Page Shares

**Sorry, I thought I set this to post on Friday but it appears I didn't hit the 'publish' button :-(**

I have managed to get *some* scrappin' done in the past 6 months. I'm still working on finishing RJ's baby album and I've been scrappin' a lot of 6x6, 8x8 and mini albums. Here are a couple of pages that I completed a while back, but hadn't shared here.



RJ and one of the little girls that he used to go to daycare with. She's such a lil cutie pie and she had the cutest lil crush on RJ! BTW- I love my lil handmade flower! I used this Hero Arts stamp and some punches to make it!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey (Green at Heart)
Embellishments: stash- button
Tools: Cricut Expression (Lyrical Letters & New Arrival); EK Success- circle scallop punches; Stickles; Hero Arts- flourish background cling stamp


You may remember these pictures from our trip to Orlando for the Cavs v/s Magic game. I still get a kick out of RJ's pics.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey (Marrakech)
Embellishments: Bazzill- Just the edge (stars); Basic Grey- journaling spot
Tools: Cricut Expression (Sports Mania & Plantin Schoolbook); EK Success- corner rounder

I want to try more techniques & use more of my supplies on my pages. I used my Cricut Expression and some Basic Grey paper that I've been hoarding on both of these layouts. I don't use my Expression as much as I'd like to, but I'm trying to pull it out more often. I've done pretty good about limiting my scrappin' purchases to the necessities. Now to completely contradict myself, I've joined 2 kit clubs recently...... Studio Calico and Scarlet Lime. I've always wanted to try a monthly kit and these 2 companies seemed to offer the best value and variety. I just received my 2nd kit from both companies and I am VERY happy thus far. They give you enough product to create several 12x12 pages, some cards and maybe even a mini album. My hope is to be able to share what I create with each month's kit on this blog. I won't promise that is how it'll go. We'll just play it by ear ;-)

That's all I have for today. I hope you all had a great weekend and are enjoying a wonderful Sunday!

KeeKee

Mic check.......Is this thing on?

Whew! There are some MAJOR cobwebs growing around here! How you been, how ya momma been? Sorry, you'll have to excuse my silliness. It's 2:30 in the morning as I type this and I'm a little delirious!

I've been super busy for the past few months (more on that later) with family, work and just being me . I wanted to drop-in to let you all know that I am still here and while I haven't posted any much in the last few months I am still getting my craft on ;-) I've scheduled a few posts for the next couple of weeks to catch you up on what's been going on with me.

Here's a pic of one of the projects that I'll be sharing with you in the coming weeks, enjoy!

*All About Me Mini Album*

KeeKee

On the go!

Hello again! So I didn't get around to posting my layout for the scrap-a-long yesterday...my bad. I finally finished my taxes and was just too exhausted to put together a post :-( My plan last week was to use 2 sketches...yeah, that didn't happen! I used a PageMaps sketch for the layout and used up more of the Basic Grey paper that I had been hoarding. Here's the sketch:



Here's my layout:



Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey (Lime Rickey)
Embellishments: Basic Grey- stickers (letter, border, chipboard arrow & bird); American Crafts- Thickers; Me & My Big Ideas- journaling spot
Tools: Fiskars- white gel pen

I wasn't completely happy with the layout at first. It felt like something was missing so I added the faux stitching. As for this week's sketch(es) for the scrap-a-long, I'm participating in the 'Battle of the Design Teams' challenge on The Greeting Farm blog so I'll be creating cards and maybe an altered project.

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Scrap-a-long Week 3

Hello again! I'm back with 2 more sketches (yep, I plan on doing 2 again!) for this week's scrap-a-long being hosted by Adrienne. I've decided to use single-page sketches from two different sites. The first is from a new blog that I found over the weekend, The Scrappiest Sketch blog. They have a TON of sketches to choose from. I've chosen sketch #55 for my 1st layout of the week:


The second sketch I plan to use is from Two Peas in a Bucket's weekly challenge:



I'm hoping to have the 1st sketch completed by Wednesday, but I *need* to get my taxes done this week. I've put them off long enough :-( My plan was to get them done on Saturday, but we took RJ to the UniverSoul Circus. After the circus, we made an impromptu visit to a local park where I spent almost 3 hours laughing at my husband's clumsiness. I think he fell AT LEAST 10 times while playing 'tag, your it' with the kids and our friends....FUN-TY! I snapped some pictures, but haven't downloaded them yet. I'll share those later.

I hope you're having a happy Monday. Thanks for stopping by :-)

Introducing...

I *finally* finished the 2-page layout for RJ's first year album! I'm happy with the results, but even more happy that I was able to get it done this week! I owe it all to my scrappin' buddies. Me and a few of my friends went to an LSS for a Friday night crop. $5 for a night of "no frills" cropping....can't beat it! I think I did more talking than scrapping, but socializing is half the fun at crops ;-) So here's the sketch that I used from PageMaps:



Here's my take on the sketch:




Supplies:
Cardstock: Paper Studio & DCWV
Patterned Paper: Imaginisce (Baby Powder Boy)
Embellishments: American Crafts- Thickers, embossing powder & rubons; Papertrey Ink- stamps; Recollections- rhinestone; Bazzill- ribbon
Tools: Martha Stewart- double scallop edge punch ; EK Success- scalloped scallop edge punch; Spellbinders- Labels One & Labels Eight dies; Fiskars- craft knife; Cricut Expression (New Arrival); Versamark; Zig- pen

I will have another post later today to show my sketch for this week's entry for the scrap-a-long.

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Favorite Chore

Hello again! I'm back with my second layout for Adrienne's Scrap-a-long! I decided to do a single page layout first. The double-page layout is giving me a few *fits*, but I'm hoping to have it done by the weekend. For this layout I used another sketch from the Got Sketch? blog and I incorporated a color challenge as well, colourQ challenge #23. Plus, I was able to use up some more paper that I've been hoarding! Here is the sketch I chose:




Here's the image from the color challenge:


Here's my layout:

Supplies:
Cardstock: Paper Studio
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey (Lime Rickey)
Embellishments: American Crafts Thickers & button; DMC- floss; Me & My Big Ideas- journaling spot

Tools: Martha Stewart- zigzag edge punch ; Bazzill- In Stitch'z templates

Thanks for stopping by :-)

We're having a baby boy!

NO, NOT NOW....LOL!! We had our baby boy three and a half years ago. I'm referring to the title of my Scrap-a-long layout :-) I *almost* forgot to post this. That would've been a bad way to start off this venture :-( Anyway, here is my 1st page for RJ's first year baby book:

Supplies:

Cardstock: Paper Studio

Patterned Paper: Imaginisce (Baby Powder Boy)

Embellishments: Martha Stewart- small rhinestones; Recollections- large rhinestones & small brown pearls; American Crafts- buttons (blue & brown); Making Memories- letter stickers, flowers & buttons; Prima- flowers; DMC- floss; stash- twine

Tools: EK Success- curved edge punch; Martha Stewart- large double butterfly punch & 3-in-1 butterfly punch; Bazzill- In Stitch'z & Jewel templates; Copic Marker- E39

I had a lot of fun working on this page and RJ even got in on the fun. I found him taking a peek at the sonograms. Then we had a 20 minute discussion about babies, mommies and how babies live in a mommy's stomach for 9 months. I think I confused him even more O_o

I have a two-page layout planned for this week and will be back later to post the sketch!

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Scrap-a-long

Hello again! I'm back for my 2nd post of the day....YEA ME! I wanted to share some information on a scrap-a-long that I'm participating in. I was invited by one of my favorite bloggers, Adrienne, to join in to get our mojo flowing. Since this is in line with one of my 2010 goals, I decided to join in :-)

Here's how it will work:

1. Each participant will post the sketch or sketches they plan to use each Monday on their blog.


2. Once your layout is finished, you will post it on your blog.


3. Adrienne will then link up each participant's layout to the master post for the week on her blog.

This is another way for me to be held accountable for sticking with my goals and to 'meet' new people. If you'd like to play along just leave a comment on Adrienne's post for this week. Make sure to include your blog address, if you have one.

I've also decided that I want to use this as a way to complete RJ's 1st year album (another one of my goals for 2010). I may not always complete a page for his book, but the majority of them will be for him. Here's the sketch I want to use for this week:

It's sketch 69 from Valerie Salmon's Got Sketch? blog. I love her sketches and this one is no exception. I hope you can join in on the scrap-a-long, I think it's going to be fun!

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Favorite Songs

Hello again! I'm back to share the 2nd set of pages I created for my 'Book of Me' swap on the Two Peas in a Bucket message board. This set is titled 'Favorite Songs' and I had the hardest time finalizing the design. I didn't want to go overboard with images of music, so I tried to keep it simple. Here are my pages:

Supplies:

Cardstock: Bazzill, Recollections & DCWV

Patterned Paper: My Minds Eye (Ooh La La)

Embellishments: American Crafts-buttons; Stampendous- music note stamp; DMC- floss; stash- ribbon

Tools: EK Success- binder edge punch; Spellbinders Labels Four; Cricut Expression (Opposites Attract); Paper Studio- scallop circle punch

I found a paper flower tutorial on Dawn McVey's blog and thought it would make a nice finishing touch to my pages. I'm happy with them and I hope the ladies in my swap will like them!

I'm off to work now, but I'll be back a little later to share some information on a scrap-a-long that I'm participating in!

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Embellish & 2S4Y

Hello again! How are you? It's cold and wet here in North Florida, so it's been a lazy day for us. I was able to attend a crop at an LSS that I recently discovered. It was only for a few hours, but I got a lot done. One of the things I finished last night was a card for 2 challenges, Laura's sketch 44 at 2S4Y and the Embellish Ribbon Color Challenge. Here's the Embellish Magazine challenge image:

I love the colors from this challenge and I enjoy anything that requires adding a little ribbon. Here's my card:




Supplies:
Cardstock: DCWV
Embellishments: Recollections- pearl; The Greeting Farm- stamp (Charlotte); PTI- stamps (Guidelines II & Mega Mixed Messages); Stickles; Ribbon from stash
Tools: Cricut- Accent Essentials cartridge; Copic markers

Let me just say that I LOVE this Charlotte stamp! You will be seeing LOTS of her ;-) She's sassy & stylish.......gotta love it! I won her for participating in The Greeting Farm's CHA Relay contest. Sadly, the contest ended prematurely due to technical issues, but I did receive 4 free digi stamps for participating!

OK, that's it for tonight. I have a 3 year-old pulling on my arm. WHY he's still awake, I have no idea....

Thanks for stopping by :-)

My goals for 2010

Hello there! How's your week going? Mine has been moving along pretty quickly. This is both a good thing and a bad thing. On one hand, the weekend is fast-approaching. On the other hand, I haven't had much 'me' time. Generally, Tuesday's are my days just for me. That didn't happen yesterday, but I did get to enjoy a nice dinner with my two guys and some good friends. Anyhoo, on to the reason for my post today.....my goals for 2010.

I didn't want to make resolutions because they are so easily dismissed or broken. So I decided to make goals! Just the word 'goals' makes me feel better about the whole process, LOL! This all started while I was reading a post on Ali Edwards' blog. Each year she chooses a word that she feels will make an impact on her life. This year I decided to join in. The word I chose was: CONSISTENCY.

I chose this word for a number of reasons, but the two most important are:

1. I have developed this problem of not following thru with projects (crafty and otherwise)---> I don't like this AT ALL
2. I believe that if I am consistent with my actions, my words and my thoughts it will restore some of the order that has been lacking in my life for the past year or so

To go along with my 'word of the year', I set goals for myself. Both personal and professional. Here are my list of goals for 2010 along with a little background information:

• Travel more with my family- we actually started doing more of this towards the end of 2009 and will continue thru 2010
• Have more 'date' nights with my husband- with help from my recent order from Boutique Patrice, we'll be working on that this weekend!
• Take my son to the beach- I live too close (like 30 minutes away) to the ocean to not have taken him to the beach once in his 3 years on this Earth.....I know, I know :-(
• Increase my performance evaluation from a 'Highly Achieves' to an 'Exceeds'- this one will be difficult with budget cuts looming
• Find a more efficient way to complete all of my job duties- I get my job done, but some days I barely have enough time to eat lunch (today was a good example of that)!
• Learn how to sew- I blame Adrienne for this one, she makes the cutest things and she's FUN-TY ;-) (I have paid for and will be attending my first class at Joann's on Saturday morning!)
• Create a card or layout at least once a week- I'll be playing along with several year long challenges to help out with this one
• Use up my stash- 'nuff said......
• Finish RJ's 1st year album and at least start his 2nd year album- I have all of the supplies, but NOT.ONE.PAGE.DONE.YET!!!

I realize that by posting this list here it will act as source of accountability. I've put it out there. So either I'll be CONSISTENT with what I've said I want to do or I won't......POINT.BLANK.PERIOD.

Thanks for stopping by and letting me ramble :-)

Yea me!

It's been a while since I've posted, but I have some great news to share! I submitted a card into the Embellish the Cure Color Challenge with Bling for Embellish Magazine. Well, this morning I learned that my card was chosen as one of the 'What's Hot' top 6! You can checkout the other ladies that made the 'What's Hot' list here: What's Hot-Embellish the Cure Color Challenge. Here are close-ups of my card:





I rarely enter my projects into contests that are judged. Mostly I submit for challenges that have random-draw winners. So this is the 1st time I've placed for a challenge that was actually judged. To celebrate I treated myself to some new goodies from Michael's and plan on spending what's left of my night creating cards for some other challenges that I want to submit for.

Thanks for allowing me to brag on myself a little and sharing in my joy :-)

Busy, busy bee!

Well hello there *waves* Has everybody been as busy as I have in the last 2 weeks? I hope not! At work, our Pension Coordinator graduated from nursing school and has taken a position on a nursing unit in the hospital. Guess who got to take on 80% of her duties...........ME! As if I didn't already have enough on my plate! I don't think my boss took into consideration the amount of time it takes to deal with retirees, beneficiaries and employees with 401k questions/requests. For the first 2 days after I was given these new duties, I was interupted every 10 minutes to sign authorization forms or meet with a retiree who problems with their benefits. I formulated a system on day 3 and so far it's working out. Please believe I will be requesting a significant pay increase during my next eval. We eliminated a position that cost the department $45k, so I'm gonna need some of that to make it's way toward ya girl!

I have caught a few spare minutes here and there to get a little scrappin' done. I participated in an online crop over at Two Peas in a Bucket last Friday. It was my first time participating in an online crop, but it was fun! The offered hourly challenges/chats and gave away prizes for all four hours. I won the prize for completing this layout for the 9:00 challenge:

I also completed this layout for the 8:00 challenge:

Here is a layout that I completed last week using a Becky Fleck PageMap:

So how was your Valentine's Day? Mine started out a little so, but turned out to be pretty good. Mr. R was called away to the group home for a busted water heater and a possible pipe leak in the foundation......NOT GOOD! We didn't really get to see each other until after 5:00. He did call me earlier and led me to my hidden V-day gift! I had not mentioned it to him, but I'd been looking to purchase a new handbag. He knows that I love Coach, so I found this stuffed behind the sofa in our family room:

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE my hubby? It's very rare for him to take time to plan a surprise so this makes his gift even more special because I knew he had to think about it. Usually, he gives me gift cards because I'm so picky that he likes for me to pick my own gifts.

We also made our way down to Daytona for NASCAR Speedweeks (pics to follow in a later post)! I love NASCAR and have been going to the track for the past four years to watch these crazy guys do even crazier things at 200 mph! At first, Mr. R thought I was crazy for wanting to watch guys drive around in circles for hours. That was until I got him to the track last year for his first race. Now he's hooked. We're hoping to be able to make it to Atlanta for a race this year also....we'll see how the finances shake out.

Have a good week.

weekday recap, a lil' football and a lil' card making

So what did you do with yourself this weekend? I spent most of yesterday re-organizing the garage and purging (yet again!) some clothes and shoes. I'm trying really hard to only keep things that I use. I've found that my life is much less stressful when things are decluttered, organized and in their respective proper places.

Now today is somewhat different. I'm spending the better part of my morning completing work for Mr. R's business. Did I mention that we're small business owners? Probably not.....anyhoo. I have handled the admin/HR portion of the home healthcare business since it's establishment 1 and a half years ago. I try to support him as best I can and making sure all employment guidelines are being followed is my way of doing that. Of course this is free of charge (as best he can tell), but here lately it has begun to interfere with my day job.....you know, the one I actually earn a salary for doing. So, I've decided to set office hours for the homehealth business. This week was the trial run and everything went pretty well. Aside from one of the employees thinking it was okay to yell at me because her trifflin' tail submitted a direct deposit form for an account that her bank closed! In her words "I went in to close my savings and they closed both accounts." Now yall know that heifa knew that was a lie when it left her lips! So she got a "Mmm hmm. Well per the authorization form you signed, you will be responsible for the $35 rejection fee." That's when the yelling started and that's when I had to remind her that this is a business and her place of employment so she *might* wanna lower her tone! We'll see how my evening and weekend schedule works going forward. I'll keep you posted.

So, what am I doing with the rest of my day.......preparing for Super Bowl XLIII of course! We've invited over a few friends so I have plenty to keep me busy before the first guest arrives around 6:00. I'm not making the wide variety of food that I normally do. I have my eye on a dvd/navigation system for my truck and I was not about to drop $300 to feed this group! Here's what I have on the menu:

• Wings (honey BBQ, mild buffalo & teriyaki)
• Fried fish sandwiches
• Spicy Spinach, Artichoke & Shrimp Dip
• Seafood Pasta Salad
• Fruit Salad
• "No Yo Mama's Banana Pudding" (this is a Paula Deen recipe & it's the best I've ever had!)

I was also able to get a lil' card making done this week. Here are some Valentine's Day cards I was able to finish for my friends:

After today, it's back to the grind. I hope you all have a fun, productive and stress-free week :-)!

Scrappin' the time away

Okay, so I didn't keep my 1 post/1 week resolution.....but, who's noticing anyway? Moving on......

Before my weekend crop, I hadn't enjoyed my hobby for at least 3 months. The holiday season was a very busy one for me with work and family, so I didn't have time or the motivation to set aside time to scrap. I'm participating in a few challenges over at Two Peas in a Bucket so I have plenty of inspiration to draw from. Here are some of the layouts I've completed:

My little cousin and her new hubby. There's nothing like young love.

RJ riding his favorite gift from Santa (aka, Granny) this year. This bike is all he talks about.

8 things that defined my 2008

I've really been enjoying my hobby more lately. I think it has something to do with my favorite Christmas present.....the Cricut Expression! I love this thing for it's versatility and it's no-fuss approach to diecutting. I've also been trying to use up some of my stash instead of hoarding all the cute stuff that finds it's way into my shopping cart. So far, it's been exciting to see the supplies actually get used for it's intended purpose.

That's all for now. Tomorrow we're heading to an out-of-the way seafood restaurant. I haven't been there in 6 years, but I distinctly remember it being some of the best food I've ever tasted. I'll post updates at a later time :-)

new year.....new rules......new me!

I've decided to make a concerted effort to maintain my blog at least once a week.......HEY, baby steps first, LOL! Did you make any resolutions for 2009? I didn't make any official resolutions, but here are a few of the things that I want to accomplish this year:

• Be more active (my ass is getting too big!)
• Take at least 3 trips with Mr. R and RJ that require us to leave the Sunshine State
• Obtain my PHR certification (more titles = more $$)
• Have 1 weekend a month to myself.....no Mr. R and no RJ
• Scrap at least 4 pages a month or a total of 48 for the year
• Experiment more with my cooking (then refer back to the top of the list)
• Develop and STICK TO a budget plan *THIS IS A BIGGIE*
• Tell my extended family I love them more

To make sure that I'm starting the year off right, I attended an all-day crop at my favorite local scrapbook store (LSS) on Saturday, Scrap n' Stuff (http://scrapnstuff411.com/). I always have a good time there and I even manage to get some scrappin' done :-)! I'm also trying some new muffin recipes this weekend (look for updates with pics next week).

Updates on my projects:

• The wedding is over and I thank God that it is!
• The 2nd baby shower is over and the mommy-to-be had a blast

Here's a pic of my little man enjoying one of the waaay too many Christmas gifts his Granny got him! She never follows instructions, but then again what grandparent does? I have no idea where she found a Huffy bike small enough to fit him, but she did and he enjoys it just about everyday :-)!

Bad Blogger, Bad bad blogger *pic heavy*

OK, so I've been MIA for a while......sowwy. So let's catch-up :-) Monday was RJ's birthday! My baby is TWO YEARS OLD now, I can't believe it! We had his party in my hometown (which is 70 miles away) to appease the grandparents *smile* They complain constantly about having to travel to parties that we have or to see RJ. I'm sad to say that I didn't get very many pics of the party. I was too busy running around playing 'hostess' and playing on the kids' playground! My favorites of the few pics that I did take are here:

Here's a pic of my little man with cupcake all over his face & in his nose.

Here's a pic of RJ with his uncles and another of just his uncles. They REALLY think they're the shit & I need these lil' girls to stop making them think that......PLEASE!!

I'm still working on the baby boy album I mentioned before. Here's the progress I've made on that (still haven't figured out the scan-n-stitch feature):






The rest of my time has been consumed by work. I'm spear-heading our benefits open enrollment this year for the entire hospital & all of the clinics. That's about 3,500 employees and 50 vendors to be responsible for! I've enjoyed the added responsibility, but it has been a TON of work. I'll be glad when it's over!




This weekend was pretty easy-going. I've been sick with a sinus infection & was pretty much home-bound all weekend. I did make it out to Michael's to pickup a few items for a baby shower I'm planning. I'm also in the process of trying to get my house organized. First up is shoes & trust me, I need MAJOR help in that department! Watch for updates with pics this week.........


Later

Weekend Recap *Pic Heavy*

Whew! That about sums up my weekend! Friday was a crazy day and it all started with work. Have you ever had someone come to you in the 11th hour and demand request something that they need ASAP? My director did this to me on Friday. No big deal because he's a good guy and an even better boss. Another thing, why is it that this ALWAYS happens as you are about to leave for lunch or decide that you are leaving work early?Add in the commotion coming from the daycare lobby and it was a hectic day! Who brings FOUR children with them to apply for a job? It wouldn't have been so bad IF they were mannerable or quiet. These children were jumping from chair to chair and playing with the computer workstations! Of course, the applicant got a few 'side-eyes' and a little unsolicted, but very much needed advice about controlling her children. After work, I had to pack up my supplies for the all-day crop that I was attending on Saturday. I couldn't decide what I wanted to bring so I brought a lil' bit of everything.......sad shame :-(

One of my LSS usually has one of these crops at least once a month and I make every attempt to attend and show my support. My friends and I had a great time at the crop. We got a lot done (pictures to come)! I finished 7 pages of a baby boy album I'm working on (can you say PROGRESS). One of the ladies in my group was a newbie. I was LOL observing her reaction to some of the things you could do with paper, pictures and adhesive! I think we've converted another one, LOL! We played fun games and had excellent food and snacks! I won three 20% off 'everything within your reach' prizes and my table won the Scrappin' Squares game to earn 40% off any one item (which completely blew my budget)! Here are my 20% and 40% off purchases:

I love minibooks, they're my latest addiction. I've wanted more of the Bazzill In Stitch'z line since I purchased my 1st set of templates. I've also been stalking all the craft stores for the scalloped square punch, no one ever seems to have it in. I guess it was my lucky day because I found everything I wanted and I got it all on sale :-)! Here are the pages I completed for a 'baby boy' album I'm working on:

*sorry about the quality of the pics. I'm working on figuring out the scan & stitch technique*

Sunday was a cleaning and laundry day. Well, what I could manage in between watching NASCAR, NFL and the women's final at the US Open...LOL! Did I mention that I love sports? Of course, at this point I was missing my little man so I put down the remote long enough to scoop him up from Granny's. Now I have to "re-train" him to get rid of all the bad habits he picked up this weekend :-(! What is it about grandparents and their need to spoil and cater to everyone of their grandkid's needs? So, what did you do this weekend?