag with the primas attached to it? That pulls out to reveal hidden journaling. It's kind of mushy and about how loving and nurturing my mom's hands were to me.

More water pics of Donovan from our trip last summer to Sesame Place! I love these colors! I created a shakerbox behind the "S" in the title and added blue and clear beads to lend the look of water splashes.

And last but not least, this was the last pic that I took at my sister's wedding. She loves this pic so much she has it as a screensaver on her computer!

TFL!

Blooming Friends Album

This album features new papers from Zsiage (New England) and the new chipboard stadium album, just released at CHA this summer. I created a blooming Friends album by attaching 5" chipboard letters to the edges of the album. Technique: I covered each chipboard letter with pp, covered with bead gel medim and then outlined with stickles...I really love the look and all of the texture it added!

My Crappy Weekend

I really thought I was going to have a great weekend as my sister planned a wonderful weekend for our families. Donovan and I and my sister, her DH and 3 kids were taking a trip to Dutch Wonderland and Hershey Park. I drove to her house Thursday night and then we drove to Lancaster Friday - got caught in traffic and took us like 2 hours to get there. Our 1st stop was Dutch Wonderland. We decided to split up and allow my sister's DH to take her 11 year old twins and we took Donovan and her son who are both 3. Waiting in line for the first kiddie ride and I almost fainted...literally! All of a sudden the humidity kicked up and I was squatting to the ground and hanging on to the rail for dear life. I've had these spells before and usually in public place (I've been tested for hypoglycemia twice but that doesn't seem t be it unless I'm borderline), anyway this one was bad because I had a my son crying to get on the ride and for me to pick him up. I looked at my sister and told her if she valued her nephew she'll take him and talk to him. I could barely stand up let alone p/u up a 50 lb kid. OK, so I fight through this and sit on the ride feeling downright awful. My son is happy until the ride stops, I guess it wasn't long enough for him so he starts crying again, now he's usually pretty good in public but he's been sick lately and as I later found, hungry - so he decided to show his butt!I find a bench to sit on and send my sister to get me something to drink...OJ works best, but a soda would do. It seems like everyone was moving like molasses in the winter! Meanwhile my son is still crying and carrying on so what did I do? Called daddy! I told him how I was feeling (on top of the fact that my DH had given me his cold) and told him to please talk to his child or I was going to send him flying across the park. Of course I would never take drastic measures with my child, but sometimes I need to get that dramatic so my DH knows how serious I am. I'm not normally the "call daddy" type but I could barely sit up straight! OK, so the talk with daddy worked for the most part and our food and drinks were finally ready. We ate and all was good! My son straightened up, which is how I know that hunger played a part in his behavior and we had a good rest of the day despite the fact that it felt like it was about 100 degrees in the shade!Going to Hershey Park the next day was an entirely different story! Let's just say that I was left the park with tears streaming down my face and that's really saying something because I'm not the overly sensitive type!!! The heat was just unbearable, everywhere you turned someone was complaining about how hot is was! There was not one single spot that didn't have a person standing in it! We finally find a water area that didn't have a mile long line and as soon as we stepped foot in it the closed it down for crowd control! I was ready to go after that. My sister and her family stayed so her big kids could try to get on some rides because at this point, 4 hours after we entered the park, they had only gotten on 1 ride!I decided to get something to eat before I left which took forever as you could imagine. I paid for a bottle of water which they forgot to give me. When I went back they didn't have anymore and wanted me to wait for someone to go and get some. Excuse me? i told the girl i had stood in this line long enough and to just give me my money back!!! There was a little demon child behind us in line too! She kept slapping the back of Donovan's wagon seat, and her dad stood there oblivious until he saw me giving his daughter the evil eye and then he asked her what she did. Of course she innocenly said "nothing" ! She then leaned down a started whispering mean things to Donovan who was paying her no mind...I kind of wished he would have popped her one. I can't read lips, but I could just see the expression on this little girl's face and I really couldn't believe that someone so young could be so downright evil for absolutely no reason!!! I just stared at her with my best I see you look! I don't thinkI wanted to slap someone else's child so bad, of course I would never do that, but I WANTED to. She hit the wagon seat again and I told her in front of her dad to "stop hitting the back of the wagon" and then he finally tried to put her in check! Little demon seed!!! I love kids, anyone who knows me would attest to that, but I can't stand the little evil ones!Anyway, I finally left that park because I was not having a good time and I forgot where I parked!!!!! I remembered the section, but forgot how to get there! I called my sister who was at her car by this time - they had decided to leave an hour after I "left" and she reminded me! I was just so frustrated and over baked! I almost made myself laugh when I saw my face in the mirror and thought I looked like a candybar that was left in the car on a hot day. You know they get that sweaty layer and the start to morph so you know what it is but the look of it makes you cringe...yeah that was me! Then I had to drive 250 miles home! An 18 wheeler tried to run me off the road - thank God Donovan was asleep because he would have learned a whole new vocabulary! Then the sky opened up and poured buckets of rain...I was actually thankful for the rain because it made me slow down and pay attention to the road. I called my sister, and guess what, no rain for them! Haha, just my luck!I knew I should have stayed my butt right at home! When Donovan got a double ear infection and strep 4 days before our trip...I should have stayed home. When my DH started complaining of flu like symptoms...I should have stayed home. When I woke up the day before the trip with a cold...I should have stayed home!!! I could have saved my money and STAYED HOME!!! There were a few good moments, but the bad kind of overshadows them! I'm just so glad I'm home!!

It's Been Over A Week

I know it's been a while since I posted last, but I have been tied up with a sick kid on my hands. Donovan woke up Friday with a fever and a bad cough. I tried nursing him back to health with a little Robitussin and some advil, but that didn't work. I took him to his pediatrician yesterday and my baby has a double ear infection and strep. No wonder he's been so whiney and clingy!! All he wants to do is sit on my lap and I haven't had the chance to breathe (until he goes to sleep or gets bored with me). I did manage to get a couple of LOs complete this Friday and I'm working on a FRIENDS album, which I'll post once it's complete.

This LO if for week 5 of the Summer of ScrapLovin Challenge at scraplove. I had to pick a word from a list, the word that I chose was journey. I also had to use chipboard and buttons on the LO: the letters are chipboard and there are 7 buttons.

journaling: The journey of life begun That fateful day I was born My eyes opened up blissfully to the sun My soul, heart and brain emerged as one Behold my journey had begun! This little child in time has grown Yes! Time has flown, time has flown A lot has been learnt on my very own -Sylvia Chidi

I created this LO for the Pizzazzill Sweepstakes at Creative Imaginations. Another LO for my sister's wedding album.

journaling: after all of the stresses of planning and organizing, Nett finally had her day and she looked radiant!

I finally went out on a limb and bought a Crop-A-Dile...what a great and easy to use tool! I had a problem paying $28 for it, though but now that AC Moore sells them, I was able to use my 50% off coupon...woohoo!

August 13th is...

...International Lefthanders Day!!!

So for all of you lefties out there, like me, today's your day!!!

A few famous lefties:
Clerck, F.W. de (former South African president)
Clinton, William (Bill) Jefferson (president)
Einstein, Albert (scientist)
Ford, Gerald Rudolph (president)
Gandhi, Mohandas (Mahatma) Karamchand (Indian statesman, thinker, leader)
Garland, Judy (actress)
Gates, Bill (software tycoon)
William (British prince)
Willis, Bruce (actor)
Winfrey, Oprah (talk-show host, actor)
Truman, Harry S (president)
Twain, Mark (writer, humorist)
Reeves, Keanu (actor)
Reve, Gerard (author)
Ruth, Babe (baseball player)
Roberts, Julia (actress)
Seinfeld, Jerry (actor)
Seles, Monika (tennis-player)
Pryor, Richard (actor)
Quaid, Dennis (actor)
Niro, Robert De (actor)
Netanyahu, Benjamin (Israeli prime-minister)
Newton, Isaac (scientist)
Jack the Ripper (criminal)
Joan of Arc (French heroine)
Julius Caesar (ruler)
Kaye, Danny (comedian, signer, dancer)
Keaton, Diane (actress)
Kidman, Nicole (actress)
Hill, Faith (musician)
Groening, Matt (cartoonist)
Hawn, Goldie (actress)
Hendrix, James (Jimi) Marshall (musician)
Henson, Jim (puppeteer)
Goldberg, Whoopy (actress)
Collins, Phil (musician)
Connors, Jimmy (tennis-player)
Cruise, Tom (actor)

I've been tagged and now so have you!

Mimi tagged me!

Here's the deal:
1. post these rules
2. each person tagged must post 8 random(... hopefully interesting) facts about themselves
3. those tagged should write a blog post of these facts
4. at the end of the post, 8 more bloggers are tagged and named
5. go to their blog and leave a comment telling them they're tagged

Here are my random facts:

1. I am kind of loud. I speak (a lot of the times) and laugh loudly!
2. I once served as Madam Foreperson of a jury - the case was not solved.
3. I love to snorkel although I can not swim!
4. I played basketball in highschool.
5. I wanted to be an Optometrist or Forensic Scientist.
6. I hate to cook!
7. I'm left handed.
8. I love to organize things either in size order or alphabetical order.

Halfway There

I am currently on week 4 of the 8 week Summer of ScrapLovin' Challenge at scraplove.com . So far I've had a great time creating layouts for each weekly challenge. The challenge for Week 1 was to use 3 office supplies from a given list; I chose a file folder tab, staples, and a dymo label.

journaling: It doesn't take very much to make you happy, just a piece of paper and access to mommy's marker drawer. You love to write, color, draw - it doesn't matter as long as you're putting pen to pad. This year you had quite a few milestones. I taught you to spell your name aloud and now you're learning to write it in preschool. At just 3 years old, you can write the alphabet, the numbers, and you're name. I'm so proud of you baby, keep up the good work!

I attached samples of Donovan's handwriting to the pull tab and tucked them behind the patterned paper pocket.

The challenge for week 2 was to use 1 photo, 5x7 or larger, a one word title, and visible handwritten journaling on a layout.

journaling: Don't ever be afraid to explore your surroundings!

For week 3, I had to create a LO using 3 photos, 3pps, 3 circles, 3 diff. embellies, at least 3 sentences of journaling and a title.

For the embellies, I chose alpha stickers, star brads, and chipboard brackets. There's one large green circle under the title, and 2 red circles on the left page.

journaling: Donovan and Kaden are third cousins born 2 mos. apart which makes them perfect playmates. When these 2 get together watch out because there's lots of running and squealing. I hope they're always close.

There was also an opportunity to earn extra points by creating a LO for the bonus challenge. I had to create a LO using a song title and all pp and photos had to be circles. The song I chose is "All Day Thinking" by Babyface from the "Waiting To Exhale Soundtrack". My circles are pp covered chipboard gears, the photo and journaling spot.

journaling: journaling: Life consists in what a man is thinking of all day. Ralph Waldo Emerson

This LO is for week 4. I had to use bling, a repetitive design, and had to show photos of my favorite summer accessories. I highlighted my sun with yellow stickles, my title was created using black shimmer stickers, I used several gem photo corners, a gem brad and a gem sticker as flower centers. My repetitive elements are the "waves" cut from patterned paper.

journaling: My favorite thing to do in the summer is to go to the beach. There's nothing like the feeling of warm sand between my toes. Every year I try to treat myself to a trip to a tropical location. The sight of crystal clear water and the salty scent in the air makes me happy! Of course no trip to the beach is complete without my favorite accessories: a cute bathing suit, a cool pair of sunglasses, and a good book! Oh yeah, can't forget sunblock! August 2006 Puerto Rico

The Day

Yeah, today is the big day, I am officially 33 years old! I had a pretty low key day; I had my hair done, DH and I went to see The Bourne Ultimatum, and I completed a bonus layout for Round 3 of Scraplove.com's Summer of ScrapLovin Challenge! The best thing about today is I didn't have to work...well I did, but I took a vacation day since I don't work on my birthday. After all it's my day and I can pretty much do what I want to do, right? Donovan is with my MIL for the weekend and DH and I are going to a reception tomorrow. I think I'll swing by the mall to see if I can find something really cute to wear. Well, that's it for now! 'Night!