CreativeLeigh Me

Friday at Four

2010-11-13T00:20:00.000-08:00

For my last nine years of life, I have worked at four-o-clock every Friday night at the same place. (give or take a few nights:) As of the last month, that is over. Each Friday since then, I have done my best to take note as to what I was doing when I would normally be headed to work.
The first Friday night off was very un-eventful. I was questioning my decision as I sat at home watching my dvr and doing laundry.
The second Friday night was spent with my mom and my niece creating "Olivia the pig" out of a pumpkin... which was an amazing success...

The third Friday night was another un-eventful one... I don't know what we did... most likely more dvr and laundry. :)
The forth Friday at Four was spent in the car, on the way down to Eugene, to have a lovely dinner with a group of amazing people before a Ducks game. For once I got to be AT the table, rather than wait on them ... it was dreamy.
This Friday at Four, I was at my old elementary school, again with one of my favorite people in the world. I picked my niece up at school and we stayed to play on the playground... one I hadn't stepped foot on for some 20ish years...

THIS... my friends... is WHY. This is why it is so important to take the time off... thank you for a wonderful twenty minutes... thank you for the fun... thank you for the flip on that one bar I used to flip on when I was young... (it used to seem so much easier)... thank you for the laughing... thank you for the flowers you picked for me... thank you for the excitement you showed when you saw it was me there to pick you up... thank you for reminding me what it is important in my life... I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. :)

The Little Things

2010-11-10T00:45:00.000-08:00

For those of you who know me well, you know that I have worked as both a teacher and restaurant server for years.

The teacher gig gets better as the years go on. You get more comfortable in your role as "teacher". You learn more about the tricks of the trade. And you realize more and more every day that what you do matters. The kids from years past take time to let you know that you impacted them, and truly... it's a wonderfully rewarding way to make a living. Just the other day, I was at the doctors office, and as soon as I turned the corner, I child came running towards me and gave me the biggest heart-felt hug before I could even react. She was in my classes six years ago and she recognized me immediately. Makes my heart sing!

The restaurant gig has been wonderful for different reasons. It has made me some of the best friends a girl could ask for. It has supplied me with "fun money"(and single handedly paid for my wonderful car) for nine years. It has taught me that there are truly wonderful people all over your community (and some truly awful ones). It has made me a lot of friends, and brought me back in touch with people I never thought I would see again. I am always in a good mood once I get there, and I get to work with some wonderful people that I consider family at this point. Basically, this job has given me another branch on my tree of life. That I wouldn't change for the world.

That being said, I am happy to announce, that I have cut back a bit, and dropped down to one night a week at the restaurant. :)

It makes me smile to say it out loud. Not because I dislike that job, but truly, it's a job that is tough on you. It is hard on your body, and sometimes hard on your mind. I love that I am still able to work there once a week. To gather up the money I will use on going out or shopping that weekend. But it also feels good to know, that I will have some of my free time back. Friday nights have always been about seeing other people out, celebrating TGIF. While I get them what they need to enjoy themselves. Now it's my turn. And I couldn't be more thrilled about it.

Downfall: I now have more time AND less money.

Solution: New ways to get in that decompressing time. The reason I used to go shopping a lot, is because I
a.) Had the time
&
b.) Had the money.

Since the money is now less and the time is now more, I have decided to go a little wild and try new places to shop.

First up, garage sales. I had never really been a garage sale girl. Never got up early enough, or felt comfortable enough to go sifting through others belongings. Recently, I HAVE however taken to antiquing. The little fairs that they have in the summer time make my heart beat. I am always out looking for that treasure... the same feelings I can find at the Rack really, but on a different level. (Hoarder alert... I know... but I swear I am totally in control :) Old things can tell stories. The same reasons I love pictures and scrapbooks. I only went Garage Sale-ing once this summer... with two dear friends... and I can't believe I didn't do this sooner! We had an amazing time and found great things... check it out:

Desk and chair combo for $82... that chair weighs a ton! I love them together... it's just the space I needed.

These cute little vintage pilgrims that I bought from a sweet old lady for 75 cents.

Turns out they sell for $15 each on ebay and vintage etsy... nice deal there!

April and I each got a mirror... that was golden and pretty ugly... I am in the process of fixing mine up. Here is the back to see it's color, I forgot to take a "before photo"... and the green I changed it to. I still need to do the antiquing... you can see the starts of it at the very top. Then I have to track down the mirror part of this... I left it at April's house when we painted them last weekend. :)

Second up, Consignment clothes shopping. Did you know that I have gotten three pairs of designer jeans... ones that fit perfectly... for $32. AND Did you know that my favorite pair of "like" new Danskos were only $29. It's truly an amazing feat when I realize that I own very similar Danskos in a different color that I paid $100 MORE for and a similar pair of jeans (or two or three) that I also paid $100 more for. Makes me feel silly really. In fact, I have found that my consignment store finds have almost always become instant favorites. I find myself wearing them the most. I think it's because I TRULY loved them when I bought them... you have to in order to buy someone else's clothes I think. Anyways, I love telling others who compliment me on my finds, where they came from. They are almost always shocked. :)

Also, as a side note, I set my favorite searches on Ebay for little things I know I love... like shoes by Miz Mooz. They are perfect for people like me that require smaller heels or none at all... check out these guys I got in the mail just today... they cost me $27.22. Not too shabby for a $100+ pair of shoes. :)

Third up, Goodwill. I know many of you have heard my Goodwill find stories and just plain can't comprehend. Some of you have even told me that you have TRIED... given it a good college try... and just HAD to leave. ick. That makes me smile... because I get it. I always wash my hands when I get home too... but to think about the little things I would have missed out on... makes it worth it. I have seen countless things there that I never buy... but bring back surging memories of childhood. I have found scrapbooking organization TREASURES... and a few other things along the way. Not to mention the amazing $4.99 nightstand that I turned into an amazing statement. I love the thrill of transforming something old and "used" into something better.

Mirror... most expensive thing I have ever bought at Goodwill... $20. Looks great now... it was white-ish and dirty before.

Owls... used to be a variety of colors... previously painted to look like real-life owls... (not really) and I altered them to be decorations at my sister's baby shower... cute stuff.

Love this calendar... It is so totally one of my favorite decorations right now... and it was $1.99.

My scrapbooking supplies rack... I forget to use them if I can't see them... $9.99 find

And once again... my $4.99 dream...

... now with handles... that granted... cost me nearly 3 times as much... but I figured it deserved the splurge. :)

So, that's it for now. Saving money has never been so fun. The last two days has been spent tearing apart and reupholstering a glider for my sister to use with her new baby (that hasn't arrived yet, but we expect to meet any day now)... I truly can't believe that we were able to give new life to a several hundred dollar glider that we found for less than $20. Love that... love love that. :)

Something That Made Me Happy Today

2010-11-04T01:18:00.000-07:00

Crazy Cat

2010-10-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Those of you who have been to my house, know my cat. She is a creature that cannot go without being known. She is a cat with the personality of a dog... she follows me everywhere I go and it seems that she can talk. She knows just what to do to get my attention, and knows the proper time to run away so as to not get reprimanded. She watches TV (American Dad is her favorite show) and has been trapped in inconspicuous places more than I can count. I love her so much, especially in calm times like this. She has taken to a laundry bucket and adopted it as her own sleeping quarters. The other cats can't get up there if they wanted to, and I just leave her alone up there. It's always a treat to go into the laundry room and hear a little meeeww coming from up there... as if to say... turn the light off and leave me alone. Today I decided to document the fun... enjoy my dear Puma. :)

Now one last thing. I realize there are few people out there that post things about their cats. Without kids in the house there are only a few living things to choose from. You can think I am a crazy cat lady... I am okay with that. :) Oh, and one last picture for good measure... to prove to those of you who DO know Puma, that she does slow down at times... in between eating marshmallows (one of the only people foods she will touch), chasing her favorite toy (a fake mustache) and harassing the other four-legged creatures in the house.

Frames

2010-10-29T18:21:00.000-07:00

Just got a request to post some photos of frames that I have done in the past... so here they are! Enjoy!

Let me know if you need a frame for the holiday season so that I can get started now! Thanks! :)

GO DUCKS!

2010-10-24T20:43:00.000-07:00

So, this is year #4 for me in the football world. Until I started dating a football fanatic, I just didn't get it. I didn't understand the game at all, and didn't even really realize that there were two different teams that came out on the field for offense and defense. Sad, I know.

Well, since the beginning, I have been hooked. Not just a little... I mean totally hooked. It has been such a treat to have this football stuff in my life. I wouldn't trade it for anything... and I will always be a duck fan... period. :)

The 2010 season has started out with a bang for us. We have slowly moved up in the rankings, and now we are at the top... or second from the top... either way you look at it... it's been a great year!

I thought I would give you a quick run down of the best of the best of my photos this year. I am not very good about uploading photos after each game, but here is a bit of the last seven weeks... time flies when you are having fun!

Game 1: vs. New Mexico at home
Sunny and simply perfect in the weather department.
Nervous about the quarterback choice, and excited for the same reason.
Justin and I had bet on which of his paintings they would use for the first program cover... I guessed right... so I win already :)
Sooo ready for some football!
Program cover: Nate Costa (all program covers were done by Justin this year :)

First self portrait of the season... I try to take one each game... you will see more later on :)

First kick-off of the season.... OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

First touchdown of the season... with many many more to come....

Final score of game one... ouch! :)

Game 2: vs. Tennessee at Tennessee
Weather, beautiful here, rainy, stormy, and hot there... yuk!
It was Patsy's (Justin's aunt) 60th SURPRISE birthday party.
We had spent months lying to her about not being able to come over for the game, so she thought she was stuck watching it with only the household and her sister... boy did we trick her!
This party was pretty much as good as it gets... check out all of the details here..... wow!

Margarita mixer... yummy

Justin decorated the cake... are you kidding me?

The party committee spent the night before "branding" each of the hotdogs... amazing!

Cason got his hair done for the big day... he wasn't aware of what mom and dad had done until the next bath... rumor has it, he was less than thrilled. Good thing we all loved it! :)

We were all waiting for the birthday girl in the back yard... silently, to my amazement... not too bad for such a crowd.

Boy was Patsy surprised... SUCCESS! She did a full spin and planted herself on the ground to take it all in... I will admit... I teared up a bit... it is so much fun to see someone so shocked and excited!

Greeting the crowd and saying her hellos. Each and every one of these people had lied to her and told her they had something else they had to do. This made the surprise so much better!

For the actual game, Justin wanted to sneak out and go home. This way we are in our own space to cheer (or curse) as the case may be, in privacy. :) The game ended up having a 75 minute or so delay due to heavy rain and thunderstorms... it started out a bit scary, but the Ducks turned it around and we won easily. Yea!

Game 3: vs. Portland State at home

Weather was hot and wet... gross

I was not looking forward to this game as much, because it was icky weather and it was going to be a one sided game.

Kendal, my good friend Cheri's daughter, found her way down to this game from a friend with the deal that we would be bringing her home. (Cheri's deal :) We wanted to leave after the first half due to the weather and lop-sided score, but since she was there (with a new cute boy :) I insisted that we stay through the third quarter before we headed out and pulled her away from her fun. :)

Program cover: Kenny Rowe... we forgot to bet on this one, so no winners this time. :)

Nice rain hat huh? It is not my favorite thing, but it worked... and for that I am grateful... you will notice though, when you get a full length shot of me..............

I look pretty much like a bag lady... nice huh? That's Kendal and I... she is sooo cute, and then look at the old lady I have become. Yikes! The garbage bag is housing all of my belongings... purse, jacket, etc... remember, it was HOT this day... and wet... gross!

We ended this night with a late drive home... with Beaver and Duck traffic both fighting their way back to Portland. It was a long drive, but we had fun chatting with Kendal, stopped for a top-notch Mexican dinner, and learned what a nutria is... I never knew there was such a creature!

Game 4: vs. Arizona State at Arizona State

This game was fun for a different reason. We were invited to the Oregon Ducks Desk Calendar Launch Party at Buffalo Gap in Portland because Justin has a painting on the April 27th, 2011 page. :)

Pretty cool right? We watched the Oregon State game at the restaurant but left in time to get home and watch the Duck game at home. Can you tell we don't like being in a crowded place while trying to watch a game on tv? :) We snagged four calendars before we left to hand out to family and such... it was a fun little excursion before the game.

I don't remember the game being anything special, a bit scary at times, but in the end we won, and that's all that matters right! :)

Game 5: vs. Stanford at home

This is a BIG game... so big that Gameday is in town for it. Gameday starts at 6am here on the West Coast. Because I worked at the restaurant the night before, we didn't even get into town till 1am. I couldn't justify getting up three and a half hours later to head out with the Gameday crew, so I slept in and watched it on tv instead. We did head to the stadium early though. It was a perfect weather day, no rain and no heat... just perfect fall weather!

Program cover: Jeff Maehl

Got a great picture of the Duck in the tunnel this time. The team comes through the Mo Center before each game. You can cheer and do your high-fiving.... it is so fun to see the guys all dressed up and ready for the big game!

I gave Coach Kelly a high five before the game... and LaMichael James... Pretty sure this is good luck! :)

Gameday...

Game time... we are finally given a tough opponent, and I am scared. Just want this big game to end with a win!

Our pre-game photo shoot... lovely

Turns out, it was a good one... with a few big plays to turn the game around, we pulled it off with style!

Rushing the field for the first time in 2010!

Gameday does their after game show on the field... right in front of us... pretty fun game. Doesn't get much better than this!

Game 6: vs. Washington State at Washington State
We watched the game at home... it was in Pullman... no desire to take that drive... my back was hurt again (similar story as last year for this game. It was the only home game I have missed in the four seasons I have had a ticket.)
Not too scared about this game, but I was worried about possible injuries... and boy was I right.
We lost a few key players to injuries in this game... one long-term. Reminds me of the yucky side of such a contact sport.

Game 7: vs. UCLA at home
Weather was chilly, with possible rain... and it rained
It was a Thursday game... what a pain to have to rush out of work and onto the freeway for a couple hours of stressful traffic! Ick.
I was again, nervous, but I guess for no reason. It was never a close game and because it was a Thursday, we again left early (I swear, we never left early before this year). After the third quarter they put all of the backups in so we took off.

Program Cover: Casey Matthews

Favorite pre-game photo shoot so far... like my duck earrings? Justin's mom got them for me... so cute! Anything goes at a tailgate... ANYTHING. :)

Number 1 team in the country... the OREGON DUCKS!

First score of the game... you can see LaMichael falling into the end zone if you look reallllly close. :)

A bit later LaMichael (our star) got the wind knocked out of him... you could hear the wind getting knocked out of the crowd when he went down... we were all thrilled to see him stand up and walk off the field!

Pretty one-sided game... again.

So we left after the third quarter... it was a good win for us!

Autzen Stadium at night... what a sight.

So, that's my season so far. Don't you wish you were a fan too? :) I realize this was a long post, and many of you probably didn't get through it. For me, it was a bit of a scrapbooking project so that I don't forget the details before I get to the actual scrapbooking. To those of you who did make it through... thanks for entertaining my football obsession... looking forward to a scary game down at USC. This is one of those games that will stress me out all week long... Gameday will be there again because it is a big one.... GOOOO DUCKS!

cutest... thing... ever

2010-10-07T18:40:00.000-07:00

So I was just clicking around online and found this... I can't remember being so in love with something so instantly... isn't it just the cutest thing ever? Hey Justin... this hint is for you... :)

Found on Etsy... of course... Odettenewyork's shop

Good Luck Necklaces

2010-10-03T19:59:00.000-07:00

So, after a few years of wearing these necklaces to the University of Oregon games, I am going to sell them. So many people ask me at games where it came from... how can they get one... and now I have an answer. I of course have made a hundred different versions of this... in all forms... but this one is where I am starting for now on etsy. Check it out... and if you want one, let me know!

I made a tie... yup... a tie

2010-09-28T20:52:00.000-07:00

I saw this picture flash on my mom's screen saver the other day and couldn't believe that I had almost forgotten about this day. Yes, I know... a stunner.

I made a tie. A man's tie. And it actually worked! :) My sister found the pattern online, chose the fabric (that matched the wedding colors) and asked if it was possible. Possible, yes. Fun, no. But it got done. Here it is on a more handsome fella... and looking good. That's a nice looking tie, if I do say so myself. Not to mention the stunning bride. :)

Owl fabric update...

2010-09-26T22:52:00.000-07:00

I wanted to update you on my cute owl fabric and what I was making. Here they are, invitations for my sister's upcoming baby shower. Aren't they cute! (I removed some of the personal info... due to the whole world wide web factor :) Anyways, I love the fabric that my sister found and requested for the shower, and I love what I did with it. Aren't the little fabric pockets just the cutest? I love the different textures too. The card that the invite is on is wooden... yup... wood. It is so cool to have that texture added in with the whole owl theme. :) I also did a little stitching on the envelope so that they fit nice and snug. I liked that whole texture thing as well... I hope the post office didn't mind. :) So there you have it. Now, onto the decorations!

Rolodex Update

2010-09-13T19:10:00.000-07:00

Well, after a lot of web surfing I found what I was looking for on etsy... love that place for both hand crafted and vintage items.

Now, I need to track down a punch for the holes. Found one on ebay... the auction ends in a few days.

Looking forward to my Rolodex's arrival. Better start cutting papers up soon... This should be fun!

Something is in the works....

2010-09-12T21:29:00.000-07:00

So, I spent some time creating a bit today in between family gatherings for both Justin's family and mine. I can't show you any details because I want it to be finished before showing you... so for now, I am just going to show a clue... I love this fabric... and you will never guess what I am making with it. :)

Today's inspiration...

2010-09-09T17:57:00.000-07:00

So, Justin is off to Scott's for the night to watch the first night of NFL football... I am not knocking the NFL season at all... I am actually a football fan, but it's the first week of school and I needed some inspiration and down time instead. :)

I started my searching at Craft Warehouse and was lucky to find a 40% off one item coupon waiting at the door for each and every person that enters. That NEVER happens there so I felt quite lucky. Found a couple things on sale that I just couldn't live without and got the Tim Holtz tiny attacher at 40% off that I have wanted for a long time... it has teeny tiny staples and I love them.

Came home and started searching some blogs... I also love getting lost in the blog world these days. In my searches I found this...

It got me started thinking... I could do this... I could also just spend the $60 bucks and have it sent my way... but I have sooo much paper that I am pretty sure I could pull something like this off. I also found this great blog... with an idea for guiding wedding guests to the correct table here...

using free downloadable printable papers here and free downloadable printable maps here...

Here are the cute and colorful cards she made.

And then... grand finale... I found this on ebay... awesome... and it looks heavy... just what I need around here... more bulk. :)

Wow... this would make my job sooo much easier, but I really don't need to spend the money... I get it. But could I make lots of them... give them as gifts.... probably. But then I remember, that most people don't like stuff that clutters up their counters and desks as much as I do. Most people don't like PAPER as much as I do. Most people don't like colors and rainbow ordering as much as I do... and most people actually use their computerized address books... unlike I do... (yup... it's true... all of my contacts are still written in an actual paper address book :)

So, thus ends my inspiration for now... Now... what should I make tonight???

First Day Wishes...

2010-09-07T22:10:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the first official day of school... and not just the official first day for me in the 2010-2011 school year, but for so many of my preschoolers it is going to be their first day as well. Their first day of hopefully years and years of education. This seems like a very straight forward thing to say, but I think that some years, I forget and I focus more on how I am feeling about the change of schedules the night before rather than focusing on them. For this special day in so many little lives, I wish I can offer the following:

~ A safe place to feel happy, scared, nervous, thrilled, overwhelmed, and excited.

~ A wonderful look at what fun learning can be.

~ A space to meet a new friend... whether it be a friend for the year, or a friend for life... (I have those you know:).

~ A place to make art... to create... to find self confidence through making stuff :)

~ A place to sing and dance like no one is watching... and hopefully love every second of it.

~ A place to feel confident and loved by their teachers... and know that we are good friends to have.

~ A space where making noise is not only embraced, but often encouraged. :)

~ A smiling and comforting face and set of words to make even the most scared more at ease.

~ A set of simple boundaries and rules that everyone can follow and feel pride in following.

~ A really really fun day that they are really looking forward to having more of.

Tomorrow is a big day for us all. I can't wait to meet my classes as a whole. I know many of the kids, but don't know yet how they will interact as a group. It is always such a busy day and I am truly looking forward to it. Good luck to all of you kids (and parents) out there. Please know that your kiddos are in good hands. :)

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

We are ready...

2010-09-06T22:52:00.000-07:00

We are ready... bring it on first day of school... I truly can't wait :)

A different way to look at things...

2010-08-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

Love this... and love all of the birds throughout... :)

Newest Project

2010-07-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

So... about three weeks ago, a friend led me to a blog about refinishing old crappy furniture. I searched the blog for days while on vacation and was determined to find something I could try the process on. About a week ago, I stopped in at Goodwill and found a crappy old nightstand that clearly no body wanted. It had been marked down at Goodwill and there was still a garage sale sticker on it as well from the previous owners. I pushed it to the front and had an employee help me get it into my car. Despite the fact that it was old, ugly, and ruined... it is SOLID wood, so quite heavy. I picked up this number for $4.99... I figured, worst case scenario... I make it uglier and return it to Goodwill in the end. Here are before photos:

It has two drawers... I had just already taped on of them off when I took the photos.

The top was especially bad... red paint splatters and totally scratched up.

So, in this blog... the lady talks about not really doing any sanding. I love this philosophy.... I HATE SANDING! But I did sand the top down just a bit... It was in horrible shape. The day I really wanted to get started on the project, it was raining... SO... because I can't wait to do anything... I taped drop cloths all around my front porch and did the priming there. I used KILZ primer... no sanding... and it worked like a dream. Two days later... after it stopped raining and I was able to track down the right color spray paint... I took it out back and sprayed the heck out of it this lovely green color. I used Krylon paint... the blog suggests that you use the standard Krylon, but I used some latex version because it was the only green I liked. It wasn't the best paint (because it's better for you and the environment actually), but it did work in the end. After the green, I took it inside and did a glazing technique on it. I have never done this before, but it was indeed easy (as promised on the blog) and it turned out STUNNING! Here are some after photos:

What do you think?

Worth the $4.99 price tag and the paint costs for sure.

Looks good... and the cats like it too... good outdoor viewing.

Now I need to find some good handles for the drawers... I am thinking something like this:

My problem has been being able to find the right size... I am keeping my eyes open and can't wait to finish off the project.

Moral of the story: I LOVE this new trick... if anyone needs/wants a new end table or little piece of furniture to add some character to any room I would totally give this a try... or if you don't want to try... I'd be happy to do it for you... for a fee that is. :)

Happy recycling... ~Erin

a promise

2010-06-25T01:50:00.000-07:00

So, I just made a deal with myself that I would get on here, and post the most recent photo in my iphoto... (keeping in mind I haven't downloaded any of of my cameras in several weeks) and this is what I found.

No, one of my preschoolers did NOT draw this for me... I drew it myself. Yup... don't be too jealous... Justin is a bit worried that I might take over his gig... what do you think?

It's hard to really tell which one is better.

This brings me to a few things to update you all... (if anyone even bothers to check anymore... )

First of all, my photo is drawn a the new ipad... not mine sadly, but on Justin's sister's ipad. It is an amazing toy and I love it. Stacey (Justin's sister) is doing some amazing things with it... check out her new blog that is linked to mine here called iPad Sketchbook. Nice work Stacey!

Also, Justin's painting here is just the beginning of great things in his studio. If you are an Oregon Ducks fan at all, or plan to go to a football game this year just for fun... pick up a program and take a good hard look at the cover because each and every game this year there will be a new painting on the program cover. :) I am so very proud of him getting this great opportunity and I can't wait to see what he creates. And the good news is, that if he gets too busy and can't finish in time, I might be able to help him out a bit. :)

Thanks for checking back in... I do realize my last post is in reference to something that happened six months ago. :(

December Daily: Part 2

2010-03-23T21:26:00.000-07:00

Yes kids, I know it is approaching April, however I made a promise to myself that I WAS going to finish this album, no matter how much I wanted to put my holiday scrapbooking supplies away, I didn't, and about two weeks ago, I DID finish this album and I wanted to share. Because I love it! This is why I was persistent in finishing it... because I knew it would become a quick favorite and I can't wait for the day that I get to read back through it and realized how holidays have changed for us, or not. :) Now, at the last post, I had finished up to day 7... months ago I worked my way up to day 17, and then finally I focused on it for an entire weekend and now it is sitting upon my shelf and looking ever so wonderful knowing that it is full of writing, stories, and photos. Makes me smile just thinking about it. Now for the photos... enjoy.

Day 8: Don't worry, it's not you, it's just blurry... it was so cold this night that the camera just wasn't working right and the poor guy at the tree place had already taken his gloves off for this picture, I couldn't bear to make him try to take another one... so I just printed it this way pretending it was "supposed to be this way" :)

Day 9: Frozen bits of water on my window from inside my car that morning... cool picture... this was our "in the teens" days we had... brrrrr

Day 9: Printed out the forecast because it was so impressive... then put it on the back of the Starbucks cup that Cheri brought to work for me... yummy... *As a side note... I miss real coffee in a BAD way...

Day 10: Used a template in Photoshop Elements for this one... makes it really easy to get everything to fit just the way you want it... then typed with the typewriter around the edges... love the way it turned out.

Day 11: Just couldn't resist taking pictures of these little guys... so colorful... so what I would have wanted as a child. :)

Day 12: I used another Photoshop template here and I just love the ways you can make it work for you... you can keep it simple and very white or you can add paper and such (like I did) to make it more colorful. Please look at the photos here... especially the one of Andre at the bottom... he he he

Day 13: One of my favorite additions to the decor this year... love these snowflakes... no really I love these snowflakes. Every year for the past three, I have bought snowflakes and returned them because they were horrible... these totally pass my test... and they are 3D. :)

Day 14: This is a bunch of little details all packed into one lovely divided page protector. Please ignore the blurred face... it's of one of my preschoolers and I don't want to post photos without parent permission... (Carrie, I hope the little Keirra face I have here and there is okay with you. :)

Day 15: More of the same... (Kathy, same story. ) I love how I used the date stamp on a letter I kept because it was addressed to both Justin and I (in the same house) and then highlighted it with a little sparkly bracket sticker... (bottom left)

Day 16: This is a transparent overlay that I did the journaling on and it lifts to show the picture of what I am talking about.

Day 17: Another divided page protector. I just found little bit and pieces from this day and made them fit... I love keeping tags from my shopping expeditions and love that I was able to use a very blurry picture regardless of it's blurriness. :)

Day 17 Back: More of the divided page protector... love that my facebook status from that night fits right down the side there.

Day 18: Painted a chipboard page for this one... then added a bit of stitching on my sewing machine for some detail... I also love the library date stamp I used for the date. It's the little things that get my scrapbooking self excited.

Day 19: I used an overlay in Photoshop Elements from Ali Edwards on this one. It was a new thing for me and I think it turned out pretty well.

Day 19 page 2: This is another Digital template... I didn't journal all of those little words, it is "The Night Before Christmas" story written out. I wrote my actual journaling on a paper I added after printing and after I adhered another paper on the back (to create a finished page) I used a border punch down the right hand side for some texture and such.

I have had this Holiday Time transparency for so long and have never found the right way to use it... I found my way and I love the result. It is sitting over a canvas page in the album that I stitched this photo to with the sewing machine.

Day 20: Because this page of the album is made out of canvas, I again had to do some stitching because I just can't find any other way to adhere things very well onto canvas. I used a transparency to make a large pocket and added all of those little things from this day as well as a large journaling page. I like the little details on this page... the paperclip with ribbon, the large felt snowflake, and the metal "20".

Day 21: Another clear page, so I found the right number, put a metal frame around it, added another little felt detail and journaling... in order to make the number 21 stand out at all, I but a plain colored paper behind it and although it is not directly adhered to the clear acrylic page, it is attached together with the eyelets used on each page to keep them from ripping when they are turned.

Day 22: More to say, and another paper that I had to find the right number and highlight it. You can't really tell, but the 22 on this page is circled with a silvery bracket. I love word stickers... especially to cover up errors while journaling... see right side of journal page about half way down... oops. :)

Day 22 cont.: Another digital template... showcasing all of the many photos of that day.

Day 23: Simple journaling... it was a busy day of work... so no photos taken. The working day and making of money though reminded me of a favorite holiday movie... so....

Here it is... I found the Golden Book "Mickey's Christmas Carol" at Goodwill and just had to get it, I cut out my favorite page and journaled my thoughts... a great addition to the scrapbook for less than $1... I love this page even though it has no photos.

Day 24: There were so many photos for this day, so I ended up gluing some back to back and just adding them in.

Another divided page protector, with bits of life, photos, and an embellishment here and there.

One photo... (of Scott and I) was too big, but I really wanted to use it... so I cut it in half and put them side by side.... I think it worked out.

Day 25: Christmas morning... again, lots of photos to use so I did a little of everything... here is just a normal scrapbook page,

Here is another digital template to make it simple and be able to have lots of photos on one page... (sorry this photo is blurry)

Then I did a divided page protector with my Blazers ticket from that night sew in (because it kept falling out)

I love that I had both Justin's and my ticket to the game so that I could put them back to back... and then I added a card from one of my gifts up in the top right and a BEAUTIFUL photo of the outside of my parents gorgeously lit home.

I finished it off with one last canvas page... I sewed a picture of the tree at my parents house before we opened our gifts and typed some journaling onto a little card that I also adhered with some stitching.

For the last page, I created one last pocket to put all of those little things from Christmas morning... notes from my mom and sister and a note I put in one of Justin's gifts... just those little things I couldn't throw away and I know will make me smile some later date.

So when it was all finished, I FINALLY was able to put it into the canvas album I bought for it. I used some wire twine instead of the ribbons it came with and it worked out very well. It is strong, easy to work with, and holds really nicely, even with page turning. Because the book was so floppy and awkward, I did have to add a little belt to hold the pages together nicely when it is on the shelf.

And for a little added flair, I used an Ali Edwards idea and put a key and a little "believe" tag on the outside as somewhat of a label for the book on the shelf. I Love how it turned out after being all put together.

So that's it. So sorry it was such a long post... I hope at least SOMEONE made it all the way through. I do plan on doing this again next year, even if it takes me until April to get it done. :)

In the spirit of Spring....

2010-03-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

Spent the evening at Big Al's with the boys, but headed out early to spend some down time in the scrapbook room before going to bed. I have been wanting to create a little something along these lines for a month or two and tonight I finally sat down and did it.

Isn't it the cutest flock of birds you ever saw? I love it... it will be up for the spring season and will probably be re-worked for other holidays. This is one of Martha Stewart's Collector Boxes... it opens up, has a fabric hinge at the top and I just basically set this piece of paper with all of the birds I punched out with a punch and tacked onto it in there... no adhesive needed on the large paper... just foam squares on each bird... this way the entire creation can be pulled out and I can do another version of something in there later. Makes me happy to have little crafty bits throughout the house. :)

Happy Spring all.

Hockey Fan

2010-02-27T19:21:00.000-08:00

Okay... so if you've seen the last post, this is just more of the same... but it's just so funny! What is it about the olympics that gets us all so excited... :)

Whoa... what do we have here?

Can't keep my eyes off of it...

Ready to pounce...

And right about now... we are happy that Puma's front paws are declawed... (this is not the only time we have been thankful for this... I am thankful for this on a daily basis and so are my other cats.)

She is actually trying to catch each hockey player... crazy cat. So once the olympics are over... what are we to do? Last night she was watching bobsledding too... strange. I was told maybe meerkat manor would be a good choice... we shall see. :)

Olympic Fan

2010-02-26T00:21:00.000-08:00

So, lately Justin and I have noticed that someone besides us is really enjoying the Olympics.

I have had this cat for I guess about eight years or so now... and although she is quite the trouble maker at heart, I have NEVER seen her give a rip about the computer screen or tv. Turns out, she loves it! It has given us fits of laughter over the last couple weeks. I can't tell you how funny it is to watch her so into what is going on. A couple of days ago she watched, actually watched an entire you tube video about a scrapbooking club I am a part of. It was the oddest thing I think I have ever seen her do... and I've seen her do a LOT of odd things. :)

Her new thing is to sit in front of the computer screen and watch the cursor put up words and bat the little hand off of the screen. She will swat at bouncing icons at the bottom of my screen and basically just likes to be right here... in the way. :)

So bottom line, it's incredibly entertaining right now, but I think she needs her own recliner or something, because standing right in front of the TV is not only annoying to others, it's bad for your eyes... right??? :)

So for now, we will just laugh and hope she decides to sit here more often to watch her shows...

... and if she won't watch TV after the Olympics, we will only assume she is a fan of winter sports... she is after all, a "snowy" bengal. :)

Meow!

Photoshop Love

2010-02-15T17:32:00.000-08:00

So, today there was no school, so I had a lot of time at my computer. Not only did I work on my 365 day project, photos later tonight or tomorrow... but I also did a page from Valentine's Day/ Chinese New Year last night AND worked with my first photoshop template that has more than four photos. Here is what I created... I LOVE it! (oh, and I got to print it 12 x 12 on my new printer :)

So, about this diet change...

2010-02-15T11:04:00.000-08:00

Many of you have been hearing about my diet switch, but haven't gotten the chance to hear about what exactly I am doing beside torturing myself. :) About three weeks ago I went and saw a naturopath. She was amazing. We talked for nearly two hours about life, my expectations, and my general routines. I have been having arthritis tendencies in my hands and feet for a while now. It won't seem to go away on it's own, so I had to try something drastic. Turns out, what we put into our bodies, determines how our bodies work and perform (shocker :) so the plan is to remove all of the "stressor foods" from my diet for a while and then slowly add them back in one at a time. Now, the "stressor foods" for my situation are food that commonly cause inflammation. These are:
all animal milks
all animal cheeses
all corn products
potatoes
tomatoes
commercial eggs (organic eggs are ok)
all wheat products
white flour
breads
citrus
all fruit juices
all dried fruit
peanuts
processed foods
fried foods
grain-fed meat
shellfish
caffeine
alcohol
and finally... SUGAR

Here are a few bags of stuff I CAN eat... honestly, I agree, it looks and frankly some of it IS birdseed. I give you flax seeds, whole oats, quinoa, pinto beans, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, basmati rice, and probably something else I have forgotten. :)

So, initially I was somewhat in shock. Although it is a list of a mere 20 things... these things are in almost EVERYTHING I have ever eaten. The hardest part about it has been the little things... even in things like organic hummus or mayo, there is citrus. In dressings and sauces there is often a bit of sugar or lime juice. I used to live for fruit snacks or dried fruits rather than chocolate and I miss that like crazy. It's strange to only be able to have water to drink... (although I sneak tea every morning (my sister says it's ok)... it's not my cup of coffee, but it works for now).

Over the last two weeks I had to frost 24 cupcakes for Justin's birthday and 65 cookies for the kids on Valentine's day... and not lick my fingers... YIKES.

We used to go out to eat a lot and have basically had to stop doing that for now. (although for Valentine's day last night we went to Eastland and I got the sauteed string beans with brown rice... I am sure that there was some sugar in the sauce they used, but I did my best. :) That trip out to eat last night was the first time I (assume) I have cheated at all... I've actually been very good.

Now I have to give credit where credit is due... if it wasn't for Justin being around... I may have starved by now. He has been my saving grace this last two weeks. Making things from scratch and removing the bits of sugar and citrus for me. It has been a true blessing.

Last Sunday we went to the store and then came home and worked in the kitchen for a couple of hours.

He made me homemade hummus, pesto, chicken noodle soup, and some amazing chicken salad. It was the best set of meals I have had in a long time and none of it was bad for me. :) Not to mention that morning he made a batch of gluten-free oatmeal for me to have for breakfasts for a few days.

So, bottom line, this diet change is not fun... but it has been interesting and an amazing learning experience. In two more weeks I will begin to add things back into my diet and see how it effects me. I am both looking forward to this and dreading it at the same time. What if my body hates cheese? Oh the dread. :{

I will leave you with an array of images of my food from the last couple weeks... bon appetit!

Organic eggs, zucchini, spinach, peppers, spices

Carrots, blueberries, rice crackers and water. A snack I brought to a scrapbooking class.

Basmati rice with spices, and organic string beans. (a standard favorite even before the diet switch:)

Peppers, spinach, zucchini, rice noodles, and homemade pesto... yummmmy!

Homemade hummus... perfect with rice crackers and makes even Wasa crackers taste good. :)

Justin's famous Chicken salad... adapted for my diet. Hands down favorite meal so far! He has had to make two batches so far in the last week. :)

And this is my creation... leading you again to take my word for it when I tell you I would starve without Justin. This is a brown rice cake with almond butter, raw honey and bananas. Looks better than it tastes, but it works.

Love and Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T15:19:00.000-08:00

So, for a very long time I have been clicking on my own blog to see if someone else had updated it for me ( he he)... unfortunately no one has been quite so ambitious. I have been hung up on getting the rest of my December Daily finished and posted on here. I had some trouble getting it done on the actual days in December, (instead, I made sure to journal each night so that I could do it later) but I have taken several days in Jan and Feb and I am up to day 18 I think. I will wait until it is finished to post.

Ironically, despite the lack of creative blog posts, I have done more crafting in the last month or so than I have in quite a while. I had a bit of an anxiety bout right at the new year, I found it to be the most soothing to get into the craft room and get a few things done. Not only am I determined to finish the December Daily this year, but I also chose to embark on a 365 day project this year. I have the first five weeks done and the last week is in the works. On paper it seems like a huge commitment, but honestly, I think it has taken a bit of the "keeping up with my scrapbooking" burden off of me for now. This 365 project is fairly simple, you can put as much or as little time into it as you would like. And at the end of the day, it gives me a home for all those little thing that I routinely hang onto like ticket stubs, receipts, and notes from life. I will post photos of this project as well.

For now, I wanted to share my morning with you all. I woke up a bit late, as I found myself on the couch at 4am with the Olympics still on. I slept through most of it, but I did manage to wake up just in time to see an American win the gold. :) When I woke up, I grabbed my tea, sat at the computer and settled in. Now, about a week ago I had gone to Goodwill and found a Precious Moments Golden Book called The Wonder of Easter. I grew up with Precious Moments figurines, stuffed critters, and books. They bring some cozy and peaceful feelings with them. So when I saw this book, I just knew it would be worth the 99 cents. Today was the day, I found my favorite page that happened to be covered in hearts and made a little something for my parents to leave at their house as a Valentine's gift. Here it is...

I often put off starting a frame, even if I have a great idea and visual, but today I went for it when the idea came to me and I am so in love with the result. The picture is of my new niece Laila at about two weeks old. I was SO pleased to get such a wide-eyed maybe even a little smile photo of her and my mom... makes me smile.

So, Happy Valentine's Day all! I am so lucky to be surrounded by love in my life... thanks to all of you for that. :)

December Daily: Part 1

2009-12-14T16:50:00.000-08:00

Last December I started following a tradition of many other scrapbookers out there called the December Daily. The concept again leads back to my favorite scrapbooking guru, Ali Edwards. The goal is that each day in December, you make/take the time to create one page to add into a mini book, that eventually turns into an entire album dedicated to celebrating each little part of the holiday season. Last year my album went pretty well up until about the 22nd or so of December... then I got so busy that it just became too much... I have everything I need to finish it, the journaling is done, the pictures are printed... but it has sat that way for a year. :( This year I decided to try again, and although I will admit that I haven't been doing the day's page on the actual day, I am keeping good notes, journaling each night, and playing catch-up whenever I can. So, this weekend I got some catching up done and took photos of days 1-7 to share with you. HOPEFULLY the rest of the days will follow... I hope you enjoy. :)
Day one:

A couple close-ups of Day one:

Back of Day One:

Day Two:

Day Three: The Civil War!

Day Four:

Day Five: Blazer Game!

I had to do a lot of sewing on this one because the background page is one thick piece of felt... nothing would really stick to it very well. Turns out I really love the stitching... I plan to do more of it. :)

Rest of Day Five:

Day Six:

Rest of Day Six: I used my new to me (very old) typewriter to journal this day. I was so very excited to use this new tool of mine and I LOVE the way it turned out. Here is a picture of my new tool

I think it is the coolest thing ever. I got it on ebay and had it refurbished at a great shop in Portland called Blue Moon Camera... they did a fantastic job (considering it was all bent up and didn't work at all before I brought it to them... and they charged me $50 to totally fix it up to perfection... love it :) And here is a picture of Day Six part two:

And here is a close-up of the amazingly awesome typewriter font:

And finally, Day Seven... the other side of the pocket page filled with photos and stories of this day. This used to just be a plain canvas page, but I sewed transparencies onto either side to create pockets... not my original idea... but love the look regardless. :)

So everyone... that is it for now. I hope to post more soon and more than that I hope to get this year's December Daily done BEFORE next December. :)

Happy Holidays... I hope you are enjoying them as much as I am. :)

A new creation

2009-12-13T14:29:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to show you a few of my newest creations... I love these and so did the people who received them... thanks for the inspiration ladies... without you I would have had no reason to create such wonderful frames. :)

Fantastic Font Find

2009-11-23T22:07:00.000-08:00

I know many of you are budding crafty folk. You've thought about doing a little something here and there, but it just seems like too much work to make it look cute right? Well, I have recently become a huge fan of keeping it as simple as it can be. The point is to tell a story right, so don't worry about not having the money for scrapbook supplies. Simply grab any sheet of scrapbook paper, and photo 4 x 6 or larger, and sit down at your computer to type. Tell a story. And then, when you are done getting it all out, check out this site. Quickutz font equivalents. It's really an easy simple way to jazz up a written bit of info. It's got some of the hottest fonts out there that go with the really expensive quickutz fonts... but most of them have a FREE equivalent. It's been so much fun. Not only because I am one of those crazy people that have a lot of the actual quickutz, but because it makes things look so pretty and jazzed up with very little effort. Try it. Free, fun, and EASY! Tell a story today and get a little info off your shoulders and onto some paper for someone to read years down the road. I hope to post a photo of a page that I have done this with very soon. Happy crafting and story telling. :)

2009-11-17T23:18:00.000-08:00

Today I wanted to talk a bit about the importance of friendships. Through our years we have friends that come and go... we have friends that we have had for many years and develop slowly, and then we also have short friendships that become very deep very quickly... some friendships seem to stay at the acquaintance level and some friendships are what keep us afloat when we just feel like sinking.

This entry isn't to point out who is who in my life, it is just to say that I am thankful for all of my friends. Every type of relationship, every type of friend... to each of you I am eternally thankful. I know that you are there if I am down, if I need to talk, or if I need to tell you the best of news. For this I cannot find any other words except Thank You.

To those of you who are friends of mine, if you need a friend in me, in any way I haven't seemed to find, remember to ask, or to yell, or to stop by, or to ask me to come over, or to grab me by the face and tell me. I promise to listen. I appreciate that I may not always be as tuned in as necessary, but today I am stepping back to say that I am here...

I AM HERE.

Love you my ladies. xoxo

Journal a bit

2009-11-16T23:01:00.001-08:00

For those of you who read my post a few weeks ago... you will know what I am talking about. To the rest of you, look back a few posts...

I have been taking part in an online class given by Ali Edwards and it has been so much fun to explore my memories in this way. As much as I love scrapbooking, I have done little to really tell any version of my story that would really be useful to anyone 50 years from now. My goal with this class is to get some of it out... to tell some of the stories that I have held in my memory bank. So many of my memories I'm sure are tainted by childhood fogginess, by the desire to forget, or by just plain forgetting. But I do find that many of my memories are fairly accurate. This first set of stories are just "from childhood". My mom after reading them seemed to think they were "mostly accurate"... so I'm okay with that. Regardless of the exact details, the thing that matters is "what I remember" and how it effected me and the memory I have of it.

I had so much fun telling these stories... it was time consuming yes, but what a great feeling it is to know that at least these six stories will always be documented... for years to come. It's really a strangely peaceful feeling. Even with no children to worry about passing them down to, I've got to believe that someone someday will care. :)

My next pages are going to document a particularly difficult event in my life (and frankly many other lives). I have already begun the journaling portion and it has been so very healing for me. This thing that happened nearly 15 years ago can still make me cry, it has honestly impacted me nearly every day of my life and it has been healing to deal... to write about it... to feel that pain again... and be grateful for what it has done to influence my life in a positive fashion despite all of the pain involved. I will unveil the pages soon enough, for now I need to get it all out. Just after journaling a bit about it last night, I felt a little lighter this morning. It feels good to face those things that we maybe never dealt with... even 15 years later... it feels good to find the positive in the pain.

Well, that is it for now... and if you do one thing this week... journal a bit... I know we have all been told before that it is helpful... I'm here to tell you yet again... it is. :)

Crazy Love

2009-11-16T17:23:00.000-08:00

I am just loving a new CD. Just thought I would share how it just makes me feel good. It's warm, cozy, and everything that it is NOT outside here these days. Check it out... Michael Bublé's Crazy Love.

*Thank you Justin for finding this CD for me... even if he is not your favorite. :)

Old friends

2009-11-11T14:30:00.000-08:00

This last weekend, Justin and I headed up to Seattle for a wedding of a friend of his. His name is Jason and I had never met him. I had also never met the whole group of Justin's "Seattle friends" before this day. It was such a treat to get to meet each one of these wonderful people that I have heard stories about for years. I got to meet the guy who knows how to catch a opossum by the tail, and I got the meet the guy who got the opossum put into his room while sleeping (the groom) many years ago. I got to know the guy who wanted Justin to do a painting of him riding on an eagle wearing chaps and holding two six-shooters. And I got to hear some stories that Justin had neglected to tell me such as a hole in a house they lived in getting spackled shut after a spaghetti dinner was thrown into the wall. Yes, you read it right... spaghetti got spackled INTO the wall. It's hard to believe these guys have survived so long, but love that they have survived it all together. Oh lovely college days.

During the wedding I had sent a text message to my own college roommates because not only was I being reminded of my own college years at this wedding, but it just so happened that the best man had a shocking resemblance to Jack from the show Dawson's Creek which we watched every single Wednesday night all together in college. It was sortof our thing at our college house and we did everything in our power to all be together for this hour every week. I got a text back from Kara first... I wanted to know if she could meet up with us after the wedding but she wasn't feeling well... :( Sad we missed you lady. Then I got a text back from Kim saying that she has just landed in Seattle (she now lives in D.C.) and wanted to have coffee in the morning. YIPPY! I hadn't see her in years, since a wedding in California, and what a wonderful treat it was.

The next morning we got together for brunch and her and I talked and talked and talked about so many things old and new. I love the way she sees the world. I love that she is so driven in career and success. I love that she can turn any horrible situation into something you can learn from. I love that she can listen as well as she can speak. I love that her hug is so sincere. I love that she can laugh at even the horrible stuff yet have such a honest kind heart at her core. I love that she remembers things I told her ten years ago. I love that she is genuinely excited to see me as well, and I love that she is happy for me. I loved everything about this chance meeting and feel like I could have stayed at that restaurant for ten more hours visiting. About two hours in Justin came for a visit and they hit it off great. I am so glad I sent that silly text message and so glad that she was in town. Lets hope another four or five years doesn't go by without seeing eachother again. Thank you Kim for being one of those amazing people in my life. Despite the fact that we don't see eachother or even talk to eachother very often, I want you to know that you are very special to me and I cherish our friendship.

Intro...

2009-10-22T20:34:00.000-07:00

Here is page number one of my current project. Just making this first page has been so much fun and so rewarding. I'm hoping to get more done this weekend. Stay tuned.

Amazing...

2009-10-20T23:49:00.000-07:00

These last few weeks I have embarked on a class from Ali Edwards (my scrapbooking idol) and begun and amazing journey through my life in pictures. I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it has been to do that thing that we all think about doing but rarely get done... scanning those old photos. Now if your life is anything like mine, getting those old photos out of your parents hands and into your own is the first challenge... (love you mom:) After that it is still quite the chore, but I have never had more fun at a chore. I started with the big family albums... mostly professional photos and larger prints... then started in on the little 4x6 photos, 3x5 photos, and the most fun of all, the 3x3 photos. It is AMAZING how much a few photos can bring back to your mind. I saw toys I haven't thought about in years, but knew the names of immediately. I saw a doll that I knew was named Sarah... but didn't know why I even knew that until I saw it was written on the back of the photo. I saw some looks of my Dad's that I never knew existed :) and I have seen love between my siblings and I squeezing and hugging as children that is rarely shown in photographs later in life. :) It has been such a treat to have access to these memories and I thank my parents for doing such a wonderful job documenting my life and keeping things organized (enough) to find everything I am looking for. I look forward to what this scrapbooking class will bring me. I look forward to the stories that are brought to the surface and the memories I make simply in creating this album for myself. What a wonderful treat and gift this will be to a future generation... or simply to myself... whenever it is finished. I will leave you with a sampling of photos... enjoy. :)

Kevin and I

Best dollhouse ever!

My Dad and I

My Mom and I

Anyone know who is with me in this photo???

Shannon and I

A Reive Family classic... seriously.

And that's all for now... stay tuned for more... That's All Folks! :) (dork)

What a Shutterfly evening

2009-09-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

Well, I just spent hours upon hours sorting, uploading, cropping, selecting, editing, you name it on Shutterfly. I just love that site. If you've never done anything on this site and you are a picture fan like me... listen up. I have been using them for a couple years now and have found that they truly are the best. You get free stuff all of the time and my favorite part about them is that they allow you to use numerous offer codes all at once. For instance... tonight I got 50 print free for ordering a photo book a while back, a free 7 by 9 photo book (offer code READYMADEBOOK) that I did up with all of the pictures from April's Bridal shower, three free holiday photo cards (offer code 3FREECARDS), and then I have a 10 cent per photo plan through them so I ordered all of my summer vacation photos through them tonight too (319 of them :) and because I ordered over $30 of prints, my entire order shipped for free. So... I spent $30 tonight and got a photo book, 369 prints, and 3 photo cards! That's amazing. You can't beat that even at Costco. :)

So, I didn't write this just to brag about my good deal, but to share the good news, AND show upload a few amazing pictures I found along the way tonight. Enjoy. And if I can offer a word of advice tonight, check out Shutterfly (or another photo site) and get those pictures off your computer and in your hands. Its much better when they are right there and available to frame or scrapbook RIGHT NOW! Looking forward to my upcoming package. :)

This first set of photos is from this last Spring Break when my entire family was all able to take a vacation to Disney World. Who really knows when the next time we will be able to take such a trip all together... that's what made this so very special to us all.

This next set of photos is from our trip to the beach for April's Bachelorette Party. Those of you who read an earlier post of mine saw one version of this set of pictures. On this day we were playing with both my camera's timer and it's continuous shooting abilities. This is a very small sampling of what we got. :)

And finally, we each took a turn running down a sand dune in a "baywatch" fashion using the continuous shooting... here is both the beginning and end of Kara's run. (forgive me for sharing my dear... but it is just too funny not to. :)

I will spare you the in-betweens...

Here are photos I took when Justin and I went to Pacific City the morning after April's wedding to get a little rest. It was wonderful.

And finally, I leave you with my favorite... Puma. Jumping from the washing machine to her cat tower about six feet away... That's my Puma. :)

Creating... finally

2009-08-29T20:49:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a long summer. I have been shifting, reorganizing and purging all summer. Sadly, I still have a bit of work to do, but it's coming along nicely. I finally downloaded a bunch of photos that I have taken in the last few weeks and wanted to focus on my crafts for a bit. April got married last weekend and I took the opportunity to make a few things for the wedding. Here they are, in case you weren't one of the lucky ones who got to see the goods or got to wear one around your neck. :)

Here are April and André's toasting glasses. They are the first of their kind that I have made, but they really turned out great. My biggest problem is capturing the beauty in pictures. They were gorgeous and were made in all the colors of the wedding. I also made the necklaces for us bridesmaids. April and Kimber came over to help me design them and here they are.

Each necklace was made to match our dresses which were five different colors. It was wonderful to have a little hand in the wedding and it was great to see it turn out so beautiful. This is the necklace I got to wear. I was the pink girl. :)

One of the other things I did were the cake serving utensils. They were just beautiful. Sadly, by the time they were out and used it was dark... I'm not sure they were even seen by many, but I once again just loved getting to help out with the little touches that helped make the day beautiful.

So that's it for now on the creating side of things. I am looking forward to making a few frames in the near future as gifts and then I finally plan on working on the typeset drawer that I plan to fill with pictures for the photo wall I just created. More on that later. :)

I will leave you with the only photo I have to represent April's wedding. Sadly, when you are running around like a crazy lady all day, the camera never makes an appearance. Here are the colors of the wedding, represented in my bouquet. :)

Grrrrrr....

2009-08-16T23:08:00.000-07:00

I am just so angry right now that I could spit. It's too late to call anyone to complain so I just wanted to tell someone (all of you). I was saying goodbye to Justin tonight on my front porch when I notice that my big red star that hangs by my front door is GONE! SToLeN! I am just so mad about it. I spent good money on that star and it has been on my house for years now. I can't believe someone is so horrible that they would do that. (I guess I do believe it... but I can't believe that they have any family or friends)... I want my darn star back and wish I knew who took it so that I could yell at them. :( Okay... I'm done ranting... clearly they must need the star more than I do... but GRRRRR.

What a great day!

2009-08-16T10:19:00.000-07:00

I meant to write last night, but fell asleep on the couch instead. Yesterday was one of those days you just have to remember. There is really no particular reason except that everything just seemed perfect. Justin woke me up with breakfast ready. French toast... yummy. We then watched golf for a couple hours on t.v. and I might have even taken another nap :). We then went to Michael's to purchase frames for some of Justin's artwork that he had reproduced for the house. We had such a wonderful time at Michael's... We went back and forth on what frames would look best and Justin was just so wonderful. I just can't explain what a great mood we were both in. We were there for probably an hour at least just searching the store. Then we went over to the scrapbooking area where he let me look for another 20+ minutes for something that I wanted... no complaints :). From there we went to lunch at Red Robin and had a great time talking. All afternoon Justin was talking about these books he had when he was a kid that taught you how to draw. He decided he needed to find them again and buy them for the children he knows in hopes of inspiring them as well. So we went home and got online to find out who wrote them. He was SOOO excited when he found them online. I can't even tell you how much the thought of these books lit up his face. So, we went over to Borders and found one of the books, then to Barnes and Noble to find another one of the books. For those of you interested they are by Ed Emberley. I'm guessing some of you had them as well. They are pretty cool. After the book stores, we went to TJ Maxx... my favorite and then headed home. Justin made me dinner and we both fell asleep on the couch while watching Saturday Night Live. What a wonderful, relaxing, stress free kind of day. I don't have them very often, so it is worth writing home about. :)

What a weekend!

2009-08-11T22:31:00.001-07:00

Last weekend was such a wonderful time. There are lots of pictures to share and a wonderful story to tell about that first night, but really tonight I just wanted to share a fun picture we took on Sunday after some of the girls had to leave us. :(

The five of us that were still around after Saturday night laid low until just before sunset and we finally took a walk down to the beach. We found an old log and stood it on end to take advantage of my camera's timer. We then proceeded to climb up this dune probably almost 20 times in an attempt to get a good "jumping" picture. Needless to say, it didn't really work. The timing was just never right and although there are many "almost" shots, none were perfect. And then I saw this one. It's one of the last shots while using a continuous mode where the camera took about 5 shots one after the other. This is a moment where we are exhausted from climbing, jumping, crashing, and laughing our butts off when we all landed in a pile. It was so much fun to get to this picture and be pleased with it's imperfect qualities, rather than getting hung up on the imperfections of the other ones. Here we are, thrilled to be here and thrilled to be together. I do wish some of the girls could have stayed longer to be a part of this, but understand that they had to leave. We will do this again soon. We just have to.

Transformation

2009-08-05T23:41:00.000-07:00

I am going to start this whole story tonight and will probably have to finish it later. For those of you who know me or have been to my house, You know that I have pretty much allowed my scrapbooking and crafting habit to take over about 40% of all available space in my house. Both spare bedrooms have been craft rooms for years and for some reason, I still have to work on large projects in either the kitchen or on another folding table that I place in front of the tv. It is ridiculous... I agree... yet I work a certain way... apparently in creative chaos. :)

On a separate note, Justin has agreed to move in with me at the end of the summer. (Thank you Arctic Blast 2008 for causing a water pipe explosion and convincing him that I am not that bad to live with... and that he really isn't THAT allergic to cats after all :) Although Justin doesn't have too much stuff along the lines of furniture and other large objects, he does need an office. And a studio to paint in. To most people, this space wouldn't be too hard to find... but to me... it meant A LOT of shifting, purging, and reorganizing. SO... the day after school got out in June, the race was on. I removed all of the stuff out of my current "scrapbooking room" and re did it. From painting the ceiling and woodwork to learning how to use a mitering saw and refitting all of the floor moulding, it was quite the chore. The only thing that didn't get redone was the carpet... and frankly, I just couldn't spend the extra time with the room empty, nor did I want to spend the money. Here is a before photo of the scrapbooking room as it was for many years.

Yes, the closet is bright green. When I bought the house the choice to paint it such a horrible color was my rebellion to the life of apartment living where everything is always white. Looking back, maybe lime green was the wrong choice. :) Anyways, here is what it looked like before, but really the wood around the door was gross wood colored, stained maybe 6 times over the years. In this picture I had already started painting the woodwork. This room was the original scrapbook room, but the other room had most of my newer stuff, the goal was the combine the two. The sheer amount of stuff that I unloaded from both rooms literally took over the ENTIRE house. The photos are actually too embarrassing to post... it was horrible. The fact that I didn't seriously injure myself is actually amazing.

Well, after I finished this room, and bought an amazing desk from IKEA that I insisted I put together alone (not a wise choice), I started reloading everything. The next picture is from the day I started reloading. It looks different now (more stuff) but it looks amazing and I

can't believe that it all fits! In one room!

So now, it's time to redo what used to be the "frame room" and turn it into Justin's office. I am so excited to get the paint back out and get another room organized and finished. I bought the house four years ago (I think?) and it seems like there are things I thought I would do before I even unpacked that are still undone. It's always something isn't it?

So, that is what I did in June. I will take more pictures soon, now that it is all here and organized and post again soon. Looking at this picture is deceiving because since then I have hung stuff on the walls floor to ceiling and it looks much different, but you get the idea. It feels so good to have an organized space to be creative. I will update later on the next room and how it looks once I get it finished. To be continued...

I'm siiiick... and cornhole

2009-08-02T23:32:00.001-07:00

Okay... so I got home after a wonderful weekend in Brownsville and Eugene and have finally come to terms that I am sick. It is no fun to be sick, and because I don't get sick very often... It sucks even more. I have already blown through (no pun intended) one box of kleenex and have moved onto box #2. Hopefully tomorrow I will wake up feeling better.

On a happier side. This weekend was quite a lot of fun. Even though I did feel ill most of the time. I started the weekend at an antique fair in Brownsville. This is where Justin's parents live. For those of you who aren't familiar, Brownsville is about 25 minutes north of Eugene and is the town that Stand By Me was filmed in. The town still looks the same as it did in the movie. It is the cutest, quaintest, (is that a word?) town that I have visited. It is a trip to walk around and have Justin's parents know pretty much everyone. The antique fair brought me a few good treasures, I will keep you updated on what I do with my finds.

Later in the day, we took part in a cornhole tournament down in Eugene and actually managed to find our way into the winner's bracket for some of it... only to lose dramatically in the end. For those of you who don't know, cornhole is a game I have been introduced to through Justin's friends in Eugene. They have these ramp like things with a hole in them and your job is to toss bean (maybe corn?) bags into the holes from across the yard. There are teams of two and each bag can be worth 1, 2, or 3 points. The points cancel eachother out and in the end you go until one team reaches 15... or sometimes 21. This was my first go at the game and it was very entertaining. I think there were something like 20 teams there and it was quite nice that I actually had at least met most of them. It was good food, good times, and good people. I do wish it hadn't have been so hot, but other than the mild heat stroke... we had a blast.

Here is a shot of the championship game, taken on my cell phone. The hosts of the party won... probably because they actually practice the game of cornhole... rather than just trying their luck at it once a year. :) Good stuff.

We ended the night at Dairy Queen. Funny how a trip at the end of a long day with a bunch of friends to an ice cream shop can bring back so many memories of summer and childhood. It was a blast to have some greasy food and tell crazy stories. It was a good weekend... but I am so glad to be home now that I am officially admitting that I feel terrible. Good night for now.

It's been a long time

2009-07-30T20:28:00.000-07:00

First of all, let me say that I am so surprised that anyone even still bothers checking my blog. It has been about forever since I have written. I am always so bogged down with stuff to do, things like this just fall last on my list. I don't know why that is, because as soon as I start writing, it just feels so good. I just get hung up on the little things. My camera takes quite a while to download these days now that I download directly to a hard drive, and by the time I have the pictures that I want to post downloaded, it's just not as exciting to write about it any more. I don't know... it's a constant struggle.

So, in order to drag myself out of this blogging drought... I just started looking through my many downloaded pictures from the recent past and came across one that just stopped me. It is so darn cute and just made me smile and made me grateful for my wonderful camera. I got this camera as a gift from my parents for Christmas last year and I LOVE it. I just noticed today that I have taken nearly 7,000 pictures just this last seven months! Are you kidding me? That is an average of 1,000 photos a month or rather 33.33 pictures a day... about. (Yea, I pulled out a calculator... for very simple math :). Okay... that's a lot of pictures right? No wonder it's a challenge to get them all downloaded all the time.

So, back to the picture I found. Here it is.

This is my parents' dog Rudi. She is still a puppy and she is not mine. But for a while I did babysit her and took a lot of pictures. She is a lot of work, because she is indeed a puppy, but so much fun too. I had her in my care for about a week in June and it was amazing how much you have to do for a dog in compared to a cat. I was sleeping on the couch for only a few hours at a time and had to keep the cats mostly oblivious that the dog was a member of the household for those few days by trapping her in one room with a sideways door. Luckily she is easy to contain being only about seven inches off of the ground. :) Puma, my bengal cat, was really the only member of the cat household that knew Rudi was ever there. Puma got a run for her money that week and it was so much fun to watch her get swatted a bit by a creature. (For those of you who don't know Puma, she is sortof a bully... and by sortof... I mean a total bully.) Bottom line, I love that dog. And I love this picture of her. Let's see how long it takes my mom to read this blog and request this picture in a larger size... I give it about a week or two. :) Yes mom, I will print this out for you. :)

In conclusion, it's great to be back. I have so much to write about and so many pictures to share. Right now they are mostly all downloaded, and right now I have the time. (Today was the last day of teaching summer camp) Hopefully I can find the time to get it all out and posted. And to those faithful blog checkers (Eryn I am talking to you)... whoever posts the first comment, gets a little gift from me... maybe one of my necklaces.... :)

Now That's What I'm Talking About

2009-03-02T23:30:00.000-08:00

Okay... so many of you don't know this, but... wait... you all know this. I hate to cook. Many of you also know that due to a Christmas morning pipe explosion at Justin's place, he has been staying with me since "Arctic Blast 2008" reared it's ugly side. It has however been everything but ugly at my house... especially in the food/dinner department. Justin enjoys the art of cooking and as a bonus, he is also very good at it. The knives had never been used much, let alone sharpened. The oven had been used only a few times, for frozen pizzas and cupcakes. I didn't have many of the cooking essentials, had never heard of panko bread crumbs (is that how you spell it?) and really... didn't even own a satisfactory cutting board in Justin's opinion. Now... my kitchen is in top cooking condition and I am loving it. Not for me to cook in, but I love knowing that it being cooked in. :) So, I guess that's all I wanted to say. I'll leave you with one more photo... of a lovely dinner.
(Hey Kathy... notice the Gatorade I tried to crop out of the picture... I promise, this was taken weeks ago... baby steps. :)

Fulfilling my promise

2009-02-24T22:44:00.000-08:00

Okay. So last night I made a promise to cyberspace that I would download and then upload at least one picture from the last months or so. So here is one of my favorites.

This is Lybbi. Most of you have never seen her. She is my elusive kitty. I bought her from a pet store about six years ago. I actually drug her out from the back of a dirty cat box. She was terrified and wouldn't dare come out to visit with the rest of the 15+ kittens also in the same space. She is frightened by nature and goes through life honestly believing that 90% of anything in sight is about to kill her. To me, this characteristic is mostly endearing. I am usually not the one she runs from. Because of this, she has a way of making me feel special in some way. In reality I'm sure the only reason is because I feed her and pick up after her, but I like to believe it's because of my kind spirit. :) Right.

The downside to Lybbi is her bathroom habits. I mostly keep this little issue quiet because frankly, it's frustrating and annoying and really it's not much to talk about. But the darn cat just refuses to use a cat box. After writing the last paragraph though, I'm starting to wonder if dragging her out of a dirty cat box just before choosing to take her home, might have something to do with it. Maybe it's some sort of ptsd or something that she carries with her. Some of you may think that is funny, but I'm serious. That cat just simply won't use a cat box... period. So how on earth does this work you ask???? Let's just say it's been a long long road finding something that works for both of us. I use a wonderful thing called puppy pads. They are easy to use... easy to clean up... and keep any smells to a minimum. I believe that most people who purchase these wonderful things, only do so for a few months... until puppy is trained to pee wherever necessary to go about life. For me... I have been buying them for about five years. It would be shocking to see what I spend on them. I think it is similar to having a baby in diapers for... well... forever. (okay probably a little cheaper... I've never had a baby in diapers. :) As for #2??? Well, that usually just ends up right on the floor... about a foot from the cat box. Seriously? Yes... seriously. So... I'm not telling you all this to gross you out and make you all think that I am dirty and crazy for tolerating this. Honestly, I figure if she continues to use the pads, it's just a compromise. And really, I just love her too much. Plus... when I look at a picture like the one above... it makes it all that much easier.

Any comments on other cat issue solutions would be very much appreciated... until then. It's business as usual. :) Aren't you all glad I decided to post a blog... especially one like this. He he... yuk. Sorry. :)

I know... it's been way too long

2009-02-23T23:33:00.000-08:00

I decided to check in on my blogs that I read this evening and really just had the guilt take over me. I haven't posted in two months! Yikes, that's embarrassing. Part of the problem is that I got a new amazing camera for Christmas, but my computer is so bogged down with crap that I'm almost scared to download the hundreds of pictures I've taken for fear that it's going to make it worse. I know that is a silly reason, but the truth none the less. I need to start a massive computer re-haul and hope that I can fix it up enough that I don't have to buy a new one just yet. I'm putting off the inevitable... I really don't want a two thousand dollar bill to pay on right now.
So, I am working on the struggle of digital image storage... what to do. Is it CD's? DVD's? A hard drive? Online storage? or is it best just to do two or three of these things and hope that at least one method won't fail you? I am one of those people that live and breathe the ability to make and capture and retain as many "memories" as possible. So now that every memory I have made for years is now just a blip on the computer, I'm consumed by the idea that my computer might one day just blow up and all would be gone. So... I just bought myself a fire/water proof Honeywell little safe for a great price and I'm thinking of storing DVD's of my pictures in there and then keep my harddrive out so that I can store them there as well and get to them easily. That is the plan for now. I'm hoping it works. I know this is a silly thing to blog about after two months, but honestly it is consuming my life right now.
So, I'm going to make a deal with you that actually still even bother to look at my boring blog... I plan to upload some of my new pictures from my new camera and will get them posted for you this week. I really like some of the new pictures I've gotten and would love to show them off. So that's the deal... download and blog. I'm working on it... I promise. :)

Holy Snow!

2008-12-21T20:33:00.000-08:00

Okay... first of all, let me tell you that this is the SECOND time that I have attempted this post. I tried to copy and paste what I had already done, but my "copy" got erased so now I have to start over. My friend Amy lives in Hawaii, and after talking to her today several times, I promised her pictures of our "Arctic Blast 2008" scene at my house. I have been taking pictures for days. I have always been a huge fan of snow. My childhood love for a snow day has shifted into a teacher's love for a snow day. This last weeks has been such a treat for me. Not because I missed school, because luckily for the most part I didn't, but because I love the peacefulness. I love be stuck here. I love the quiet, the glow off of the white, and the giggle that comes out of me each morning as I look out the window. So... Amy... here they are. Enjoy.

It started snowing last Sunday. Look at how pretty it is.
Monday morning we didn't have class because we just didn't want to risk it. Because of this, our Three-year-olds didn't get their holiday party. I know, it's very sad. For all of us. But we really didn't want anyone to hurt themselves or their cars trying to get to school so :( Tuesday was super cold, but not very snowy. Then Wednesday I woke up to this. Yippy!
Puma was loving the new sites. I was like a little kid on Wednesday morning and just couldn't help myself. Yep, I did that, in my pajamas... I made a snow angel on my back patio. :) On Thursday it was more of the same and I even had to miss a Blazer game I had tickets for :(. But on Friday I went out again and this time made a tiny snowman to start my day. Yep, I was in my pajamas for this too. He's maybe about 8 inches tall.
So then by Friday afternoon, my snowman had a little lean. We had gotten a bit more snow, but nothing like what we would be seeing.On Saturday it snowed and snowed and snowed all day long, and then it turned into freezing rain. Here's me before the rain hit... look at all the snow! I went out in the evening because there were all of these weird drifts of snow. Some were almost a foot tall. (that is a bad picture... it's at about 10 inches) Crazy. And look at my sad palm tree... wondering what the heck is going on here. I wrapped him up in a towel. Hopefully he will survive this cold.So this morning everything was covered in a sheet of ice. So now we have about 6 inches of snow, topped by about a 1/4 inch of ice and now topped again with another inch or two of snow. It was so much fun to stomp around my yard this morning. For no reason other than getting pictures and just hearing the ice crack. It was so peaceful out there this morning. There were no cars really on the road and everything is coated in a deep blanket of white. Here's the rest of my ice pictures. Each blade of grass was coated in thick ice... I should have zoomed in better. Here's my rhododendron... it looks like it's going to die. These are the berries on a tree in front of my house. I love this picture. And finally... here is my snowman today... nearly buried. I wonder how many inches we've gotten. Can you tell it doesn't snow often here? I love it!

I can't believe it's been so long...

2008-12-17T11:58:00.000-08:00

Oh my... I'm terrible at doing most computer related things on schedule. It was only about two years ago that I finally made it a routine to check my email daily. :( So... here I am... and as the snow falls creating a beautiful scene out my back patio doors, I sit with coffee in hand and a fridge with enough food to last me a week. AHHH... it feels great. School got out yesterday for me and luckily that was the case because today school was canceled and this way we were able to have our holiday parties for at least two of our three classes yesterday. I have most of my Christmas shopping done and all of the supplies I will need to craft the rest of them. My house is decorated and thankfully warm and I am feeling generally pretty peaceful. :)

I am sorry that I have done such a terrible job at keeping you all updated. For those of you who have been reading my blog you know that I have been going to an event in Eugene the last few months that is hosted by Ali Edwards (my scrapbooking idol:) and a few other wonderful ladies. Last month I went down there to be part of a "Creative Boutique" and although it was somewhat of a bust financially speaking... it was a lot of fun and the little publicity that it got still managed to get me my first sale on etsy just the other day. Yea! It was great to be able to send something off to someone's mother for a Christmas gift. It feels good to know that someone finds my creations worthy of such a thing. :)
So at the event in early November, Ali did a talk about her "December Daily Album" and it was such a treat because she did her talk to only me and one other gal. It was great to get her one on one and needless to say, I was very excited to give this album a try for this year. So, that is why I have been lacking in the blog department. I have however been documenting each and every day of December in some shape or form. Perhaps (but no promises here :) I will be able to post some very soon. I lost my memory card from my camera about a two weeks ago, so I have been a little down on digital because of the upset. It literally was just gone, removed from my camera sometime in a 24 hour period. GRRR. Hopefully, with any luck at all, it will show up, but I'm thinking it won't. I haven't remembered all that I am missing out on just yet, but each day or two I manage to remember at least one picture that I have lost. :( SO... I will try to update more soon, but for now I wanted you all to know that I am well, and that I plan to update more soon. Happy snow day!

Getting ready for the Creative Boutique

2008-10-27T22:43:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness. I have been working my tail off for a few weeks now getting ready for a little show thing that I am bringing some of my hand crafted goodies to. I have worked a little bit each day and have almost managed to reach my goal. I wanted to bring a little bit of everything that I make. I have some holiday frames, some beaded silverware, and lots and lots of my soldered pendants. I managed to finish over 50 necklaces and Justin was wonderful in assisting me to come up with some amazing packaging for them. It looks all professional and stuff. I love it.

The show is in Eugene at a lady's house that I met about a month ago. She is really fun and her, Ali Edwards (a scrapbooking genius), and two other fun gals are putting on somewhat of a garage sale/craft show that they are lovingly referring to as the "Creative Boutique". I don't know how much traffic it will attract or anything, but it's just been so fun to have a reason to get my act together and get things made! I've also set up an etsy store. For those who don't know what "etsy" is... it's a wonderful website that is sortof like an ebay for hand crafted goods. There is no serious bidding like on ebay, but you can post all handcrafted goods on there and it is amazing. I have bought on there several times and have found out how fun it is to get handmade goods as well as give them. It just makes you feel good to hold something in my hands knowing that it was crafted without machines and has minor imperfections here and there. The site is www.etsy.com and you should really check it out if you haven't already. As for finding me on there... it's possible, but I don't really have anything on there yet. The ball has started to roll, but I need another few weeks to get it totally up and running. Right now I have one, yes one, frame on there. I'll be adding much much more soon. Oh... it feels so good to get going on things like this. It's inspiring and great for me to get out there and try to make this whole thing work for me. Those of you who know me will tell you that I have tried to make a business out of crafting, but honestly, I just can't find the time to make it work. This craft show has given me a reason to get my act together, and even if I don't sell a darn thing while I'm there, I'm just thrilled that I have stuff made up and ready to go. So check me out on etsy in the next few weeks... I'm looking forward to that first sale :). It's www.creativeleighchic.etsy.com YEA!

And now I have put off my crafting for long enough... it's back to work for me in the frame room for another hour or so before bed. Yikes...

Words of clairity... from a five-year-old

2008-10-16T00:19:00.000-07:00

Okay... as you all know... I am a pre-school teacher. I think if I had to, I could find something to write about every day just from my classroom experience. Children at the ages of 3, 4, 5, and 6 are so amazing. They are still so innocent and honest. They are truly FUNNY and I can find myself fully engaged in conversation with them. They keep me grounded and remind me what is important in life. They give me pride when they accomplish even the simplest things. They still love school and their teachers. The boys are still fans of the color pink and the girls just as happy with a sequin they find on the ground as they would be about a diamond ring. It makes me feel so lucky to have this as my job. I am so blessed to have so many parents share their little ones with us several times a week and I am grateful that this is all possible due to my mom and her dedication to teaching. I am just so lucky.

So... this leads me to my reason for writing tonight. Last week I overheard a conversation with three of our five-year-old girls. One girl was telling the others in a very matter-of-fact manner that she had plans to

"go to college, pick flowers, and get married".

Just like that... life was stated in three simple steps. I chimed in and asked her...

"so you said you're going to... go to college, pick flowers, and get married?"

and she looked at me... shrugged her shoulders and said...

"Yea!"

I thought about it all day... it was just so cute... so simple... and so matter-of-fact.

So here's my question... should I just pick some flowers now?

How did I miss this?

2008-10-14T23:42:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that I went nearly 29 years without knowing how much fun football season is. This may sound silly to some people (especially most of my girlfriends:), but I live for Saturdays right now. I'm not sure if its the getting out of town, or the thrill of the competition, or maybe it's just because I get Justin's company for a complete two days. The bottom line is that I just love it. I'm so lucky that Justin's family has taken me in as a part of this family tradition. I am an adopted Duck and I'm loving every minute of it. I think I even understand the game of football now. I spent every football game in high school either talking to friends, dancing on the field at half time, or just cheering whenever everyone else did. :) In college I went to one football game to watch a friend of mine play... when he hadn't played at all by the forth quarter, we left. He then proceeded to make a huge play at the very end of the game and we missed it all :(... not that I would have known what to cheer for :). I never really got it at all... I knew there was a quarterback, but I didn't know what that meant. I didn't even know that there was a defensive team and an offensive team. What? There's two different sets of players on the field? Who knew? Today I enjoy football. I actually enjoy the game more than the tailgating. It's great to have another team to cheer for... another reason to feel competitive... and I love the quality time with Justin and his family. It's just another reason that my life is so good right now... one of many reasons. :)

What is it about the rain?

2008-10-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I feel a little different than most people. Here's my little secret... I love the rain. I do... I enjoy the sound of it waking me up on my skylight at night. I love the smell of it as it falls and I enjoy the smell of it evaporating from the earth even more. Even this morning... when a group of us are meeting to do some yard work for a dear friend... I'm still loving the rain. I can hear the gusts of wind at my windows and see the tree branches bouncing around and the leaves flying across the lawn. In only an hour, I'll be out there too... fighting the wind and the rain drops on my glasses. But for now... I am warm... with coffee in hand and the heater cranking out the warmth... I think that's why I love this weather so much. It reminds me how lucky I am... to have a cozy place to be and feel at peace. I'll probably have to post again. AFTER my day in the lovely wind and rain. But for now I'm in great spirits. I'm looking forward to an outdoor adventure with friends and the fun we will have together. Happy Fall!

A little heritage...

2008-09-21T23:16:00.000-07:00

So... how's this for interesting? I'll cut to the chase here... the baby in the picture is my grandfather who passed away several years ago. The guy holding the baby is my great-grandfather, and the man in the hat is my great-great grandfather. This summer I went to a scrapbooking retreat type of event and it got me really looking at my old and my family's old pictures. This picture is one that I got from my grandma on my last visit to their house while my grandpa was still alive. She knows that I love pictures and had recently had many of the old heritage photos scanned and placed onto CD. This picture has been sitting in my computer for years and I haven't gotten a good look at it in a while. How amazing is it that this picture is in such great shape? I can't believe how much my great-grandpa looks like my grandpa... or even my dad for that matter. It is so strange to think that this baby is going to become a doctor who cares for people in time of war. It is also so strange that this is the same guy I know to be my grandpa. Heritage is such a mind boggling thing for me. I really don't know much... I'd love to learn more. This picture can tell so many stories... I'm just sure of it. Where are they? Who took the picture? What did that camera look like? And who could I talk to today that could give me some answers? I'm going to have to work on this a bit. This is just yet another reason I love pictures and scrapbooking.

Yep... that's my guy

2008-09-18T23:05:00.000-07:00

This picture is what is going to inspire me tonight. I uploaded this about a month ago and cruised right by it... then the other day I stopped and really looked it. This is Justin and his nephew Landon. I love this picture because of the looks on both of their faces. They both look thoroughly amused and genuinely happy. I noticed Justin first... he looks like he's laughing and enjoying every moment of his job here... but later I caught the look in Landon's eye. It's just that look of joy... and admiration for his Uncle Justin. So darn cute. Justin got nominated to paint faces at his niece's birthday carnival... Landon wanted to be a cow... so Justin willingly turned him into a cow. :) Such a simple chain of events that helped me to capture this amazing moment on film. Love it.

A happy photo

2008-09-13T00:13:00.001-07:00

Go Ducks! Looking forward to tomorrow's game. Plus... I needed a pick-me-up after that last blog entry.

My biggest fear

2008-09-12T23:44:00.000-07:00

So I just got home from a long day/night at work to find 8 fire trucks, 3 ambulances, several police cars, Clark Public Utilities vehicles, some weird red fire bus, and many other utility vehicles one block away from my house. The air smelled of smoke & fire and there were people milling around everywhere. It was an amazingly frightening sight to come home to. I have NEVER seen so many flashing lights in one place in my life. I walked down to the scene and found out that there was a house fire... obviously a large one... that had started in an attic and had only been out for minutes when I had arrived.

I have feared the idea of a house fire my entire life. My mom had a fire in her apartment when she was in college and I have always heard about how devastating it can be. I think about all of the things in my house that I love and cherish. I've got so many pictures, memorabilia, and sheer scrapbooking and crafting product that it would just devastate me. Not to mention my cats :( Oh... I feel so badly for the family involved and only hope that no one was injured.

It is one of those moments that reminds you to:
make sure you have insurance
make sure that candle in the other room gets blown out
unplug that computer charger that seems to spark a little whenever you plug it in (yes... I have one like this)
take care of any sketchy wiring in you house
for the love of god, keep your smoke detector batteries working and appreciate when it starts to beep relentlessly at 4am
and finally... just be prepared

So, my neighbor just knocked on my door and informed me that not only did we have that fire here in the cul-de-sac next to us tonight, but there was a house fire only a couple more blocks over right near Mt. View earlier today and a car had crashed right in front of that cul-de-sac also earlier today and caught fire as well. Wow.

I've got to stop thinking about all of this... so, with the news of hurricane Ike hitting Texas at any moment broadcasting on my tv and the sounds of sirens ringing in the air... I'm going to try to catch some zzzz's after a chapter or two of Harry Potter. What a week.

A look back... circa 1982ish

2008-09-11T21:59:00.000-07:00

So today I thought I'd get a little more thoughtful in this whole blogging thing. I've been sitting down to write a little something at nearly midnight each night and I'm often concerned about getting to bed... tonight I've got a bit of time to reflect so here it goes.

I was scanning photos and came across this one. My brother and I circa 1982ish. It gives me such a cozy feeling inside. Not because I remember this day or anything... but maybe because I don't. :) I have no idea where we are or what we are doing. My mom could probably fill you in, but I'm not so sure that's necessary. Please look at my shoes and my brother's socks. They are amazing. Not to mention Kevin's arm lovingly placed around my shoulder. :) This is a day before two more little sisters... back when it was just us. Like I said, I was too young to have any real vivid memories of these times, but I do remember just loving my big brother and wanting to do everything with him and his friends.

I have the best memories of playing baseball with the boys in our cul-de-sac until it got dark out. To this day I think you could take me back there and I could show you where all the bases were... and the pitcher's mound. :)

This picture makes me feel loved all over again by him and I just love it. My siblings and I are very fond of eachother... but we don't call eachother for no reason or talk too much about daily life. That is perhaps something we should all work on... And unfortunately, now that my brother and I are getting older and finally have more to talk about, he now lives all the way across the country in Florida. I miss him not being here and hope that someday he will decide to move his family back out this way. Until then, I look forward to holidays and summer visits with him, Amanda, and those two amazing girls of his. More on them another day... but for now... here is my favorite picture of them... so cute!!!

Yep... I'm lucky

2008-09-11T00:03:00.001-07:00

Okay... so I have always struggled with finding the right guy... a nice guy... one who will always treat me with respect and never give me a reason to be angry. I've found him. And although he is not always forthcoming with his thoughts, I know that he loves me by the way he treats me and makes me feel. (Not to say that hearing it more often wouldn't be nice sometimes... in case you (Justin) are reading this)

So... Justin isn't huge on surprises or gifts for no reason... but today he surprised me. I just bought a huge new t.v. on Monday and while I was at school today he bought and hooked up a fancy dvd player with all the trimmings for me. It was such a nice treat to come home to and I'm just so excited to watch a movie and enjoy the show. Thank you Justin for the lovely surprise... It was so nice of you :). Some girls go for jewlery... all I need are some fancy electronics. :)

Tuesday nights

2008-09-09T23:34:00.000-07:00

I truly think that I hate Tuesday nights even more than I hate my Wednesday. Wednesday should be the worse of two evils because I work about 15 hours and have a very little break... but there is just something about knowing that it's coming that just seems worse. Tuesday night means making sure everything is taken care of that needs to be done until Thursday evening. It means everything should be cleaner and more organized than it needs to be any other night that I finally go to bed. It means my clothes need to be chosen wisely, that my apron needs to be located (and clean), and it means the dishwasher should be run, the cat boxes need to be cleaned out, emails should be answered, and anything I need done for the weekend needs to be thought out and in the beginning processes NOW. Geez... just think what my list will look like if I ever have a child to worry about too... this list will look silly. That's probably all that you folks with children were thinking already anyways. :) Well... for me... Tuesday nights are terrible. At least on Wednesday it's just go go go... good thing I love teaching and at least like the people I work with at the restaurant. Otherwise... Wednesday may win as the worst time in my week.

Okay... It's day two...

2008-09-08T23:43:00.000-07:00

So... I promised that I would post another blog tonight so here I am. I think I might have convinced another person to start up a blog too. She at least has a child to tell stories about, but I am already hooked and the more the merrier! I think she's going to love it. I love reading my friends' blogs. It is such a treat to get a day to day look at their life when we are too busy to talk to eachother on a day to day basis. I'm hoping to use this as somewhat of a creative journal and a way to update those who want to know what I do that requires two crafting rooms :).

This last weekend I was in Eugene for a football game on Saturday and managed to find a scrapbooking gathering to attend after the game. I was lucky enough to meet up with my scrapbooking idol Ali Edwards (she's got a very inspiring blog... I have to figure out how to link it to mine so you can check it out) and a few of her friends. I think there were ten of us there. We got to create a little something and just sit and visit for a few hours. It was so great to have some face time with Ali and have to opportunity to flip through some of her very own amazing scrapbooks. I know it sounds silly to some that a scrapbooker could be so high on my list of idols, but it's true. She is a very real, very talented, and very inspiring person and I consider myself very lucky to have been able to spend time with her.

The next day was Sunday and the same set of ladies had a field trip scheduled for the Coburg Antique Fair which was really a lot of fun. I ended up going with Justin's mom rather than them, but I did find what I was looking for. In one of the books Ali Edwards has written, she had a picture of a piece of wall art that she created out of an old antique type-set drawer. Well... after hours of looking, I found one. It's huge, heavy, dirty, and I'm sorta overwhelmed by the thought that I could ever create something truly hangable... but I'm going to try. Justin came over and helped me out by removing some of the extra dividers in the drawer so that I can fit bigger things. I'll upload some before and after photos when I am finished. Here's to hoping I will succeed in making something useful.

Well... Monday night football, teaching a full day of class, having a broken air conditioner, and purchasing my first 42'' flat screen tv today had totally tuckered me out. Maybe I'll attempt to add a picture to my blog tomorrow. That's the goal.

Wow... I did it!

2008-09-08T00:29:00.000-07:00

Okay... so I've wanted to do this for a while, but let's be honest... the idea of blogging... without any children to talk about... just seemed a little silly to me. Then I realized that I was thinking about it way to often not to just go ahead and do it. So... if you care about what I'm up to... my current projects at home or in my (two) crafting rooms... then you can read my posts. Otherwise... this will just be for me. :)

I've already missed my bedtime by deciding to do this, so for now... it's off to bed. I've got to start week two of the new school year rested. I'll (with any luck) post again tomorrow.