I know, I know, I've taken my slow time getting these pictures from CHA posted, but I've had so much blogging to do since then and this kind of got pushed to the back burner!

This was my first CHA and let me tell you, I sense many more in my future. I had a BALL!!! My favorite thing about CHA (besides getting to see all of the new product firsthand) was coming in contact with so many of the women whom I've grown to know and admire although I've only actually seen their avatars. The are each so creative, sweet, and funny and I look forward to continuing to grow our relationships!

(Danielle Holsapple, me, and Susan Dupre) Besides the MLS gals, Susan was the very first person I met at CHA. She's is hilarious! If you ever get to meet her, tell I said I owe her one for making me chase after her with camera in hand! LOL! I'm not as spry as I used to be, Susan!

(Jennifer Beeson and me) I met Jenny on sb.com a few years ago. She is a sweetie and oh so very talented. I just hope that standing this close to her allowed some of her creative genius to rub off on me.

(Kimberly Crawford and me) Kim was one of the people that I had planned to meet at CHA ahead of time--I looked forward to meeting her since I had known her for a while from scraplovers.com. When we met, we clicked instantly, like old girlfriends.

(Lisa Houpt, me, and TraceyT) The way I met Lisa (whom I met through DreamGirls Challenge Blog design team) and Tracey (whom I met on scraplovers.com) was so funny! I walked up to them in the MLS booth and kindly asked "do you ladies need some help"? Lisa turned around and said "Tanisha?" and then went on to introduce herself and we started chatting. Then I turned to the person she was with and practically leaped on her as I shouted "oh my god, TraceyT, TraceyT"!! I swear the 3 of us stood and chatted for the longest time and quite honestly could have gone on even longer!

(Veronica Jennings and me) I met Vee way back in 2006 on sb.com when I first discovered online forums and I have admired her work since them. You'll probably recognize her from Memory makers magazine as she was a Master '09 and deservedly so!

Veronica Jennings and very talented 2 Peas Garden Girls Cindy Liebel and Wendy Bretz.

(Lucy Edson, Danielle Holsapple, Erin Yamabe, and me) Lucy from A Million Memories was just a doll! Since meeting her, I have become a blog stalker...her work is phenomenal!

I also had the pleasure of meeting Stephanie Hunt, owner of Belle Blvd, Stacey Michaud from scrapstreet.com, Nikki Sivils, owner of Nikki Sivils, Scrapbooker, Charity Hassel...I know I'm forgetting someone...if it's you...sorry, my momnesia seems to get worse by the day!

And now to introduce my girls...we are like family! We broke bread together, laughed until cheeks and stomachs were in knots, shed a few tears (we hate goodbyes), shared a lot of husband stories (i.e. slapping on lotion, the dishwasher confusion, orange shorts on the 4th of July and oh so many more...oh, I dare not forget the scooter...believe me, you had to be there)!

(Pattie Baltran, Danielle Holsapple, Erin Payne, Erin Yamabe, Helen Chu, Suzy West, Heather Brown, Norma Kennedy, and me)

Of our entire group, Pattie was the quietest and Danielle the most shy (of course hanging out with the rest of us made her come out of her shell). We got along so well and had so much fun together! If you happened to see our booth, you know I'm for real when I say this is one of the most incredibly talented group of women, if you've seen the videos on the MLS blog, then you know we are the craziest group of women!!

Ciao!

MLS and Shimmerz Update

My Little Shoebox's new Imagine A Forest line is simply adorable! The colorful trees and cute squirrels with polka dot and striped tails set the tone for your whimsical projects.

I took a look at those apples and immediately knew I had to create an "apple of my eye" layout...I just had to do it! LOL!

These cute chipboard apples are from magistical memories. I covered them with acrylic paint and then sprayed the red portion with Shimmerz Barn Yard Red shimmering spritz. I inked the chipboard heart and then painted it and the stems with Choc-O-Lat shimmerz. I painted the inside of the apple white, it was too bright for the page, so I toned down the color by painting it with gold glimmer blingz.

I gave a little oomph to the negative space of my chipboard letters by spritzing barn yard shimmering spritz to the patterned paper beneath it. See how easy it is to apply shimmerz to any part of your projects?

I had fun with this next layout!

journaling (left): uh mom, we're boys sooo why all the pink stuff?

journaling (right): I know the day is coming when you'll look through your scrapbooks & think what the heck was mommy thinking using flowers, ribbon, and the color pink on our stuff? We're boys & that's for girls! I hope you'll come to understand that mommy is an artist & likes to try new products & techniques & that I have design team obligations that require me to use certain things, so don't take it personally boys. I use boy stuff, too!

Don't you just love the little trees on this layout? They are super cute and so easy to cut from the patterned papers in this line.

And last but not least, a Friend card! Speaking of cards, I just had a card picked up for publication in Scrapbook Trends magazine. YAY! This is the first card I've ever had pubbed!

My Little Shoebox CHA Public Service Announcement

These are your friends...

...These are your friends on drugs!!

Please, just say no!

MLS Teams Up WIth Pencil Lines

Throughout this month, the design team at My Little Shoebox will create projects based on sketches from Pencillines! I created the following layout using sketch #147.

The day before Donovan's preschool graduation, he asked me if we could take him to a restaurant afterwards. I agreed and asked him where he wanted to go. After giving it a few moments of thought, he said Applebee's! I was surprised by his special request because I was expecting him to say Wendy's or Mc Donald's. That's how I came up with the title.

Thanks for stopping by!

Grand Prize Winner

OK folks, we have a winner of the brand spanking new line from My Little Shoebox....

The winner is actually new to my blog...


She found my blog and giveaway from the interview I did here...


She was chosen by random.org...

I put in the numbers 1 - 141 and 136 popped up. I counted backwards from the newest blog follower and my finger landed on....

KAY....YAY!!! Congratulations!!!!! Email me at tanisharenee74@hotmail.com and I will get your prize out to you!!!

Made With American Crafts

I created all of these projects about a month ago for American Craft's Design Team call, though I didn't make the team , I am really happy with how these projects turned out.

I seem to be batting zero with manufacturer design teams...0-3 for the last few that I tried out for, but anyway, guess you can't win them all!

The photos here are of my big boy on the day of his graduation. I was so proud of him that day (and everyday)!

I've been scraplifting myself lately, you know to give the mojo a boost. A+ Kid is a lift of this one.

journaling: I know school is just beginning for you, but you have already shown signs of being a very dedicated, hard-working student. You are an extremely fast learner and never cease to amaze me with the amount of knowledge you have attained and with how well you're able to maintain it. I am so very proud of you, baby! You've just graduated from preschool this past Friday and you already know how to add and subtract, both single and double digits, you can spell at least 20 words, your Spanish vocabulary has increased and you write very well. One of the teachers at preschool calls you “college boy” because you always know the answers. I hope you carry your thirst for knowledge with you throughout life. Never be afraid to learn new things and never ever feel embarrassed about your intelligence. Embrace it and you will soar! Love, Mommy

I've wanted to create a project/wall hanging like this one for some time now. Really loving this one...I wish it photographed better.


This is a layout of the time I "tortured" Donovan by taking him to Sesame Place. See the photo in the circle? He was crying so hard that now whenever I see it, my eyes well up.

He did at least enjoy the water park though...LOL!

This LO is a self scrap lift of this one.

journaling: Knowing how much you loved Sesame Street, I thought it would be a great idea to take you to Sesame Place during the summer of 2006 so you could see your favorite characters up close and personal. Boy, was that a mistake! You were absolutely terrified and cried anytime one of the characters was in your vicinity. It didn’t matter to you how friendly they were, it didn’t matter that they stooped down so as not to appear so big or that they opened their arms welcomingly, you wanted no part of them. I somehow managed to get you to take a photo with your favorite character of all, Elmo, but as you can see you were about ready to bolt. The only character that you were remotely friendly with was Zoe. I pointed her out to you, you waved to her and she blew you a kiss. So Sweet…you still remember that to this day. journalled 7/5/09

I created this cute little card, too. Of course it just wasn't complete until I added some Shimmerz Pixie Dust to the berries. I can't say enough awesome things about Shimmerz, it just makes everything better....well in this case, SWEETER! LOL!

Last but not least is a photo cube that I made for Donovan.

Thanks for taking a peek!

A Few Winners To Announce...

First off, let me just take a minute to say thank you for all of the wonderful birthday wishes. You all have made my day extra special! :)

Now I have a few winners to announce...

The winner of the Maya Road goodies is *Nikki*

The winner of the apron is JoJorenee

The winner of the canvas bag is Ms Cheryl

Congratulations ladies!!! Email me at tanisharenee74@hotmail.com with your address and I will get your prizes in the mail!!!!!

I'm going to announce the grand prize winner a little later today. Don't mean to keep you waiting, but it's 12:36 AM and I am tired...I don't want to risk messing up the count. (there's a 1 in 141 chance of winning)

Thanks to everyone who went the extra mile to tweet, post this giveaway on your blogs, and join my blog as a follower. If you didn't win this time, don't fret, there will be other giveaways...I promise! Sometimes I have surprise giveaways just for my blog followers...you never know when it'll happen (Christmas, Thanksgiving, any given boring Monday) LOL!

Stay tuned, I have some pictures coming up from CHA and some projects. If you want to see some funny CHA videos, check out My Little Shoebox's blog, there are about 4-5 posted and they are hilarious!!!!

Birthday Giveaway!!!

Today is August 3, 2009, which means I was born 35 years ago!!! Can you believe it? I can't, although I feel it most days! This year my birthday falls on a Monday (blech), only the most humdrum day of the week. Personally, I don't like humdrum, so I'm livening things up a bit by giving YOU some goodies! It's my party, but I want us all to celebrate!!! Boy do I have some goodies in store...

One person will win this pile of Maya Road goodies: chipboard album and charms, sheer and velvet ribbon, sheer journaling spots plus a ribbon ring good for storing your ton-o-ribbon!




Another lucky reader will win this oh-so-cute slice apron!! It's not one of those flimsy ones either; it covers nicely and has 3 pockets in the front for all of your scrapbooking/cooking needs!

I have one for myself and love it! How cute is that embroidered Breast Cancer Awareness ribbon?

A third person will receive this totally cute canvas bag (and a few scrap goodies) from CHA; it's perfect for all of your shopping needs. I've incorporated some "green" items into my household and canvas bags have become my fave!

And now for the mother load!!!!!! Anyone who is currently a follower of this blog and anyone who becomes a follower before the end of this giveaway will be entered into a random drawing to win My Little Shoebox's new WHOO LOVES YOU? line!!!!! Everything you see here could be yours (6 sheets of double sided paper, 1 scalloped circle paper, 1 package of transparency overlays, the sprinkle glazed alpha, chipboard alpha, the diecuts, and the oh-so-popular mini alpha (we can't keep these bad boys in stock!!

All winners will be randomly drawn. Anyone who posts a comment here by the end of the giveaway will be eligible for one of the first three (3) prizes. Anyone who is on my blog followers list before the end of the giveaway, Thursday August 6th 11:59 pm EDT, will be eligible to win the full line from My Little Shoebox!!!

Of course, you have BONUS opportunities to win!!!

1. Post this giveaway on your blog and leave a separate comment here with a link to your blog post and you will get an additional entry!
2. Tweet this giveaway on twitter and link it here in a separate post for yet another opportunity to win!

Good luck and thanks for celebrating with me!!!!!!!!!!!!

Giveaways and an Interview

I am so thrilled to announce that I have been asked to do an interview for You Inspire Me!! If you have had the pleasure of crossing paths with Pam, you immediately feel her vibe and get the sense that she's one of the most down to earth people you've ever met. She's so talented and having her ask me to do this interview made my month!!! If you get a chance, hop over to her blog and check out the interview!

I have been so busy trying to sort through the goodies for tomorrow's giveaway. I have a little bit of this and a little bit of that and I think I've even managed to put together an entire stack of goodies from one of My Little Shoebox's new release!!! Oh this is going to be so much fun!!!

I'M BAAAAAAAAACCCCKKK!!!!!

Have you missed me? I've certainly missed interacting with you, my blog readers and followers...and stalkers (LOL)! I've spent the past 5 days in Orlando, Fl for CHA. For my non-scrappy readers who may not know what CHA is, CHA is the Craft and Hobby Association. Different companies involved with scrapbook paper, stamping, inking, beading, etc come together twice a year to display all of their new products and different retailers come to place orders for their stores.

I worked in My Little Shoebox's booth with a bunch of nutty, crazy, loud, fun-loving, funny chicks from all over the country....yeah, I fit right in with my nutty self! There were 9 of us including the owner, Helen Chu and Suzy West, the lead designer. We stayed in a beautiful condo (with a broken dial-up system, hence the reason I have been off line for so long), chatted well into the wee hours of the morning, laughed until we almost puked, and just had an all around good time.

Want to see just how crazy the MLS gals can get? Head over to the blog and check out the video that Heather and Erin P. of Chick Chat have uploaded so far...funny stuff! There are a few more to come, too!

I have a few upcoming blog posts about CHA including pics of the MLS gals in attendance (Danielle Holsapple, Norma Kennedy, Erin Payne, Heather Brown, Erin Yamabe, Pattie Baltran, Suzy, Helen, and me) and all of my other online friends that I had the pleasure of meeting in person for the first time...and of course some giveaways!!! My birthday is this Monday and if you've been a long term reader of my blog, you know I like to give things away on my birthday, 'cause it's fun! So stay tuned!!!!